by Shane Bennett

Rounding out the top ten…

Here, to round out our top ten list, are seven more reasons or excuses I’ve heard for why people won’t get more involved in missions. Some I think are valid, some not!

4. I’m afraid of people who are different from me.
5. I only feel safe in good old Muncie, Indiana (or wherever).
6. I’m already up to my ears in mission activity.
7. God has not called me to be involved.
8. Aren’t we all really missionaries in our neighborhoods, workplaces, and schools?
9. Isn’t everything the church does really missions?
10. I really have no idea what God is trying to do or how I might fit into it.

I’d love to hear your thoughts on these issues and any others that come to mind.

by Shane Bennett

Excuse #3 – It’s no use: “The world’s dying anyway, so why bother?”

God has promised that he’ll be followed by some from every people on the planet. He told Abraham this in Genesis 12 and he showed it to John in Revelation 7:9. From beginning to end we see the relentless work of the Father to gather his wayward kids back home.

If you find in your view of the future the notion that the people of God grow weaker and fewer as history marches on, I contend that the source of your view is a modern and misinformed understanding of where we’re headed, and decidedly unbiblical. If we really think things end up with a faithful (very) few finally getting rescued from the onslaught of godless peoples and cultures, it’s no wonder we don’t rally to global vision and engagement. Huddling and holding on is far smarter.

But that is not the future ahead of us. God told Abraham in Genesis 15:5 his children would be like the stars of the sky and in Revelation 7:9, John said the multitude he saw could not be counted. God’s gathering a great harvest. He is not losing. He is not waiting for things to get bad enough to come and get us. He is keeping promises and gathering followers on a grand scale.

I’ll be the first to admit that I don’t have a sophisticated grasp on various views of “end times.” But it is logical that missions vision is squashed by a bleak outlook for the (terrestrial) future of the Church. When we feel as if the Muslims, Maoists, or modernists are taking over, we might naturally be inclined to contract and settle in for a siege, not engage other cultures with boldness and joy.

What do you think? Have you heard this excuse? How would you respond? To what resources would you point me (and others) in order to bolster our understanding of the Church’s future?

by Shane Bennett

Excuse #2 – Limited resources: “We can’t afford it.”

If ever this was a valid argument, it is today. I’m writing amid news of what may seem the scariest global economic situation since the Great Depression. I wonder how our church will meet its missions budget, and what to budget for next year. As a worker supported by donations, I’m also wondering about my personal funding base.

But even now, this excuse simply does not hold water.

I think this argument usually refers to money. “We don’t have money to give to cross cultural efforts.” It could also refer to people. “We don’t have sufficient leaders to send some far away.” David’s opening line in Psalm 24 seems to torpedo both: “The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it.” All the people. All the stuff. It’s God’s. He’s not worried about running out of either.

Because tossing out Psalm 24, wiping my hands, and walking away feels a little smug and trite, let me add: It is my belief and experience that sharp people and generous financing rally to great vision. If the potential of the thing is huge and fascinating and important enough to us, then yes, we can afford it.

Is this an accurate use of scripture? What are passages would you bring to bear on this excuse? Have you experienced situations in which you would say this excuse was actually a valid reason?

by Shane Bennett

There’s a Grand Canyon leap of value judgment between labeling something a “reason” and calling it an “excuse.” You know, one man’s “reason” is another man’s “excuse,” and who am I to say which is which? (Unless of course we’re talking about me, then it’s nothing but rock solid reasons, brother!)

It’s important for us as mobilizers to realize that, while some people might just be making excuses, most are articulating honest thoughts. Let’s honor them by listening carefully and responding with insight and grace.

Now, with that safety net in place, can I carefully step out onto the tightrope of this question: How valid are the common excuses people give for not being more involved in God’s Kingdom among other cultures? Let me float out three that seem to be prevalent and consider each of them briefly from a biblical viewpoint.

Excuse #1 – Local needs: “Why go far away when so much needs done here?”

Do you ever hear people say this? I wonder if we’ll hear it more as we work through the implications of the current global economic situation.

Here’s how I’d respond.

Are there needs in your community? Are there hurting, poor, lost people in your neighborhood? Certainly. Even in you live in the buckle of the Bible belt, you live among lost and lonely people. Is that a good reason to spend our resources only in our neighborhood and cities, and not direct efforts and funds to people living far away from us?

It simply is not. Jesus said in Acts 1:8, “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” I don’t think this verse can be made to say that we’re to be witnesses in this order, and even less, “Do not proceed to Judea and Samaria until all witnessing has been done in Jerusalem.” God uses all of his people all over the place all the time.

