Whom shall I serve?

For missionaries who serve in areas with an established church, it is paramount to enjoy fellowship and commit to a local church. As we have been sent by one local church family, we have the opportunity to be lovingly adopted by another local church family on the field. That's the beauty of a global, catholic body of believers.

But what if you have been asked to participate in the worship team, who practice on Wednesday afternoon, and this clashes directly with your training of local church pastors? Or your church elders have requested your input in their latest evangelism outreach, but it is on the same day as your Bible translation meeting with the team? Or maybe the reverse might happen, and you've been asked to speak at another church gathering, and so you have to miss your Sunday service at your church. These battles for our time raises an important question for missionaries - how much time must we devote to the missionary work we have been called to compared to the service that we should undertake on behalf of our adoptive church? How do missionaries balance the scale between their ministry on the mission field and their ministry to their local church?

Even in a remote location, or areas that lack a definitive or open Christian witness, there will still be expectations for Christian missionaries and nationals to gather wherever possible, therefore there will still be expectations to serve in a collective context. As a family, we have had to employ much discernment regarding this question. It is hard to find equilibrium. However, too often I notice fellow missionaries in non-attendance of their local church for months on end (this excludes furlough). We should respect the demands of our wonderful receiving church, but also be obedient to the Lord's vocation for us in Madagascar. To this end, I offer a few reflections and then a few actions that missionaries can take.

Musing #1 - Your missionary vocation includes serving your receiving church, it isn't additional.

In Acts, whenever Paul set off on a missionary journey, he would seek out brothers and sisters in local churches, if they were established in the region (Acts 14:22-28, 15:41, 18:23). This was to encourage, serve and build God's church in that area. This was in conjunction with his outreach to Jews in the synagogues and Gentiles in the marketplace. By investing in the churches and smaller communities of Christian brothers and sisters, Paul could rely on them to care and harvest the fruit of his labours when he moved on. If the local church is strengthened through a missionary's service to them, then this can only benefit your ministry in the long run. If we conduct our missionary vocation in, effectively, a vacuum, then the church does not have the opportunity to benefit from any expertise we may have.

Musing #2 - The church can assist you in your missionary vocation.

If your missionary work is biblically founded, then the local church shares in your ministry aims too. If you are called to make disciples and preach the gospel to the nations, sharing the love of Christ in word and deed, then your receiving church will share (hopefully!) these aims. This may not always be necessary, but perhaps it may be prudent to connect your ministry to the work of the church. Under-mobilised members of the flock can be given purpose and passion by assisting you in your work. Likewise your ministry may become an extension of the larger service within the church.

Action #1 - Talk to your sending church.

In terms of the demands on your time, your sending church has no skin in the game. Discuss with them the various ways of service you have asked to be involved with, and they can assess how you can organise your time and efforts, and also determine whether you are taking too much on. Your sending church cares about you and wants you to avoid burnout. Let them weigh the decisions with you.

Action #2 - Talk to your sending agency.

If you are with a mission sending agency there may be certain parameters within which you work, or limitations on your time according to the direction of the agency. Discuss with them your desire to serve your local church and ask for advice, counsel and prayer for how best to balance your ministry demands.

Action #3 - Talk to your receiving church.

Ensure that your local church are well informed of the nature of your ministry and the time that you must commit to it. Ensure that they have the right expectations of you by communicating both your commitments to them and the demands of your vocation so they can assess your availability. For example, some of my work involves encouraging and discipling folk from other churches, therefore my attendance on Sundays at my local church is not always guaranteed. Whilst this certainly grieves me, and I wish to avoid this as much as possible, my local church are aware, understand and commission me to make these vital excursions. This is true also for when one is on furlough.

Action #4 - Regularly assess.

It is good to regularly reflect on our commitment to our local church in relation to our ministry commitment as missionaries. Sometimes they coalesce, other times they remain a tension to hold, and we must ensure through intentional assessment that we do not sway from one side to the other. It is possible that some times or seasons call for greater emphasis of one priority over the other. Paul both invested in individual churches for many years and also moved from church to church on his missionary journey. But our priorities must always be brought back into balance, in accordance with the leading of the Holy Spirit and the counsel of Christian brothers and sisters.