As You Go: Five Ways to Prepare for Summer Missions

One of the best pieces of advice I received before going overseas was to keep a journal of my experiences. It’s amazing how much you can forget by the time you are flying back, let alone a few years down the road. Keeping a journal helped me process things in real time and gave me a way to relive my summers in North Africa. Through prayerful reflection on my past experiences, I’ve compiled a list of the five ways to prepare for an impactful summer overseas (whether that is for two weeks or two months).

1. Cling to Abiding Rhythms

You will be met with spiritual warfare in ways you have never experienced. One of the best ways to combat this is by praying before you go, as you go, and as you return. Ask for the prayers of your friends, family, and church members. Spend time prayer walking as you go around the city and in your neighborhood. One acronym I like to use for prayer is B.O.B. Pray for God to put a heavy Burden on your heart for the lost. Pray for many Opportunities each day to proclaim the Gospel to those who are lost. And finally, pray for Boldness to proclaim Christ when He gives you the opportunities.

Being filled by the Word daily is crucial as you spend so much time pouring into others. Ask your teammates to memorize scripture and do a Bible study together. It is also a good idea to consider asking someone on the field team for discipleship through the summer. This will aid your spiritual growth as well as help you process all the new things you are experiencing.

2. Embrace the Unexpected

Be prepared for things to happen that you aren’t prepared for. You will be served food you have never seen or even heard of. Most of it will be great, and some of it you will have to pray to get down. I consider myself a picky eater in the States, but God has been gracious to me by expanding my appetite while overseas. Once, our car broke down in the middle of the desert, six hours away from our town. The climate will most likely be different from what you are used to, and the language may be completely foreign. I’ve had many embarrassing moments with the language barrier, but sometimes you just have to laugh it off. There will be many other cultural differences, such as how people view time. A 5:00 meeting may start at 6:30, or a dinner scheduled for one hour may last three. Research some of the cultural differences ahead of time and be ready to embrace them head-on, give yourself some grace, be flexible and embrace the unexpected.

3. Find Your People

What are your hobbies and interests? Find ways to connect with people who have similar interests. This will make your transition to a new culture smoother and also create natural settings for gospel conversations. If you are a coffee enthusiast, find a local coffee shop. If you enjoy teaching English, join an English club. I found “my people” at a local outdoor basketball court. Not only did I have a blast playing the game that I love, but the crowded evenings and in-between times allowed for many gospel conversations and connections to be made.

The cool thing about finding your people this way is that a natural follow-up is built in. For me, I could share with a guy early in the week and then see him at the court again later that week. It will also be important to prayerfully sense the response you are getting from those you connect with. This can be done with the categories of red light, yellow light, and green light. Take note of those who are red lights, closed to continuing further discussion of religion or the gospel, because it may be best to move on to someone else. Your limited follow-up time is best used with those who are green lights desiring further Gospel conversation, or yellow lights, people who somewhere in between.

4. Research the Majority Religion

I spent two summers serving in majority Muslim contexts, where it is not uncommon to hear many people say our religions are the same. It will be crucial in situations like these to be ready to explain how and why they are different. Secondly, it will be useful to know some potential connections between religions. During my summers abroad, there was an Islamic festival called Eid where Muslim families gathered together and sacrificed a sheep in remembrance of God sparing Ishmael. I used this connection as a transition to the gospel because I knew that everyone celebrated the festival. I would ask a simple question like, “What does this festival mean?” and allow them to share. Then, I was able to share how we believe God provided a ram in Isaac’s place, and that the ram is ultimately a foreshadowing of Jesus’s sacrifice on the cross. Finding connections like these can provide many opportunities to share the gospel during a summer when you have limited time to get to the gospel.

Be a willing “relearner.” I have heard the story of Eid and the basics of Islam countless times. However, each time I encountered a new person, I would allow them to share their version as if I had never heard it. I found it best not to assume what a person would say. You will be surprised by how many different versions of the same religion you may encounter! Respectfully listening and asking questions often leads to you getting a chance to respond with Truth.

5. Have the Joy of the Sower

You will continually be reminded that though you can plow the ground through prayer and sow the seed through sharing the Gospel, you will never be able to make that seed grow. At least for me, that is often a hard but necessary pill to swallow. It can be frustrating to feel like you had the right answers, shared the right Scripture, and provided the right counter-arguments, but still not get through to someone. However, we must recognize what God has called and has not called us to do. He has commanded us to pray continually (1 Thess. 5:17) and make disciples of all nations (Matt 28:19-20). We take joy in accomplishing the tasks he has given us: praying, sharing the gospel, and discipling those who come to faith!

We must also humbly acknowledge that He alone can replace a heart of stone with a heart of flesh (Ez. 36:26). I made one of my best friends in the world during a summer overseas. One day, I asked him what it would take for him to become a Christian. He responded, saying that there is nothing that could ever change his mind. Recalling conversations such as these breaks my heart as I pray for him and all my other friends every day. However, we serve the One who is, and who was, and who is to come. (Rev. 1:8) When John’s disciples asked Jesus if he was the one, Jesus replied, “Go back and report to John what you hear and see: The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is proclaimed to the poor.” (Matt. 11:4-5) That same power lives in us and is changing lives in all nations.

While some of you may be hopping on a plane to go to the ends of the earth in the coming weeks, the Great Commission applies to us no matter where we are. These principles should be lived out in your spheres of influence before you go, as you go, and when you return. And while we are going, we know that He is with us always, even to the end of the age. (Matt 28:18-20)

If you are a student interested in going overseas next summer, schedule a GO Meeting. We can talk through opportunities with the CGCS, the International Mission Board and the North American Mission Board.