“What are your numbers? How much will it take for you to actually get there?”

Hey friends! Joe here. Today I want to pull back the curtain on something missionaries often dance around – the actual cost of answering God’s call to go.

When Abbey and I first felt that unmistakable nudge toward missions in South Africa, we had no idea what the financial picture would look like. Now, with our official ABWE commissioning behind us and our training well underway, we have a comprehensive budget that reflects what sustainable ministry in Durban will require.

I know budget breakdowns aren’t exactly the most thrilling topic, but understanding the “why” behind these numbers helps connect the dots between financial partnership and actual ministry impact. ABWE has almost 100 years of experience sending missionaries to 85+ countries, so their budgeting process is thorough and realistic.

Full disclosure: I can’t speak for other missionaries; I have no idea what anyone else’s numbers are. I can only say that we worked very closely together with ABWE staff to make sure that we don’t have excess, but we also have what’s needed to minister well without distraction. Some of our numbers come from the existing Durban team members, who know exactly what it costs to live and minister there. Others are very set costs; our health insurance is what it is, there’s no wiggle room there.

Let me walk you through each step of what this budget means for our family and the ministry God has called us to in Durban.

Salary and Housing: $4,480.53/month

• Adult Support: $1,875 – This covers basic living expenses for Abbey and me: groceries, gas, etc. — this is our actual paycheck to live off of.
• Children’s Support: $520 – Supporting Penny and Cloe’s needs.
• Children’s Education: $300 – Educational resources and schooling opportunities; rebuilding a homeschool library will be difficult, but manageable.
• Housing: $1,100 – Rent/housing costs in Durban.
• Social Security: $685.53 – Required payments as U.S. citizens.

Field Ministry: $1,095/month

• Individual ministry: $800 – this funds the actual work we’ll do – Abbey’s Beautiful Feet ministry with women and families in crisis, and my media ministry equipping churches with technology tools. For both of us, this covers fuel, mileage, and ministry-based meals as we pick people up and visit church members who need encouragement.
• Pooled field ministry: $25 – all ABWE teams in Durban contribute to a shared fund that can be used for group missions opportunities. This may change in time; we have stories of how other missionaries have used this to great effect.
• Furlough ministry travel: $220 – we’re expected to head back home to update and fellowship with the partners who support us, as well as pursue ongoing development and training. We do not publicly announce when we go on furlough, nor can we share a standard timetable, for safety reasons.
• Regional conferences: $50 – on a certain semi-flexible schedule (again, avoiding specifics, for security reasons), we will travel in-country to gather with ABWE missionaries in other areas for group training, fellowship, and partnership.

Benefits: $2,122.50/month

• International Health Insurance: $1,636 – with very, very few exceptions, our health insurance plan covers 100% of medical care overseas. This will not go into effect until we move, but again, once we go, there are VERY few exceptions.
• Medical Expense Allowance: $100 – this covers the exceptions 🙂
  Coming from a family with health concerns, taking my wife and kids to another country, this was one of my biggest concerns. Knowing that we are covered is a HUGE mental relief.
• Insurance (Accident/Life): $53.50
• Retirement Contributions: $333 – this is in a 403(b) with a wonderful management team.
  Far too many missionaries spend their lives in service to others, giving away all they have, and when they retire, are left with nothing. (I know a few…)  ABWE is incredibly insistent on making sure that doesn’t happen to us. We are so thankful for their long-term vision in this regard.

Administrative Services: $786.93/month

• Missionary Services: $500 – ABWE provides a 24/7 healthcare line with nurses and doctors, as well as legal protection, IT support, and ongoing training/resources.
• Financial Services: $286.93 – This is a flat 3.5% of our total budget, and accounts for our transaction fees, donation processing, and tax document preparation every year. (After all, it does cost something to print, fold, stuff, stamp, and mail you your donation receipts each year.)

• Support Reserve: $8,700 – A one-month buffer for emergencies and monthly support fluctuations; if we landed in Durban and a week later had to be evacuated for safety reasons, our tickets would be covered.
• Outfit: $17,000 – Essentials needed for life in South Africa; it is far cheaper to buy a new dining room table and chairs in Durban than it would be to ship ours… especially since we no longer have one, but I digress… This is to ‘outfit’ our home, top to bottom, to live in Durban permanently.
• Passage: $6,000 – Travel costs to the field
• Vehicles: $48,000 – Two good-condition used vehicles (a significant expense, but crucial for ministry). Abbey and I will be doing different work in different places, sometimes at the same time. Two vehicles per family is common in South Africa.
• Computer/Video Equipment: $3,000 – Older electronics are often susceptible to security lapses, as they no longer receive updates. ABWE either ‘strongly recommends’ or requires that our personal devices be no more than 5 years old; anything beyond that could contribute to a breach. Note: this is a standard number we were assigned, as it works for most missionaries.
• Room & Board: $2,000 – Initial housing costs upon arrival; first month’s rent, security deposit, etc.

