Youth Missions Trip | Youth Mission Trips | Youth Missions Insider

Planning a Mission Trip is way more than details!

Jeff — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 14:13:08 +0000

Mission trips can be very heavy on logistics. Where you go. Where you stay. Who you serve. How you serve them. What you eat. How you get there. And many more details… Ugh. In the mountain of all that info, it’s easy to miss planning and preparing for what may be the most important thing that will happen on your mission trip.

Your students encountering Jesus in new and powerful ways.

Let’s quickly make sure we agree on a few things (I’m sure we do, just double-checking):

The goal of youth ministry overall is to help young people grow closer to Jesus.
As youth leaders we’re always looking for the best method to “transport” our students closer to Jesus.
Missions are one form of “transportation” that are remarkably effective.

OK, do we agree? If so, then…

In order to make a mission trip most effective you need a clear idea of where you want your young people to go… and how to help create that environment on the trip for Jesus to work.
Having a well-developed plan for a deep spiritual experience is key to reaching your ultimate goal. This is true whether you build the experience or you select an experience built by others.

To get started here’s several questions to ask to help shape the spiritual growth goals you have in mind as part of your mission experience.

Where are my students and adults at spiritually?

- individually

- the group as a whole

How do the following issues impact your times of worship or spiritual programming.

- the location of the mission trip

- the geography (urban, rural, jungle, hotel?)

- the travel required to get to your mission location

- the stories and background of those you’ll serve

- the type of service or outreach you’ll be doing

Where would I like my participants to be at the end of this trip? In terms of

- knowing God more?

- understanding service more?

- personal faith / salvation?

- understanding compassion?

- or what else?

Now, look at all the answers to those questions, and you’ll begin to get a picture of the spiritual aspects and possibilities of your mission trip. Use all of this thinking and information to come up with a top spiritual goal of trip. Then apply this thinking and goal to the following aspects of your mission trip…

The Before…

Preparing the hearts of the congregation you’re leaving behind

- Make your spiritual expectations clear and realistic to other ministry staff, pastors and parents.

- Emphasize spiritual goals as equally important as the service part. This will help others understand why you’re focusing so much on this aspect.

- The more realistic and clear you are, the greater support you’ll get before, during and after the trip.

The same applies for your students and adults who are participating in the trip

- Let them know what to expect

- At the same time, don’t give away the best parts

- Prepare pre-trip devotional content that prepares everyone for the experience.

The During…

- Do what you planned to do AND be prepared for the unexpected

- The more you’ve carefully planned, the better you’ll be prepared to experience and process God’s unexpected events. The things you should plan for:

Devotions – daily during the trip

Worship time – at least daily

Times of debriefing and reflection - if not daily several times during the trip

Special Note:

Asking good questions is a great way to help people dig deeper and encounter Jesus – the hard work is preparing them in advance. An example from our ministry: a couple years ago we did a foot washing experience as part of worship during our mission trips. After the experience, we planned a time for small groups to debrief. We started out with pretty standard questions, “How did this feel?” What was difficult or easy about the experience?” But it never felt like we were helping people dig deep. Then we came up with this question – “How would this experience have been different if Jesus was sitting in your circle?” That changed everything. The level of depth and interaction caused by that single question was amazing. Students really began to think about how Jesus might have handled a situation or how He would’ve acted or what He would’ve said. Pretty cool…

The After…

- Post- trip devotions – be sure to create “space” for people to continue processing the experience after it’s over. A great way to do this is through personal devotions that give participants a chance to focus on what happened and how it has changed them.

- Post- meeting and celebrations – plan times for the entire group to get back together. One more way to keep the experience top-of-mind and help make decisions made during the trip “real” now that everyone is home.

Reunion for everyone a couple months after the trip

Celebration worship service for all who attended.

Give a report to your church of the mission trip experience. It could be at a worship service, a board meeting, etc…

Implement local, ongoing community service. The service doesn’t need to end just because you’re home. There are needs right in your town.

