Archive for the ‘Missions’ Category

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Wednesday, August 31st, 2011

Coming Off the Mountain: Overcoming the Post Mission Trip Blues

“I could buy that field, build a little house there and do this full time,” said Lori, a 39-year old high school geography teacher as she drove past an African village during the last day of her short term mission trip. Larry and Karen, Lori’s teammates, nodded in agreement. The couple wasn’t considering moving there, but they were planning a return trip. Like Lori, they knew that in a few short hours their mountain top experience would soon be over. Their Christian mission trip to Africa was coming to an end.

Before long, Lori, Larry and Karen, along with the rest of their team members, were back home in the U.S. and back to their “normal” lives. Although they had only been gone two weeks, it seemed like a lifetime of experiences. As they went about their tasks, their minds wandered back to the dusty African roads and the faces of so many people who they had touched while serving abroad. The trip’s excitement had turned to sadness. “Will we ever have that kind of experience again,” they wondered.

Mission trips are a life-changing experience. Usually team leaders do a great job preparing the team to go, but they don’t always do such a good job of getting them ready to come home. It’s not uncommon to have some post-mission trip blues. If that describes you, then here are some ideas to help you transition out of them.

Embrace reality. Very few people actually get to live on top of a mountain! It is great to visit, but the experience doesn’t last forever. We need to celebrate our experiences but not live in the past. We should focus on being thankful that we got to go and be determined to incorporate lessons from that experience into our everyday lives.

Focus on serving those around you. Know that many people find themselves in some kind of a valley right after a mountain top experience. When that happens, the key is to turn our focus off from ourselves and onto others.

When I return home from a mission trip, I often think of the Old Testament prophet Elijah and his literal mountain top experience at Carmel. There he humiliated hundreds of false prophets in dramatic fashion. But where do we find Elijah right after that incident? He’s down in a valley—a desert actually—under a tree asking God to take his life. The story is told in 1 Kings 19, where we see that Elijah had become very self-focused. “I’m the only faithful one left,” he said, “I’m the one who has been zealous for the Lord.”

God told him that he in fact was not the only one. There were 7,000 others who had stayed faithful. Then God gave him a job—mentoring a young prophet by the name of Elisha—and that task changed Elijah’s outlook. In the same way, when you come off a spiritual mountain top, ask yourself how to use your experience to help someone else. Is there someone who you can mentor? Try making ministry a lifestyle not just a two week experience. It’s a lot easier when you go from one ministry abroad right into another ministry at home.

In addition to these ideas, the travel guide Lonely Planet recently had on its website some suggestions for those suffering from post-travel blues: dream big, start a piggy bank, share your passion, and make art. While the article focused on vacation travelers, we can adapt it to missions travel as well.

Dream big! “Turn your post-holiday depression into pre-holiday anticipation,” says Lonely Planet. For our purposes, we would say that it’s okay to begin dreaming about your next mission trip. Just like Larry and Karen were contemplating a return as their Africa trip wound down, you can begin thinking and planning for your next outreach.

Start a piggy bank. Begin saving now for your next trip. Even if you have family and friends who help support your endeavors, you should still try to do everything you can to be ready financially. In doing so, you may find yourself asking the same question that a Lonely Planet blogger asked herself. “I have to ask if getting so caught up in the possessing of stuff distracts us from what’s really important in life?”

The blogger, who only goes by the name “Steph,” felt that she had too many “things” and that the cost of owning all of those things was stifling her ability to do what she really wanted to do. So she started selling her excess stuff to use the proceeds for what she considered important. While her focus was not on mission trips, her thinking certainly does apply to those who have a desire to serve internationally. Maybe eBay, Craigslist or a good old fashioned garage sale is the way to get that piggy bank started and get you on the road to your next mission trip.

Find a community of people who share your passion. You may want to organize on-going fellowships with others who went on your trip, or participate in conferences dealing with the region of the world where you worked. You can also find similar interests groups online through Facebook or by following people on Twitter who minister in your focus country. In addition, you can stay abreast of developments in the area by following humanitarian news feeds from services like www.Alertnet.org.

Make art. “Instead of boring your friends with your travel stories, do something creative with your memories,” says Lonely Planet. “Make photo books and playlists, turn your journal scribbles into travel writing.” They also suggest spicing up the old fashioned slide show with music and snacks that match the destination.

