Why Missionaries Leave—and How Churches Can Help Them Stay

Missionary candidates arrive at our headquarters eager to get to the field. They earnestly plan to stay there indefinitely and ignite church planting movements. Yet some missionaries leave the field much sooner than they planned. Compared to some other mission agencies, we at Pioneers have a low attrition rate: about 4%. However, both those who stay and those who leave face significant challenges. We have learned that missionaries who make it through their first four years will likely remain on the field for a decade or more. Their readiness for that first term is critical, and much of that readiness can be traced back to their sending church.

Missionaries who make it through their first four years will likely remain on the field for a decade or more.

Why missionaries leave early

Some missionaries leave early for unanticipated reasons such as health problems or loss of a work visa. Other missionaries leave early for more predictable but avoidable reasons, most of which are best addressed or prevented in the local church, the God-designed structure for missionary sending.

What can the local church do to prepare missionaries to stay the course?

The importance of character

Mission agencies observe people and their character for a few weeks; the church is better positioned to observe their character over many years, noticing how it affects their walk with Christ, marriage, parenting, friendships, work ethic and more. Though men and women of character will regularly falter, they humbly repent. As Martin Luther said, “The entire life of the believer is one of repentance.”

The importance of calling

Missionaries need to know they are called to a relationship with God, not just a ministry. The best place to learn this is in a local church. Healthy missionaries are free from needing to prove their worth, produce results or earn God’s favor through their service. They go in the freedom of glorifying a loving Father, whether this means suffering and seeing little fruit or catalyzing a rapid church planting movement. This worldview is best cultivated in a local church’s teaching and discipleship.

The importance of competence

Serving in missions may require a missionary to develop a variety of habits and skills, depending in part on their ministry role and context. But a few things are foundational.

Biblical literacy

Does your missionary candidate have a deep understanding of the Bible’s content, themes and core doctrines? Can they discern and apply principles of Scripture to situations that will occur among people who have never read and may have never seen the Bible? While some future missionaries have taken Bible courses, many have not. How can you help? Does your church have a plan for developing people who can find nourishment in the Bible, handle it well and apply Scripture to what they will see on the field?

Discipleship

Some use the word discipleship to simply mean an intellectual transfer of information. But when Jesus made disciples, He was more concerned about application to life and character. He asked Peter to walk on water (Matthew 14:28-29) and called out James and John for selfish motives (Mark 10:35-45). Later, Paul also exhorts Timothy to make disciples who make disciples (2 Timothy 2:2). Have your missionary candidates been discipled and learned to disciple others? They will likely invest in others in much the way they’ve seen it modeled in your church.

Conclusion

Before missionaries go to the field, a mission agency spends spends a few weeks with them at most. The sending church usually spends years with them and can develop the future missionaries in ways the mission agency cannot.

No perfect people exist. No one can guarantee that everyone who goes to the field will stay there. But your church may benefit from a clear plan for developing people equipped for the long haul—whether in their neighborhood or a remote corner of the world. How can we link arms with your church in this journey?

Is your church interested in proactively finding, preparing and sending missionaries well? Our Church Partnerships Team is beginning to offer three free coaching sessions for churches about this and many other topics. Contact Taryn for more information.

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