What is Missions?

A testimonial from an Alaska Mission

What is missions? Is it traveling to a faraway country to preach the gospel? Is it building homes or churches? Is it spending time with children at an orphanage? While these are all beautiful expressions of missions, they are often only what first comes to mind when we hear the word "missions".

At its core, missions is loving your neighbor as yourself (The Gospel of Mark 12:31). Before asking, "Where is God calling me to go?" perhaps we should first ask, "Am I being a missionary to my neighbor and to the people God places in my path each day?"

We just returned from a mission trip to Alaska, where we had the privilege of serving the Belmore family as they prepare to step into God's next calling in overseas missions.

What stood out most was not simply their willingness to go to another nation—it was how faithfully they have already lived as missionaries right where they are. They have intentionally loved their neighbors, invested in college students, and served their community through everyday relationships.

During the week we spent working on their home, we had the opportunity to witness their life firsthand. We saw neighbors who genuinely love them, college students who respect and value their influence, and local business owners who were far more than familiar faces—they were people with names, stories, and relationships. The Belmores have taken the time to know people, listen to them, care for them, and point them to Christ through both their words and their lives.

It was an honor to witness faith lived out in such an authentic and intentional way. Their lives are a beautiful reminder that missions doesn't begin when you board a plane—it begins wherever God has placed you today.