Meet an Agency: WorldVenture

We’re geared up to bring you a new, ongoing series as a little meet-and-greet with organizations that can help you go there, serve Him, and love them even better. (For more thoughts about why you might join an agency–and a handful of reasons you might not–make sure to check out He Said/She Said/You Say? “Should I go overseas with an organization?”, both the pros and the cons.)

Today, say you’ve pulled up a chair for a cup of coffee with a representative from WorldVenture. 

Tell us briefly what your agency specializes in. What are you passionate about?

At WorldVenture, our vision is to see multitudes of disciples compelled by the love of God and willing to risk all so that people are transformed by God, impacting their families, communities, and world.

Because of this, our global workers serve in a wide variety of ministries: church planting, business, education, health & medicine, and more. We believe that whatever skills, gifts, or passion God’s given you, there’s a place for that in His Kingdom work!

How long have you been around, and how large is your organization?

WorldVenture began as a prayer meeting in 1943. Seventy-five years later, we’re still committed to bringing the love of God to the nations.

In what countries are your global workers located?

Today, we have 500+ global workers in over 60 countries!

Tell us one story that excites you from what your organization is doing.

One great story comes from one of our short-termers, Matt, who served in the Philippines:

On one occasion, at one of the homes in the mountains, Pastor B (I’ll call him) and I were we were teaching four elderly people about how to grow their relationship with Christ.

Then, two high school boys came in, so I gave them copies of the worksheet we were working with. They ran off into a room of the house where they couldn’t be seen. After sometime, two more boys ran into that room, so I followed them in. I found them huddled around these papers listening to Pastor B and trying to answer the questions.

As I proceeded to help them, two more high school boys came and joined! With six high schoolers around me, we finished the worksheet. Then I shared my testimony and further explained the Gospel.

God’s timing is so great, allowing me this opportunity to witness six young men choose to give their lives to Christ!

Describe your organization’s culture in five words.

• Creative
• Holistic
• Family
• Incarnational
• Field-Driven

What’s distinctive about your agency?

WorldVenture is passionate about discipleship and that applies to short-termers as well. Once endorsed, our short-termers are guided by their pre-field mentor through our pre-field training.

Tell us about your application and training process.

When you let us know you’re interested in serving with WorldVenture, a missions coach will get in touch with you to help figure out if WorldVenture is a good fit for you, and if you’re ready to apply.

Once you and your missions coach have agreed we’re a good fit, your application coordinator will walk you through the entire process of applying to serve.

The application for Pathfinders (1 month-1 year term of service) typically takes 2-4 weeks to complete. When your application is cleared and you’re endorsed to serve, you’ll begin support raising and pre-field training. A mission mentor will provide one-on-one support to guide you through the pre-field process, helping equip you for the journey ahead. This all takes about 3 months or so.

Once you have completed pre-field training and finished raising support, you’ll be on your way!

For those looking to serve as a Global Apprentice (1-2 years) or longer, there are additional steps to appointment with WorldVenture. Your mission coach is here to help you figure out the right steps for you.

What kind of global workers are you looking for?

Global workers with WorldVenture should have a growing relationship with Jesus Christ. Some of the key characteristics we look for in goers include

• a servant’s heart
• a desire to learn how to effectively share the Gospel in a cross-cultural ministry context
• a willingness to live communally and serve sacrificially
• flexibility
• adaptability

WorldVenture’s history is in the Baptist tradition, yet today our staff and missionaries come from many like-minded evangelical Christian backgrounds. Still, goers with WorldVenture must agree with WorldVenture’s doctrinal statement.

WorldVenture also sees itself as a partner with your sending church, so we also look for individuals who are active in a local church.

What are characteristics that cause you concern in an applicant?

Serving cross-culturally means dealing with new situations and inevitably, stress.

So it’s a red flag to us if someone has a lack of self-awareness: not knowing what their personal strengths or weaknesses are, or how they encounter and deal with stress. Having a healthy self-awareness is really critical for navigating the challenges of cross-cultural life and ministry.

And while we don’t require specific previous ministry experience, it does concern us to see an applicant with no previous involvement in ministry or their local church. Living out the Great Commission and Great Commandment should start right where we are in our own communities. If you aren’t currently involved in your church or ministry locally where you speak the language and know the culture, it’s not going to be easier to live and serve in a place where you have to learn language and culture from scratch.

It also helps us find a good field fit when we can talk through what you are passionate about and where you enjoy serving currently!

What advice would you give to someone considering going overseas?

• Develop a robust prayer life.
• Pray before you go, on-field, and after you return home.
• Be flexible.
• The path to serving cross-culturally brings many curves, but God’s guiding you.
• Develop a servant’s heart.
• Learn to submit to others in the love of Christ.

Got other questions you’d love us to ask agencies on your behalf?

Let us know in the comment section below!

Like this post? You might like

• How Ready am I? Self-Assessments for Global Work
• Start Here: Expanding your Heart for the Nations Where You’re At (Ideas #1-10)
• our Hands-on Adventures tab
• He Said/She Said. You Say? “How can I know if God’s calling/leading me overseas?” Part I and Part II
• He Said/She Said/You Say? “Should I go overseas with an organization?” Part I and Part II;