Caring for Your Missionary on Location and at Home –

What can you do?
from Church Missionary Society – Australia

Caring for Your Missionary on Location

1. Pray
As well as praying for them on your own, you can bring your missionary's prayer needs before your church. Aim for brief but regular updates.

-Include prayer for your link missionary in services.
-Distribute their prayer points and newsletters to members of your church and small groups. Don't forget to help your church kids to pray!
-Collect e–mail addresses so that you can e–mail your link missionaries' prayer points directly to people.
-Start a mission prayer group.
-Let missionaries know about your prayers

2. Keep in touch

-Write a letter or e-mail them. You can encourage your link missionary by telling them about what's been happening in your family, church, neighborhood. When e-mailing, check before sending attachments or long messages. In some countries e-mails are monitored. Find out if there are topics that you should avoid mentioning for security reasons.
-Keep them in the loop. Send the church bulletin occasionally and tell them about what's going on at church.
-Send a tape or CD. If you prefer talking to writing send an audio or videotape or a CD of you or people at church. You could also send sermon tapes to encourage your link to your missionary.

3. Spoil them

-You can help missionaries to feel cared for by sending birthday cards, videos, magazines, books, chocolates or things for their children. Check first to see what they would like.
-If you send parcels check that they won't have to pay heavy customs duties. Mark your parcel 'printed matter only' (if that is what it is), 'NCV' (no commercial value) or 'gift'. Tell them that you are sending the parcel and what is in it.

4. Send resources to help with their work

-Send books, ideas and give creative suggestions for outreach activities and presentations for students and children.
-Some missionaries welcome craft things, balls and pencils, as well as puppets to explain Bible stories.

5. Visit them!

-A well–planned visit from supporters can be a great encouragement to missionaries.
over…
Caring for your missionary on home assignment

1. Pray

Pray that missionaries will:
-Adjust
-Have opportunities to share about their ministry
-Enjoy times with families and friends
-Have stability in family life despite their changing program
-Be refreshed

2. Help them to settle in

-Help set up their house
-Arrange a welcome home box of basics for the pantry and help to set up their home with furniture.
-Lend them a car
-Help settle their kids

3. Help missionaries to feel at home

-Visit them
-Invite them to join a home group or ask their kids to join Sunday school or youth group.
-Lend a hand. Think of the things you struggle with during busy periods.
-Spoil them

4. Make the most of their visit to your church

-Arrange for your missionary to spend a week visiting your church, sharing about their ministry in a variety of meetings. Ask your missionary for ideas.

Used by permission. © 2004 Church Missionary Society - Australia http://www.cms.org.au/care/#location