Link Lovin' It: Friends in Missions

I want to continue highlighting some blogs that are worth checking out. You can follow these blogs in the blogroll on my sidebar, or better yet, add them to your Google Reader! Here's some link love for my friends on the mission field:

• Amanda Lehman has spent much of the past two years serving as a teacher and working in an orphanage in northern India. You can read about Amanda's heart for "the least of these" here.
• Jess Gates is mentoring teenage girls and doing some incredible sports ministry in the Dominican Republic with Students International.
• Kory and Ali Lantz are missionaries in the truest sense of the word. They work with at-risk teens right here in our own backyard, in the Keller Park neighborhood of South Bend.
• Miah and Michelle Collins train youth leaders with J-Life in South Africa. Miah recently ran a 56-mile race. You can read about that experience here.
• Nick and Sarah Anderson are church-planters in Oaxaca, Mexico. They talk about "spiritual mapping" here.
• Ranae Holdeman is a teacher for missionary kids in Botswana. She shares some good thoughts about wisdom here.
• Jeff and Amy McKissick serve as medical missionaries in Paraguay. They also have the cutest kids E-VER!

I'm so blessed to have friends serving the Lord all around the world! Check out their blogs, pray for them, and send them some words of encouragement!

Honey, I shrunk the world.

I recently received a newsletter from some missionary friends that shared some interesting statistics about the world population. The following is a synopsis of what our world would look like if shrunk down into a community of 100 people:

• 57 would be Asian
• 21 would be European
• 14 would be from the Western Hemisphere
• 8 would be African

--

• 52 would be female; 48 would be male
• 70 would be non-Christian; 30 would be Christian
• 70 would be non-white; 30 would be white

--

• 80 would live in substandard housing
• 70 would be unable to read
• 50 would suffer from malnutrition
• 1 would have a college education
  

These statistics remind me of two things:

1. My white, middle-class American worldview is so different from most of the rest of the world, and I have a lot to learn from other people.
2. I am SO blessed (especially considering those last four statistics), and I believe God has blessed me so that I can be a blessing to others!
   

Fear

One year ago today, I stepped onto a plane headed for South Africa. It was that day that several years of talking about being a missionary turned into an exciting and scary reality. I'll never forget the wave of emotions that rushed over me as I took my last deep breath of American air and stepped onto that plane, knowing full well that for a whole year the life that I had known up until that moment would seemingly not exist. I was walking into the unknown.

The emotion I felt in that moment can only be described as the most acute and real sense of fear that I have ever experienced. My legs felt like jelly, and I remember being surprised at how hard it was to leave. "I'm actually doing this...this is crazy," I remember thinking. But, it was too late to turn back, and deep in my Spirit I knew that going was part of God's sovereign plan for my life. That was assurance enough for me to take that last step.

It didn't take me too long in South Africa to realize how unfounded my fears had been. Not that it was silly for me to experience fear--I think fear naturally wells up in the face of the unknown (although we shouldn't embrace it)--but I quickly saw that God knew what He was doing. Within weeks, I was already to the point where I could no longer have imagined my life without the relationships I had built in Africa. I was so filled with joy that God had called me out of the comfortable life that I had known, to a new place, filled with new experiences, new relationships, and a new vision for ministry. It was in that place that I found myself growing more than I ever could have imagined. However, over the course of the year, as I embraced more and more of Africa, I found myself again in a comfortable place. I had carved out a niche for myself in South Africa, with a ministry, a church family, and many close friends. Life was getting comfortable again.

Fast forward to December 22, 2009, and there I was again at an airport, this time ready to step onto a plane headed back to my old world, my old life. It was that day that, unexpectedly, those exact same fears that I had felt a year earlier once again welled up inside me. It didn't make sense to me. I was going home. Why was I afraid of that? Home was a place that I knew. It was a place that I loved, filled with family and friends that I loved. What was so scary about that? I think the answer lies in one word: change.

Humans are creatures of habit. Most of us carve out a specific way that we live our lives--a framework, if you will--and then we exist within that framework. It's our safety net, our comfort zone, to use the old cliché. Even those of us who might describe ourselves as "spontaneous" or "adventurous" still have a propensity to form patterns within which we live our lives. What I have found, though, is that real adventure, real passion, real life is often found when we allow Christ to take us to a new place. I mean, that's what he offers us, right? A new life, new creatures in a new kingdom, serving a King who loves to take old things and make them new.

