They say time is of the essence.  No time like the present, others say.  Planning your short-term mission takes preparation; it takes time.  While there may be occasions when a mission effort can be pulled together quickly, most often the preparation requires many months. No rigid timeline exists for short-term missions, but there are some general steps that allow a team to prepare well in advance in order to maximize the impact of the team with the strategy of the host missionary.  Here is a suggested timeline that can be used as a guide:

1. 10 to 12 months prior—determine assignment
2. 9 months prior—determine team leader(s)
3. 9 months prior—publicize mission effort
4. 6 to 9 months prior—recruit team/receive volunteers, deposit due
5. 6 to 9 months prior—contact travel agent to begin searching ticket prices
6. 6 to 9 months prior—schedule initial info meeting, collect bi-monthly or quarterly payments
7. 6 months prior—apply for passport and check requirement for visas
8. 6 months prior—plan team meetings and meet monthly to discuss general mission prep
9. 3 to 4 months prior—purchase plane tickets
10. 3 to 4 months prior—get immunizations (shots!) if necessary
11. 3 to 4 months prior—team meetings should become more specialized according to what the team will be doing on the field
12. 2 months prior—develop prayer team
13. 4 weeks prior—plan commissioning service for team
14. 1 week prior—hold commission service
15. 1 week or month after—plan celebration time with team and/or church

Preparing well allows us to go with a plan and then once there to go with the flow.  We trust that God uses our planning, but we also go knowing that the Lord will direct our steps and guide our ways for gospel advancement.

On the beautiful Fall Friday afternoon of October 12^th, the Owsley County Food Place celebrated 20 years of ministry to families in and around Booneville.  The celebration took place outside at the Owsley County Senior Citizens shelter.  There was bluegrass gospel music, Bible reading, sharing about the ministry, prayer of thanksgiving for the ministry and of course, food.  Those that attended enjoyed grilled hotdogs and the trimmings.  Jerry and Susie Lacefield, founders of the ministry, cut the cake and everyone enjoyed a time of celebration.

Jerry and Susie came to Owsley County in November 1997 when Jerry was called as Pastor of Booneville FBC.  They dedicated their lives to the people of one of the poorest counties in the nation. Along with the food ministry, they also had a clothing ministry, hosted mission teams that did home repairs, conducted backyard Bible clubs, block parties and lots of outreach events in the area.

During the celebration Jerry shared some stats from the 16 years they served at the Food Place:

• $71,997 was donated to buy food
• 389 tons of food were given out
• 572 volunteer mission groups and individuals served in the ministry
• Volunteer mission groups and individuals came from 16 states and 2 countries (Canada & Africa)
• Girl Scouts, Boy Scouts, youth groups, inmates from the local jail and other local volunteers assisted in the ministry
• 104 Bible Schools were held at assisted living facilities, apartment complexes, the ministry center and even one an individual’s yard
• 3,414 children were given Christmas items by Valley View Baptist Church in Louisville
• 1,350 children were given Easter baskets by Midway Church in Kentucky
• 11 families were helped in 2003 following a flood in Booneville
• 2 trucks were used for 8 years, then Harden Baptist Church in Benton, KY donated a trailer for their use

Jerry recalled a time in 2006 when funds were low, and they did not know if they would be able to continue the ministry.  They prayed for God to intervene and soon after received a donation of $14,000.

In 2008 they celebrated their 10-Year Anniversary, but also saw this as the biggest giving year, when $21,000 was given to support the ministry.

The biggest statistic that Jerry shared was that 290 persons professed faith in Christ during the 16 years they served at Owsley County Food Place.

Although the Lacefields have since retired and are now living in North Carolina, they still have a special love for the people of Owsley County.  This day was a Homecoming for them and it was also evident of how much the people loved them and were so happy to see them once again.

The Owsley County Food Place ministry continues, being led by Karen Jennings and retired pastor Bill Walton.  They currently serve around 300 families a month with food, mostly received from God’s Food Pantry in Lexington.  They have 7 freezers to store frozen food and are planning to build a cooler that will hold even more frozen food.

Thank God for ministries such as the Owsley County Food Place that continue year after year, month after month, to provide not only the physical needs of the people but show and share the love of Christ.  May they continue to see people fed and souls saved as a result of their labor.

