Local Leadership is Crucial on the Mission Field
Missionaries are a rare breed. They wear every type of hat available, and many of them at the same time. They are pastors, teachers, pioneers, well-drillers, doctors, dentists, social workers, evangelists, disciplers, moms, dads, sons, and daughters... and they give their all. Their heart is 100% on the field.
Often, Missionaries Serve in Isolation on the Mission Field
But all too often they are isolated in what they do. So you end up with one missionary working over here, and another over there, and in the end, not one of the missionaries knows what the other is doing, or for that matter, what needs the others may have.
Truth be known, many don’t even answer to the same supervisor. In the case of many megacities, there are different missionaries who live near each other, but the are all working with different people groups and report to different supervisors, many of which are thousands of miles away!
If there is a lot of movement on each of the different teams, this system might function. They have their numbers, and meet their own needs. But, where some missionaries are isolated or struggling to get a foothold, there has to be a better way!
There is a Need for Local Leadership on the Mission Field
I believe that there is an overwhelming need for a common local leadership on the field that provides structure in order to ensure that everyone is moving in the same direction under a common strategy.
For example. During the period of one week, I shared the gospel with a Muslim diplomat who expressed interest in knowing more about Christ. In one church plant we discipled Japanese descendants. We also have close ties with many Chinese Christians. And I was invited by the chief of an indigenous tribe to visit his village.
All of these things fit under my overall strategy for the city, but I don’t have the resources on my team to meet all these needs. The thing is, I do know people that could meet these needs, but they answer to different supervisors, and herein lies the rub. The supervisors don’t permit the collaboration, so we end up with individual, isolated missionaries doing their own things and are not fully aware of what the others are doing.
For years I wrote a blog on “productivity and efficiency.” I believe this is the way to get things done… well, the problem I'm describing is neither! We must rethink this. There is a huge need for local leadership on the mission field!
7 Reasons We Need Local Leadership on the Mission Field
- We Need Accountability – It is important that we constantly challenge one another to good works (Hebrews 10:24-25). Getting together just to see how we’re doing is a great way to avoid temptation, seek encouragement, bounce ideas off of each other, and challenge each other to stand strong. It’s also a way of making sure that someone does not become overwhelmed to the point of inactivity.
- We Need to Pray Together – The Book of Acts shows that as the early disciples came together and prayed, God displayed His power in amazing ways (Acts 1:24, 4:31, 6:6, 8:15, 9:40, 12:12, 16:25). Ready to see His power working today?
- We Need Numbers for Credibility – There is nothing like showing up to a meeting with your national conventions or associations, or even churches, with more than one person. You have immediate clout. Compare this to meetings where you go by yourself. It is like day and night. This has been verified by many missionaries from many different mission groups. Even Jesus sent out the disciples (Mark 6:7) and the seventy (Mark 10:1) two by two!
- We Need to Sharpen Each Other – God intended for us to sharpen one another (Proverbs 27:17). We can cheer one another up, help maintain social skills, and help each other stay sharp emotionally and spiritually. And sometimes we just need to say “chill out Dude!” When you meet regularly, you become friends, and you know what needs to be said to bring out the best in each other.
- We Need to Share Resources – I don’t know how many times we are going to reinvent the wheel. We are all going to translate things that have been translated before. We’re all going to have resources setting on our shelves that others could be using. I remember cleaning out an old mission house and finding tons of resources that could have been used by someone, but here they were just going to waste. There is so much to share on the mission field; things about language, culture, getting residency paperwork, opening bank accounts, kids schooling, worldviews, core values, you name it. This only happens as we come together.
- We Need Synergy - A team can produce more effort than the same number of isolated individuals (Ecclesiastes 4:9-12). Two draft horses working together can pull a lot more than the total of individual horses pulling their loads alone. A Dynamometer proved this! And I’m convinced that if you hook some missionaries up to a spiritual Dynamometer and you would see the same phenomenon!!!
- We Need to Maintain Momentum – This is huge. When there is not a team, and you leave the field for a furlough of six months or a year, all that you’ve been working on faces new challenges. It could be a lack of leadership, or outside doctrinal challenges. You can avoid these problems with a common local leader and a working team, and the momentum can continue. Paul often left people behind as he moved on (Acts 18:19, Titus 1:5).
Conclusion
These seven items can only happen where there is a strong team. And there is no efficient team where there is no local leader. These seven items all have to do with local leadership that knows the given situation; geographically, socio-economically, and spiritually. These seven items are a must, and can happen under a common local leadership that focuses on getting everyone on the same page.
In the past, missionaries worked in teams, and there was great success and extension of the kingdom. I don’t know why we think we can be so individualistic and continue to work effectively and efficiently in isolated conditions. We think that being the Lone Rangers is the way to go. But hey, even the Lone Ranger had Tonto and Silver!