Building a Support Team
William Carey to Andrew Fuller, "I will go down into the pit, if you will hold the ropes."
Every missionary needs at least one rope-holding pastor who is leading a rope-holding church to support the global spread of the gospel.
Mind the Gaps is intended to empower churches, to complement and enhance the efforts of the member care department of mission sending agencies, and to reduce the attrition rate of missionaries by encouraging them and helping to develop their resilience. It provides a distinct contribution to existing missionary care literature because it is collaboratively written by an experienced and practicing missionary care team from a local church.
When individuals receive their call to the global harvest, both they and their chosen agency immediately begin to build a financial and prayer sending team. Without monetary resources and prayer, new recruits will not be going anywhere. But this critical and wise step is just the beginning of a greater team that must be built. An entire relational support structure needs to be created on various levels, both in the home country and in the field of service, to sustain the workers in joy and effectiveness.