Prayer for Sabbatical

This Wednesday, I’ll be flying to the US to begin a 3-month sabbatical. I’m writing to ask for your prayer support during this time away.

Missionary Sabbaticals
In June 2022, the Board of General Superintendents approved a policy introducing sabbaticals for Nazarene missionaries. Here is some information provided by the Global NMI office about Nazarene missionary sabbaticals:

Sabbath keeping and sabbatical leave are familiar within the Church of the Nazarene. Sabbatical principles are replete throughout Scripture and our local churches and pastors have benefited from engaging in this healthy practice of stepping away from the usual rhythms in order to find rest, renewal and refocus. We are so grateful for the opportunity to offer this uniquely dedicated time of rest to our hard-working Nazarene missionaries.

Why did missionary sabbaticals become a priority?

In years past, it was a common practice for missionaries to return to their passport countries for a home assignment of one year after four years of service. Over the course of their one year at “home,” missionaries had time to reflect, rest, and re-charge. Missionaries handed off their work to colleagues and local leaders, leaving them free to focus on relationships with God, sending churches, friends, and family while trusting the Lord with the work they could not be connected to in person.

The frequency of home assignment has increased due to several factors, and it is much more common for missionaries to spend one year on their fields and then return home for six weeks of home assignment. While there are many benefits to our global connectedness, one drawback is the inability to disengage from day-to-day responsibilities. While on home assignment, missionaries often stay in close communication with their field leadership and teammates while they also speak in churches and raise important funds for their future work. In addition to all of this, they are encouraged to spend time with family and find time to enjoy things they may have missed while on their field. Often, missionaries report that they feel more relationally, physically, and emotionally fatigued after a home assignment.

Missionaries are charged with making Christlike disciples among the nations, and, like pastors, missionaries often find themselves in need of a season to refocus on the relationship that birthed the original call to leave everything to follow Him. It is essential that missionaries have opportunities to rest from their regular ministry routines and demands, lest burnout and attrition become a reality for our front line ministers.

What will missionaries do on sabbatical?

The primary focus of every sabbatical will be soul care. It will offer a time to rest, focus on personal and professional development, reflect, and seek God’s vision for the future. Most importantly, it will help missionaries enter a sacred season dedicated to listening to the voice of our loving God, who Himself showed us that rest is a vital part of His intended rhythm for His people. Each sabbatical will be customized with an approved sabbatical coaching guide.

As I prepare for this sabbatical, I ask for your partnership in the following ways:

Pray: Please pray that this will be a time of rest and restoration, focusing on my relationship with God, so that I will feel refreshed and ready to resume activities when I return to Romania at the end of June. (That sentence has way too many words that begin with the letters “re”!) Pray for ministries and administrative tasks in Romania, that they will continue without any problems during my absence.

Give: Most sabbatical-related expenses are covered by a generous donation received by Global Missions designated for missionary sabbaticals. However, I am still responsible for covering some of the expenses. Of course, this is in addition to raising my normal expenses as a sponsored missionary. Since I am taking a sabbatical in place of home assignment this year, I will not be in the US to raise funds until 2025. If you wish to make a donation to my deputation account, visit this link: https://give.nazarene.org/pledge/jphillips.

In case you missed it...
It's been a while since I sent out my last e-newsletter, so be sure to check out my updates from the past few months:

www.jepjon.com
www.facebook.com/jepjonromania
romanianazarene.blogspot.com

Thank you for your continued partnership!
Jonathan