Youth Hostel Missions:
Youth hostels are affordable student lodges used by millions of college age travelers across the globe. It's estimated that 1-2 million college-age travelers from over 120 countries will travel the world staying in youth hostels each year. Most are on their gap year. A transition period between high school and college or college and the real world. Some will take a month; others will take years. All are on a physical journey. Many are even on a spiritual journey asking the difficult questions of life in an attempt to find themselves.
Youth hostel missions is simply taking the good news of Jesus to these unreached people. Every day is a new adventure as students encounter people from all walks of life wrestling with very important issues. Through those encounters students will have ample opportunity to point out how Jesus meets their deepest needs.
Traveling as traditional tourists, students will spend one month backpacking through Europe touring major European cities. The average day is spent visiting major tourist attractions, eating in local restaurants, traveling by local transportation (Eurail and metro), and lodging in traditional European youth hostels. The common bond of being away from home and traveling from city to city opens worlds of conversation. Those conversations happen over dinner, card games, laundry, or even touring a museum with fellow travelers. In the process friendships are built and conversations typically lead to topics of life, purpose, and faith.
In addition to being an evangelism opportunity youth hostel missions is also a unique learning experience. Once one of the great missionary sending nations, now Europe is considered post-Christian with less than 2% of its population claiming to be evangelical Christians. Once filled with faithful worshipers, great cathedrals now serve only as tourists attractions and reminders of former years. What happened? What caused this massive shift? Could this trend also be happening in America? Through the YHM experience students are given the opportunity to observe and wrestle with the reality of a post-Christian culture and its trickle down effects on American thought.
Want to learn more? Check out the links below to keep up with this year's teams or learn about previous trips.
Team Neal
2008
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Team Buff
2008
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