Debriefing Questions for Missionaries on Furlough

As your church’s missionaries come back on furlough, it is valuable for them to go through debriefing, the processing of experiences and emotions in community. Debriefing will help missionaries reflect on their past term and recalibrate to enter their next term. While this can be done by an outside organization or counselor, having the church contribute to debriefing allows them to love the missionary, learn more about their work, and influence their next steps. This resource will provide a customizable list of debriefing questions that can be used with missionaries during their furlough.

A valuable exercise for a missions leader to have with those on a furlough or home assignment is to sit down with them for debriefing. Debriefing is the process of providing space, through a series of meetings, for missionaries to reflect on their experiences and emotions. With the busyness of missionary life, most missionaries have not taken the time to do this. This lack of reflection can affect their emotional capacity and their spiritual life, which can cause them to work from the wrong motivations or mindset. This shift into unhealthy thinking is subtle and often unnoticeable. We have found over and over again that in a debriefing process, missionaries are relieved of burdens they did not know they were carrying and are re-aligned with the calling God has for them.

Many mission organizations will conduct internal debriefs, and third-party organizations offer intensives that missionaries should consider attending every four to five years or during a major transition. These can be very helpful to utilize, especially if the missionary has gone through a tough or traumatic season.

Whether you utilize a third party or not, it is valuable for the church to conduct a debrief with the missionary. Conducting a debrief with well-thought-out questions and active listening is a great way to show love to a missionary and help them have a true reset prior to going back on their next term. It allows them to process their time overseas and the emotions they have experienced along the way in a safe setting with people who care about them and want to see them thrive in their work.

The debrief can also be a helpful opportunity for the church to gain insight into the sending process of that missionary and the church. Often, the debrief will reveal an area of improvement for the sending church in how they can grow towards healthier sending. In this way, debriefs can bring mutual benefits to both the senders and those they send.

As you plan the debrief, give consideration to what will make the debrief successful:

1. Who should be there? (Friend, spouse, advocacy team member, etc.)

2. Since debriefs can be highly emotional, choose a private place for everyone to meet.

3. Be careful to go into the meeting with a listening mindset, not one of correction or discipline, especially in the first meeting.

4. Prepare some meaningful, thought-provoking questions to help them reflect on their previous term. Give them these questions in advance.

 Here are some questions to get you started:

1. Personal & Spiritual Health

• What are big and little stressors that you face on a daily basis?

• In what areas have you felt the greatest spiritual battle (personally and/or in ministry)?

• In what ways do your spiritual rhythms look different overseas?

• How satisfied are you with your current weekly rhythms of ministry, rest, family time, etc.?

• How has being overseas affected your physical health (positive or negative)?

2. Cultural Engagement

• What are things you really enjoy about your host culture?

• What about your host culture has been the hardest to adapt to?

• What have you learned about God or faith from your host culture?

• Tell me about the local friends you miss the most. What is different about these relationships than friendships in America?

3. Team & Role Dynamics

• How would you describe your relationships with your team and field leader?

• What part of your role do you feel the most unequipped to do well?

4. Reflection & Future Outlook

• What are one or two experiences that were most impactful to you during this term?

• What are things that you look forward to about returning to the field? What are things that make you anxious to return?

• Is there anything from the debrief that you hadn’t thought about before and may need to further process? What will that process look like? How can we help?

5. Church Support

• What are ways you have been encouraged by our church while overseas?

• What are some ways we can do better moving forward?

While taking care of the physical needs of a missionary on furlough is of great value, what they need more than anything is time with great shepherds who will ask thoughtful questions, and the space to listen to how God wants to speak to them. The sending church has the opportunity to create this space and experience for the missionary. The result, more often than not, will be a missionary that is truly refreshed and ready for their next term and that is more fully connected to their sending church.

Next Steps

The journey toward sending well happens one step at a time. Here are three ways you can continue moving upstream:

1. Read “The Impact of the Heart Debrief” on the Upstream Blog for a simple set of questions for debriefing.

2. Download or print “How to Help a Missionary Craft an Ideal Furlough” for more on the topic of caring for missionaries during their furlough.

3. Research what third-party organizations like Alongside, Missionary Training International, and Center for Intercultural Training do for debriefing. Consider if these might be helpful resources for your missionaries who are on furlough, especially those who have come off a difficult term.