Missions Textbook 38
The Ideal Missionary-Sending Church

We Never Saw It Coming: An Introduction to Christian Missions (textbook)

The longer we were in Europe, the more missionaries we met. And the more missionaries we met, the more we realized how blessed we were to be a part of our sending church in Portland. Many of you reading this will never be missionaries. But if you attend church regularly (and why wouldn’t you?), you will have missionaries to care for. So, I have come up with a list of things you can do to love and care for your missionaries.

1. Get to know them. It is quite understandable that you will not want to support – nor even think to pray for – missionaries you don’t know. So, while they are at your church, get to know them. Invite them for meals. Babysit their children. Learn about their mission passion. Help them evaluate their gifts and find education to strengthen their preparation.

By now, you have probably figured out that we believe that a missionary should come from the church family. You cannot get to know a missionary that visits your church one time and gives a 10-minute talk, asking for money, prayer, and interest. In fact, it’s probably poor stewardship to give money to them because you don’t know them. Your missionaries should be a vital part of your church.

2. Learn about their financial needs, and help them evaluate and revise them. Then be ready as a church to find a way to meet their needs. I heard a statistic once that is a no-brainer: If ten people in a church gave 10% of their income to a missionary, the missionary would have 100% of his or her support. Obviously, if there are only ten families in a church, then this will not be possible. And it also depends a bit on the mission field they choose. Europe is definitely more expensive than most other parts of the world.

Your missionaries are going to have to figure out how to transfer money from your church to their use on the mission field. Find a financial wiz in your church who can guide them. Or find out how their mission organization is going to handle their funds. (What percentage does the organization keep?)

3. Help them pack and get ready. People came and helped us pack our boxes and get rid of what we would not need. They stored treasures we decided not to take. “Uncle Dick” packed our crates and shipped them. Others helped us sell our house. They threw a farewell party after the service on our last Sunday morning. They drove us to the airport, and a large crowd waved good-bye. (Back then, they could sit at the boarding gate with us until we boarded the plane!)

4. Keep in touch with your missionaries. My friend, Sue, was not the only one who wrote to us, although she went above and beyond what most people will ever do. Encourage your missionaries to write, text, or call every month, to thank every donor, and to keep correspondence fresh and not too lengthy. And then write back to them. They will be homesick and miss you. They are family. Send them small packages, checking first to make sure they want what you are sending and can afford the customs fees. Send a special gift to cover the customs fees.

When was the last time you communicated with a missionary?

5. Pray for your missionaries. Obviously not everyone in the congregation will be as invested in your missionaries as you are, but you can still make sure their names are not forgotten. I remember our church had a reception for us on the first Sunday we had returned for our first visit. We had been gone for five years. One woman, whom I had never met, came up to me and exclaimed, “Oh, I’m so glad to finally meet you! I feel like I know you; we pray for you every week in our Bible study group.” Talking to her further revealed that our letters were read aloud or printed in a weekly prayer bulletin. All of this took place before the internet. With email, and texting, and Twitter, and church websites, this should now be easier than it ever was. One warning: Don’t overwhelm them with every thought that pops into your head. They are busy.

6. Visit your missionaries. I am not talking about using them for a Bed & Breakfast. There are people in your church (An elder? The head of the missions committee?) who can be an encouragement to your missionary. You will also be able to see how they are doing, and if they and/or their children are struggling and need some kind of help. You will discover whether they have enough financial support.

When you return to your home church, you will have a new excitement for their ministry. You will have met people you have been praying for, and you can help the church figure out how to meet any needs you have discovered. Maybe they need their kitchen renovated or built, or some plumbing repaired. Maybe the church could send a short-term team of doctors, dentists, eye doctors, or nurses to provide services that might attract people to the gospel.

Dan and Peggy are a retired couple from north of Seattle, who have been visiting missionaries for over thirty years. In an article they wrote for “Missions Magazine,” they list five points that made their trips to Peru, Kazakhstan, India, Japan and Austria and many other lands a blessing to the missionaries and to them.[1]

A.    Have a Plan: Figure out why you are going and what you hope to accomplish. “As to ‘why,’ we first began considering a trip overseas after hearing missionaries say that a visitor can learn more about the missionary’s life and work than someone listening to the missionary’s half-hour ministry presentation” in their home church. Is it a good time to visit? What does it take to be a welcome guest?

B.     Go to Encourage: Some people who visit missionaries have skills to contribute, but our friends realized, “We could do one thing: transport freight . . .. Over the years, we have carried some interesting things, including toilet paper, a baby stroller, and frozen turkey breasts.” And even a fishing pole. For several years, they also brought teams to teach the children at the Summer European Workers’ Conference and also the Workers’ Conference in Peru.

C.    Prepare to Learn: Dan and Peggy visited many different cultures, but they learned that everyday life is complicated in third-world locations. They also learned that “missionaries are amazingly hospitable. This truth has challenged us and encouraged us to open our home to visiting missionaries, even if someone has to sleep on the floor. And third, goodbyes are hard.”

D.    Be Flexible: This relates more to travel plans and glitches in transportation and even official government documents. Trips can be detoured, postponed, or even canceled.  But the last thing a missionary needs is to welcome a complaining visitor. Learn to give your burdens and frustrations to God.

E.     Travel in Prayer: When you are traveling to visit missionaries, you need to find a group of people to pray for you and the missionaries the whole time you are traveling. “It is comforting to know that friends at home are praying for us . . .. We remember one woman, in particular, who encouraged us to make the trip and was praying for us.”

“When done in the Lord’s will and with care, visiting missionaries on the field is a blessing and encouragement to all involved.”

7. Provide them with an emergency contact. A couple men in our church had told Floyd, “If you run out of money, please don’t show up on our doorstep. Call us, and we will help you.” There were a few times we called, and they were glad to help. More often we muddled through, comforted to know that we could call if things became dire.

There are other emergencies, however. Medical emergencies. Political emergencies. And family emergencies – especially for a death in the family. Often missionaries who are with mission organizations will receive immediate help from the organization in these situations, but in some cases, they must eventually repay the organization. Find these things out and be ready to find ways to help. Again, GoFundMe accounts, and other such public forums, might be a way to meet these needs – but someone has to set it up.

[1] Dan and Peggy Covert, “Visiting Missionaries: Lessons Learned over Three Decades of Travel.” Missions Magazine, March 2020, 3-5.

We Never Saw It Coming: An Introduction to Christian Missions (textbook)

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