Resources for Missionary Recruits Online by Marty Andry, Doug Lucas, and Chris Bushnell

Chapter 5
Thinking God's Thoughts

"Sale on Souls--$1 each!"

We live in a day of cost efficiency studies. Industries complete time studies to determine the exact number of minutes (or seconds!) required to perform various mechanical tasks, then explain to their employees just how rapidly they should be laboring. Often, an individual's salary is paid in proportion to the product he or she is able to produce. Although today's professional athletes receive a salary regardless of whether or not they win, we are all well aware of the fact that the victors are paid higher premiums than the losers. It is, unfortunately, a fact of life.

Into the midst of this "dog eat dog" working environment comes the furloughing missionary, spouting off sentences like, "Who knows when God will bring harvest from the seeds I've planted. The point is, I'm out there planting."Another, who might be laboring in a different part of the world, might return with glowing reports of hundreds, and maybe thousands baptized. And surprisingly, sometimes the latter worker may be managing a ministry for 1/5 the cost of the former!

It is not surprising, then, that church boards across the country are uncertain how they should react. Some of the missionaries they've been supporting may write them once per year, and even then, the elders may have trouble understanding just what it is that the particular missionary is trying to accomplish. Sooner or later, the elder that manages a local assembly plant is going to begin questioning the "cost efficiency" of the "investment" in that particular ministry. Like it or not, most of us look at the bottom line and try to measure "souls per dollar."

Take a Look at Your Principles

Perhaps Stephen Covey, more than any other modern-day author, has been able to communicate to us the value of living by principles. Get a copy of his The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People and read it thoroughly. Covey has managed to top the best-seller lists by asserting that we need to "restore the character ethic!" Isn't it incredible that a book could be a best-seller today by asking people to actually carry through with what they say they're going to do?

But that's only part of Covey's magic. His seven principles are indeed succinct and wise. Covey asserts that we need to:

• Be Proactive
• Begin with the End in Mind
• Put First Things First
• Think Win/Win
• Seek First to Understand, then to be Understood
• Synergize
• Sharpen the Saw

He says that only when these principles become habits with us will we really find happiness. He quotes David Starr Jordan as saying, "There is no real excellence in all this world which can be separated from right living." Almost sounds like something from Sunday School, doesn't it?! Well, although Seven Habits is by no means Sunday School, it does voice some modern-day principles that would seem consistent with those that Christians would want to develop to live in the 1990s and beyond. Would-be missionaries would do well to not only read the book, but put it into practice.

The Quest for a Direction

Is it fair? Should we cut back our support of a particular project that isn't "churning out the numbers"? Should we demand that our missionaries only serve in "receptive countries," leaving the "resistant people groups" for later generations? Do principles which are apparently quite sound in the business world automatically transfer into the spiritual realm?

Obviously, the answers to these questions and others like them do not come easily. Yet they cannot be ignored, both for ethical, as well as practical, reasons. However, it is impossible to enter such a study from a purely secular vantage point. If we are going to be successful at figuring out where we're going--i.e., if we're to learn to "think God's thoughts"--we must make the entire matter the subject of many serious prayers to the Father. We assume that only through God's direction will our work be truly blessed. We can therefore conclude that it is through prayer and the reading of His word that we will portray His message most effectively to the people to whom He has called us.

After prayer, it behooves us to study the works of other successful missionaries. By successful, we don't necessarily mean that the worker starts four churches per week!One definition of success might read, instead, "how well the missionary performed in relation to his or her stated objectives for that particular time period." A particular congregation might well decide to "drop" their monthly gift to a certain missionary because of the fact that he or she is only reporting two or three evangelistic calls per week. Upon further investigation, one might learn that the missionary indeed, only made two calls per week because of a very intensive language study program. True--two years passed without a single baptism. But achieving fluency in the local dialect was without a doubt the most important task at that point in the missionary's career. When was the last time your congregation awarded bonus pay to a missionary who worked especially hard at language learning?

