7 Reasons Christians Travel
Mission
Most Christian journeys include several, if not all, of the 7 reasons why Christians travel. A trip with any purpose, Christian or otherwise, is a mission. However, some trips are billed specifically as a “Mission Trip”. There are missions of philanthropy, where participants help the less fortunate. There are missions of stewardship, where participants help the planet. There are missions of evangelism, where participants share the Word. I maintain that regardless of how the trip is described, the mission of a mission is evangelism.
We have a “Missions trip” going to Mexico to build a house for a needy family. I have no knowledge or skills for this type of work. If I stayed home and worked as hard, I could earn enough money to hire several locals in Mexico, each of which possess more home building skills than me. Not only would more house get built, but I would be providing jobs to several people for several days. I have the logic that could save me from this manual labor, but to the contrary I will explain. When I show up in Mexico to do work that I do not have the stamina nor ability to do, the Mexicans looking upon my efforts have to ask themselves why. Even if I did not say one word to anyone, the message that I am sending is that I am there because I care about them. John 13: 35 “Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples.” The family receiving a home, and the neighbors, and the community will know that we are followers of Christ because our efforts are motivated by love. The less skill that we actually have only means that our commitment is that much greater. The mission of this mission is evangelism.
There are “mission trips” to help save the planet. Some of these are sponsored by churches, but many are through secular organizations. While the secular individual or group may be motivated to “save” the world by their efforts, this is not the Christian mindset. God created a world perfectly capable of taking care of itself, and sent Jesus to save man from his iniquities. God’s world does not need fixing, but we are tasked with taking care of it. Whether secular or Christian based, these missions purpose is to undo damage done by man or to conserve resources that man is using. An atheist on a mission of this sort would have the mindset that he is control of his world. While a Christian with the right motivation on the same trip, working in God’s world, is conveying a different message to those around him. The mission of this mission is also evangelism.
A mission may be more explicitly a mission of evangelism. We have a trip to Poland to serve as teachers for vacation Bible school. The mission of this mission is obviously evangelism, but you don’t have to be on such an obviously motivated trip for your mission to be evangelism. Sharing God’s word and walking with Christ should be a part of your daily life in all that you do. Then when you travel, for any reason, the mission of your mission will be evangelism.
We have a “Missions trip” going to Mexico to build a house for a needy family. I have no knowledge or skills for this type of work. If I stayed home and worked as hard, I could earn enough money to hire several locals in Mexico, each of which possess more home building skills than me. Not only would more house get built, but I would be providing jobs to several people for several days. I have the logic that could save me from this manual labor, but to the contrary I will explain. When I show up in Mexico to do work that I do not have the stamina nor ability to do, the Mexicans looking upon my efforts have to ask themselves why. Even if I did not say one word to anyone, the message that I am sending is that I am there because I care about them. John 13: 35 “Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples.” The family receiving a home, and the neighbors, and the community will know that we are followers of Christ because our efforts are motivated by love. The less skill that we actually have only means that our commitment is that much greater. The mission of this mission is evangelism.
There are “mission trips” to help save the planet. Some of these are sponsored by churches, but many are through secular organizations. While the secular individual or group may be motivated to “save” the world by their efforts, this is not the Christian mindset. God created a world perfectly capable of taking care of itself, and sent Jesus to save man from his iniquities. God’s world does not need fixing, but we are tasked with taking care of it. Whether secular or Christian based, these missions purpose is to undo damage done by man or to conserve resources that man is using. An atheist on a mission of this sort would have the mindset that he is control of his world. While a Christian with the right motivation on the same trip, working in God’s world, is conveying a different message to those around him. The mission of this mission is also evangelism.
A mission may be more explicitly a mission of evangelism. We have a trip to Poland to serve as teachers for vacation Bible school. The mission of this mission is obviously evangelism, but you don’t have to be on such an obviously motivated trip for your mission to be evangelism. Sharing God’s word and walking with Christ should be a part of your daily life in all that you do. Then when you travel, for any reason, the mission of your mission will be evangelism.