There were still many needs in Jerusalem when believers began to fan out to Judea and Samaria in Acts 8:1. Paul, after he began to follow Jesus, could have busied himself with all sorts of good, profitable, and worthwhile work in Jerusalem, or even in the surrounding areas. He didn’t set his heart on Spain (Romans 15:24) because the needs were met all around him, but because his work was in Spain.

Some of us need to work within a stone’s throw of our homes because Jesus is there at work. Some of us need to go where none of us have gone before, because Jesus is there as well.

Does my response make sense to you? Does it hold water? How would you respond to this reason/excuse?

Stay tuned for tomorrow’s excuse!

Redirecting Members of Short-Term Mission to Unreached People Groups by Dave Williams (pseudonym).

“Many pre-candidates choose where to serve long-term by first going on one or a series of short-term trips to a country. They fall in love with the place and the people. We must work together to change this trend, however, because the primary result seems to be that most new missionaries continue to go where the majority of missionaries are already serving – that is, in the reached parts of the world.”

This cycle must either be broken or at least greatly redirected. We must begin to explore both creative and very tangible ways to see the spinning-out-of-control short-term missions movement make a radical shift toward short-term mission trips to Unreached People Groups. How else will we see a new wave of missionaries who feel “called” to go to these people groups?

This will not be easy, though. The first obvious major barrier to seeing short-term vision and pre-search trips to Unreached People Groups is the reality that so few long-term workers are already serving among Unreached People Groups. Thus, few are there to arrange short-term trips. Also, if we are talking about the Unengaged Unreached People Groups, then workers serving among them and information about them is scarce, and short-term trips there are almost unheard of. Thus, as it is today, and has been for many decades, there is almost no way for aspiring missionaries to feel “called” or “led” to an Unreached People Group in the normal pattern of going on a short-term trip there first.

In one sense, it would almost be better for future missionaries not to talk with long-term field missionaries if one of the primary results is more new workers serving in the well-evangelized parts of the world. Ironically, however, many of the same long-term field missionaries who help organize short-term trips often (but not always) have the latest and best information on nearby Unengaged Unreached People Groups.

How wonderful it would be if the short-term mission movement took a major paradigm shift in purpose toward being used specifically (or could we hope and dream . . . even exclusively?) as a tool to get new workers into people groups that currently have few or no missionaries serving among them. Perhaps we need to further challenge, encourage, and train field missionaries on how to organize and host vision and pre-search trips primarily to Unreached People Groups.

We do indeed highly recommend that new missionaries sit at the feet of and learn from experienced missionaries. Churches sending missionaries directly without leaning on the decades of wisdom, experience, and knowledge that both long-term field missionaries and their agencies have has been a mistake. Traditionally, new missionaries may serve their first and even second term under the wing of a senior field missionary. Those senior missionaries know well how to work strategically in that area, region, and country.

If we assume that passing the baton of knowledge and experience can only occur when younger and older missionaries actually work together (on location) in the same field, however, then we have raised yet another barrier to getting new missionaries into Unreached People Groups. The only way for new missionaries to actually reach Unengaged Unreached People Groups is to go beyond where other missionaries are already working.

We must find a better way to pass on this crucial knowledge and experience. Many agencies today use email, telephone, and visits by traveling regional supervisors to wherever new missionaries are working. The real root problem, however, is that many new missionaries actually prefer having a live person around all the time who can help them at a moment’s notice. This is another strong factor enticing new missionaries to choose to serve in the already reached parts of the world.

Short-term mission trips, invitations to serve with missionaries working in evangelized areas, lack of vision trips to Unreached People Groups, and a pattern of serving directly under the constant personal supervision and guidance of veteran missionaries are all reasons why most new missionaries end up going to the “reached” parts of the world. Perhaps an even larger factor is the reality that it is often just much easier to serve in reached areas. That ease is a big attraction for many missionaries.

Matt: So does Mexico really need another STM team? How are we going to redirect ourselves to begin reaching Morocco instead of Malawi with our future STM teams?

by Evan Sparks (lifted from The Wall Street Journal – Opinion)

This past summer, from evangelical churches nationwide, more than one million of the faithful departed for the mission field, taking up Jesus’ “Great Commission” to “go and make disciples of all nations.” The churchgoers hoped to convert souls, establish churches and meet other human needs. But they did not intend to serve for years or whole lifetimes, like such pioneers as Jim Elliott, who was killed in Ecuador in 1956 evangelizing to native people; or Hudson Taylor, the founder of the China Inland Mission; or even the awful fictional caricatures of African missionaries in Barbara Kingsolver’s novel “The Poisonwood Bible.” These new missionaries came home after only a week or two.