The conclusion of the matter is as follows: Once a missionary has set up carefully stated goals that are both challenging and realistic, his or her supporting congregations are then able to provide some degree of accountability and oversight for the work. (Make sure those goals have measurable "pegs", including dates, times, who is responsible, and how you'll know the goal is completed.) The same is true for a missionary working with a team or mission organization. "If you don't know where you're going, how will you know when you get there?" We might add that when you do "arrive," will you wonder if it's the right place?

The Chase is On!

I'm convinced that some missionaries have made mission work look like hot air ballooning. Their object is to get enough hot air going so they launch into the sky. They're not sure where they'll end up, but no matter what, they're out to have a good time.

Not long ago I took my son to a balloonfest in a nearby town. He was impressed by the dozens of giant, multicolored balloons but I'm not sure I was very effective at teaching him the principles involved in "lighter than air" flight (he was just 15 months old at the time). I, however, was the one who learned the lesson. Successful ballooning is a lot more than just luck. The particular event we watched was called "The Hare and the Hounds." One balloon was set free to fly at will, while the others, released some five minutes later, were to mount the chase. Several minutes later, the "hare" would land, proceeding to circumscribe (with ribbon) a circle having a diameter of only twenty feet. The winning "hound" was the balloon that dropped a sandbag closest to the center of the circle!

I was quite surprised! To be able to drop the sandbag into that circle, the balloonist had to be near expert in a lot of skills, not the least of which were 1) altitude and its effect on wind direction and velocity, 2) propane burner valve settings and their effect on altitude, 3) weight, 4) timing, and 5) plain old luck! Although mission work is far from dependent on luck, some believe that timing, direction, velocity, and "valve settings" are quite significant!

The Best Direction

It was interesting to note that the balloon which "hit the mark" that day was sort of a renegade. It was flown by a professional balloonist from several states away. it was plain to see that, from the beginning, she was navigating in a different direction from the others. In fact, at first it looked as though she were tracking some mirage. Instead, she had actually calculated changing wind velocities and had estimated that the pace balloon would be blown to a different course. To everyone's surprise, she was absolutely right!When all was said and done, she was within a few hundred feet of a perfect rendezvous, and her balloon was far ahead of the others.

There must be some lesson here for today's force of missionaries. If a balloon pilot can make calculations and estimates for something as unpredictable as the wind, can we as missionaries not learn to plot courses for Christian missions? With our chief navigator occupying the ultimate "high ground",it would appear that we are in a very enviable position. After intensive prayer for God's guidance, what track can we follow to bring some form of reason to the chaos that is sometimes called "missionary work"?

Every missionary will be called upon to juggle a multitude of distinct challenges. In addition to learning to manage oneself, the effective cross-cultural worker must plan, organize, lead, and follow through.

Planning

To appreciate the importance of effective planning, one need only look as far as Romans 15. There, Paul makes it clear that he had one primary objective (vs. 16), a primary operating goal (vs. 20), and a host of sub-goals (vs. 23, 24, 24, 25, 28). In fact, Joseph, Daniel, and Nehemiah were actually planning and carrying out their plans centuries earlier. To be good stewards, all Christian workers must carefully chart their paths to reduce duplication, retrograde motion, and subsequent waste of the Lord's resources.

This is not to say that we "box in" the Spirit. Proverbs 16:9 says, "In his heart a man plans his course, but the Lord determines his steps." Remember, prayer precedes and permeates every single step of the way. Plans are really nothing more than "statements of faith"--it is God who must inspire both the thinking and the doing.

Let's also remember that while purpose statements, goals, objectives along with plans and strategies are important, let's not make the mistake of being missiological engineers for God. Jesus himself was quite clear that costs must first be counted, prior to the start of building a tower. In the same passage, the smart king was the one who took careful stock of his forces before waging war with an enemy. The truth is, unless we plan, we may not know our resources and we may concentrate on the wrong purpose. Those without game plans can often be seen battling the multitudinous small tasks but never finding time or resources to concentrate on the big picture.

How does one plan? Once again, only after intensive prayer can one trust that God will answer and direct. But prayer must be seen as more than just the "necessary conditioning."In our prayers we seek the guidance of the Spirit. It is a part of our over all relationship to the Father. We must be sure that we are always in tune with Him and that we do not only seek Him for determining our future plans.

