I absolutely love mission trips, so I was just wondering if anyone else has done them, and if so, what you didn on your mission trip and what your impression was of it....?

I went to World Changers three times, did some Katrina repairs in Mississippi, and my favorite thing in the world is doing youth camps in Russia, which i get to do every summer :)......

so yea... just wanted to hear some experiences from anyone who has done them...:)

Like mission as in convert people? Like a missionary? No, ive never done that.

well..... kinda, but not really......
that's usually not the main point of a mission trip....
a lot of times mission trips are focused on the physical and material needs of people, and that sort of opens the door to meeting someone's spiritual needs, but it's not really about converting people. It's more about meeting needs or building relationships with those who could use some support.

I've been to atlanta and pittsburgh on missions trips. This year we are going to cincinatti.

I personally cannot stand them whatsoever. I only like 2 out of 27 people in my youth group, and its basically a week of listening to "Yay Jesus!" (Which would be like one of you christians spending a week hearing "Yay Bhudda!"). I absolutley hate labor, and I don't like helping people either. Usually the kind of people we have to help are old people and people with down syndrome and stuff, and I am actually scared of both of them. I don't like being aroudn old people nor down syndrome (or people with any major disorder for that matter).

The only time I like is when we're back at the church we're staying at, where me and the 2 kids I actually do like sit around and play guitar until they make us go to bed.

Overall, I could go the rest of my life without going on one of those trips again, but, my parents are forcing me to until I move out, so I'm screwed.

I went to Colina de Luz a couple of years ago its this orphanage in Mexico and it was definitley an experience to remember. I also went to Snowflake, Arizona to this home for battered women and just helped out.

I've been to atlanta and pittsburgh on missions trips. This year we are going to cincinatti.

I personally cannot stand them whatsoever. I only like 2 out of 27 people in my youth group, and its basically a week of listening to "Yay Jesus!" (Which would be like one of you christians spending a week hearing "Yay Bhudda!"). I absolutley hate labor, and I don't like helping people either. Usually the kind of people we have to help are old people and people with down syndrome and stuff, and I am actually scared of both of them. I don't like being aroudn old people nor down syndrome (or people with any major disorder for that matter).

The only time I like is when we're back at the church we're staying at, where me and the 2 kids I actually do like sit around and play guitar until they make us go to bed.

Overall, I could go the rest of my life without going on one of those trips again, but, my parents are forcing me to until I move out, so I'm screwed.

wow. that sounds pretty horrible!

^Yeah.

It would probably be fun if it was something I chose and wanted to do, and not just yet one more thing my parents force me to do. That's one of the only reasons I want to move out, so they can stop forcing me to do stuff that doesn't help me at all. Some of the stuff they've forced me to do to try and "Help me" gave me even more problems than before, hopefully they'll learn soon.

^yea. it's one thing having things that your parents say you can't do, but it's really hard when they make you do things. In general, my parents are pretty good about respecting my choices, but not always.

^My parents never let me make decisions, ever. Since I never really had the option to decide on something, I'm REALLY bad at it now. haha.

i think a lot of parents... especially Christian parents do that. it's so detrimental.

lol.... buy them a book on it or something.

^I've noticed that too, the more religious parents are, the more they force their children into doing things. All of my friends with non-religious parents make their own decisions, all my friends with religious parents are forced into a lot of stuff.

well, i think it's a common pitfall, but i wouldn't say all religious parents are that way..... i know a lot of "religious parents" who give their kids plenty of space.

^I dont doubt that at all. I'm just saying, I've noticed a trend.

I went to Mexico and Vancouver, BC on mission trips during HS and college. It was a very rewarding experience and I got to be involved with some amazing pastors. After the trips I was always more involved at my church and more aware of people who needed help.

i went up to a indian reservation in MI where their church was in shambles and their sanctuary was outdoors and the roof shingles were falling off, now that was a fun mission trip b/c i got to play w/ a nail gun, LOL, oh, but whenever we go on a mission trip we always get to go somewhere fun afterwords, and on this one we went to cedar point, but that's the only trip i've been on, i'm not allowed 2 go on this year's b/c of some stuff i've done in the past year, so my parents say they can't trust me, so that sucks, b/c this years is gonna be the best i've heard, but me and my other christian skater friends are gonna build a skate park in our town b/c i got permission from the head of the city (who my dad is friends with, that helps), and got some space, it's in an old paper mill that was rebuilt 4 us, and is already got brand new cement flooring, and they are gonna provide like 10-15 ramps 4 us, it's like 100-150 square feet, so it's pretty big, and it's all b/c 2 years ago they took away our park b/c it was vandilized and some kids were always smoking pot out behind the ramps, so now, the christian boarders have me on their side and were gonna build a park, and it's pretty much all paid 4, but were organizing a grand opening 4 all skaters, and it's a public park, but we are gonna sit down w/ the head of the city commsion and he's gonna help us make up some rules, so i guess we've got our own mission tripish thingy, but that's that


This was like wrtiing a book


Tylerr

haha, sweet^^^
i think i need to organize "a mission" to get myself something similar ;)

I've been to atlanta and pittsburgh on missions trips. This year we are going to cincinatti.