I honestly cannot imagine not having spent the past year in Africa. I experienced change and significant growth that I believe has shaped me in ways that will affect the rest of my life. God undoubtedly knew what He was doing when He called me out of my comfortable life.

Now, I'm certainly not saying that everyone is called to overseas missions. At the same time, my challenge for each one of you is to open yourself up for something fresh and new from God this year. I'm convinced that wherever the Spirit dwells, growth and change are sure to follow. If you are a believer, the Spirit dwells inside of you, so ask yourself, "In what ways does God want to mold me and change me this year?" This is a scary question because more often than not God takes us through the fire in the process of refining us. Simply put, change hurts. But I'm here to tell you that it's more than worth it. Most people will never step out and embrace change in their lives because of fear. Fear cripples us. Fear tried to keep my feet planted on the tarmac, but faith allowed me to embrace God's calling in my life and step onto that plane. My prayer for you is that this is a year in which you face your fears and step out on faith, embracing God's calling in your own life.

Huntin' for a Job...

Well, I'll be home in less than three weeks now--that much I know. What I don't know is what exactly I'll be doing once I get home. I'm planning on hanging out in northern Indiana for a while to spend time with my family and friends. However, odds are I'll be back on the mission field sooner rather than later--hopefully within the next year. So I guess the big question is: what will I do for the next year?

Being a person whose life has revolved around youth ministry for the past several years, my heart is definitely in investing in the lives of young people. Unfortunately, a year (or less) isn't really an ideal amount of time to get plugged into full-time youth work. It's really not fair for any church, and it's especially not fair to the young people. This puts me into kind of a tough spot. I certainly don't want to "waste" a year of my life just hanging out and waiting for God to reveal His next big plans for my life. After such a stretching year this year, the last thing I want to do is spend a year getting comfortable and not really pouring myself into young people, which is clearly God's calling on my life. But I also realize that I can invest in people's lives no matter where I am and no matter what I "do" vocationally.

I've considered even just doing some substitute teaching. Sure, the pay's not great, but it's a chance to hang out with young people every day, and it's obviously an extremely flexible job--I can just work whenever I want to work. Other than that, I suppose I can get some other job in the "secular" world--maybe work as a waiter or something. I think it would actually be kind of cool to be out in the "real world" for a while and really get a chance to be salt and light.

Most of all, I'm just praying now (and you can be praying, too!) that God will open up the right doors for me and make things clear. And who knows...maybe He will use you to show me the right door? I know that most of my readers are friends or other people involved in ministry in some way--or both. If any of you have a great job idea, feel free to let me know! Like I said, I'm not sure a full-time youth ministry gig is the best option for me right now, but I'm not totally ruling that out, either. Besides that, as far as ministry goes, I think I can add value to a church in the areas of worship and/or missions. I have a passion for worship through music and have been leading in that capacity for several years now. And, obviously, missions is my life and passion as well. Other than that, as I said before, I'm more than open to any job ideas you might have in the secular realm as well.

Okay, my shameless plug for myself is finished. Leave me a comment here on the blog or shoot me an email at ackosmo22@aol.com if you have any thoughts/suggestions. But, most of all, just keep praying that God's hand would continue leading and guiding me in every step I take in life, and pray that I would be sensitive to His leading! Thanks so much to all of you who have been praying faithfully!

Sports: A Universal Language

I've been pleasantly surprised to find that in many African countries English is widely spoken, especially by the youth. Tanzania, however, was an exception to this rule. Swahili is their official language, and while English is now being introduced in many schools, it has still not taken root as much as in other parts of Africa. So, I was forced to quickly pick up some Swahili if I wanted to communicate with a lot of the youth I spent time with. In their broken English and my broken Swahili, we were able to communicate...sort of. Here's an example of a short conversation I had with one teenage boy:

Me: Who's your favorite basketball player?

Boy: I 14 years old.

Okay, so it didn't take too long to realize that we really weren't communicating. So, we scrapped that conversation and decided to try a more universal language: sports.

I don't care what you say, foosball is a sport...and it's awesome!

