September 15, 2026
In Muslim-majority nations, CEF® SPAN™ continually reaches the next generation
Fred Pry, vice president of administration for CEF: ‘SPAN support gives these workers the stability to remain focused on their calling’
ST. LOUIS — Around the world, millions of children live in communities that offer little opportunity to hear about Jesus. While national missionaries are uniquely equipped to reach these children, those workers can struggle to raise enough support to sustain their ministry.
To help meet that need, Child Evangelism Fellowship® (CEF®) developed Sponsor-A-National™ (SPAN™), a special fund for many CEF missionaries serving in their own countries. By providing crucial financial support, SPAN allows workers to care for their families while devoting their attention to sharing the Gospel with children.
“The people best positioned to reach children in these communities are believers who already call those places home,” said Fred Pry, vice president of administration for CEF. “They know the language, understand the culture, and have relationships within the community. Most importantly, they know and love Jesus and have a passion for sharing Him with the next generation.”
Approximately 96% of CEF workers are nationals serving in the countries where they were born, including places where the Gospel is restricted, and Christians often face significant hardship or persecution.
That reality is evident in parts of West Africa, where workers minister amid violence, instability, and religious persecution. In Nigeria, more than 50,000 Christians have been killed by extremist groups over the last decade. Children have also been targeted through kidnapping and forced recruitment, including the abduction of 45 schoolchildren in Mussa this past May.
Yet even amid those conditions, a Nigerian national missionary and local volunteers shared the Gospel with more than 30,000 boys and girls, many of whom responded to this message of hope.
That story reflects the broader impact of SPAN support, which helps national missionaries continue reaching children with the Gospel in communities around the world..
The reach of national ministry can also extend from one generation to the next. One SPAN missionary in Kosovo first encountered Christianity as a child. Raised in a Muslim family, the missionary recalled hearing Bible stories and learning about Jesus before accepting Christ at age 16.
“I love working with children, and most of all, I love leading them to God,” the missionary said. “I believe God called me to give back to the ministry that blessed my life. I am living proof that this ministry is not in vain.”
In Ethiopia, another SPAN missionary described how a child’s response to the Gospel helped shape a calling to ministry.
“Witnessing a child embrace the message of Jesus for the first time inspired me and awakened a calling to serve with CEF,” the missionary said. “My vision is to see children come to know Jesus Christ as their Savior and experience the transformation in their lives, especially in eastern Ethiopia, where about 90 percent of the children come from Muslim backgrounds.”
Together, those stories illustrate the results of a sustained national ministry.
“National missionaries are rooted in the places they serve, building trust and reaching children year after year,” Pry said. “SPAN support helps give them the stability to stay in that work, strengthen local ministry, and continue sharing the Gospel with the next generation.”
To learn more about individual SPAN missionaries and the program, visit the SPAN the Globe website.
Child Evangelism Fellowship® (CEF®), founded in 1937, has been establishing the Good News Club® ministries in countries around the world for decades.
In 2025, more than 34 million children worldwide were impacted by the Good News through CEF ministries.
For more CEF news, see the ministry’s latest edition of the online magazine Impact™.
CEF is an international, nonprofit, Christian ministry that has been dedicated to seeing every child reached with the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ, discipled and established in a local church since 1937. CEF is located in all 50 American states and in most countries around the world, with over 3,800 paid staff and tens of thousands of volunteers around the world.
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To interview a representative from Child Evangelism Fellowship, contact Hamilton Strategies, Media@HamiltonStrategies.com, Beth Bogucki, 610.584.1096, ext. 105, or Daniel Moyer, ext. 104.
