Explore News: How to Begin Investing in Your Community

BECOMING A MISSIONARY

October 2023

The challenge of finding, connecting with, and impacting a community is a challenge we all face. Our missionaries face this challenge every day and must overcome it in order to accomplish their goal of reaching the unreached with the gospel.

In this month’s Explore News , our missionary panel will provide you with some practical steps to take in order to invest in your community. Apply them to join us in sending a message to the world!

Be Intentional With Connection

“ As an overseas worker, finding community can be a real challenge. When you find some people who are local to you and you connect with, be intentional. Make a goal of how often you would like to connect with them and for what purpose. Do you need mentorship? Or someone to simply have fun with? Stick to your goals in this because life can get busy and community can get left behind. Make an effort for one another.

An area I sometimes struggle in is connecting with the community in your home country. I also have to set goals for myself in this area. For example, I call a friend from my home culture once a month. I call my parents or other family members once a month. Sometimes one can get wrapped up in work and the struggles of day-to-day life in your new context, so it can be refreshing to talk with someone outside of that context to force you to reflect in a different way and temporarily have you connect with another environment.

Explore News SEND A Message Collage

Meet A Felt Need

“We have recently made a move and are still figuring this out, but in our previous place we tried to be active in the neighborhood where we lived. We were in a social media group that announced things that we going on and we would join in on community projects (i.e. building a neighborhood playground, garbage pickup days and fixing muddy spots in roads). We also used the church community to help us do children's sport/game days as a way to provide something the community saw as a need. Each community will have it's own needs, and each person their skills and connections they can use to help the community.”

Pray For Communities

“ One way that has been impactful for me has been to pray for the people in my community; local, church, ministry, all the communities. A few years ago, I started a prayer journal where on each page I write a person’s name and then the date with the prayer. This is a way for me to not only remember, but then it keeps track and I can see how God is moving and working."

Maybe the missionary panel's experiences have prompted you to take your next step on your missions journey. We’d love to talk with you about it and help you send the message of Jesus to the world!