How To Choose A Missions Sending Organization

This is Missions Wednesday. For an archive of all of my missions posts, click here.

If you search "Missions" on Google, you will get thousands of results in only a fraction of a second. A closer look will reveal that there are hundreds of missions-sending organizations. If you or a team are interested in going on a short- or long-term missions trip, you'll inevitably find that the opportunities are endless.

Here's a guide to help you get started in your missions trip planning. I hope this guide will help you make the best decision about a ministry partner next time you go on a missions trip. Since I work at the national office of the Assemblies of God, I have to highly recommend going on missions trips with the AG. GoAG.org is a great resource for helping you get started.

Go Independently
Unless your group has the backing of a strong church and has great overseas partners, this probably isn't ideal for long-term missions, but it can work well for short-term trips. When you plan your trip independent of a sending organization, then you design a trip that will specifically work for you or your group and you may be able to reduce your overall costs. A major drawback to this approach is that you must take care of all of the logistics instead of having the help of an established organization.

Look Within Your Denomination
If you attend a denominational church, then it is valuable to look at the opportunities within your organization. They will likely have a missions department or will be able to endorse certain organizations. Depending on what you plan on doing on your trip, your denomination's office may be able to connect you with people on the missions field who can host you and your team. Additionally, staying within the denomination may have special opportunities or incentives. For example, in the Assemblies of God, churches can receive awards for how much money they give to missions each year, and the money spent on the trip counts towards that total.

Choose Based On Your Ministry
A friend of mine is a missionary to surfers, others teach English, others do entrepreneurial work, others work with children, others do manual labor--the opportunities are endless. Some missions-sending organizations work specifically with people and teams who want to do a specific kind of ministry. For example, the English Language Institute helps missionaries use English teaching for evangelism in countries across Asia. If you or your team have specific gifts, then an organization that specializes in that kind of ministry will be great ministry partners.

Choose A Great Organization
Sadly, not all organizations are efficient or reputable. Some organizations have high administrative costs, which means they don't efficiently spend the money they receive. A simple Google search will help you assess the reputability of the organization you intend on working with. There are also organizations that specialize in investigating ministries and non-profits to assess their reputability. MinistryWatch.com or CharityNavigator.org may be a good places to start.

What do you consider when you decide on ministry partners for a missions trip? Have you had a good experience with any? What characteristics do you think a good missions-sending organization have?