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Experience The Ripple Effect Of Agape Mail
Why are the young people the only ones coming back from the mission field changed? Could the whole congregation be impacted by youth mission trips?
Invite your church community to send Agape Mail to the kids and leaders on the mission trip this year. And watch what happens!
Looking for a step-by-step to starting or restarting your youth ministry?
Check out the Youth Ministry Bundle For Small Churches!
Agape Mail
Learn what it is, why it’s so impactful, and how to duplicate it in your local church this summer.
Agape Mail is a great way to …
- Expand the impact of the youth mission trip to include your entire church family
- Create connections between youth and your church members
- Boost congregational support for your youth group
- Raise up more volunteers for the youth ministry
- Help youth experience love and support from the congregation
- Watch relational ministry at work
What Is Agape Mail?
Agape Mail is an intentional way for every part of the church to encourage kids and youth leaders while they are away.
All of the kids and youth ministry leaders on the trip receive a piece of Agape Mail each day they are away. Their givers are anonymous until the last day when their encouragers reveal themselves.
Agape Mail has a lasting effect on the giver as well as the receiver.
The Impact On Youth
My first experience with Agape Mail was in Toledo, Ohio. One of the moms at church exposed me to the concept and I have been a die-hard fan ever since!
I’ve taken the tradition of Agape Mail to all of the different churches I have served at.
High school students are so excited to receive their mail each day. And they spend the week trying to guess who their anonymous person is.
Ripping open their envelopes, they laugh at silly tokens, quietly read scriptures, take photos of their gifts, share candy with their friends, and thoughtfully recount bits of wisdom from their mail.
Many students hang onto their mail as prized possessions. I’ve seen them hanging up on bulletin boards years later.
Agape Mail creates cherished memories, and shares God’s love with everyone involved.
New and deeper relationships ignite from connections made. An adult previously unknown to the student has bridged a gap.
Students feel loved and come back wanting to thank their person for all the Agape Mail.
The Ripple Effect Continues: The Impact On Your Congregation
The receivers aren’t the only ones affected!
By taking an envelope off the Agape Mail board, the giver now has a responsibility to extend themselves to a young person.
As the thought process begins, so does a relationship.
What should I give? What should I write? Is there something that they would like to receive?
A bunch of adults (many previously uninvolved with the kids) begin pouring their time and hearts into creating mail for the students. And the fun ensues!
- Buying trinkets at the dollar store
- Writing notes
- Decorating envelopes
- Finding fun quotes
- Looking up thoughtful scriptures
- Picking up some candy
After doing all this, they can’t help thinking about the mission of God all week long. Sending kind thoughts and prayers.
The givers are excited to hear from the kids when they return. Sometimes introducing themselves for the first time. Relationships grow.
How To Set Up Agape Mail For Your Youth Mission Trip
Start promoting Agape Mail a month before your trip. People need time to sign up. Complete the mail. And turn it in. All the mail will be taken with the team on the day they leave.
You’ll need:
- Clear directions to post on your display
- A display board with numbered envelopes and stickers to sign up
- A printed instruction sheet for people to take home
Agape Mail Directions To Post On Your Display
“Welcome to our Agape Mail Board! Send some love to the young adults and church leadership on their mission trip.
Each envelope here has a name inside. By taking the envelope, you are committing to create mail for just that person –– one for each day of their trip!
Take an envelope with a secret name inside! Sign your name on the sticker that was beneath your envelope. And don’t reveal the name. (Shh … It’s a secret!)
All mail needs to be returned by: (Insert your deadline here!)
Grab an instruction sheet below with more details.”
Make An Agape Mail Display Board For Your Welcome Area
Grab a poster board and go to work!
- Title the poster board “Agape Mail” and include directions (above).
- On the board, place 1″ x 3″ stickers, numbered for each student and adult leader attending the trip. Leave room for a signature. (If you have 13 attending, you will have 13 stickers.)
- Number envelopes to correspond with the stickers.
- Put the name of each student and adult leader on an index card and fold in half.
- Place one index card in each numbered envelope.
- Label the outside of each envelope with one of the following: Male Leader. Female Leader. Male Youth. Female Youth. (Correspond label to the name on the index card inside.)
