
The International Mission Board joined in on a popular social media trend this week with a Facebook post featuring a variety of action figures that represent the many ways missionaries can serve around the globe.
The post pulled its inspiration from the latest attention-grabbing trend, where people can create their own personal AI-generated action figure based on interests and appearance. The trend began to take off a few weeks after OpenAI reportedly announced a new age generator, GPT-40.
Teacher? Surgeon? Gamer?
In response, the IMB created 10 action-figure options: teacher, photographer, barista, surgeon, lawyer, gamer, missionary explorer, personal trainer, painter and accountant. Each action figure includes a Bible.
“Choose your character or customize your own! IMB missionaries all come from different backgrounds. Your unique skillset can be used overseas on the mission field,” IMB says in the post.
“Learn more about how you can take your career overseas by chatting with us at https://imb.world/3Gg3Dj7.”
Engaging ‘new generation’
Of course, in true Facebook fashion, it didn’t take long for someone to offer another option for an action figure. “My dad, the IMB missionary, of 30 (plus) years wants to know why there isn’t a church planter in this grouping. ‘They kinda missed a really big one here,'” that person wrote. As noted in IMB’s post, each person has an opportunity to bring their “unique skillset” to the mission field.
Another person commented on the post, “It’s a brilliant way to engage a new generation. Pray for laborers, for the harvest is plentiful but the laborers are few.”

EDITOR’S NOTE — This story was written by Shawn Hendricks, content editor with The Baptist Paper.