What’s So Great About TEAM?

Andy Olsen • May 15, 2014

We usually aim to be more informative than self-promotional on this blog. But occasionally, we do both at once. This follow-up to a recent post about how to choose a missions agency explains a few things that we believe (in our humble opinion) make TEAM a special place to serve. Our mobilization team recently shared this with our U.S. staff.

There are plenty of great missions agencies out there. We believe we’re all on the same side, working toward the same goals and serving the same God.

For more than a century , TEAM has been placing passionate people on the field to serve the kingdom through opportunities that are right for them and right for the global church. We’re not perfect by any means. But we do care about connecting God’s call on your life with the ways God is moving in the world.

Balanced theology and Christian diversity
While TEAM’s statement of faith is the uncompromising core of our identity, we also leave ample room for diverse worship and ministry approaches and differing theological perspectives on many issues. Read our statement of faith.

God dependence
TEAM strives to put in place the best systems and strategies it can, but we know that man-made structures alone do not guarantee success. Only God provides what is necessary to carry out world evangelization. We submit our lives to Scripture and rely on God for wisdom and strength, both in big-picture strategies and daily struggles.

Missionary care at every level
In addition to an experienced team of certified counselors, TEAM’s global member care network and experienced support staff offer personal and ongoing assistance in all of our fields. So whether you need help through marital stress, prayer and logistical support in a crisis, or just a friendly listening ear, we’re there for you.

Trusted stewardship
As a member of the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability , TEAM is audited annually by a certified public accounting firm to ensure we spend money in the ways we say we spend it. You and your ministry supporters should expect such accountability from any reputable agency. In addition, our financial team and field leadership work diligently to ensure that funds are managed in accordance with local laws overseas.

Field-driven decision-making
Our structure aims to allow most decisions about ministry strategy to be made at the field level — that is, our priorities and approaches are driven by input on the ground, where ministry happens.

Accountability and ministry teams
It’s tough to do missions alone. Not only is there strength in numbers, but at TEAM, we also believe it’s more effective to do ministry on teams. When others journey with us, we find support and encouragement, and that somehow our collective efforts accomplish more than we could by ourselves. TEAM’s accountability structure is built to empower missionaries without smothering them.

A deep history
Past performance does not necessarily guarantee future success, but TEAM has been doing missions for more than a century and has learned a few things along the way. Our long history in countries around the world offers a stable platform from which to launch your ministry. We offer a long line of others who have gone to the field before you. So whether you are jump-starting a new ministry venture or are part of a large and established field team, you can tap into a community of expertise and support.

Focused on the local church
We work closely with local churches to honor and equip them to be vested partners in the missionary sending process. TEAM believes in the role of the local church as the primary sender, doing all we can to support them in that role and help their missionaries thrive.

Focused on making disciples
Our overseas ministries are focused on making disciples who become the church, because we believe the church is God’s chosen tool for effecting the most lasting change. Our ministries may range from health to evangelism to education, but all of them aim to create disciples who strengthen the national church wherever they are present.

A diverse set of service opportunities
We offer hundreds of widely varying opportunities to serve in more than 35 countries. We serve among all major world religions and most ethnic groups. No matter your skill set, there is a strong chance we can connect you to the right place to serve.

Competitive health insurance and retirement planning
At TEAM, we believe in setting up our missionaries for long-term success in life. For both our U.S. and Canadian missionaries, we offer group health plans that offer international coverage at competitively low premiums. For our long-term U.S. missionaries, we also offer a 403(b) retirement savings plan with matching employer contributions, which we strongly encourage our missionaries to take advantage of. Long-term missionaries with TEAM Canada participate in a separate retirement pension plan.

Personal debt
TEAM does not require prospective missionaries to be free of personal debt such as a mortgage or education loans before heading to the field. Our staff work closely with missionary candidates to make sure they have a plan in place to address debt in a sustainable way that does not jeopardize their ministry. We highly encourage applicants to eliminate credit card and other consumer debt before becoming missionaries.

Spiritual vitality
TEAM workers, by and large, are grounded in personal spiritual disciplines that fuel their lives and ministry. We help all missionaries to maintain vibrant habits of prayer, Bible study, and stillness that will sustain their spiritual and emotional well-being.

Looking to serve overseas, but not sure whether TEAM is a good fit for you? No pressure. Our missions coaches will gladly help you discern and serve you in any way they can.

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Bridging Dissonance: Finding Connection in Music and the Gospel

