INFORMATION
It is not too early to begin thinking about what your life will be like
when you return for your Expedition Trip. Below are some helpful tips for
thinking about your Expedition.
KEEP A RECORD
You might not keep a regular journal but during your Expedition Trip
you might consider writing down things each day that you don’t want to forget.
These could include lessons learned, personal commitments made, things God
showed you, people who impacted you, highlights and observations.
TELLING YOUR STORY
The most common question you might hear upon returning is “How was your
trip?” Some people ask this
question as a formality or greeting; while others will really want to know. Anticipating that people have different
levels of interest can help you “make friends” with this question rather than
to despise it. One way to
anticipate a person’s interest level is to have answers of varying lengths that
can be used when someone asks “How was your trip?”
¨ The
“sound-bite” - Write a 15 second response. Just a short, friendly answer.
¨ The
“commercial” - Write a one minute response, inviting them to hear more.
¨ The
“interested conversation” – Write a five minute response (Of course
anticipating that this is a dialogue in a normal conversation.)
STRATEGY
Sometimes re-entry back from your Expedition can be difficult.
Generally it’s because you have changed or are changing in your attitudes and
values, and you are coming back to an environment that has not changed in the
same way. On your way back home,
spend some time answering these questions to deal with and get practical with
your Expedition experience.
The first three days I am home I want to make sure I…
The first full week I am home I want to make sure I…
The first month that I am home I want to make sure I…
The first three months I am home I want to make sure I…
Over the next year I hope to make adjustments in my life in the
following areas:
End of Trip Debrief
It's important for people to see
their trip as a beginning or continuation of the Lord's work in their lives,
not as a one‑time deal, You might ask questions about how this experience will
affect their lives back home. What are some ways they can care for the less
fortunate back in their own city or community? What things can they share? In
what ways can they serve others?
We often talk about the
following equation with trip
leaders and teams
Resources + Relationships = Regeneration
Your group
provided both resources (the cost of
the trip, project or camp costs) and the relationships
(themselves!), to compliment the relationships represented by the Young Life
volunteers and staff in the host‑country to help bring regeneration to the lives of the local youth. Even though
your folks might not be able to see the immediate impact of their service, they
can be encouraged to know that for years to come, literally thousands of young
people will have a chance to hear the gospel as a result of their work and
their willingness to give of their time, their energy, their fundraising, their
very lives!
Post Trip Gathering
Finally, we strongly
suggest that you continue to process this experience with your group after you
return home. In addition to gathering for future study, reflection and
discussion, you might organize a picture‑swapping party, one-on-one times with
each team member and a group work‑project for the needy in your local
community. Maybe you do this on a regular basis. Encourage them to be life‑changers,
not mere spectators!
You might read aloud the
following page entitled "if the world were a village..." It gives
folks a great perspective on what it means to be a North American in the world
at large. The facts might challenge them to broaden their thinking in relation
to the rest of the world.
If the world were a village ...
"If the world were a global village of 100
people, one‑third of them would be rich or of moderate income, two‑thirds would
be poor. Of the 100 residents, 47 would be unable to read, and only one would have
a college education. About 35 would be suffering from hunger and malnutrition;
at least half would be homeless or living in sub‑standard housing. If the world
were a global village of 100 people, 6 of them would be Americans. These 6
would have over a third of the village's entire income, and the other 94 would
subsist on the other two‑thirds. How could the wealthy 6 live in peace with
their neighbors? Surely they would be driven to arm themselves against the
other 94, perhaps even to spend, as Americans do, about twice as much per
person on military defense as the total income of the two‑thirds of the
villagers." Joan Bodner