So You Want to Dig a Well in Africa?: What You and Your Church Need to Know About Mercy-Oriented Missions

Typical missions projects involve dozens of people in identical T-shirts getting on an airplane to go somewhere and help a needy community. But do those projects actually help people in the long run? Does this work create long-term systemic change in individuals and the community? And does the work lead to intentionally sharing Christ? In other words, is our mission work based on good missions strategy that brings about sustainable change and kingdom impact for communities, or is our approach focused only on creating a positive experience for everyone involved?

So You Want to Dig a Well in Africa? highlights ten common myths people and organizations believe about missions. Exploring the ways in which American churches take on missions, author Jeff Palmer