West Africa
Our church currently sends a four person team to West Africa two times a year. The time of the year was chosen after consultation with IMB missionaries. We needed to consider the weather (120 degrees is hard on career missionaries let alone volunteer teams), planting and harvesting seasons, times of the year when people are too busy to visit, times of the year when people are away from the village, and the religious calendar of the people to whom we desired to minister. Both teams are trained together to save time for the trainer.
There are a number of things each team leader must do in training individual mission teams whether international or domestic, adult or youth, evangelistic/educational or disaster-relief, or any combinations of the above. For more information, see the leader’s check list of duties to prepare the team.
Team members must fill out an application that is reviewed by the pastor and the missions team (the committee, team, or group who administers the execution of the church’s missions vision). Our church is only a modest size, but the application informs, clarifies, and screens for suitability. Applicants understand what they are asking to do.
Training includes four or five teaching times of two or more hours each, and sessions for practicing eating with hands from a communal bowl, and prayer walking. Sub teams (kitchen crews, gifts, etc.) also schedule extra meetings for their own planning, shopping, and packing. Some teams like to have a group weigh-in to check weights of luggage.
The following topics are covered in team training:
Prerequisites: Team members commit to faithfully participating in our church’s weekly corporate prayer meeting, to walking closely with God, and to being in good physical shape. They commit to regular exercise with a minimum of brisk walking 20 minutes or more, three times a week. Maximum physical and spiritual energy are required when doing ministry.
Language and greetings: Each meeting is begun with repeating basic greetings in the native tongue and greeting each other in the appropriate cultural way for our gender.
Prayer: Since no permanent difference will be made apart from the work of God’s Spirit, each meeting includes a season of prayer. Each time we practice in the way we will pray in West Africa. In our area, we will normally be sitting on mats. In our area, people recognize you are praying if your hands are extended palms up and your eyes are open. After “Amen” we touch our heads and then our hearts to show there is nothing in our thoughts or our hearts between us and God.
Men sit with men in West Africa. Women sit with women. We do the same in training. Because we sit on the floor by gender and pray the way we will in West Africa, it is second nature and does not feel unusual when we get on the field.
Note: God is far more concerned about the attitude of our heart than the position of our hands or eyes.
The church should also be mobilized for prayer. We use emails, special emphasis prayer meetings, Sunday School class prayer dinners, cottage prayer meetings, and other ideas for creative variety. The team puts out a list of team prayer requests combined with several individual prayer requests for each member. Each team member recruits five or more people who are willing to invite one other person, couple, or family to a small prayer time for the team in their home.
Ministry techniques: Each team member must learn to give their testimony. Though not every one shares their testimony in the field, it is helpful training.
Since we minister to primary oral learners, each team member learns to tell chronological Bible stories (click here for some Bible stories we have told). Almost every team has also used other techniques as we search for what is useful during each visit. Though not every team member tells a Bible story in the field (some are not able to do so effectively), it is still helpful in training.
Since men and women minister to different people in different parts of the village, there needs to be at least one woman and one man who are able to effectively minister through the techniques chosen. The others can silently support in unseen prayer.
Our teams receive an overview of the camel method which helps them understand verses in the Quran that point to truth in the New Testament. There is quite a debate as to whether or not this approach should even be used. I believe it is helpful to be aware of the key verses in the Quran referred to by the camel method. But we provide no further links since this has not been a useful method in villages in the area where we work for no one can read or understand the Quran.
We take one Saturday morning to learn/practice prayer walking, always an effective ministry tool.
The Gospel: All team members should understand and be able to explain the gospel. Phrases like “accept Christ” are popular in America, but are not found in the Bible. Better for the team to be able to explain using biblical terms like trust/believe and understand biblical concepts like sin, substitution, and repentance (a change of mind that will result in a changed life).
Taking photos: Never point a camera at police, military, and government installations. Airports usually prohibit photos of the tarmac areas. Do not take photos of individuals without their permission. “Photo?” is understand by everyone in our area as a request. If accepted by a village, most will allow taking photos. Children, youth, and some adults will want to be in photos. We find that bringing back a few photos as gifts is well received.
Relating to children: Find if children are to be fussed over, touched, or complimented. If there are no translators or nothing else is happening, show love by teaching children simple games like tic, tac, toe. Children love to mimic. With little entertainment in the bush of our country, children like simply copying you like in Simon Says, only they are never out. In our area, babies are disciplined on the shoulders and loved on the behind, the opposite of America practice. Babies do not wear diapers. Be forewarned what may happen when brought near a strange, white face.
