Spiritual Preparation for Being on Mission

As a follower of Christ, it is commonly understood that the words mission trip mean that you are giving of your time, money and skills to share the love and message of Christ with people in another location.  Whether or not your trip allows obvious evangelism, or requires you to be more reserved about your faith, you must still be prepared or you‘ll miss what God is doing in the destination country, and your effectiveness will be diminished.

It is important that you are spiritually prepared for the experience, and take time to assess your spiritual maturity ahead of time.  Are you taking time for daily devotions; Bible reading and quiet time before the Lord?  “Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth." (Psalm 46:10)

Do you participate on a regular basis in a church fellowship?  If you‘re not doing these things, now is a great time to start!

The commitment to fellowship, Bible study and prayer will encourage and strengthen you, not just on mission trips, but in your everyday life as a follower of Jesus Christ.  Spending time with the Lord will give you growth, spiritual depth and knowledge in Him.  The Apostle Peter reminds us of our need to, “…grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and forever! Amen.” (2 Peter 3:18)

Also, having a strong faith and being familiar with the leading of the Holy Spirit will help you tremendously in dealing with all the variables that come with international travel and a foreign culture.  If you take the time to be spiritually prepared, you will be able to handle all of the inevitable challenges with peace and joy.

Being spiritually prepared helps you have the right attitude (complete trust in God), and you will be able to be flexible and have a good sense of humor, which is extremely valuable to the success of any missions trip! 

Isaiah 58:10-11 says, “...and if you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry and satisfy the needs of the oppressed, then your light will rise in the darkness, and your night will become like the noonday. The Lord will guide you always; he will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land and will strengthen your frame. You will be like a well-watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail.”

During the weeks that you have before the trip, you should take advantage of this time to actively give attention to developing faith in Christ to a new level.