Group Mission Trips Resources
Theme: Forged
We all know the destruction and pain that fire can bring, but God also presents fire as purifying and refining throughout Scripture. So why would God choose fire to refine us? It separates the impurities and leaves what is valuable. Friend, when God brings or allows the fiery furnace of discomfort in our lives, it does not burn indiscriminately. It burns intentionally to make us more like Him. We can trust that it is always for our refinement and never for our destruction.
Each day we’ll explore how God forges our faith. Through each powerful, transformational mission trip experience, your group will see how God wants us to know we’re justified through faith and given access to his perfect peace and grace (Romans 5:1-4). Join us this summer as we explore how we’re all FORGED by faith!
Week of Hope will combine some of these days below as there is not a program Friday. This will be updated once the program has been completed.
Sunday: Hope. (Romans 5: 1-4) The hope of God is confidence in who God is and in what God can do. So even though everybody suffers, there is hope. God uses our suffering to make us stronger, to soften our edges, to deepen our capacity to love others, and stir a sense of gratitude.
Monday: Suffering. (Matthew 8:1-3) Jesus doesn’t condemn the leper for his questions or his pain; He doesn’t turn away or judge him. And he doesn’t tell the leper to just tough it out. Instead, Jesus reaches out in the presence of the leper’s greatest suffering and touches him. He remains with him. And with compassion, heals him.
Tuesday: Perseverance. (Luke 5:17-20) When we are faced with rough times, God uses that experience and makes us stronger for the next time we suffer. God forges us and shapes us while we’re softened so that when we come through the suffering, we are ready to persevere.
Wednesday: Character. (Matthew 14:22-33) Character is not determined by how other people see you. It is the truth of who you are, and it’s the result of the choices you make.
Thursday: Return to Hope. (John 11:38-44) God hears your cries for help. God knows when your heart is breaking. God is already there. And wherever you are in your season of suffering, have hope that God is at work in and through you.
Friday: Forge Ahead. (John 4:5-42) When you’re faced with a season of suffering, know that there is hope and healing to come. God will use that time to shape you, transform you, and make you stronger. And every time you journey around that circle, it prepares you for whatever comes next.