We all want our mission trip experience to have a big impact. Unfortunately, sometimes we don’t bring home all the great lessons we learned while serving and learning alongside communities across the country or around the world. If you’re unsure of how to continue serving after your mission trip (or how to encourage your whole mission trip team to do the same), here are 3 great places to start!
1. Serve your neighbors or local church community
There are probably many people in your neighborhoods or members of your local church congregation who could benefit from some extra time, attention, and love. Offer to help rake leaves, do odd jobs around the house, or even bring fresh-baked cookies to families within your community. These activities are always more fun in a group, so get your team back together for some post-trip service projects or random acts of kindness and truly “live your mission” all year.
2. Partner with a local ministry
Your local community could benefit from the type of hands-on volunteering you did so much of on your mission trip. Homeless shelters, nursing homes, soup kitchens, and countless other non-profit groups and ministries are constantly in need of manpower, donations, and support. By stepping into opportunities to continue practicing what you learned on your mission trip, you’re growing into people who have their eyes and hearts open for those in need.
3. Fundraise for a cause you care about
You probably strengthened your fundraising muscles while preparing for your mission trip. Now, take your experience and know-how and apply it for a cause that helps others even more. You could partner with a local ministry, fundraise for someone in need, or support a larger cause. While it’s not as hands-on as a work project, it still involves sacrifice and loving others more than we love ourselves, two things that always bring us closer to the heart of Jesus.
If you’re not sure where to start, check out RISING — Experience Mission’s education empowerment program providing education, mentoring, and resources for youth in Haiti. Past EM mission trip volunteers have been some of the biggest help raising funds to help send youth in Haiti back to school who wouldn’t otherwise have the opportunity!
These ideas are simple, but they can make a world of difference as you seek to become the type of people who love and serve others like Jesus. Our hope at EM is that each and every week-long mission trip is an experience that propels you into a life of service and sacrificial love.
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