Holding the Rope: How the Local Church Can Care for Its Sent Ones

William Carey famously stated to his contemporary Andrew Fuller, “I will go down into the pit, if you will hold the rope.” Carey knew he would need this kind of support from faithful missionary senders, as he would face many challenges—physical, emotional, relational, and, of course, spiritual. We see the fruit of that faithful rope-holding today, as generations of believers in India and beyond can trace their spiritual lineage back to Carey’s ministry. His impact as a missionary would not have been possible without senders who were willing to sacrifice in prayer, possessions, and presence on his behalf. Throughout mission history, though, the local church has often taken a “backseat” approach to missionary care by outsourcing its responsibilities to a missions sending agency. This abdication of responsibility has no doubt led to many missionaries returning from the field prematurely and, in many cases, because of issues that could have been prevented. Could these laborers have continued serving if the church had understood its role in caring for them and been equipped with tools to develop a plan for doing so?

Although the mission agency has a role to play and valuable resources to offer in caring for missionaries, the church is the primary means through which laborers are sent forth into the harvest fields and encouraged and equipped to persevere in their labor. From Paul and Barnabas in Antioch to Epaphroditus in Philippi, from Carey to the church today, the need for faithful sending churches is essential to the completion of the missionary task, and local churches must regain a proper understanding of their responsibility to hold the rope for their sent ones. Holding the Rope: Helping the Local Church Care for Its Sent Ones lays out a biblical framework for missionary care; helps reestablish the local church’s place in sending and supporting; gives valuable insight from the field, the agency, and the church on how to partner well together; and provides practical application for developing a pre-field, on-field, and post-field missionary care strategy. Sending doesn’t stop at the commissioning service—it is fostered and continues through faithful missionary care. The church must hold the rope and not let go!