How Do Short-Term Mission Trips Impact Local Churches?

While we know short-term mission trips impact individuals, what about the impact these trips have on the local churches sending these teams?

By Meredith Cook

Ask an International Mission Board (IMB) missionary, and there’s a decent chance they’ll tell you God called them into long-term missions through a short-term mission trip. That’s certainly not the only way God calls His people to serve as long-term missionaries, but for many, a short-term trip was significant in their decision to follow God’s call to fulfill the Great Commission among the nations for longer than one or two weeks.

While there’s plenty of anecdotal evidence of the impact short-term mission trips have on individuals, there’s less discussion about the impact short-term mission trips have on the local churches that send these short-term teams. How can pastors and missions leaders communicate that impact to the whole church?

“For many, a short-term trip was significant in their decision to follow God's call to fulfill the Great Commission among the nations for longer than one or two weeks.” — @meredithcook716 Share on X

Why short-term missions?

First, let’s address the elephant in the room. Short-term mission trips can be a bit of a contentious topic among missions leaders and missiologists. Dissenters argue that frequently, approaches to short-term trips are unhelpful at best and downright detrimental at worst. While there’s some legitimacy to these arguments, it’s safe to say short-term mission trips aren’t going away.

While our primary motivator for short-term trips should be to serve those on the field, there’s a trickle-down effect that impacts American churches. Approached prayerfully, thoughtfully, and with humility, short-term trips can positively impact all parties involved. Whether your church is just getting started or has been conducting short-term mission trips for decades, here’s some encouragement as you consider the impact these trips have on your church.

“Approached prayerfully, thoughtfully, and with humility, short-term trips can positively impact all parties involved.” — @meredithcook716 Share on X

Impact

When evaluating the effects short-term missions have on churches, exposure and mobilization rise to the top. For many churches, short-term mission trips serve to educate participants on cross-cultural ministry, expose them to the work of long-term missionaries on the field, catalyze evangelistic fervor in their own neighborhoods, and mobilize some to long-term missions.

Ryan Martin, director of missions for Lightbearers Ministries, has seen this play out in his church, First Baptist Church in Rogers, Arkansas, as they’ve sent one IMB Journeyman in the last year and will be sending 20 more members to the mission field this summer and fall. Short-term missions directly impacted each of these members.

Jay Hartsfield, mission and campus pastor at Rivertree Church in Huntsville, Alabama, said short-term mission trips have been essential to exposing participants to lostness around the world and to the missionaries his church has sent out long-term. He’s seen mature church members who struggle to share their faith find great encouragement in observing the work of their long-term missionaries on the field. Short-term trips helped these members grow in evangelism.

Ben McRoy, mobilization pastor at Faith Baptist Church in Youngsville, North Carolina, added that mission trip participants frequently become advocates for the missionary or people group they worked with, recruiting others to join them in prayer and/or future trips. He also said short-term trip team members are often the ones who give most sacrificially to Faith’s missions offering and toward helping others go on short-term trips.

Communication is key

With a good communication strategy, the positive impacts mentioned above can extend to the entire church. Nancy Gilmer, missions director at First Baptist Church in Farmersville, Texas, said she uses a variety of methods to communicate the impact of short-term trips to her church in order to prevent members from “becoming deaf to these important reports.”

Her methods include a Q&A with team members, video reports, or dedicating a full Sunday morning or evening service to sharing updates from short-term teams. Communicating these reports keeps the entire church involved in the mission.

Martin said FBC Rogers also uses video to highlight a short-term team while they’re on the ground during their trip and to highlight their long-term mission partners and upcoming mission trip opportunities. His church also hosts “vision gatherings,” where members interested in going on a short-term trip can hear about the impact of short-term trips from those who’ve previously traveled to those locations.

Hartsfield noted that communicating reports about short-term trips has been a challenge for Rivertree, but they’ve addressed this challenge in a couple of ways. First, they use social media, a newsletter, and an internal podcast to talk about their missionary partners and short-term trips.

Their most successful method of communication, though, has been what they call a “Summer Missions Share Night.” At the end of each summer, Rivertree invites the church to a light meal, where they talk about short-term trips from the last year. A representative from every team and any students the church sent for a summer or semester report on their experiences. The event also allows church leaders to announce trips for the following year and update the church on all their mission partners. Hartsfield said this event is one of Rivertree’s more highly attended non-Sunday morning events.

Seeing someone come to Christ because you are faithful to do something out of your comfort zone changes you.” — Nancy Gilmer, missions director at First Baptist Church in Farmersville, Texas Share on X

Lasting impact 

God calls many to long-term missions overseas, but He doesn’t call everyone to cross oceans to spread the gospel. Still, all Christians are called to obey the Great Commission, regardless of their location. As Gilmer said, “Seeing someone come to Christ because you are faithful to do something out of your comfort zone changes you.” Short-term trips can have a lasting impact on churches, catalyzing members to make Christ’s name known at home and around the world.

For permission to republish this article, contact Marissa Postell Sullivan.