“But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have firmly believed, knowing from whom you learned it”
2 Timothy 3:14
If you have heard my partnership presentation, you have heard about my heart for short term missions, and why I think it is so important (if you haven’t heard it, give me a call and let’s set something up. I would love to share with you!). To recap, one of the big reasons I am excited about short term trips with Adventures in Missions is to fulfill what 2 Timothy 2:2 says, “Entrust the things you have learned to faithful believers, who will be able to teach others also.” In general, Generation Z is a difficult group to reach, because they have such a tremendous access to information, that they have lost some of the respect for the knowledge of older generations.
A biproduct of this, is that the American church is NOT doing well with discipling believers, but I believe we CAN do better, and I think that short term missions is one way to do that. I have been praying for the students of Calhoun Christian School, and for Battle Creek MI for the last few weeks. My prayer has been that the students on the Chicago trip would receive the teaching that the Lord had for them, and they would take that teaching back to Battle Creek with them. I have prayed that they would be able to reach their peers in a way that I cannot. 
That prayer was answered and affirmed, while we were still in Chicago! The students had just finished ministering to Venezuelans at the 25th district Chicago police department. Everyone was milling around outside, waiting for the leaders to make a decision on where we were going next. I had to go back inside for a moment, and I witnessed 2 teenagers talking with their mom, and asking what our team was doing at the police station. As the mother explained the situation with the Venezuelan refugees, and that we were bringing them clothes and food, the two teenagers began to tear up. I did not stay long enough to know the outcome of that conversation, but it was clear to me that the actions of our team of teenagers, touched the hearts of teenagers they had never met!
I believe God allowed me to witness this exchange in order to encourage me and affirm my prayer that these Gen Zers would have a POWERFUL impact on their generation. If two teenagers can be moved to tears after witnessing the actions of teenagers, they don’t know from hundreds of miles away, imagine the impact that these students will have in their own community when they go back and share their testimony. 
This is short term missions at work, God is alive and active, and he can use short term missions for the benefit of the people serving, the people being served, and anyone who witnesses His love shining through us.
