3 Ways to Support a Missionary Well

“Hey, we’re supporting a missionary. How can we help? What are ways that we could support you?”

I love that over the 18 years I’ve been living cross-culturally, so many people have wanted to support us and have asked how they could help. Anyone who has been on the mission field for any amount of time knows there are things people do that are really helpful—and some things that are not so helpful. Let me just give you three ways to support a missionary that I promise will be helpful no matter what.

1. Pray for Them

This shouldn’t be a surprise, and it’s absolutely biblical. We see the apostle Paul asking for this in Romans 15 when he says he’s going to Spain. After explaining his ambition to preach the gospel where Christ has not already been named, he tells them he is going to Spain and asks for them to strive together with him in their prayers: “I urge you, brothers and sisters, by our Lord Jesus Christ and by the love of the Spirit, to join me in my struggle by praying to God for me” (Romans 15:30, NIV). He’s saying, Actually, go ahead and make this something that takes effort where you are interceding for God’s work in some other place.

In Ephesians 6, Paul asks his readers to pray for his opportunities to preach the gospel—specifically for the words to say and for boldness in saying them: “Pray also for me, that whenever I speak, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel” (Ephesians 6:19, NIV).

Think of the humility for this apostle who wrote so many books of the Bible and preached all over—eventually killed for the gospel—to say, “Man, I really could use some boldness right now. Could you pray for that?” If the apostle Paul needs boldness to preach the gospel, I guarantee you that whatever missionary whose prayer card you have on your fridge’s magnet needs words to say and boldness to say them. They need your help, so pray for them. In addition, pray for more workers, as Jesus talks about (Matthew 9:37-38), as you pray for the work to go forward.

“Paul asks his readers to pray for his opportunities to preach the gospel—specifically for the words to say and for boldness in saying them.”

2. Give Financially

You might think, “Well, of course you were going to ask that. Yeah. Simple. All missionaries would like us to support them. We get it.” But this is not something we should scoff at, nor should we look at this and think, “Well, it’s not that spiritual.” Sometimes I get the vibe that when I answer, “Oh, you can give,” people look down and think, “Yeah, yeah, that’s kind of the money stuff. But I was hoping to do something deeper, maybe something a little more spiritual.”

Giving offerings to God to help his mission go forward, to carry the gospel to other lands—that is very spiritual. Sacrificing your hard-earned money for the advancement of the gospel is a spiritual thing to do. It is taking your treasure and putting it in heaven. There’s nothing second-rate about that.

And when you give, you help that missionary do more. Your financial support will give that missionary less stress as they have one less thing to be concerned about. There are so many things for the missionary to worry about—trying to learn the language, the culture, trying to update their visa so they can stay in the country, trying to take care of their kids, trying to take care of the ministry. When their support level is met, that’s one less thing to worry about so they can be more focused on the work they moved across the world to accomplish. They can do more with more.

“When you give, you help that missionary do more.”

Back in Romans 15, Paul says this about his journey to Spain: “I hope to see you while passing through and to have you assist me on my journey there” (Romans 15:24, NIV). He’s asking them to financially support his ability to get to Spain to share the gospel with people who have never heard. After all, as Paul writes earlier in Romans,

“How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them?” (Romans 10:14, NIV)

Send me, Paul is telling them, so I can preach, so they can hear, and more people will believe. Part of sending is helping them get there financially. This is incredibly helpful and has been a part of the Christian mission since the first century.

3. Tell Them What They’re Doing Is Important

That missionary who’s quit their job, moved across the world, put their kids in a new schooling situation, and who is trying, praying, working, striving—please tell them, “Hey, what you’re doing is so important.”

This could seem like a no-brainer and totally obvious. But there are many forces trying to convince them it’s not important. They’ll be giving a report or talking about the ministry they want to do—and they look out at yawns. They’ll have team members who really struggle and even leave the field if they lose vision. They’ll send out their newsletter and have people unsubscribe. 

Meanwhile, they’re going to have unbelievers in the new country who are either very dedicated to another religion or very apathetic toward God. These people will constantly try to press upon them that there is nothing good about what they’re doing and that being over there is meaningless. They will hear all kinds of voices constantly telling them what they’re doing doesn’t matter and might be a waste.

“They will hear all kinds of voices constantly telling them what they’re doing doesn’t matter and might be a waste.”

So, when you are in front of that missionary, tell them, “What you’re doing is important. I’m glad you’re doing what you’re doing.” Remind them of that. You can point them to a Bible verse and tell them, “What you’re doing reminds me so much of what we read about here in the Bible. I’m glad you’re doing this.” Hearing messages like that can mean years of encouragement in those dark days.

There are lots of other good ways to support and encourage missionaries, but I guarantee these three—pray for them, give financially, and reminding them that what they’re doing is important and biblical—will always be a slam dunk.