It’s easy to get caught up in the mountain of details just to make a mission trip happen. My encouragement to you is to take that little extra time and focus on that other part of the mission trip. The God changing lives part. You won’t regret do a little “detail” work in that area. I promise.

Making your mission trip easier for you… and a great experience for your students

Jeff — Fri, 17 Feb 2012 14:18:55 +0000

So… you’re going on a mission trip this summer. You’re the one in charge and you’re planning everything. You’ve selected the location, the local partner, the service you’re doing, how long you’re going to be there, the place you’re going to stay, the meals you’re going to eat, who’s speaking during your worship services, and who’s driving the vans. Whew! Did I leave anything out?

That’s a ton of work. And then, you’ll be the one in charge the whole time that you’re there (not to mention the trip to and back). Wow… that’s a lot. But, wait…

Doug Fields’ post about Serve first… lead second made me think about all the incredible leadership opportunities that exist in a week-long summer mission trip. Within the context of that week away from home, in uncomfortable situations, real significant growth can be be produced in a teenagers life. It’s a great situation to give them a chance to lead. Here’s a few ways you can facilitate that and make your life easier during the mission trip.

1) The Service Project: Why not let one of your youth be the leader at the project site? Once you know that details of the project and have made sure the basic safety issues are covered – let one of your kids lead. How cool would it be to see a 15 year-old girl organize and direct the work of her peers and adults? Imagine the pride a teenager would feel knowing they gave the guidance and encouragement everyone needed to serve well. You’ll be there to make sure nothing “goes wrong” but maybe you can give up control and see your students succeed.

2) The Worship and Devotions: You’ve planned for times of worship during your mission trip. Think about how you can give students a chance to lead in those moments. Can a student lead a devotion during lunch at your service project? Could a different student pray each night as part of your worship service? You could also encourage your teenagers to share a testimony or “God Sighting” of what God is doing in their life (recently or during the trip).

3) At Your Lodging Facility: This is great place for your kids to step up and take the lead. Let a student lead free-time activities. Give a student the opportunity lead the dish washing crew or the bathroom cleaning crew. If you’re cooking your own meals, give your students the chance to actually cook (please follow applicable safety guidelines).

Your mission trip experience can be so much more than only serving someone in need. And it can be so much more than you being the only one leading. There are many, many opportunities for you to see real growth in students. Don’t miss out on the chance to see the teenagers in your group grow as leaders as well.

Helping students lead through service

Jeff — Thu, 16 Feb 2012 14:23:28 +0000

Our friend Doug Fields had a good post this past weekend that connected service and student leadership. Even better, his post drew that connection with The Big Day of Serving. Thanks Doug!

Serve first… lead second. Give kids an opportunity to serve!

Preparing Volunteer Adults to Lead

Jeff — Tue, 14 Feb 2012 14:09:06 +0000

The summer mission trip season is only 5 months away. By now, you probably know the students and adults who will be going on your mission trip. I know that feels like the important work (can’t have a trip without people, right?) but getting everyone ready is just as important – especially the adults.

Here’s a few important things to focus on as you prepare your adults for their experience:

Refresh

Mission trips can be stretching, challenging, rewarding, overwhelming and inspiring. But let’s be totally honest. They are tiring. Your adults will be serving long days. Working hard on projects. Dealing with youth and issues and other adults. They’ll be getting less sleep than they are used to. That’s a recipe for exhaustion. You will need to think ahead and take advantage of every opportunity to “Take care of yourselves.” You will need to look for opportunity to grab downtime while on the trip. Agree together to be honest with each other during the week of the mission trip. If anyone needs a break or a nap or just a quick run to get a cup of coffee, make a promise to tell each other. Your teenagers will know if you are worn out, tired and maybe grumpy. When there’s a chance to get a break, take it.