- Use tape to hang the labeled envelopes over their corresponding numbered stickers.
Printed Instructions For Agape Mail
The best way to make sure it all goes smoothly is to provide anyone who takes an envelope receives the following instructions:
- Create a piece of mail for each day the kids are away and place in separate envelopes. For this year’s trip, there are _________ days.
- Label each envelope with the day of the week and the person’s name. (“Day 1 – Joe Smith” “Day 2 – Joe Smith”)
- Please include something tangible each day. (like candy, a bracelet, a dollar store gag gift, sunglasses, lip balm, etc.)
- Agape Mail can be (and should be) a bit fun and silly, but please remember to also include some substance: Bible verses, quotes, spiritual encouragement, and/or a thoughtful note.
- Decorate the envelopes for extra fun with artwork, stickers, collages, sayings & quotes.
- IMPORTANT: Do NOT sign your name until the last day, when you can reveal your identity! This is ANONYMOUS until the very end. That’s part of the fun! So keep them guessing.
- The deadline for turning in your Agape Mail is: (include date here)
Tips For Agape Mail:
- Everyone loves STUFF — please include trinkets and/or candy. (i.e., gum, breath mints, funny things from the dollar store, joke book, mustache stickers, journal, temporary tattoos, deck of cards, ball cap, bracelet, journal, colored pens, mini fan, sticky hands, fun props for photos)
- Keep in mind how your person might be feeling on Day 1, Day 3, or Day 5 —exhausted, excited, nervous, tired? Write the note with these in mind.
- Scripture verses can be really encouraging. Quotes are also fun to throw out there. (The kids love quotes!)
- No chocolate or melt-ables, please! Nothing valuable that could be ruined if it gets squooshed!
- Remember, your identity is a secret! You can reveal yourself in the note only on the final day!
- If you have never experienced a mission trip, please know that students are kept very busy and meet lots of challenges. There are emotional moments, fun/crazy moments, and spiritual moments. Leaders are challenged with moody, tired kids. Mission trips are life-changing as well as trying and exhausting. Your Agape Mail may be the bright point of the day! Remember to encourage and share smiles!
Agape Mail ideas vary by every personality and each age group involved. From thoughtful scripture passages to funny memes, and gag gifts (mustache stickers, zany glasses, and silly putty). As well as practical items (like breath mints, band-aids, and hair ties).
5 Must-Dos For Success
- The coordinator of Agape Mail needs to keep a cheat sheet of who chose what person on the trip. The board remains anonymous, but you need to know what name was placed by every number. As mail is received, check off names. Occasionally someone misses the deadline, and you need to contact them to see if it’s still coming.
- Encourage your mail creators to team up for shopping and letter writing. Dollar store shopping is a coveted adventure for Agape Mail. And creativity loves laughter! Make some memories sitting around tables together creating collages out of magazines. And laughing over the choices ending up in the envelopes.
- Set your collection deadline AT LEAST one full week ahead of your departure date. If mail is missing, call the writer/creator immediately! They may have forgotten to drop off or even to complete it.
- If someone is unable to complete their assignment, you absolutely need to make some last-minute mail! This is very important work, and everyone attending the trip needs to receive mail each day.
- Be prepared with extra trinkets. If mail comes in without gifts, it’s a good idea to add in things like a pack of gum, mints, or fuzzy socks. If everyone is getting gifts but one student, that is a total bummer!
Organize The Mail In Daily Bags
The first step is to set up recycled shopping bags for each day of the trip and label them clearly. Have your team members place all the Day 1 mail in the Day 1 bag. All Day 2 mail in the Day 2 bag. Be very conscientious to make sure there is a piece of mail for each day for each person!
This will GREATLY help the trip leaders who will be distributing the mail! Then they just have to pull out the Day 1 bag and not hunt through everything.
Make sure someone on the trip takes responsibility for distributing the mail each day.
Because mission trips get a little busy and crazy, we have found the greatest success distributing the mail in the morning as everyone is waking. Usually, the older people in charge deliver a piece of mail to everyone’s pillow during the morning get-ready time.
Looking for a step-by-step to starting or restarting your youth ministry?
Check out the Youth Ministry Bundle For Small Churches!
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