Finding And Planning Mission Experiences For Collegians

A mission trip can have a profound impact on the life of your college students. That is why you want to take every opportunity that you can to make sure the trip is thought out and planned well. The information that follows is an attempt to give you some things to think about as you get ready to take the plunge into missions alongside of your students.

One of the first major items that should to be checked off of your “To Do” list is to find a place to go on your mission trip. The possibilities really are almost endless. A good place to start is by asking other people about trips they have been on. You can contact local BCM campus ministers, student ministers, pastors, or a director of missions. These people can give you first hand insight into exactly what it was like to serve in specific locations. To get a broader idea of mission possibilities you may want to call the Missions Mobilization Group at the South Carolina Baptist Convention. They will have information on specific places that the convention has current partnerships with. Other good sources of information are the collegiate staff at the North American Mission Board or the International Mission Board.

As you can see, there are a lot of possibilities in regards to location. So how do you pick and choose? It is important to decide what kind of experience you want you students to have. Would you like for them to be involved in direct evangelism, do a hands on service project, help plant a new church, or something else? Another good idea is to get the opinions of your college students as to what kind of trip they would like to take. Once you decide the type of trip you want to do, it will make it easier to choose a location. Also, consider the make up of your group. Do you have spiritually mature students that have done missions before, or do you have a group that has never done been exposed to missions? Those issues are also an important factor in choosing a location.

Other issues to consider are things like the specific setting. Do you want to do something that is local, in state, outside the Bible-Belt, or international. Also, think about rural verses urban settings. All of this may sound like too much to factor in when simply choosing a location, but the decisions you make will impact the experience your students have. I think it is good to have a 4 year plan in mind when making these decisions. Give the students an opportunity during there college years to experience different kinds of trips in different locations. This will give them a panoramic view of the various places that need to hear about the love of Christ.

Once you have settled on a location and type of experience, you need to contact the appropriate people. This may mean talking with a pastor, DOM, or missionary in the location you have chosen. Take the time to work out logistics with the person who is on site. Issues such as housing, food, showers, supplies needed, and a basic schedule are all important to establish. One of the best ways to work out logistics is to visit the location several months in advance. An onsite visit will be well worth the time, effort and money involved. Actually seeing your ministry site, housing, and how things will operate in the specific location will help to avoid problems down the road.

Obviously, you want your students to be excited about the upcoming mission trip. It may be a good idea to cast your vision for the trip during one of your regular meetings. Have pictures of the place(s) that you are going to be ministering so that the students have a visual picture of what lies ahead of them. Also, make sure that you communicate to the students exactly what kinds of ministry they will be involved with.

Several months before your trip you should establish a budget. Calculate the costs for travel, housing, food, insurance, and other expenses. Let the students know how much it will cost them individually to be a part of the experience. You may need to discuss fundraising or talk with the church about financial support. Don’t let money be a reason that a student misses out on a mission trip. Trust God to provide the money and look for people to help sponsor students if necessary.

A training day may be necessary in order to prepare the students for the upcoming trip. Students may need help with sharing their faith, practicing skits, or preparing children’s ministry activities. A training day also helps the team to get to know each other better before the trip and builds teamwork.

Prayer is an important aspect of any mission trip. Students need to be praying for themselves, their teammates, and the people they will encounter as they prepare to go. Prayer support from other is also significant. Give out prayer cards to people that are not going on the trip so that they can lift up the team as the travel and share the love of Christ with others.

Don’t forget that just because the students are on a mission trip, it does not mean they can’t have fun. Plan fun activities into the days schedule or give your team one day where they can be tourist. If these students are giving up vacation time to be a part of the trip, they should at least have some time to unwind, relax, and have a good time.

The last part of this process can take place after you are come home. Do some serious evaluation of what happened during the mission experience. Talk about the good, the bad, and the ugly. Every mission trip has strong points and things that could be improved upon for the next time. Don’t neglect doing the evaluation portion of the whole experience. It will help you tremendously when you start to plan another trip.