Most stories you hear about how long term missionaries and calling have something to do with a short term trip. There is nothing inherently bad about that - that is part of why we run these summer experiences. We do think, though, that sometimes the emotion of returning can reduce clarity for direction and calling. And that is why we have the 30 day rule. Put simply, it says that you don't make any harsh decisions within 30 days of returning from your experience.
My kids keep helping me add to this rule every year. Last year, it was to spend some significant purposeful time praying about what you learned in these 30 days. This year, they said if you are doing cocaine, it is okay to stop that right now. Thanks guys. In terms of our Prague team, it would be easy to come home and tell your parents that you are packing up all your stuff to go live with the Jones' on their truck. Or that you are going to skip college to go be a church planter with Christian Associates. Or that working at a hostel in Europe is more missional than high school. None of those things are bad. But there can be a certain amount of emotion wrapped in those decisions. A decision is not good if it is based on pure emotion.
Wait 30 days and let the emotion die down. If it is a true calling from the Lord, it will burn in your soul with even more urgency after the 30 days are up. The statistics do not lie - we need more missionaries. But we need them making good, clear decisions.
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