Starting a Mission Team in a Local Church

Purpose
The purpose of this is for those wanting to start a mission’s outreach team that is an integral part of the local Church.
It is specifically aimed at those who feel the call of missions on their lives and have wondered how they could be obedient to this important call of God on their lives.


So you wanna be a Missionary?
I personally think that this is such an exciting thing to do.
So many people want to go on a mission trip but are not sure how to get involved.
I asked Keir Tayler how he kept going on so many trips. My question was how do you remain so passionate?
His answer surprised me. He said that he doesn’t go out of passion but because of a command.
We have been commissioned and commanded Matt 28v18-20 And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, All authority is given to Me in Heaven and in earth. 19 Therefore go and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all things, whatever I commanded you. And, behold, I am with you all the days until the end of the world. Amen.
In Mat 9:36 the Bible says, But seeing the crowds, He was moved with compassion on them, because they were tired and scattered like sheep having no shepherd.
Jesus went on the command of His Father and when He saw the crowds He was moved with compassion.
So many times we aren’t doing anything because we don’t have a passion for it. This in effect is saying, “I don’t FEEL like it!”
We are to “Go” because we are commanded and once we see the crowds we too will be moved with compassion!

Okay, so where do I start?
Firstly, it is important to get the backing of your local church.
Here, you may run into a few different scenarios.
Scenario 1.
Your pastor may think that you are not ready for this. Immediately you have opposition. This is normal.
It is not opposition, he may genuinely think that you are not ready.
Scenario 2.
How much is it going to cost?
Scenario 3.
The question comes, “What about our own local community?”

Many have faced some of these scenarios and then given up. That’s the reason for this article.
Firstly, you need some credibility.
The best way to do this is to for people to see that you’re a team player. That means that you are an integral part of the life of your church.
How?
1. Be faithful.
2. Be on time.
3. Be involved in the life of the church.
4. Know the Vision of your church.
5. Be excited and enthusiastic.
6. Go on a few short term mission trips with another group. (Like us)

Okay, Okay, what’s next?
1. Prayerfully identify an area that God is calling you to.
Focus on a specific need or area. Don’t use a shotgun approach.
What we did was to identify the 100 least reached people groups in Southern Africa. Then we found the closest group to us and that’s where we went.
This doesn’t have to be in another country, it could be a group near you or even not so near. It could be on the other side of the world, although this makes short term trips really challenging.
2. Get a good map and get an idea of what the place looks like.
Build a profile on the people or area.
The internet is a huge resource for this.
Check out the following links.
http://www.joshuaproject.net/
http://www.om.org/
3. Find out if any full time missionaries are working in the area.
If there are, make contact with them and make friends with them. They could very well be wary of your group. Build a relationship with them. (Be humble)
4. Organise a short reconnaissance trip to the area.
See if there are any local pastors there. If there are make friends with them. If you don’t, once you leave they are still there and could very well destroy all that you are trying to achieve there.
Be flexible.
5. Give feedback to your local church. Involve them as much as possible. Show photos, speak about the trip, invite others to come on trips.
6. For the first few trips, concentrate on building relationships.

So, let’s see what this “Mission department” of your local church looks like.
1. Let the whole church know that they are all part of the team. Tell them often!
2. Get the church to open a missions account. Make sure there is accountability and good stewardship with this account.
3. Pray for the nations regularly. (this expands peoples vision) as well as for your adopted area.
4. Have a vision that ties in and compliments the vision of your local church.
5. Plan regular trips to your adopted area. Be a blessing to that area. Identify needs and challenge your church to meet them.
6. Build a website (or use a blog like us, it’s free) htcchurchmissions.blogspot.com
More to follow!
Feel free to contact us if you have any other queries.