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We’ve said it before, but it bears repeating: your home assignment has the capacity, when properly understood and planned for, to breathe new life, courage, and conviction into your soul that enables years of fruitful work. On the flip side, because of poor expectations (dreading it or imagining America will be some new-creation utopia), it has the capacity to can disappoint, frustrate, and wear you down as you spend several months away from your new home, living like a nomad, becoming disoriented by how your friends and church have changed. We want the first narrative to be your story, and to that end, there are several resources you should check out.:
- HMA Prep Workbook
- “Home Assignment” course in LEARN (email us to request access to this course)
- Home Assignment Planning TimelineFurlough planning timeline
This guide is intended to help you flourish in your upcoming furlough Home Assignment by preparing you to prepare for and maximize the opportunities for MTD that your time stateside affords you.
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Let’s face it: It’s been a while since you’ve really turned all your focus toward full-time MTD, and many of us, when we think of picking up that phone, have a few buried (or maybe not-so-buried) fears. They are, in some ways, the same fears we faced when we raised our initial support. Yet they also have the potential to be more insidious , because now they might be compounded by the memories of our past experienceexperiences. If you’re here, you’re not alone. We’ve spoken to full-time missionaries workers who have lived on financial support for twenty years who years but still find themselves with unfounded fears floating in their hearts that have been unconfronted while their focus was focusing on full-time ministry elsewhere. Even if that’s not you, and you’re feeling full of confidence, it behooves us to return to some of the basics and re-assess our foundation. Consider some of these questions:
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In addition to refreshing our hearts and minds on our call to both MTD and our ministry, a return to MTD is an opportunity to review the things that God has done over the last few years. What are the effects of your ministry efforts? What stories have moved you? What experiences have challenged you? What important tasks are still undone and people unreached? What needs drive us to seek the power of Jesus to do more? Reflection not only equips us to report to our donors, but stirs a spirit of celebration and gratitude in us that will affect how we re-engage in MTD. More specifically, the stories of all God has done should give us boldness as we approach current and potential ministry partners. Don’t be afraid to share the positive stories of what God has done in and through you. After all, this isn’t the story of what Joe Missionary Goer is doing, but what God is doing, and the invitation to join God in his work is as relevant now as it was when you first embarked on MTD. Boldness in MTD will flow, not from greater confidence in your track-record, but from greater confidence in Christ’s. |
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There are two key questions you must answer before embarking on this season of MTD: 1) How much do I need to raise?, and 2) When do I need it?” We are talking about specific, concrete goals. “As much support as we can get,” is true for nearly any missionaryworker, but infinity makes for poor communication and vision as you lead your partners into the next season of ministry.
Setting a specific date is just as crucial as a specific amount. When do you need it? “Right away! Any time!” These answers may be true, but are just as unhelpful as not communicating a clear dollar amount. A ministry partner needs to know “when?”, if they are to respond with any sort of urgency. Back to Jeff. He’s found that he’ll be able to cut away from full-time ministry responsibilities in mid-April and has most of the summer set aside for MTD. He’s hoping he can meet his goals by the end of June, but isn’t sure. In order to communicate a clear deadline for donors, however, he chooses July 15 as his deadline. This gives an urgent window of time, but leaves enough space so that potential partners don’t delete an old email because they think the date has passed. Jeff writes further, “In order to return to full-time ministry, we need to meet this goal by July 15.” Resources
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One of the most common mistakes is underestimating the time needed to get momentum going when returning to full-time MTD. The following checklist contains tasks that can be done part-time while you are pulling out of other ministry responsibilities in preparation for your Home Assignment, but may still take several weeks:
Take these into consideration as you review our suggested timeline for Home Assignment preparation. |
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There are several categories of contacts to consider as you step back in MTD and, depending on the time you plan to give to MTD, prioritizing whom to give priority will be crucial. Here are some categories to consider:
Depending on your experience in ministry and your freedom to travel, we recommend the following orders of priority: More than Four Years since Initial MTD
Less than Four Years since Initial MTD
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We use the term “partner” frequently around here, but the reality is that partners don’t happen automatically but through relationships of trust. And one of the most significant ways to build trust is through consistent communication. Donors passively sit on the sidelines, and we fear that they will withdraw funding if they see ineffectiveness or something they do not like in the ministry. Partners, on the other hand, have a sense of ownership or stake in the ministry. Even though they are not on the frontlines, they see challenges as problems of their own — ones they want to help solve. A missionary goer who thinks of their ministry team as “donors” may think of them as the opposing team, to be played with good strategy and a fear of loss. However, thinking of them as “partners” puts them on the same team, and each partner becomes a possible ambassador for our funding. To engage and activate our partners’ participation with the full-time MTD push, we need to communicate early, concretely, and regularly through the process:
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Prioritize your ask according to your needs and who you are contacting.
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When asking for connections with those you have previously asked this, be sure to:
Resource“Getting Connected to Others” course in LEARNLEARN (email us to request access to this course) |
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For many of you returning to full-time MTD, especially if you have other priorities for your home assignment, you will have to decide how many in-person partners appointments you can do. Scott Morton, support-raising guru for the Navigators, holds a “every five years” minimum rule for seeing partners face to face. If it’s been that long since you’ve been able to visit with partners, it’s recommended you take advantage of the full-time break to do so. (Of course an inefficient visit to a faraway state may not always be possible, but consider if a better time will ever appear.) For most of us, a full-time return to MTD that lasts longer than 4-6 weeks should likely involve seeing many partners face-to-face and related travel. This investment in the relationship will pay dividends in the responsiveness and long-term stability of your team. Note: In the current pandemic age, Zoom appointments are not only culturally appropriate, but for many of your partners may be the preferred method. Regardless of the form it takes, commit to connecting “face to face” with as many people as you can. |
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As the world has turned digital, some of the best MTD tools are digital — and formerly reliable paper letters and normal phone calls aren’t always a best practice. In fact, some will find that with cell phones and universal caller ID, the phone call has become a less obvious option for initial contact with MTD. Since technology use and norms shift rapidly, be sure to get up to speed so you can be most effective in your MTD. Quick Tips
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