At Lake Forest Church, we believe that the church is not THE Missio Dei, (mission of God). The church instead exists to JOIN the Missio Dei in His love for the world.

At Lake Forest we are not called to ‘build up the church’ or ‘get people busy serving the church.’ We believe our highest purpose is to be authentic, compelling expressions of God’s love for his people and creation in order to draw people into a love relationship with the God who loves them.

To accomplish this, we seek tangible ways to express our witness of God’s love, grace, and mercy to places where spiritual and physical brokenness, poverty, and injustice exist. We believe the fullest and most obedient expression of joining Missio Dei is, within the context of a long-term relationship, serving both locally and beyond our local community.

Short-term mission trips are not just for mature Christians - or even just for Christians. However, they are spiritual-growth accelerators and will be most impactful for those who are already growing spiritually and joining the Missio Dei locally.

“On these trips, we build and repair houses and care for children. But that’s not the whole story. We are really living out our identity as ministers and messengers of God’s love. We are exploring the transformation that only comes when we join God’s mission in this world. ”
~ Pastor of Mission Michael Flake

The Summer Mission Teams have been assembled, follow their journeys on our Missio Dei blog.

Summer Trips at a Glance

Piedras Negras, Mexico
Saturday, June 12 - Saturday, June 19
Saturday, June 19 - Saturday, June 26
More on Piedras, Negras.

Cochabamba, Bolivia
Thursday, July 1 - Saturday, July 10
Thursday, July 8 - Saturday, July 17
More on Bolivia.

Athens, Ohio
Sunday, August 1 - Saturday, August 7
More on Athens.