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Get Experience!
Sharpen Your Skills for the Field Through Practical Experience in Ministry
Arguably the most essential step toward the mission field is developing the ministry skills in/through a local church setting that you'll need on the field. The apostle Paul, the greatest missionary in church history, is a highly appropriate example of this truth.
Confirmation of the missionary call happens in a local church setting. If friends and leaders in your local church context don’t see missionary qualities in you first-hand, then you may not be ready to go.
The local church attests to the veracity of God's calling as it confirms your mix of gifts, skills, training and inclination. The Bible does not authorize missionary candidates to “lay hands on” themselves. You can find more on both the "internal" and "external" call at Propempo.com .
Evangelism is the first essential skill for every missionary.
How are you sharing the Gospel right now? We agree with mission leaders who say, "If you not actively witnessing as a part of your regular Christian lifestyle right now, you need not apply as a missionary!"
One of the foundational qualifications of a missionary is that they know how to share the Gospel. They are directly and incessantly thinking about and doing evangelism. Are you like that? Are you sharing the Gospel of Jesus Christ? Are you showing, proclaiming, teaching, oozing the Gospel. If you want to be a missionary to unreached people, you MUST, MUST, MUST have passion, experience, and some skill in evangelizing the lost.
When I teach church planting, I establish that the bedrock of church planting is proclamational evangelism using the Word as the primary tool, source, and resource. It is Phase 1 of church planting -- which then never ends! Evangelism, a saturating sharing of the Gospel of Christ, must be a core culture of the burgeoning church, if it is ever to grow and multiply as Jesus intended. And it is modeled by the missionary.
Evangelism is not (only) a gift, reserved for those gifted with that particular gift. It is a command. It is a state of being "you will be My witnesses." You are; I am; believers ARE witnesses - whether effective or ineffective, "on" or "off," good or bad. Which are you?
Mostly it is a mind and heart-set, a decision to share the most important message you could share to people around you who need nothing more than they need the Gospel. It is the most loving thing you can do: -
You won't regret it!
Here are a few resource to inform & inspire you on the way:
Evangelism and the Sovereignty of God, J.I. Packer
Evangelism: How the Whole Church Speaks of Jesus, Mack Stiles
The Gospel and Personal Evangelism, Mark Dever
Bringing the Gospel Home: Witnessing to Family Members, Close Friends, and Others Who Know You Well, Randy Newman
Honest Evangelism, Rico Tice
The local church is central to God’s plan for ministry and missions to all nations!
Here is a simple overview of biblical principles showing the centrality of the local church in understanding its priority for the task of missions.
Your best laboratory for developing ministry skills and experience is in and through your local church. Why is this ministry so foundational? Here are a few observations, which are expanded in the book, HERE to THERE:
How much time does this step take? Take a deep breath: it takes longer than you might think. You’re preparing for a lifetime of strategic ministry. A few months or years HERE enabling and equipping you to survive and thrive THERE will be worth every moment. None of it is wasted time in God’s good providence. Everything in your life is a prologue for what God has yet for you to do.
What might your home church expect in preparing for the mission field?
Here are some potential pre-field requirements gleaned from the missionary preparation programs of several leading churches. Find more detail in the book: HERE to THERE
What if your church doesn't have a systematic plan for developing future missionaries?
How can you help your church grow in missionary preparation?
If your church is a larger church, keep in mind:
If your church is a smaller or medium-sized church, keep in mind:
If your church doesn’t currently systematically prepare missionaries, how can you begin to prepare on your own?
Here's a list of great learning activities.
Everything in your life is a prologue for what God has yet for you to do. The preparation is as much your calling and ministry in God’s will as the “actual” work on the field.
Questions for reflection:
Resources
Many resources are listed in the book, HERE to THERE.
Also, the www.Prompempo.com website offers many links and recommendations to many PDFs, books, and external resources, including an array of church-based missionary candidate training and mentoring models.
- The church at Antioch observed Paul doing significant ministry in the church at Antioch for several years before he was released to the mission field (Acts 11.25-26). In fact, Paul was “in training” for as much as twelve years between the time of his conversion and “call” to missions and his actual departure for missionary work.
- Paul did not simply volunteer to go to the field. The elders set him apart through the direction of the Holy Spirit (Acts 13.1-3). Michael Griffiths writes, “The most that an individual can do is express his willingness. Others must determine his worthiness. The individual may be free to go, but only his church knows if he is really fitted to go.” (in Get Your Church Involved in Missions!)
Confirmation of the missionary call happens in a local church setting. If friends and leaders in your local church context don’t see missionary qualities in you first-hand, then you may not be ready to go.
