Pastor Don Babin has been in ministry for 45 years. For the last ten of those, he has been serving the Maasai tribe in East Africa. I brought Don onto the ChurchCandy Podcast because his perspective on missions is different from what you hear at most church conferences. He has been in the field. He has lived it. And the stories he shared challenged everything I thought I knew about how churches should approach mission work.
45 Years in Ministry
Don’s ministry career spans nearly half a century. He has pastored churches, led organizations, and traveled the world. But when I asked him what has been the most meaningful season of his life, he pointed to his time with the Maasai. “There is something about serving people who have nothing that strips away all the noise,” he told me. “You find out what really matters.”
Serving the Maasai Tribe
Don gave me a window into what daily life looks like serving a tribe in East Africa. The challenges are real: language barriers, cultural differences, lack of infrastructure, and the physical demands of living in remote areas. But the rewards are just as real. He told me about seeing entire communities transformed through the gospel, about children getting access to education for the first time, and about leaders rising up within the tribe to carry the mission forward.
What Most Churches Get Wrong About Missions
This was the part of our conversation that really hit me. Don said too many churches treat missions like a vacation. They send a team for a week, build something, take photos, and come home feeling good about themselves. But the community they visited is left wondering what happened to the relationships they thought they were building.
Don’s approach is different. He believes in long-term, sustainable mission work. That means going back to the same place year after year. It means investing in local leaders rather than doing everything yourself. It means building real relationships that last beyond a single trip.
How to Build a Missions Culture in Your Church
Don shared some practical advice for pastors who want to make missions a real part of their church culture, not just an annual event:
- Start local. Before you go overseas, serve your own community. If your church is not engaged locally, your global mission trips will feel disconnected from your weekly ministry.Partner with people already on the ground. Do not try to reinvent the wheel. Find missionaries and organizations who are already doing the work and come alongside them.Commit to consistency. One trip a year is better than five different trips to five different places. Depth beats breadth when it comes to mission work.Tell the stories. When your team comes home, let them share what they experienced. That is how you inspire the rest of the congregation to get involved.
Final Thought
Don’s life is a testament to what happens when you say yes to God’s call and keep saying yes for decades. Whether you are just starting to think about missions or you have been doing it for years, his wisdom is worth absorbing. Watch the full conversation above, and if your church is looking to grow its local reach through digital marketing and outreach, we are here to help.
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