Next Step Ministries

A Guide to Staying Safe this Summer

Next Step Ministries is called to short-term missions that collide with long term community development. This means, meaningful construction projects, high energy and engaging worship, serving alongside community members, and providing tools for our volunteers to take the mission back home. To this end, Next Step is doing everything we can do to COVID proof our trips. This will include taking responsibility for our health, being receptive to new ways of serving in our communities, and being resourceful when it comes to creating new ways to implement real and lasting change, both spiritually and socially.

Step 1: Being Responsible For Our Own Health 

It is Next Step’s policy for the summer of 2022 that all participants be responsible for their own health. With this, we recommend that everyone who can get tested before the start of their trip gets tested and receives a test result of being negative for COVID-19. For those who cannot get tested for any reason, we ask that they would monitor their health and track any possible COVID-19 symptoms (based on the current CDC guidelines) for the week leading up to the start of the trip. If any symptoms arise, we ask that this person would get tested and be able to receive a result of being negative for COVID-19 before joining us on the trip. We will not be asking for proof of negative test results, and we are trusting that each person will be honest in helping to keep everyone safe. It is imperative that we do all we can on a personal level to not be part of the problematic spread of the disease as we continue to be a light of Christ in the lives of the community members we serve alongside by protecting our community partners in this way.

Step 2: Being Receptive To New Ways Of Serving.

Next Step is doing everything it can do to find ways to keep all participants and partnering community members safe. This means being receptive to new ways of doing things, which may entail and are not necessarily limited to the following changes: 

1. Wearing all proper safety protection while on site (e.g. gloves and protective glasses, etc.) Masks will be required when we work on certain projects, work with a homeowner that requests them and/ or when a community has a mandate to wear them.
2. Working within a smaller work crew, which in turn enables us to have plenty of extra space to keep a safe distance. 
3. The housing that we stay at might change to accommodate the teams that are serving the week you’re there. 
4. Ultimately, being flexible with last minute changes. This year will probably be much of the same. Please know that being flexible with change is a great way to serve the team.

Step 3: Let’s be partners

God has called Christians to come together to commune, pray and worship. If you would like to request a change or discuss these policies, please reach out so we can work together.

Next Step is doing everything it can to make sure that we continue to lead short-term mission trips in responsible ways that will not jeopardize anyone’s health, moving forward to share the love of God within all our community partnerships. 

As you begin looking into partnering with Next Step for a mission trip, if you have any questions at all, please call us toll free at 866-534-2009 or email us at missions@nextstepministries.com.