“Prayer Warriors Prep.”
how to give your next mission/outreach trip the crucial backup needed
by Sherry L. Kirton

My favourite mission’s tip is to have each mission member fill out their own info. on an index card... including name, aproximate age, aproximate number of times he/she has been on a mission, what he/she hopes to accomplish, his/her concerns, and even the names of their immediate family members... so that you can randomly pass out the cards at a worship service. Your assembly’s members who wish to pray for a specific member of your team may take a card and pray for the mission member on the card during the trip.

Since I work mainly with youth, I make sure all of the information is on one side of the card and the only thing viewable on the other is the gender which is face up on a table. I also hand out some ideas about how to pray for the team, including your team’s goal and general information about this trip. I explain the offer for prayer warriors to take a card based on their own gender: women for women; men for men, and then I let God do the rest. Oh, have everyone on the team fill out a card... including all leaders and others (we had a couple who travelled with us just to cook for us, and the Youth Pastor made sure their cards and his own were on the table along with the Driver of the bus).

After your team has returned, let a few of them speak at the next worship service and even at small group meetings/services to give a “short experience report” that helps your assembly understand why and what you did and do as well as to thank the prayer warriors for their part of the mission: unseen battle.