How to “Jump Start” Your Success as a New Missionary

A beautiful story is told in the movie Fly Away Home. It is about a young girl who raises a flock of geese. She is there when the goslings hatch. Thinking she is their mother, the growing birds follow her around everywhere she goes.

This film demonstrates what is called imprinting. Whatever an animal is exposed to, in the first days of its life, it bonds with. The animal will mimic its substitute “mother” and draw all social cues from them. If a kitten is cared for by a cat, it will learn to act like a cat. But if a kitten is cared for by a dog, it will begin to act like a dog, even though it is a cat. This is a strange but real phenomenon that creates interesting scenarios!

So how do these concepts apply to the cross-cultural missionary?

Who we are nurtured by, and how we enter our new culture is very important.

Bonding And The Missionary Task

Tom and Elizabeth Brewster introduced this concept in the missions world years ago. They developed in a book they wrote called, Bonding and the Missionary Task.

Their theory is still well worth paying attention to.

The Brewsters taught that a missionary bonds to the people they spend the most time with when entering the mission field. In their book, they encouraged cross-cultural workers to create emotional ties with nationals rather than other foreigners. This is especially vital in the weeks and months when you first arrive in a new culture.

I’ve experienced the power of the bonding principle in my own life. Awareness and application of this concept give new missionaries a powerful head-start. It moves you quickly toward greater effectiveness in your missionary endeavors.

A Mooda And A Mat

We arrived in Nepal in 1991, brand new missionaries. It was so exciting to be there, the land of our calling. We had prepared as much as we could. But nothing could fully prepare us for such a new and different culture and way of life.

Before arrival, we requested our leaders to find a host family for us to stay with. About a week after we landed in Kathmandu, we moved into a simple rented room next to the room of our hosts. We shared all our meals with them and their two boys.

The room was simple, with unpainted cement walls. We slept on a mattress on the floor. Our only furniture was a mooda (a short Nepali woven stool) and a bamboo floor mat. It was fun and hard- all at the same time. But we learned so much about Nepalese life and culture!

We jumped straight into immersion-style language learning. Our language progressed rapidly. It was a huge adventure, but also a tough one!

When our six-week stay with the family was over, we breathed a sigh of relief and ate a big plate full of toast. It was so good to eat something different from rice, lentils, and curry!

That initial time of bonding with Nepalese people was vitally important. The insights we gained, and the relationships built, carried us forward in our missionary journey.

Jesus Our Example

Jesus is our great example of missionary entry. He was born as a baby and took on human likeness. He was completely dependent on Mary and Joseph for help, though He was God incarnate.

“He made himself nothing, by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness.” Phil. 2:7 NIV.

Placing yourself, like Jesus did, into a new culture as a dependent “infant” isn’t easy. We must lay down power and become like a child, relying on local people for our needs to be met.

As we follow Christ’s example of a humble entry into a new culture, we can understand local people better. We also demonstrate Christ to them in far greater ways.

Are you convinced? Do you want to be proactive about bonding with your new culture well? Here are some suggestions that will help you have a successful entry experience.

Practical Tips For A Missionary’s Entry Into A New Culture:

1) Prepare for your entry (both mentally and physically).

Learn all you can about your new place and culture before arrival. Read books, watch videos, and talk to others who have lived and worked there before. Be a student of the people and place, even before you arrive. Begin to also prepare yourself mentally for the sacrifices you will need to be ready to make. You will need to be prepared for some major adjustments in food, comforts, and habits.

2) Immediately jump into language and culture study full-time.

Don’t ease into it, or try to “get set up first,” then start language study. If at all possible, arrange a place to stay that will not require you to “set up your house” for the first weeks and months.

That can come later after the initial bonding period is completed.

Determine which language study method you will use (see my e-book about this) prior to arriving. Then you can start immediately.

3) Limit hanging out with other foreigners (first 3-6 months).

Recognize that you are in a very critical bonding time. It is a season. This is not forever. Eventually, you will need relationships with people from your own culture too. But for now, restrict your engagement with other foreigners.

4) Intentionally depend on local people for your needs.

At all costs, avoid bonding primarily with other Koreans, Brazilians, or Americans to get your needs met. Instead, be intentional about looking to local people to help you.

Do you need someone to take you to the doctor? Ask a local friend to show you how to navigate the system at the hospital. Need to buy stamps and mail a package, ask a local person to help you understand how the post office works.

This can be difficult when your language is limited, and it’s not a hard-fast rule. Asking for help from indigenous people will help you become a part of their community.

5) Consider living with a host family for a few weeks or longer.

There is great value in staying with a family who is from the culture you are now living in. Staying in their home and being with them 24-7 will give you valuable insights into their way of life.

There are some good articles available on how to choose a good host family if you decide to pursue this.

You Will Never Fully Become One Of Them, But…

Even with imprinting, a dog might act like a cat, but it will never actually become a cat. That is impossible! Neither will you ever fully become an Uzbek, Nepali, or a Fulani. Initial cultural bonding will help you be much more a part of them than you would be otherwise! You will learn how to act like them, speak like them, eat like them. These cultural bridges will greatly help when you have enough language ability to begin sharing the gospel.  They will jump-start your success as a missionary.

Are you already working cross-culturally? Perhaps you didn’t do what I described above. What could you do this week to make yourself more dependent on local people?

Not yet on the field? If you are preparing for entry, what questions do you have about preparing to culturally bond?

Let me know in the comments below or on the Missionary Life Facebook Page.