From the mission field: Serving as regional business manager

Sean McHugh, business manager for The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod (LCMS) Eurasia region, completed missionary orientation with his wife, Hanna, in November 2025. The McHughs will deploy this month for Brasov, Romania, which will serve as their home base for their missionary service. They recently shared the following update (edited for this space) with their support network.

By Sean McHugh

When I think about the work God has entrusted to us in Eurasia, I don’t begin with budgets, logistics or strategic plans. I begin with the people — men, women and children scattered across a vast region who are hearing the Gospel, many for the first time, and discovering that Christ has come for them.

Every day, in one way or another, I get to support missionaries whose lives intersect with stories of redemption that only the Holy Spirit could write. As business manager, my role is to ensure that these missionaries can remain in the field — that budgets are met, needs are supplied and resources reach those who carry the Gospel. I steward spreadsheets, invoices and logistical plans, but in every line item I see a face: a Persian catechumen, a Romanian confirmand, a Mongolian student, a Ukrainian mother, a Kyrgyz believer, a Spanish seeker rediscovering the beauty of Christ’s grace.

The three pillars that guide the Synod’s international mission work — Spread the Gospel, Plant Lutheran Churches and Show Mercy — are not abstract strategies. They are the lived experience of God’s people across Eurasia. Every baptism, every translation of Scripture, every theological class, every church plant and every act of mercy testifies to one truth: Christ is at work. Christ is building His church. And we, together, get to be part of it.

As Hanna and I look back on completing LCMS missionary orientation in the fall of 2025, one theme rises above all the others: God calls every one of us, right where we are, to take part in sharing the Gospel. This calling isn’t only for those who cross oceans. It’s for the entire Body of Christ. Some are sent to serve in other countries, learning new languages and navigating new cultures. Others serve from home — through prayer, financial support, sending encouragement and sharing the stories of what God is doing across the globe. Still others are missionaries in their workplaces, classrooms and neighborhoods.

Every one of these roles matters. Everyone is part of God’s mission. Everyone makes it possible for the Gospel to reach people who may never have heard it before.