I often say to people that Elliot’s a bit of a dream as far as missionary kids go. He’s gregarious and confident. He’s in what is pretty much a foreign country to him (i.e. Australia) but he tackles each new situation with enthusiasm, and each different group of people with […]
‘Sorry, he’s spent his whole life in East Africa.’ I find myself saying this almost daily. (I say East Africa rather than Tanzania because many people have no idea where Tanzania is, or mishear it as Tasmania.) Sometimes saying this diffuses the tension of a situation, like when Elliot joins […]
Yesterday we noted that fundraising is never just about asking for money. You’re asking people to contribute to something and the quality of that ‘something’ will have an impact on whether people come on board. The temptation for many missionaries is to make themselves sound heroic or perhaps better than […]
Continuing our series on missionaries up the front of church, one of the complicating factors is fundraising. Money is often a difficult area for Australians to talk about. It’s something Arthur and I gave some thought to while we were fundraising (shameless plug, more info at our financial partnership page!). But […]
After our lighthearted look at deputation yesterday, today I want to ask about the flip side of one of the mistakes I mentioned: is there a place for missionaries to be prophetic? Mistake #4 was: Guilting people about the good gifts God has given them. e.g. about their large home, iPad, multiple […]
I’ve been helping another CMS worker here to think about her family’s coming Home Assignment/deputation – the thing where you go around to churches to reconnect or report back or invite people to partner with you. There are several challenges for the worker, some more serious than others. For example, […]
Meet Jesus at uni 