Omar Bradley, an American general in WWII, once said, “Amateurs talk strategy; professionals talk logistics.” This maxim of warfare also proves true when it comes to global missions.
Solid logistics – or the lack thereof – make all the difference in the end. Think of Napoleon’s failed invasion of Russia or the Union’s ultimate defeat of the Confederacy in the American Civil War. Frontline personnel, no matter how gifted and strategic they are, simply cannot win a war unless their supply chains hold up. And no global missionary can succeed without a large network of senders, supporters, and helpers working behind the scenes on their behalf. As William Carey said to Andrew Fuller, “I will go down into the pit, if you will hold the ropes.”
A missionary’s network of partner churches provides the prayer, relationship, and funding vitally needed so that cross-cultural workers can do what they do. But there is another crucial and utterly practical area where missionaries are also dependent on their senders: transitional housing. Yes, missionaries need your prayers, but almost every time they come “home” they also need your help in finding a place where they can sleep, shower, and once again enjoy the freedom of cooking bacon while wearing shorts without the possibility of mortifying their neighbors. Thankfully, there is a strong tradition of the US Church doing this very thing and investing in housing for missionaries. Other sending countries may also be strong in this, but my experience limits me here to addressing the US context.
I remember hearing once in Central Asia that a neighboring country had 700 safe houses in our city for the use of their spies. This was an alarming statistic. Similarly, most pagan Americans would be shocked to hear that all across the United States a massive network of houses for visiting missionaries exists, largely under the radar of the general population. I’ve come to realize just how hidden and odd this staple of the missionary experience is for unbelieving Americans as I’ve tried to explain our housing situation to some of my unbelieving countrymen.
There are many worthy things to focus on when it comes to global missions, but I do feel that the humble mission house is not celebrated nearly enough. So, I wanted to write a little bit about why they are so helpful for missionaries and for the churches that host them. And if you are reading this post and your church doesn’t have a mission house, then I want you and your pastors to think and pray and plan about getting one. It may end up being one of the most significant investments in missions you ever make.
First, mission houses are a financial blessing to missionaries who would otherwise be hard-pressed to afford housing on their ministry income. For over a year now, my family and I have been living in stateside missionary housing. The first was a traditional mission house owned by a large First Baptist Church in our area. The second has been an empty parsonage that we are helping to inaugurate as a new mission house for a nearby rural congregation. Together, the provision of these houses has saved us tens of thousands of dollars of rent that we would otherwise need to come up with. In this Icarus-like housing and rental economy, this mostly free housing has been an extremely generous and helpful gift. Different churches have different expectations regarding rent, but the two that we’ve been at only have us paying for utilities. Perhaps your church budget can’t currently support another missionary. But if you have an empty parsonage, then you have on-hand a very significant means of financial support.
Mission houses can also be a blessing of rest for missionaries. Because my family doesn’t own a house in the US, the housing provided for us meant that we had one less thing to figure out when we came back to the US for a long season of medical work and uncertainty about our future on the field. Local churches gave us places where we could stay in relative privacy, and this in turn meant we could prioritize the medical appointments, the counseling, and the rest and recovery that was needed after seven hard years on the field.
Sometimes, it works out for missionaries to go to the field and to retain some kind of housing in their home country. But this is by far the exception. Most missionaries will need to divest themselves of any property as a part of their transition to the mission field. When they do this, they are putting themselves in a tricky place when it comes to their visits back to the homeland, which might be anywhere from a few weeks to a few years long. Living with family or friends can be a good stop-gap measure, but that kind of situation is usually not super restful for either party – at least not for those of us from the modern West who have been raised to rest most effectively in nuclear family-only contexts.
Third, mission houses are a blessing of presence for the missionaries. These houses are often close or right next to the churches that own them, meaning the missionaries have easy access to a body of believers that worship in their heart language. And this presence of a nearby church body might be coming after years of the only other Christians around being new and immature indigenous believers or overworked missionary colleagues. In contrast, churches of Christians like these who have remained stable and rooted in the home country can be a wonderful source of wisdom and refreshment for worn-out and spiritually-depressed missionaries. We shouldn’t underestimate the power of a body of normal, faithful believers when it comes to manifesting the presence of Christ to a tired missionary family. There are many ways they might do this, from pig roasts and potlucks to timely words of wisdom or passionate singing. Mission houses make it easier for missionaries to be in the presence of hospitable local churches. And when it comes to healing, there’s no better place for a Christian to be.
Mission houses are a financial blessing, a blessing of rest, and a blessing of presence for missionaries. But how do they bless and serve the churches that own them, those that have to foot the bill for these houses’ roof replacements, flooded basements, and blocked-up pipes?
First, mission houses are a blessing of joy to the host churches. Jesus tells us that it is more blessed (i.e. joy-inducing) to give than to receive (Acts 20:35). God has so wired the new heart such that Christians are rewarded with spiritual joy when they host gospel workers in a manner worthy of God (3rd John 1:6). This is just as true on a corporate, church level as it is for individual believers. This joy also comes from the many ways in which church members get to exercise their gifts of hospitality and service in the ongoing care of their own mission house and the rhythms of hosting missionaries in it.
Second, mission houses are a blessing of presence to the churches, just as they are for missionaries. If a local church has a mission house, then its congregation has an increased opportunity to spend face-to-face time with international missionaries. This is true even if the church is hosting missionaries who are sent out from a different church in the area. There is a good and healthy sense of mutual obligation that emerges between a host church and its missionary guests, such that most missionaries will be eager to get to know the members of the church and to try to encourage them as they have opportunity.
When access like this exists, mission houses can then also become a blessing of mobilization and equipping for local churches. When it comes to mobilization, few things are more influential for raising up future missionaries than face to face conversation and relationship with those who are already missionaries. Any church that desires to see some of their children one day sent to the nations should do whatever they can to get what some call RLMs (real live missionaries) in front of their people as often as possible. Mission houses are a great way to do this. These opportunities can then also lead to equipping, as missionaries are often able to serve the church in things like preaching or evangelism and discipleship training.
These are some of the main reasons why I believe we should celebrate mission houses, and key ways in which these practical structures of service can be a blessing both to missionaries and to the churches that partner with them. As I said earlier, the US church has historically been strong in providing this kind of resource. But changes in the real estate market and the culture of US churches mean this crucial resource may become more and more rare, even as there’s already a shortage for the current need. This means that we need a new generation of churches and missionary senders to embrace this humble and traditional part of the missionary’s supply lines.
Because my parents were missionaries and now my own family serves overseas, I have probably spent 3-5 years of my life living in mission houses or their equivalents. Some of them have been fancy and stylish. Some have been pretty run down and should have gotten rid of that shag carpet decades ago. All of them have been a solid blessing, places of refuge, welcome, and rest in the midst of our nomadic ministry lifestyle. And each of them communicated to us the genuine love of the churches that kept them going.
If your church doesn’t have a mission house, then let me challenge you and your church to pray and scheme about one day investing in one. Mission houses are an investment in the supply lines and practical infrastructure of global mission, and thereby in the care and ultimately victory of the Church’s missionaries. This also makes them a brick-and-mortar investment in the nations. They’re not just a simple roof and four walls, but instead, houses that can change the world.
To support our family as we head back to the field, click here.
For my list of recommended books and travel gear, click here.
Photos are from Unsplash.com
Entrusted to the Dirt 