Steps to Becoming a Missionary: Picking your field

Steps to becoming a missionary: Picking your field

You have finished your training and now are about to figure out where God wants you to go as a missionary. People have varying opinions of where you should go and what countries you need to go to, but the honest opinion is that it is not up to them where you go. It really is not even up to you where you should go. It is up to God! You need to let God guide and direct you to a country. I would not worry or even focus on where God wants you to go until you are either about to finish up your training and start deputation or are starting deputation. But you say well, how should I know where I should go? Let me give you some thoughts and ideas on how to decide where to go, but ultimately, it comes down to knowing where God is calling you to go.

Study the world and study countries: You can do this before, during and after your training. Begin studying and looking around the countries of the world. Find out what their religion is, what types of mission work is being done there, and how someone can get into the country. This will give you a greater burden for the world but also give you a list of countries you know about and God can use this to direct you to one of those!
Talk with missionaries in different countries: Speak with missionaries when they come by your church, send an email to them or even video chat with them. Talk with them about their country and the need in their country. Find out what God is doing with them and pray for them! Most missionaries will try to convince you that you have to come to their country, but I would say listen to them and let God work in your heart. You cannot have a man-call to the field rather you need to be God-called!
Take missions trips— Take as many missions trips as you can! Go and see as many countries as you can. This will give you a heart for the world, as well as allowing you to see the great need all around the world! This will give you a burden to go! But don’t let your emotions call you to a country, let God!
Pray!: Spend time praying and seeking God for wisdom about where He would have you go. Every person is different in how they knew God was calling them to a specific place. There is not some magic formula that happens that lets you know where to go. But as you pray and God works and moves in your life, He will guide and direct you to where He wants you to go.
See the need: There is not one country in this world that is not in need of the Gospel! But pray about the need. Look and see where works are being done and where works are not being done. See the need around the world and let God guide and direct you as you see the needs of each specific country.
Get counsel: As you feel God leading you to a certain place, find men of God to get counsel from about where you think God is calling you. They will be able to talk with you about where you are planning to go, give you insights and things you may not have thought about, help you to see the need even more and give you wisdom about your decision. Again, don’t let man make the decision for you but it is good to get counsel from your pastor, from missionaries and from men of God in your life.
Make sure you are God-called: When you think you know where God has called you, step back and make sure that it is God’s call on your life. This is very important because if you are man-called or emotion-called when you get to the field and trials and difficulties come up, you will run away and quit. But if you are God-called, no matter what happens or goes on, you can look to God and trust in Him because He is the one that called you to that place!

There is no magic formula for how to figure out where God wants you to go. There is a great need all around the world and valuable resources you can use to help you as you seek God’s direction and will for where He would have you to be a missionary! I would love to hear how God directed you, as a missionary, to where you are. If so, please comment below and give us your testimony of how God called you to your country!