How to Maximize Your Missionary's Visit

How to Maximize Your Missionary's Visit

by Karen Hardin
Teach Kids! Magazine January/February 2008

Prepare Your Students
• Learn a greeting in the language of the people your missionary and his family serve and use it to welcome them.
• Locate the missionary’s field on a world map.
• Help your children generate a list of kid-friendly questions for missionary children
Prepare the Missionary
• Do not assume the missionary is comfortable speaking to children.
• Let him know the ages of your group and what they already know about missions.
• If you plan to interview the missionary’s children, e-mail the questions ahead of time.
• If there is something specific you want the missionary to bring or do let him know. Cultural items of interest could include: native clothing, video clips, photos, letters or words on flashcards if the language of the country is non-Roman script, a chorus and game the children of their country enjoy, a common snack, currency.
• Ask the missionary to send prayer requests for his family, ministry and people he serves.
• Find out what equipment you need to have ready for the session.
Prepare the Teaching Environment
• Provide a large area for the missionary to teach a game common to his country.
• Set the scene by decorating the area where the missionary will teach.
• Plan learning stations for part of the program and set up materials.
Impact Accounts
• Interview the missionary family using questions you sent in advance.
• Have the missionaries give the dramatic presentation of a person they ministered to.
Prayer Activity
• If necessary write the missionary’s prayer requests in words and ideas on the age-level of your students.
• Use specific requests to develop a prayer activity that has a cultural flavor. For example, for a missionary to Asia use chopsticks to pick up folded prayer request cards.