The mountain top experience of a mission trip is a good thing. Celebrate it! Enjoy the moment, but be ready to re-enter your world. Jump into ministry and look forward to impacting more lives in the future. You mission trip can be the beginning of a lifestyle of service and global focus that will quickly drive away any post-trip blues.

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Frank Banfill is president of MaxPoint Ministries (www.maxpoint.org) and recently launched ManageMyMissionTrip.com to provide administrative support to those who lead short term missions. He writes on behalf of Ministry Travel (www.ministrytravel.com) the leading provider of discounted airfare for missionaries.

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Wednesday, August 31st, 2011

Survey Results: Would you be willing to pay more if meals/snacks and baggage fees were included in the airfare?

As the airlines continue to find new and creative methods of charging for services, we were curious how our customers felt about ancillary fees. Out of 512 combined responses, 59% said they would be willing to pay more if meals/snacks and baggage fees were included in the airfare while 41% liked the fees for optional products and services. Thank you for participating!

What do you think?

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Wednesday, August 31st, 2011

Little Things Make a Big Difference

Our Christian mission clients who traverse the globe to bring hope to the hopeless know what a big difference little things can make in developing countries and remote parts of the world. They know that there are so many things that we take for granted in the West to which others around the world have little or no access.

Deborah shared this story on our Facebook page:

In China, I joined a national/international group that trekked to a remote village bringing school supplies, shoes, and treats. It was amazing to see the conditions in that impoverished community. They still rely on outhouses and only have cold water spigots that came to their yards. The whole village has one phone. Needless to say, the candy was consumed almost immediately! Similarly, the international Christian school I worked at in Bolivia took Christmas presents to street kids living in an orphanage. We were able to link up with Operation Christmas Child. It was incredible how a little box of toys was cherished. It was a joy to bring Christmas to these children in different parts of the world. I thank God for the opportunity to serve and to bless. 

As millions of children return to school in our country, complete with backpacks full of supplies, Deborah’s story is a great reminder of those who struggle every day with limited resources. But as she said, she was blessed because she had the opportunity to go and share things as simple as candy and school supplies. That’s the double blessing of mission trips: needy people are touched and encouraged abroad while touching and impacting the lives of those who go. 

Ministry Travel is proud to arrange thousands of missionary flights every year to just about every place imaginable. We are unique in that we are a mission travel agency—that is our single focus. We’re not trying to sell vacation packages to top holiday destinations. Instead, we help people like Deborah save money on their international airline tickets so that they can buy a lot more of the “little things” that actually make a big difference in the lives of others. We are blessed when we hear stories like Deborah’s. 

Do you have a mission trip story that you would like share? We would love to hear it. Visit the discussion tab on our Facebook page at www.facebook.com/ministrytravel.

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Wednesday, August 24th, 2011

USA Passport Day Set for September 17

Are you going on your first international mission trip or getting ready to take a mission team abroad? Then chances are you or someone on your team still needs a passport. Here is a great opportunity to get it. 

The U.S. State Department, which issues passports for U.S. citizens, will have its regional passport offices open on Saturday, September 17 with no appointments needed. You also will be able to apply for standard processing (4-6 weeks) at the normal fee. Typically, you must pay an expedited fee any time you submit an application in person at a passport agency or center. 

The State Department plans passport-themed events for children and adults at the passport agencies and at thousands of passport acceptance facilities around the country. You can visit one of the offices and apply for either routine or expedited processing. The State Department has opened several new regional passport offices over the last several months, bringing the total to 26. For a complete list visit http://travel.state.gov/passport/npic/agencies/agencies_913.html.  

New passports for adults (age 16 and older) are $135. Renewals are $110. Minor passports, both new and renewals, are $105. Currently, routine processing is taking four to six weeks. Expedited service, which costs $60 more, takes about two to three weeks.  

If you need your passport quicker, Ministry Travel can help you secure either a new one or a replacement in as quickly as 24 hours. We also can help secure travel visas. For more information on this service, visit http://www.ministrytravel.com/travel-services/missionary-passport-visa.shtml. 

If you already have a passport, here are some things to keep in mind:

  • Check the expiration date. Many short term missions travelers fail to do so, only to discover just before a trip that it is expired. No one wants the extra stress, anxiety and expense of trying to renew a passport when they are preparing to leave. Passports are valid for 10 years for an adult and five years for minors under age 16.
  • Make sure your passport will be valid for at least six month after you start your trip. Some countries require that your passport be valid for at least this long or they can refuse entry.
  • Locate your passport 3-4 weeks prior to your mission trip. We have heard many, many stories of short-term missionaries getting ready to leave for the airport and not able to find their passport.
  • Cary a copy of your passport with you when you travel. In case your passport is lost or stolen, the copy can make it easier for you to get it replaced while abroad. If you are leading a team, you should keep a copy of each team member’s passport. 

