Trips – Program Info
This section is designed to help you better understand who we are as a ministry, what our mission is and how we intend to accomplish it. We want you to know what you can expect of your LeaderTreks trip. LeaderTreks is not just any mission agency. LeaderTreks is a student leadership development ministry using trips, innovative training, and curriculum to help students identify and develop their personal leadership skills.
About LeaderTreks Trips
Research and experience tell us that developing leadership is a continual process. It can be taught. It can be sharpened. But, it doesn’t happen by accident. In light of that, we believe the church is one generation away from a leadership void, and if we don’t intentionally develop leaders, the church will struggle. LeaderTreks is calling the church to make leadership development a core of youth ministry. Much like discipleship and evangelism, we feel leadership development is a key to seeing students grow in the Lord and become all He created them to be.
LeaderTreks has a proven strategy for developing and equipping the next generation of leaders in church and culture, and we partner with youth leaders who are passionate about this as well. Our experiences challenge and change participants: students return confident and motivated with a broadened world-view and a new vision for how they can lead and serve others.
We design and run each team experience for your group alone. The LeaderTreks trip customization will ensure that your students are getting the experience that is best for them – one that challenges them and makes them the kind of students that will energize your ministry throughout the year. Read on to find out more about how LeaderTreks can partner with you and your ministry.
Our 5 Distinctives
Our trips go below the surface:
One Group Per Site. We only partner with one youth group at a time, on all of our sites, no matter what you pay. It doesn’t make any sense to put teams together; they don’t share the same vision or the same behavioral standards.
Highly Certified Staff. All LeaderTreks staff are highly trained and certified by our Program Director. Throughout the process of booking, preparing, and leading your trip, our staff are extremely relational and professional, and they care deeply about your students’ development.
Student Leadership Program. From the minute you arrive until the minute you leave, all aspects of the trip will be used to develop your students into leaders. We use the schedule, work site, ministry events, meals, and team time in the evening to challenge your students to grow as leaders.
Real Work, Real Ministry. We build orphanages, pour basketball courts, remodel homes, and go on expeditions in real wilderness locations, and students do it all. We partner with real missionaries with a vision to work with student groups. On missions trips you’ll rub shoulders with ministry visionaries that will give your students a new view of how they can live for Jesus Christ. Our wilderness locations are remote, rugged, and beautiful and will challenge and inspire students in powerful ways.
Intentional Spiritual Development. We provide several Pre-Trip spiritual training resources that fit your group. Our On-Trip journals have a daily devotional, a prayer journal, and a growth journal. Each morning, we set aside 45 minutes for devotions, and every night we have Team Time, where we process all that God is teaching us. You also get Mission Life, a 4-session training for debriefing the trip that challenges students to live the mission life.
The LeaderTreks Leadership Development Model
Everyone is talking about leadership development but can anybody tell you how to do it?
At LeaderTreks we developed a model to explain how we do leadership development. We believe you must place students in real leadership roles and release them to use their God-given gifts to accomplish the goals of their team. Their fellow students hold them accountable, not the adults, so the success or failure of the experience rests on the students. The lessons are powerful and life changing.
LeaderTreks has a proven strategy for developing students into leaders. Research and experience tell us that developing leadership is a continual process. It can be taught. It can be sharpened. But it doesn’t happen by accident.
Step One: Leadership Learned – Modeled by our staff
Your students will be given the tools they need to assess their gifts, strengths, and weaknesses. They will build a profile of who God created them to be. They will also learn our leadership principles, helping lay a foundation for leadership development. Internalizing these principles will help students have the confidence to meet the challenge of leadership positions. Below is a list and description of each of the LeaderTreks Leadership Principles:
- Focus Precedes Success: Leaders must be focused to be successful. Focus involves identifying and prioritizing what you want to do every day. This principle develops your maturity as a leader and as a believer.
- Burden + Passion + Vision = Mission: Leaders know their mission in life. They have been through this process and live their life with purpose. Students need to identify their mission to help them make future decisions.
- The Value of Risk Taking: The ability to take risks is a key to being a leader. Taking risks can lead to failure, but learning through failure ultimately leads to success. Students who understand this don’t allow their fear keep them from taking risks.
- Chart the Course: Being able to make the plans that allow you to reach your goals is an important ingredient to leadership. We want students to learn the value of making and following through on plans.
- Navigate Obstacles: Every leader will face obstacles as they lead. Navigation is the ability to foresee obstacles and make the changes necessary to overcome them. Student leaders need to think on their feet as they lead.
- Intentional Communication: Leaders understand that their words are very powerful. They incorporate both praise and criticism in effective ways. The mark of a good student leader is one who uses their words wisely.
