This Is Why We Go: The Heart Behind Mission Trips

At RiverGlen, we exist to build relationships and love all people—because God loves all people. That’s what mission trips are all about. They’re a tangible expression of our mission to make more and better followers of Jesus. And for the people who say yes to going, the experience often changes them as much as the people they serve.

“My favorite part of the mission trip was the people,” one high school student said. “I went in not knowing anyone, but I came home with a new family. We shared meals, stories, and faith. And I saw God in all of it.”

That’s the thing about serving on mission—you begin to see God in places you didn’t expect.

On a street corner, handing out meals. In the resilience of a disaster-struck community. In your own heart, stretched and softened by love in action.

One middle school student put it simply: “We’re not there to fix everything. We’re just there to show up, smile, serve, and love. That’s what Jesus did, and that’s what He asks us to do too.”

Mission trips don’t require perfection. They just require presence.

And presence changes things.

When we go, we live out the Great Commandment—to love God and love others. We reflect Jesus in ways that don’t need a sermon or a stage. Just a willing heart and two open hands.

One of the adults who went on RiverGlen's Kentucky mission trip said, “The community we served humbled me. People who had so little gave so much—to each other, to us, to God. It made me rethink everything about my own life. About how I use what I’ve been given.”

That’s the power of the Gospel. It transforms both the giver and the receiver. It builds relationships. It draws us closer to Jesus. It compels us to live with purpose.

That’s why we go.

So if you’re wondering whether a mission trip is for you—whether you’re ready, whether you’d fit in, whether you’d be useful—let us encourage you with this: If you’re following Jesus, then yes. You’re ready.

Go serve.

Go love.

Go see what God does when you show up.

Because following Jesus was never meant to be passive. It’s active. It’s outward. And it’s always personal.

Let’s go be the church.

Let’s go make more and better followers of Jesus—across the street and across the country.