In February of 2020, Gustavo Borges of Tent Brazil and Ari Rocklin of Global Intent traveled to southern Spain to investigate the possibility of starting a permanent tentmaker training and retreat center.

Stage one was to meet with as many people as possible to seek out potential partnerships. Stage two was to look for a physical base where these courses and tentmaker retreats could be held. There is a growing need for a place for active tentmakers to visit for vacations and breaks, where they can be restored without security concerns. It also needs to be close to a major airport with good ground transportation.

We have helped hundreds of tentmakers get ready, equipped, and launched to go to unreached and often unsafe countries. As we track with them, we have come to realize where tentmakers are in the most danger. You would be surprised to learn that it is not out there among unstable nations and hostile people. I’ve been doing this ministry full-time since 1998, and since then four tentmakers have died in car accidents upon returning to their home countries.

Why do you think this is? We don’t know, but one reason could be simply that they are accustomed to vastly different road rules, or no rules at all, and have mastered driving in those conditions. However, upon coming home there are strict rules—like red lights, which actually do not mean “slow down and look” but that you must come to a full stop. Driving on the left side of the road for a few years and then coming home to drive on the right side and hitting another car head-on was one of the accidents that claimed a tentmaker’s life only a few days after returning home. He was on his way to his church to share his story.

expat – a person taking up residency in another country.  

Being with other expats brings much joy.  This joy gives a sense of normalcy, community, security, and familiarity. But in the midst of the host nation culture  it can become an obstacle to ministry. It may remove you from opportunities to learn and interact with local people. This as you well know, is the reason you have come.

The more expats you get to know, the more invitations you will receive to special occasions.  Their birthdays, anniversaries, and holiday celebrations start eating away at your non-work time.  One day you realize (I hope) that almost all your free time is now spent away from local people.

Spending time with people from cultures similar to your own easily becomes your safe haven. It lets you escape the realities  and challenges of being with local people.  It takes you away from people of your host nation and coworkers from other nations.  But these are the very people who do not have access to the Gospel in their homelands.

Most tentmakers go abroad without taking any targeted training that would help them avoid pitfalls and learn to see the opportunities for sharing their faith in restricted countries. There are excellent classroom courses in an increasing number of countries (as reported in last months Tentmaking Today), but in reality, professional people struggle with getting time off to attend these intensive class room courses.

A fair question is, would people watch these classroom lectures online in a sound bite world? I am confident that tentmakers who find themselves overwhelmed and discouraged in the field, will seek out these videos.

Here are some highlights on videos available right now.