I once asked a simple question in a room full of committed Romanian Christians: “How many of you have seriously considered going as mission workers?” The silence that followed stayed with me.
These were believers who loved the Lord and served faithfully, yet for most, the idea of going themselves had never really occurred to them.
Over time, through similar conversations, I have found myself wrestling with a growing question. Romania has a strong evangelical presence compared to much of Europe, yet it sends relatively few long-term mission workers. At the same time, large numbers of Romanians readily leave for work abroad, often stepping into unfamiliar cultures and languages. I continue to wonder why this same willingness so rarely becomes willingness for cross- cultural mission. How might that connection be made?
There are, of course, understandable reasons. The Romanian church has come through a difficult history, particularly under communism, and much of the past decades have rightly focused on rebuilding and strengthening local congregations. The partnership and support of believers from other nations has also been deeply significant.
Yet there is a growing sense that something more may be needed. What does it mean for Romania not only to be blessed, but to be a blessing?
That question quickly becomes practical. What does a call look like? Who should go? How should they be prepared? And how do churches move from supporting mission in principle to actually sending people?
This is where I serve with Kairos Mission School and Kairos Agency, led by Romanian believers who carry this vision. My role has been to come alongside their work, helping to train those exploring mission and supporting the sending process.
The school focuses on formation and preparation, while the agency oversees long-term care and sending. Together, they provide a pathway to move people from initial interest to a more tested and defined sense of calling.
More people are asking serious questions about calling …
We remain small, with around 40 mission workers connected to the agency and a small team supporting them. Much of the work is steady and unseen, but small shifts are becoming visible. More people are asking serious questions about calling, and more churches are beginning to consider what it might mean to send from within their own congregations.
One example is Călin and Beatrice, a Romanian couple now serving in the Amazon region of Peru. Călin grew up in the diaspora after his parents left Romania for work. After returning, marrying, and starting a family, mission was not an obvious direction. But during a visit to his parents’ church, where I was speaking on mission, he sensed a growing conviction – not simply to follow his parents’ path of leaving for economic reasons, but to go for the sake of the gospel. Together with Beatrice, he began to take that call seriously. After training at Kairos Mission School, they sensed a clear direction to serve in the Amazon and were eventually sent to Atalaya, where they now live with their three children, travelling into surrounding jungle communities.
Their story reflects what can happen when churches patiently walk with people as they discern, prepare, and are sent.
The ongoing challenge is helping believers move from agreement with mission in principle to personal willingness to consider going. That step takes time, teaching, and patient conversation. Yet quietly, something is beginning to shift within the Romanian church itself.
Please pray that Romanian churches would grow in confidence in God’s global mission, and that those He is calling would be faithfully prepared and sent.
Andy and Anca Worsop serve with Kairos Mission School in Romania.
Photos: (Banner) Andy teaching at Kairos Mission School (Top) Andy speaking at a Kairos Conference in Bucharest