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Short-term
Mission Trips within Xenos Christian Fellowship
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1—Strategy
The primary purpose
of this paper is to define the strategy for short-term mission trips sponsored
by Xenos Christian Fellowship, including selection of the mission field, trip
leader(s) and team members. It will also serve to define the overall process
and related responsibilities of Xenos Christian Fellowship, mission field
leaders, trip leaders, and team members.
Short-term mission
trips are a proven tool for mobilizing the Church towards greater involvement
in missions. The Xenos Missions Department has two primary objectives, which
a strategic short-term mission trip initiative would help to accomplish. The
first objective is to enlist 50% of all Home Church members as a “Missions
Mobilizer.” A Missions Mobilizer is someone who seeks to increase missions
awareness and involvement in their life and Church, as evidenced by an annual
commitment to various missions-related activities. The second objective is
to identify and develop long-term missionaries. Many factors can impact the
effectiveness of this tool in mobilizing the Church; therefore, a strategy
for short-term mission trips has been defined, as well as guidelines for how
the trips should be managed.
The primary
strategy of Xenos Christian Fellowship is to send out short-term teams to
mission fields where Xenos has already invested, or plans to invest, in long-term
fields. We feel the benefits to this strategy are numerous. As a church
mobilization tool, short-term members often make a strong connection with
the country and people they have personally seen and met, and therefore become
more effective prayer and financial supporters of our long-term mission fields.
They may develop enough of a heart for missions that they would consider preparing
to join one of our fields as a long-term worker. The larger congregation is
mobilized indirectly by the enthusiasm of the team, as well as the spiritual
impacts made on both the team members and the nationals that our long-term
team is striving to reach.
Proper planning,
team building, and training can also reap benefits to the missionaries and
nationals of our long-term fields. In addition to those realized by a more
mobilized sending church, benefits include:
- Completion
of short-term projects that they have not had the resources to complete.
- Effective
witness for Christ demonstrated through active faith.
- Affirmation
of our commitment to the mission and a kindling of the connection with their
sending church.
- Encouragement
of long-term workers by coming alongside them in a very tangible way.
In short, a sound
short-term investment of our resources is one that also serves to advance
our long-term objectives.
This is not meant
to discount the impact of trips taken by church members that are not in line
with the strategy. Certainly, any cross-cultural exposure will provide a heightened
awareness of the many emotional, physical, and spiritual needs that exist
in the world, and thus serve to mobilize the church towards increased involvement
in missions. A clearly defined strategy simply promotes a proactive rather
than reactive management of short-term trips, and consistency in the prioritization
of proposals. Trips that are considered strategic in nature and approved by
the Management Team and Elders have been termed, “Xenos-sponsored;”
those that aren't have been termed, “well-wisher.”
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