Compassion Outreach, as a ministry of Compassion Christian Church (CCC), embraces our Biblical mandate (Romans 10:14-15) to raise up, send out and care for those from our church body whom the Holy Spirit sets apart for missionary service. We believe the local church should be proactive in discovering God’s direction for our global involvement and equipping workers for the harvest promised by Jesus. If you are interested in exploring the possibility of being a sent missionary of CCC we want to walk alongside you from the beginning of your sensing this call.
Whether you are simply committed to praying intentionally about your role in God’s mission or if you have already begun taking steps of obedience toward the field, please come talk with us. We want to encourage and guide you along the way. Because of our conviction that cross-cultural discipleship is best accomplished through strong partnerships with sent missionaries submitted to the spiritual authority of a sending church, those who desire to be commissioned to the mission field by CCC must complete the requirements below.
Please note, if you are not a member of CCC or you are a member but have already committed to a field placement or ministry outside of the direction and oversight of Compassion Outreach, any request for financial support will be reviewed by our Strategy Team, however, you may not be eligible for commissioning as a sent missionary of Compassion.
Requirements for Eligibility
- Relationship to CCC. Candidates must be members of CCC in full agreement with our Statement of Faith and willing to submit to the spiritual authority of the church Elders and the Compassion Outreach Strategy Team as representatives of their leadership.
- Strategic Impact. In having a strategic impact for His Kingdom in our world, the ministry focus for sent missionaries must align with the direction in which the Lord is calling our church. Therefore, decisions regarding field placement must be made in partnership with the Compassion Outreach team and not made unilaterally between yourself and/or a sending agency. Our Strategy Team has prayerfully identified the following priorities to direct our Kingdom resources. We are committed to:
- Equipping National leaders for Disciple-Making Movements (DMM) and church planting
- Utilizing cross-cultural workers for DMM and church-planting among Unreached People Groups (UPG) and/or to develop and train national church leaders
- Building healthy, Church-Based Teams (CBT) whenever possible
- Defining measurable ministry goals and an exit strategy to be implemented as soon as a reproducing, nationally led church is established
- Personal qualifications. Candidates must exhibit consistent, Godly character, strong moral conviction that is rooted in The Word of God, and a sense of calling confirmed by others through the Holy Spirit. They must also participate fully in a Biblical community where they both give and receive Godly accountability. They must demonstrate a heart for ministry by serving with CCC over a period of time sufficient for leaders to evaluate their gifting, conviction and readiness for cross-cultural service. Generally, a minimum of two years of effective involvement is necessary.
We ask that candidates begin to thoroughly examine the following areas of their lives and conduct an honest assessment in these areas:
- Spiritual Vitality
- Discipleship Ability
- Sense of Calling
- Healthy Marriage (if applicable)
- Healthy Family (if applicable)
- Adaptability
- Flexibility
- Humility
- Teachability
- Servant Spirit
- Team Collaboration
- Self-Awareness
- Sending Agency. The primary agencies we partner with to send missionaries are Team Expansion and World Team. CCC has developed relationships with these sending agencies which align in strategy and Biblical values. These agencies have a proven track record of providing:
- Appropriate pre-field training and ongoing learning opportunities
- Effective leadership and accountability including regular field supervision and evaluations
- Ongoing missionary care and, as needed, professional counseling services
- Financial oversight, medical insurance, retirement planning and other logistical necessities
Rare exceptions can be made to partner with another agency if, in agreement with the Strategy Team, you are so led by the Holy Spirit. However, if you choose to partner with another agency because of their particular ministry focus or a specific field placement, this may make you ineligible for commissioning by CCC as a sent missionary.
The Pipeline to the Field with Compassion Christian Church
Through the study of Scripture and our collective experience we know that the path to the field is often a long process full of unexpected joys and challenges. Our hope is that you will enter this process prayerfully with a humble, teachable spirit and a willingness to grow as you prepare. We invest heavily in the preparation process because our goal is healthy, equipped, mature workers who are strategically effective, culturally competent, and prepared to withstand the inevitable challenges of spiritual warfare and life in the field. You should expect that this process will take no less than 24 months.
Phase One – Exploration (up to 12 months)
We want to walk with you from the very beginning! As you explore how God has called you to be used in His Kingdom we want to equip you with resources and opportunities to grow in your understanding of His mission and your role in it.
- Meet with an Outreach Pastor or Missions Mobilizer. Start by filling out an application on CompassionOutreach.com. Once submitted, we will set up a time to meet with you in person.
- Join our Compassion Outreach community. Ongoing participation in our Local and Global Outreach efforts is a high value. In addition to consistently volunteering with a Local Partner, commit to participate in Compassion Outreach’s local and/or global ministry and events. If you have never participated in a Compassion GO Team (short-term mission trip) sign up! Connect with us through the website and social media to find out about upcoming opportunities.
