Quick Reads #2 – GoerFI

Hello from Amazing Thailand! After 1.5 years in the States for Jenn’s medical treatment, we’ve finally been able to return to the country and people that we love. There’s been many lessons learned from God through costly and painful experiences in the last season that we hope to write about soon. For now, we’ll try to get settled, reconnect with team and Thai partners, and look forward to 2023 and continuing to help serve missions leaders like yourself!

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“Depend on it. God’s work done in God’s way will never lack God’s supply. He is too wise a God to frustrate His purposes for lack of funds, and He can just as easily supply them ahead of time as afterwards, and He much prefers doing so.”

Hudson Taylor

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GoerFI

There are an insane amount of responsibilities for a Team Leader launching to a new place. We can talk about shepherding, strategy, vision casting, team development, culture setting, and many other things – but one critical part is often left behind: administration. For leaders that don’t have administration as a strength, those menial tasks can feel boring and distracting. But without some attention, either from yourself or hopefully from an administratively gifted person that you recruit to your team, administrative aspects like visas, insurance, finances, and even the minutiae like transportation, areas to live, and how to set up your SIM card will continue to drain a TL’s time and mental energy the longer you go without addressing them.

One of the most confusing aspects of life overseas can be the financial aspect – taxes, insurance, savings, retirement. To that end, one of our friends created GoerFI, which stands for Goer Financial Independence. There’s a lot of great info on this website that will hopefully be a blessing to your team and save you time as a TL to focus on other aspects of leadership. (Disclaimer that you should seek guidance from a licensed financial professional regarding personal finances – GoerFI is for informational and educational purposes and is not financial advice!)

From the GoerFI website: “This guide is designed to help you get informed and take charge of your personal finances. Christian non-profit expat workers, or goers, live in unique circumstances: you live overseas most of the time, work for a non-profit, and raise your own support. When you encounter information or advice on handling personal finances, it’s hard not to wonder, “does this even apply to my situation?” This guide was written for goers like you! It’s your tailor-made starting point for taking charge of your personal finances and pursuing Financial Independence (FI). This is goerFI.”