The local church attests to the veracity of God's calling as it confirms your mix of gifts, skills, training and inclination. The Bible does not authorize missionary candidates to “lay hands on” themselves. You can find more on both the "internal" and "external" call at Propempo.com .
Evangelism is the first essential skill for every missionary.
How are you sharing the Gospel right now? We agree with mission leaders who say, "If you not actively witnessing as a part of your regular Christian lifestyle right now, you need not apply as a missionary!"
One of the foundational qualifications of a missionary is that they know how to share the Gospel. They are directly and incessantly thinking about and doing evangelism. Are you like that? Are you sharing the Gospel of Jesus Christ? Are you showing, proclaiming, teaching, oozing the Gospel. If you want to be a missionary to unreached people, you MUST, MUST, MUST have passion, experience, and some skill in evangelizing the lost.
When I teach church planting, I establish that the bedrock of church planting is proclamational evangelism using the Word as the primary tool, source, and resource. It is Phase 1 of church planting -- which then never ends! Evangelism, a saturating sharing of the Gospel of Christ, must be a core culture of the burgeoning church, if it is ever to grow and multiply as Jesus intended. And it is modeled by the missionary.
Evangelism is not (only) a gift, reserved for those gifted with that particular gift. It is a command. It is a state of being "you will be My witnesses." You are; I am; believers ARE witnesses - whether effective or ineffective, "on" or "off," good or bad. Which are you?
Mostly it is a mind and heart-set, a decision to share the most important message you could share to people around you who need nothing more than they need the Gospel. It is the most loving thing you can do: -
- Share the Gospel
- Use the Word in doing it
- Proclaim the truth of Jesus Christ: His life, death, and resurrection.
- Grow by experience in this fundamental skill needed on the mission field.
You won't regret it!
Here are a few resource to inform & inspire you on the way:
Evangelism and the Sovereignty of God, J.I. Packer
Evangelism: How the Whole Church Speaks of Jesus, Mack Stiles
The Gospel and Personal Evangelism, Mark Dever
Bringing the Gospel Home: Witnessing to Family Members, Close Friends, and Others Who Know You Well, Randy Newman
Honest Evangelism, Rico Tice
The local church is central to God’s plan for ministry and missions to all nations!
Here is a simple overview of biblical principles showing the centrality of the local church in understanding its priority for the task of missions.
- Those who received the Great Commission directly--the Apostles, their contemporaries, and their helpers--fulfilled the mandate by planting and organizing indigenous churches (see all the book of Acts!). They understood that the fruit of obedience to the Great Commission resulted in the establishment of new local churches everywhere.
- The Great Commission, as expressed in Matthew 28:16-20, cannot be fulfilled apart from a mutually committed group of believers meeting together for worship, teaching, and edification, under biblically recognized church leadership, and observing the ordinances given by Christ. i.e. - The natural product of completely fulfilling the Great Commission is local churches.
- The vast majority of New Testament epistles were addressed to local churches or leaders of local churches. This presumes the local church to be the nexus of the practice of Christian life and maturity.
- Jesus’ promise to build His church (Matthew 16:18) and biblical teaching regarding church discipline (see Matthew 18:15-20, 1 Corinthians) is set in the context of the local church.
- Jesus’ messages to “the seven churches of Asia” (Rev. 2-3) speak to the significance and centrality of local churches in the perspective of Christ, some 60 years after the giving of the Great Commission.
- The 40+ “one another” commands of the New Testament all refer to the dynamic relationships of Christians within a local church context.
- The local church in Antioch is the scriptural setting through which the Holy Spirit works to set apart the first New Testament missionaries. Clearly, in the outlook of Paul and Barnabas, the local church is intended as the initiator, the means, and the ends of Gospel missions ministry.
- Paul appeals to the local church of Rome to partner with him in his pioneering aspirations for the last unreached area of the Mediterranean basin, the Iberian Peninsula, “Spain” (Romans 15:18-29). The reason behind Paul's letter to the Philippians is to thank them for their ongoing financial support and encouragement. His relationship to that local church as a partner in his ministry was a source of great joy and enablement. The relationship and accountability to his first "sending" church at Antioch is a model for all missionaries.
- John appeals to a church leader, Gaius, to continue his church’s good work of lavishly loving and providing for the needs of Gospel workers. Indeed, this responsibility is described as the privilege and duty of the local church body, as partners in the truth with missionaries. (3 John 5-8)
- The local church validates and approves workers set apart for ministry. (Acts 13:1-3; 14:26-28; 16:1-3; 1 Timothy 3:1-7; 5:22; Titus 1:5-9)
Your best laboratory for developing ministry skills and experience is in and through your local church. Why is this ministry so foundational? Here are a few observations, which are expanded in the book, HERE to THERE:
- Changing geography won’t make you a missionary.