The Envelope System

Imagine a wall with 150 envelopes taped to it, and each envelope was numbered from $1 up to $150.

Each envelope from $1 to $150 represents a monthly donation amount. It’s pretty simple, right?

If we can get all 150 envelopes ‘taken’ — we’ll be fully funded for South Africa. In fact, we would have more than enough, which would allow us to build a reserve for future needs.

If we get a church committed to $500/month, that takes the top 3 envelopes off the wall. If we get a single donor for $200/month, 2-5 envelopes can come down. Again, it’s pretty simple, but it’s incredibly powerful. Our monthly support comes down to 150 people or less who are ready to make a difference halfway around the world.

For the time being, all monthly support given gets stored monthly towards our one-time costs. That means that technically, if we had the full ~$8,500/mo. being donated right now, we could leave for Durban in 10 months, given that our one-time costs are ~$85,000.

All of that being said, we are at Phase One of our support raising journey:

1. Deputized Pre-Field Missionaries – we are raising support!
2. Partially-Paid Missionaries – when we have reached around 30% of our monthly support, we can start drawing our housing allowance, which is tax-free for clergy members (which we now are!)
3. Full-Time Employees – when we have reached around 75% of our monthly support, we can start drawing our normal paychecks. This allows us to reduce our debt faster, and eventually reduce our work hours to part-time as we prepare to move into full-time missions.

Given that our Orientation was just last month, we’re still early in our fundraising journey:

Monthly Support:

• Currently raised: $270/month (3.2% of our $8,485 goal)
• Still needed: $8,215/month

One-Time Outfit & Passage:

• Currently raised: $31,000 (36.5% of our $84,700 goal)
• Still needed: $53,700

Our Timeline

Our hearts are already in Durban; we just can’t afford to go yet.

We’re completing our final ABWE training in November 2025, and if we’re fully funded by then, we’ll be cleared to depart for South Africa. I fully recognize how crazy it sounds to want to go that quickly, but if the Lord allows it, we are prepared to spend Christmas in the mission field.

Every dollar donated directly enables ministry to people in desperate need:

• Women making pregnancy decisions in a country where 24% of pregnancies end in abortion
• Families struggling amid crisis where 42% of children live in single-mother homes
• Churches need tools and training to combat false teaching and shine brightly in their communities

So we have 2 theological classes and 2 practical classes left to take, 5 more books to read, and a few relationships to develop (i.e. we are both [rightly] required to develop an accountability partner in the States, and our sending church should develop a small team to communicate with on a regular basis). Once these requirements are met, and our prayer and financial needs are covered, we are pretty ready to go!

For transparency and accountability, the final piece of our puzzle is our personal debt. To be clear, we do not regret a single moment or dollar spent caring for Abbey’s parents through Mom’s cancer and Dad’s stroke, or supporting their ministry as they transitioned out of their mission field. It’s just a fact that our lives over the last couple of years have drained our savings and reintroduced debts that we’d been free of, and we have a responsibility to clear all debts before stepping into our mission field.

I’m working full-time and making extra payments to get us there faster. We have a solid plan, and we’re working through it very well; I’m just being fully transparent about where we are.

When we reach the second and third phases of our journey, and are drawing paychecks, part of that will enable us to eliminate the debts even faster.

1.  Prayer as we go – we need wisdom, strength, and courage to follow God’s leading
2. Monthly financial support – any amount helps as we fulfill the mission God has led us to
3. Join our newsletter – this is the best way to keep in touch with our updates and continue praying for our current needs
4. One-time financial support – we are not only moving to Durban, but eventually will be contributing to other large projects, such as a church building or renovation. (We have one project already in mind!)

Your prayer and financial partnership isn’t just supporting our family – it’s about bringing hope to Durban. Every contribution, whether monthly or one-time, helps us draw closer to the day we can begin hands-on ministry.

Will you pray about joining our support team? Whether through prayer, financial giving, or connecting us with others who might have a heart for South Africa, you can make a direct impact.

We ask that as you give, you continue to pray for us and the people of Durban to find hope, light, peace, joy, and salvation in Christ Jesus.

God is calling us to go, and He may be calling you to send. Together, we can bring light to Durban, one family, one church at a time.

“The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.” – Matthew 9:37-38