Mission Trip or Vacation?

The difference between a mission trip and a vacation

“A mission trip is just a vacation that someone else pays for.” Lots of mission trip critics say this, and they’re right. Sometimes. At first glance mission trips and vacations do look pretty similar. They both involve taking time off from school or work, traveling to a new place, and taking lots of pictures.

However, if you’re really going on a mission trip, there will always be one huge difference. The difference is your purpose.

However, if you're really going on a mission trip, there will always be one huge difference. 

The difference is your purpose.

Self-centered vs. Selfless

The purpose of a vacation is to maximize your own personal enjoyment, relaxation, and pleasure. It's a trip that's all about you. It's self-centered.

On the other hand, the purpose of a mission trip is to maximize the name of Jesus by serving others. It's a trip that's all about others. It's selfless.

When a mission trip turns into a vacation

Can a mission trip turn into a vacation? Yes, if you're not being intentional.

What are your motives and reasons for going? To snap some cool pictures, get to know a cute guy or girl, or travel to an exotic place? If this is where your motives start and end, you're not honestly on a mission trip; you're more on a vacation because you're only focusing on yourself (self-centered).

What's your motivation?

Since we're all naturally self-centered, we need to be intentional about having selfless motives. It's not bad or wrong to take pictures, have fun with your teammates, or enjoy traveling. However, you don't want one of those to be your primary motivations during your trip. Motives turn into actions. So, if taking pictures is your primary motive, it'll be your primary action all throughout your mission trip.

On the other hand, if you're intentional about having motives like serving others, digging wells, or sharing God's love with children, then these will be the motives that turn into actions on your mission trip.

Think about it

Which way is your trip leaning? The mission trip side or the vacation side? The selfless side or the self-centered side?

No trip is perfect, and we all struggle with self-centered motives. However, if we're striving to be better reflections of Jesus, we need to be moving in a selfless direction. Jesus was rarely focused on getting great selfies during His trips.

Written by CJ -

Keep Reading: The difference between a mission trip and a vacation

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What Hangs in the Balance

 What Hangs in the Balance

A Special Guest post by CJ Palmer of preparemymission.com

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Our time so far in Honduras has been a whirlwind – we’re already past the halfway point of our trip. Our team has spent time preaching at local churches, feeding the hungry through a local ministry, investing in a new partnership with a local orphanage, and hosting a missions conference. There has been no shortage of work to be done as we continue to invest in the Connected Community initiative this week.

When this trip began I had no idea what to expect. The schedule, the team, and the projects we would be working on were largely a mystery. But as the week has progressed and the answers to these questions have fallen into place, a new uncertaintyhas emerged.

As we invest time and energy into projects here in La Ceiba, sometimes I wonder if it’s working. The outcome of each project is so uncertain.Will helping a local ministry serve one meal to the hungry really make a difference? Will hosting a missionsconference alongside churches in the community actually result in spreading God’s Word to other nations?

And the honest answer is, we don’t know for certain.

But that uncertainty is precisely why we must continue these projects.

We have no idea what hangs in the balance of our decision to pursue what God has put in front of us. We have no idea what – or who – is at stake as we decide whether or not to act on what we’ve seen.

When Javier, cofounder of Connect Global, made his way to Honduras for the first time 12 years ago, there was no way he could have known what was at stake. The future that hinged on that one trip was completely unknown in the moment. The founding of Connect Global, the hundreds of mission trip participants he’s led, and the warm meals served at Comedor de JesuCristo this week all hinged on his initial decision to follow where God was leading.

Earlier this week one of the local pastors in La Ceiba, Pastor Allan, said, “We do little things and don’t ascribe much value to them. But God turns little things into big things.”

We do little things, take little steps, make small choices, and rarely view them as significant in the moment. The decision to pray for one more person at the hospital or to serve one more meal at Comedor de JesuCristo seems inconsequential.

But God turns little things into big things.

In Matthew 4, the small decision that Peter and Andrew made to leave their fishing nets for the day and follow Jesus turned out to be the biggest decision of their lives. Yet, they had no idea what outcome hung in the balance of their decision, which may have seemed insignificant at the time.

There’s simply no way to predict how God is going to use our small decisions and actions in the long run. We don’t know the impact serving one meal can have. We don’t know how far the attendees at this week’s missions conference will travel to share God’s Word.

As we continue to invest in the people of La Ceiba, Honduras this week, we may not know the outcome of these efforts in the moment. But we do know that God turns little things into big things – that part is certain.

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No Idea What To Expect

No Idea What To Expect

Special Guest Post by CJ Palmer of PrepareMyMission.com

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Preparing for a mission trip can definitely be a challenge. Packing all of the right clothing and gear, tracking all of the flights and times, and preparing mentally to embrace a new culture are all things that are running through my head as I get ready. This weekend my wife and I will set out on our second trip to Honduras with Connect Global.

Since my wife and I went on a trip with Connect Global last year, you would think that this upcoming trip would be less of a challenge. And in some ways it is. We remember what the country looks like, we know who our trip leaders are, and we’re somewhat familiar with the food. Knowing these things does make this trip a little easier. But no matter how many times you’ve been on a mission trip, it’s always a challenge to prepare.

It’s difficult to prepare for a mission trip because you really have no idea what to expect. We can prepare for the meetings we have at work tomorrow. We can prepare for the people we have staying in our guest room two weeks from now. But it’s nearly impossible to prepare for the people we’ll meet and experiences we’ll have during this trip.

This goes against everything we know and experience in the United States. We know what time to be at work. We know what we’re having for dinner. We know who we’re going to see before we see them. We know what time we’re going to bed and what time we’re setting our alarm to wake up and do it all again.

Wonderful job by these two as they helped serve up about 50 meals for people in need of a hot lunch. #GoServeChange #ServeOthers #Honduras

A photo posted by Connect Global (@iconnectglobal) on Jul 30, 2015 at 4:06pm PDT

You can’t plan and prepare for these things when you’re going on a mission trip. But, I think that’s exactly why we need to go. We need to practice what it feels like to follow Jesus, even when we’re not sure where He’s leading and what we’re going to do when we get there.

When Jesus asked His first disciples, Peter and Andrew, to follow him, they had no idea what He was up to. They had no time to prepare and no idea where He was leading. They were in the middle of their daily routine—casting their nets into the Sea of Galilee. But God had other plans for Peter and Andrew beyond their daily routine—plans they could in no way anticipate. God was up to something.

He’s still up to something. When we let go of our daily routine to see what God is up to in the world, we’re not only more open for God to work in us, but also for God to work through us.

My wife and I are so excited to serve the people of Honduras next week. We are excited to see what God is going to do in the Honduran people, in our team, and in each other. We have no idea what to expect next week, but that’s okay. We’ll find out soon.

Check back this Saturday and follow along as we begin our journey to Honduras.

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