Short-term mission trips to Africa, South America and Southeast Asia have become very popular in the past few years. They are a keystone strategy of evangelical pastor Rick Warren’s plans to help Rwanda. These trips, like Christian missionary endeavors overall, encompass a wide variety of activities, from evangelization and “church planting” to health care and economic development. The billion-dollar question, however, is whether they’re worth the cost. Are short-term missions the best way to achieve the goals of Christians? Critics argue that sightseeing often takes up too much of the itinerary, leading some to call short-termers “vacationaries.”

To continue reading this article, click here.

I’ve heard these arguments many times before. I’m actually getting sick of them. I’d love for someone to write an article outlining what wouldn’t happen if North Americans didn’t go on short-term mission. It’s an easy pot-shot to take at STMs, but not so easy to prepare, lead, and properly re-enter a team that goes with a purpose to serve a real need. Why don’t we start a list here, and I’ll see if I can get it into The Wall Street Journal!

This article appeared in Maclean’s in the September 29, 2008 issue. It raises some interesting questions about the validity of cross-cultural engagement. Do we really make a difference? Are we properly prepared? What’s our motivation for going?

Have a read. Let me know what you think.

Helping the world. And me.

Is volunteering about saving the world or enhancing a resumè?

Posted By Rachel Mendleson On September 19, 2008

Sara Minogue went to Tanzania expecting to make a contribution. A journalist with several years’ experience, she was drawn to a government-funded opportunity to raise the profile of human rights issues. Journalists for Human Rights, the Toronto-based NGO offering the eight-month program, sent her to Dar es Salaam to teach reporters how to effectively report on abuses. But when Minogue, who was 28 at the time, arrived at her placement in the capital city in 2006, she was struck by “how ridiculous” it was for her to be in a position of authority. The week-long pre-departure training JHR had provided touched on culture shock, human rights theory and the West African media, but left her with “very little clue about where I was going,” she says. As it turned out, many of her colleagues at the Media Institute of Southern Africa had university degrees, and all of them knew more about the human rights abuses in Tanzania than she did, she says. “I felt extremely silly and embarrassed.” Within two months, Minogue had quit. Other than writing a report for JHR, she says she spent the rest of her time “hiking around and hanging out” on Canadian taxpayers’ dime.

To continue, click here.

Introduction to A Post-Trip Poem

by Jon Roland

I wrote this poem a week after arriving on “Spice Island” for a two-week short-term mission project. This is not the real name of the island, but that is what we called it for the protection of the undercover missionaries we were assisting.

To understand this poem more fully, you need to know two things about Spice Island. First, it is the poorest island in a Southeast Asian country made up entirely of islands. It is so poor that the infant mortality rate is 1/3. This is due to malnutrition and insufficient medical care. Second, it is a 99% Muslim island where it is illegal to evangelize and Christians are in danger of being jailed, beaten, run off the island, or even killed if discovered by the wrong crowd of people. This is because, from the time they are infants, Spice Islanders are taught three things about Westerners: a) that we are out to destroy Islam, b) that we are all just out to convert them to Christianity, and c) that all Christians are wicked and immoral people from whose corrupting influence they need to protect themselves.

I wrote this to help me process my first experience doing missions internationally in a culture and nation closed to Christianity. It is written from the perspective of a Spice Islander (in particular one of the workers at our hotel or a nearby street merchant). I wrote it as if somehow I was able to hear the thoughts of a Spice Islander as he or she goes through a typical day and then encounters our team. It is called Misplaced Thoughts.

Note: This is a free verse poem meant to be read with a particular pace and intonation that I cannot communicate well on paper. However, to help you the best I can here are three tips.
1) Pause for about a beat at the end of each line, period, or question mark.
2) Pause for about a beat in the middle of a line where I put three dots.
3) You will need to create your own intonation, but single or two word lines/sentences as well as words that are all capitals should be read with a little more power. Most everything else could be read with normal intonation and pace, but play with it if you want.

Misplaced Thoughts

Unspoken.
Broken.
A rift between two worlds; I choke on.

How did they bring laughter with them – and leave it?
How did they get my respect – and leave with it?
What kind of bridge crosses two worlds?
Life is not usual.