Basketball was also a big hit!

Barefoot basketball on an eight-foot hoop. Good times.

That's the thing I love about sports--they are the universal language. I was able to connect with these youth so much more through sports than I would have been able to through broken conversation (see conversation above). Through sports, I believe God has given us an incredible opportunity to connect different cultures around the world and to reach young people for Christ. For you sports lovers out there, ask yourself this question:

How can I use my love for sports to expand God's kingdom and impact lives for Christ?

On the Road Again...

Tomorrow morning I leave with Bhuti, another one of the J-Life South Africa leaders, for Tanzania and Zanzibar. You might be wondering, "Why all the traveling?" Well, every trip is different and has its own goals and purposes. On this specific trip, we will be teaching at a training center that J-Life has planted in Tanzania. Every 6 weeks, for the entire year, a group of young pastors and leaders comes together to receive ministry training. Over the next 2 weeks, we will be teaching several ministry courses. Some of the courses I wrote myself, while others are J-Life materials. I will be teaching courses in Relational Ministry, The Church as a Medium for Discipling Youth, Spiritual Leadership, and Recruiting Leaders.

I could use a lot of prayer as I head into this next phase:

• Please pray that I would again be given the energy needed to do what God has called me to do. I feel like I am just now getting my feet back under me after the Zimbabwe trip, and this trip may be a great challenge for me physically and mentally.

• Please pray that the Spirit would empower me to clearly and effectively teach and train others.

• Pray that lives would be changed, and the Church in Tanzania would be mobilized for God's kingdom.

Thanks to all of you who faithfully keep me in your prayers. I truly believe that my ministry would not be effective without your partnership in prayer. Thank you, and may God bless you.

When Reality Sets In...

Back in the day, when missionaries were headed for Africa, they used to send all of their belongings over in a casket, knowing full well that they would probably breathe their last breath on the red soils of that continent. And, more than likely, it would be an early death for those pioneers. Well, times have changed quite a bit, and I'm a pretty optimistic guy, so I sent my belongings over in two suitcases, fully believing that I would be coming back in a year right along with those suitcases. Now, I'm still here to tell the story, so you know how it ends, but I promise you every bit of this story is true. I don't want to be overdramatic, but it got very, very ugly this week. This is how it went down...

To put it bluntly, this past week I experienced hell on earth. Sunday night, after attempting to Skype chat with my family, I spent the whole night with a fever and the chills. I slept in a bit the next morning, and then went to a training session with some of the country leaders that were still here after the Summit. A couple hours into that, I felt sick again. Some of the guys laid hands on me, but in the middle of their prayers I had to rush to the bathroom. I spent the rest of the day in bed. Anything I tried to eat was almost immediately coming back out, one way or another...if you know what I mean. Then, late Monday night I was in the restroom, still terribly sick, and I could tell that something was really wrong...that this was not the normal flu. I could feel my entire body just heating up, and I was near the point of passing out. I dragged myself to John's house, and he rushed me to the hospital. I was diagnosed with a gastro-intestinal virus, and I had a temperature of nearly 105 degrees, which is obviously crazy high. They gave me an injection and also set up an IV pumping some fluids and antibiotics into my body. I was still very sick that whole night. They said I couldn't eat anything for about 36 hours, and I could only drink water, so that it would flush the virus out of my system. Even then, the next day every time I took a sip of water I would either vomit or almost immediately have to use the toilet. So I've been on some strong antibiotics this whole week, which has really zapped my energy and kept me in bed most of the week. I've also probably lost 15 pounds or so, which might actually be kind of hard to gain back on our diet here. Please just be praying that I would come to a full recovery soon and that I would regain my strength. It's at times like these where it's really no fun at all to be far away from home! And it's times like these when reality really begins to set in...this is Africa (TIA), God called me here, and preparing me for His service might mean that He runs me through the flames a time or two. But like I said, I'm still alive to tell about it...God is good!

