Prayer is the source and foundation of our missionary life!
Each day we spend time with the Lord in prayer. Without Him, we can do nothing. We take time for personal prayer and meditation as well as community prayer. This can include praise and worship, Scripture reading, the Liturgy of the Hours, the rosary, and the Mass.
“Our relationship with the Lord is the foundation on which our identity rests. Spending time in real relationship with the Lord helps to remind us of our fundamental identity as His sons and daughters. This leads us to live out the mission to which He has called us. Our missionaries set aside a minimum of 30 minutes of prayer time each day, including Scripture daily.”
– FMC Missionary Handbook
Daily Life
Life on the mission field is full of joys and challenges! Living in another country can be quite different than in the United States. The pace of life is slower in many of the cultures where we serve. FMC missionaries typically live in a house in a neighborhood, rather than a large community compound. This allows us to be close to the poor we serve.
Our missionaries serve in various countries around the world on teams of single men, single women, or family teams.
It takes time and patience to settle into a new culture with a new language. There will be difficult moments, and humorous ones, as well.
Families may homeschool or send their kids to the local school. Men’s and women’s teams may share more time and space with their teams than they would with typical co-workers in the United States. It may not be easy to adjust at first, but as we grow in relationship with our team and the locals people, we become more and more comfortable in our new culture.
When first arriving at our mission post, getting into new rhythms in your new home is a large part of the work. That may include homeschooling, buying furniture, going to the market, getting to know new teammates, or listening to a neighbor share in a language we are still learning. All of these things and more are part of missionary life.
Wonder what it might be like living in a foreign country? Check out these tour videos from our missionaries in Ecuador and the Philippines:
Ministries
Our focus as FMC missionaries is to fulfill the Great Commission of Jesus. Within that we have different roles. We’re not focused on fulfilling a specific “job” (such as an engineer, nurse, or teacher, for example), though God will use our gifts, sometimes in surprising ways.
Our ministries don’t always follow a 9-5 schedule, so we have to remain flexible. Ministries often take place in the evenings, so we may take time for rest during another part of the day. Each team prays and discerns a schedule that works for the place in which they serve.
Ministries vary from place to place, depending on the needs of the people and the gifts of the team. They may include home visits to the sick and elderly, communion services or liturgies of the word, cleaning or fixing someone’s home, helping the locals on work projects, youth groups, catechesis, Bible studies, building intentional faith relationships, discipleship groups, preaching, feeding people, working with refugees, or responding to those who may come to your door with requests for food, medical help, or money.
In our work, we seek openness to the Holy Spirit and to how God is already moving in that place—through the local people and the missionaries who have already been serving there.
Listen to one missionary share about some of his ministries:
Do you have questions about what missionary life might look like for you or for your family? Reach out to us to share your story and hear more!
