Missions on Point

MoP031 Keys to Effectiveness as a Missionary - 6 Bible Knowledge

Believe it or not, missionaries all too often don't have this assumed key to effectiveness in their toolbox. It's not enough to have a passion for missionary ministry! Even sincere candidates (and missionaries on the field!) have such a simplistic understanding of the Gospel and of the Bible that they freeze up if called on to explain the storyline of the Bible or find a reference in one of the Minor Prophets. Having a good grasp of Bible content, the interpretation of Scripture, contexts, biblical history, and application of the sufficiency of Scripture are important skills that are used often in the challenging questions and spiritual discipline of people on the mission field. Better to get in here than to lack it there.
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MoP030 Keys to Effectiveness as a Missionary - 5 Theological Discernment

Sound understanding of biblical theology and the discerning ability to accurately apply it to life, even amidst a foreign culture, is a key to missionary effectiveness. It's too easy for the greenhorn missionary to be judgmental of cultural practices and features based on their home culture or personal preferences. Discerning theological structure provides the biblical framework for teaching God's truth for new believers. The oppressive religious practices, from major world religions, to animism and occultism, can be a puzzling barrier to the transforming message of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Help your missionary get what it takes to have theological discernment in the toolbox.
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MoP029 Keys to Effectiveness as a Missionary - 4 Knowing the Target Audience

Who would have guessed that learning the target language and culture was so important, so time-consuming, so rewarding? Commit to giving the time and effort to learn the language and culture well, for you are dealing with intangible truths that affect your audience's eternal destiny. It is truly one of the most basic, and most dismissed keys to effectiveness. Don't be among those who minimize the importance of language and culture to the long-term detriment of the ministry.
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MoP028 Keys to Effectiveness as a Missionary - 3 Simple Priorities

It's extremely challenging, as a missionary, to maintain and focus on a few simple priorities. The challenges of cross-cultural living, an environment lacking in comforts and conveniences, even the standard utilities, of "home." Missionaries can get side-tracked by well-meaning urgencies, self-focus, self-family-focus, trendy strategies, and striving to accrue statistics. All these blunt and misdirect the sharp focus of achieving that clear biblical vision. Learning how to keep simple priorities that are in line with the end-result vision is key to effectiveness. You'll have to ask questions to pry beneath the surface and find your answers.
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MoP027 - Keys to Effectiveness as a Missionary - 2 Clear Biblical Vision

Second in our series of Keys to Effectiveness. The concept here actually can be applied to Missionaries, to local churches, to pastoral leaders, and to individual Christians. Asking a missionary candidate or missionary to express a singular, distilled vision for the preferred outcome of their long-term ministry just might be one of the best things you could do to help them focus and to help you evaluate the ministry (or potential ministry). Ask yourself the question, "Do I have a clear biblical vision?" Maybe it will help you too!
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MoP026 - Keys to Effectiveness as a Missionary - 1 Strong Ecclesiology

Since we understand the centrality of the local church, effective missionaries must have an experiential, functional, and informed understanding of practical ecclesiology. Lacking ecclesiology is a source of many woeful shortcomings on the field. This episode will also specify a list of assumptions of Christian life and character essential to beginning to build effectiveness. May God use this for His glory in effective missionaries, effective sending churches, and effective sending saints.
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MoP025 - Keys to Effectiveness as a Missionary - Introduction

How can you tell if a missionary candidate is prepared for effectiveness on the field? How can you evaluate a field missionary? What are the most important markers of effectiveness? Propempo submits this series to help the discussion. 13 keys will be examined, one each week. We'll try to define each one, show which shortcoming each may address, and suggest some remedies to build the qualities that are the keys. Our goal is to avoid preventable attrition and prepare effective field missionaries for the glory of God.
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MoP024 Bible Translation Issues and Recruitment

We'll use the Arlington Statement on Bible Translation to highlight some contemporary problem issues with translation and the corrective principles. We also want to urge sound churches to consider making Bible translation a priority by praying, recruiting, and sending qualified Bible translators to the harvest fields. May it be so for God's glory!
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