Mission: Across the street and across the world

In this piece, mission organisation OMF International UK provides en readers with an update on its work.

The worker bee has represented Manchester’s hardworking spirit since the Industrial Revolution. In keeping with that spirit, OMF UK has been a hive of activity as we moved our office from Kent to Manchester in 2025.

It has been a time of significant change, with the relocation and many new colleagues joining us. The primary reason for the move is to be at the heart of an ethnically and culturally diverse city, with new opportunities to serve the Lord of the harvest field. The Manchester office is right next to Chinatown, the second largest in the UK, and surrounded by people from across the world.

Intercultural mission

Sending cross-cultural workers to East Asia continues to be a strategic priority for us. Alongside this, we are placing growing emphasis on intercultural church and mission in the UK.

A multicultural community may have many different cultures represented; however, each may feel they must leave their distinctiveness at the door in order to fit in. An intercultural community encourages all to contribute from the treasures of their own cultures and life experiences.

Intercultural community intentionally fosters a culture where all are heard and can form deep relationships of mutual dependence (Colossians 3v13–14).

In an intercultural ministry, diversity is seen as an asset to be nurtured, enriching the church. This approach is particularly important for OMF to embrace for two reasons:

1. First, and most importantly, because we believe this is a Biblical approach. The whole story of the Bible climaxes in God’s heart and will being displayed when the Kingdom comes in all its fullness and we see His intercultural people worshipping Jesus in unity and diversity (Revelation 7v9). These are the people Jesus died for, destroying the worldly barriers between them and creating "one new humanity" (Ephesians 2v15). The church from its birth was made up of people of different ethnicities and backgrounds reconciled to each other and seeking to embody what had been achieved through Christ’s blood (Ephesians 2v11–22). The means and objectives of our ministries need to reflect this.
2. Second, because it is the posture we need as we seek to envision and engage with today’s UK and Ireland church in mission. When 25 per cent of the evangelical church and 15 per cent of the general population in the UK (higher in Ireland) are of ethnic minority heritage, we need an approach to mission that is "across the street and across the world." Not just mission "to" people of other nations, but "among" and "alongside," and even a willingness to receive "from" those of different cultural backgrounds.

As OMF pursues this in new ways and to new depths, we trust the Lord will raise up many new partners in the gospel for us. This was explored further at the Intercultural Church and City Transformation Gathering in Manchester, which we participated in at the start of February.

We look forward to Christians from diverse backgrounds joining and blessing us, contributing their gifts and insights as, together, we continue sharing the good news of Jesus in all its fullness with the peoples of East Asia, across the street and across the world.

If you’d like to delve deeper into what intercultural mission looks like, or find out how you can get involved, visit our website where you can access courses, newsletters and podcasts on this topic: omf.org/uk/intercultural

This article has been published as part of en's 'Updates from the Mission Field' online column, which sees contributions from various mission organisations.