Missions Textbook 58 Furlough or Home Assignment

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

Webster’s Dictionary defines “furlough” as “a leave of absence from duty, especially for a soldier.” When we were in Austria, these breaks to return to the home country were called furloughs; nowadays, they are called home assignments. A missionary friend once defined this “break” as a different kind of pressure. When a missionary “goes on furlough,” there are many different reasons, and in most cases, it probably won’t be a vacation.

Following are some questions a missionary might want to answer in preparation for a home assignment:

  • How much will this trip interrupt your ministry on the field?
  • Who will be stepping in for you while you are gone?
  • Have they been trained?

Very often, the reason for returning home is financial; the support has dropped, and missionary needs to raise more money. If the mission agency is requiring this, then the missionary may receive some assistance in setting up meetings. Sometimes this is done on a regular basis – maybe every three years. Otherwise, the missionary may have to set up his or her own meetings before returning to the home country.

  • What does the agency expect you to do while on home assignment?
  • Who will set up your schedule?
  • Will you be preaching five times a week, just presenting your ministry?
  • Will you ask for prayer and more money, or just presenting your work?
  • Will you have a break to evaluate your work overseas from a detached viewpoint?

The family schedule will also influence how you will handle this break from normal missionary life.

  • Will you take the family with you?
  • Can you get your children out of school early in the spring, so you can obtain the cheaper fights?
  • Will your family travel with your everywhere, once you arrive home?
  • How will you continue your children’s education while “at home?”

You will also need a base. Hopefully this will be your home church, and they may be able to provide you an inexpensive place to live. You will also need plane tickets and a car.

  • Will you get to visit relatives who live near or far from your home church?
  • Where will you live? How much will it cost?
  • What kind of transportation will you need, where can you get it, and what will it cost?

Because our home church was our main support, we did not have to travel a lot, but Floyd loved to travel, and he couldn’t resist an invitation to go somewhere he had never been before.

If you are able to spend time at your sending church, how much should you get involved in what’s going on within the leadership of the church? If there are any tensions between the leadership and congregation, how should you respond when someone in the congregation asks you about your opinion of the situation? Remember, you are not staying long. You are returning to the field. A good principle to follow: if you can’t be part of the solution, be careful offering advice.

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

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