Get ready for the unexpected
The journey to cross-cultural service starts long before you get on a plane. So even if you are isolating at home during COVID-19, here are 12 things you can do to prepare for cross-cultural service.
ONE
Be intentional
Be intentional in being a disciple of Jesus, growing in your intimacy with God and understanding of the Bible.
- Start a prayer journal
- Find an online Bible study resource to help you deep-dive into a book or theme of the Bible
- Attend a virtual Bible study group or meet up with a prayer partner.
TWO
Talk to your minister
Organise to have a virtual coffee with your minister, Missions Task Group or ministry leader. These are the people who have walked with you and taught you … what do they think?
THREE
Share your thinking
Share your thinking about mission with your Christian friends and church family and ask them to pray with you – be accountable to them and include them in your journey.
FOUR
Take an active interest
Take an active interest in the world at large. Keep up with the news and ask God to give you a heart for a place or an area of need (e.g. displaced peoples).
Note: At this time COVID-19 news dominates our news sources. Mental health experts suggest that we moderate our news intake to promote wellbeing. Instead, you might like to check out past editions of our Go Magazine, full of stories of how Interserve is involved in communities around the world.
FIVE
Engage cross-culturally in your neighbourhood
Engage cross-culturally in your neighbourhood (perhaps befriend a neighbour who is from a different culture to you).
While we need to maintain physical distancing during the pandemic, we can greet those we walk past or check in on a neighbour to see if they are doing okay. A smile, a friendly note in the letterbox, or sharing fresh produce from your garden can be an effective way to break down social barriers, and let our neighbours know that we care.
SIX
Pray
Pray for one or two cross-cultural workers, and for the nations in which they serve. We can connect you with people who are working in your area of interest.
SEVEN
Read missionary biographies
Read missionary biographies from the 19th, 20th and 21st centuries. We recommend you start with “The Plum Tree in the Desert – Ten stories of faith and mission to inspire you” by Naomi Reed.
EIGHT
Do some formal learning
- Check out online course available at Australian Bible colleges
- Join On Track Together to start a Diploma of Intercultural Studies in partnership with Tabor College.
NINE
Write or draw a journal
Write or draw a journal of your thoughts and God’s leading.
TEN
Grow your ministry skills
Contact your church and see how you can support the community during the isolation period. Take responsibility and do it well, asking for help and guidance as you go. You could cook meals for those in need, help your small group stay connected using social media or snail mail, host an online prayer group, offer to shop for those that can’t leave their homes.
ELEVEN
Get involved with mission-hearted people
- Sign up for free email services notifying you of mission news and openings
- Attend missions conferences, events and information nights online
- Join a mission prayer group
- Investigate some mission agencies
TWELVE
Find a mentor
Find a mentor to keep you accountable in the above activities.
Our role as a mission community is to journey with you over the time it takes to get you there, to help you find God’s leading and help keep your heart beating strongly for world mission on the way. Please get in touch if you’d like to chat.
Join The Learning Community
We’re getting together online with a small group of people together to learn from God’s word, seek Him in prayer, and understand how He is working in the world. Why? Because we want to join in!
We’ll also hear from visiting mission workers with a breadth of experiences, and integrate what we learn in practical service to our local and global communities.
If you’re interested in mission and want to discern God’s leading while building skills, knowledge and friendships on the way then come, walk with us.
Start the conversation
Interservers to walk alongside you one-on-one.
Find your state or interest area in the list below.
