I want to come to Spain as a missionary; what do I need to do?

What sort of training should I get to come to Spain as a missionary?

How can I make contact with a Spanish church?

How do I go about being sent as a missionary?

What is the cost of living in Spain?

Should I expect a Spanish church to support me financially as their pastor?

What type of missionary is needed in Spain?

Why do they say that evangelism is difficult in Spain?

How much success can I expect my ministry to achieve in Spain?

What should I do now?

If you have more questions...

Firstly you need to be sure of your call, talk with your church and/or Pastor, and confirm God's direction for your life. You should not come to Spain with a "romantic" idea of missions, but with a call that is real, tested and able to maintain you while on the field.

Once you have confirmed your call, you should seek information in the Spanish consulate concerning legal requirements. Here is a summary of them:

There are 2 ways of coming to Spain as a missionary - working full-time with the gospel, financially supported by a church or agency in your home country; or working secularly in Spain and serving through "tent-making".

UNLESS YOU ARE FROM AN EUROPEAN COMMUNITY COUNTRY YOU SHOULD NOT COME AS A TOURIST AND EXPECT TO OBTAIN A RESIDENCE PERMIT ONCE ESTABLISHED IN THE COUNTRY. YOU MUST OBTAIN A RESIDENCE VISA BEFORE TRAVELLING TO SPAIN.

To come to Spain as a missionary, known here as a "religious minister", it is legally necessary to be invited by a Spanish church or religious entity. The invitee needs to submit an official invitation letter, to which should be added the legal documents required by the consulate in your country, and which are later used here in Spain to start the application process for your residence permit.

The application process for a visa can take between 3 and 12 months, and you can only travel once you have received the visa from the consulate in your country of origin. This visa is used to complete the procedure with the Spanish National Police who, in turn, issue your residence permit once you have arrived.

The residence permit for religious "ministers" includes a work permit exemption which PROHIBITS you working in Spain. You should, therefore, assure you have adequate financial support before travelling and that this support will continue once you have left your country.

To come to Spain as tent-maker, practising your profession here as your means of economic support and serving in the Lord's work part-time, YOU NEED A WORK CONTRACT BEFORE LEAVING YOUR COUNTRY. If you do not have one, and even if you find work here, you will still have to return to your country to sort out the legal paperwork before returning to occupy the post.

Firstly, we suggest you gain a wide range of experience by serving faithfully in your local church, and at the same time start to read missionary books that discuss the process of embarking on ministry as a missionary.

Next, you should contact various missionary agencies or training schools for information on the courses they offer on missionary preparation. We recommend that EVERYONE should attend a course of this nature before going out as a missionary, and that they have a significant cross-cultural experience (that is, a period of more than 3 months in a culture different to their own and not only evangelistic visits or trips to near-by countries) that proves if they are adaptable enough to be a missionary.

Although Spanish (among other languages) is spoken is Spain, SPANISH CULTURE IS TOTALLY DIFFERENT to Latin American or other European cultures, and one should not think that a successful ministry in your own country will guarantee a fruitful ministry here. Even with knowledge of the language, you still need to take a considerable period of time to adapt, and to take the preparation process for this adaptation seriously.

Spain needs missionaries - but missionaries willing to adapt to the culture and realities of this country, and this requires adequate preparation. If you have prepared yourself well, you will adapt easily and make a valuable contribution to extending God's Kingdom here. If not, you could be the cause of serious harm for the body of Christ that already exists in Spain. Please, come to Spain, but take your preparation seriously.

The best way to make contact with a Spanish church is through an already established ministry in Spain. Although it is possible via Internet, or through a trip organised to make contacts, it is much better if you can be represented by a ministry already accepted and respected in Spain.

In the past few years, many have come "freelance". However, many have, unfortunately, ended up dividing churches or reaping widespread devastation, normally due to a lack of preparation, poor adaptation to Spain, or a lack of respect for national ministries. For this reason, many churches are cautious when it comes to receiving new foreign ministries, and you may find yourself standing before closed doors, not because of who you are, but because of those who have been before you.

