Questions to Ask a Veteran Missionary in an Interview

TL;DR: This page offers interview questions to explore a missionary's personal journey, challenges, memorable experiences, and reflections. Suggested areas of inquiry include biographical background, preparation, strengths and weaknesses, cultural adaptation, humorous or difficult moments, spiritual insights, and practical advice. The acrostic in the article gives specific instructions for interviewing someone.

"I don't know what to ask when interviewing a missionary!"

Don't know anyone to interview for this assignment? Email me, and I'll send you some suggestions: hculbert@snu.edu

Interview assignment for world missions classes

Need to interview a veteran missionary, but you don't know what to ask? Ask about these areas.

The main objective is to spend time talking with a veteran of cross-cultural missionary service and learning from that person's experiences, rather than simply collecting facts.

  1. Where and when have you served as a missionary? Tell me about your education, family, and other relevant background details.
  2. Did anything in your childhood prepare you for missionary service?
  3. How did you receive your missionary call?
  4. Were your family and friends supportive?
  5. Who or what was most helpful as you prepared for missionary service: a person, book, or other resource?
  6. If you could prepare for missionary service again, what would you do differently?
  7. What misconceptions did you have to overcome?
  8. What do you consider your strengths in ministry?
  9. In what areas of ministry would you like to grow?
  10. What part of missionary work do you enjoy most or find the most rewarding?
  11. What parts of your cross-cultural service would you like a chance to do differently?
  12. Can you recall a humorous incident involving the local language or culture?
  13. If you are comfortable sharing it, can you describe an embarrassing moment in a cross-cultural encounter?
  14. What was your greatest disappointment or disillusionment?
  15. What is your most treasured memory?
  16. In what specific ways has your life been richer because of cross-cultural service?
  17. What Scripture passage has been especially meaningful during your missionary service?
  18. Who was your missionary hero or model?
  19. Are there specific people in the culture in which you served who have had a noteworthy impact on you? If so, who and in what ways?
  20. What advice would you give to people headed for cross-cultural service?

Your report can be written in one of the following three ways:

  1. A transcript of questions and answers
  2. A newspaper or magazine article
  3. Some personal reflections triggered by what was said in the interview

"I am enjoying this class more than I expected." - C.S., NBC student, on a midcourse evaluation

Global Evangelism assignment instructions video

Your reflections after interviewing a veteran missionary

Simplified grading rubric

This rubric for the writing assignment at Nazarene Bible College can also serve as a checklist for students before they submit their work to Scribe.

  1. Was the assignment submitted on time?
  2. Was this a report of an interview with someone who has considerable global missionary experience (more than just a single 10-day mission trip)?
  3. Was the person specifically identified, including where and how long the person served?
  4. Was the interview conducted face-to-face, by phone, or through FaceTime, Skype, Zoom, or a similar platform rather than by email?
  5. Does the report meet the assignment's minimum length requirement?
  6. Do the interview and report demonstrate connections to the course content?
  7. Is the report acceptable for college-level reflective writing?
  8. Is the submission relatively free of typographical, grammatical, and syntactical errors?
  9. In terms of achieving assignment goals, would this interview report be considered inadequate, minimal, acceptable, good, excellent, or exceptional?

Note: The course web pages on the official Nazarene Bible College site contain expanded written instructions for this interview assignment.

If you cannot come up with a missionary to interview, email me, and I'll send you a list of possibilities.

Before submitting your report, check out the humorous writing checklist.

- Howard Culbertson, hculbert@snu.edu

Afterword: More Advice on Interviewing

Conducting a successful interview involves several steps. The following eight steps can help:

  1. Find out in advance all that you can about the background, talents, skills, and accomplishments of the person you will interview. Knowing that person's professional experience, current role, areas of expertise, honors, and achievements will help you formulate questions.
  2. Clarify in your mind the objectives of the interview. In this case, your main goal is to understand the experiences, perspectives, and reflections of a veteran missionary. Understanding your goal will help you come up with relevant questions.
  3. Develop a list of open-ended questions. Start with broader, introductory questions to establish rapport and context before getting into more specific topics.
  4. Decide on the format of the interview. Will it be conducted in person, over the phone, or through a platform such as Zoom or FaceTime? Each format has its own considerations in terms of logistics, communication style, and technical requirements.
  5. Agree on a time and expected duration. Arrange a location or communication platform, and check any equipment you will need. For a virtual interview, test the equipment, internet connection, and software platform in advance.
  6. During the interview, use your active listening skills. Stay fully engaged with the interviewee's responses rather than thinking about what you will ask next. Ask relevant follow-up questions. Pay attention to tone of voice and, when visible, nonverbal cues. Ask for clarification when a response is unclear.
  7. Be mindful of the interviewee's time constraints and schedule. Keep the interview within the agreed-upon timeframe.
  8. Be flexible and adaptable during the interview. Allow for spontaneous thoughts and unexpected insights. Adjust your questions based on the flow of the conversation.

Acrostic: Interview: How to Conduct a Good One

I - Initiate with a warm greeting to build rapport.
N - Navigate the conversation with clear, open-ended questions.
T - Take notes actively to capture key details.
E - Engage with active listening and thoughtful follow-ups.
R - Respect the interviewee's perspective and time.
V - Verify facts by asking clarifying questions.
I - Interpret nonverbal cues to understand emotions.
E - Express genuine interest and curiosity.
W - Wrap up with a gracious thank-you and clear next steps.

Like acrostics? Here are more of them.

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Note: The official Nazarene Bible College course web pages contain expanded written instructions for each assignment.

- Howard Culbertson, hculbert@snu.edu

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