Short-term missions is strategic for making disciples not only globally, but locally within of our own congregations.  Using short-term mission efforts for disciple-making among our own church members is one slice of the disciple-making pie.

No need to reinvent the wheel here.  Ample resources are available for mission teams to use for team devotions.  Teams might select a book of the Bible or a portion of Scripture to work through prior to departure as well as while on the mission field.  Questions related to the passage can be developed that generate team discussions when meeting together before and during the mission effort.

Teams might also select short, but pertinent books on specific topics to read prior to departure and to discuss while on the field.  Suggested topics include:

• Evangelism
• Missions
• Church Membership
• Theology (a specific doctrine or a summary of multiple doctrines—e.g. BF&M 2000)
• Biographies of missionaries or Christian leaders
• Selected sermons (manuscripts that can be read as well as listened to)
• Spiritual disciplines (Christian growth)
• Church health/revitalization
• Church planting

If using a book study, prepare some questions related to each chapter or section of the book you plan to discuss.  Use mornings or evenings with the team to not only review the upcoming day or debrief the day, but to discuss the topic for intentional discipleship time.

The point in team devotions is to maximize the concentrated time with the team for Jesus’ model of Mark 3:14—being with and sending out.  Mark gives us the reason for Jesus choosing the twelve (apostles).  He spent time with them and sent them out to share the good news.  Jesus is modeling what it looks like to make disciples—it’s time together and it’s time serving.  In fact, Matthew gives us a similar paradigm for discipleship.  Jesus mentored (taught) (Matthew 5-7); modeled (served with) (Matthew 8-9); and multiplied (sent them out) (Matthew 10).

Short-term missions allows churches to build disciples in a similar way that Jesus and Paul modeled it for us.  We can mentor, model, and multiply our church members in a concentrated way unlike at other times throughout the year.  Capitalizing on your time with the team for teaching and serving is invaluable and will often transform the way they engage the church and others once back home.

Construction skills of all types are much needed on the mission field and open the door to sharing the Gospel with those you serve.

One Kentucky missionary shared the story of a man they had been ministering to through their ministry center.  The man had completed their 3-month budgeting course and was in need of some home repairs.  A mission team from Pennsylvania who had served in the area for the past 2 years worked on the man’s home, including a bathroom that was falling in and in total disrepair.  On the last day of the team’s mission trip, the missionary went by to see how things were going.  The home owner met him at the car, took him by the hand and led him to the newly renovated bathroom.  The missionary, thinking the man wanted to show him his new bathroom, was quite surprised when the man said, “Today I knelt in the floor by this brand-new bathtub and accepted Christ as my personal Savior.”

The missionary and mission team had met this man at his point of need, opening up the opportunity to share Christ with him.  The man’s life was changed that day for all eternity because of a mission team that used their construction skills, but also took time to share the Gospel.

This is just one of many stories of how construction teams have used their skills on mission.  Others include churches that were rebuilt after being destroyed by fire and a lady who financed the rebuilding a widow’s house that was beyond repair.

There are many elderly, single moms, needy families, churches and ministry centers that are in desperate need of teams with construction skills.  Teams are needed throughout the year for everything from minor repairs to major construction or rebuild jobs.  Consider putting together a construction team from your own church or association that can meet the building or repair needs of your local community, as well as state-wide, nationally, and internationally.

Some of the ways construction teams can serve on mission include:

• Handyman services
• Wheelchair ramps for the elderly and disabled
• Home repairs
• Roofing
• Painting
• Electrical
• Plumbing
• Winterization of homes
• New home construction for a needy family
• Church renovation
• New church construction
• Repairs/renovation/new construction at a ministry center
• Disaster relief responses

Look for construction opportunities on the Kentucky Baptist Convention website at http://kybaptist.org/mission-opportunities/construction-maintenance/.

Or, consider joining a Baptist Builder Team, a Carpenters for Christ Team, or a Campers on Mission Team and use your construction skills on mission for Christ.