For this reason, we recommend that you try to be sent by an agency or mission board that already has contacts and a structure established within Spain to receive new workers. This will not only help you to find a suitable place to carry out your ministry in Spain, and to open doors more easily, but will give you access to a support network for future needs that may arise from you role as a missionary which are not the same as those of a national worker.

We believe it is not only important to be willing to go into mission but also to be SENT as a missionary. It is a process in which neither the local church nor the missionary agency should act alone. Both should be involved in sending the candidate into mission.

The local church knows the candidate best and can confirm their missionary call. The missionary needs the moral and emotional support which only their local church can give, as well as prayer for their life and ministry and the necessary financial support to maintain them on field.

Seldom does a local church have the necessary cross-cultural experience to evaluate the candidate's competence for a ministry so different to that which he has carried out in his own country, nor the "field" experience to be able to assess the missionary's work.

For this reason we recommend being sent by your church but through a missionary agency or mission board, who will be responsible for supervising the missionary while on field and the development of their ministry there.

Once you have arrived on the mission field, we feel it is vital to have contact with a local church in order to develop your ministry well, however, we do not recommend being sent by a local church in your own country to a local church in Spain without the mediation of an agency experienced in cross-cultural matters. There are few churches in any country that know how to receive a new worker from a different culture and provide them with adequate training for cross-cultural ministry. Moreover, a missionary has needs that the local church do not understand and will, therefore, need a support network of people who do understand them.

For this reason we feel that a missionary agency or mission board is the tool that provides the best link between sending and receiving churches and is both fundamental and vital for the healthy development of missionary work. To best fulfil your calling, we recommend you to explore different possibilities in order to find the best way to proceed with your call to Spain.

Spain is a European country with a high standard of living. This should be taken into account when considering your possibilities of coming to Spain as a missionary.

It is clear that the cost of living varies according to the needs (or habits) of each person, as well as the area you live in - the cost of living in Madrid or the larger cities is much greater than rural areas, for example. And a single person sharing an apartment with others will have less expenses than a family with adolescent children. But, as a general rule, you will need at least the following economic support to live (and not in luxury!!) in Spain.

Single person: 500 $
Couple: 1100 $
Family with 2 children: 1500 $

It cannot be said you will not survive with less support, but you may face many difficulties.

The simple answer is - no! There are always exceptions, but they are few and normally only with people who have already gained the respect of national churches.

The majority of evangelical churches in Spain are small and have few available funds. Moreover, these funds are frequently used to buy church premises. There are few pastors who are financially supported 100% by their churches, and the vast majority of national pastors combine the pastoral office with a secular job.

If you come to Spain, you should not, therefore, think that a church here can, or should, support you. It is up to you to find your own support, either through your own church in your own country or by carrying out your profession here. If you are not certain of your support, it could not only cause you serious problems, but also worsen the image of the "irresponsible missionary" that already exists in Spain, and you could become a burden for someone who, by faithfully reflecting God's mercy, will surely take care of you until you can return to your own country.

Some come with the idea of establishing a church that could then maintain them economically as its pastor. We do not advise this!! Firstly, because here churches are not raised up so easily; they require years of time and perseverance. And secondly, because if you come to establish a church, you have an "apostolic" calling, and you should be contemplating raising up a work in order to hand it over to a national leadership and carry on somewhere else. When the church is able to financially support one of its leaders, it should be a national worker, not you.

It is not a matter to be taken lightly, and we advise you to assure your economic means before travelling.

Before discussing the type of missionary needed here, we should discuss the type of ministry needed. Great figures, evangelists or pastors who see themselves as "God's answer" to Spain are not needed. If you come to Spain as a missionary, you will not be the first nor the last - nor the best!!

Spain needs humble believers, with God's enabling, with years of experience of God's work in their lives, adaptable, flexible, easy to get along with, determined, full of real love, faithful, prepared, patient and persevering, committed long-term and willing to work shoulder to shoulder with others serving God. A mature Christian character is vital for a fruitful work.

