We all need people in our lives to guide us, to teach us, to keep us from making a mess of things. Without a guide, we stumble along and we MIGHT find our way to whatever goal we’re seeking, but the odds are against us. We need someone to shine the light on our path and show us what to do, and just as important, what to avoid.
In 1953 Sir Edmond Hillary was just a man from New Zealand with a very ambitious goal. He wanted to be the first to climb Mount Everest, the tallest mountain in the world. He was in great shape, he was bright, he had deep funding, but he didn’t have what it would ultimately take to climb that mountain. He needed a guide. He needed someone who knew the area, the way around the obstacles, what to watch out for. He needed someone with on-the-ground experience with all the pitfalls and shortcuts. He found that guide in a local sherpa named Tenzing Norgay. Working together, Sir Edmond and Tenzing accomplished what no one had done before; they climbed that mountain. What is your missions “mountain?” What kind of guide do you need to reach your mountain top?
You might already have a great relationship with an organization, missionary, or pastor in whatever country you’re traveling to. If you feel good about who you’re serving alongside, fantastic, stay with them. Finding a stable, trustworthy ministry partner is rarer than you might think. Continue to work with them, back them, and continue to build that relationship. But, if you’re just starting out, or want to look around at other options for short-term missions, here are a few things to think about.
You need someone to guide you into a productive short-term missions trip where your team has a real impact, and your team has a deep, real, life changing experience. Ministry is all about the relationships. You need to find someone, or some organization, in a healthy place that you feel good about. Someone you can build a relationship with. Like any relationship, nothing is perfect, but there are signs when it’s the right connection. You make judgments like this all the time with friends, church involvement, when finding a spouse, etc.
The following are not in any order; it’s not a complete list, OR are all qualities required to do a good job. These are just some things to consider.
Is the hosting ministry bearing fruit? This can be hard to determine without building a relationship first, but it’s a basic sign of good spiritual health. Are they just surviving, or are they growing? Are people drawn to their ministry, or do people leave and not come back? Honestly, your team probably won’t make a significant impact on your own in a few days. But if you’re backing, and building up, a healthy established ministry, you will help them to continue the work long after you’re gone.
Are they building THE Kingdom or their kingdom? If any ministry is healthy, it’s working together with others in the community and seeking ways to reach beyond their walls to serve others. Does your host organization have good working relationships with other ministries in the area? Are they excited about sending groups out to serve in the community or with other ministries? Or do they have the groups they host paint the same wall over and over again as long as it’s their wall? These sound like some fundamental issues but, as in a healthy church, a healthy missions hosting team is looking to build up anyone doing God’s work, not just their own ministry. We should all be rooting for other’s success in ministry. It’s not a competition, and we really do all serve the same boss.
Do they have good “customer service?” I know this sounds odd, but a good indication of how they’ll host you is how they respond to emails. If it seems like getting information from them to help you along is a battle, odds are it will be the same when you’re standing in front of them. A professionally run ministry is, sadly, kind of rare. Good communication is the basic building block of all relationships; it needs to happen in healthy ministry also. That being said, please have some grace for those serving, most people serving in missions are overworked and exhausted. Emails can slip by, but it is something to take note of.
The BIG question to ask your self is: Why are they hosting us? The motivation to receive and host groups can have MANY different answers, and that’s OK. Mixed motivations are the norm in any situation. Almost nothing is 100%. Do they want to help lead you in your vision to serve? Do they want you to partner with them in what they see God doing? Do they want this trip to be life changing and meaningful for your team? There is also the question that nobody talks about: Do they host groups ONLY for the money and as a way to build their financial support? There is nothing wrong with having groups support the ministry, it’s part of the deal and expected, but it shouldn’t be the priority when a group is being hosted. A pastor wants to lead his flock and minister to their needs; he still needs to pay the bills. If a pastor’s only motivation is financial, it’s a problem. We all have mixed motivations, but with hosting organizations, as in church, the priorities are important. This relationship you want to build goes both ways, examining expectations and motivations are important in any relationship.
No one is perfect. No ministry, missionary, or church is perfect. But we need to come along healthy people to guide us. None of us can do it on our own, none of us can climb that mountain without our sherpa. Go and find your Tenzing Norgay and let him help you climb your mountain.
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DJ from the orphanage 