We're Jumping the Atlantic!

One of my personal dreams has been to see a team take a Short Term Missions (STM) Trip that takes us across the ocean to Africa or Asia. All our IMPACT teams have been to Latin or South America. This trip has nothing to do with disappointment in previous teams. These have been fantastic trips for ministry and personal growth in students.
It's been more about a desire to come alongside some of the more significant economic and spiritual crises that can be found in these continents.

Multiple factors have played a role in preventing us from doing this trip.

1. Cost - It's significantly more expensive to travel across the Atlantic v. South.
2. Ministry Partner - Who will we be working with? Will our work, in any way, assist the ministry that is going on in that area. This is a HUGE deal to us. Much of the STM experience is to the benefit of the traveler over those being traveled to. If the partnership is not taken into consideration, there is much potential to do more damage than good to the ministry happening in that area. In the times we have felt like we have a good partner, we've run into issues with #3.
3. Ministry Opportunities - What will we be doing? We need to make sure the ministry is within the skills set and capabilities of a High School student.
   
4. The Right Students - There needs to be students with a level of Cultural Readiness. The culture shock of exposure to poverty as well as avoiding the "Ugly American"perception in African and Asian cultures are essential to creating a positive experience. We have always felt that, in order to take a High School IMPACT team to Africa or Asia, the students on that team would have to have a previous STM experience in another country.
5. Timing - It takes longer to travel. We need the right leadership in order to make this a successful experience, and that leadership needs to be available at the right time.

If you look through this list, you can see how some items can work against each other. For example, the right student (#4) will struggle with the cost (#1) because they've already had to raise the funds and/or pay for previous experiences.

I'm excited that this year marks a time where the stars have aligned. We will be doing our first ever NMC IMPACT trip across the Atlantic to Kenya. Over Spring Break (we actually will leave the Thursday before Spring Break) Janelle and I will be leading a group of 10 High School Juniors and Seniors to the AGC Baby Center in Kenya, Africa. This trip also correlates very well with our Kids In Need (K.I.N.) focus for the year. Our first training meeting is this Sunday, and I'm extremely excited about the quality of team and the depth at which we are going to be able to dive into discipleship as we prepare for this.