- Local church ministry simulates many situations you'll encounter on the field
- Ministry in and through the local church is a sanctifying instrument of God
How much time does this step take? Take a deep breath: it takes longer than you might think. You’re preparing for a lifetime of strategic ministry. A few months or years HERE enabling and equipping you to survive and thrive THERE will be worth every moment. None of it is wasted time in God’s good providence. Everything in your life is a prologue for what God has yet for you to do.
What might your home church expect in preparing for the mission field?
Here are some potential pre-field requirements gleaned from the missionary preparation programs of several leading churches. Find more detail in the book: HERE to THERE
- Required reading (typically 50-100 pages of focused reading per week)
- Mentoring by a trusted, mature believer
- Active ministry
- A spectrum of missions-related skill building
- Leadership training classes and experiences
- Research or reflection papers or presentations
- Leading and organizing a short term missions team or project
- Researching potential mission agency partners
- Addressing issues that surface through your personal biblical counseling process
- Biblical and theological training
- Teaching and/or discipleship experience
- Completing a physical check up
- Business training, experience, and certifications, especially if you are planning on working in business on the field
- Church planting training/internship
- Training in interpersonal relationships and team-building
What if your church doesn't have a systematic plan for developing future missionaries?
How can you help your church grow in missionary preparation?
- Pray.
- Serve as a facilitator and catalyst.
- Serve as a resource.
- Serve as a networker.
If your church is a larger church, keep in mind:
- It will take more time and energy to affect a change in strategy or direction.
- You will need to convince more leaders.
- The church can offer more resources for sending missionaries.
If your church is a smaller or medium-sized church, keep in mind:
- It will likely take less effort to help the church recognize and embrace its biblical responsibilities in missionary sending.
- Relationships with leadership and among leadership are that much closer. Communication lines are simpler and more direct. You will have more access to and relationship with its pastors and leaders.
If your church doesn’t currently systematically prepare missionaries, how can you begin to prepare on your own?
Here's a list of great learning activities.
- It's critical for your missions motivation to flow out of the biblical concept of the glory of God and His global purpose to see Jesus Christ glorified in all nations.
- Enroll in survey or overview classes in Bible and systematic theology.
- Cultivate a high view of Scripture: a commitment to know it, obey it, apply it, teach it, proclaim it.
- Test your interests, gifts and skills in a variety of ministry settings
- Prayerfully identify a mentor or prayer partner who will be ruthlessly honest with you
- Seek out opportunities for local cross-cultural ministry
- Grow in initiative. Practice looking for a service or ministry need and doing it without being asked.
- Share the Gospel consistently.
- Develop a vibrant and consistent personal devotional life.
- While we will all be imperfect and broken people until heaven, the Bible’s standards for those who would start and lead churches, and influence people for Christ, are high. The goal in your character is to be “above reproach” (1 Timothy 3). Use this time of preparation on the path to the field to deal aggressively with besetting sins, personality quirks and offensive hindrances that will both hurt intimacy with God and also erode your effectiveness on the field. So, if there are habits that need to be broken or reformed, seek help to do it now. Learn to remove obstacles to spiritual progress in your life. For example, if you can’t get up in the morning to read the Bible because you stay up late watching TV, then you figure out that you can’t keep doing that and expect to grow. If that is the case, you value Christ over TV and stop watching TV at night or disconnect the cable. God uses these cumulative offerings to effect the character change that only He can. His mercy and grace can transform your heart as you become a useful vessel in His service. The humility and integrity you will build in the process are irreplaceable foundation stones for your character as you prepare to go.
Everything in your life is a prologue for what God has yet for you to do. The preparation is as much your calling and ministry in God’s will as the “actual” work on the field.
Questions for reflection:
- Is the centrality of the local church for missionary preparation a new or surprising concept for you? Is this concept freeing or frustrating to you? Why?
- Have you had any past experiences with local churches that now erode your confidence in working with your church on the way to the field? What will be necessary to overcome this lack of trust as you now move toward the field?
- How much of a temptation is it for you to hurry to the field? Why? How can you balance an appropriate urgency with a willingness to be prepared as necessary?
Resources
Many resources are listed in the book, HERE to THERE.
Also, the www.Prompempo.com website offers many links and recommendations to many PDFs, books, and external resources, including an array of church-based missionary candidate training and mentoring models.