Something else that’s part of Refresh is “Be a bungee cord”. Mission trips are hard work. It will feel like you’re “on” 24/7 each and every day of the trip. And, truthfully, you are. There may come a time where an adult may just want to throw in the towel. They’ll feel things like – It’s too hot, the kids are too difficult, the food is not like home, I can’t sleep on my air mattress, I’m way out of my comfort zone. You will need to bounce back when things are harder than you thought. All the youth on the mission trip will pick up on the attitude and behavior of you and your adults. You are the example the teenagers will follow. Be ready to bounce back from whatever may happen on the trip!

Relate

Your adults will be relating to a bunch of teenagers on your mission trip. Here’s some ideas to help us Relate.

#1 – Don’t be a Control Freak!

Remember the trip is about the teenagers – not us. Your role as adults is to encourage and guide. Not be a director or dictator. One way any of us can fall into being a dictator is on the project site. Allow the kids to lead. You’ll be there to give guidance and encouragement. The one time you need to be sure to be the leader is when it comes to safety at your project. If you ever see something at camp that looks unsafe or inappropriate or just something you are uncomfortable with, please let the mission trip staff know right away.

#2 – Don’t be creepy.

Being a creepy adult is not something that any of us want to be. But you need to make sure that none of your adults are interpreted that way. A creepy adult is someone who acts inappropriately – telling off-color jokes, makes comments about teenagers of the opposite gender that could be construed as sexual in nature, or makes inappropriate physical contact. And yes, that could even include a misinterpreted hug. The key is “misinterpreted”. There have been adults that have done things or said things unintentionally that still made a teenager feel uncomfortable. Our advice to you is to always err on the side of being overly cautious. Nothing would ruin your trip faster than someone not understanding something any one did or said. Enough said.

RELAX
Your adults are going to do a great job serving on your mission trip. You are going to be with some of the best, most idealistic people – teenagers. They feel indestructible and invincible. They are willing to take anything on and believe they can accomplish it. Here’s a great way to Relax and still be the adult on your mission trip. “Play zone defense.” This means giving kids some space and seeing how things work out. Playing zone defense is another way to say that you and your adults are present. You are setting the big guidelines and boundaries but allowing your teenagers to grow and learn within the experience of your mission trip.

And the last idea is simply – “Look to Jesus.” There will be moments of joy, stress, anxiety, excitement, fun, and any other emotion you can think of. Jesus will be right there with you. Know that. Look for ways to help your youth understand that. God is right there with you the entire mission trip. That’s the magic of a mission trip. You’re immersing yourself in what God is doing – every minute of every day. So be ready for God to show up and do something!

These ideas and principles will help your adults be ready for the greatest week possible!

What to do when parents aren’t supportive

Jeff — Sat, 11 Feb 2012 14:49:47 +0000

Last week I posted about reasons youth workers are struggling to get kids to commit. One of the most frequent “complaints” was that parents weren’t supportive of the mission trip. Or said another way – Going on a mission trip isn’t as important to parents as band camp, sports camp, summer job, family vacation, etc.

What can you do when you face this? Here’s a couple helpful hints and action steps you can take.

- Make sure a mission trip isn’t just “something the youth group does.” If your group’s mission trip isn’t integral to your overall ministry, parents will sense that. Going on a mission trip shouldn’t receive the same attention and energy as every other retreat, amusement park trip, summer camp, lock-in. You need to make the mission important – integral to your ministry – if you want parents to even begin to see it as important to their child. A mission trip is a big deal. Make sure yours is!

- Help parents understand how a mission trip develops their child. Parents want to know that going on a mission trip, instead of summer camp or a summer job, will help develop their kid into the adult they hope they will be. That’s why parents feel soccer camp, dance camp, band camp, or a summer job are so important. Those things teach their child life lessons. Lessons like – working hard, responsibility, getting along with others, learning new skills. Well… So Does a Mission Trip! Anything you can learn at another summer experience you will learn on a mission trip. Mission trips teach teenagers about working hard on a project, getting along with others in sometimes difficult situations, learning new skills while serving someone in need. Tell parents that. Let them know that their kid will get so much more than just a week away from home.