J-Life International Summit

This week has been a very busy one, as we are currently having the J-Life International Summit here at Camp Eden. Eleven different countries are represented here by their country leaders: Cameroon, Nigeria, Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, Zambia, Swaziland, South Africa, Namibia, Zimbabwe, and the most recent addition to the J-Life team and only non-African nation, J-Life USA, which is based out of New York. We are also privileged to have Dann Spader here, founder of Son Life Ministries and President of Global Youth Initiative, as well as Steve Hudson, a long-time Son Life guy as well, and currently on the GYI staff with Dann. The country leaders are being trained in things such as recruiting and coaching leaders, developing boards, developing budgets, funds development, team building, team cohesion, and overall improved communication.

I have been lucky enough to be able to break away from the normal training this week to join in the Summit. We have been hearing exciting reports from all of the countries represented about disciple-making movements sprouting up all over the continent. Next week two leaders will be sent into Tanzania, where leaders from the tribal bush area have already been chosen to be trained to lead disciple-making movements in their regions. Other efforts are spreading into Burundi, Rwanda, Uganda, Angola, and Madagascar. God is moving on this continent!

How you can pray this week:

• That God would continue to provide vision and leadership for J-Life
• For spiritual and physical renewal for the country leaders
• For a sense of community and cohesion among the different countries and their leaders
• That the Spirit would continue to move as workers are trained and sent out in His Name!

Sweet-Action Sunset

So a couple weekends ago we went on a men's retreat to this place outside of Joburg called the Vaal Dam. Besides having an incredible retreat (more on that later), I saw some of the sweetest sunsets I have ever seen! Here's a sneak peak...

Udpate From South Africa

Hey Everyone!

Thanks so much to all of you who have kept me in your thoughts and prayers over the past few weeks. Taking the step into full-time missions has been something on my heart for several years now, but I must admit that when the time came to go, it was a big leap of faith and one of the hardest things I have ever had to do. As I arrived here the first night, we were driving down the 7-mile dirt road driveway back to the training center, stopping occasionally as jackals ran across the road, and I remember thinking, “What in the world have I gotten myself into?!” More than three weeks later, all of those initial fears are gone, as I have built many solid relationships here, have been welcomed into the community, and have truly seen God move daily.

I am a part of a community of some 45-50 young people who are being trained to come alongside the local church in Africa and plant disciple-making movements of youth. We are living in a dorm-like situation. I am living in a room with three other guys: Praise (from Malawi), Sabin (Congo Brazzaville), and Sampson (Zambia). Other trainees here come from South Africa, Zimbabwe, Kenya, Namibia, Swaziland, and of course, myself from the US. Needless to say, I am getting quite the cross-cultural experience!

The training is pretty intense. Our first three days here, we went out into the bush, with very few supplies, used machetes to cut down trees and build shelters, and basically just tried to survive! It was a pretty neat experience, and a good bonding time for everyone. For the last couple weeks now, we have been back on Driefontein Farm, where the J-Life training center is located. It is a really beautiful place—several thousand acres of mountains, rivers, lakes, and wildlife. Guys go hunting here a lot, and last week we killed a wild boar...and then ate him for dinner! We joked about how we were eating “Pumba” from the Lion King!

So far our training here has included things like spiritual gifts, personality tests, leadership and vision, and the DNA of disciple-making movements. It has been really powerful to plow through some of these topics together as a community. More than anything else, however, the core of the training revolves around our own spiritual health and maturity. We are held accountable to spend time alone with God daily, we pray together corporately, we are memorizing Scripture together, all in an attempt to be a holy community, set apart for God. The discipline has been great for me.

On top of spiritual “boot camp,” we are in physical training as well. I run daily with the guys here, which is pretty intense over the hills and mountains on the farm. We are also at a high elevation, over 7000 feet above see level (higher than Denver), so I am just now getting used to the thin air. So far my longest run has been just over 6 miles, but I am working towards a half marathon by April. I also swim across one of the lakes almost every day, with my longest swim being about half a mile so far. It feels great getting back into physical shape. It’s summer here, and the weather is blazing hot, somewhere in the mid-90s most days, so a daily swim is almost a necessity!

I received a great piece of advice before I left from my friend and former mentor, Karl Black, who said, “If you are able to see yourself as a learner, you will grow immensely over the next year.” I have truly tried to take those words to heart in my time here. While I have more formal education and ministry experience than most of these guys, I am still able to learn so much from them—from their cultural backgrounds, from their life experiences, and from their hearts and passion for the Lord. I truly am learning so much every day and growing in my understanding of other people, as well as in my relationship with the Lord.