- Conflict Resolution: Conflict is a constant struggle for leaders, making conflict resolution an important leadership skill. We teach students not only to resolve conflict but also to prevent it when possible.
- Never Underestimate a Champion: Teams need leaders who are champions. People will follow a champion. Student leaders who give their all become champions for their team.
- Finish Strong: Leaders see projects through to the end. Many students struggle with the ability to stay with a mission until it is completed.
- Leader of Leaders: Leaders create leaders. True leaders are marked by the people they’ve developed not the projects they’ve accomplished. Student who learn this lesson become powerful leaders.
Desired Outcome: Students know themselves, and they know and understand a set of leadership principles.
Step Two: Leadership Experienced – Empowered by our staff
LeaderTreks presents students with high expectations and real responsibilities: making decisions that will affect the rest of the group, leading to success or failure.
The temptation for many adults is to hold onto the true leadership opportunities and never allow students to make significant decisions. But without giving students leadership roles that really matter, they will never feel the full weight of leadership. Students will be free to take risks in their leadership development as staff empower them to feel safe and be successful. The key is to allow room for failure, not create it.
Desired Outcome: Students take ownership of their experiences and the success or failure of the mission.
Step Three: Leadership Challenged – Motivated by our staff
Our events and adventures come with their own built-in obstacles. Challenge is the friction that sparks the development process. Rising to the challenge, students often accomplish more than they ever thought possible.
The temptation is for staff to step in and rescue students when they face challenge for the first time because it can be very uncomfortable to watch students struggle. However, we want staff to motivate and encourage students to work through the challenges. There is a fine line between rescuing and motivating, so it is important to watch how students are responding to the challenge. If they are processing and working through the struggle, it is important to let them continue. When a student is so overwhelmed by the stress that they stop learning from the experience, it is vital to step in and help them overcome the challenge.
Desired Outcome: Students experience, work through, and overcome struggle.
Step Four: Leadership Evaluated – Facilitated by our staff
We facilitate a healthy evaluation process for students to remove obstacles and become a high performance team.
Evaluation is crucial to solidifying and applying the lessons that students are learning. The key is creating an evaluation environment that is peer-to-peer, not adult-to-student. When students learn to confront each other and rise above obstacles as a team by speaking truth into each other’s lives, true leadership development takes place. Staff have to work hard to create a balanced evaluation environment of care and truth, but it is well worth the effort.
Desired Outcome: Students see measurable growth from honest evaluation, and it motivates them to move forward as a leader.
Repeat the Cycle
LeaderTreks uses every aspect of a trip to move students into these stages of leadership development. The LeaderTreks model gives students a four-step process that works, ownership they desire, struggles that sharpen, and growth through honest evaluation.
Daily Trip Schedules
The key to a successful trip is managing your daily schedule. Our schedule has been developed over years of leading trips. The goal is to challenge students while allowing time for reflection and relationship building. The key times in our schedule are personal devotion time in the morning and team time in the evening. The trip book contains the devotions and a prayer journal. These challenge students to build the healthy habits of Bible study and prayer. In the evening at team time, the devotions are reinforced by group discussions.
Typical Urban Adventure Serve Weekly Schedule
Sunday:
Monday:
Tuesday:
Wednesday:
Experiential Learning Day (Mission Race and Vision Prayer Experience)
Thursday:
Serve with local community ministry
Friday:
Saturday:
Typical Urban Adventure Serve Daily Schedule
7:15 AM
Breakfast (prepared by the team)
8:00 AM
Devos: personal time with God, using LT trip book
9:00 AM
Ministry/Adventure activies
12:00 PM
Lunch
12:45 PM
Ministry/Adventure activities
5:00 PM
Showers/Free time
6:00 PM
Dinner (prepared by the team)
7:00 PM
Team Time: Bible Study, worship, debriefing, prayer, etc..
8:30 pm
Adult Leader Meeting
LeaderTreks presents students with high expectations and real responsibilities: making decisions that will affect the rest of the group, leading to success or failure.
The temptation for many adults is to hold onto the true leadership opportunities and never allow students to make significant decisions. But without giving students leadership roles that really matter, they will never feel the full weight of leadership. Students will be free to take risks in their leadership development as staff empower them to feel safe and be successful. The key is to allow room for failure, not create it.
Desired Outcome: Students take ownership of their experiences and the success or failure of the mission.
