How Do I Get There?

The Journey To The Field

The Journey to the Field can often appear to be long and daunting. If God has placed a passion for the unreached, those with the greatest need and the least opportunity to hear the gospel, on your heart, then you may feel you need some more help in exploring the next step. It may not be that far out of reach for you!

Pioneers want to explore a potential partnership with you. Pioneers have learned many things about helping people get involved over the years. The Bible says that, “plans fail for lack of counsel, but with many advisers they succeed” (Prov 15:22 NIV). We would encourage you to consider using Pioneers as a possible voice of counsel in your journey into mission. Pioneers call this “Mentoring Towards Mission.”

What is the application process like with Pioneers?

Initial Contact

Pioneers want to help you explore your vision for mission by mentoring you throughout the process. We feel the best way to do this is by talking with you. Feel free to call or email us. It would also be great to meet you in person to begin building a relationship where you can share your heart for mission and learn about our Core Values.

Preliminary Information Form

If you feel you would like to explore Pioneers further, it would be really helpful if you completed a Preliminary Information Form. This will allow us to get a more detailed picture of your heart for mission. You will at no stage be obligated to Pioneers. Please feel free to explore all the agencies/options that you might have.

Formal Application

If you feel ready to partner with Pioneers or you think Pioneers is a top two or three option, the next stage would be to fill in a Formal Application. Although completing this form does not commit you to Pioneers, it does signal to us that you are seriously considering partnering with Pioneers. Pioneers would ask that you be in discussing with your church(es) as you consider completing an application. References are not collected immediately, but will be sent out when you and Pioneers feel this is an appropriate step.

References & Interview

Once references have been collected and thorough discussions with your sending church have been completed, Pioneers will invite you and one of your church leader(s) to attend an interview at the UK missions centre, Bawtry Hall. At this point, you may be given a clear set of requirements and recommendations that Pioneers believe would best help you as you continue to prepare for life on the field. We strive to look at your life and experiences and determine a course of action that is relevant and customised to your journey towards mission.

What about training? What does Pioneers expect of the future missionary?

Pioneers hopes that all field workers will know the basic beliefs of Christianity. Still further, because missionary work is essentially discipleship, a field worker know how to teach others the basics of the faith and how to study the Bible for themselves. From the beginning of Pioneers, it has avoided the "one-size-fits-all" approach to training. We believe God has gifted each person differently, allowed them to have diverse backgrounds, and empowered them to create innovative ministry ideas. With this in mind, Pioneers wants to tailor the training of the future missionary with these elements in mind. This process cannot be detailed in bullet points here, but will be discerned through our conversations in this application process.

Pioneers Orientation Week

You will be invited to attend the orientation to Pioneers either aftering joing formally with us at the interview day or because you have serious interest in knowing more about us. Staring Monday and concluding Friday at lunch, this week will allow you to see Pioneers face-to-face and get to know field workers, office staff, and other future missionaries who are considering partnering with Pioneers. We will look closely at the core values of Pioneers and how missions works within our field-based leadership structure. This week is built to be interactive and adaptable to the participants involved.

Build Support

We will encourage you, right from the beginning, to gather people around you to commit to praying for you.

The Journey to the Field (In Brief!)

Initial Contact >> Preliminary Information Form >> Formal Application >> References >> Interview/Join Pioneers >> Pioneers Orientation Week (5 days) >> Generate Support >> Leave for the Field