Just In Time

Truckers must be trained before they are allowed on the road.  Training is required for teachers, carpenters, bull riders, policemen, nurses, hair stylists, and even Wal-Mart checkers.  Most vocational preparation is what I call “just-in-time” training, meaning, people are instructed for a task just before they are launched into the work.  

 

There is hardly a profession in the world that doesn’t require training for a specific task.  EXCEPT, for people who are going overseas as career missionaries.

 

Missionary training is a hard sell. Missionaries are trying to get to the field. They’ve been approved by their denomination or sending agency; they’re raising support and to stop in the middle to attend a two-week or one-month training session seems to be a waste of time and money. But is it?

 

The Long Road Less Travelled

 

What is the process for getting to the mission field for a career missionary? Consider the chart below, an arbitrary time scale to be sure, but a guide nevertheless.

 

1.     The Discovery phase serves as an introduction to missionaries in Sunday School, a mission conference, or a denominational video presentation. Capturing the attention of American Christians towards the global task has become increasingly challenging. However, it is at this crucial point of Discovery that the less-traveled journey begins.

 

2.     The Interest period is a person dipping their toe into the global waters by attending an Urbana conference, a fact-finding short-term mission trip (not the vacation type), or taking a Perspectives course.  It is at this juncture that a person either moves forward or backtracks.

 

3.     The Commitment step is answering “the call.” It’s that defining moment when one says, “Here am I Lord, send me.” But how do they get there?

 

4.     Preparation may include going to seminary, an internship in a local church, and filling out an application to a missionary sending agency. This time period could easily be five years or more. The timeline for second-career people may be shortened with focused training.

 

5.     If one perseveres to the point they are approved to be a missionary, they begin the Funding process which is between six months (rare) to three or more years (sadly, not unusual).

 

The question is, after they complete the arduous process and finally get to the field, how prepared is that missionary really for cross-cultural service? Their cultural anthropology class was six years ago and they have no clue why the study of kinship has anything to do with being a witness to a Hindu. True, they did spend two weeks in the Dominican Republic participating in vacation Bible school, but did they learn what it takes to set up residence in Cote d’Ivoire? They may feel called to serve in the Philippines, but exactly what is the need in that country, which has had the Gospel four times longer than they have been alive?

 

JUST IN TIME LEARNING

 

Just-in-time  (JIT) training plays a vital role in preparing missionary families for their fieldwork, and its duration can vary from two weeks to three months. By providing targeted and timely instruction, JIT training equips them with the necessary skills, knowledge, and cultural understanding needed to navigate the challenges they will face in the field. The focused and time-sensitive nature of JIT training ensures that missionaries are well-prepared and able to make a meaningful impact in their new environment.

 

JIT sharpens the focus of missionaries. Even if a missionary is only 50% into their fundraising efforts, JIT can actually assist them in raising support during the most challenging phase. By enabling missionaries to concentrate on their mission and the people they will be working with, JIT allows them to present a clear and compelling message when seeking support. This clear focus not only motivates the missionary but also resonates with those who listen to their plea for support. As Ralph Winters aptly stated, "When the task is not clear, people are not sent." Therefore, having clear goals will lead to realistic and attainable results in support raising.

 

JIT means that when a missionary gets on the field months later, they will have a head start on what needs to be done and how to achieve their goals. The missionary will actually understand that contextualization isn’t just a word they learned ten years ago in an obscure classroom, but a reality in the context they now find themselves.

 

It is a sobering reality that many missionaries embark on cross-cultural work without adequate preparation. This fact is evident in the statistics that show 95% of missionary efforts are concentrated in countries that have already been extensively reached with the Gospel. In this context, the importance of just-in-time training becomes apparent. JIT training not only addresses this issue practically but also has the potential to be a defining moment in the life of a missionary and in advancing the unfinished task of the Great Commission.

 

Strategic, God-Led Partnerships (SGPL)

Several years ago I was asked to speak to a group of about fifty people about missions and becoming a missionary.  Many of the people in the room were young professionals, in their late 20s and early 30s.  They had a heart for the Great Commission but didn’t know where they would fit in the grand scheme of things.  I asked them this question,

“What is the one thing that keeps you from committing yourself to career missions?”

 

“Raising support,” was their overwhelming response.

 

It’s true, our Lord did say that we are to “pray that to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers” (Matt. 9:38), but, like my old professor, Noel Smith, used to say, “People can’t eat a ‘God bless you’, they need filthy lucre to buy bread.”  A bended knee is worthless if there is a latch on the pocketbook,

 

The graph below is my adaptation of The God Ask by Steve Shadrack (2013) and it highlights the key components of how the students of that mission class could overcome their hesitancy for missions. 

Missionaries have a two-way God ask.  First, they need to have confidence that it is God who is their provider for all their financial needs.  Of course, this is true for every follower of Christ, but sometimes cross-cultural workers get anxious and try to find slick and unusual methods to raise funds.  Methods are not wrong until we start depending on our marketing schemes.  Secondly, the God ask is that He would bring people into our lives in partnership for the work He has called us to.

