Five reasons why your church needs a Missions Champion

Fuel global reach by appointing a Missions Champion, says Jack Skett, Elim Missions Communication and Content Creator

Jack Skett

If you’ve been to an Elim Leaders Summit in the last few years, writes Jack Skett, or you follow Elim on social media, you’ll be aware of our movement’s four priorities: Making Disciples, Growing Churches, Developing Leaders and Reaching Nations.

At Elim Missions, we help churches advance that fourth priority of reaching nations. Whether your church is already engaged with international missions, or you have no link with missions at all, one of the best ways you can advance reaching nations is to identify and appoint a Missions Champion. Here are five reasons why:

Focusing on the Great Commission
We all know that the mission of the church can be summed up in Jesus’ words in Matthew 28:18-20. A Missions Champion is someone who will assist your church leadership in keeping a focus on the Great Commission, by highlighting the nations not just as a peripheral activity but as an integral part of the ministry of your church.

Effective coordination
As a local church pastor myself, I know what it is to feel pulled in multiple directions at once. You may have a heart for the nations, but do you have the time to devote to promoting international missions? A Missions Champion can drive this for you, coordinating your church’s activities and communications around the area of missions in a way that fits with your local church culture.

Inspiring and mobilising the church
Passion begets passion. Having someone who is passionate about the work of missions will be a game-changer in terms of mobilising your church to get involved with missions both in the nations and in your local area, whether that’s in prayer, giving, or going on a missions trip.

Supporting missionaries
The Missions Champion will serve as a liaison with us at Elim Missions, getting key updates from the missionaries you are supporting, hearing prayer points to pass on and connecting directly with your missionaries. If your church is regularly supporting a missionary, your Missions Champion will keep them on the prayer agenda of your church. If you’re not supporting a missionary, we’d love to help you begin that journey, so please get in touch with the Missions office.

Cultivating missions awareness
Missions is not just about going; it’s also about understanding the unique challenges and opportunities in different parts of the world. A Missions Champion actively cultivates missions awareness within the church. They educate the congregation about global mission needs, cultural sensitivity, and the hardships that missionaries face. By fostering a culture of empathy and understanding, they prepare the church body for effective cross-cultural ministry and support.

If Elim as a movement is serious about our four priorities, that can’t just sit on the desk of our ministers. We need to equip and release people from within our churches to help us advance. Identifying and appointing a Missions Champion will help your church to make a shift towards effectively reaching the nations.

Email Elim Missions today to get started: missions@elim.org.uk

This article first appeared in Direction Magazine. For further details, please click here.

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