I would continue to play with my food and think about the stories from church about some missionary in a land I couldn’t find on the map, living in poverty and in dreadful conditions that needed our financial and prayerful help. How that missionary would be able to give my uneaten food to some poor emaciated Chinese children was beyond me.

That was our “missions” at work. Part of our Sunday School offering went to “Missions” work.

Being a missionary had long been portrayed as a lifelong endeavor, but in recent years different kinds of mission experiences have become possible. People can be missionaries for a shorter period of time. There are different kinds of missions in locations all over the world. Now there is more interest by congregation members to join a short term mission; a mission of about two weeks in length.

While there are many opportunities to participate on a mission (just do an internet search for short term missions) a slowly emerging trend is for a church to conduct it’s own short term overseas mission. Members do so because:

1. It is following the Great Commission, “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” Matthew 28:19 (NIT)

2. The church as a whole becomes focused on “missions.” Not just any mission – their mission.

3. “Mission” emphasizes the evangelical nature of being a Christian. Members can exercise their faith, actually get to circumstances where they literally “live” their faith.

4. They get a chance to interact with people of other cultures. In some cases it may be possible to live and eat with them to understand them.

5. They have a chance to show their love of Christ through their interaction with the children and volunteers with whom they work. For example: a Vacation Bible School (VBS) team.

6. They get an opportunity to form a closer bond with other members of their Vacation Bible School (VBS) team.

7. They have the wonderful opportunity of using vacation time for a Christian purpose, not just personal enrichment and enjoyment.

8. They open themselves up to a life changing experience. They also see the volunteers and the children’s lives change because of that experience.

9. They begin a process that will continue year after year after they’ve gone, whether abroad and/or at home..

and last, but not least –

10. The people want to do something that can make a lasting difference in people’s lives. What can be a better legacy than that?

However, organizing and conducting an overseas VBS is something that takes planning and preparation of team members. The purpose of the mission is not to just “put on a VBS show”, it is to train the people in the host church to conduct a successful VBS in the next year and years following.

“The purpose of the mission is to train the volunteers in the “host”  church to conduct a successful VBS themselves, not to just “put on a VBS show” Warren Jaycox

The thought of the number of host church volunteers and children’s lives that will be touched can boggle the mind.

Is this for your church? Check it out.

Next week: Steps in Deciding for a VBS Overseas Mission Experience.