You did it! You said “Yes” to God’s call to go on a mission trip! You got a passport, fundraised your money, packed your bags, and went on a mission trip! Now what?! The following ideas will help you navigate what to do next as you come back home with your heart now both in your home country and back across the ocean with those you spent a week serving!

1. Pray. Pray for the different people you met on your trip, the ministries where you served, and the country you went to. James 5:16 tells us that, “The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and produces wonderful results.” One of the most important things you can do is pray! Write down the names of local leaders, missionaries, and pastors you partnered with and pray over them daily as they continue the work of the gospel in the country where you served.

2. Process. It’s normal to come back home and feel sad or angry. You might have questions like, “How can we possibly make a lasting difference in this community with so much need?” or “How can people I know spend so much money on __(fill in the blank)__ while people live in homes with no running water?” Take these questions and feelings to the Lord. Open the Bible and look at what scripture says. Read Paul’s Epistles. Ask the Lord questions like, “How have you called me to participate in what you are already doing in this country?” Reach out to your missions director or a trusted mentor/leader to help you work through these questions.

3. Thank your partners. Make sure to reach out to everyone who partnered with you both financially and through prayer, and let them know how your trip went! Your partners are people that God places in your life to accomplish the work of the great commission. You saying “yes” to going would not be possible without them saying “yes” to sending you! Your partners will love to hear your personal testimony of what God did on the trip!

4. Partner Financially. If you are able to, become a monthly financial partner. Any ongoing programs that you participated in while on the mission field are funded by donors just like you! Our feeding programs, community center, staff member salaries, facility upkeep, rent, outreaches, anti-trafficking efforts, etcetera is all donor funded. Our financial partners make all of those things possible!

5. Serve. Check with your missions director to see if there are opportunities to serve in areas that benefit missions. The Lily and The Sparrow has an annual fundraising gala with opportunities to serve in different areas from selling businesses ads to serving plates the night of the event, and extra hands are always needed!

6. Apply what you learned. Mission trips teach us so much, and as we re-enter our regular lives back home, it is time for us to apply what we have learned. Ask yourself the following questions: What did you learn about yourself? Did you discover any new strengths or giftings on this mission trip? How can you apply those in your local church? What did you learn about God? Did you see God reach people in different ways than you were used to? How did you see Him impacting lives in ways you didn’t expect during your trip? In what ways did you feel Him move in your heart? What did you learn about others? Did you experience the way the love of Jesus breaks down language and socioeconomic barriers? How does this experience change the way you will serve others from now on? Is there an area where you can serve cross culturally and across socioeconomic divides in your community?

7. Attend your team debrief. Your team debrief is a scheduled time to work through questions together and to collectively discuss how you can apply what you learned from your trip to your daily life back home. It is usually scheduled 3-6 weeks after your trip. This is a time to work through any tough questions or feelings you may be having since coming home from your trip, bounce ideas off of one another about how to continue the work of missions in your own communities, and pray together about what God’s next step for each of your team members is. Don’t miss this important time with your mission team!

8. Continue the work of missions in your community. Is there a local soup kitchen or homeless shelter where you could begin to volunteer regularly? Does your church have an outreach team where you could do the work of evangelism in your community? Research ways to serve on your local mission field and continue the work of missions right where you are!