Money, Missions and PART 2

Why do we keep sending out missionaries when our own country is failing in the Mission Field?

Well Jesus said that we were to go into Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, then the other parts of the world. Well maybe those places represent people groups.

• Jerusalem being your home turf, your city/community
• Judea being your state/country, anything outside of your community
• Samaria being the people groups that are considered less thans, the homeless, the hurt, broken, impoverished.
• Other parts of the world being exactly as it says.
  

If that were the case then at home is the biggest need. When other countries are sending missionaries here it should shoot up a flag to warn us of our predicament. In our district we recently got a missionary from another country here in Arizona. Guess what, flags went up! This is much like the pastor who over exerts himself in his ministry neglecting his very family. The family end up being second place to ministry, the wife feels unloved the kids have their soccer games only with mom. Dad is restless and complains and is bitter. Could America be creating this exact problem as a country as it's missionaries are leaving? We are not producing enough young pastors to keep up with the pastors retiring, something needs to be done fast. I guess at the present time the best option is welcoming missionaries here!

This brings up a whole other point with me, a sort of semantics. I hate the term missionary, it seems to devalue every pastor who feels called to the mission. I feel in a sense how much America is growing in a post-modern mindset that the American pulpit pastor is becoming a missionary and requires the same cross-culture training to enter his world then one going to a foreign country. They must learn the language of their people, of their tribe. America is so multi-cultural with so many sub-cultures. Am I wrong? Is the term missionary slowly adapting it's definition to the American pastor?

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In AGWM (Assemblies of God World Missions) a missionary typically raises money in their own district but because the churches are so financially strapped and have committed to so many missionaries the missionary needs to go to 18 different districts basically and fly all around the country spending money to make money.

One thought, what about missionaries study the cross-culture issues then work in that country a couple years to become indigenous? Then the argument is that is less time they get to minister. Then I would say, no time is wasted time, as you live and work in the market place you build relationships. But Paul was financially supported? You got me there... but then again our abilities to be more manageable with money has got to be a little better than 2000 year ago! We have millions of inventions, powerful banks (no pun intended), business minds and MBAs, etc, I would hope that the modern age would be able to solve some financial issues. Could it be that we venture to bring in the big dogs, the professionals? I really feel that we as Christians need to step it up some and be the answers and the advocacy to the worlds problems. That they come to us for answers and direction. That happens when believers begin to give in abundance and remove the strain from the local church.

A great friend of mine that I have known for about 13 years said (and I will leave them anonymous)...

That's one of the reasons that I changed my major from missions to teaching...I think the A/G method of funding missionaries is one of the most inefficient models out there. Someone needs to overhaul the system!

So if finances and providing funding is the problem, what's the answer? Any thoughts? We need a full restructure but I don't have the answers! Do you have any solutions?