Life Teen Missions is answering the call from Christ’s final command in Matthew 28:19, “Go and make disciples of all nations,” through our specific ministry to teens. We invest in the lives of the youth around us by going out to them, inviting them into relationship and teaching them what it means to follow Christ. In order to best disciple teens, all Life Teen missionaries spend a year in formation to assist them in developing and growing in a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.

During this year of formation, missionaries grow in an understanding of why discipleship is necessary, how to be a disciple of Christ, and how to make disciples with teens

Orientation: One weekend in July at Covecrest in Tiger, GA
Year Begins: September at Covecrest in Tiger, GA or Hidden Lake in Dahlonega, GA
Year Ends: Mid-August

Missionaries have roughly a two-week break for Christmas and a one-week break for Easter each year.

September through April is the Formation Phase of the year. May through August is the Outreach Phase where the missionaries support all Life Teen Events including Summer Camp, Convention, and Life Teen Leadership Conference with missionary zeal and passion. Over the course of the year, missionaries are trained and formed to serve the missionary movement of Life Teen. The typical day from September to April is as follows:

7:00 AM: Personal Holy Hour before the Blessed Sacrament

8:00 AM: Community Morning Prayer – Liturgy of the Hours

9:00 AM: Mass on Wednesdays and Fridays, Breakfast

9:30 AM: Formation Class (Tuesday-Thursday)

12:00 PM: Lunch and Free time

1:30 PM: Leadership Development, Mission Partnering, Discipling, or Ministry Planning Time

6:00 PM: Dinner – Men/Women; Family Dinner; or on your own

9:00 PM: Night Prayer in homes

Additionally, missionaries are committed to: discipling teens through parish ministry or school mentoring, Life Teen Staff Calls every other week, Life Teen Holy Hour on Thursday at 2 PM, weekend hospitality of the retreat groups that come to Covecrest/Hidden Lake, and retreats that we lead occasionally during the week. All missionaries in formation will make an eight-day Ignatian silent retreat at Covecrest and a ten-day foreign mission trip to Haiti. The Summer Camp schedule is also very different from the typical schedule throughout the year. Missionaries serve as leaders during Life Teen Summer Camp for over 4000 teens at our camps throughout the country.

We are confident that God will provide for what He has called you to do. You will invite friends, family, co-workers, and parishioners to be “Mission Partners.” Mission Partners commit to prayer and financial support throughout your mission year. You, in turn, commit to praying for them and their intentions, as well as sending them monthly updates on how God is moving through you and, thus, through their investment in you as mission partners. Your Mission Partners are your personal prayer team, your army of prayer coverage as you go out to be witnesses to the ends of the earth. The preferred method is to invite people to give monthly. This forms an ongoing relationship and reflects the reality that your mission partners are truly on mission with you. Each missionary is expected to reach the monthly fundraising goal and create a spreadsheet to organize contacts, invitations and donations. Life Teen Missions will provide specific fundraising training at orientation, as well as sample letters, response cards and fundraising ideas that will help you in this most important ministry to mission partners. If you believe in your missionary call, share your story and invite others into this mission, God provides.

Our prayer life is lived out in community.  Our missionary communities consist of Catholic Christians committed to a full life in Christ.  Life Teen mission communities share a common vision, pray and discern together, and do all things for the Glory of God.  Each member lives this out by embracing their unique role and by building trust through vulnerability, affirmation, and encouragement.  Community life offers a safe but challenging place to live out our faith.  Many people who live in Life Teen mission communities say, “The best part of Life Teen mission life is community.  The most difficult part of mission life is community.”  We cannot escape one another so we have many opportunities to deal with difficult issues in a healthy way.

Practically, all missionaries share bedrooms and living spaces.  All male missionaries live together and all female missionaries live together.  Men are encouraged to build their strongest relationships with other men and women with women. The relationship between male and female missionaries is one of honor.  Year One Missionaries commit to not dating or engaging in romantic relationships of any kind.  The purpose of this is to protect and honor this committed year between God and each missionary.  Also, we have weekly community recreation where we have fun together – from kickball to board games to Rock Band.  Every other week we have family dinner where small groups of missionaries join one of the community families on Thursday nights at their table.  Family Dinners have been one of the favorite aspects of community life for missionaries.

Another aspect of formation for missionaries is discipleship. As they share the faith and disciples teens and young adults, it is important that each missionary continue to mature as a follower of Christ. Each missionary is encouraged to seek someone to disciple them, or a spiritual director, to meet with them regularly. The goal of this is to ensure that each missionary is supported and encouraged to “become who they are.” This is not just to be holy but also to be whole – physically, spiritually, and relationally. St. Ireneaus said, “The glory of God is man fully alive.” We are committed to helping missionaries become “fully alive” prayerfully, personally, and communally.