For more information on U.S. passports, including how to apply for one, visit http://travel.state.gov/passport. For information on visas and other international travel related issues, visit http://travel.state.gov. For discounted airfare for missionary and humanitarian travelers, click on the “Mission Travel Quote Request” link on our website at www.ministrytravel.com.

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Thursday, August 18th, 2011

Mission Round-Up: Denominations Highlight Global Missions Needs

Several major U.S. Christian denominations recently held their annual meetings, and missions continues to be a major topic of both discussion and action. They are appointing more long term missionaries as well as encouraging short-term volunteers.

The Presbyterian Church U.S.A. recently appointed several missionaries to work in the new African nation of South Sudan. Their focus in the fledgling nation will be on community based development, evangelism discipleship and ethnic conflict resolution.

The United Methodist Church (UMC) is commissioning 26 new missionaries today. Throughout the year, the various conferences that make up the UMC focused heavily on disaster relief, global malaria prevention, and feeding the hungry.

Southern Baptists spent much of their annual convention emphasizing the world’s 3,800 “unengaged” people groups and the need for more churches to take a proactive role in missions. Birmingham, Alabama pastor David Platt challenged the group of church leaders to take seriously the need to engage unreached people groups. “This is a problem for every pastor and every local church to address,” he said during a sermon.

Nearly $1 million was pledged for missions during the Foursquare Church’s annual meeting. This was a historic event, according to Foursquare Missions Committee Chairman Richard Casteel. Writing on the denomination’s website, Casteel thanked the pastors who made the commitment for their “generous act of faith in funding the expansion of the gospel throughout the world… (which) will help fund strategies to reach more people who have not yet been reached with the gospel of Jesus.”

During our nearly 12 years of service, Ministry Travel has worked with every major Christian denomination and missions agency in the U.S. as well as with a number of smaller and independent Christian missions groups. We’ve also served scores of churches taking missions trips to just about every place imaginable. We are glad to facilitate the travels of missionaries and groups engaged in missions work. If your denomination, church or organization is planning a mission trip, be sure to contact us at 1-877-541-5726 and ask about our special airfare discounts for missionaries and non-profit groups.

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Wednesday, August 10th, 2011

Helping the Mission Trip’s Bottom Line: Ministry Travel’s Social Media Month in Review

Expenses are always a factor in missions. Yes the focus is on ministry, but making the most of every dollar is critical to missionaries and those on international mission trips. This past month we highlighted several stories in our social media channels Facebook (www.facebook.com/ministrytravel) and Twitter (www.twitter.com/ministrytravel) that were relevant to finances and mission trips. Here are a couple of those items in more in depth.

The first was a fun chart created by a group of number crunchers over at The Economist (http://econ.st/q7YTnm) and put into a more visually appealing format by the folks at Credit Sesame (http://bit.ly/nKsIUL). The chart compares the value of a Big Mac in different countries. This is a guide to the purchasing power of the dollar around the world.

Why is this important to mission travel? It will help you in budgeting and could even be a factor if you are choosing between countries for your mission trip destination.

A Big Mac in China is 44% cheaper than the U.S. which implies that the Chinese currency is undervalued against the dollar. Take a missions team to Brazil and you will pay 51% more for those two all-beef patties with special sauce. The implication, at least in theory, is that you could expect your in-country expenses in Brazil to be 51% more than what you would pay for something comparable in the U.S. once you factor in exchange rates and the value of the currency.

By the way, India has the best deal on Big Macs and Norway has the worst.

Arthur Frommer, of Frommer’s Travel Guide, recently blogged that the best deals on currency exchanges are at ATMs rather than at airport or train station exchange kiosks. In Frommer’s example, he saved 15% by using an ATM. We have heard similar stories from our missionary clients.

One word of caution, however, is that not all debit or cash advance credit cards will work at all ATMs around the world. Europe seems to be the most compatible. You should, however, always do your homework before you rely solely on ATMs to get your cash.

