Discussion Prompts: The First Years

Act 1

  • If children and teens can hear from God and participate in missions, how might you encourage your missionary kids/teens?

Soul

  • Dave shares with Josh the fears he faces, letting Josh into his inner circle. If you want to be part of your missionary’s inner circle of prayer support, how can you communicate that to your missionary?
  • While Dave is street preaching, his pastor sees his heart and affirms his calling. What have you noticed about friends in your church, or have friends noticed about you, while you’ve been sharing the love of Christ with others?

Victories

  • How might you respond to physical resistance to the gospel? To spiritual resistance? How can you come alongside missionaries who are experiencing resistance?
  • How does your church dialogue with those who see themselves as sub-culturally opposed to you?

Casualties

  • Dave has fasted, asking God to provide him with prayer support and financial support. What are the avenues in your church for a missionary to obtain either of these supports? If a commitment in either area is made, how is it kept?
  • Phone calls, letters, emails, texts, social media, websites—how are missionaries introducing themselves to your church? How can you make missionaries aware of your preferred method of contact?

Stages

  • How are missionaries welcomed at your church? What is your routine? What can they expect regarding display space, presentation time during service, and interaction afterward?

Dying

  • Make a list of friends with whom you have been transparent about your struggles (resistance or temptation) while following Christ. Then, list friends who have been open with you about their struggles. If either of your lists is short, why might that be? Are missionaries on either of your lists? Why?

Hope

  • At the business meeting, Dave lost hope. Yet at Jim and Sharon’s church, even his kids were ministered to and excited! What differences do you see between these two experiences?
  • Have you ever felt like you had an encouraging word for a visiting missionary? If so, what did it feel like to deliver that word? How do you think the missionary felt?

Breath

  • Contrary to the advice he was given, Dave starts to go off-script. How do churches respond? Why?
  • If a missionary is also working a full-time job before leaving, how can your church be of assistance?

Homeless, Airborne

  • Does your church have the capacity to house missionaries for any amount of time? What immediate needs has your church met for missionaries? How was meeting those needs accomplished?

Act 2

  • You are now stepping onto the field. If you’d like to reflect on some questions scripted for missionaries, they are at the back of the book.

Welcome to Darkness

  • Day 2: Notice how supportive church songs and memories can be for missionaries when arriving in their new culture.

Maestro

  • Day 6: What is Dave’s response to the break in communication with his sending churches?

Culture’s Grip

  • Day 31: In reference to how his family is doing, Dave tells his team leader, “We’re getting our butts kicked.” Why? How could your group help?

Backlash

  • Day 44: What do you understand to be “missions”? What does Dave think of his current situation? What does his daughter conclude on her own? How does Dave answer her?
  • How does the care package from a church minister to each of the kids? To the parents?

The Spirit of Mohammed, Gods of Sand

  • What do you know about the holidays and religious practices celebrated in your missionary’s region? How can you support your missionaries during these times?

The Non-Gospel

  • Day 72: Respond to the thought, “We are modeling! Everything we do or don’t do preaches the gospel!”

In Your Heart

  • What has God placed in your heart? What do you most long to do?

Audience

  • Dave’s 7-year-old daughter has fasted and prayed about what God would have her do. Now, she’s ministering to the poor. For nearly two years prior to going, the seed for her wanting to do missions had been planted and regularly watered during Sunday school by Joe and Dawn, a couple in her home church. How are the children in your church being encouraged?

Shadow of Death

  • Just like you need to save money for vacations, so do missionaries—even mandated vacations. Have you and your missionary talked about this?
  • Sometimes, missionaries experience the loss of loved ones back home yet are unable to return home to grieve with family. As this is unlikely to make it into a newsletter, how could you be a regular comfort to a missionary?

The Question, Standing, Reaching

  • Consider the following approaches to sharing Jesus: the “live-life-and-love-the-people-while-waiting-for-an-opening” method, the “3-minutes-to-Jesus” method, and the “Bible-study-with-locals” method. Also, notice the speed at which the refugees conclude that Dave’s family knows God. What would you call that method? Which approach are you drawn to?

Disillusioned

  • What would leave you disillusioned? Lack of funds? Lack of language? Lack of power? Lack of vision? What would encourage you? How can you build up your missionaries?

Matches, Burning, Coal

  • Have you ever had an accountability partner? Have you ever crashed without one?
  • While prayer is not a science, can you recall—in the history of your Christian life, church, or ministry—an experience that supports the idea that unity in prayer is significant? What Bible passages do you know that correspond? How does your church pray in unity for your missionaries?

The Intentions of Hawajas

  • What is Dave’s main intention? What is yours?

Let the Children

  • When Dave preached off-script, he got passionate about three scripture passages: don’t hinder children from coming to Jesus; speak to the mountain, and it will move; have compassion that leads to the defiance of evil. He can see one of those passages coming to pass. What passages of scripture are you passionate about right now? What might they look like to you when they come to pass? What passages were your missionaries passionate about the last time they visited? How can that focus your support?

Water and Guns

  • Are any of your missionaries in an unstable country? A country in conflict? What might that look like for them? How can your church respond?

The Camel Delivers a Word, To Change the Dance

  • What do you think of the reasoning, “If prayer changes things, lack of prayer changes things”? How would this reasoning apply on the field? At home? How are your prayers changing?

Refusing, Ismail

  • When you pray for unity and for people to experience God, what scriptures do you cling to?

Breaking Ties

  • Are you aware of what makes you “feel most alive”?

Where is Jesus?

  • Now that you’re “living” the missionary walk, how do you feel about returning home for the sole stated purpose of raising more funds? 
  • What kind of shape is Dave in? What does he truly need? What does his family need?
  • How has Jesus revealed Himself to you?