I’ve had several conversations over the past few weeks about the cost of missions. A good friend and I discussed trips I’ve taken to Africa. In Africa they often say it would be so much better for them to get the thousands of dollars per person spent for an American to come there as a direct cash donation instead. I agree. What I try to explain is that unless someone comes to Africa and has a hands-on experience they will be hard pressed to send over thousands of dollars as a donation. In that case the expense to go and see bears fruit much beyond the trip. Fruit that would not have otherwise been harvested.

Another conversation had to do with the rising cost of domestic missions. With gas costs fluctuating, material costs rising and other economic factors it’s hard to maintain or reduce the cost of organizing a mission trip. With the economy in turmoil it’s harder to find the funds to go on a mission trip. More and more people are asking, ‘Is it worth the money to go on a mission trip?’

For some this is a legitimate question. Your personal financial situation has changed and you simply cannot afford the money it takes to do mission. For many, however, it’s often an emotional response to difficult times. Their financial situation is the same as always…maybe even better…but the hard times in which we live cause us to scrutinize every expense. You hear the stories of people with means feeling guilty about spending money.

I encourage everyone to look at reality when considering missions. If you really are in a personal financial downturn then it’s wise to cut back. If you’re feeling guilty because your finances are as secure as ever, spending that money to help others is as important, if not more so, now than ever.

As the New Year dawned I was once again on the road for missions. I attended the Urbana conference hosted by Intervarsity every three years. This year it was in St. Louis and nearly 20,000 college aged Christians gathered to consider mission work. There were to many opportunities to count.

After the conference I hit the road to keep looking for communities where a new single day of service, 1 by Youth, can be launched. Soon I’ll be returning home.

What has struck me about missions is that there are really only two things necessary to make mission happen. Need and Desire. Initially you might think that need is on the side of those you’ll serve and desire is on the side of those coming to serve. If you’re thinking that, you’d be half right.

Need goes both ways. Yes, there’s no mission without people who need help…spiritual, physical, emotional, etc. But there’s also no mission if those with the resources have no sense of need to help. If you’re into mission you might be surprised by this, but there are a lot of good people who claim to be Christian and really have no urge to help others in substantial ways. Perhaps they have the misbegotten notion that missions means a huge commitment of time, expense and travel to a distant land. For whatever reason there’s no need.

As for desire, there are a lot of people I’ve met in desperate situations. The need is evident but they express no desire for help. In some cases they may even be hostile to the help offered. So even the strongest desire of those with resources is turned away.

So here’s the challenge for those of us who make missions our life. Finding both need and desire sufficiently abundant in everyone involved and seeing that all those people find each other. If you’re on either side of the mission experience and having a hard time finding one or both of these things, I’d love to hear from you to see if I can help.

Christmas is a time when new is in the air. We celebrate the newness of a Savior’s birth, even though it happens every year Christmas provides the chance to feel the freshness of the story all over again. It’s also a time when most of us anticipate new stuff. New clothes, new toys, new games…a new Lexus. (Honestly who buys a new Lexus as a Christmas present. Maybe I don’t travel in those circles, but $60,000 on a single gift seems pretty crazy to me. Not that I’d turn it down if that’s what you were planning to get me this year!!)

The new thing that’s got me all excited this year is a new mission opportunity I’ve been working on. It’s called 1 by Youth and the idea is to bring transformational change to a single neighborhood in need in a single day through the work of 1000 – 2000 volunteers. That’s the kind of new thing that gets me very excited. And it’s not just a wild-eyed dream. There are teams working right this very minute to make such a thing happen in Indianapolis, Indiana and Manassas, Virginia in the spring of 2010.

The thing about most new stuff you get at Christmas is that the excitement wears off and the joy goes away and the stuff wears out or goes out of style. When it comes to mission work that doesn’t happen. When you go on a mission trip you make a difference that isn’t forgotten a week or a month or a year later.

I enjoy the new stuff that comes at Christmas as much as the next guy. But it’ll never compare to being part of something new that changes lives, neighborhoods and whole communities. That’s the kind of new I hope you get excited about, too.

