What your student won’t learn on mission trips

Who wouldn’t want to go on a mission trip? In high school, these trips open students’ eyes to the reality of poverty outside of our comfortable world of technology and instant gratification.

Through mission trips, Christians help at-risk communities in very practical ways: building houses, sharing Christ, and — through our insight and technology — bringing hope to people in deep need. It’s challenging to take cold showers, eat unfamiliar food, only drink (or brush your teeth with) bottled water, but it’s an amazing chance to see the world, while helping those in need. Students often visit local tourist sites, buy beautiful souvenirs, and come back as a new person. Their lives will never be the same again.

Sound familiar? Here’s the problem. Mission trips are wildly popular, and those who participate in them usually have the best intentions. Yet the uncomfortable reality is without careful training, deep cultural understanding, and a constant posture of humility and teachability, good-hearted individuals can often do more harm than good.

Without understanding language, culture, and community values, good-hearted intention can often dangerously misdiagnose the work that needs to be done.

• • • Are we offering poor solutions?
    • Are we addressing a temporary problem or the root cause?
    • Can the local community be empowered to do this work themselves?
    • Will our solutions still be helpful in a few years, or will the cost or logistics of maintenance mean our fancy technology sits dormant and collecting rust?

In When Helping Hurts: How to Alleviate Poverty Without Hurting the Poor … and Yourself, noticeable reading about global development, authors Steve Corbett and Brian Fikkert say short-term mission trips are usually focused on relief efforts, which are most effective in the immediate aftermath of a natural disaster. The issue? Short-term teams usually visit communities who are “experiencing chronic problems that need long-term development.”

What’s more, “our American idols of speed, quantification, compartmentalization, money, achievement, and success” can make it so “projects become more important than people.” We feel a need to report back specific numbers: wells dug, houses built, and people converted to prove the time and expense was worth it. Lasting, sustainable change takes a long time to nurture and cultivate. It often won’t look impressive to our fast-paced world back home.

If mission trips don’t work, what does?

At World Vision, drawing on a popular model highlighted in books like Trenda’s After the Trip and Corbett and Fikkert’s When Helping Hurts, we have replaced the traditional model of the short-term mission trip with something called a Vision Trip.

Vision trips are “cross-cultural mission trips that are carefully designed to expand our vision,” Trenda explains. “The goal is that as a result of what and, more importantly, who we saw while traveling, we would see life, the world, people who are materially poor, God, ourselves, and maybe even our vocations differently.”

There is a misconception around poverty, and what that actually means.

At World Vision, we do not view poverty as a lack of material possessions. Instead, we define it as a condition that exists largely as a result of broken relationships.

Until we embrace our mutual brokenness, When Helping Hurts states, our work with low-income people will do more harm than good. We must repent of our pride and give up our need to be the hero. We must partner with local communities in a substantial way, reject the materialism of Western culture, and learn to see poverty on relational terms.

As a child, Criselde was sponsored through World Vision. Today, this mother of two volunteers with World Vision’s work in her Filipino community.

“When I was in grade school, World Vision was there for us,” she says. “They built a school building for the children in our community. They gave me school supplies, bags, pencils, and other necessities for school. I finished my studies because of World Vision.”

When she became very sick in 5th grade, Criselde was able to see a doctor because of World Vision. All these years later, when she heard World Vision was coming to her new community, she told her husband she wanted to volunteer with them. Working with local Filipinos to staff World Vision programs — at all levels of leadership — isn’t the exception. It’s key to how we approach our development work.

Mike Chen, head of school at Pacific Bay Christian School in Pacifica, California, says, “I’ve been very impressed and excited to see that World Vision is really adhering to the principle of empowering the local communities to really participate in solving the problems that are most concerning to them.”

Chen, whose PhD work focused on the resilience of war-affected widows in Nepal, has seen firsthand how global development efforts need to be an authentic partnership, and one centered on relationships with those we feel called to serve. He recently visited World Vision’s work in different cities throughout the Philippines, including the communities his school partners with through World Vision Ignite.

“Interacting with World Vision’s national office in the Philippines,” Chen says, “we saw how they are local Filipino nationals: registered nurses and educators; professionals who come and are part of World Vision endeavors. They enter into these village communities and walk alongside these communities. Seeing this has been incredibly humbling and incredibly hopeful.”

Re-examining the Great Commission

Jesus’ final command to His followers before returning to heaven — the Great Commission — is to “Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” -Matthew 28:19–20

Making disciples of all nations doesn’t end with baptism or conversion. It means investing in and disciplining followers of Christ. To do this, we must recognize that when we enter communities overseas, we are not bringing Christ there. Christ has been present and at work long before we arrived. And Christ will be at work in His beloved community long after we leave.

As Christians, we have the opportunity to join God in his story of healing, wholeness, and redemption. But doing so requires work. It’s more than flying, eat a couple of meals together, write a check, share the Gospel and leave.

