Missionaries: Help Us Help You
I love missions. Really. I’m not just saying that because pastors are supposed to say they love missions. But perhaps I should clarify. I love Christ. I want others to love Christ too, and I want our churches to be churches who love Christ and long for others to know him. I love Christ, therefore I love missions. Healthy churches are churches that are gripped by the urgency of the task to take the gospel to those who have not heard. Clearly, this must start in our own neighborhoods and towns, but it cannot stop there, nor should it be called “missions.” That should be called “normal Christianity.” The local church has a responsibility to look to areas of the world that are unreached and pray how they might be involved in the task.
I was a missionary in a 10/40 window country. I know the sacrifices you have made and are making; raising support; being separated from family and friends; difficult and hazardous living conditions; hard and unreceptive hearts from those to whom you are ministering. Your sacrifices are many and your difficulty is real. We want to support you and uphold you in prayer and by other means.
So here are ten things I, as a pastor, would like you to keep in mind when you share your ministry in a local church so that people in our congregations are gripped by a love for Christ and urgency for the task of world missions:
1. Prepare what you are going to say beforehand like you would if you were preparing for a major presentation or proposal. Craft your talks. Have points that relate to and support the main point you want to get across.
2. One goal should be to show people that it is essential for you to be doing the ministry you are doing. People who are compelled by your ministry are more likely to pray and support you.
3. You want the people to feel the passion that you feel. It’s OK if you are not a gregarious person. We’re not asking you to be. Just be yourself and demonstrate the passion you have for the gospel and in making Christ known in the ministry to which you have been called.
4. Please be careful in how you speak and write in your prayer letters about vacations you take while on the field. Fiji might have been just what you needed and a very inexpensive place for you to minister to your family, but there are more important things to regularly report on than where you went on vacation. (But do take vacations! You need them and it is essential for you to care for your family and lead them well.) See the next point.
5. Ask three friends who will be honest with you to read and evaluate your communications that you send to your supporters. Ask for feedback concerning content, length, prayer requests, financial appeals, etc… Remember what you wrote the last few months to your supporters because there is a cumulative effect that your letters have as people read them regularly.
6. Shoot for a presentation that is ten minutes less than the time you have been assigned then ask for questions. Most missionaries shine in the Q&A time. Listen to the questions people tend to ask you and shape presentations based around them.
7. If you are a missionary who is preparing to go to the field, don’t talk as if you have all the answers before you get there. If you are a missionary who has been on the field for a long time show the people the wisdom and expertise you have gained through your time in country.
8. If you are going to use multimedia, which is a good thing, use it in such a way that it aids you’re presentation and points. Use images to draw us into your story. Remember to communicate beforehand with the contact person about what multimedia options there are and what adaptors you might need to bring. Arrive early enough that the presentation is ready to go and always have a “plan B” in case the projector/sound doesn’t work. For some reason, we here in the states have issues when it comes to making technology work consistently. Assume that there will be a problem and plan accordingly.
9. Tell us about how you are doing personally. Share with us how your family is adjusting to pressures that you face. Let us know how to pray for you. If you are struggling and need encouragement, please share this with us in an appropriate way that enables us to empathize and care for you.
10. Don’t assume people remember everything that you share in your prayer letters. A lot of people who support missionaries receive many letters a month. Remind people about what you have been asking them to pray for and share with us how God has answered those prayers.
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[...] a thoughtful post from Jeff Brewer on ten ways that missionaries can be more effective in communicating with their [...]
Can I make one more suggestion? Please don’t quote Philippians 4:19 when you ask for financial support.
This is a good list; thanks.
A little quibble: As for #4, it’s good advice, but I think it’s unfortunate that it’s good advice. We don’t talk about fun stuff we do with supporters in general. But I think the non-missionaries need to ask why that is.
We don’t talk much about vacations & fun stuff because we know what people think: “I’m not supporting you so you can go on vacation.” But the people who think that don’t have problems taking vacations themselves.
I’m guessing you don’t mean that it’s bad for missionaries to take vacations, but it kind of comes across that way. Rest assured, we already feel kind of guilty for every luxury we allow ourselves.
Thanks for the post. This is the kind of helpful feedback we who are preparing to go need to hear. I’ll reflect on this often.
Hey Jeff! A thoughtful post indeed! I appreciate you sharing these thoughts, and I couldn’t agree more. But you have a great way of better expressing/organizing some thoughts we pastors have had on this subject.