Packing: Team members may check one bag (46 lbs. or less) and carry a back pack on board the plane, so they must carefully choose what to pack. More luggage creates transportation problems both in the U.S. and even more in West Africa. Since the airline permits another bag to be checked for each team member, we have the flexibility to carry team supplies in each member’s second checked bag and/or footlockers and supplies for missionaries on the field. Most of the time we take fewer bags than the airline allow making life simpler when loading the bush taxi in West Africa. We also share some travel and packing tips and suggestions from a veteran.
Dealing with jet lag: Team members without understanding of jet lag face problems being awake when they should sleep. It also has potential to disrupt bowl habits.
Cultural distinctions: The team receives an overview of major cultural distinctions and discusses practical differences like separation of the genders, womens work and men’s work, and squatty potties.
Basics of Islam: Team members learn the five pillars of Islam and the differences between Islam and Christianity.
Health: Vaccinations and other meds are required. It is recommended team members ask their physician for a prescription to Cipro (a general antibiotic) and compazine or similar anti-nausea suppositories. They are helpful when far from medical doctors. If you are not chaperoned by career missionaries, the team should have a copy of Where There Is No Doctor: A Village Health Care Handbook (Paperback). It answers a lot of questions and correctly diagnosed are only West African illness. The team also learns food and water safety. Someone should also know a few basics in the trade language.
C.P.M.’s: Our goal is a reproducing church that might lead into a church planting movement. We particularly note the importance of the dependence that subsidies promote. When the team understands the goal, they will understand why we do things the way we do.
Insurance, Passports, and Registration: Emergency medical insurance is prudent. A simple claim number will do everything including medical evacuation by air. Ask the IMB for help if you do not understand how and why. Register as a volunteer team with the IMB for their information and in case of unseen emergencies. Passports are available, usually by appointment through major post offices. Check to see if visas (could take a month or longer) and yellow fever documentation is required where you go.
Telephone chain: Since good communications are not easily available where we travel, our families at home know to expect one email that tells the team has safely arrived in West Africa. Each team member has chosen a contact person to receive the notification of safe arrival. If our team has opportunity, we might send additional emails. But it is always easier to receive with joy more communication than you expected, rather than less.
Team report: Team members learn a few key points to help them effectively nurture a heart for missions in the report they give to the church upon their return from West Africa.
Transportation, etc.: Team members are assigned responsibilities such as lining up stateside transportation to the airport, purchasing gifts, food, and loading team suitcases.Simultaneously, each team member must show his passport to another team member before we leave our church. To save space we pray and say our goodbyes to family at the church, transporting only team members to the airport. The team leader reviews the entire trip step by step, day by day, while driving to the airport to refresh memories and keep us all on the same page.
Last thoughts:
1. Our purpose is to give glory to God and enjoy Him forever. We travel overseas to make His loving gospel known. The manner in which the team trains and serves should reflect our purpose.
2. The purpose of career missionaries is to do point #1. Once oriented, we volunteers should do whatever we can to avoid hindering missionaries from serving their God given purpose. They may out of love serve us on the field. But we should try harder to serve them first. Try to be a blessing to missionaries.
Bring pictures of your family that do not show our relatively high standard of living. Avoid photos that show your house, car, swimming pool, etc. Photos with trees or fields in the background work nicely. Try the park. Digital cameras and Walmart turn things out fast and inexpensively. Make sure family members being photographed are not dressed in a way that would offend West Africans, so avoid tight, revealing clothes. Check what would be appropriate where you intend to go. Long dress might be best for women. Bring copies, not your favorite original. Be prepared for photos to be well handled and passed around. Pictures of the extended family are great.
Some teams train more thoroughly than we. Sadly, some do far less. The volunteers are highly motivated and could increase their comfort and effectiveness with a modest amount of training. Such training strengthens team cohesiveness, prepares for ministry on the field, but also results in more effective disciples back home, too.
Missionaries, the unbelieving people you have come to reach, and trained volunteers can appreciate the difference between trained and untrained volunteers in a very short time. Do all things excellently as unto the Lord. Do some research. Ask some questions. Train the best you can. Carry a small notebook with you while on the mission field. Take notes so you can pass on what you learn. Write down some new greetings. Make note of what you should have packed. Plan on teaching something it would have helped you to have known. Make sure the next team is trained better than the previous.
Please feel free to use whatever on this site seems useful. If you develop or find something that may be helpful to us or others, send me a copy or a link, please, so we and others might be able to learn from it.
“Finally, all of you, live in harmony with one another, be sympathetic, love as brothers, be compassionate and humble. Do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult, but with blessing, because to this you were called so that you may inherit a blessing.”
I Peter 3: 8,9
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