Single Woman - Missionary?

It is becoming more and more difficult for missionaries to raise support to go on the field. Many people and churches have reasons why they cannot take on another missionary; some of these reasons are because of finances, some personal, and some just plain out of apathy and fear of not having enough for themselves. The average missionary family spends about four years trying to raise their initial support. As hard as it is for the average family to raise support, it is many more times difficult for the single woman. She has the same desire to serve the Lord, the same talents and the same calling. But she is usually placed last in consideration by most churches.

There are many reasons people and pastors give why they will not support a single woman. Some of the most common are, 1) We only support church planting ministries, 2) a woman should not be preaching the Gospel, 3) we want our money to go to the ministries that will make the most difference, and honestly, what can a single woman do on the field? 4) what if she gets married while on the field? 5) A woman's place is in the home, raising children and being a mother.

While all of these are good points, many people are overlooking what a single woman has to offer the ministry of a missionary already on the field.

Most single women feel that the Lord is calling them to go work in an already established ministry. She has a huge heart to serve, and she has the time to serve. Most of the time, her desire is to help with the children's or teen's ministries or to teach in the schools to help open the door for the missionary to have another contact. She usually realizes that she is not the one who is going to be doing the preaching, but she wants to go to be a help to the missionary so that he can spend more of his time worrying about the preaching and shepherding and less time about things that someone can and should be doing. Simply put, she wants to help "Moses" have time to spend on his real responsibilities.

She has so much to offer and is just waiting to be helpful to others. She can usually stop doing things and help at a moment's notice. So though she is not planting the church, she is a large part of helping that church be stable and run more smoothly. Though she does not preach the Gospel through her words, she allows the pastor to devote more time to doing this successfully. And if she does get married on the field, as long as her husband is involved in the ministry, you have just gained another worker for Christ and possibly another church planter. And as far as her responsibility being at home as a wife and mother, statistically it's just impossible for every woman to do this. There will always be single women, and even Paul himself said that singleness is a gift to the church.

So instead of shoving all these single women in a closet and ignoring the call that God has given to them, we should encourage them to give their gifts to God. To teach them how to serve and use their singleness to best serve the Lord. And when they do have the courage to step out and do this, we should stand behind them, offering advice, encouragement, and support. She has a lot to offer and can be supported for much less than a family.

But remember that she too needs more than just financial support. Remember that when she is hurting or confused, she has no husband to go to, and she cannot go to her pastor all the time. She often has a very special relationship with God that is personal and deep. She has to go to God in those moments when nothing makes sense. She doesn't have the obvious successes of her kids and husband around her to tell her that she is accomplishing anything. She too needs to hear that the work she is doing is good.

God has a calling for each of us. Remember to let God use you and the talents He has given you and remember to encourage others to use the tools that He has given them, even the tool of singleness.