Typical Mission Ready/Intense Impact Weekly Schedule
Sunday:
Monday:
Local Work Project, Prepare for Relational Outreach/VBS
Tuesday:
Local Work Project, Relational Outreach/VBS
Wednesday:
Local Work Project, Relational Outreach/VBS
Thursday:
Local Work Project, Relational Outreach/VBS
Friday:
Saturday:
Typical Mission Ready/Intense Impact Daily Schedule
7:15 AM
Breakfast (prepared by the team)
8:00 AM
Devos: personal time with God, using LT trip book
9:00 AM
Work Project
12:00 PM
Lunch
1:00 PM
Work / Ministry Opportunity
5:00 PM
Showers/Free time
6:00 PM
Dinner (prepared by the team)
7:00 PM
Team Time: Bible Study, worship, debriefing, prayer, etc..
8:30 pm
Adult Leader Meeting
On our mission sites we use time wisely, and still provide for all of the students’ needs. Only a small amount of free time is allotted. We find that when students are focused on the mission of the group, they desire more time to invest in the lives of their teammates and the community in which they are working. The more focused the group is, the more they can accomplish for God and He can achieve in their lives. While our schedule can be adjusted to meet the needs of a group, we highly recommend that this schedule be used as an outline.
Leadership Development on a Trip
LeaderTreks has been pursuing the mission of developing leaders to fulfill the Great Commission for many years. Through the process of teaching and challenging students, we have created a model of leadership development that has the power to revolutionize your ministry. Every student can learn to be a better leader. By making leadership development a foundation of your ministry, you will be able to challenge and grow students in ways you never have before. According to the LeaderTreks Leadership Development Model, there are four stages of leadership development – leadership learned, leadership experienced, leadership challenged, and leadership evaluated. This leadership model can be applied at Sunday youth group meetings, in individual mentoring relationships, on mission trips, and across many other situations.
How Does LeaderTreks Make It Work?
1. Leadership Opportunities
Our philosophy about leadership is that unless a person can make real decisions and experience the results of those decisions, whether failure or success, that person is not practicing real leadership. We know how important it is for students to face real responsibilities. We have seen time and again students find they are capable of doing far more than they ever thought possible. Through our work projects, one-week children’s ministry, and level sensitive responsibilities we provide real leadership experiences for students.
Some groups struggle with feeling they need to have both work and ministry as components of their trip to be participating in real ministry. At LeaderTreks we value trips that focus on work, those that include VBS-type activities, and even wilderness-based trips. In every activity that LeaderTreks runs, students are participating not only in leadership, but in ministry as well.
Whether cooking dinner for their team, painting a house, digging trenches, or running a sports camp, students are ministering to those around them. Each of these experiences is of equal value in the sight of God because He appreciates the humility expressed no matter how the students serve. Several groups have maximized their work site time by looking for evangelism opportunities as well. It is not uncommon that those who live in the homes we renovate are around while we work or that a child wanders up to watch the students. Many times these people do not know Jesus personally. Being ready for those moments will help your team serve faithfully through work and also through sharing their faith when the times arise. Talk about these potential situations as a group before you even leave home and set a plan of action so no matter what you are doing, you will be prepared for the ministry God sends your way.
2. Encouragement
On each trip, we use our words to tell each other how we see God working in each other’s lives. We also use our words to challenge each other to reach our God-given potential. This trip is a great place for students to get a clearer understanding of their gifts and to discover which areas of their lives need improvement. We aim to help students develop individually, to give team members a true view of themselves and to celebrate how wonderfully God has made each of them. Each night, during team time we give away encouragement beads. We challenge team members to give their beads to someone who has done something out of the ordinary. The idea is not about the number of beads given or received, but about the words used to give them away and helping others see what their spiritual gifts are. Encouragement is the key to seeing others reach their potential.
3. Discipleship – Trip Book
We believe that leadership and discipleship are woven closely together. LeaderTreks creates a customized trip book for each team designed to develop spiritual disciplines and personal development in each student. The trip book has three main sections: the daily devotional, a prayer journal and a daily growth journal.
- Bible Study. Each morning, we set aside 45 minutes for devotions. Each Bible study is created around a book or Biblical characters found in Scripture. We use several different Bible study methods to teach these passages. Our goal is two-fold: to teach scripture and to teach study methods students can use when they get home. We don’t just tell students to have a quiet time; we give them the skills to do it.
- Prayer Journal. The daily prayer journal is designed to challenge students to use a prayer method such as ‘ACTS’. Often students tell us that they don’t know how to pray and that they are not sure if God is answering their prayers. The goal of the prayer journal is to get students to understand that prayer is not about changing God’s mind but about changing their actions. By teaching students a pattern of prayer we are able to educate them on the power of prayer.
