A question often asked is 'What does a faith financed Christian home missionary do?' and the answer is largely determined by the area of Christian ministry in which that particular missionary is engaged.
The term 'faith financed home missionary' for this article means that all the funds for the ministry – including family living expenditure – comes from individual 'gifts' rather than by a corporate salary package or an arbitrated wage. Sometimes this money is a one-off contribution, or comes regularly from beneficiaries of the ministry who receive regular newsletters about the missionary's endeavours.
There are many thousands* of 'faith financed home missionaries' in Australia , 'excluding volunteers'. Full-time faith financed home missionaries can also include evangelists, entertainers such as musicians and artists, as well as behind-the-scenes workers such as those in radio studios, home missionary offices, benevolent ministry and the like.
There are also numerous mission organizations whose people are 'faith financed home missionaries': well-known groups are WEC International, Fusion Australia, MMM, MAF, Bridges for Peace, EM, Pioneers, Jews for Jesus, Compassion, Wycliffe, Wycliffe Air, the many missions to Australia's indigenous peoples, (and numerous others), along with Christian camp sites around the nation.
Then there are many individuals such as Ramon Williams (with his family of five children) of World Wide Photos, who has been a faith financed home missionary for 40 years. He has developed a media ministry through which he distributes 'religious press' to Australian and overseas news agencies including denominational and independent Christian media as well as the secular press.
Another individual home missionary is Well-Being Australia chairman Mark Tronson, who, with his family of four children has been faith-financed for 25 years. As part of his mission, Mark has developed a cricket ministry, an athlete respite ministry, an art and tourism ministry and an internet ministry. He is also an itinerant evangelist and speaks at numerous seminars in Australia and overseas.
Ministering and living by 'faith finance' means following a particular philosophy of serving the Lord Jesus Christ. Although it does not suit everyone, those who have maintained their ministry and family through the exercise of this particular expression of faith can speak of the Lord's abundant blessings.
Faith financed "overseas" missionaries are a different category again serving in various Mission roles throughout the world, many of which have a slightly different philosophy.
To illustrate the difference, M V Tronson explained: "One overseas 'faith financed mission family' we know withdrew from a large Australian Pentecostal world mission once the organization's policy predetermined a set amount of signed Gift Pledges before any mission service."
Obviously there are arguments for and against such a policy. On the one hand 'signed pledges' is a form of a guarantee that the overseas missionary family might be supported, whereas for 'faith financed missionaries' the very tenet of a 'signed pledge' is a contradiction of the philosophy of ministry and family funding they've adopted.
"As a faith financed home missionary I find the air of expectancy exciting. I never know what the Lord will bring on any given today, and it is awe-inspiring to see what He surprises me with," surmised M V Tronson, a Baptist Minister.
"In faith financed missionary circles there is an understanding of a 'theology of expectancy' which positively affects whatever endeavour or conversation is engaged. The 'real heroes' are the 'partners in mission' who are the self sacrificing 'financial supporters'", M V Tronson said.
* There is an estimated 1,872 faith financed 'home and overseas' missionaries as per the stated definition in this article.
* There is an estimated additional 25,655 Australians serving in Mission whose 'faith finance' is supplemented by superannuation, part time paid work, partially funded (such as Christian camp sites) or 'signed pledges'. Many school chaplains are in this category. Wesley Mission has some 4,600 people who serve in various capacities, many of them with some 'faith finance', supplemented by partial superannuation.
* These estimates came from consulting 23 senior churchmen and missionaries around Australia .