Having dedicated their entire lives to serving the Lord, your retired missionaries are worthy of double honor. Your ongoing care for them is a powerful way to honor their lifelong service. 

Caring Emotionally

Retirement grief. It’s a real phenomenon for one in three retirees as they lose a sense of purpose and experience less social interaction, mental stimulus, and physical activity. Retirement grief is compounded for missionaries because they also leave behind their adopted country and spiritual family. 

What Can Your Church Do?

Honor your missionary retirees. Hold a Welcome Back service to recognize and thank them their sacrifice. Continue to provide a listening ear. Reach out to form new friendships with them, and help them find new ministries. 

Caring Financially

Prior to the 1990s, most missionaries and their sending churches felt that setting aside money for retirement was a lack of faith that God would meet their future needs. Today, we understand retirement savings are a principal of good stewardship, but many missionary retirees were caught in the gap between those two mindsets and do not have adequate retirement funding. 

What Can Your Church Do?

Before ending your retiring missionaries’ support, consult with their mission agency about their retirement needs. Honor their service by continuing your support at whatever percentage is still needed. Also, help younger missionaries establish a retirement plan if they don’t already have one.

Engaging Intentionally

Missionaries tend to be self-starters and don’t want to be idle in retirement. They gave their lives to serve out of love and zeal for the Lord, and that doesn’t stop
in retirement.

What Can Your Church Do?

Retired missionaries have years of experience. Discover their strengths and utilize them in your church. Perhaps it’s preaching, administration, teaching, discipleship, children’s work, evangelism, or planning. Those who know other languages can be invaluable in reaching your community’s immigrants.

Go Deeper

Build a greater understanding of what missionary retirees experience, and discover more in-depth ways to honor them at bit.ly/retired-missionaries