We should connect sometime!
Great post! I totally agree I understand where you are coming from and have sat through enough terrible missionary presentations that I wish would have gone better because I want our congregation to support this person instead the missionary put them to sleep. I also love missions and want every missionary to read this post so they will also have the support of their local churches. I am also preparing to go onto the field and will implement these suggestions. Thanks
Richard
Great suggestions. Thanks for sharing!
Thanks for this post Jeff! As a missionary now involved with sending others out, I affirm your thoughts. I have winced at missionary speakers more often than I have been challenged by them!
I would encourage you to rephrase point #2; as a speaker, it’s not my goal to convince people that I am a necessary part in what the Lord is doing–I’m not trying to sell myself–but to convince them of the necessity of the gospel ministry in this context, and help them understand the calling the Lord has place on me (and my family).
We encourage missionaries to focus on helping people to see the glory of God as He calls and accomplishes His mission in a particular context, rather than feel the need to justify asking for funding. If I see that someone is passionate about the glory of God among those who don’t know, my confidence in their fitness for the task increases!
Thanks for serving us with your advice.
Michael
Good thoughts. …do you also have 10 suggestions of how congregations should treat the missionaries they support? I think that would also be helpful. As one who has been a missionary in a 10/40 window country for about 14 years, I can tell you that most of our supports do write a check and some of them may also remember us in their prayers, but that is the extent of the support. Is that all it should be? Sometimes I wonder if people would respond to my emails if it were to report that I or my spouse were dead. And even on home leave, the urgency of world missions rarely seems to be the heartbeat any churches. Any thoughts on what the congregants can and should do to do their part in world missions? I think the greatest sin among all Christians is probably a lack of involvement in missions and personal evangelism. 99% of Christians appear guilty of this. That is not the case in other areas of obedience but it is when it comes to the Christian’s responsiblity of making Christ known.
I completely agree with JHM. But I would go further. If a vacation served to spiritually refresh missionaries, then it is an important part of their ministry, and supporters should feel blessed to be a part of that. While it may not seem as “important” as, say, how many people have come to Christ, or some other quantitative bits of info, I would argue that home churches and supporters need to learn that they are not simply supporting a “ministry”; they are supporting real people who occasionally need a break. Perhaps I’m overreacting to your post, and you are referring to presentations that were excessive.
Thanks so much. I am the Global Outreach pastor for our fellowship and would love to pass this along to our workers.
Thanks for your feedback. When I originally wrote this I lumped #’s 4 & 5 together. What I was mostly referring to was when a missionary seems to forget what they have communicated in recent prayer letters and emails so that the cumulative effect sometimes seems like they are spending a lot of time away from their ministry. I was trying to hit on the communication error not the need for or appropriate use of vacation time. An error that can easily be remedied by having close friends evaluating your newsletters and by evaluating them personally. Most missionaries work long hard hours and rarely get a true vacation. It is crucial that they are planning regular vacations or time away in order to stay fresh. Hope that helps!
Thanks for the practical advice Jeff, it’s gonna be handy stuff to keep in mind.
If you have any info or advice on how to get visas to do mission work in N. America I’ll be interested in reading!
Here is a follow-up I just posted over on Justin’s blog to one of the comments that I received:
Thank you for the feedback on the tone– I think you are right that it could come off like that by a few of the words that I originally chose. I changed the wording of a few of the points to better reflect my desire when I wrote it to be one that promotes missions in our local churches and sends more men and women out into the harvest fields that are ready for harvest. I don’t want there to be an edge that is not intended!
The desire is for the article to be one that serves as a reminder to missionaries who are coming back to local churches to report on their ministries so that they can be as fruitful as possible.
I think it is possible to be authentic and personal as well as polished, so to that end, I hope that it serves missionaries as they think about how they share in local churches so that we can pray for them and praise the Lord with them.
Thanks for your helpful comments. May God be pleased to advance the gospel around the world for His glory alone!
Jeff,
Good comments. As a worker home now, reading prayer letters from this perspective I see things differently. While vacations are important, it seems that is all I hear about in some prayer letters with more enthusiasm than I hear about ministry. In addition, many people here are forgoing vacations… not that we should not mention it, but it should be a byword, not a headline. The rest of this is good.. Thank you. Great to find your blog.
