So you’re at a conference hearing a message on missions. For the first time, you feel like God may be calling you to give your life for the sake of the gospel among those who have never heard it before. But then your heart sinks. Uh oh. My church doesn’t really send missionaries. I’m not sure we ever have before. What do you do?
Churches are active in international missions to differing degrees. Participation in the Great Commission will look different for different congregations. Your church may not have the resources to equip and send its own missionaries. Don’t assume just because your church isn’t sending missionaries that they don’t want to or don’t care about the lost.
Don’t assume just because your church isn’t sending missionaries that they don’t want to or don’t care about the lost.
Increase Awareness of the Need
Instead of assuming members of your church don’t care, assume they haven’t heard. They may not know how many unreached people groups are left on the planet. They may not realize that those who never hear the gospel are doomed to spend eternity apart from Christ. Maybe no one has explained the glorious end-time realities found in texts like Revelation 5 and 7.
Get lunch with your pastor and ask him to share his understanding of the missionary task. He may have the same passion for world evangelization as you do. Ask how you can help him do that. You could start a missions reading group or an inductive Bible study on missionary texts in the Bible. Walk with people and help them understand their role in the Great Commission.
Lead Your Church in Prayer for the Nations
Don’t discount the power of saints on their knees. Your church may never be able to give and go like other churches, but they can pray like them. Ask your pastor if he can pray for an unreached people group during your Sunday gatherings. If you have a prayer service, see if he’d let you share about a people group and lead a short time of guided prayer for them.
Church culture changes slowly and never without prayer. If you want your church to take missions more seriously, lead them to pray about missions and see what the Lord does in your midst.
Cooperate with Others in the Missionary Task
Missions is expensive. The amount of money required to equip, send, and sustain one missionary––much less a whole family––is unrealistic for most churches. That’s why lots of churches work with other like-minded churches to pool resources together in order to fund gospel advancement. Get to know other gospel churches in your town. Meet your denominations’ local and regional leadership. Research the structures your tradition uses to raise up missionaries––especially from churches that can’t fully support workers themselves.
Practically, if you are interested in being a missionary, talk with your pastor about Bible college or seminary. Your church can commission you to go and learn what you need to be an effective gospel worker in a cross-cultural context. But don’t leave the church in your rearview mirror! Share what you learn, and think strategically about how you can use what you learn to help your congregation back home grow.
Make sure there is hesitation about missions in general, not you as a missionary.
Find a Church that is Committed to Spreading the Gospel
If you are getting pushback on wanting to go overseas or help the church think well about missions, there may be a point that you consider joining a different church. Just make sure there is hesitation about missions in general, not you as a missionary. You want to be part of a church that cares about getting the gospel right and getting the gospel out. If your church isn’t interested in the latter, it’s okay to find one that is––as a last resort.
As disciples of Christ, we all should have a heart to share the hope of the gospel with others. As best you can, help create a culture of missions, by God’s grace, that provides the context possible for your church to send you as a laborer into the harvest.
Colton Corter lives in Richmond, Virginia. He and his wife have three boys and are members of River City Baptist Church.
