Missionary Re-entry

It is the heart of the church to effectively walk alongside missionaries as they transition from the field in an integrated matter personally, spiritually and in community. 

The opportunity

By definition, re-entry is the transition back into one’s home culture after living for a time in another. It is a major transition and challenges the individual to confront one’s personal identity, examining the impact that the home and foreign cultures have had on that identity. The initial delight of being back in familiar territory with friends and family can quickly be replaced by feelings of disorientation. While reactions to reentry vary by situation, the following feelings are common themes identified throughout a normal reentry experience. Some people experience feelings of depression and insecurity, finding it difficult to adjust and fit in again. Many express feelings of loss and long to return to their host country. Others may be frustrated by the attitudes and lifestyle that they encounter in the home culture. Many are simply very tired from an intense period of work and change. Feelings can be intensified if the missionary is returning from situations of extreme poverty or trauma.   Generally it’s because the person has changed (or is changing) in attitudes and values, while their home culture has not. The deeper these attitude and value changes are in the individual, the more likely it is that the transition period will be unsettling.  But, the love and grace of a local church that shows hospitality with understanding can be a profound blessing that eases the transition.


It takes a body

A healthy re-entry requires a unified team working together with the missionary to assist them in transitioning from their role in their host country to their life in the states.  As a local church, working with HarvestCall, you have access to the team required to lovingly navigate this on behalf of your missionary.  It will be important to be in communication together with each role fulfilling their responsibility.  Here is the team.


Missionary - The missionary going through the transition is the key team member.  It is their transition.  For greatest effectiveness, the openness and honesty of  the missionary is critical, sharing their needs, communicating their desires, and connecting regularly with key members of the team.


Church leadership – It is important for church leaders to communicate to the church on behalf of the missionary and the support team.  This will involve an initial communication to introduce the re-entry, share the heart of the church for the re-entry, and set the stage for the plan/duration of the reentry.


Support team – This is the individuals who are the “inner circle” of the missionary.  This is often a mentor, a close friend, a family member, etc.  It is the responsibility of this group to be the eyes and ears of the process as well as those with the most initial responsibility.


HarvestCall/Missionary Care Director – The Missionary Care director  will be ensuring that everyone stays on the same page as well as facilitating any care that is more intensive than the church can provide.  Also, they will be assisting in coordinating the more general issues of financial support and team leadership.


Biblical Example of ReEntry

Focal Scripture: Acts 14:26-28…Acts 15:35

“And thence sailed to Antioch, from whence they had been recommended to the grace of God for the work which they fulfilled.  And when they were come, and had gathered the church together, they rehearsed all that God had done with them, and how he had opened the door of faith unto the Gentiles. And there they abode long time with the disciples….. Paul also and Barnabas continued in Antioch, teaching and preaching the word of the Lord, with many others also.”


Paul and Barnabas had finished their work, returned to their sending church, rehearsed all that God had done, and continued serving in their home church.  The Apostolic Christian Church desires to follow this Biblical example for missionary re-entry.  The following document is designed to outline how this process can occur in a productive and healthy manner.


1.     Finished their work (Transition)

2.     Returned to their sending church  (Re-Entry)

3.     Rehearsed all that God had done (Debriefing)

4.     Received the churches hospitality (Love of the brotherhood)

5.     Continued in ministry in the local church (Re-Integration)


Goal of re-entry

A missionary typically follows one of three responses when moving back to their home environment.    Our goal is for the “integration” of the missionary into their new fellowship/culture.


Assimilation – Missionaries that slide right back into the home culture with little to no problem and appear almost to have forgotten their experience. These people seem to have adjusted well, but may have missed out on the greatest growth opportunity; they don’t seem to integrate the things they saw, learned and questioned into a new view of life and the world.  This is not helpful for either the missionary nor the church family who is not receiving the blessing of the integrated missionary.


Alienation – Missionaries that reject their home culture.  They may be pessimistic and critical of their home culture, realizing that they too were a part of it. They may nitpick about small things, but finally succumb to the home culture out of a need to belong somewhere. As with Assimilators, this reaction does not afford an opportunity for growth during re-entry.  This often alienates those in the church and is note helpful for the church nor the missioanary.


Integration – Missionaries that are prepared for the discord they are feeling. They are able to identify the changes they have undergone or are still experiencing and don’t demand immediate closure on them. They desire to see their cross-cultural immersion have a lasting impact on their lives and the lives of others. This means that they will grapple with how to integrate the things they saw, learned and questioned, approaching old and new ways of thinking with humility and flexibility.  This process, while difficult, is a blessing both for the missionary as well as the church family.


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