Written by Jon Roland
August 3, 2008

I recently received this STM team report from a colleague:

Three ladies on our last trip to Africa made me seriously evaluate my goals for STM. Last August I went with 12 people on a STM to Coffee Bay on the Wild Coast of South Africa (the poorest of the poor in S.A.). The goal was to renovate a building in a remote village to be used as a church. We did it, and it was cool participating in the Xhosa Christian celebration service. However, the real discipleship was not planned or expected…but had long lasting effects….all from the discipling faith of 3 ladies.

After a week in the Wild Coast it was clear that a lot of tribes people were under oppression from the owner of the local shabeen (mud-hut bar). He had money and power. Even though they appreciated our STM project and our long-term 3 year eco-tourism project, it seemed that they would not engage with us without the consent of the bar owner. We heard rumours that this man was an evil man. One morning, during prayers, three ladies said “lets visit the shabeen and it’s owner, one of us will distract him by asking for a tour, and the rest of us will sprinkle anointing oil in every room, on all furniture, and pray for the oppression to be removed”.

I thought these ladies were “whacked out”. Plus, our purpose was to fix the church, not to get involved with some questionable character. Four weeks after we returned we received the attached news article describing that the Shabeen owner had been arrested. This was amazing since there are no police in that area. Our contact in Coffee Bay said that the people were so moved “dashed” by the faith of these three ladies that they finally refused the bribes from the bar owner and told the police about not only 50 young girls that were raped, but also about the people the bar owner had murdered.

One of the 3 ladies sold her counselling practice in Virginia and moved over to Coffee Bay in January to help the AIDS orphans. She got all 12 of us to come up with $200 each to help one 13-year old AIDS orphan, Mbumba, to attend a small boarding school in Coffee Bay. I still remember Mbumba crying at the church celebration saying, through a translator, “how can I believe in a God that let my parents die”. It’s going to be a long-haul relationship with Mbumba before he’s ready to talk about God and the good news about Jesus, but it’s been a year and it’s starting to happening. Pouring all this money and attention into one 13-year old boy seems not to be the thing that SMT supporters want to hear, but it’s what Jesus did, pour his life into 12….who poured their lives into 72….who poured their lives into 3000…..and now millions. The same thing can happen with Mbumba (I had to attach his picture…it was so weird…he wanted his picture taken…and now it haunts me every time I see it).

I learned a lot….fixing a church can seem like a poor excuse for a STM….I’m just glad that these 3 ladies where open to the Holy Spirit.

Matt: It’s always a good thing to be able to pick some fruit off the tree of your trip a year after you came home. This story makes me want to ensure I’m encouraging people to remain open for those God-arranged appointments with others, and to prepare people to be spiritually useful!

Here’s the article about the Shabeen owner, and a picture of Mbumba.

Pensioner In Court For Rape

Take another look at…The Many Faces of Short-Term Mission

Have you ever been to a health club? Why did you go? Did you want to get into better shape? Improve your health? Lose weight?

If we were to survey all the people in a health club on a given day, most would tell us they were there for reasons of health and fitness. Yet that would be only partially true.

Someone who works at a difficult job may go to the health club after work to release some of the day’s stress. A mother who stays home with young children may work out twice a week to have some time to herself while the kids play in the on-site nursery. Other people go to health clubs to visit with friends or meet new ones. Still others go because they do their best thinking while swimming laps in the pool. Although these people go to the health club to pursue health and fitness, they’re also motivated by reasons that have little to do with fitness.

Like health clubs, short-term mission teams attract a wide variety of participants with a number of motives. Some want to taste genuine missionary service. Some go to use their professional skills. Some go for fellowship.

Some people go overseas to visit missionaries they know. Others wish to form cross-cultural friendships. Still others seek personal spiritual growth or an opportunity to disciple another person.

The list could go on; when I ask this question at seminars I usually get at least 25 different responses. People go on mission trips to fulfill the Great Commission – but that’s usually only part of their reason for going.

Praying for a Vacation

I’ll tell you a little secret. The first time I went on a short-term mission, I didn’t even know it! I thought I was taking a vacation with a group of single people from my church who wanted to spend time together while also having fellowship with a Christian community in another country.

To prepare for our trip a handful of us met weekly for six months, praying for God to show us how He could meet our need for community while we served Him. We asked the Lord to guide us into a relationship with a body of believers from another culture. He answered our prayer by sending us on what I would not call a short-term mission trip to Mexico.

At the time, though, none of us thought to use the term “mission.” We hadn’t been praying to be sent on a mission, we had been praying for a vacation – a vacation with a purpose.

We did not take that first trip out of obedience to the Great Commission but rather for fellowship and to redeem those precious two weeks of vacation from our jobs. Were we wrong to do so? Short-term mission is about “mission,” is it not?

