Tips and Tools to Equip Students for Mission

What do you think about when you hear the word “missions”? What do the students at your church think about?

Many people might think of missionaries or going on mission trips, but God’s mission extends to every area of the globe—and we all have a part to play. While not everyone works in full-time ministry, we all have a calling from Jesus to live out the gospel and share our faith. Every space and place is a mission field.

And that means the students in your church have an important role to play in God’s mission too. 

How are you equipping your students to share the love of Christ in their schools, on their club sports team, or with their neighborhood friends? And how are you equipping your students to put mission into practice after they graduate from high school and potentially leave your church to go to college, a trade school, or to start a new job? Here are a few tips—and tools—to help you form a missional heart in the students at your church.

Pray about Mission

At Resonate, we believe mission starts with prayer. Devote time to pray with students about God’s mission, whether that’s setting up a special prayer time with them or taking time to pray during youth group, GEMS, Cadets, Sunday School, or another program. A few things you can pray for include: praying for your church’s work in mission, the missionaries your church supports, asking God to show students where and how he’s at work in their lives and communities, and asking the Holy Spirit to provide opportunities for students to live out and share their faith.

Learn and Practice

Take time to learn about mission with your students. Do you have a favorite book about mission that you could study with your students or use to teach from? Dive into passages of Scripture that talk about God’s heart for mission and our calling to join God in that work. You could also form a group to work through Resonate’s Witness: Equipped to Share the Good News, a self-guided curriculum that will guide your students through a process of learning what it means to be a witness for Christ and how they can live missionally in the spaces where God has placed them. Witness is appropriate for high school students, and middle school students would benefit from working through the study in a multigenerational group with older students and adults. 

Go on a Service and Learning Trip

Whether you go somewhere across the ocean or closer to home, short-term mission trips provide students with a great opportunity to grow in their faith, see God at work in a new context, and learn from ministry leaders who are experienced in mission. Resonate has a variety of opportunities for student groups. If you want to stick close to home, check with a local church plant or campus ministry to see how your group could serve.

“We hope that students let their experience sink in and work its way into their heart and their understanding of their own faith and calling. We hope they are moved to look for and recognize God's good news story of redemption all around them. We hope that they continue to see themselves as part of the global body of Christ,” said Gillian Bruce, who manages Resonate’s volunteer ministries.

Learn from a Missionary

Does your church support any missionaries through Resonate? Missionaries often visit their churches periodically, but even if you can’t meet with your missionary in person, you could connect with them over video call. Have them share about their work and how they live out God’s mission, and give students an opportunity to ask questions.

“Ask your missionaries to share with you why they chose to be a missionary and why they think that mission is important. What would they say to their teenage selves if they could about mission work?” suggested Bruce.

Start or Join a Go Local Cohort

Resonate’s Go Local is all about spiritual formation for mission—learning to recognize where and how God is at work and stepping in to join in that work. Students will learn spiritual practices, like prayer walking and different ways to read the Bible, that will help them learn to listen to God’s voice and for promptings by the Holy Spirit. People and churches who participate in Go Local cohorts have shared about stronger connections within their neighborhoods, new relationships, and more opportunities to share their faith. Resonate can connect you with a facilitator who can adapt Go Local for any age group.

Stay Connected with Students Who Move On

It’s always bittersweet when students graduate high school. It’s encouraging to see them move on from our church’s programs after watching them grow as a disciple of Christ, but for those who move on, we also miss them. But the relationship doesn’t need to end—and it shouldn’t. 

“As pastors, it's important to stay connected with the youth who have graduated from our program,” said Laura Osborne, a pastor and Resonate partner campus minister at International Campus Ministry on Western Michigan University’s campus. “If they're staying in town, help them transition into the 'adult' ministries if they're not already connected. For those away at school, consider sending care packages with notes of encouragement and, of course, snacks. In the first few months, send emails or texts to let them know that you're praying for them. Help them take a deep breath.”

Osborne said it’s also important to prepare students for life after high school and to connect them with a faith community where they can continue to grow and be encouraged to live out their faith. That might be a church or another faith community, like campus ministries on university campuses.

Whether they are at home, off at college, or joining the workforce, students need to know that Christ has a unique calling for them in his mission to bring the good news to our neighborhoods and around the world.