by Dr. Shane Parker and Dr. Michael Wilder

“We have realized that for students to become true disciples, they must themselves become concerned and active disciplers of the nations. If this generation will be influenced and developed toward, engaged in, and assessed for growth unto a global vision and life, God will raise them up to change the lives of whole tribes, communities, and nations.” (p 237)

Shane Parker and Michael Wilder’s newly released book TransforMission is about the impact of short term mission trips on the lives of youth and how they can be a sanctifying agent in students’ lives and in the ministry as a whole. In all 200+ pages of TransforMission I never wonder why I am reading it. The theme of the transforming power of missions is carried throughout the book.  The authors know that mission trips, however long they might be, serve youth by changing their Americanized culture mindset and giving them a look at the world God created for His glory.

If you aren’t a statistician, I ask that you persevere through the first chapters. The authors do a skilled job at providing the reader with tons of broad and in depth research on short term missions and churches.

Here is where I think Wilder and Parker excel:

1. My favorite part of the book is definitely the personal stories that each of the authors tell about the time they have spent on the mission field. Reading these personal accounts anchored this truth: the gospel is for the world – and these two men breathe this.

2. This book is filled with the Word. They don’t just rely on personal experience or research studies. They take it back to the infallible Word of God as the basis of their study. You can clearly see they hold up the Word as their authority.

3. TransforMission has clear guidelines on how to begin to make an impact through short term missions. I think this book would be very useful in a seminary classroom or for a youth pastor who is fighting upstream at getting the other staff/parents at his church to see the importance of taking students across the world.

If you are involved at all in missions, discipleship, youth ministry, college ministry – you would be wise to pick up this book. This will help strengthen your argument for short term missions.  I hope by reading this book you are compelled to proceed with getting your students and self overseas – no matter what length of time.

So, when’s the next plane leave?