Here are some ways that you can be praying for me:

-that I would continue to develop deep relationships with the guys here
-that I would stay focused on my relationship with God above all else
-that I would remain free from homesickness
-that God would continue to reveal His plans for my future, and that I would have the courage to follow His leading

Thanks again to all of you who are praying! I could not be here if it weren’t for your love and support! Please know that I am praying for all of you as well!

Alive in Africa,

MaxAC

2 Weeks Later...

Well, I've been here for about 15 days now. I apologize for not keeping you all more up to date, but the internet here is terrible, and my access is limited. I just wanted to briefly let you all know that 1) I am still alive! and 2) I absolutely love it here! As I got on the plane two weeks ago, alone and quite unsure of what my immediate future held, I remember thinking, "What am I getting myself into?" Leaving my comfort zone of family, friends, home, security was the hardest thing I have ever done, but I look back now only two weeks later and see all of the things I would have missed out on had I stayed. The community here at J-Life is incredible, and God is working in all of our lives here. There are about 45 young men and women going through the training here, from all different backgrounds and 10 different countries. It is such a diverse group of people coming together under one vision: creating disciple-making movements in the youth of Africa. I have made many new and close friends here in such a short time. I am picking up on several new languages: Afrikaans, Zulu, Swahili, and French to name a few. God is moving in my life, as I am seeing a greater picture of His Kingdom and devoting myself to Him more each day. Please, keep praying for me as I continue to seek God's will for my future. He is definitely giving me a heart for Africa, and we will see where that leads! I miss you all, and I look forward to hearing from you!

Cheers, Mates.

AC

AC Takin' it International

Well, T-minus one day before I embark on a new journey in life. In a little over 24 hours, I will be stepping on a plane headed for South Africa, not to return for nearly a year. Thus, my 24-year streak of dwelling in the U.S. comes to an abrupt end...it was a nice run while it lasted.

I couldn't be more excited about this opportunity to serve others abroad...and also nervous, terrified, and  apprehensive, to name a few other emotions that seem to be present. I'm excited to meet new people, learn new languages and cultures, experience a whole new way of living and viewing the world, and all along the way to be challenged and grown in my walk with the Lord. I'm nervous and somewhat apprehensive because I am walking into so many unknowns (also a reason why I am excited, however). And I'm quite terrified, mostly because I am going alone. I do well when I am with people, especially people I know and love. I don't do alone very well. My prayer is that I make strong connections with the African people very early in my trip so that I can avoid that sense of being on an island. 

If you have time, here are a few ways you can be praying for me this week:

• safe travel, both for myself and my luggage!
• safety upon arrival (I was just notified that I will spend a few hours alone in the airport in Johannesburg, the crime capital of the world).
• that I would make immediate connections with the African people
• strength against feelings of loneliness

Thanks so much to all who are praying! This blog will be my primary means of connecting with many of you while I am away, so please keep in touch! God bless!

Mission: Africa

If you know me well at all, you know that I am a missionary at heart. Since my teenage years, I have had a passion for the world, for different cultures, for people groups very different than my own. I went on my first mission trip as a junior in high school. I went to Ecuador, and it was there that God began to place in my heart a calling to youth ministry. At the same time, I began to feel God stirring my heart for the nations.

That calling, over six years ago now, set my life on an incredible journey that continues to this day. Rather than devoting my life to the pursuit of riches or fame or athletic achievement--to all the things that my selfish heart had desired up until that point in my life--I chose a significantly different path. This path led me to study youth ministry for four years at Bethel College. It led me to spend countless hours in college pouring into youth in the local church. It was this calling that led me to St. Mark Missionary Church, where for nearly four years now I have been striving to make a difference in the lives of young people--to inspire them, challenge them, help them see that they are called to something bigger than themselves. Finally, it is God's heart for the nations that He has placed within me that has led me to a significantly different and new phase in my journey...

In March, I met a South-African man in Israel named John Abrahamse. He was speaking at a conference for youth workers all around the world, and he shared his vision to reach the youth of Africa. John and his wife, Lorna, started an organization out of their home called J-Life. J-Life stands for Jesus' Life. Simply put, they began practicing the principles of Christ's ministry on earth, discipling young people and teaching them to disciple other young people. In the past seven years, their ministry has grown exponentially. J-Life is now a movement that is training native men and women from over 20 different African nations to make disciples.