Jesus’s command to makes disciples of all nations is for all believers (Matt 28:19).  While we want every Christian to be a disciple-maker, not everyone in the local church will necessarily leave their home for gospel mission (Acts 13:1-3).  Some go; the rest send.  Some go long-term; others can go short-term.  Short-term mission teams can be a valuable asset to assist those making disciples in far places.  Enlisting proper short-term team members is an essential part of ensuring we have an effective and faithful long-term mission impact.  Here are some suggestions for enlisting your short-term mission team.

• Communicate clearly to the church the mission. Pastors play a key role in communicating and giving “stage time” to the mission that the church will engage in.  Use as many (creative) communication platforms as necessary to inform the church of the upcoming mission opportunity.
• Work closely with the pastor(s) in the process of recruiting or approving team members. As the shepherds of the church, pastors need to be involved in the decision process of those who participate in the mission effort.
• Plan an informational meeting. Those who express interest need to know key details (as much as possible) in finalizing their decision. Schedule an informational group meeting with interested persons. Cover such details as:
  1. Location
  2. Purpose of the mission (as it aligns with the strategy of the host missionaries)
  3. Cost (travel, food, lodging, ministry expenses, travel insurance)
  4. Accommodations (lodging, travel, food, etc.)
  5. Expectations of team members (health abilities, type of work, behavior, etc.)
  6. Q&A time

• Schedule interviews and/or an application process. Whether through an interview with those interested or by filling out an application, this step is important in making sure that those desiring to go are a right fit for the mission effort.  Issues covered in the interview and/or application include:
  1. Personal conversion story.
  2. Description of personal growth (e.g., prayer, Bible reading, church involvement, personal witnessing).
  3. Explanation of why the individual desires to go on this mission effort.
  4. Look for team players. There are no lone rangers in missions.
  5. Gain a feel for the personality of the person and ability to relate well with others.
  6. Willingness to be flexible and serve as needed.
  7. Physical and emotional stability.

• Inform each interested person of the decision. In many cases, the answer for an interested mission team member will be “yes, welcome to the team.”  On occasion, the team leader, pastors and other decision makers will have to inform interested persons that the answer is “wait”.

Short-term teams provide valuable help to long-term missionaries when those teams are carefully selected and properly trained.  While not every Christian will be called to live far from “home,” every Christian is called to make disciples of all nations.  One way to faithfully live out this disciple-making call is by being part of carefully selected short-term mission teams.

Matthew 9:36 challenges us to reach compassionately the harassed and helpless. No demographic is more helpless than children. Here in Kentucky, 26% of our children live in poverty, that’s one out of every four children.  

For the 985,000 children in Kentucky who live in poverty, Christmas doesn’t always come with the promise of gifts—or even a Christmas meal. Every day is more about survival than celebration. But we can help change that.

One very practical way that we can reach compassionately the needy children in our state is through Christmas backpacks.

Last year, almost 8,000 Christmas backpacks were collected in Kentucky for distribution by missionaries and church planters.  Each backpack is a tangible expression of God’s love as it is filled with gifts of clothing, toys and food items. But the greatest gift within each backpack is a copy of the true Christmas story.  Many children have never heard the “true” Biblical Christmas story.

Last year, there were hundreds of decisions for Christ as a result of the gospel message that is shared with each backpack.  An exciting thing about those decisions is that many of them were made by parents and grandparents of the children receiving the backpacks.  The backpacks don’t just provide hope to a needy child, they impact the whole family.

When the backpacks are received by children living in difficult circumstances, not only are the children and their families affected, so are those who prepare and pack the backpacks.  Many churches report that their whole congregation was involved in this ministry, young and old, including those who can’t travel on a mission trip. Some churches reported that working together on the backpacks helped them to focus outwardly on the needs of others rather than upon internal church issues.

Evangelist Dwight L. Moody said, “If I could relive my life, I would devote my entire ministry to reaching children for God!”   How devoted are you to reaching children for God?

Let me challenge you and your church or small group to commit to preparing and packing backpacks for children to receive this Christmas. Time is running out because backpacks must be ready for delivery by early October. It all starts with you – but ends in someone coming to know Jesus Christ and the true Christmas story.

For more information, or to commit your group’s participation in the Christmas Backpack Project, visit:  www.kybaptist.org/backpacks