It is a fairly recent trend wherein Short Term Missions (STM) became one of the premier methodologies in which the church relates to the world. This experiment perhaps popularized by organizations such as OM and YWAM, has resulted in an incredible explosion of global awareness, bringing the youth of the West (or Northern nations) to learn firsthand of the conditions of the rest of the world. In some cases, both the poor and wealthy of the world are able to sit and talk around the same table. Without question, this increase in missional awareness has resulted in a better global understanding, initiatives to help the poor such as clean water and clothing, as well as set up thousands of individuals to join the mission of God for the rest of their lives.
Yet this story has also not been all peaches and roses. The appeal of a the STM trip has had many thousands of others jump onto the bandwagon. Some ineffective teams work great damage to the character of God as they arrive internationally with their own single-minded agenda. Naive teams may deny the unique and strange ways of Christ with his diverse family around the globe.
The jury is still out in terms of the final effect of this STM worldview, in any case this methodology has deeply impacted the way that churches now participate in missions. Where in the recent past the responsibility lay primarily with arms-length agencies, churches are now proactively working to personally engage in personal Missions initiatives ‘on the ground’. Our response and our methods in this new reality matters.
If you hate Short term mission for the all to common stories of inappropriate engagement and damaging witness you are not an anomaly. It is easy to recognize failure, send me into a church service or celebration on any Sunday morning (or Saturday night), and I am sure that I along with anyone else could find something to find fault in.
I remember hearing the fervent story of one young man who expressed his spiritual gift was to step into a church, ’stir up the sh!t’ and then leave to let them deal with it. As is always the case when I hear this type of critique, an arrogance of personal perfection in matters theological or practice is always just below the surface. Evaluation, Judging and Fault-finding has never been our problem; the tough part always is stepping beyond the chaos of our individual disapproval and stepping into the much tougher place of participation into the dynamic lives of others
As people of a living and active faith it is as wrong to think we can somehow compartmentalize our engagement to merely as providing funds to missions agencies. This life of Christ is not a life of mental approval to written theological statements, neither is it a ‘life’ of sin management, rather it might only be able to be proven once it is lived – this way is participation, engagement, emotion, and a willful choice to fierce living.
It is too easy to judge a movement by its failures.
Yes, short-term mission has failed. Much like long-term mission, church communities, denominations, leaders, theologians – the list of examples grow daily. They all fail, because they are filled with people who run them – people with strange ideas and pointless passions, much like you and I. Judge them and we avoid looking at the sheer courage of those who refuse to step aside from opportunities to participate far beyond their ability.
Still I believe that STM is perhaps the premier method by which many thousands can feel the strong pull and passion of what Christ meant when he called us to service. In this age of information, we know less and less – as information is mistaken for our participation.
It is only when we actually feel the mud between our toes, spend time carrying water with a double orphan, or accept hospitality from a stranger with less in their cupboard than we carry in our suitcase, that we can begin to grasp just who our global neighbors are. No compelling story or high production video can tell a 1/100th of the reality, it is experience and experience alone which allows us to actually engage.
And this is the wonder of STM work. It is possible for you to engage. Wtihin 24 hours you can be there, you can spend an afternoon walking and talking with a stranger, and change your view for a lifetime.
Plan to participate, Recognize the failures, Realize there are better ways to do this, Discover the guides along the way. There are effective ways to engage.
Mark Crocker
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