Diaspora ministry in Detroit
Metro Detroit is a mosaic of people and cultures: South Asian Indians in Farmington, Chinese in Madison Heights, Arabs in Dearborn, Bangladeshi in Hamtramck, and Japanese in Novi. Each culture brings restaurants, grocery stores, customs and beliefs. Many of these immigrants come from areas of the world where there is little access to the gospel and belong to people groups considered by missiologists as unreached or least-reached.
SEND International is committed to reaching unreached people groups throughout North America with the gospel and seeing culturally appropriate churches develop that can minister to these communities both here and abroad.
We envision our Metro Detroit work as a collection of teams working with different unreached people groups throughout the area and coaching churches to reach the immigrants around them. Currently, we have teams working with two distinct people groups.
Central Asian Team
Central Asians are rather new to Detroit. In 2017, our team first met a Central Asian family while teaching English in an Arab-dominated community. Over time, the number of Central Asian immigrants and refugees has continued to increase to the point where the team has decided to focus on them.
Central Asians in Metro Detroit face difficulty because they are often placed in Arabic-speaking neighborhoods by resettlement agencies when they arrive, although they do not speak Arabic. One family in dismay said to us that they feel like they are living in the Middle East and not in America. This cultural difference, though often unnoticed by Americans, is very real and often leads to prejudice and racism. Focusing on this community allows our team to create value and meet unique needs for these people.
The team’s desire is to serve Central Asians in love, to help them explore who Jesus is, and to see vibrant, reproducing churches develop. The team is building relationships with this group through English programs as well as one-on-one tutoring and meeting people’s practical needs. Through these relationships and programs, students are able to improve their English, which allows them to get better jobs, deepen their connection to their local community and not feel isolated.
These programs also provide opportunities for students to build relationships with Americans who can help them with other issues they face in their American experience, as well as just be a friend. Through these relationships, our team is sharing Biblical truth and praying that God would bless them with the fullness of life that only he can offer.
South Asian Team
In many of the suburbs surrounding Detroit, God is bringing young, professional South Asian Indians to come work in the growing healthcare and information technology fields. In fact, the population of South Asian Indians in Metro Detroit quadrupled from 1990 to 2004. This has led many communities to see Indian restaurants and grocery stores emerge as well as the building of Hindu temples.
This group of Hindu and secular professionals has been on our hearts and in our prayers for some time, and we are excited that a new team is launching to love and share the gospel in this community. Currently, our team leader is getting to know the community better so that he can see their needs and how the gospel may best flow through this community. Pray that God will give us wisdom, direction, and people of peace as we join with what God is doing in this community.
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Additional Posts
Choosing a Missions Organization: Why SEND International Stands Out “Why should I be a missionary through SEND International?” Jenna, a new missionary in Eastern Europe, shared with us what she appreciates about working with SEND. The highlights for her are: - Devotion to prayer - Diligence in communication - Commitment to development - Intentionality in accountability Prayer “Back in September of 2022, the Lord reconnected me with SEND after I had met them a year prior at the Moody Bible Institute. However, before he would sign me up for anything, my Missions Coach encouraged me to pray. He said something to the effect of, "I know that you've been praying on your own for a long time. But as the Church, we are not called to walk alone. So, you and I won't talk for about a month unless you have questions. I want you to go pray with 5 or 6 others from your church about where God is calling you." That October, more than 10 friends prayed with me and we saw God answer as He directed me to Romania. From February 2024 to November 2025, I had the pleasure of being a part of team meetings in Romania with my SEND colleagues. Our meetings were four hours long, two for prayer and two for business. This has been the minimum for our team. There are also prayer meetings with the local churches we partner with, among smaller groups within our team, of course prayer with many of you across the pond, including those at our US office. The organization was built, has been sustained, and continues to run on prayer. This is my favorite thing about SEND. Communication As I mentioned above, we have a two hour block for business / ministry details in each of our meetings. This provides consistency across our team which works alongside three different churches and in a variety of ministries. It also helps us to communicate about the need for change or growth, alongside what is working well. In addition, my team director also meets with each of us, allowing us to communicate needs, considerations, and prayer requests. I've also enjoyed getting to work with SEND workers outside of my immediate region . We receive emails with the minutes from the Europe leadership team, Friday communications from our international director, and information regarding projects that affect our work among the unreached. In December of 2024, our international director at the time wrote a note to my parents for the first Christmas that I was gone. If nothing else had convinced my mom yet, this did. He took the time to care for me, but also to care well for the parents that were sending me (What it meant to my dad and mom for him to do this well has been one of the greatest ways I've been supported.). I also have some pretty wonderful regional directors. These people have prayed alongside us (while also serving in their own countries of service), they have taken time to come visit and encourage our team, and they have also taken the time to encourage the people in our churches. Development SEND has provided much in the area of development and care (spiritually, physically, mentally, and emotionally). At our regional conference (every three years), there have been medical check ups available, counseling options, and time for connecting with others on the field with similar experience. At our conference last October, I connected with a missionary who served overseas for many years, and is now serving on the administrative side of SEND. She has met with me since then for mentorship and has also invested much of her time recently in preparing a retreat for the singles across Europe. Accountability Over the years I have read and heard amazing stories of how God has worked through missionaries. God has done great things and great things He is still doing! However, people who have committed their lives to the Lord in this way are not “super Christians”. We are still humans with the same struggle against flesh that others have . A major challenge is in being isolated -- living in areas with little to no presence of other believers to sharpen them can cause many difficulties. SEND has been a great resource in this area too. Through my team, I have an accountability partner that I meet with monthly. When my regional director came to visit, he and his wife spent a day with me and asked intentional questions about how I lead, handle conflict, and how I am growing in general as a Christian. In addition, my teammates share their wisdom with me on a regular basis. These things and more have assured me that SEND International is a highly valuable organization and I'm excited to partner with them in service to, for, and with our great God! Interested in being sent by SEND?
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