By carefully investing in the ‘Vision Trip’ model, Christians can avoid the painful reality of participating in a trip where we unintentionally cause harm; while participating in the real world, now.

In this model, the biggest challenge won’t be the unfamiliar food or the cold showers but learning to reject the earthly mindset that sees us as superheroes sent by God to rescue those who are materially poor. On a Vision Trip, we all enter into relationship and God-given identity empowering one another in the process.

This is not a vacation or sightseeing opportunity, with a couple days of manual labor or photo-ops thrown in. Vision Trips transform the superheroes mentality into God’s people, like clay, which God will shape into a vessel that will best accomplish God’s purpose.

Will we allow God to shape and form us into the creation He desires for us to be?

Poverty and Transformational Development: It’s Transforming Students, Too

In the years following World War II, Christians in the United States and beyond began to develop a deeper conviction to address global poverty. Bob Pierce, the founder of World Vision, was one of those Christians. In 1950 he prayed, “Let my heart be broken with the things that break the heart of God.”

We still prayer that same prayer today. At World Vision, we seek to empower families and children in nearly 100 countries around the world, helping them break the cycle of poverty and reach their God-given potential. How do we do that? Through transformational development.

When Christian schools partner with World Vision Ignite, there are two goals. First, as students build relationship with friends in their sponsored village, they’ll be able to play a role in helping families and communities take steps to overcome poverty.  And second, they’ll experience transformation personally, in their own lives.

We live in a world of instant gratification. It’s never been simpler to satisfy our desires in a moment. This is not healthy. So many of us need to retrain our minds – including our students Through Ignite, students will see what it is like to partner with a community for the long term. Transformational development isn’t about quick fixes. We can’t just write a check. We don’t just build a couple of wells and move on to our next philanthropic project. We’re not the heroes of this story. Instead, it’s about investing our hearts, our minds, and our resources to make a lasting difference. It’s about partnering with new friends, learning from their wisdom and insight, and empowering them to break the chains of poverty for the long-term.

Through Ignite, students will get to know the children and families in their partner community. The program gives students the chance to communicate to their friends through emails, and helps them discover a greater understanding of the needs of vulnerable people  through compelling videos, schoolwide events that make a lasting impact, integrated curriculum centered around global poverty, and Vision Trip opportunities.

Rethinking poverty

Poverty isn’t simply a lack of physical possessions, but also a physical, emotional, and spiritual state that is a result of broken relationships. In his renowned book, Walking with the Poor, Fuller Theological Seminary professor and former World Vision International Vice President Bryant L. Myers says, “The poor are poor largely because they live in networks of relationships that do not work for their well-being.”

Many people living in poverty lack power and control in their own lives because their relationships with others are often oppressive and disempowering. As a result, they can feel “permanent powerlessness,” Myers says. Parents who want nothing more than to be able to take care of their children are unable to meet their needs because of the cycles of poverty in their world.

World Vision takes a holistic view on eradicating poverty, equipping people to break the chains — the spiritual, social, psychological, physical, and economic chains — that cause them to believe the world’s lies that they lack value and are forgotten.

Psalm 107 and 116 both speak of God breaking our chains to set us free. We need to address the lies that make people who are materially poor believe they are worthless and not made in God’s image. We must address the root causes of poverty, and equip these families to be all that God created them to be.

Global poverty does not stem from ignorance, laziness, lack of entrepreneurial spirit, or lack of community spirit. Instead, it’s caused by injustice, displayed in broken relationships and deeply unequal power dynamics.

Our goal is mutual transformation

Seeing God at work in the lives of friends in the developing world can be powerful for students, especially if their classes, teachers, and communities approach global development work from the foundation of our Christian faith. As students engage in transformational development, we believe they will experience transformation themselves.

In a world of technology and instant gratification, Through technology and social media we have become accustomed to living in a world of tribes, surrounding ourselves with people who look like us and think like us. Ignite offers students a rare opportunity to build a friendship with young people in the developing world and will begin to see the world through the eyes of someone very different from themselves. They’ll develop humility and respect in their relationships with others, a sense of gratitude for God’s blessings, and an understanding that they can make a difference by caring about others the way Jesus cares.

Foundational to this transformation will be our Christian faith. We believe that Christ died to redeem our broken world: to heal the sick, to bring justice to the oppressed, and to invite all people into loving and self-sacrificial relationship with Him.

Revelation 21 tells of God’s new heaven and new earth, where God “will wipe every tear from their eyes” and “there will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.” We seek to bring God’s love, healing, and message of hope to people around the world.

Christian schools today face a daunting task. In our technology-driven, hyper-individualistic, and deeply polarized world, how can we graduate leaders of competence and character who are practically equipped to serve our world well? Students today need a radical shift of thinking and experience, or nothing will change.

