One of the reasons I went on the Dominican Republic Missions Trip was because I could go with my whole family. It was a student ministries trip so both boys could have meaningful active roles and Mary Anne and I could also have significant roles.

I would highly recommend to anyone who wants to grow in their Fluency with God’s Word in life’s situations, to look for an opportunity to minister with their family.

On our trip (as with all upper level student ministry trips) the focus was not only on the activities we went to do, but on “training for life. ” I developed a devotional plan for all to use in the mornings (sometimes we did it as a team).  And in the evenings we had the opportunity to worship and study 1 John together.

As a teacher who spends most of his time teaching adults in environments that my family is not involved in, it was great to be in an in depth study together.

We also had “man talks” in which we talked to the students (guys) about leadership and relationships. It was great to have others speaking into the life of my kids (both other leaders and other older students).

And as a couple, though we each had different roles, it was great to see God work through my wife. Most of the ministries she is involved in, other than our small group, are in environments that I am not involved in. In previous ministries (smaller) we had the opportunity to do more ministry together. So it was fun to watch ladies fall in love with my wife and for her to be able to encourage and counsel. And she did a great job as “doctor Mom” to the whole team.