So, you want to become a missionary and partner with God in bringing His Gospel to the unreached? If so, you’re probably looking for a missions organization you can team up with to help you get from here to there. Did you know more than 5,000 organizations worldwide send out foreign missionaries? * And that’s not counting the people sent directly by a church or who serve independently without joining or forming an organization. Even if you just count ministries that send people from Canada, you might still have hundreds of options!
So, how can you find the mission agency that’s best for you?
It’s a bit like dating. Or choosing a college or career. It all depends on what’s important to you. But to help you get started, we’re giving you 21 questions you can ask any mission agency. These questions will help you get a taste of what they are all about.
Question Categories
Mission statement and core values
Understanding the mission statement and core values of your potential missions agency is an important first step in your decision making process. Keep in mind that once you choose the missions agency you want to go with you become a representative of that organization on and off the field. You want to make sure that the values and faith statements of your mission agency are ones that you can stand behind and are comfortable aligning yourself with. Here are some questions you can ask to help you start off on the right foot.
- What is the agency’s mission? Do they have a mission statement?
- What are the organization’s values? How are those demonstrated?
Organization
Though it is God’s calling to the Church as a whole to make disciples among the nations, mission organization sometimes vary in the unique ways they approach the fulfillment of that calling. This is why it’s important to get to know the ins and outs of the organization side of your potential missions agency. Some agencies are big with hundreds of employees and missionaries, some are small with only a tight team working towards their goal. Some agencies send missionaries to places around the world, some focus on specific places and people groups God has called them to minister to. Below are some questions that will help you find an agency whose organization fits the unique giftings and callings God has given you.
- In what part of the world does the agency work? With what populations or groups?
- Is the ministry centralized or decentralized? Do leaders in the sending country make most of the decisions? Or is there International leadership? What things are left to each field or team to decide?
- Do they have a lot of policies or rules?
- How large or small is the organization? Is it focused or diverse?
- How old or new is it? What kind of experience do they have?
- Does the agency have a denominational affiliation? Do most of their people come from a certain religious tradition or subculture?
Partnerships
God didn’t just call one specific organization or one specific church to bring His good news to the nations, He called the Church as a whole. This is why it’s important to make sure that your future missions agency is working alongside other organisations and churches to fulfill the great commission. We all have a role to play in missions, and we certainly can’t reach the whole world alone. Here are some questions that will help you understand the ways in which your future organization is looking to partner with others God has placed in their path.
- How does the agency connect with churches? What role would my church have in my ministry internationally? What about churches in the place where I’d serve?
- Does the agency work with other agencies or groups? Which ones?
Ministry practices
Looking at the big picture is an important first step, but you also need to know what ministry will actually look like when your boots are on the ground in the place God has called you to. Some organizations offer huge flexibility in the way they allow their workers to do ministry, where others know their specific calling and stick closely to it. Here are some questions that will help you make sure your agency is tailored to what God is inviting you into.
- Does the organization send people out in teams? To join existing teams? Or individually?
- If they plant churches, how do these churches operate? How are they led?
- Are there certain strategies everyone is expected to use (or avoid)? Does the agency encourage new ministry methods and innovative ideas for ministry?
- Who would decide what kind of ministry I would be involved in?
Member care
One of the primary roles of your future mission organization will be to support you as you do ministry on the field. Partnering with a missions organization that has thorough and effective membercare is one of the most important things you can do to make sure you’re prepared for the challenges and hardships doing missions overseas will bring. Here are some questions that will help you find out if your potential mission agency is ready to support you in whatever ways you may need once you make it onto the field.
- How does the agency care for members on the field? What kind of support is provided, and where does it come from?
- How are missionaries held accountable? What kind of structures or feedback exist?
- How long do people stay with the organization? What is the current rate of attrition?
- Over the last ten years, has the agency been getting smaller or bigger? At what rate?
- How does the agency approach care and education for missionaries’ children?
Finances
Another primary role of your future mission agency is to manage your financial support. Though it’s not always the most comfortable topic, raising, budgeting, and stewarding finances is something that you and your mission agency need to be on the same page about if you want to be able to serve as a missionary in another country. Here are some questions to help you get the conversation started.
- How does the agency handle support raising? What does that cover? What percentage goes to administration? And what about benefits and retirement?
- What about debt? Would I need to take care of consumer debts and student loans before leaving for the field?
No mission agency is perfect, and no two are exactly alike. But by asking these 21 questions you can get started on the path to finding the agency whose values, structure, practices, and support systems fit the life of service God is inviting you into. Choosing an organization is a big decision, so don’t rush it. Take time to prayerfully consider each of your options, trusting that the Lord will give you guidance. His plan is so much better than anything we could ever hope to come up with on our own.
Talk to one of our mission mentors and see how Pioneers Canada would answer these 21 questions. Who knows, we may be the perfect fit to partner with you as you step into the great adventure the Lord is inviting you into.
* In 2021, the Center for the Study of Global Christianity at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary estimated 5,600 mission agencies send out foreign mission workers. See Status of Global Christianity.