If you read the previous section, you will know that working with your missions team leadership (and church leadership) in advance can save you a lot of difficulty in the selection process. So, please take the time to:
- define "missions for your church"
- establish the missions priorities of your church
- set minimum criteria for acceptance of missionaries with respect to qualifications, ministry goals or focus, etc.
- After you have worked out that framework, then an application form that expresses those things will go a long way toward helping you make the support recommendation. You want to be diligent at this stage and then make a commitment to the right people. Having mutually agreed upon and understood principles for support priorities will enable the Missions Team (and church leaders) to more easily say, "No," to many good things in order to be able to say, "Yes," to the best things.
Quite often your selection will want to identify two lines of priority:
- relationship to the church
- ministry type and goals with respect to the church's priorities
If the candidate is "home-grown", has the required character and training, and is aiming at ministry in the highest missions priorities of the church, then that candidate is almost automatic affirmative for support. If the candidate does not understand or agree with your definitions, priorities, or doesn't meet your criteria, then that candidate is an easy one to decline for support.