This is a copy of an article posted by Mr. George Verwer. I do not know this gentleman, but I found this article interesting, so I’m re-positing it here.
I am not saying I agree or disagree with every point here; however, I have been both a short term missionary, and a full time missionary. I will soon post my own thoughts on short term missions, but for now, read the article below, and feel free to add comments about your thoughts.
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Ten short-termers we don’t want
Short-term mission trips have become very popular and many churches run their own
programs. Some churches want all their members to go on a trip.
Having been involved for 50 years with both short and long-term mission has given me
some very strong convictions about who should go and who should not go. Here are ten
short-termers who really should stay at home.
- Mr Selfish - the person who mainly cares about themselves and how much they can get out of the trip.
- Mr Tourist - the person who just wants to see the sights and hear the sounds. Not interested in hard work, serving or presenting the Gospel.
- Mr Lazy - they will have many reasons each day as to why they cannot get out into the work.
- Mr Big-Spender - they bring a lot of money/travellers checks and want to spend much of their time shopping.
- Mr Insensitive - people who push their own country or culture and are insensitive to other people’s culture. They often leave behind a very bad testimony.
- Mr Critical - These people see everything that is wrong in the church and country, even among their co-workers. It is contrary to the basic message of I Cor. 13.
- Mr Unteachable - they are often very prejudiced and stubborn and bring hurt and confusion.
- Mr Prayerless - to me, it is unthinkable to have prayerless people in ministry or service. We are in spiritual warfare and we must use the weapons that God has told and given us to use.
- Mr Addicted - people, especially with sexual addictions, should not go. They can so quickly bring huge offense and even scandal. People with alcohol and other drug addictions need to get that sorted out at home.
- Mr Proud - Pride is such a deadly sin and often leads to division and broken relationships. People with heavy national pride easily insult and hurt the very people you are trying to serve.
Yes, short-term mission is a serious ministry and must be done in a way that will honor
God and bless the people we serve. There needs to be serious orientation, interviewing
and training before people go. There should at least be some life, action and godly reality
before a lot of money is spent to travel and serve among people in a different country and
culture.
George Verwer
george@verwer.om.org
George Verwer
PO Box 17
Bromley, Kent
England BR1 3JP
Phone: 44 (0)20 8777 5258
UK Mobile: 44 (0)7860 426426
Email: george@verwer.om.org or georgev@swissmail.org
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Posted by Gary Skrobot
My daughter e-mailed me the link to your website. We’ve served in short-term missions, led short-term mission trips and are now full-time missionaries. I can see the wisdom in Verwer’s article (by the way, he’s the founder of Operation World) after doing short-term missions the wrong way. The first time we led a group overseas, we had no idea what we were doing. We allowed the group to get too big (25) and we didn’t fully screen nor train those who went. Thankfully our senior pastor was went too and was able to deal with some ugly situations that came up.
Now as missionaries on the field, we greatly appreciate our mission agency’s policy of screening all who want to come and “help”. We’re currently waiting on approval for a young lady from one of our supporting churches to come for several months and have been in contact with other young adults who would like to come next year. We see great value in providing opportunities for those serious about ministry (missions or otherwise) to come for visits or extended stays, but we also see the value of making sure they’re ready.
It is an investment of time and money on the part of both those who come AND the missionaries so it goes without saying that thought and prayer need to go into the planning, preparation and actual trip.
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