Their mission...AFRICA.

What I saw that day in Israel was a vision for bringing the kingdom of God to a whole continent. A vision for empowering oppressed people with the Good News. A vision for multiplying fully-committed disciples of Jesus. I knew that I wanted to be a part of that kind of a movement of God. 

The rest is history. I spoke with John, and he advised me to begin praying about spending a year in Africa. Over the course of the next couple months, the answer was clear.

One month from today, I leave for Africa.

Why Africa? Honestly, I had never really considered going to Africa. It's not that I was opposed to going there, but I simply had not been exposed enough to Africa to see that it just might be the place where God wanted me. My international experiences have been limited mostly to the Spanish-speaking world, as well as to the far East in places like China and India. To be completely honest, since my time in China two years ago, I had been hoping that God would send me back there, or at least to somewhere in Asia. After spending time in India this past January, I was convinced that God would call me there. However, God had different plans. My life will never be the same.

Africa...here I come!!!

¡La Clase de Español!

One thing I love about St. Mark is that we are a church that is passionate about world missions (kinda makes sense, as we are a Missionary church). Each summer it seems that we are sending teams all around the globe to minister. Many of the countries where we have been ministering or supporting missionaries are Spanish speaking (i.e. Ecuador, Paraguay, Mexico); unfortunately, most members of our missions teams who minister in these countries each summer know little to none of the Spanish language. For those of you who are familiar with short-term mission trips, you know that the language barrier can be frustrating and difficult to overcome in the short time a mission team has in that different culture.

THE PROBLEM: People need to learn Spanish!

About a year ago, I became aware of the desire for many of our mission team members to begin to learn Spanish. Although I would consider myself far from fluent, I did study Spanish for 5 years in high school and college and have spent a decent amount of time overseas in Spanish speaking cultures. So, when I heard of this need, I got excited about the opportunity of helping out in any way I could. However, for a number of reasons last year, this project got put on the back burner.

Then, this past summer, I traveled with a team to South America, where we spent the majority of our time in Paraguay. During this trip, I saw first-hand the need and desire for this group of people with a heart for missions to learn Spanish. I knew the problem (see above), and God laid this simple solution on my heart:

THE SOLUTION: Start a Spanish class!

Duh. Why didn't I think of that?!

Well, it took a little effort to get off the ground, but last night was week 7 of La Clase de Espanol! We meet every Monday night for about an hour and a half, and we have been having a blast. I teach alongside Diane "Dino" Matteson, our office manager here at St. Mark and a very proficient Spanish speaker herself. Our class consists mostly of a couple families, with parents and their children learning the language together. They have taken incredible strides in the past couple months, and I'm so proud of them! Here are a few things I love about teaching this class:

1. The people. I love spending time with this group! They all have great hearts for Jesus and for the world!
2. Practicing my language skills. It gives me a chance to keep up with the Spanish language (previously I had been neglecting my Spanish studies for a couple years). Also, I've found that learning a new language and teaching a new language are two very different things. I have had to focus much harder to understand how to best teach others a new language.
3. The excitement of watching others learn. Last night, I sat with a group of 5 children as they asked questions in Spanish and answered them in complete Spanish sentences! Wow!
4. The focus on missions. This group doesn't simply want to learn another language for the sake of learning another language--they want to learn another language so that they can minister to others!
5. The focus on prayer for the nations. Each week, I've been wearing a different soccer jersey from countries around the world, and then we spend time at the end of class praying for that country. I have the kids show me on a map where the country is located, we spend some time identifying the needs of that country, and then we pray for them. So far we have asked God to reign in Ecuador, Paraguay, India, Brazil, Mexico, and China. I was touched last night to hear an eight year old girl pray that Christians in China would be able to go to church and that the pastors there would be let out of jail. God heard those prayers!

God is definitely doing great things here at St. Mark, and He is raising up a people with His heartbeat for the nations! Amen!