Thanks, that was helpful. As a missionary about to leave the UK for the mission field, I can relate to those 10 points. They are more or less what I tried to do. I would probably a piece of advice that was given to me and that I found helpful: Speak about the work. Some missionaries tend to speak more about themselves. If we want people to pray for our work (that include ourselves), we must speak about out work.
Any suggestions on how to keep in touch with our supporters while on the field?
[...] By Emmanuel, on July 29th, 2010 Here is an article I could have read before starting deputation: Missionaries: Help Us Help You | Church Plant Pastor. In it, Jeff Brewer lists 10 things that he would ike missionaries to keep in mind when they [...]
[...] Jeff Brewer via: Take Your [...]
[...] Missions resources July 31, 2010 by bolinpath For all of you missionaries out there, stop talking about your vacations so carelessly. Check out Jeff Brewer’s discussion about missionaries and their vacations along with nine other points of advice to missionaries. [...]
I have served as a “home missionary”, doing primarily youth and prison work, since 1978…when I went “on support” I knew no one…everyone I knew was either in prison or should have been (I was reached for Christ while incarcerated). I am crazily enthusiastic about “support” because I know people are praying who otherwise would not be praying. Your points are well taken, and I will share them with others.
With all the communication tools at our disposal, with the exception of some missionaries serving in restricted countries, it is inexcusable that some do not maintain regular contact with their supporters. It needs to be seen as “part of the job.”
[...] Read all 10 items at Jeff’s blog Church Plant Pastor. [...]
This is so helpful! My husband and I are in the beginning stages of prefield ministry, and we will definitely take your suggestions to heart.
Why not quote Philippians 4:19- it’s a great verse about God’s providing for people who give sacrificially…and it is in the Bible.
[...] / View comments This list of ten things a missionary should say comes from a thoughtful post from Pastor Jeff Brewer, a former missionary who served in the 10/40 [...]
Great post. It seems that much of it should be common sense. Missionaries need to be organized, polite, knowledgeable, and focused on God and the work. May this help many (especially newer) missionaries.
Missionaries may want to consider using(where available and permitted) blogs, twitter, facebook and skype to give those who are supporting them as much information as they choose to use. This will allow them to share briefly about the work and then preach the Word in their mother tounge for a change….according to where they are serving that is.
The paradigm of missionary share times at churches and information from the field is changing. Connection is increasing which brings much encouragement to the missionary and more understanding to the senders.
Also, I would advise missionaries to find which churches are open and welcoming to hearing about their work and personal lives. All of life for the believer is to be shared and enjoyed. Churches that may frown upon information about vacations and personal events should be noted and should follow advice #4. In other words, get to know your supporting churches and use wisdom. Find the churches you can celebrate all of life with and be free of #4 while still loving and respecting the churches that are sending you out to work and report on work.
This was a helpful article. It is interesting at what draws people to respond when it concerns missionaries. I was sharing our ministry needs to a lady just recently. So piously she said, “What you and your son need to do is sell everything you have and move into the community where you are serving.” Honestly, I was filled with all sorts of emotions. He left an accounting position, sold his house, went back to school and received his masters of divinity. We are still paying Fannie Mae after 4 years. He works at the YMCA 40+ hours a week, and the rest of his hours in the church and community planting a church (without pay since January) in the ghetto of Nashville, TN. Whether in the US or abroad… individuals seem to think that Missionary’s are “called” to suffer.
What hurts all “called” missionaries from getting assistance is that way too many are doing a lot of stuff in the name of missions. My husband and I along with some family and friends are financially supporting our church plant, waiting on the NAMB to rethink how monies are being shared. The excuses that most give for not getting involve with helping us is that their money is being sent for this or that mission event abroad. Interestingly enough the money is not going to the missionaries that are sacrificing and giving of themselves, much is going to pastors who lead their churches to send them and their circle of friends (6-10 people) to spend a week in _______ and return to tell about “mission trip” / vacation. This amount of money would/could fund a missionary and his/her ministry.
A called missionary is not guilty of spending money on things that are not needed. A vacation is much needed. Jesus pulled away for periods of rest and meditation…but he did not take pictures and talk about that when his focus was saving souls.
I am praying for a revival among our churches that we will take seriously the call of all of us to be missional in our everyday walk and support with our money not just our prayers. People use the word prayer way too loosely. To pray for God to work but unwilling for Him to use you in the working is hypocrisy.
[...] Good post from Jeff-Missionaries: Help Us Help You [...]