960. The Supply Line

THE SUPPLY LINE

By Allan Starling

The Front Line

The Supply Line.

Think of a soldier on the front line. He’s in direct contact with the enemy. But he is not alone. There is a whole supply line of logistics, food, ammunition, intelligence, and guidance stretching behind him far back to his home country. Without that, he couldn’t do his job. It’s the same with missions.

When you think of missionaries, you may picture someone pioneering on the front lines in a distant native village. And you would be partially correct. But that is not the whole picture. That missionary out there has a support team backing him or her up. We talked about the financial, prayer, and personal supporters in week sixteem. Now let’s look at others who are equally vital. They may do their jobs fulltime, part time, or as volunteers.

Let’s peek at a mission’s home office. You’ll find a diverse group of people performing a variety of tasks. There’s a receptionist, secretaries, bookkeepers, computer specialists, office manager, janitor, director, to name a few. Then there are those who go out from the office to speak in churches, publicize the mission, or represent it at conferences.

The list could go on, but you get the idea. At first glance, it looks as if these people could be working in a secular office. Most of them did, but they gave up their salary to serve the Lord by helping the mission to function and allow the missionary on the front line to get the job done. They are equally missionaries in their own right, and they also need our support.

But there’s always a shortage of workers. Jesus put it this way, “The harvest is great, but the workers are few. 38 So pray to the Lord who is in charge of the harvest; ask him to send more workers into his fields” (Mat. 9: 37-38 NLT). Most mission offices rely on volunteer help to bridge the gap.

Some volunteers go into the office every day. Others may only be able to come once a week. Many have skills they have acquired in the business world. Others learn on the job. Christian schools often require their students to do some form of public service, and they can do it at a mission office.