Musings and meditations about missions from a missionary.
I would refer you to an article by Church of Christ, John William McGarvey, “Missionary Societies” (1868), in which he argues that missionary societies are a modern invention which is unbiblical.
I think the issue here is very well put by McGarvey, when he argues that we are not at liberty to “invent” new conventions, organizations, and methods (especially not changing the content of the gospel message).
Many times in our day and age, a missionary needs to get some piece of information to people who are computer illiterate. That means sending a paper and ink letter. When the postal service in the country is just not up to par (I have had a letter from Mexico to the US take up to 6 months to get there, and many times they get lost in the mail), you need some other way of getting that letter out.
When a person chooses to be a missionary, there are certain sacrifices that they make in order to partake in this kind of ministry. Essentially you lose a lot of your “identity” to become a missionary. The simple question, “Where are you from?” becomes a complicated question because while I was born and raised in South Carolina, I have spent more time in Mexico than the US. Mexican people we visit. Sometimes they joke saying, “David is more Mexican than we are!” I have adapted to Mexican culture and foods, and I really like at least most of the Mexican foods.
But this price we pay is difficult to handle many times. You kind of “lose your identity” in the process of being a good missionary. We must celebrate the Mexican holidays and basically follow the Mexican culture, because you just cannot survive without doing that. Image if a Mexican was to pastor your church and not celebrate the Fourth of July! He would be extremely out of sync with the people he is trying to reach.
Topic: Language Learning PointersThis study is a definition of our “mission”, what is the mission of Christianity. These are my views, opinions, etc. on the topic.
Nerves Presenting Missionary Presentation
By David Cox
In this installment we think about being nervous in giving a missionary presentation.
When you think about it, first of all, you have contacts countless pastors and tried to talk your way past numberless secretaries to get to a pastor, and you have sent enough letters, emails, text messages to fill a computer, and after all that, you get very few if any meetings. When you actually get to a meeting, everything goes wrong. You leave your suit and tie back home, your slide presentation messes up or worse, the projector won’t work or there isn’t an extension cord that will reach, etc.
Missionary Presentations Openings and Closings
By David Cox
In this video by a professional presentation trainer, we hear how to begin and end a presentation. The opening and closing of a missionary presentation are extremely important in making a good impression on people. The opening is the first impression you give to people. The closing should wrap up things and bring the focus to what you want them to remember about you and your ministry.
AThe 10/40 Window is a term coined by Christian missionary strategist Luis Bush in 1990 to refer to those regions of the eastern hemisphere, plus the European and African part of the western hemisphere, located between 10 and 40 degrees north of the equator, a general area that in 1990 was purported to have the highest level of socioeconomic challenges[3][4] and least access to the Christian message and Christian resources on the planet.
Though popularized by Luis Bush, the term 10/40 window was in use by missiologists at the U.S. Center for World Missions as early as 1981, a term that was used by Doctor Ralph Winter, and subsequently, John Dawson of Youth With A Mission and Reconciliation Ministries, and many other YWAMers long before 1990. The rest of the article may be correct for it was talked about at Lausanne II.
The 10/40 Window concept highlights these three elements: an area of the world with great poverty and low quality of life, combined with lack of access to Christian resources. The Window forms a band encompassing Saharan and Northern Africa, as well as almost all of Asia (West Asia, Central Asia, South Asia, East Asia and much of Southeast Asia). Roughly two-thirds of the world population lives in the 10/40 Window. The 10/40 Window is populated by people who are predominantly Muslim, Hindu, Buddhist, animist, Jewish or atheist. Many governments in the 10/40 Window are formally or informally opposed to Christian work of any kind within their borders.
A biblical perspective on missionary tentmaking.
where should a missionary tithe?