By Emily Sheddan • 18 Jul, 2024

TEAM worker Luke Standridge and his fellow musicians use music to build connections to faith in Japan. In music terms, dissonance creates movement or even suspense in a song. It invites tension. That tension is what helps grab our ear’s attention and the interchanging of these notes with pleasant melodious parts is what makes music such a delight. In a similar way, God is using music to grab people’s attention and catalyze Gospel impact in the largely unreached nation of Japan. TEAM Global Worker, Luke Standridge moved to Japan in 2019 with no clear direction on how he was going to use his passion for composing music while doing ministry. However, after Luke got involved with a local church and began developing deep friendships, the Lord opened unimaginable doors for Luke that in time, coordinating his creative skills with sharing the Word. “People Need to Come to Japan!” Growing up as one of ten kids in a family that was heavily involved in ministry and missions, Luke never considered that it would one day be a part of his own journey. In 2016, via a Japanese language learning class in Indiana, Luke and his brother had the opportunity to travel to Japan. Hearing, learning, and using the language in the context of Japanese culture was the goal. While it was Luke’s first international trip – even his first trip on a plane - it was also his first time hearing about the spiritual condition of the Japanese people. “And just through that, God did a huge 180 change on my heart,” says Luke. “More people should come here as global workers. People need to come to Japan!” The call God was laying on Luke’s heart is echoed when looking at the spiritual landscape of Japan. The nation is home to the second largest unreached people group in the world. It is one of the most difficult places for the Gospel to take hold and grow. Japan is also home to a deep and rich culture that prizes creative arts from pottery to ink to music to anime – a fact that would help Luke find his niche in life and ministry. God’s Guiding Hand In the short three-month timespan of that first trip, Luke found that opportunities came naturally to share about life, and people’s curiosity for Christianity grew. “I left Japan knowing I just had to come back,” Luke shares. “Even if I didn’t get back to the same area, I knew Japan was where God wanted me to be.” The Lord is good all the time and all the time the Lord is good. His plans do not fail. Luke returned to Japan in 2019, and less than a week after arriving, he was put in touch with a renowned composer in Japan. The composer saw some of Luke’s music and invited him to help write the music for a beloved in-country animated show. But God wasn’t finished yet! Fast forward a year, and more connections and opportunities allowed Luke to help with music for Pokémon - a franchise that has brand recognition around the world and was being developed into a TV series in Japan. Luke recalls how the Lord began using these connections in the production world to open doors for Gospel conversations. One night while having dinner in downtown Tokyo with famous artists and composers from all around the country, Luke was asked about his ministry-focused visa. This was a rare opportunity in a setting with people otherwise uninterested in Christianity. Luke shares, “The whole time I could see God’s hand in guiding the entire thing.”

Connecting in a New Kind of “Neighborhood”

By Lorena de la Rosa and Suzanne Pearson • 13 Jun, 2024

Through creative arts and other forms of innovative outreach, “The Neighborhood” is creating connections to the Gospel and the love of Jesus. CONNECTION. It’s a common word with powerful implications. Dictionary.com defines connection as a joining or linking together; a relationship between people or objects that unites or binds them together. God has created each of us with a deep need for connection with Him as well as connection with others. Hebrews 10:24-25 speaks to this, as the writer exhorts, “Let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.” This God-given need for connection lies at the heart of a creative and innovative ministry in Japan known as “The Neighborhood.” TEAM Japan global worker, Kelly and her family created The Neighborhood as a place where connections are formed through creative arts, educational opportunities, and simply just providing a space for people to be together. A Family Calling The journey to the creation of The Neighborhood began over 5,000 miles away from Tokyo, in California where Kelly, her husband Jeff, and their five children were living. The kids were the first to sense God’s calling to missions, and asked why their family wasn’t serving in this way. How Kelly and her family came to TEAM is a God-story in and of itself. “God placed a TEAM Japan worker at our lunch table the same week that the kids posed that question to us,” Kelly recalls. “We had never heard of TEAM and so we thought, ‘let’s check this out.’ After that, God just kept confirming that we were supposed to be here.” After a period of fundraising and with much excitement, the family of seven moved to Japan in 2014. For the first five years, Kelly and Jeff served as a part of other TEAM ministry initiatives, but they began to sense a stirring for something new. Creating The Neighborhood Kelly and her family truly have a deep gift for hospitality, and regularly opened up their home to others they met in Tokyo. They saw a great need for people to have a place to gather and connect, and they wondered what doors the Lord might be opening for them to meet that need. “About a year before we were to return the States on home assignment, we were just really thinking about our future in Japan,” Kelly says. “We saw a need for people to have a ‘third place’ – a place that’s not home and it’s not work. They didn’t have a church community or any other place where they could meet people and just connect.” Kelly goes on to explain that in Japan, the culture is such that people don’t generally invite each other into their homes, but as her family did so, people embraced that opportunity. “This idea formed in all of our hearts of a student ministry center – a place where we can create community and learning,” says Kelly. “It was born out of what we were already doing in our home, but seeing how we could expand it and have better space.” God’s Provision What happened next is a true testament to God’s provision. Kelly, Jeff, and the kids returned to the States and began sharing their vision for The Neighborhood with their supporters and churches who responded generously. Upon returning to Japan, the search was on for the right space. “We had a Christian realtor that we told our dream to, and he just went looking for it,” Kelly recalls. When the realtor found a 5-story apartment building, he said, “It’s kind of out of your budget but it has what you need and want.” The Lord provided the funds and the family moved into the space in November 2019. They now occupy all but the ground floor, with living space for their family as well as classrooms, areas to study or hang out, and guest rooms for exchange students or others who need a place to stay overnight. The first floor is occupied by a pizza shop – a welcome amenity for the many groups and students who visit The Neighborhood. “It’s very convenient!” Kelly says with a laugh. The Neighborhood began to see lots of activity right away until the pandemic hit in early 2020. During the height of the quarantine, Kelly and Jeff used the time to redecorate the space and plant gardens outside the building. Then as the restrictions eased, they invited individual students or families over for meals and fellowship. It wasn’t until March 2023 that The Neighborhood was able to fully open again as intended. Kelly shares that despite the setbacks of COVID, the Lord continued to provide the funds to pay the rent.