Going on a family mission trip may be one of the best decisions you could make for your family. Getting out of the house and out of your comfort zones will teach you to depend on God and to trust each other in deeper ways. I may be a little biased, but I highly recommend that more families go on mission trips together.

It's always worked for the Barnes family.

I've taken my family on mission trips for most of their lives. Karen and I began our marriage in the mission field. Once we started having kids, we wanted to expose them to other cultures and the importance of radically depending on God. One summer, I took my kids to Peru to plant a church. One Thanksgiving, we served the poor of Appalachia.

Our good friends, Mark and Katherine Almand took their family on a month-long mission trip, and it had a wonderful impact on them.

Going on a family mission trip may be one of the best things you can do to disciple your kids and help your family grow spiritually. I raised my kids on morning devotions and the importance of personal quiet times, but without giving them a practical outlet to live out their faith, all that studying and teaching can fall on deaf ears.

Don't get me wrong - families need to study the Bible and pray around the kitchen table, but they also need to go do practical ministry together. That may mean feeding the homeless at the local park, praying for your neighbors, or going on a family mission trip.

In my experience, making intentional decisions like going on mission trips is just a way to make room in your schedule for God to move.

If you want to know more about family mission trips, check out how we do family missions at AIM or a list of upcoming trips for families.