I haven’t gotten back to reading one book a month since Perspectives. I just finished one, I’ll count this for July.
I got this book from one of the Perspectives speakers who is on staff at Barnabas International to care for those in cross-cultural ministries. After reading this book, I am convinced of the need for people to care for cross-cultural missionaries. A “tender”, a person who watches over the dangerous job of a commercial deep sea diver is analogous to what a member care personnel does for a missionary.
Missionaries are generally spiritually mature, but they are not immune to sin, discouragements, misjudgments, conflicts, marriage problems, etc. They also have cross cultural adjustments that aggravate those issues. On top of that, if they are effective missionaries, which we hope they are, the devil will not leave them alone, a spiritual reality that we don’t take seriously in the West.
The main thing I apply from this book is to pray for our missionaries, and ask God to provide people to care for them. I read this book because I would be open to caring for missionaries, IF God calls me to do that. I don’t think I’m qualified, but that’s a good thing. Moses and Jeremiah did not feel qualified for the job God called them to do. But I think that is something I would be interested in.