Short Term Mission - Do no harm means we'll take the time to do it right!

Hosts Yasmine Vaughan and Dr. Laura Horvath:
We’re happy to have with us today, Elli Oswald from Faith to Action, to talk about how they share with others best practices in short term missions. In particular, we are eager to have her talk about the importance of ethical missions in regard to safety and protection of children. Elli Oswald is the Executive Director of the Faith to Action Initiative, which seeks to elevate best practices in orphan care, specifically recognizing the importance of family in the life of every child. Prior to this role, she served the Missions Pastor at Bethany Community Church in Seattle. Elli also served on World Vision's Child Development and Rights Technical Team, specializing in community-based care for children deprived of parental care. Thanks for joining us, Elli!

Short term missions are a vital part of the work of organizations supporting missions in the majority world. When done right, short term missions enable people to travel somewhere and engage meaningfully in support of others that lifts and enriches both the missioner and the recipient.  Additionally, to put it bluntly, short term missions are often a means to enable usually western partners to ‘tell the story’ to help raise funds to support the local missions on the ground.  However, this can lead to all kinds of issues of concern, especially when those missions are focused on orphans and vulnerable children.  

Helpful links!

 With Eyes Wide Open

When Helping Hurts in Short Term Missions

Faith to Action

The Love You Give

ROK Kern

7 SOE

7 F2A practices 

Changing the Way We Care: A Family Torn

The Global Church Pledge

Think Global, Do Justice Website

Passionate about your faith and making a difference in the world? Check out this podcast!

________

Travel on International Mission, meet local leadership and work alongside them. Exchange knowledge, learn from one another and be open to personal transformation. Step into a 25 year long story of change for children in some of the poorest regions on Earth.

https://www.helpingchildrenworldwide.org/mission-trips.html

******

____

Organize a Rooted in Reality mission experience for your service club, church group, worship team, young adult or adult study. No travel required. Step into the shoes of people in extreme poverty in Sierra Leone, West Africa, Helping Children Worldwide takes you into a world where families are facing impossible choices every day.

Contact support@helpingchildrenworldwide.org to discuss how.

___________

Family Empowerment Advocates support the work of family empowerment experts at the Child Reintegration Centre, Sierra Leone.  Your small monthly donation,  prayers, attention & caring is essential. You  advocate for their work to help families bring themselves out of poverty, changing the course of children's lives and lifting up communities. join