If we’re honest, most of us like the exciting parts of missions.

Stories of open doors, miraculous provision, church plants, baptisms, and people coming to Christ are easy to celebrate and share. They make great prayer letters, social media posts, and missions conference presentations.

But there is another side to missionary life that doesn’t always make it onto the screen:
sickness, loss, danger, betrayal, discouragement, exhaustion, and deep inner pressure.

So why talk about that side? Why walk into the “dark chapters” of missions?

Because suffering is normal—on and off the field

One of the surprising realizations in class was this: the kinds of suffering we often associate with “the mission field” are actually human suffering.

• People die unexpectedly in America and in Africa.
• Marriages struggle in Peru and in Pennsylvania.
• Doctors give bad news in Asia and in Atlanta.
• Anxiety and depression show up in missionary houses and in church pews.

The mission field doesn’t invent suffering. But it does often intensify it:

• Less access to medical care
• Unfamiliar diseases and environments
• Political unrest and instability
• Distance from family and support
• Cultural stress and spiritual opposition

If we send people to the nations with a “missions is one long honeymoon” mindset, we shouldn’t be shocked when they’re blindsided and come home early.

Because missionary attrition is real

There are many factors, but it’s not an exaggeration to say that in some contexts:

More missionaries are leaving the field than going to the field.

That’s a big problem when we remember:

• Whole cities, regions, people groups still have no clear gospel witness.
• Countries that seem “evangelized” still have massive unreached pockets.
• Even in smaller nations, there are neighborhoods of hundreds of thousands with no solid gospel-preaching church.

We don’t just need more missionaries.

We need missionaries who are prepared to last.

And part of that preparation is telling the truth about suffering.

Because the Bible is honest about difficulty

Open your Bible, and you don’t find sanitized ministry.

You find:

• Stephen stoned.
• John the Baptist beheaded.
• Peter imprisoned.
• Paul beaten, shipwrecked, hunted, slandered, hungry, cold, and burdened with “the care of all the churches” (2 Corinthians 11).

From the New Testament to church history to our own day, the pattern is clear:

Gospel advance is almost always written in the ink of sacrifice and suffering.

If our missions training and mobilization don’t reflect that, we aren’t being biblical.

Because suffering doesn’t mean “you shouldn’t be there”

This is important.

If we confuse difficulty with a closed door, we’ll never stay anywhere long:

• First sickness? “Maybe God is telling us to leave.”
• First financial hardship? “Maybe this isn’t God’s will.”
• First serious conflict or discouragement? “Maybe we missed His leading.”

Yes, sometimes God does redirect.

But very often, He grows us through the hardship, not around it.

We usually see God’s leading most clearly in hindsight, not in the moment of pain.

Because we want you to be ready

We’re not talking about suffering in missions so that you’ll be scared away.

We’re talking about it so that when:

• tragedy hits your family,
• your health takes a surprising turn,
• the ministry you poured yourself into fractures,
• or the emotional weight feels crushing,

you won’t think, “This means God has abandoned us” or “We must have been crazy to come.”

Instead, you’ll be able to say:

“We knew difficulty was part of this calling.
Jesus is still worth it.
Let’s seek wisdom, lean on our support systems, and trust Him to carry us.”

In the rest of this series, we’re going to look at:

• real stories of loss on the field,
• the tension between sacrifice and wisdom,
• the emotional weight of “the care of all the churches,”
• and practical ways to discern when to stay, when to adjust, and when it may truly be time to leave.

My prayer is simple: that you won’t just go to the field, but that by God’s grace—you’ll stay.

Reflection Questions

When you picture “missions,” what images or emotions come to your mind first—adventure, sacrifice, fear, excitement? Why?

How has your view of suffering in missions changed (or been challenged) by this article?

Why do you think it’s important to talk honestly about hardship before someone goes to the field?

What are some concrete ways churches can prepare future missionaries to face suffering without becoming cynical or scared?

If you sensed God leading you to a difficult place, what would be your biggest fear—and how might you bring that fear honestly to God?