How do you choose a mission agency to work with?
It seems like there are thousands of missions agencies out there. So many of them are doing so many good ministries. How do you choose which one to work with? Here are some questions that may help you think things through.
- What are my passions and priorities? Has God led me to a specific type of ministry? It is essential that you start with what God is doing in your life. Then you have a basis to evaluate agencies.
- What agencies are already connected to my sending church? An established partnership between your church and a missions agency will speed and ease your preparation.
- Is the agency compatible with my sending church in theology, ministry focus, and partnership patterns?
- What are the agency’s mission statement, core values, and ministry focus? How are they demonstrated in what they do?
- How big is the agency and where is it serving? Has it been growing?
- How is the agency managed? Is it centralized, with strong policies, providing structures to build upon? Or is it decentralized, giving freedom but requiring a lot of initiative? How flexible is it?
- How are ministry decisions made? What role do I have in choosing where I go and what I do?
- How does the agency handle support? What training do they provide to raise support? What is included in a support level?
- How does the agency handle student debt? What about consumer debt?
- What partnerships is the agency pursuing? How do partnerships work at a local level?
- Does the agency require teamwork? What do its teams look like?
- How do leadership and accountability work?
- What is the agency’s multinational approach? How does it work with indigenous leaders?
- How does this agency encourage innovation and creativity? How is that demonstrated in current ministries?
- How does the agency care for missionaries? How are missionaries encouraged to grow and continue learning?
- How does it care for singles, families, and children? What are the common schooling structures for children?