Raise Support for Your Mission Trip: What You Need to Know

Going on a mission trip is exciting, but paying for it can feel overwhelming. Whether you’re a student or a adult leader, this guide will help make the fundraising process easier, more meaningful, and faith-building.

Three Main Ways Students Pay for Trips

Students typically cover mission trip costs through some combination of these three ways:

Parent contributions
Personal savings or part-time work
Raising financial support from a team of donors

Most students raise support for all or a portion of their trip and they often say it’s one of the most spiritually stretching and rewarding parts of the journey.

What is Support Raising?

Support raising means inviting people to give financially to your mission. These donors become ministry partners, not just funders, joining you in reaching high school students for Christ. It’s teamwork: you go, they send.
The most effective tool is a personal support letter that explains your mission and invites people to give. If you’re going on a Cru mission trip, you’ll be coached through the process step by step with a mentor to guide you.

Support raising is not begging—it's building a team to reach the world with Jesus.

Debunking Support Raising Myths

Myth #1: “People will think I’m just going on vacation.”

Truth: Sure, you’ll travel and enjoy the journey, but your purpose is clear—sharing the gospel and growing in your faith.

Myth #2: “I’m just begging for money.”

Truth: You’re building a prayer and giving team to help reach the world for Jesus. You’re inviting others into a shared mission and they will benefit from being a part of your journey.

Myth #3: “I’m alone in this.”

Truth: With Cru, you’ll receive a GoPac guide book, step-by-step instructions, and a support coach who will walk with you every step of the way.

God has called you and He will provide.

Verses to Encourage You

Matthew 28:16-18: You’re answering God’s call to go.
Ephesians 3:20: God can do more than you imagine.
2 Corinthians 8:1-5: It’s biblical to ask others to give.
Philippians 4:19, Genesis 22:14: God is your Provider.
Acts 20:35, Matthew 6:19-20: Giving blesses both the giver and the mission.

Hebrews 13:21, 2 Corinthians 9:8: God will equip and provide.

A Prayer to Start the Journey

“Lord, thank You for being a God who provides. Help me trust You as I step out in faith to build a team of prayerful and generous partners. You already know who will support this mission. Help me be faithful and bold. I want to follow You anywhere, so more students can know You. Amen.”

Next Step

Write down three people you could invite to be part of your support team then pray over those names and start reaching out.

Starting Spiritual Conversations

Bringing up spiritual topics can be hard, but it’s one of the most important steps in reaching your friends. If no one starts the conversation, most students will never talk about their faith.

Solarium: A deck of picture cards to help you start conversations about life and God.

Sharing Your Testimony

Your story matters. Sharing what God has done in your life can open hearts and help others realize that faith is personal and real.

How to Share Your Story (article): A step-by-step guide to help you talk about how Jesus has changed your life.

Sharing Your Faith

The gospel is powerful and your friends need to hear it. Learning how to clearly explain the message of Jesus is a huge step in making your faith your own and helping others follow Him.

How to Share the Gospel (article): a step-by-step guide to help you share the gospel with a friend.
Connecting with God Booklet: A short, simple booklet you can read through with a friend to explain how they can know Christ.
The Four Wristband: A wearable tool with four simple symbols to help you talk about God’s love and how to receive Christ.
GodTools App: A free app with interactive ways to share your faith in different languages and styles.

“You don’t have to be perfect to start reaching your school.”

Following Up a New Believer

When someone accepts Christ, they need help knowing what to do next. Helping a new believer grow in their faith is one of the most rewarding things you can do.

Thrive Studies App: Includes the START series—four Bible studies for new believers.

Leading a Small Group

Small groups are a powerful way to build community and help students grow. If you can lead a good conversation, you can lead a small group.

Thrive Studies App: Includes dozens of studies on real-life topics and built-in leader training.

Campus Ministry Training

Reaching students on your campus is one of the most strategic ways to share your faith. Learning a few simple principles can help you start conversations, gather students, and take steps toward building a movement at your school.

Campus Training Videos – Short, practical videos to help you learn how to reach students on your high school campus. These eight trainings cover key topics like meeting students, starting conversations, sharing your faith, and taking simple steps to build a movement.

Other helpful tools

Everystudent.com: articles to help students learn about faith
Gotothecampus.com: ministry training and tools to help you grow your ministry

Next Step

Pick one tool and take a step this week to start a conversation or gather a few friends.

Ask a Coach – Tips from an Expert

Starting a ministry on your campus is an exciting step, but it can also raise a lot of questions. What should you do first? How do you find students who are interested? What if your group is small or things do not go the way you expected?

This is where a coach can help. A campus ministry coach is someone who has experience helping students and leaders start and grow ministries on high school campuses. They listen to what you are facing, help you think through wise next steps, and connect you with helpful tools and resources along the way.

Throughout the Reach Your School Playbook, you will see short insights from coaches who have spent years helping students reach their campuses. This page gathers more of those tips in one place so you can learn from their experience and keep moving forward.

Below are practical coaching tips from leaders who have walked this road before. As you read, look for what applies to your situation right now and take your next step. You can get your own coach by emailing us at coachingcenter@cru.org. We’d love to help.

Starting a ministry on your campus can feel overwhelming, but you do not have to figure it out alone.

Coaching Tips

Ask a few non-Christian friends how they would respond to your ideas, then process those same questions with Christian friends to sharpen your thinking.

Evangelism is the engine of your ministry, and helping students influence others is how you build future leaders.

You don’t have to figure this out alone, there are people with experience who would love to help you gather students and get the word out.

You have rights on campus, learn them, then live them out with confidence.

Many people are looking for something bigger than themselves, so give them a vision worth joining.

You may be walking past someone God is preparing, start a conversation and see what He does.

Pray Scripture, if God says it, you can pray it, and keep prayers short so more people can participate.

Invite a coach to join your team early, it will help you move faster and avoid common mistakes.

Use the tools available to you, there are helpful resources for sponsors, leaders, and teams if you ask.

When meeting with school leaders, bring others with you so it’s clear you’re building something together.

Be curious, kind, helpful, and bold, those four traits open doors.

Work with your school, not against it, staff can often help you more than you expect.

Teams help you reach more people, save time, and build momentum.

If your school allows non-curricular clubs, they must allow a Christian club too.

Use tools and visuals that help people remember and apply what they learn.

Create environments people actually want to be part of, whether on campus or off.

Use social media, simple graphics, and personal invites, everyone plays a role in getting the word out.

Have a clear process for identifying and developing student leaders.

Work within school expectations for roles, but organize your team in a way that actually helps you function.

Start outreach where you already have relationships, teams, clubs, and shared interests.

Use response cards or forms to follow up, gather feedback, and invite people into next steps.

If God is nudging you to take a step, go for it, but bring others with you.

Parents can be powerful allies, don’t be afraid to involve them.

Always have a next step ready so you can invite people while they’re still engaged.

Next Step

Do you have any questions for our coaches? If so, ask your question here, or request a coach for your ministry by emailing us at coachingcenter@cru.org!