- Growth Journal. If you don’t have a standard of measurement, how do you know if you are growing? The growth journal is a place to measure your progress every day and keep track of the day’s events. Parents tell us that they love to read the journal when students get home because they can see where growth took place in their students’ lives.
To get the most out of the trip book you need to value it. If you don’t, it won’t have much meaning for you or your students. We believe that it can be the most powerful part of a student’s trip.
4. Student-Driven Learning – Team Time
Every evening on a LeaderTreks trip is an adventure into God’s word. At LeaderTreks, we believe students learn best through student driven learning. On our trips, you won’t find a speaker making an emotional appeal, but instead you will find students studying together while an adult facilitates the discussion and keeps students focused on God’s Word. We sit in a circle and learn from each other through the sharing of insights. This type of learning leads to growth. Too many mission trips end in an emotional high that last only a few weeks. LeaderTreks trips and retreats have a 52-week effect on your youth group because of the sincere growth that takes place.
Encouragement Beads
It’s not about the beads you get; it’s about the words you use to give them away.
It is no secret that words are powerful. On this trip we have the opportunity to demonstrate this power by choosing to invest in one another through words of encouragement, challenge, and insight. Each night, we will gather together to give away beads. We will use four different colors: green for compassion, white for service, red for leadership, blue for risk-taking. You can give away one bead per night. It should be given to someone who has demonstrated the quality of that bead color during the day. If you didn’t see any thing that stood out to you, don’t give a bead. This way you will make sure that every bead you give has meaning. The idea is not to give away as many beads as possible, but to help others see how their spiritual gifts are being revealed on this trip. Use your words to tell someone how you see God working in his or her life. Here is an example of giving a blue risk-taking bead away:
Joey, I see God working in your life so I have a blue risk-taking bead for you. I have seen you take risks in so many ways on this trip. You’ve learned how to do just about every job on the work site even though you had never used a saw or hammer before. During team time, you have become more involved – asking questions now and even sharing your opinion. But what I want to give you a bead for was the risk you took just a minute ago when you chose to give away your first bead. I see God developing in you a heart for those around you and the desire to encourage them in spite of any embarrassment you may feel. Your words were well thought out and they were meaningful. You shared part of yourself tonight; you were encouraging and you were challenging. You took the risk of being vulnerable and caring for another person. Joey, I challenge you to continue to allow God to speak to others through you.
Team Evaluation
One of the four steps to leadership development in the LeaderTreks Model of Leadership Development is “Leadership Evaluated.” Evaluation is the key to team improvement. A team that does not evaluate themselves does not improve. On a trip, we want teams to continually improve their effectiveness. LeaderTreks has developed two programs to teach and facilitate evaluation: Target 3 and High Performance Team.
Target 3
Urban Adventure Serve/Mission Ready Trips
Target 3 was designed for students on their first mission trip experiences. In Target 3, we ask students to target three areas in which they feel like their team excelled and three areas in which their team can improve tomorrow. The trip book has space provided for all to record these six targeted areas. We target these areas by asking questions like, “What did we do well today?” Students can share as things come to mind, and the leader of Target 3 records the answers. Then the leader identifies the three main things mentioned by the team and they all record the three targeted areas of success. The same process occurs when we ask the question, “What can we improve on tomorrow?” Students share and the team discusses each topic as they are brought up. After identifying the areas in which we can improve, we set “action steps” for the next day. Action steps intentionally address the areas that need improvement.
High Performance Team (HPT)
Intense Impact Trips
The purpose of the High Performance Team (HPT) evaluation tool is to provide accountability for the LeaderTreks student leadership program. Every team has individual performance problems, communication breakdowns and interpersonal conflicts. How teams deal with these problems determines how successful they are going to be. HPT gives student leaders the structure to face these problems. When each problem is removed, the team moves closer to high performance. HPT requires a competent leader who knows the clear purpose of the team. Leaders must believe in their teams and be committed to the 10 focused tasks of a high performance team.
- Leadership
- Purpose/Mission
- Communication
- Relationships with Critical Others
- Trust
- Individual Performance
- Team Performance
- Problem Solving and Conflict Resolution
- Believing We are Winners (Team Spirit)
- Being Seen as Winners (Image)
The leader’s task is to help the team keep all of the elements in focus. Focus is maintained by regularly reviewing each element in a HPT session. Each team member must come prepared and be ready to share when it is their turn, as they only have 20-30 seconds to share how they feel our team is performing. The leader of HPT will make his or her statement last. After all have shared, the leader will bring topics to the group for open discussion. After major issues are discussed and action steps are determined, one team member will summarize for the entire team what has been discussed during HPT.