Integrating our faith into our daily lives, and putting Christ’s values and priorities at the center (not our world’s values and priorities) isn’t easy. We must seek to gain practical experience leading, serving, showing respect towards, and being discipled in community with people who are different from us: who come from different communities, cultures, socioeconomic backgrounds … people who represent the economic, ethnic, and cultural diversity of our world.

This type of transformation isn’t easy. It won’t happen overnight. But by God’s wisdom and grace, this relationship-focused approach can equip them to be effective leaders in a today’s turbulent world. World Vision Ignite is a good way to start.

As Mike Chen, Head of School for Pacific Bay Christian in Pacifica, California, works to build strong Christian leaders for today’s world, he’s particularly focused in an area of education that is often overlooked — service learning.

Service learning is not just an occasional volunteer opportunity or community service day. It’s an approach that’s woven into everything — it’s both integrated with academic curriculum and planned with intentionality to help meet community needs. As defined by the Corporation for National and Community Service, service learning is a way to let students use their skills and knowledge in real life situations that also provides time for critical reflection on what they’ve learned.

Today, Chen is in the Bugallon region of the Philippines, making lumpia — a savory spring roll that can be fresh or fried — with local Filipinos, some of whom are World Vision staff or volunteers. He and Pacific Bay teacher William Duncan are here with World Vision to learn more about how the organization’s work throughout the country. They’re especially excited to visit Pangasinan and Camarines Norte, the two communities their school has partnered with through World Vision Ignite.

Pacific Bay, or “PacBay” as it’s known, doesn’t just sponsor students from Pangasinan and Camarines Norte. Through World Vision Ignite, they partner with these communities for the long term as World Vision equips them to combat poverty. Chen believes that relationships, particularly relationships with people who have different backgrounds and experiences than us — is essential for leaders to be effective in today’s world. Ignite provides a way for Chen’s students to develop relationships with friends a world away, along with lessons from Ignite curriculum that integrate and reinforce this learning in the classroom.

Chen’s focus on service learning doesn’t mean he places less value on academics. PacBay graduates often attend competitive and prestigious universities. Yet after more than 20 years in education, Chen has come to realize that individual character and academic achievement alone are not enough to produce graduates who will impact the world in a meaningful way.

For Chen, service learning is an important way students for students to engage in discipleship. He prioritizes finding opportunities for his students to be mentored and grow in their faith through community. Chen has witnessed the impact of service learning in his students’ lives and the powerful difference it’s made in their faith and spiritual development. In a video filmed for his Pacific Bay community back home, Chen recalls the words of Jesus in Matthew 25:

For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, 

I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, 

I was a stranger and you invited me in, 

I needed clothes and you clothed me, 

I was sick and you looked after me, 

I was in prison and you came to visit me …

Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.

Chen tells his students, “This is an invitation. God is calling us to enter into relationships with people who are so different than us.”

He wants his students to consider:

• Who are the people we would usually write off?
• Who does our world tell us is less valuable?
• What would it look like to build real, authentic friendships with people who are different from us?

“My understanding of the biblical concept of love requires two things: one is a deep knowledge of that person; two is a commitment to that person,” he explains.

As representatives of PacBay, Chen and Duncan visited several communities, visited multiple schools, met local children — including their own school’s sponsored children — and saw some of the technologies, like computer labs and tablets for classrooms, that World Vision is helping implement in schools. They also saw some of the various health, safety, education, and income-focused initiatives in action.

For Duncan, it was an eye-opening experience.

“It can be easy to see child sponsorship as us doing something for other people,” he says. Being in the Philippines showed him the crucial role of local Filipinos in caring for sponsored children and giving them access to the education and resources they need.

“We can’t be in the lives of people on the other side of the world in an incarnational way, like how Jesus comes and lives in people’s lives,” Duncan says. “But the Filipinos are here every day, every hour. We’re just coming alongside them as partners.”

Through World Vision Ignite, Duncan and Chen’s students are forming relationships with their sponsored children through email, photos, and video. They also learn about their friends’ community and the realities of their world through Ignite curriculum.

Duncan tells his students, “There’s a whole world out there that, if you’re ready, you can step into. You can engage with your love, your care, with your talents. With your time, with your wealth, with your knowledge, and with your skills.”

High school is full of pressures. Get top grades. Cultivate a long list of extracurriculars. Invest in sports or other activities that could lead to college scholarships. With all of these expectations, it can be difficult for students to find the time to engage in something as basic or seemingly “unimportant” as cultivating deep and meaningful friendships.

Service learning can be a deeply meaningful way to do this, but it must be done with careful planning and intentionality. It’s much more than checking off a couple hours of community service. It’s taking the time to learn more about the world, and to form relationships with people who come from different places. It’s taking the challenge to live like Christ seriously, and allowing this commitment to make a real impact on our priorities and how we spend our time.

Duncan believes Ignite helps students care more about their neighbors in the world — both near and far. He encourages students to stop, take the time to see the people around them, and look for ways to love their neighbor as Christ would. “If you don’t slow down,” he says, “you’re going to miss the opportunities.”