What Nobody Tells You About What Makes a Good Missionary

I remember one afternoon, our old mission truck decided it had seen enough of Ghana’s dusty roads. It sputtered, coughed, and finally died right in the middle of a busy market. My wife Laura and I looked at each other, covered in sweat, surrounded by curious faces. In that moment, with the sun beating down and a dozen things waiting for us, I wasn’t thinking about theological degrees or mission statements. I was thinking about what makes a good missionary – the kind of person who could see this as just another Tuesday.

The mission field has a way of stripping away the non-essentials. It clarifies things quickly. All the theories you learned, all the books you read, they suddenly hit the pavement. You find yourself relying on something deeper than knowledge. The question of what makes a good missionary isn’t about a checklist of skills, though those help. It’s about a foundational character, forged by God, that can stand when everything else gives out.

We’ve been planting churches in Ghana for a long time now. We’ve seen folks come and go. Some were incredibly gifted, but they couldn’t last. Others seemed ordinary, but they settled in for the long haul and saw God do amazing things. It taught me that God isn’t looking for superstars. He’s looking for servants.

A Deep, Unshakeable Calling

The first thing I’d tell anyone who asks about missions is this: you need a call from God. Not just a feeling, not just a good idea, but a conviction that He has put you exactly where you are. The mission field will chew you up and spit you out if you’re only there because it sounds adventurous or because you want to escape something back home. There are too many hard days for that kind of motivation to last.

Laura and I have had plenty of those hard days. Days when the water was out, the power was off, and a child was sick. Days when a church member betrayed our trust, or a project fell apart. In those moments, when every fiber of your being wants to pack up and go home, you have to lean on that initial call. You have to remember that God put you there, and He’ll keep you there.

This isn’t about being stoic. It’s about being anchored. “Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost” (Matthew 28:19). That’s a command, but for the missionary, it’s also a personal summons. It’s His voice echoing in your heart, directing your steps. That’s what sustains you when the well runs dry.

Without that divine push, you’ll burn out. You’ll get discouraged. The cultural barriers, the language struggles, the constant spiritual warfare – they will all wear you down. But when you know God called you, you know He’ll equip you. You know He’ll see you through. That conviction is the bedrock of what makes a good missionary.

If you’re feeling that tug on your heart, that quiet whisper from the Lord, I encourage you to explore it. You can connect with us and learn more about missions and how God might use you in His harvest field.

Endurance and a Willingness to Stay

The mission field does not reward drama. It rewards endurance. We often say that the greatest ability is availability, but on the field, it’s really about durability. You can be available for a year or two, but the real fruit comes from staying. It comes from showing up, day after day, year after year.

You study again. You visit again. You preach again. You forgive again. You trust God again. This kind of work is a marathon, not a sprint. It’s the long game. It’s building relationships over years, watching God slowly transform lives and communities. It means learning a language well enough to preach in it, even when it feels like your tongue is tied in knots.

I remember one time we had a crucial part break on our generator. This wasn’t some minor inconvenience; it meant no power, no refrigeration, no way to charge our phones for communication. Getting a new part would mean a multi-day trip to the capital city, and even then, it wasn’t guaranteed. We looked at the problem, and then we looked at each other. There was no panic. Just the quiet understanding that this was now our project. We fixed it during the breaks between ministry activities, piece by tedious piece. That’s the kind of resilience you learn.

Resilience isn’t just about fixing things or enduring physical hardship. It’s also spiritual. It’s about enduring spiritual attacks, discouragement, and the slow pace of change. It’s about continuing to preach the gospel even when it seems like no one is listening. That’s what makes a good missionary: the ability to keep walking when your feet are tired, both literally and spiritually.

A Humble and Teachable Spirit

When you arrive on the mission field, you realize quickly how little you know. Everything you thought you understood about life, culture, and even ministry gets challenged. You have to be willing to be a student, always. You have to listen more than you speak. You have to learn from the people you came to serve.

I may have praised the Lord loud enough for the whole building to hear when I finally understood a complex idiom in Twi, after years of trying. That’s the kind of humility you need. You’re not there to impose your way of doing things. You’re there to share the gospel, and that means understanding how it fits into their context, their worldview.