 

Donors have a two-way ask as well.  To God, that He would lead us to know who and what Great Commission work we should invest in.  Secondly, when we encounter cross-cultural workers, their vision for ministry is compatible with our understanding of global needs.

 

Strategic God-led partnerships are easier through sodalities (associations) than modalities (organizations). The purpose of (sodality) para-church groups is to focus on specific tasks (feeding programs, medical work, targeting unreached people groups, etc.).  Denomination modalities many times is a grab-bag approach to global work where donors depend on the organizations to send out missionaries rather than have a strategic plan.  The strength of modalities is the financial and accountability structure, which is lacking with some independent clearinghouse or sodality missions.

 

The key to Strategic God Led partnership is intentionality.  Missions cannot, or should not be, merely a program or driven by emotion.  When a missionary, church, organization, or individual donor intentionally understands the global need and asks God for direction and provision, the Lord of the Harvest will send laborers to the 3.6 billion people who have never met a follower of Christ.

𝑯𝒐𝒘 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑼𝒏𝒆𝒏𝒈𝒂𝒈𝒆𝒅 𝑯𝒆𝒂𝒓, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑯𝒐𝒘 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑼𝒏𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒄𝒉𝒆𝒅 𝑨𝒓𝒆 𝑹𝒆𝒂𝒄𝒉𝒆𝒅

Following up on my prior post, a more comprehensive description of the Engle’s scale is below. Special attention is focused on those who serve in the most unreached parts of the world.

 -5: Negatively Resistant – These individuals are opposed to the message of the Gospel and may actively reject it. Muslims in North Africa and the Middle East, and Hindu fundamentalists in Nepal or Sri Lanka are not only resistant to the Gospel but may be hostile to the message of Christ. Those working in these environments are mostly Insiders and Alongsiders.

 -4: Resistant – In these cultures, people may not exhibit overt hostility towards the message of the Gospel. However, due to cultural constraints, they tend to resist and reject any suggestion of embracing the teachings of Christ. While they may not be antagonistic towards Christians, they remain closed off from considering the claims of the Gospel. The individuals serving in these contexts encompass a range of roles, including Pioneers, Insiders, and Alongsiders.

 -3: Neutral – Individuals that are neither hostile nor receptive to the Gospel. They may be unaware of it or indifferent to it. Of course, these people are everywhere in the world. Much of missionary/evangelism throughout the world are among the Neutral. 

-2: Interested – This stage can be described as the "nibble" phase in the process of "fishing for men." People in this stage are relatively more open to the message of the Gospel and are willing to delve deeper into its exploration. It’s a critical juncture for Pioneers and Insiders, as they engage with resistant people groups. Prematurely jerking the pole, so to speak, risks permanently scaring away those who are genuinely interested in the Gospel.

 -1: Seeking - Individuals at this stage are actively seeking answers to their spiritual questions and are open to considering the Gospel.  This is one-on-one, many times secretly, guiding people toward becoming followers of Christ Jesus. 

 0: Indicating a Decision - Individuals at this stage are ready to make a spiritual decision but have not yet done so.  Like Nicodemus and Joseph of Arimathea, they may be secret disciples but have turned the corner in believing He is the Christ. 

 +1: Making a Decision - At this stage, a person has made a decision to follow Christ, but for Insiders and Pioneers this is a crucial point, much like -2. This is not necessarily the time to insist on baptism or joining a church. The convert may need further guidance and support before they take that next step. 

+2: Receptive to Discipleship – The new believer is now eager to grow in their faith and is receptive to discipleship and mentoring. There is nothing more invigorating than to be with newborn babes in Christ. 

+3: Growing in Faith - Individuals at this stage are actively growing in their faith and may need guidance and support as they face new challenges and opportunities. This is especially true of a new believer in a resistant culture. How to navigate this new life among kinship and cultural expectations can only be properly addressed by those who have actually dealt with these challenges…Insiders. 

+4: Maturing in Faith – At this point the individual takes on the role of an Insider. Mature in their faith, they are equipped to mentor and disciple others. 

+5: Multiplying Disciples – Multiplying may or may not result in a people movement, but is through this process the unengaged will have a witness among them and the unreached are being reached with the Good News about our marvelous Lord Jesus.

Communication By Scale

In my last post, I outlined the categories of mission work (Pioneers, Growers, Clandestiners, Insiders, Alongsiders). The category of a missionary's work is determined by two key factors: the location where the missionary serves and the level of understanding the local population has regarding the Gospel. 

 

The world population is nearing 8 billion people. 

47.7% percent of the world has been Reached with the Gospel, meaning 20% percent of the population is Christian, and more than 2% are evangelical. 

41.5% of the world is Unreached, meaning, 5% or less of the population are Christian and less than 2% evangelical. 

