Author: Admin

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How to Determine Where to Plant a Church on the Mission Field!

When I am asked to preach for someone, I often find myself spending as much time trying to figure out what to preach as I do in preparing the message to preach. Similarly, determining where to plant a church on the mission field can often be just as daunting as actually planting
the church.

The abundance of needy places can be overwhelming. On the one hand, we could just start anywhere. Though there is nothing necessarily wrong with that, we are commanded to go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. On the other hand, if our commission is to reach the world with the gospel (not just one area), then maybe we should give “the where” a bit more thought.

In this post, I would like to share five factors that might help us as we determine where to plant a church on the mission field. (To limit the length of the article, I am going to assume that we are daily reading God’s Word, praying, and surrendering our will to God, so that we are in a place where we are sensitive to the His guiding and directing.)

#1: Plant a church where you can train men.

• As missionaries, our number one priority is to train men. Jesus, the greatest missionary who ever lived, focused his efforts not on building a crowd, preaching great sermons, building large buildings, or even planting a church. He focused on training twelve men.
• Without trained shepherds the sheep will scatter, and without trained men the churches will never become indigenous and the work will never grow past what we personally can do.
• To reach an entire country, to reach the world, we must multiply ourselves through discipling and training men to be leaders who can reach and train others. Continue reading “How to Determine Where to Plant a Church on the Mission Field!”

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Why aren’t more called to missions?

Romans 10:13 For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. 14 How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher? 15 And how shall they preach, except they be sent? as it is written, How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things!

1. The Great Commission is considered to be church history instead of a command to the church

Matthew 28:18 And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. 19 Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of Why aren’t more called to missions? Summit 2017, Page 1! of 1! 0 the Holy Ghost: 20 Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.

a. We all know about this verse and believe it
b. It is right in there with Jonah and the whale and the world wide flood
c. Just can’t see how it relates to us

2. People aren’t looking to the field they are just chewing the fat about the need

John 4:35 Say not ye, There are yet four months, and then cometh harvest? behold, I say unto you, Lift up your eyes, and look on the fields; for they are white already to harvest. Continue reading “Why aren’t more called to missions?”

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Relationship of the Home Church to the Missionary and Other Missionaries

  1. Support at a substantial part of his basic support such as one fourth because after all he is your missionary
  2. Send visitors every year to visit. To be a blessing and maintain that personal relationship
  3. Prominently keep pictures, needs, etc before the church
  4. Send special gifts for special days all year long
  5. Treat him like you would treat a soldier from your family that was overseas in war. Gifts, entertainment, Bob Hope visiting and encouraging the troops
  6. Get involved in his afflictions Philippians 4:14
  7. Fervently pray for your missionary
  8. Let him keep up with the church and what is going on
  9. Treat him like pastoral staff
  10. Recognize his anniversary in the ministry
  11. provide him with materials
  12. get him personal growth opportunities
  13. give him recuperation time Acts 13
  14. be in constant communication and contact
  15. send him out with much prayer

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Ideas for Senders

1. Get people from your church to prepare cards and notes to send to your missionary.

a. Have special cards and notes sent to the children.
b. Have everyone put in a few dollars in each card to make it very exciting for the children to open
c. Adults might send gift cards for iTunes or Amazon in the cards

2. Get together some goodies to send to your missionary. Be sure to contact them and make sure that they will not have to pay customs on whatever you send them
3. Be prepared to report on your missionary in the missionary presentations for the Goer Sender Coalition
4. Make sure that you keep their name in the church bulletin, on the church facebook page, etc
5. Ever so often set up a display from their country, give out their prayer cards, and get people talking about your missionary
6. Figure out ways to make the missionary know that their family is loved and remembered
7. When they come to the church have a gift basket, candy for the kids etc
8. Really pray for your missionary

a. Pray for their families that they miss very much
b. Pray for their health
c. Pray for their walk with the Lord
d. Pray for their physical and financial needs
e. Pray for their emotional needs
f. Pray that they will be able to learn the language
g. Pray that they will be able to preach clearly and boldly
h. Pray that they will be able to over come loneliness
i. Pray God will use them
j. Pray that they will be able to stand against the devil and all of his traps

9. Do nice things for the missionary kids
10.Make sure his wife feels loved

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How to choose a missionary! by Austin Gardner

  1. How much research have they done on their country.  Before a missionary comes to the church check out the general statistics of the country and ask him about them while he is there.  He ought not know everything but the general questions.  If he hasn’t studied his country enough then he probably isn’t the kind of missionary that you want.
  2. What is his work ethic?  Missions is over spiritualized many times.  Just because a person has been called by God to a place does not mean that he ought not be working. The answer I have not had to call any pastors
and I think that is what God wants me to do is very spiritual but very rarely works.  They will then proceed to tell you how it has been a long time and not much money coming in.  If a man has a full schedule for a year or so then it might be alright but if not they need to be on the phone.  God honors hard work. On the mission field, a lot of times, the work is established through Gods leading and much hard work.  If they do not work hard here then how are they going to work hard there?
  3. Missionaries do not need to be taken on by pity or by need.  Many time the pastor and people in the church feel pity for a person and when they do this, this causes the church to want to help.  Help by giving a one time offering maybe, but a missionary should not be taken on by need they ought to be taken on by their fruit.  Look for a man who will produce or has produced in what God has called him to do.  Some pastors might say, I just know that no one else will support him so I just wanted to help him.
  4. Ask him about his preparation or what makes him feel that he can do what God has called him to.  Has he been prepared?  Has he studied?  Is he looking into language schools?  What are his prerequisites for the language
schools that he plans on going to?  Why did he choose that one.  Be sure that he is going to language school and if not do not support him.
  5. We are sending way too many missionaries out to the field who are not prepared to do the job and cannot fulfill their own expectations for when they arrive.  We ought to take on the missionaries like we would invest in
a business. If you had a stock in the stock market then you would watch it to see how it was doing.  In missions we ought to keep our eyes open as to what is going on.  That doesn’t mean large numbers in attendance but he should be able to produce 2 or 3 disciples in a term.
  6. What kind of strategy do they have?  Or are they going to train with someone who can teach them about how to develop a strategy? God has called me to do something now the question is how am I going to do that?  Are they studying and thinking of ways? What is their view of teamwork.
  7. Many of the problems that we have in missions is caused by the kind of missionaries that we allow in our churches.  Our people don’t come to the conferences but it might be because they are tired of  what they see in missionaries.  Pick the right ones to be before your people and your people will get excited about missions, support the right ones and you will have a church that thinks that it is impacting the world. Support missionaries who you would be happy to have on your staff position at your church.
  8. Consider nationals as a possibility to support due to the obvious advantages that they have.
  9. Does he agree with and practice the philosophy of your church discipleship.

Know their accountability stance for example mission’s agency, local church.

  1. If you have certain prerequisites for who you will support then let them know up front so that they do not make the trip for nothing.  If you tell a missionary that you are going to support him or send him the missionary offering then do it when and the way you say.
  2. Has a world view and not just a localized view.  He is not going to pastor in one place like a supported pastor on the other side of the world.  Know the man and support him not the field.
  3. He understands the training of men to do the work and not the fallacy of doing it himself.
  4. Have an explained system of how you choose missionaries.  Don’t let it be whoever calls the most or catches you at the right time.  You should have a way to get the best missionaries in your church.
  5. Do not hide behind a questionnaire because you do not have a plan.  It is ok to use a questionnaire if you really use it to ask the right questions.  A missionary should know the first time he calls how to or how not to get a meeting.  He shouldn’t be left with false expectations.

A missionary that understands the difference between hard work and smart work.