Lessons in Short-Term Missions (India Part 2)

The Research

My first short-term mission trip was to Ecuador in the summer of 2002, in between my junior and senior year of high school. Interestingly enough, my future youth ministry prof. and close friend, Terry Linhart, came along with our team on that trip to do some on-sight research on the effectiveness of short-term missions for his doctoral studies.  A book and several published articles later, Terry has put together some cutting-edge research on the topic.

In his article "If We Send Them, They Will Grow...Maybe," published in The Journal of Student Ministries, Linhart, along with co-researchers Kara Powell, Dave Livermore, and Brad Griffin make  the bold statement that Short-Term Mission Trips (STMs) do not necessarily guarantee life change for the students who participate. They identify five components of effective STMs, namely:

1. Focus--helping students prepare emotionally, spiritually, mentally, and relationally.

2. Action-Reflection--helping students accurately interpret their experiences.

3. Support-Feedback--assisting students in their learning as it takes place.

4. Debrief--reflecting on the experiences of the trip as the students prepare to return home.

5. Learning Transfer--helping students make what they learned on the STM a part of their daily lives back home.

The research here suggests that a STM experience in and of itself will not necessarily provide long-term change in the lives of students. This think tank of researchers concludes that as leaders we must be very thoughtful in how we approach STMs and in how we encourage students to process everything that they are experiencing.  I couldn't agree more.

My Experiences

Going into my trip to India, I didn't really think about it as a STM experience.  In fact, I really didn't have much time to think about anything going into this trip.  I joined the India team merely 3 weeks before we left.  Therefore, my preparation for the trip was very much a blur.  Because of this, I probably skipped more than one or two of these five components to effective STM experiences.  Now, I certainly wouldn't suggest doing that, but as I have looked back and reflected on the trip (my attempt at learning transfer), I have come to the conclusion that it was probably my most impacting overseas experience.  More so than the week I spent in Ecuador, or in Honduras, the Dominican Republic, Mexico, or even the 3 months I spent in China!  At first, this conclusion puzzled me...why did India impact me so much more than any of the other trips I had experienced?  

The answer...relationships.

I made more meaningful relationships with the native people on this trip than I ever had before on any trip.  In 9 days, I made more connections with Indian people than I had in 3 months with the Chinese people!  One of my prayers going into this trip was that I would be clothed with the love of Christ.  It's hard to explain, but in a supernatural way I was able to love those people with a love that I myself had never known and had certainly never been able to express to others.  And in the same way, I felt that love returned back to me from so many of the Indian people that I met.

As I assess STMs and the experiences I have had, I have come to the conclusion that one of the greatest gifts we can give to students on STMs is an opportunity to intertwine their hearts with the hearts of people from all around the world.  Students definitely go into these trips prepared to give a piece of their hearts to someone. Unfortunately, often times we as leaders don't give them opportunities to love on the native people, so they end up throwing their hearts at the cutest guy or girl on their team (can you say mission trip hook-up?).  It happens all the time.  What a waste of a trip and an opportunity to experience the diversity of the Kingdom of God.  I am convinced, though, that if students are given the opportunities to connect with people from other countries on STMs, they will leave forever changed by the relationships they have built.

I leave you with a few pictures of the life-changing relationships I built while in India.

This is Jhumki.  She's 5 years old.  She stole my heart on this trip. 

The short guy on my right is Ibrahim.  He's currently working in Bhutan, one of the most closed countries to the Gospel in the world.  He risks his life every day for the sake of Christ.  I received an email from him today saying that he's praying for me and my ministry here. Wow...humbling...

 This is Sreejan.  He's about my  age, and he's a stud cricket player.  Sreejan lives in Orissa, an Indian province where the demonic strongholds of Hinduism are very evident through acts of human sacrifice (often babies or teens) to "the gods of the soils," and where churches are burned and Christians are often killed for their faith.  Sreejan has a heart of gold, and he's truly searching for what God would have him do with his life.  I suggested that he might be well fit for vocational ministry, to which Sreejan replied, "I could never pursue ministry for the Lord unless God Himself calls me to it."  I wonder how many fewer pastors we'd have in the U.S. if we all had such strong conviction about God's calling as Sreejan did!!!

These are my guys--Rahul, Bunty, George, Vishal, Johnson, and Pratik!  I love these guys!!!

That's all for now.  Much, much more to come!