How can I know if God is leading me to become a missionary?
Are there missionaries who have gone even though initially they had no desire to go?
How much should I consider the needs of the world and my gifts?
» more related questionsQ: Should we rent or sell our home before moving overseas?
A: Probably sell.
I served as a missions pastor at a local church in the U.S. for nine years. Occasionally renting has gone well for a period of time. My wife and I rented our house when we moved overseas for a one-year sabbatical and through God’s grace this went very well.
However, after a few years of renting, almost always something has gone sour for missionaries who rent U.S. homes.
The real key is having the right person to manage your rental property, as well as having enough money to cover repairs, gaps between renters, etc.
However, after a few years of renting, almost always something has gone sour for missionaries who rent U.S. homes.
The real key is having the right person to manage your rental property, as well as having enough money to cover repairs, gaps between renters, etc.
A: Depends
If you are REALLY committed to leaving the vanity of the United States, then sell EVERYTHING and leave.
It is so VERY freeing NOT to have possessions to tie me down! For the very first time, "the cares of this life," took on a new meaning, because of their absence.
There is NO reason for which I would ever want to return to the United States. If I needed to leave here in Honduras, I would go to another Latino country, lives/work among the poor, and "get on with it."
EVERYTHING that I "feared most" that I would "miss," has only been "missed" in the MOST positive way!! Daily, I am glad to be free of THINGS.
I go through my things here every 6 months, and give away ONE HALF of it. Even here, I am gringo pack rat!!
Nothing worse than having to back to the States, because of a bad tenant, etc
It is so VERY freeing NOT to have possessions to tie me down! For the very first time, "the cares of this life," took on a new meaning, because of their absence.
There is NO reason for which I would ever want to return to the United States. If I needed to leave here in Honduras, I would go to another Latino country, lives/work among the poor, and "get on with it."
EVERYTHING that I "feared most" that I would "miss," has only been "missed" in the MOST positive way!! Daily, I am glad to be free of THINGS.
I go through my things here every 6 months, and give away ONE HALF of it. Even here, I am gringo pack rat!!
Nothing worse than having to back to the States, because of a bad tenant, etc
A: Depends on the Lord’s leading
I had a retired missionary tell me years ago, "Get some real estate before going to the field. Otherwise you get home and have nothing." That had been his experience - starting from scratch at 50+ in the US is very difficult.
I took his advice and we invested in rental property prior to leaving for the field in 1996. During that time, the stock market tanked, but the real estate market where we invested saw 500% gains. When we returned to the US to come on staff last year, that provided the funds to afford to live here. If I’d just put the money from our former house in the bank, we couldn’t have afforded to buy. I give God the credit for this!
I believe He guided us to this decision - it is not the decision for everyone. A couple things that suggested the decision we made was right - we had the equity built up, so it was either real estate or leave it in a bank. And the property was close to my parents who managed the rental. If you don’t have someone who can 100% manage the rental, then you risk this being a headache at best, and possibly a nightmare!
The bottom line is, pray and seek God. Don’t make a decision for a false sense of "holiness" on the one hand by selling all in order to be a self-made martyr, or a false sense of security on the other hand that doesn’t trust God to care for you. In our case, He used our investment to take care of us. That may not be His way with you.
I took his advice and we invested in rental property prior to leaving for the field in 1996. During that time, the stock market tanked, but the real estate market where we invested saw 500% gains. When we returned to the US to come on staff last year, that provided the funds to afford to live here. If I’d just put the money from our former house in the bank, we couldn’t have afforded to buy. I give God the credit for this!
I believe He guided us to this decision - it is not the decision for everyone. A couple things that suggested the decision we made was right - we had the equity built up, so it was either real estate or leave it in a bank. And the property was close to my parents who managed the rental. If you don’t have someone who can 100% manage the rental, then you risk this being a headache at best, and possibly a nightmare!
The bottom line is, pray and seek God. Don’t make a decision for a false sense of "holiness" on the one hand by selling all in order to be a self-made martyr, or a false sense of security on the other hand that doesn’t trust God to care for you. In our case, He used our investment to take care of us. That may not be His way with you.
A: God Owns it All
Pray and then Pray some more and when you are all done PRAY! To sell for some will leave you with less to be concerned or hindered about once you arrive at your mission station. On the other side of this equation is the fact that if you plan on some day returning home you will have to start all over. We sold a family business of 40+ years and all but a few material items and moved to the mission field. We were relieved of many burdens that come along with having rentals, home ownership and material possessions. What is God calling you to do? Obey it and he will see you through it. We brought nothing into this world and we will take nothing out when we leave. Psalms 24 tells us that it really all belongs to God any way. We are instructed to lay our treasures up in heaven.