The biggest expense for any mission trip is usually the airfare, and that’s where we work hard every day to help keep your costs down. Contact one of our missionary travel consultants for your next trip and let us stretch your international ministry dollars. You can request a no-obligation quote online at www.ministrytravel.com or by calling 1-877-541-5726.

Also, if you’re not getting our daily Facebook or Twitter updates, be sure to sign up today and we will keep you informed on all the latest travel news, stories and tips that are relevant to Christian missions and travel.

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Wednesday, August 3rd, 2011

How the 2012 Olympics Will Impact Flights for Missionaries

Every four years the world turns its attention to the summer Olympic Games as the world’s greatest athletes assemble in one place to seek the coveted price of a gold medal. London 2012 may be the farthest thing away from your mind right now as you begin to plan your 2012 missionary airfares, but it shouldn’t be. That’s because its location—London—could impact you regardless of your actual mission trip destination.

Many flights for missionaries go through Europe to get to destinations in Africa and Asia. That means that you can expect a lot of company in European airports if you’re traveling just before, during or right after the July 27-August 12, 2012 event. Even if you do not plan to fly on an airline that transfers in London, you should still expect major crowding in all of the key European hub airports during that time. London, of course, will be the epicenter.

For those who do transfer through London and want to explore the city during any layovers, they can expect the subway and other transportation methods to be very congested. According to the London 2012 Organizing Committee, they are aiming for a “public transport” Games, meaning there will be no car parking at or around Olympic venues, pushing even more people into using public transportation. Keep in mind that many of the Games’ events will actually take place outside of London and be spread across the UK, including the cities of Cardiff and Glasgow. So travel throughout the UK will be affected as well.

Besides the crowds that you can expect if you fly through Europe during the Olympics, you can also expect to pay more for airfare, especially if you wait much longer to make your airline reservations. We would expect limited inventory for discounted missionary tickets.

The bottom line is if you typically fly through Europe for your short term mission trips, you may want to consider scheduling your trips to avoid the dates around London 2012. If you do need to travel during that time, ask your Ministry Travel consultant about missionary flight options that avoid London. Also, you should make your flight reservations just as soon as possible, knowing that the longer you wait the more you can expect to pay.

We do have clients that take ministry teams to serve at the Olympics. If that is you, our advice is to recruit your teams right away and book your travel just as quickly as possible. Remember that with many of our special airline missionary contracts you can reserve space now and not have to pay anything until 45 days prior to departure. This is a definite advantage to help you save money during next summer’s busy travel time.

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Wednesday, July 27th, 2011

Saving Lives Physically and Spiritually

We love hearing the stories of the changed lives that come through the work that our clients do all over the world. Christian mission trips are great reminders that there are those across the street as well as around the world who need a special touch. Often those touches result in spiritual changes. Sometimes they result in saving lives—physically as well as spiritually.

One of those stories comes from Kimberly, a Ministry Travel client, who shares about her favorite mission trip.

One summer in 1998, we were at the black sea with 90 US youth, outreaching at the black sea coast in Romania. It was hot and humid…My husband and myself saw a young lady smoking and crying watching the drama [we were performing] unfold on the stage. We introduced ourselves to her, sharing why we were there, what we were doing. She told us that she was planning on killing herself that night, but something drew her to the beach, and she decided to go. That’s when she met us. God used us to minister to her brokenness. She told us that she wanted to find a church in the area so she could start a relationship with the Lord. God taught us, that we are all missionaries wherever we are. During our 9-5 job, we are missionaries. If we are traveling overseas and working with non-profits, we are missionaries. If we are business men and women, we are missionaries. We are all missionaries while we grocery shop, while we wait to fill our tanks with gas, while we wait to see our doctors, in our churches, our homes, our workplace, our families and our schools. God wants to meet all his children wherever they are. This was just one of the most important things I have learned while working missions.

That was a great lesson that Kimberly and countless others like her have learned through short term mission trips. Do you have a story from a mission trip that you would like to share? Tell us about it on out Facebook page at www.Facebook.com/ministrytravel.

Do you have a mission trip in the planning stages? We’d love to help you
with discounted missionary airfares. There really are special prices on flights for missionaries. Contact one of our missionary travel
consultants at 1-877-541-5726 or on the web at www.ministrytravel.com.

