Wednesday, February 25, 2009

How long have we been involved in this mission endeavor?



“What indicators might identify particular mission engagements as being strategic? What questions could you ask about mission initiatives to help decide if they are strategic?”

Indicator #5: How long have we been involved in this mission endeavor? Do we have en exit strategy?

Building on our thought from indicator #4, we seek to create independence rather than dependence through our mission strategy. One way to offset the tendency toward creating dependence is through acknowledging the duration and impact of our ministry engagement. Where there is not an exit strategy that empowers a local Body of Christ, congregations will tend toward increasing the dependence of others on our mission engagements.

One of the strengths of partnering with excellent mission agencies is their commitment to wrestle with this issue. Mission agencies of excellence are keenly sensitive to their long-term impact among people groups. They seek to empower indigenous churches to minister in the name of Christ.

Once we have been involved in a mission engagement, it grows increasingly difficult to exit that initiative. The longer we are involved, the more we have invested in the ministry, the more people we will have who highly value the ministry and want to see it continue. But our desire is to facilitate local mission expression. We must deal with the issue of exit strategies.

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