Honduras Mission Trip
I’m interrupting my series of articles on the early church, but for a good reason. I’ve been busy preparing and then going on a short-term mission trip. This trip was to help at a bilingual Christian school in Honduras. It was a wonderful opportunity that I hope to take part in again soon. However, this trip brought to mind several thoughts I’ve had concerning short-term mission trips, which I’d like to share with you.
Generally speaking, we tend to consider short-term mission trips as a way to carry out the Great Commission. If that’s the case, then I say let’s support them as much as we can. However, here are some pointers regarding short-term missions:
Actually fulfill your commission. I’ve seen too many mission trips where the team accomplished some really cool projects, but the Good News of Jesus was not spread at all. We have to honor Him with our lives and our lips. If the only thing that people see are good works, then they will tend to think we are just good people, and that’s absolutely not what we want. Do the good works as Christ instructed, but be sure they know why you are doing those works.
Don’t browbeat those you are serving. What’s the opposite of not mentioning the Gospel at all? Answer: sticking it to them like a used-car salesman. I’m sure you’ve seen it: “You need to make a decision for Christ! Invite Him into your heart right now!” Yes, we want the lost to repent, believe, and follow Christ. But God also plays a part, and if someone says the sinner’s prayer because they’re pressured rather than truly repentant, then they’ll end up with buyer’s remorse and be no more saved than before your mission trip.
Don’t hold your help hostage. I’ve seen it before: a mission team has goods and services they are going to give out to those they are there to serve. However, as a condition of receiving it, the folks are required to sit through a hell-and-brimstone sermon. “Well”, thinks the native, “if what the North American wants is for me to act ‘saved’ so I can get some free stuff, I’ll act saved.” How many times have those targeted by mission teams been ‘saved?’ It’s almost a joke, but a sad joke. If you want to hand out goods and services, then do so, being sure you tell the folks why you are doing what you’re doing, and offering to tell them more if they are interested. But don’t withhold your support until after you’ve sermonized them.
Go for the right reason. How many times have you heard mission team members come home and talk about how they were themselves blessed by the trip? No doubt about it: a person doing mission work will be changed, and that’s a good thing. But always remember that you are there to serve rather than be served. Along the same lines, make sure you are on the trip for the right motivations. I’m sure there are folks who need saving at Myrtle Beach, and in Rome, and Hawaii. But are you really going there to reach the lost and serve the needy as God has called you, or are you actually on a vacation?
Make disciples! We’re not called to make converts and certainly not dependents. Be sure that your team has a plan to join any new believers to a local Bible-believing church so that they can be discipled as they should. And don’t make the locals’ situation worse by setting up some system where they are dependent on you. Find out from the long-term missionaries the best way to serve your target audience.
Be culturally aware. The Gospel is an offense to the lost. But we don’t need to add to its offense by being offensive ourselves. Know your surroundings, learn about the culture in which you are serving, and adapt appropriately. For example, if the culture where you are serving believes that women should dress modestly in skirts, then women on the team should wear skirts instead of blue jeans. There are of course limits, but to the extent permissible by God, we should humbly adapt to the culture we serve.
Count the costs. Seriously weigh the financial costs of sending a team versus using that money to help in other tangible ways. Some mission trips are outrageously expensive and the impact will be negligible. Please don’t engage the mentality of “Well, if one person was saved, it was worth it.” Perhaps the money could have been more effectively used to reach twenty people instead of just one! At the same time, however, don’t neglect the impact of person-to-person relationships. Factor that into your decision as well. Sometimes it’s good to send a team; sometimes it’s better to send money to the long-term missionaries.
Relationships are invaluable. Yes, it will be a positive factor in the natives’ lives when your team digs a clean-water well. But the longer impact will be when that village you visited knows that you truly care about them and are praying for them. That’s why I advocate for teams to re-visit the same location rather than world-hop. If you repeat a trip to the same community, then you’ll build relationships with them and show them that your Christ-like love and concern for them is real.
Consider these factors and then find a way you can get plugged into mission work, whether it’s in your own hometown or 2,000 miles away!