Whether you are a church member who faithfully gives to missions or a staff member at a church who regularly reads prayer letters, you may have asked yourself, “I give to missions, but isn’t there more I can do?”. There are many answers to this question. You could go on mission trips or even surrender to become a missionary yourself, but today I want to narrow that question down to this — How can you and I help our missionaries beyond financial support? Every church is different in their approach to missions programs and perhaps your church already has a program in place to encourage your missionaries. As a BBFI missionary kid, I spent over 19 years on the mission field with my parents. During that time, the Lord used many individuals and churches to encourage my family and me.

Although it is considered a thing of the past, card writing is a simple and effective way to encourage your missionaries. I personally received many cards over the years from churches and individuals for birthdays, Christmas, and sometimes randomly throughout the year to be an encouragement. You can buy a card at the store or even make one by hand with your family or in a Sunday school class. You can have a group write several cards or, if you want to save postage, you can have one card that everyone can use. Be sure to write a note on the card and not just sign it. Even if you simply say, “I am praying for you.”, your words can be a needed encouragement. If you want to include a gift, be sure to check with the missionary first as cash and other items are often stolen in the mail overseas.

Care packages can be a wonderful blessing to your missionaries. I always enjoyed treats and literature from the States that we couldn’t get overseas on the mission field. You could send clothing, home goods, toys, homeschool supplies, and many other necessities and treats depending on the missionaries’ needs and location. Always check with the missionary recipient or the BBFI Mission Office when planning a care package. Certain countries do have strict shipping requirements and customs agents may not let the package into the country if you are shipping certain items. You could also ask the missionary if there is something specific that they need or want.

When your missionaries are on furlough or visiting your church, be sure to visit their display, introduce yourself, and get to know your missionaries personally. Read their prayer letters, learn their names and the names of their children, and write down any prayer requests they share with you. Perhaps you can’t give much financially or send cards and gifts; ultimately, the best action you can take is to faithfully pray for your missionaries. Over the years on the mission field, I saw so many answered prayers take place in my parents’ ministry. God protected us from danger, provided for our needs, and blessed our ministry because of people in churches praying for us faithfully.

I hope this is a help to you the next time you ask yourself what more you can do to help your missionaries. Continue to faithfully give to missions, get to know the missionaries that come through your church, pray for them, write to them, and seek out opportunities to be used of the Lord to encourage His faithful servants.

Joshua Hale

BBFI Missions | Recruiting Office