If you’ve been following my posts this week, you know I’ve been on the road. Six cities in four states by car and plane. One thing connects them all…need. From the smallest towns to the largest cities there are desperately needy people.

Also in every place there are people dedicated to helping those in need. Churches, non-profit groups, government agencies. And without exception there is far more need than these local groups can handle. That’s where youth missions come in. For all the benefit your group might get from traveling away from home and having an adventure together, the impact is exponentially increased when that adventure is anchored in sharing the love of Jesus with strangers in need.

It’s impossible to overstate the power of faith in action. Especially when it’s demonstrated to strangers by strangers for no other reason than we are loved by Jesus and are compelled to share that love.

From a purely human perspective I have no vested interest in seeing people helped in Indianapolis, Columbus, Manassas, Nashville or anywhere else because I don’t live in those cities. So why does the passion burn in my heart to make a difference everywhere? It can only be God’s Spirit at work as I seek to look through his eyes.

Today I travel home to Colorado but I don’t intend to stay there. I will be on the road again and pray that you will join me as you answer the urging of God to make a difference!

If this were Jeopardy the title of this post would be the answer to “What’s the benefit of going on a mission trip?” I promised earlier this week to write more about my visit with St. Paul’s youth group in Evansville, Indiana.

Today I’m writing from my hotel in Manassas, VA as I continue visiting people to talk about current and future mission trips. But I’m still reflecting on how much I enjoyed hanging out with Robert and his group. They introduced me to what they refer to as West side holy water – a regional soft drink, Ski, that is so popular with the group the largest artwork on the walls of the youth room is a giant painting of the Ski logo! They also reminded me of just how much energy and enthusiasm is generated by mission trips.

It’s more than that, though. The year the group went to a Group Workcamp in Racine, Wisconsin they received an anonymous gift of $2000 and a challenge to do something outside of their group and their church with the money. During some free time at camp they gathered on a Lake Michigan beach and came up with the idea of doing a weekend of home repair back in their own hometown. But, having been to a large, well organized mission event, they weren’t content with something simple.

When they got home they organized “Give Big” and invited several other churches to join them. They saw the $2000 as seed money that motivated them to raise another $5500+ (yes, they more than doubled the original donation). Local businesses, including the West side Walmart, gave generously to the project. Over the course of a weekend St. Paul’s and two other area youth groups brought over 125 people together to work on 26 projects. It made the local news, impacted every member of the three participating churches and garnered a huge amount of goodwill and respect from church and community leaders.

In April of 2010 they’re doing it all again and I can’t express here just how excited they are about it. They’re also going to Dunmore, WV for their annual summer mission trip. Missions that started away from home are having a life-changing impact at home. Here are some questions I have…

Would an anonymous donor have given $2000 to a youth group that wasn’t engaged in something meaningful?

Would a youth group that wasn’t going away for missions have been inspired and informed to do something big at home?

Do mission trips to other parts of the country make a difference in youth ministry back home?

You may think I’m biased…and maybe I am…but years of experience tell me the story of St. Paul’s youth and Give Big isn’t an isolated incident. It’s just what happens when we go.

I stepped away from full time youth ministry about six years ago. Since then, though I’ve helped at our church and worked with Group Workcamps to organize mission trips, I don’t regularly spend time with high school kids anymore. Last night I had an amazing time hanging out with the youth at St. Paul’s UCC in Evansville, Indiana.

This group has been going on mission trips for years. Once we got started reminiscing about all the fun they’ve had it was hard to stop. Robert, the youth leader, finally had to remind everyone about getting home for homework…he’s student teaching right now so I know he had homework. Anyway, the most amazing part of the evening was hearing about how the inspiration from going on mission trips set off a chain of events that turned into a very special project right in their own hometown.

I was once again reminded about the power of missions and how the impact of a mission trip can return home to make a difference that lasts for years. I’ll be telling more about my visit with St. Paul’s youth in my next couple of posts this week. I’d write more now, but it would get really long. Plus, I’m hoping to dig up some links to that local project I mentioned to go along with some details I’m excited to share.

Anyway, welcome to Youth Missions Insider. We’re really glad you’re here.