The next step is to determine objectives. Until a clear set of aims is established, the plan will have no foundation. It will wander in various directions, urging people to do lots of "good things," but in the end, it will accomplish no major feat.

Next, after stating what needs to be done, one is in the position to ask how it should be accomplished. The goal in this step is to lay out all the sub-goals that are necessary to go from where you are now to where you want to be.

In some cases, the next step will include the preparation of a budget, including both financial and personnel resources. Time budgets (schedules) are seldom written down, even though they may be some of the more crucial factors in accomplishing the plan.

Naturally, flexibility must be built into the plan. This is particularly important in mission work, where countries and governments can change literally over night. (The very morning I was writing this section, I woke up to the news that the national leaders of two small nations were overthrown last evening!) But planning gives one a tentative path--a best case scenario, if you will. By the way, some say that effective plans should also program in the worst case scenario as well. Knowing a possible reaction in case of failure can save time and money. When those changes do occur, it is important to ask oneself exactly what caused the differing results, so that future planning can include just compensation.

The writer of Proverbs is only one of several well known authors who has emphasized the importance of checking your plan with others. "For waging war you need guidance, and for victory many advisers." Good brainstorming sessions with well-informed friends--placed side by side with fervent prayer meetings--are the closest "guarantee of success" that one can muster.

Finally, plans should include actual milestones where evaluation takes place. Many of us have drawn up schedules, placed them in a significant spot in our notebooks, then proceeded with life (forgetting to look at our plan). Perhaps the effectiveness of a plan depends as much on good implementation as it does on quality creation!

For more information on goal-setting and the planning process, obtain a copy of a book like Dayton and Engstrom's Strategy for Living.[Dayton, Edward R. and Ted W. Engstrom, (Ventura, CA: Regal Books, 1976).] This book is available with a notebook/workbook that can be completed by the reader. If one is careful about follow-through, these little self-help volumes can literally revolutionize a person's life, not only increasing output, but uncovering more time and resources for personal and family life.

A Strategy for Personal Effectiveness

The story is told that a top executive in a Pennsylvania steel mill once offered $25,000 to the man that could introduce him to the most effective principles for personal management. I understand that a line worker came by the office a day or two later and managed to walk out with the signed check just five minutes later. What was the magic formula?It was actually very simple: 1) List all activities, 2) Ask if they are assignable (to someone else), 3) Assess priorities for and rearrange (in priority) the remaining items, 4) Schedule and block out time for each line (in order of priority). Although it may not sound like a $25,000 idea, it does actually work. The authors of The Ministry of Management do a good job at describing these simple yet near--magical directives.[Douglass, Stephen, Bruce Cook and Dr. Howard Hendricks (San Bernardino: Campus Crusade for Christ Int'l, 1981).] They analyze the secret of several plans for organizing one's future and even supply a host of worksheets that the reader can complete. For example, they list the following ideas to help you Managing time keep your schedule:

• Each evening, look to see what you have planned to do the next day.
• If new potential activities for the next day have arisen, displace planned activities only if the new activities are higher priority.
• Pray for motivation, and constantly review why you have planned the activities on your list.
• Keep your schedule in front of you and refer to it frequently.
• Always be sensitive to God's particular leading.
• If someone cancels an appointment, be ready to redeem the time with other items.
• If you do not complete an item, transfer it to tomorrow's list, weighting its priority with tomorrow's schedule.
• Pray and constantly trust God for His peace that He will use you to accomplish the tasks He has given you.[Ibid, p. 6-23, 6-24.

Planning Strategies for Outreach

I will never forget the first night in our chosen mission field. The plane touched down on the runway of what seemed like another world. We had prayed and prepared for four years. I had even obtained a Bachelor of Arts and a Master's degree in Missions. Yet there was a gnawing feeling in the pit of my stomach. I pretended to at least be comfortable when my team members asked me questions. We had designed several operating plans. But in spite of that, inside me this little voice was whispering, "What do we do now?" My point is that some of the those "gnawing feelings" are inevitable. But drawing up a slate of tentative plans can do wonders for one's sanity on those long lonely nights, to say nothing of the impression they make on tentative supporters.

