What you told JEMA about member care

Ed Koch (d. 2013) was a three-term mayor (1978-1989) when New York City was in deep financial trouble. Koch brought the Big Apple from the brink and injected new hope. He had a penchant for going out to the streets of New York and engaging folks with his trademark, “How’m I doin’?” He wanted to hear how his administration was impacting everyday people on the street.

In January 2017, in preparation for speaking at JEMA Connect that year, I conducted a survey of missionaries in Japan on their perceptions of member care and shared insights from those results. Five years down the road, it seemed appropriate to do another “How’m I doin’?” update. What follows are the results of the 2022 JEMA Member Care Survey. Instead of summarizing the entire survey, I chose six points which stood out as the most relevant for evaluating member care in Japan, along with commentary and recommendations.

Participants in the 2022 survey

The survey was taken by 157 people. The gender breakdown was even with 52% male and 48% female. Over three quarters of the participants were married.

The age range was a clear factor in the survey results. Only 6% of respondents were under 35 years of age, and 20% were over 65. There may be no clear reason for this distribution, but it indicates a need to creatively reach out to younger missionaries.

Another area of interest was the time spent serving in Japan. Over a third of respondents had spent over 25 years in Japan, with over a quarter having served in Japan for ten years or less. It is important to pay attention to the member care needs of people whether at the beginning or end of missionary service. This coincides with what I learned in my doctoral studies in member care, that those in the first term of service need more attention than those who are more experienced. New missionaries need support as they adjust to a new culture and language setting. It is not that other groups don’t need member care; they have just been able to adapt to ministry following their first term. At the end of a missionary career, tools for adjusting to their passport culture will allow them to land more softly into the place with which they may no longer be familiar.

A number of people didn’t answer all the questions because the survey was weighted towards people who belonged to a mission organization. Those who consider themselves independent missionaries were unable to provide responses about being in an organization.

Positive spiritual engagement

Being a missionary doesn’t necessarily mean one has a vibrant spiritual life. The survey, however, revealed that 81% consider their spiritual lives as either “vibrant and alive” or “growing steadily.” Another 18% said their spiritual lives were “on again, off again,” and only two people said their spiritual life was “dry and lifeless.”

What keeps missionaries spiritually healthy and alive is often related to their spiritual practices. More positive news is that a full 81% noted that their spiritual practices had grown during missionary service. On the other hand, nearly 20% said that their practices remained unchanged or declined.

Staying healthy and resilient includes having spiritual friends, who can provide a sounding board and with whom missionaries can share. About half of the respondents said they have someone in Japan with whom they regularly share about their inner world. A fifth (19%) said they have at least one person elsewhere in the world. One in four said they “occasionally” unburden their heart to a friend or colleague, and 5% had “no one” with whom they can freely share.

The reality of conflict

Whether working with a team of people from one’s own culture or other cultures, conflict is sure to make its presence known sooner or later. Conflict within a mission organization is often given as a reason people leave the field. Responses to this question were generally positive, with conflict handled in intentional and healthy ways (27%) or through talking things out (50%). However, nearly a quarter of respondents felt left on their own or avoided conflict at all costs—which demonstrates that more work needs to be done in this area.

Trust in leadership

While it may be one of the most important areas for members of an organization, trust in leadership is an area missionaries may have challenges with. Just over half of respondents felt personally valued and heard by leadership and could share freely with them. About one third noted that they trust their leadership but hesitate to share things of a personal or spiritual nature. Concerningly, 14% weren’t sure their leaders had their personal well-being on their radar, but did trust them to do their best for the organization’s goals. Only 2% believe there was a spirit of distrust in their organization.

The majority trust their leadership for general things within the organization e.g., crisis management, communication, general member care services, children’s education, but the troubling statistic for me was that nearly one third didn’t feel they would share things of a personal or spiritual nature. Although job descriptions may not necessarily be designed to include these things, relationships between people and their leaders must be built on mutual trust.

Dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic

The pandemic personally touched all missionaries to some extent. By far the greatest loss felt was the inability to travel, followed by connection with others, and emotional impact such as anxiety, depression, and loneliness.

We also asked about how a missionary experienced their mission organization’s assistance. Of those who responded to the question, 46% said their organization had been a positive source of encouragement and help, being available for questions (28%), or at least minimally communicating with them regarding the pandemic (19%). However, 8% said that their organization didn’t do much at all regarding the pandemic.

Whether or not their organization cared for people during the pandemic, missionaries had to find ways to cope. Most (62%) noted that they found various ways to cope emotionally, spiritually, and relationally as the pandemic dragged on. Over one third found a few ways to cope, about 1% had a difficult time coping, and 2% felt overwhelmed at times by the ongoing pandemic.

More support or training requests

One question on the survey was about where missionaries desired more support or training. The results were surprisingly similar to the 2017 survey. The top request remained the same in 2022: “Opportunities for spiritual and physical refreshment.” The next four selections in 2022 were 2) staying connected to God in life-giving ways; 3) effective team relationships; 4) healthy conflict management and resolution; and 5) good cross-cultural communication. Clearly there is an ongoing desire for support and training in three vital areas of missionary service that relate to personal well-being, connection to God, and handling relational conflict well.

Reflections on the results

1. While there are always ways to improve member care within organizations, the vast majority of responses were positive. The following quote characterizes much of the survey: “I’m so grateful to be part of an organization that takes member care seriously. I am sure that people fall through the gaps, but I have benefitted so much from what has been provided—from devotions to help with the pandemic to pastoral visits and support, and great TCK support.”
2. We need a concerted and more creative effort to gauge what the younger generation is thinking in terms of member care. Very few of those who have recently arrived on the field participated in this survey, so it is difficult to know their needs.
3. In the busyness of missionary life, it is important to provide avenues of rest and renewal. The Still Waters and Refresh retreats demonstrate how important this is. Missionaries need times of quiet, periods of solitude for reflection on Scripture, fellowship with other missionaries, and times of worship. One means to providing rest and renewal is via retreats. One cannot continue to pour out of an empty cup. These types of opportunities need to be spread out throughout Japan to provide for as many missionaries as possible.
4. A key to longevity on the mission field often relates to the health of relationships: with God, with other missionaries, and with local churches. Finding ways to stay in intimate relationship with God seems so obvious, yet it can become a casualty of getting the job done. Also, dealing with conflict in healthy ways should be a priority of every organization’s member care goals.
5. Future surveys need to be more inclusive of the entire missionary community, not just those who belong to mission organizations. Independent missionaries make up around 13% of the missionary community within JEMA (as reported in the 2021 directory).

If missionaries are to be cared for well so they can be healthy servants of Christ, then an Ed Koch gauge of “How’m I doin’” needs to be taken periodically.

1. “The importance of trust in leadership,” Journey to Leadership Blog, https://journeytoleadershipblog.com/2018/04/02/the-importance-of-trust-in-leadership (April 2, 2018).
2. Anonymous response from the write-in section of the survey.
3. See this PDF for the full results of the survey.