The gospel has scarcely penetrated Spain and Spain is still in need of thorough evangelisation. It is not a place for "specialists" (television, radio, praise ministries etc.) unless you have been informed of a specific opportunity in which your help has been requested. Neither is it a country needing teachers for large churches without leadership, as may be the case in Eastern European countries, for example. And, of course, it does not need "preachers", if by "preacher" we understand the person who wishes to lecture a large congregation, rather than the evangelist who sets out to "preach" the gospel to others in personal ministry. If you are looking for a pulpit, you would be better off staying in your own country and occupying a pulpit there.

We must also emphasise that Spain does not need missionaries who come here to fly the "flag" of their own denomination. Spain needs people willing to work alongside existing churches, to link with established ministries and to fight for God's church, without imposing foreign rules and customs.

But it does need servants, willing to serve the national church where needed, in roles that range from street evangelisation and children’s' work to starting new works, counselling and pastoral care,.. If we are willing to work alongside a church in what they are doing and in whatever may be needed, we will find many open doors for our ministry within Spain.

Spain needs pioneer works, going into villages or districts that have no evangelical witness with the aim of raising up a new church. This means sacrifice, hardship and living in places away from larger cities and their believers. It takes "endurance", but it is what Spain needs. If you are experienced and gifted in this area, you have many opportunities here!!

Some denominations also accept pastors, generally not to pastor local congregations but to raise up new works under the supervision of a local pastor. If your ministry focuses on church planting through evangelistic ministry, and you are willing to work to establish a "daughter" church of one already existing, you will also find doors opening to you.

Some think that all other missionaries, pastors and workers in Spain simply do not know how to pray, or fast, or go into spiritual warfare, or.... But, somehow, the new missionary imagines "it will be different for me".

The parable of the sower shows us different types of land producing different results, even when it is the same seed (God's Word) and the same sower (the very Son of God). Still, when the land produces fruit, it is not always the same.

We simply cannot expect the same results in Madrid as in Texas, or in Badajoz as in New Zealand. It is not biblical, nor does it correspond to real-life experience. (With regard to this, it is extremely important that our sending churches understand this reality, and do not demand unreal results from its missionary, something which only puts more pressure on the missionary and hinders them from performing their ministry well.)

There are many theories as to "why" it is so difficult, and what you must do to break down the spiritual resistance and see more significant growth. But it is enough to say that if the "magic formula" had already been discovered, you can be sure it would have been used and seen, and Spain would not be showing the same face it shows at this time.

The truth is that evangelisation here is "difficult", that you do not see spectacular results, and that churches grow drop by drop. But if this is the way, we should not complain nor criticise, but accept the reality that God has allowed for this time, pray for more fruitful times, and continue working to keep growing, at least, with the same quantity and quality we are experiencing now.

Work is Spain is carried out long-term. If you expect to arrive, establish several churches in a few years, in order to return to your country happy with your achievement, you will most likely end up frustrated.

But if you are willing to love this country and its people, give your life for them, sow with tears during many years, and persevere in prayer and faithfulness, you will see fruit for your labour. You many not gain much fame, nor build big churches, but you will have the satisfaction of knowing you have played an important part in extending God's Kingdom here.

Firstly, do not stop praying about it. Start to pray for Spain. Discover its needs and pray faithfully. Prayer is the key.

Speak with you pastor or your church leaders, and ask for their advice. Ask God to confirm your call. Be willing to serve faithfully in your church and to gain adequate preparation. Be patient, and wait for the right time to leave.

Start to look for information and follow the advice given to help you prepare for coming to Spain. Get in contact with a missionary agency or mission board. Start to get informed and God will guide you through your contacts.

If you have more questions...

Get in touch with us at the following address:-
horizontes@infonegocio.com

Aptdo. 89
San Roque, 11360
Cádiz, Spain