I suppose the answer lies in the fallout from that trip. While we were in Mexico, we ran a Vacation Bible School. We painted a schoolroom. We built a roof on a clothing distribution center and played with children at an orphanage. We formed relationships with missionaries and Mexican nationals which have continued for 10 years now.

When the trip was over, one team member sold most of his possessions and vowed to live more simply. Several others became Sunday school teachers, fellowship group leaders, deacons or elders. I changed my plans to attend law school and went to seminary instead.

Eventually our singles group was sending scores of people on short-term trips each year. The singles’ pastors used short-term missions as their primary discipleship training and leadership development strategy. The senior pastor recognized and utilized former short-termers as one of the church’s greatest resources for new leaders and teachers. The missions department sent many former short-termers to the field as career missionaries. Several former team members moved on to become missions mobilizers and key lay leaders. All this happened because 20 singles wanted a worthwhile vacation!

Who’s Going and Why

Although short-term missions involve a wide variety of people who take part in a broad range of activities, we find that some factors are common to certain groups and activities. Although not exhaustive, the list below describes the most typical short-term mission participants and activities.

• Youth teams from churches and Christian Schools;
• Student teams from colleges, as well as individual students who make arrangements through mission agencies;
• Singles from churches or para-church singles ministries;
• Seniors, including individuals, church-based teams and so-called “RV gypsies” – retired couples who travel independently from mission site to mission site in their motor homes;
• Intergenerational teams whose participants range from teenagers to seniors. Family teams which include young children are a growing sub-category;
• Multi-racial teams, often with members from more than one church;
• Professionals – doctors, dentists, engineers, builders, etc. This category includes teams as well as individuals who apply their professional skills to outreach or support ministry;
• Sports teams and professional or amateur athletes who compete at sporting events, then share their testimonies with the assembled crowd.

What Are They Doing?

Just as there are several types of short-term missionaries, there is a wide variety of activities. Below is a sampling of possibilities:

• Construction and maintenance;
• Teaching English, health care or other skills or information;
• Medical/dental clinics;
• Evangelism, including literature distribution, drama, puppetry, music or showing the Jesus film;
• Spiritual warfare and prayer-walking;
• Church planting;
• Mission awareness, which generally involves visiting mission sites to educate short-term missionaries;
• Youth ministry – summer camps, vacation Bible schools, tutoring, sporting events, etc.;
• Inner-city involvement and ‘urban plunges’;
• Agriculture/farm work;
• General assistance at mission sites, involving participation in the day-to-day activities of the career staff and national workers.

Enlightening Reading

The articles in this Special Report were written by leaders who have worked with a variety of the people and situations described above. In their experience they have seen great successes and horrible failures. In spite of the differences in their involvement in short-term missions, their writings and reflections involve several common themes.

The short-term missions movement is no longer new; its benefits and shortcomings are now well known. Speaking to the shortcomings, the authors each describe, to a greater or lesser degree, the need for adequate preparation, genuine reciprocity with the host communities, thorough debriefing and purposeful follow-up.

Some of the articles make for challenging reading. Some readers may come away convicted. All will come away enlightened.

Not by Choice

The health club/short-term mission comparison is useful only to a certain extent. We join a health club by choice; we go on a short-term mission trip because we are sent. Jesus prayed to the Father “As you sent me into the world, I have also sent them into the world” (Jn. 17:18). Days later He repeated this to the disciples: “Go therefore into all the world” (Mt. 28:18).

Regardless of people’s individual motives for service, God is accomplishing tremendous results through short-term missionaries. Lives are being changed, new missionaries are entering lifetime service, churches are being planted, new disciples are being nurtured. God uses short-term service in the long-term work of the church.

Here are some of the creative approaches He is incorporating into the task of worldwide evangelism. For example, teams of surfers are spreading the Gospel among their counterparts on the beaches of South Pacific islands. A team of rural villagers from the Dominican Republic recently built homes for destitute families. This year, a team of children from a Mexican orphanage traveled to Quebec to witness through music and preaching.

Certainly there are problems – after all, short-term mission teams are comprised of sinners. As the short-term mission movement matures, we are recognizing and addressing many of these problems. Some still await solutions. Yet God continues to accomplish His purposes through short-term missionaries – even unsuspecting vacationers.

by Kimberly Hurst

Kimberly is the director of WorldTracks, conducts seminars to train Christian leaders who wish to create or improve short-term mission programs for their ministries. She is co-author of the book Vacations With a Purpose.

Article originally published in Mission Today Magazine & Missions Fest Alberta Resource Magazine.