How to Become a Missionary With a Family
Becoming a missionary is a major decision, especially when it involves a family. You'll want to make sure your spouse and children catch the vision and participate in the decisions: a close, communicating family can succeed in missions. Here are the steps you need to take.
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Instructions
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Choose the denomination/mission group you want to be part of. You need to associate with a group that has a mission statement you can fully support, so take your time, read over any informational materials and get your questions answered by a knowledgeable leader.
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Become active in a local group affiliated with your denomination/group. This may be a church, an outreach, a community center, or some other gathering place. Start meeting people and become a local missionary.
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Talk to your family about the future. These are life-changing decisions, so it's important that your spouse be ready to take them on with you. Depending on your children's ages, you'll need to discuss certain aspects of the future with them. The older they are, the more they need to know and the bigger a part they should have in making decisions.
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Talk to the church leadership. Each denomination and/or group has different criteria for becoming a missionary; the best source of accurate information is someone in leadership with your particular group. He or she should be able to help you gather information or direct you to the person in charge of helping potential missionaries.
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Submit applications. Following the procedures that your denomination or group has set forth, fill out all necessary forms and applications and get your personal documents in order. If you are planning to be a missionary overseas, there will be quite a few documents to get in order, including passports, visas and health records.
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Raise support. Share your plans with your family, friends and support network. Let them know what kind of support you will need: financial donations, prayer or other contributions. Get in touch with churches that might be willing to let you speak and share your plans. These congregations can be important sources of regular support for missionaries and their families.
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Take care of business at home. What you're not taking with you will need to be sold, stored or otherwise cared for while you and your family embark on your missionary time. It is also advisable to find a trusted friend or family member in the area to put in charge of the items you will be leaving behind. Make careful records for the insurance company; keep one yourself, store one in a safe place (safety deposit box, for example), and leave one with your friend.
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Make sure your family is on board. Having regular, open and nonjudgmental communication is important to keep everyone involved and to deal with individual worries and needs.
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Have a Plan B that you discuss with your family: if for some reason you reach your missionary destination and it obviously isn't working, what will you do? There is no shame in having an escape route planned. It doesn't mean you're a wimp, it means you are being prudent and keeping your family's best interests in mind.
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Tips & Warnings
Take your time. This is too big a decision to rush. Talk to people who have lived and worked in the area where you'll be going, if possible. They can give you helpful information that you might not be able to find through standard research.
