Tips for the Journey

Preparing for a Mission Trip: Involving the Entire Congregation

In our last Tip for the Journey we discussed things you can do to prepare your team members for the mission trip. This time we want to look at ways you can engage the entire church family in the mission trip even if they are not leaving home.

While the mission trip participants focus on their spiritual preparation, skills preparation and equipment preparation other church members can play a role in each of these elements of preparation.

Prayer - Divide the mission trip participants up among the members of the congregation who will not be traveling with the team. Assign each at least one member of the team to pray for daily during the time of preparation before the team departs and while the team is away. Give them specific things to pray about each day. Pray for God to prepare their hearts to hear Him as they study His word and focus on His call. Pray for them as they practice the skills they will need while on the mission trip and pray that God will provide all of the needed tools for the team. As the team leaves have the church members pray for their safety, steadfastness, and flexibility.  Pray that God will give them opportunities to witness and pray that they will be clear as they share with lost people how they can have a personal relationship with God through the sacrifice of His son Jesus. Plan for specific times during the team's absence for groups to gather and pray. remember those critcal moments during the trip. The commitment time during a VBS or the afternoon when the team will be painting a particularly difficult portion of a building.

Training - You may have church members with skills needed for the mission trip who are unable to go with the team. Bring them together with those who will be going and have them share their knowledge the team members. Perhaps your mission trip involves a Vacation Bible School; music leaders who are not able to participate in the mission trip can help those who are going to learn the songs that go along with the Bible School materials. Or, an experienced plumber may be able to give instructions in simple repairs to team members before they depart. The key component is helping church members who cannot go on the journey have a part in the work God is going to do through the team members who are going.

Provision - There will be tools, equipment and resources the team needs for the mission trip. Give your church members the opportunity to provide these resources. Publish a list and set out boxes for paper, crayons, pencils, craft materials, cleaning supplies or other things the team will need. Church members with the financial resources but lacking the time or ability to participate can be invited to pay the expenses for someone with the time and ability who lacks the financial resources.

Plan a commissioning service. Dedicate a time of worship to the setting aside of the team members for the mission trip. Use the worship experience to encourage members to participate in missions at home. Include a time of prayer for the team members, the people in the community where they are going to be ministering, and the work God is going to do through the efforts of the team.

Make provision for communication between the mission team and the remaining congregation. Set in place internet video phone calls that will allow the congregation left behind to see and hear the work being done while the team is on the mission field. Have team members post messages to blogs or use a social networking service to communicate back in real time the handiwork of God the team is experiencing. This of course means ensuring the needed equipment is available to the team while on the trip. Posts to blogs and social network sites, and tweets to twitter, require only a cell phone and connection to a cell tower.

Record videos and take pictures that can be shared once the team returns home. Plan for a time of reporting so that the entire congregation can participate in the celebration of the work God did through the mission team. Remember to celebrate the role played by the church members who did not travel with the team.

Engaging the entire congregation in the mission trip from beginning to end will help to foster the yearning to go in those who have never been. It will increase the likelihood of others responding to God's call to missions. It will increase the excitement and expectation about what God is going to do among all church members. Foster an attitude of obedience and seeking in the daily lives of church members. And, allow those who cannot go to be a part of God's mission beyond their Jerusalem.

© 2009 Adult Volunteer Mobilization Team, NAMB. Portions taken from the Volunteer Mobilization Project Logistics Manual. You can download the entire logistics manual from the AVM website.

If you want to read previous Tips for the Journey visit the Mission Trip Tips webpage.

Tips for the Journey are published in the Volunteers in Motion eNewsletter. To receive future issues via email click here to subscribe.