Within the Unreached there are the Unengaged, 10%. The difference between the Unreached and the Unengaged is that the Unreached, in many places of the world, like India, the Church has access to non-Christians, whereas the Unreached has limited to no opportunity to hear the Gospel, as in Algeria where the Christian population is .04%. 

Of course, in every country, there may be pockets of Christians within an Unreached country, such as the Nagas in northeast India, and pockets of Unengaged in a Reached country, i.e. the Somali in Kenya. In analyzing ministry/missionary needs, the focus should be on people groups, not countries or regions. 

As stated before, over 90% of all Christian work is among people who have already been reached with the Gospel, they are the Growers, meaning their work is primarily in church growth, and living in countries that are highly receptive to the Gospel message. 

5% of all missionary work are Pioneers, working with 41.5% of Unreached. 

Less than 2% of mission work are among the Unengaged people groups, and what little engagement there are is through Insiders and Clandestiners. 

 The Alongsiders, for the most part, are in partnership with Insiders and Clandestiners. 

Another model in analyzing missionary activity is the awareness/receptivity of people to the Gospel. Most missionaries are familiar with Engle's scale for evangelism, which was introduced in James Engel and Wilbert Norton's book, What's Gone Wrong with the Harvest? published in 1975.

This model is helpful, especially for Growers where most of the population is -6 on the scale, which includes most of North and South America, Sub-Sahara, and Europe…47% of the Reached world.

 

Because my focus is primarily on the Unreached and Unengaged people groups of the world, the scaled-down Engle’s model will be the focus of my next post.

 𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐃𝐨 𝐌𝐢𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐬 𝐃𝐨?

 

In a previous post, I gave my views on “is every Christian a missionary?”  I argued that, like the office of a pastor, teacher, and evangelist, the office as well as the gift of a missionary is unique.  

By default, every missionary is a cross-cultural worker, meaning they have left their own culture, and learned the language of the culture in which they serve.  

 

What then does a missionary do?  I have classified missionary work into four categories.  

Pioneers, Insiders, Clandestiner’s, Growers, and, Alongsider’s.

 

𝙋𝙞𝙤𝙣𝙚𝙚𝙧𝙨-  By definition, pioneer missionaries are the first to do something. They go to unreached areas and take the Gospel first.  You could say they are entrepreneurs, starting new ventures in places where no other person or group has gone.  Two hundred years ago pioneer missionaries were the norm.  They went to the unreached people and groups proclaiming the Good News to those who had never heard of Jesus.  We don’t have many true pioneer missionaries in today's mission world, but there are a few.  In Thailand, where I was last month, I know that there are some Western missionaries that are starting new churches.  If they are breaking new ground in that country that is true pioneer work.

 

𝐈𝐧𝐬𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐬– Insiders are Christians from that country who live where, in many cases, it is illegal to be a follower of Christ and certainly will be killed or put in prison if they convert to Christianity. Of course, missionaries from the West are not Insiders but they can work with Insiders covertly.

 

𝘾𝙡𝙖𝙣𝙙𝙚𝙨𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙚𝙧’𝙨– In many restricted areas of the world, traditional church planting isn’t possible, and those who go to those countries cannot obtain a missionary or religious visa.  Clandestine work is living in these closed countries working in business or as a part of an NGO.  Many of these clandestine workers are working with Insiders.  I am familiar with at least three such American families who are serving in these restricted countries.  By nature, the work is slow and not visible which perhaps is a frustration for sending churches in America, but very important in reaching the most unreached peoples of the world nevertheless. 

 

𝐆𝐫𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐫𝐬-  Much of the work of Western missionaries today is in the capacity of Growers. They serve in countries where there is freedom for the Gospel to start churches, build buildings, teach in seminaries, and offer social or youth programs.  Most of the work of Growers is in countries, that by definition, are already reached with the Gospel.  Of course, there are lost people in every corner of the world so their work is important. In function, however, they are not reaching the most unreached of the world but are involved in the church growth of the country they serve.  

 

𝘼𝙡𝙤𝙣𝙜𝙨𝙞𝙙𝙚𝙧𝙨– Alongsider’s are those who come alongside national workers to help them reach the unreached.  Many of the national Christians that work in restricted or closed countries have little opportunity to go to Bible College or seminary. Alongsider’s go to their countries or a neighboring country to teach God’s Word, disciple secret believers as well as help them learn ways they can be a witness in hostile environments.  

In a world where over half the world's population has no access to hear the Good News of Christ, and where nearly 95% of all Christian work is among countries that already have a strong Christian witness, I believe it is important that we understand the nature and work of missionaries.

I suspect that for most congregations throughout the world, we are “doing” missions but not really enhancing the Great Commission to take the Gospel to all the world.  What type of missionaries are we preparing for in cross-cultural work?  Are we equipping people for the unreached or merely promoting church growth?

 

It is my strong belief that until we change our paradigm of mission work and focus on how to partner with those serving in countries with the greatest need, we will continue to do missions but will fall short in reaching the uttermost parts of the world.