Serving with Eyes Wide Open

Incredibly insightful, well-researched, practical... written on a level of discourse for all to be able to read / glean from this text. I write this review as a full-time missionary. This will continue to be a valuable resource for me!

Arguably the main takeaway from this book is that true mission work requires much more sacrifice than is possible in a simple short-term trip. The ease of global travel for North Americans has opened the door for more an more people to visit foreign mission fields. This has facilitated a previously unknown doctrine to capture the imagination of the church: "everyone is a missionary." As a result, short-term missions (STM) has evolved from a strategic option to become something more like a right of passage. What was once seen as an apostolic calling and lifetime of sacrifice requiring fluency in foreign languages and proven church planting skill has now become "an experience" for youth and anyone seeking more significance. While much good can be done, critical reflection on the actual value of such programs and evaluation of their impact and cost-effectiveness has hardly been scrutinized. Therefore, it is particularly helpful and refreshing that Livermore helps non-specialists take a more honest hard look at typical STM involvement, without overwhelming the curious with heavy missiological analysis. But this book is based on real missiological research and it is extremely valuable for Livermore's comparison of how short-term "missionaries" (laymen) recollected and evaluated their "success" in contrast to the reality of what "nationals" experienced. (The significance and success typically is grossly exaggerated). What the author uncovers is thought-provoking and helps us to recognize that the hype, triumphalism, and self-aggrandizement that typically surrounds such programs, for ultimately it dos the church no good in charting out a path forward or for recruiting and equipping candidates for career service. The question remains whether the church can return to equipping and sending competent long-term missionaries committed to deeper involvement complete with requisite language skills, cultural sensitivity, along with ministry competency. This book is highly recommended for anyone contemplating short-term missions involvement, or anyone concerned about the dumbing down of missions, but all the more for pastors and mission committees that have lost sight of the actual realities of the need that remains and the true level of understanding and commitment necessary to plant indigenous reproducing churches in the least reached nations of the world.