So how are you supposed to use evaluation in your relationship with students?
It takes a lot of effort to process life and sometimes it can be uncomfortable, so most students don’t take the time to evaluate themselves. While on a LeaderTreks trip, you will have opportunities to challenge students to evaluate their work, their behavior, their spiritual life, or whatever you feel God is prompting to challenge.
Insightful questions are often enough to get some students started. You can even process along with them sharing your personal reflections as an example. Some students need another explanation on the purpose and benefits for undergoing evaluation. Maximizing these daily opportunities will help students develop a healthy, lasting appreciation for evaluation.
Trip Programs
need some sort of generic intro to trip programs
Urban Adventure Serve
Trip Length:
1 week
Trip Focus:
Service community development and teamwork
Trip Sites:
Chicago, Kansas City, Memphis, and Milwaukee
Trip Leadership:
Adult Leaders
Urban Adventure Serve trips are service learning adventures that put teams on the front lines of what God is doing in hurting communities across the United States. We call these trips “service learning adventures” because through serving in a mission setting students will learn about God, themselves, leadership, and community. Their learning is experiential and active. These trips are full of adventure as students walk the “mission road” and see and experience things outside their comfort zone.
Our FrontLine teams work with churches located in poor and needy communities who are seeking to make a deep impact by providing assistance, love and healing through the Gospel. Teams help these churches on the front lines maximize their impact by providing the necessary energy, hands, and resources to reach deep into their community and touch lives. Students will engage with the community through service projects and various relational outreach ministries.
Students will learn how to serve and they will work hard each and every day. They will also learn about the diverse Kingdom of God. They will see how issues like poverty, racism, immigration, and substance abuse affect communities, families and individuals. They will work shoulder to shoulder with churches working to solve some of these issues and bring the Gospel into dark places.
As students learn and serve, our program will challenge them to think and live differently, becoming leaders who make a difference for the Kingdom of God.
Mission Ready
Trip Length:
1–2 weeks
Trip Focus:
Evangelism, teamwork and leadership skills
Trip Sites:
Dayton (OH), Florence (SC), Georgetown (SC), Knott County (KY), Knoxville (TN), Pawleys Island (SC), San Marcos (TX)
Trip Leadership:
Adult Leaders
Mission Ready trips allow you to engage with a community through service and outreach. Students will be working with churches that are reaching out to the poor, needy, lost and broken in their communities. Your team will provide energy and resources to help these churches have the most impact. They will serve the community through a work project and with a pre-planned outreach.
The pre-planned outreach on a Mission Ready trip intensifies the leadership development program as students are given full ownership of that portion of the trip. This is typically a Vacation Bible School, an English Language Camp, or a Sports Camp that students will plan and lead. Before the trip ever starts, students will plan and organize the outreach program. You and the LeaderTreks staff will support and encourage them during this planning process. On the trip, students will have complete ownership and will lead it. Each night, the team will evaluate the day and make necessary adjustments to navigate obstacles, and clearly share the love of Christ. This gives significant leadership development opportunities as students work together towards excellence.
Intense Impact
Trip Length:
1–2 weeks
Trip Focus:
Leadership and evangelism in difficult environments
Trip Sites:
Knoxville (TN), Pawleys Island (SC), San Marcos (TX)
Trip Leadership:
Student Leaders
Our most intense trips, led completely by students for maximum leadership development.
Student led trips are designed for students who are mature in their faith and ready to take leadership and discipleship to the next level.
These trips are challenging. We work with churches and ministries who are on the front lines of the orphan crisis or working in areas of extreme poverty. Teams will need to bring the energy and a willingness to serve. Your team of students will provide short-term help to on-the-ground leaders who have a long-term vision to make lasting change in these communities.
These trips stress the hard work requiring students to serve in challenging situations, doing difficult tasks (i.e., laying block, mixing cement, and digging). This is combined with opportunities to share their faith as they organize and run the outreach ministry portion of the trip.
The leadership development program for Intense Impact trips starts with two student leaders who will have ownership of the whole trip. These two students will be selected by the youth worker and will attend a special training called “Student Leader Weekend” at LeaderTreks in February. They will assign different roles to each member of the team to help the team accomplish its goals (food team, work project team, cleaning team, etc.). Leadership is given to each student through these roles. The LeaderTreks staff facilitate this trip, ask hard questions and guide the process but don’t interfere with the students’ decision making. Students will be accountable to each other through the use of the LeaderTreks High Performance Team Program.
These trips are about challenge. We want students to develop a confidence in God and in themselves. Students will be tested and discover that the only way to get the job done is to bond together.