- Develop a Wisdom team. Identify 6 – 10 people who are willing to help you prayerfully develop a plan of action and timeline for your journey of preparation. We’ll help you with this important step.
- Complete the Kairos Course or an approved equivalent. Just as learning the language when arriving in your field of service is of the utmost importance, speaking the same theological language with other believers, and having the same Biblical worldview as God is vital. The Kairos Course is one way to fulfill this requirement.
- Read, Research and Don’t Rush. From experience we know that the fire God has placed in your heart for the nations is hot. That will cause you to want to rush through this entire process to get to your destination, but that will be the biggest mistake you could make. Time and time again, we have seen that the most effective missionaries are those that prepare well before going. The more missiological books you can read, questions you can ask, other missionaries you can talk with now, will pay off a thousand fold 3 years from now when you are on the field and things get tough.
- Zume Training / Discipleship. Complete Zume training and begin making disciples who make disciples through 3/3rds groups (DBS groups, discipleship groups, etc), outside of the church walls. A high value during this phase is equipping you to make disciples in your own culture so that you can demonstrate your ability to do so in another culture. There needs to be evidence of putting a disciple making routine into your life.
- Financial Planning. Missionary lifestyle does not mean a call to living in poverty, but it does require high levels of stewardship of the resources God gives you. Having debt does not disqualify you from the field but you should begin to make a plan to pursue freedom from debt. Dave Ramsey’s Financial Peace University is an excellent tool to help achieve this.
Phase Two – Assessment (up to 12 months)
Now that you have confirmed a call to the mission field, we want to help you build a team of mentors to guide you on the journey including a Sending Agency which will fulfill an important role in developing and training you for the field.
- Continue with steps 2 and 6 from Phase 1.
- Meet regularly with your wisdom team. This provides direct accountability to your plan. No less than monthly and no-more than twice a month should be adequate.
- Begin monthly coaching with a Strategy Team representative. This is separate from your wisdom team, and will allow the strategy team member to help identify areas that you still need to sharpen, answer questions you might have, give you someone in your “corner”, and this person will be able to keep the strategy team informed on your progress.
- Talk with multiple sending agencies. The strategy team will help you contact the primary sending agencies we partner with.
- Submit an application to the sending agency. The agencies we primarily work with will have you complete a thorough application for missionary service, and with references, can take 1-2 months to complete.
Phase Three – Equipping (up to 6 months)
During this phase you will be equipped and trained for the work God is calling you to do as well as confirm in which field you will serve.
- Attend sending agency missionary candidate assessment. This assessment is two-fold. It allows the agency to evaluate whether you would be a good fit for them, and you are evaluating the agency to see if they are a good fit for you.
- Transition from your wisdom team to a care team. The care team will be the group of trusted individuals that will sustain you in the field and welcome you back. They are the link between Compassion Christian Church and you. An important part of this process will be the development of a larger prayer team.
- Initiate Sending Agency’s deployment plan & training. Your sending agency will develop an individualized plan for you once accepted. This could include identifying a field/people group, budgeting and partnership development (support raising), vision trip, biblical training, etc.
- Vision Trip. There is immense value in getting feet on the ground in a potential area of service before committing to full-time service. This vision trip, which includes a member of the strategy team if at all possible, allows the missionary candidate to meet potential team members, view ministry work in progress, experience the sights, sounds and smells of this location and most importantly an opportunity to pray and seek confirmation. Typically this looks like 8-12 days in-country as determined by your agency.
- Select Field Location. After you commit to a Sending Agency you will work closely with the Strategy Team and your sending agency to choose a field location. Once a field location is agreed upon we will work together to establish your ministry focus and budget before beginning partnership development.
Phase Four – Deployment (up to 18 months)
This is a time for celebration as you have received confirmation of your field and are inviting partners to be a part of the Kingdom work God has invited you to!
- Regular communication with the Strategy Team. We want to be able to pray for you throughout this entire process, but especially in this phase. You will have an opportunity to present your ministry plan and budget to our team. We will also go over with you the Partnership Agreement between you and CCC and then notify you of our financial commitment to your ministry.
- Begin financial partnership development. At this point you will be able to begin financial partnership development, in accordance with CCC and your sending agencies guidelines. As soon as practical you will need to make partnership development your full-time job. When that time comes Compassion Christian has resources available, to include housing and transportation, to assist with this.
- Commissioning & Sendoff. Once your date of departure has been confirmed you will take part in a Commissioning ceremony during one of our weekend services so that our Elders and church body can pray over and commission you to the field.
- Finalize in-country plans. Make final arrangements for the field, including travel, housing and other logistical needs.