Taking Your First Short-Term Mission Trip

Questions to ask YOURSELF:
By asking yourself the following questions to begin with, you help clarify essential information that will enable you to know what to look for in a sending agency:

1. Why are you going on a short-term missions project?
Of course we assume part of your motivation is founded in your desire to be obedient to the Great Commission. But delve deeper into your motivation. For example: Are you going on this project because you want to test the waters to see if career missions might be what God is calling you to? If that is a consideration, then you might want to look at an agency that has both short-term (we usually define this as 2 years or less) and long-term assignments. Many people find that it is the first agency they go with that captures their heart and if you might end up as a career missionary, why not consider going with an agency that can make that available? It is not at all unreasonable for someone to take one trip and fall in love with a particular location and want to commit their ministry years to that location with that organization.

Of course, you may not be testing the waters for a career in missions. Maybe you want to simply give God a week or two of your vacation time or a break from school to so something for Him, rather than yourself. If that is the case, then it makes no difference if the agency you pick has long-term opportunities available or not.