During my high school years, I had the opportunity to visit Uganda, Africa, for two different mission trips. The time I spent in Africa lit a passion in my heart for missions. I was able to experience a new culture and get a small taste of what life on the mission field is like.
Recently, I had a friend ask me about my trips to Uganda. She wanted to find an organization that she could partner with to go on a mission trip to Africa. I helped her find different organizations she could use to take a trip. This is what I found while researching mission trips to Africa.
1. Experience Mission
Experience Mission offers mission trips to countries around the world, including in South Africa. They offer mission trips to Cape Town and Pretoria, South Africa year-round. For Experience, they want people who go on a mission trip through them to build relationships.
They are less focused on the agenda and more focused on the mission team building relationships while they are they. They also want members of the mission team to have the opportunity to hear other people’s stories and have the opportunity to share their testimony as well.
When teams do projects, such as building a school, they involve the local people. This allows the mission team to be working alongside the people in the community. This is one-way Experience is working to build relationships while on a short term mission trip.
Activities while serving in South Africa could include:
- Leading a children’s ministry program, preparing lesson materials for a preschool
- Leading a school classroom
- Helping sort clothing and food items
- Serving alongside homeless men and women in Pretoria
You can learn more about ministry opportunities here. Experience mission is giving people of all ages the opportunity to experience a short-term mission trip in Africa and other places around the world.
Live your mission.
-Experince Mission’s Moto
2. Arise Africa
Arise Africa is working to bring the Gospel to Zambia, Africa. They do this by helping support people in the community. Here are a few ways Arise Africa is working to help people in Zambia:
- Arise homes – A safe and loving place for children without parents to live
- Christian schools – Arise is planting schools around Zambia to help provide education to the children in Zambia.
- Feeding program – A program for children in local schools which provides them with healthy meals.
- School supplies – Arise helps to supply schools with chairs, chalkboards, notebooks, and more.
They also offer mission trips to Zambia. They typically offer two-week mission trips year-round. People ages 5+ are welcome to join a trip. All people under 18 must be accompanied by an adult.
Each trip has a different focus. For example, one trip may be focused on painting projects whereas another is focused on working in a school or putting on a VBS for children. You can learn more about current mission trips and what the focus of the trip will be here.
If you are unable to attend a mission trip but you would still like to help support Arise Africa’s mission, you could consider becoming a child sponsor. By sponsoring a child, you are helping to provide a child with an education, meals, clothing, medical care, and a Christian environment. You can learn more about sponsoring a child here.
Arise Africa is an organization committed to serving and partnering with the people in Zambia. You can be apart of what God is doing in Zambia by visiting them on a short term mission trip. Arise Africa is making the name of Jesus known in Zambia.
Arise Africa is committed to helping individuals live a life that God desires for all mankind by assisting with spiritual, economic, and physical poverty. We strive to empower others through the truth and love of Jesus Christ to become responsible, independent, and self-sustaining individuals.
-Arise Africa’s Mission
3. Love Africa Mission
Love Africa Mission is working to provide people with the opportunity to experience mission work in Africa. They are currently working in Uganda, Zambia, Kenya, and Rwanda. Love Africa Mission wants to partner with people in bringing the love of Jesus to Africa. They want people who go on trips with them to share the love of Jesus to the African people. They believe this experience will change your life.
While on a trip with Love Africa Mission, you have the chance to work alongside seasoned missionaries in Africa. They will lead and guide you as you do ministry. Their example will inspire you as you see how they love and serve others. You will grow in your relationship with God as you push yourself to do ministry in a new country.
They offer multiple trips throughout the summer to Uganda, Zambia, Kenya, and Rwanda. They also offer a two-month internship where you stay in each one of the four countries. You can learn more about upcoming trips here.
Ministry while serving with Love Africa ministry includes:
- Working with children in primary school
- Praying with people in local villages
- Attending local churches
- Construction projects
If you would like to see videos of what past trips have been like click here. Love Africa Mission would love to have you on a mission trip. They are dedicated to bringing the love of Jesus Christ to the people in Africa. If you partner with them, you will also have the opportunity to share the love of Jesus in Africa.
Our desire is that every person that serves on a short-term trip with us will come home with a clear vision and a pure passion to serve right where they live.
-Love Africa’s Mission
If you’ve ever considered going on a mission trip, I would encourage you to pray about it. Short-term mission trips are an amazing opportunity for you to experience life overseas for a few weeks. Maybe God is leading you to take a trip overseas to Africa or some other part of the world.
For me, going on two short term mission trips to Uganda changed my life. I am now attending a missionary school to become a missionary long term. Africa is the place where I discovered my love and passion for missions. It helped me understand what the Great Commission is and how we all play a part in fulfilling it.
I’ll leave you with a story during my second trip to Uganda. I was in Pabo staying with my team in a small village. I had made friends with one of the little girls from the village. The missionaries we were staying with had given me paper and crayons to use with the kids. I started coloring with a little girl (pictured above) sitting on my lap. After a few minutes of us coloring, another child came and starting coloring, then another, and another and pretty soon I was surrounded by kids.
Each child would show me what they drew. Some drew a picture of their family, while others drew the flag of Uganda. Once they had finished their pictures, they one by one started handing them to me. I would tell them what I liked about their picture and tried to give them their drawings back, but they wouldn’t take them back. They wanted me to have their pictures.
I couldn’t believe the generosity these children were showing me. They hardly had anything. They didn’t have crayons and paper. They couldn’t draw a picture anytime they wanted. Yet, they gave me their drawings. It was this moment I felt God leading me to be a missionary teacher. This is one of the reasons why I am pursuing a degree in missions and education. The pictures the children gave me are still in my Bible.
I share this story with you to encourage you as you are considering going on a mission trip to Africa. Going on a trip overseas to do ministry can be scary and may feel overwhelming. Remember that God is with you all the time. He will still be with you when it’s hard.
By going overseas on a mission trip, you are allowing God to use you. You are being a light to others who don’t know Jesus. God can use you to show the love of Jesus to people in Africa.
Not all of us can do great things. But we can do small things with great love.
-Mother Teresa