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Wednesday, July 20th, 2011

Missions Round-up: New Tools for Missionaries

Those preparing for international mission trips will be especially interested in some new tools, training and resources that are being used to impact needy people around the world.

e3 Resources has just introduced the MalariaCube, which is the size and shape of a Rubik’s Cube, but has panels that open with pictures on it. The tool is used to educate people about the prevention and causes of malaria, which affects millions of people each year, especially in Africa. Although the tool focuses on the mosquito-borne disease, there is another use. “Our goal at the end of the day is to share the gospel. And in the area of malaria, it’s such a problem that we can tell this story and grab people’s attention—where their heart beats. And then we share the gospel as well,” said Casey See, Executive Director of e3 Resources in a recent interview with Mission Network News. e3’s other “cube” resources include the Evangecube, which has been used by tens of thousands of people world-wide to share the gospel, and the HopeCube, which teaches about HIV/AIDS.

White buckets by the thousands are heading to Africa to help those ministering to people with AIDS. The In-Home Care Kit program of Baptist Global Response (BGR), an international relief and development organization, has provided medical and hygiene supplies to help Christian caregivers and ease the suffering of people affected by terminal illnesses. According to a recent Baptist Press report, more than 4,700 of the five-gallon plastic buckets have been sent over the past two years to South Africa, Zambia, Kenya, Uganda, Botswana, Lesotho, Mozambique, Guinea and Niger. BGR is hoping to send 6,000 this year. The buckets are filled by U.S. churches and then BGR distributes them through their African network.

With a large percentage of the world that cannot or does not learn from reading, the importance of using stories to share the gospel is taking on more prominence. Many short term teams are getting training in oral communications strategies, and more and more mission agencies are dedicating staff and resources to it. Several of these organizations sponsor workshops to equip people to use stories to tell Bible events and biblical truths. One organization, Mission Aviation Fellowship, is sponsoring a training next month in Boise, Idaho. You can get more information at http://www.maflt.org.

Just a reminder that whether you are taking a mission trip to Africa, tackling a humanitarian project in South America, or flying anywhere for missionary or humanitarian purposes, Ministry Travel can help you save money on missionary airfares. You can request a no-obligation quote from one of our travel consultants at www.ministrytravel.com.

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Wednesday, July 13th, 2011

Airline bans babies; Airplane Shuteye Secrets; and Flying with Lizards

If you’re a Ministry Travel client, then you know about our great discounted flights for missionaries and humanitarian travelers, as well as our commitment to outstanding service. You may not, however, know about our ongoing efforts to keep you informed on issues that relate to travel and missions.

Each weekday through our Facebook page (facebook.com/ministrytravel) and Twitter feed (twitter.com/ministrytravel) we provide late breaking news, stories, tips and suggestions beneficial for those who travel, especially those engaged in international mission trips. Here are three stories that we recently referenced in our social media sites.

The first is what may become an airline industry trend. Malaysia Airlines recently placed a ban on infants from flying in the first-class cabin (see http://bit.ly/lNnvQKfor details). There has been significant talk within the industry and frequent flyers about expanding this to more airlines and to business as well as first class. Some have even suggested “children-free flights” (obviously by people who don’t have young children!). While we don’t see that happening, there could be moves to limit where children sit in airplanes. We’ll keep an eye on this and let you know if this expands beyond Malaysia Airlines and first class.

Another article caught our attention, this one by MSNBC (http://on.msnbc.com/j5hnDD) about how to sleep on airplanes, even if you are in coach. There are some people who can sleep anywhere, even airplanes. If you are one of those lucky few, then you can skip this paragraph. But for the rest of us—the majority that find airline noise and commotion as definite sleep inhibitors—then you will appreciate the article’s nine tips.

They are:

1. Choose your seat wisely (most important factor of whether or not you
sleep)
2. Cut down on carry-ons
3. Avoid caffeine
4. Grab pillows and blankets (if there are any)
5. Bring a neck pillow
6. Free your feet (with caution!)
7. Try a sleep aid
8. Use headphones with discretion
9. Recline your seat—but be courteous

Check out the full article for more details on each of these tips.

Finally, there was a bizarre story from USA Today that we couldn’t help but notice (see http://usat.ly/nkSkmp). This one was of a guy who decided to smuggle 15 lizards from Australia to Los Angeles by fastening them to his body. Apparently he didn’t make it through customs…and now is facing 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine!

Check us out on Facebook and Twitter as well as LinkedIn (search groups) and we will keep you informed on what’s happening in the world of travel and missions. Thankfully, most of our stories have nothing to do with lizards!

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