This also means being teachable when it comes to practical matters. Back home in Texas, problems were fixed through systems: forms, policies, and departments. But in Africa, systems do not run things; relationships do. I had to stop being a customer and become a friend. The cable did not get installed because of pressure. It got installed because of breakfast. That’s a lesson you learn through humility, by watching and listening to the locals.

“Globally, there are still 3.2 billion people who are considered unreached, meaning they have little to no access to the Gospel within their own culture.”
International Mission Board

A good missionary understands they are not the savior; they are just a messenger. They are there to point people to Christ, not to themselves or their own culture. This means being flexible, adapting, and sometimes admitting you were wrong. It means acknowledging that God is already at work, and you’re just joining Him.

Genuine Love for People

All the doctrine in the world won’t matter if you don’t genuinely love the people you’re serving. This isn’t a sentimental, easy kind of love. It’s the gritty, sacrificial, “agape” love that the Bible talks about. It’s the love that overlooks offenses, that keeps coming back even when you’re hurt, that sees past the cultural differences to the eternal soul within.

We’ve had church members who tested our patience, who disappointed us, who sometimes seemed to take advantage. It would be easy to grow cynical, to put up walls. But then you remember why you’re there. You remember that Christ loved us when we were yet sinners. That’s the standard. That’s what makes a good missionary.

Love means investing in relationships, not just projects. It means sitting in silence with someone who is grieving, even if you don’t understand all the cultural nuances of their sorrow. It means sharing meals, laughing at jokes, and crying over losses. It means being present in their lives, not just performing a ministry for them.

My wife Laura is a master at this. She’ll spend hours just listening to the ladies in the village, sharing stories, cooking together. Those moments, which might seem small, are where trust is built. They’re where hearts are opened. They’re where the gospel can finally take root.

Practical Wisdom and Resourcefulness

The mission field is a constant lesson in problem-solving. You won’t always have the right tools, the right parts, or even the right instructions. You have to be able to think on your feet, to make do with what you have, and to find creative solutions to unexpected problems. This is where practical wisdom comes in.

I remember trying to install a new water pump in a remote village well. The instructions were in English, but the diagrams weren’t quite matching the actual parts we had. We didn’t have all the specialized tools. At that point I looked at my wife and asked if we had made a wrong turn and wound up in Africa, because this was certainly a test. But we had to make it work. We improvised. We asked for help from local mechanics, who always seem to have a knack for fixing anything with a piece of wire and a prayer. And eventually, the water flowed.

This isn’t just about mechanical skills, though those are certainly helpful. It’s about being resourceful with your time, your finances, and your energy. It’s about learning how to navigate bureaucracy, how to manage a budget in a volatile economy, and how to communicate effectively across language barriers. It’s about using every talent God has given you for His glory, even the ones you didn’t think were “spiritual.” You can read more about our experiences and lessons learned in my book, That’s My Goat!

A good missionary doesn’t wait for perfect conditions. They work with what they have. They trust God to provide the rest. They understand that sometimes the most effective ministry happens not with grand plans, but with simple, resourceful obedience.

A Spirit of Dependence on God

Ultimately, what makes a good missionary isn’t about their own strength or their own abilities. It’s about their utter dependence on God. We can plan, we can prepare, we can work hard, but it’s God who gives the increase. It’s God who opens hearts. It’s God who transforms lives.

We’ve learned this lesson over and over again. There have been times when we felt completely overwhelmed, completely inadequate for the task. Those are the times when God has shown up in the biggest ways. When we were weak, He was strong. When we had nothing, He provided everything.

Our work in Ghana, planting churches and sharing the gospel, is not our work alone. It is His. “Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the LORD of hosts” (Zechariah 4:6). This verse is a constant reminder that our efforts are futile without His power. We pray for every step, for every conversation, for every sermon. We trust Him with the results.

If you’re considering missions, remember this: God doesn’t call the equipped; He equips the called. Your weaknesses are not barriers; they are opportunities for Him to demonstrate His strength. Your job is to be available, to be willing, and to depend on Him completely. That’s the heart of what makes a good missionary.

The journey of faith on the mission field is challenging, but it is also deeply rewarding. If you feel God stirring your heart towards global missions, we encourage you to take that next step. You can always connect with us to learn more about how to get involved, pray for our work, or simply ask questions about what life and ministry are like in Ghana. We’re here to help you find your place in God’s great commission.

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