- Be professional and organized. Going away from home is big deal. Even if it’s just two states away. But more if it’s an ocean and a continent away. How can you expect parents to commit their child to a trip, if you aren’t completely prepared and organized. You can get away with a permission slip and “show up at 7 am” for a trip to the water park. You can’t behave like that taking your students on a mission trip. Period. Parents need to trust you. They are giving you their kid and you’re going to have that kid swinging hammers, sleeping who-knows-where, eating who-knows-what, serving the kind of people they probably would like the to avoid… It’s a big deal!

- Explain how a mission trip fits into the overall spiritual formation goals of your ministry. Whether you take your group on a mission trip every year or every third year as part of a rotation – you have reasons why you do that. Tell parents those reasons. If you believe a mission trip every other year in conjunction with an evangelism training event is the best way to give students a balance of living out their faith and sharing their faith, tell parents. If you believe that the combination of things that happen on a mission trip (students outside their comfort zone, serving someone in need, being away so God can connect with them) is the absolute best way to help students grow in their relationship with Jesus, make sure parents understand that. A parent that understands a mission trip is part of something big that is good for their child, they more likely they are to support it.

The more you completely integrate and highlight a mission trip with these ideas – the more parents will understand why they should make sure their child is part of the trip.

The Big Day of Serving – Spring 2012

Jeff — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 14:39:18 +0000

We’re very excited about our newest ministry – The Big Day of Serving. The Big Day of Serving is a one-day service event designed to be easy for a youth leader to get their youth group involved in service. The goal of Bid Day is to transform a neighborhood in a single day. It’s only $29 per person and includes lunch, a t-shirt, an opening Kick-Off Rally, all major materials and supplies for projects, devotional content during the day, and Block Party to end the afternoon.

Check out the 2012 Spring Locations:

April 21: St. Louis, MO | Medina, OH

April 28: Denver, CO | West Palm Beach, FL | Lynchburg, VA

May 5: Chicago, IL | Minneapolis, MN | Manassas, VA | Dubuque, IA

May 12: Nashville, TN

May 19: Nashua, NH

FREEBIE – Preparing to Serve

Jeff — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 13:37:37 +0000

This is a quick, easy, simple meeting you can use anytime you want to get your group ready for a service event. Maybe you’re planning a day serving your community this Spring. Or maybe you’re beginning a new service aspect to your entire youth ministry. This is a very direct way to get your students thinking about service. We use this meeting with all The Big Day of Serving churches that chose to serve at a Big Day event

Ready, Set… Go! Meeting

Hardest part of getting youth to commit

Jeff — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 13:57:20 +0000

A couple weeks ago we had about 40 youth leaders at our office for several days of meeting and dreaming about the future of mission trips. At one point during that time, we focused on getting students to commit to go on a mission trip. The youth leaders came up with this list:

Sending your kid on a mission trip is not important to parents
Students have conflicts and schedules that won’t allow participation (other events, family vacations, band camp, sports camp, etc.)
So many youth now have summer jobs
Other “things” are a higher priority (this can be anything…)
Their friends are not going on the trip
Parents not letting go (safety, never been away from home before, etc.)

Is your list different? Do you face some of the same obstacles to getting the students in your ministry to commit to a mission trip?

I hated short-term missions…

Jeff — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 14:39:55 +0000

Please check out this article from my friend Eric Iverson. Good thoughts to consider whenever you’re taking your group on a mission trip.

Fuller Youth Institute – Youth Missions Article

What do you think? Is Eric right?

Simply Youth Ministry Conference – last day for registration discount

Jeff — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 18:06:46 +0000

Simply Youth Ministry Conference is an amazing youth ministry event. It’s created by youth workers for youth workers. It’s in Louisville, KY this year – March 2-5. Today is the last day you can register at a discount.

If you need a couple days away to refresh; If you need some great days of getting new ideas and training; If you you just want to spend time with other people who “understand”; then this conference is for you.

We will be there! Leading workshops. Hosting a Late Night Option. Hangin’ out. Looking forward to seeing many of you there. Please stop by our booth and say “hello!”