What mission trips tell you about a man’s character

DeAnna McEntire

I have always been drawn to other cultures. From a young age, I was fascinated by countries outside the United States. I was mesmerized when I met people at school who were from Asia and Central America. I knew I wanted to travel the world. I also knew I wanted to share the Gospel, so I started going on quite a few mission trips.

There’s a stigma that manly men don’t do missions. 

However, when you look at what it takes to do missions and what God says about manhood, nothing could be farther from the truth.

Through all my experiences abroad and in the States, I can attest that going on a mission trip tells a woman a lot about a man’s character. There’s a stigma that manly men don’t do missions. However, when you look at what it takes to do missions and what God says about manhood, nothing could be farther from the truth. I believe there are five things that women can learn about a man’s character when he goes on a mission trip.

What going on a mission trip tells a woman about a man’s character

1.   He’s serious about his faith and puts Jesus first.

One reason I am so passionate about missions is because Jesus commands us to share the Gospel. In Matthew 28:19, Jesus says, “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.”

Billions of people in the world haven’t heard about Jesus before. Jesus commands us to go into the world and make disciples of all nations. That requires, not only making disciples of people in our community at home, but traveling outside of our comfort zone to share His good news with people across the world. When anyone goes on a mission trip, it tells me says that person is serious about Jesus and puts Him above all else.

2.   He’s willing to sacrifice and serve.

Romans 12:1 says, “Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God — this is your true and proper worship.” Jesus calls us to live sacrificially, and there’s nothing like a mission trip to provide insanely uncomfortable situations that require you to put others above yourself.

Our culture tells us that men aren’t men if they are sacrificial and serve others. We are told men are weak if they shed a tear or share any emotions. Thankfully, we have Jesus as our example of what a perfect man looks like. He came into the world and confused all the religious leaders and teachers by being exactly opposite of what they expected. Jesus was gentle, kind, and showed emotion while also commanding respect. He led people by serving and sacrificing.

3. He’s willing to commit.

When you commit to going on a mission trip, you commit your finances and your time. Trips across the world are expensive, so once you commit financially there’s no backing out. You are basically locked into going somewhere at a specific time for a specific amount of money. When a man goes on a mission trip, it shows that he knows what it means to make a commitment, work for it, and follow through on it.

4. He’s responsible and a good steward.

Mission trips cost money. It requires saving, fundraising, and stewarding the money you have been given. Scripture talks a lot about the importance of stewarding what has been given to us. 1 Timothy 6:20 says,“Guard what has been entrusted to you, avoiding worldly and empty chatter and the opposing arguments of what is called, ‘knowledge.’”

5. He’s humble.

The sole purpose of going on a mission trip is to share the Gospel with other people. The Bible talks a lot about the importance of being humble. Philippians 2:3 says, “Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves.” When a man goes on a mission trip, it shows he is humbly valuing others above himself.

All of these characteristics that are displayed when going on a mission trip give excellent insight into a man’s character. Jesus gave us the perfect example of what it means to be a man. He was serious, sacrificial, committed, responsible, and also humble. These same characteristics are a true representation of what it means to be a Godly man or woman. We are all called to GO and make disciples. Don’t let fear or stigmas about missions keep you from obeying God’s call on your life.

Men, if a foreign mission trip is your next step, learn more about NewSpring Missions at newspring.cc/missions.