One word of caution: avoid publishing a plan that "boxes you into a corner." Once again, the missionary byword, "flexibility," cannot be overstated. Not only for the sake of supporters, but also for your own self-esteem, make sure you give equal time to "worst case" scenarios, explaining how you'll redeem yourself in case "all else fails." Under a pattern such as the one offered in these writings, the missionary will be creating operating plans and objectives by which his or her work will be judged. It is tempting to let this solemn thought virtually neutralize the effectiveness of planning, thus creating only the goals that we know we'll be able to accomplish. However, there is an element of the Christian faith that must be considered. If we believe the words we speak--that we worship the God of the impossible--then we have good justification for attempting tasks of extreme difficulty. In effect, our goals might sometimes inform us about our very theology of faith!

Suppose one is ready to "reach for the stars."Where do we begin? Once again, we cannot say enough about prayer. There is something paradoxical about the destiny of the Christian who plans. In prayer, we plan our steps, believing that God will guide us--even if it means He'll guide us in an entirely different direction!

Having established that foundation of prayer, I know of no better source for the strategic planning process than Ed Dayton and David Fraser's, Planning Strategies for World Evangelization.[(Grand Rapids: Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1980).] Instead of trying to offer a a quick-fix formula for success in any culture, the authors wisely deal with the process by which one might design approaches. Their outline is quite universal, since it simply guides the prospective worker through the required thought processes for creating new mission strategies. With the addition of That Everyone May Hear, the reader can now consult the former as a text, and the latter as a workbook.[Dayton, Edward R., (Monrovia: MARC, 1983).] They leave no Planning;Questions to ask planning stone unturned, as they thoughtfully probe the reader for answers to the following questions:

• What people does God want us to reach?
• What is this people group like?
• Who should reach them?
• How should they be reached?
• What will be the results?

The more detailed outlines in Planning Strategies approach the task as follows:

• Defining the mission
• The people to be reached
• The force for evangelization
• Means and methods
• Analyzing the strategy
• Anticipated outcomes
• Your role
• Planning
• Act
• Evaluation[Planning Strategies, p. 43.

Regardless of the particular culture, regardless of the specific mission, and regardless of the exact job description, Planning Strategies and That Everyone May Hear are important books if one is focused on designing a strategy that will address the "big picture" involving an unreached people group. Prior to the development of a support-raising plan, each prospective missionary should obtain both books and work completely through them. Through such a study, some would-be missionaries may conclude that the job of reaching a particular group is better left in someone else's hands. Or, an entire project might shift to a slightly different orientation as a result of the study.

If one's emphasis is in development, MARC's new manual, Getting It There, will go a long way toward developing specific ideas.[Boyd, Ben, (Monrovia: World Vision Int'l, 1987).] On the other hand, if church planting is the major focus, Hesselgrave's Planting Churches Cross--Culturally is a virtual "Bible" for the evangelist.[Hesselgrave, David, Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 1980.]If tentmaking or secular employment overseas is expected, one should consult, The Tentmaker's Resource Guide.[Privately published by Tentmakers International, P.O. Box 33836, Seattle, Washington 98133.] These references establish the fact that there may be specific handbooks geared toward your particular field or method of service. One of the purposes in the Planning Strategies study is to discover as many helpful resources as possible for the carrying out of an effective mission.

With God's blessing, a heart full of concern, a mind bursting with ideas, the primary strategies will begin to take shape. Don't forget, as Dayton mentions repeatedly, to be sensitive to the evaluative process that must work concurrently with your strategizing. Planning Strategies, p. 478. Then and only then will you be sensitive to the Spirit's leading throughout your project. One must always "plan to make time to plan."

Questions to consider...

• In what ways do you imply that "souls are on sale" and how can you avoid the trap of viewing people as "projects?"
• How are you going to define success on your field?
• Write a plan for your next 12 months; keep it fairly simple at first (the front side of one page), then expand later.
• In what ways do you revolt at the idea of planning? Does it seem "unspiritual" to you? Talk with a couple of supporters about planning and get their input and compare with your own. You just might be surprised!

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