Mission: Possible! Becoming a mission-minded family

How do you raise kids who care about the world and want to make a difference? Whose Christianity isn't just words, but deeds? Taking them overseas on a mission trip is a powerful way to show them the real world...but it isn't the only way.

I'm a big fan of families taking mission trips. We've had several families from this church do that, and some of their stories are being compiled for a booklet that will be available starting next week called, "Mission: Possible!" These are encouraging, "can-do" stories of families who took kids - in some cases, young kids - out of the country on mission trips

In addition, this year's International Missions Fair event on Friday night (November 6) is once again designed for the whole family, with breakout sessions for adults & kids, and childcare for very young kids. Things get rolling with dinner at 6:00. (Reserve childcare for under 5 years old here.)

One of the breakout sessions is called "Embracing Adventure: Growing Missional Kids". It'll be a panel of some parents who've taken their kids out of the country, explaining what they did, how they did it, and how it impacted their family.

BUT...what if going overseas just isn't in the cards right now? As much as I want kids to taste foreign missions, I don't want our church or any church to communicate the message that only overseas service "counts". Of course, we want kids and families to be "thinking missions" anywhere they go.

But too often, that message - "shine your light" - gets flattened to just "be nice". And that's a shame, because "be good" and "be nice" isn't the gospel. They're part of the fruit of the gospel, but to equate Christian missions work with Random Act of Kindness Day or a character education rally really undermines the gospel's power.

The gospel's power is supernatural - it is not from ourselves, or willpower, or a determination to do better. The gospel's power is what enables us to give and behave sacrificially.

In what settings? At home, with our families? For sure! With co-workers or schoolmates? Yes! But also, among strangers - as a way of affirming that no one is a stranger, that we are all connected by virtue of having been made in the image of God.

Here, then, is my hope: that every family who calls our church their home will discover something they're passionate about, and invest themselves in that work together.

It might be related to homelessness, or healthcare, or companionship for elderly people who are lonely. Did you know that the city of San Diego has about 9,000 homeless people who sleep on the streets and in the parks every night?!? Or that there are families here in Carlsbad who can't afford Christmas? Or children in the foster care system who need safe homes?

Not every cause is a fit for every family. So how do you begin? You sample different things. As you do it, you watch your kids and listen to them. What's captured their heart?

We have started putting a display out on the plaza between services on weekends. It's a big potato chip rack, with a bunch of postcards hanging from the clips, all filled with ways that families can serve together. We want you to check it out, but more than that, we want your stories! Once you've found where you and your kids enjoy serving, we're asking you to e-mail us your story at ourstory@northcoastcalvary.org so we can share it with everyone else.

Maybe someday, it'll be you and your kids trekking overseas. International mission trips are hugely impactful. But don't feel guilty if you can't, and don't think of local service as any less valuable or "real" than overseas missions. Remember that before international travel became possible (the last 50 or so years), almost nobody was serving overseas. Only people who gave their lives to full-time missions service did that. For the vast majority of the church's existence, all missions were local. Christians in the Roman Empire started hospitals and charities because the need was there, right among them. When we serve locally, we carry on that legacy.