I personally cannot stand them whatsoever. I only like 2 out of 27 people in my youth group, and its basically a week of listening to "Yay Jesus!" (Which would be like one of you christians spending a week hearing "Yay Bhudda!"). I absolutley hate labor, and I don't like helping people either. Usually the kind of people we have to help are old people and people with down syndrome and stuff, and I am actually scared of both of them. I don't like being aroudn old people nor down syndrome (or people with any major disorder for that matter).

The only time I like is when we're back at the church we're staying at, where me and the 2 kids I actually do like sit around and play guitar until they make us go to bed.

Overall, I could go the rest of my life without going on one of those trips again, but, my parents are forcing me to until I move out, so I'm screwed.

Hey.....sk....this post made me and my wife laugh for about ten minutes. I love you, friend.....I wish most of the Christians I know were as honest as you are. I suspect a huge number of church youth would agree with you...Christian or not. I have talked with youth pastors about shoving young people through ministry for which they are unready....but a lot of youth pastors are too busy creating the appearance of ministry to be concerned about the integrity of ministry. I believe it teaches young people to be hypocrites if they are unready for the type of ministry they are performing. It cheats them out of God's power to do the ministry for which he calls them and often produces poor results with those being ministered to. Ministry without God's passion and power is show biz. I'm sorry you have to do something that is so uncomfortable and unfulfilling for you.

^Oh man, you can only know how corrupt kids in youth groups are if you are in one.

All youth groups do is teach kids to put on this fake shell of being "Holy", "Clean", "Pure", whatever "Godly" word you'd like to say. But finding an actual good kid is pretty hard these days.

Statistics show that over 75% of teenagers raised in youth groups will not go back to a church for most of their lifetime. That shows you how much of an absolute crap job most youth groups do.

Also, something that makes children in youth groups corrupt is that they get praised SO much just for being in the group. EVERY sunday one of the pastors at my church talks about how good our youth group is and how much we get God's message and stuff, and it makes most kids ego so large that their head is about to explode, causing the children to think they do not need God as much because they are so "Holy". This eventually corrupts them even more, because praising so much actually makes children stray away from their faith.

^...well......I think you have a lot of wisdom, friend.

I thank God I know some good kids....both Chrstian and non-Christian...and you do too. You know I want the best for you. I'm also happy that some of the guys here had a good experience with thier summer ministry. I hope you have a good summer, sk. Hope the hip's better too.

Oh....by the way.....I once told the young people in my youth group I would be a lot more impressed with their ministry out of town if I saw them take better care of the youth that came in and visited with us from week to week. Many of the visitors never came back because there was so strong a clique.

^Yeah, there are still some good kids. But nowadays as long as your not doing drugs, that makes you a good kid. My hip's fine right now, but give it a week or two it'll be out again haha.

That's how my youth group is to, visitors rarely stay because of the way the kids act in mine. (Or maybe it's because of how everyone except like, 3 of us aren't your typical extremely closed minded prep/jocks that only beleive what their parents beleive and have never experienced actual thinking before).

we have some kids in our youth group like that, but there are at least 10-12 kids in our youth group that are good kids, that follow god and all that, and we have about 25 kids in our youth group, and i'm becoming more and more like the good kids, glidenhi can back me up on that, can't you glidenhi?


Tyler

You have to be careful who you label as a good kid though. Some of the kids that the adults think are "Good Kids" in my youth group do drugs on a regular basis, and get into all kinds of trouble. One of them has shoplifted before.

yeah, i know, but i know most of these kids very well, and if you do drugs in our youth group it's pretty well known b/c, well, you just can tell by what people say, the kids i am talking about are actual good, wholesome kids, who don't swear, do drugs or any crap like that


Tyler

we have some kids in our youth group like that, but there are at least 10-12 kids in our youth group that are good kids, that follow god and all that, and we have about 25 kids in our youth group, and i'm becoming more and more like the good kids, glidenhi can back me up on that, can't you glidenhi?


Tyler

Ya......I believe in you, Peter Pan.......;)

...hey, Tyler....that's the Bible on that table, isn't it...?
http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b101/ocooper/panandthebook.jpg

I went to Russia in 1992. We ministered in public school classrooms in a city called Krasnoyarsk in Siberia. It was awesome! You could see God was at work!

In 1996 I went to Lima, Peru. The standard living conditions there made me VERY thankful for what I have here in the U.S.!

yeah, but the funny part is that in that picture, he's holding the bible while wielding a knife, LOL, WWJD, I think he would weild a knife, LOL, NOT!!! but your right, maybe pete was a christian, he went to Saint Kids church, i'm not catholic, but he may be, lol, who knows, just a thought

Tyler

hahaha
this is a highlight from my mission trip last summer in Russia....
we camp for ten days in the forest... no bathrooms, no electricity, nothin. : ))))))

http://youtube.com/watch?v=7eafHehXB1s