The Vernon Journal » Missions

How Can I Become a Missionary?

Paul Vernon — Mon, 27 Sep 2010 15:12:12 +0000

We get a lot of emails and questions, mostly from people in America, asking how they can become missionaries to Thailand or other nations in the world. I’m a proponent of missions, and encourage anyone and everyone I meet to seek the missions call in their life. So, for those of you who hear the call, I want to exhort you with these words today.

The principles behind becoming a missionary are straightforward: receive a call from God, seek direction from God and obey in each step. However, there is no consistent series of events on how these principles unfold. Through the Foursquare Church we have guidelines and an application process by which someone can become a Foursquare missionary, but, even with guidelines and processes, each story is unique – as ours testifies.

But becoming a missionary is much more than applying, interviewing for and accepting a job position. Becoming a missionary is aligning yourself with the identity God is calling you into. As we have grown in our experience in the field over the past five years, we have noticed a few patterns that are visible in the lives of long-term, successful missionaries. These patterns reflect what I believe is the identity of a missionary, and are things that we are hoping to see transformed into in our own lives. I want to share 4 of those patterns here today.

This is really for those who feel called into missions in some way, if that’s not you, I recommend you take a look at some of these posts instead. Also, before I share with those of you who feel called into missions I want to make a few assumptions as to where most of you are coming from:

You know God and can connect with Him
You’re confident you’ve heard His call to missions
You don’t know what to do next

If these assumptions are true for you, then the following patterns should be helpful as you seek your commission into missions: Pattern 1, Pattern 2, Pattern 3, Pattern 4.

Side by Side

Lori Vernon — Sat, 16 Aug 2008 13:55:00 +0000

We’re in the city this week catching up on computer work before heading back up to the village for three weeks or so. In my efforts to share a little more about everyday life, I thought I would share this picture of Paul and our Akha friend working side by side on their computers. Paul has been teaching this young man how to edit video off and on for several months now, but because the video editing program is in English, he’s still not completely confident with it. So, he’s set up camp in Paul’s office this week (Thank goodness we purchased a new larger desk a couple weeks back!) and can ask Paul questions if he get’s stuck.

This is one of the best things about living here… the spontaneity of life! We had no idea that we would get to spend so much time with this young man this week, but he had time and we had time, so here we are. We’re so excited about this young man and the powerful work he is doing as he reaches out to his Akha brothers and sisters in Laos. We are honored to be even a tiny part of what he and his co-workers are doing! Join us in prayer for them and the nation of Laos!

Praying for Missionaries

Lori Vernon — Sun, 08 Apr 2007 05:49:00 +0000

We appreciate our prayer partners so much! Unfortunately, we are sometimes less than diligent in keeping our prayer requests current on our blogs, always waiting until “something big” comes up before making an entry. I ran across this prayer guide on another missionary’s blog and wanted to share it to help you pray for us even in those in-between-times when it feels like you don’t have any specific requests to pray about.

1. It is not necessary that you ask God to give us good health. The important thing is that He gives us the measure of health that will best glorify Him.

2. We do not want you to pray that God will give us an easy path on the mission field and remove obstacles. Rather pray that He gives strength and grace to overcome the difficult God-given obstacles in ministry.

3. It is not so important that you pray that God should bless our activities. Ask that He censor our activities, for it is easy for time and energy to be spent on second-best things.

4. Do not pray for us as though we lived on a higher plane. We can become lonely, discouraged, irritable, and impatient. We can do a lot of missionary work simply in the energy of the flesh. Pray that the love of Christ may constrain us in all that we do.

5. Pray that, like the Apostle Paul, we may be willing to deny ourselves in order to make our lives an example to the national believers. Sometimes this means forfeiting rights, privileges, and material conveniences we have taken for granted all our lives, but which can be stumbling blocks to missionary service.

-written by an anonymous missionary

A Passage I Love

Paul Vernon — Tue, 14 Feb 2006 08:30:00 +0000

Jim, from missionary-blogs.com gave our little missionary “e-community” an assignment to write a short post on a scripture we love by Valentine’s day. True to form (and to the chagrin of every teacher I ever had, and often my wife) I have put this off until the last possible day. But now, a passage I love:

Habakkuk 1:5 (New King James Version)

The LORD’s Reply
5 ” Look among the nations and watch -
Be utterly astounded!
For I will work a work in your days
Which you would not believe, though it were told you.

I was originally going to write about one of my old favorites, but this verse (which I stumbled upon while browsing the FMI website) is such a powerful Word from God – and it is incredibly true today! As we have shared about the faith of the Akha people, those who have received it can hardly believe – as American Christians we are being challenged by the faith of the Akha! As I read stories of missionaries gone before, and as I see in film depictions of incredible devotion I think of how astounded those missionaries would be if they saw what missions looks like today.

A great work is being done. Look at the nations – the world has been made smaller! Though many would credit humanism, modernism, and the revolutions of man for this change, it is so apparent to me that God has worked a work in our days. And though the “days grow evil” and terror and hatred send fear throughout the earth, the good news of Christ – of His life, His Passion and His redemption – is able to spread far faster and wider than we have ever known.

Pray that the Lord of the harvest send out laborers into this great work.