One of the timeless games that is played in youth ministry is a variation of what we call “Mission Impossible.” I remember playing this game each year at camp, running around in the dark trying to find a secret “chip” and avoiding flour bombs.

In four years of camp, I don’t think I EVER found that secret chip.

Here’s the way we are playing the game THIS Friday night!

Supplies: glow sticks, flashlights, super-soakers

Set-up:

• 1 Volunteer at the Lodge with glow sticks (enough for each student, plus extras)
• Heather: Horn/Whistle/Megaphone. Located in the general area outside.
• 4 color of bandanas and face paint for each team. We also got fake mustaches for “secret spy disguises”
• 4 hidden buckets throughout the campus with labels on them for each color.
• Volunteers scattered throughout campus with flashlight lasers (4 people) or super-soakers (4 people)
• 1 Volunteer at each bucket (to make sure that no one steals those glow sticks). They are given a noodle that they can hit students with.
• PJ is hidden with his secret costume — if a student finds him, they get a SPECIAL item in a secret envelope (immunity for one capture, ten extra points, etc.)

Object of game:

• This is MISSION:IMPOSSIBLE. Students are faced with the impossible mission of getting their Glow Sticks to their team’s bucket, which is hidden around the dark parking lot. The team with the most Glow Sticks wins.
• But it’s not that easy: Throughout the parking lot are leaders with flashlights and water guns. If a student gets “tagged” by either, they must stop, drop their glow stick, and go back to home base (The Lodge) and begin again.
• There are four leaders by the buckets with pool noodles to “watch” the buckets and make sure no one steals from another’s bucket. They may tag students with noodles.
• There are more leaders scattered with flashlights/laser pointers and water guns to tag students.
• A student may grab a fallen glowstick and attempt to make it to their bucket with it.
• Leaders MAY choose to instead torture/humiliate the student by making them do a challenge: Sing “Itsy Bitsy Spider” or do 10 pushups or propose to the next person who gets caught. Then students can go on and do the challenge.
• Once students have dropped their Glow Sticks in the bucket, they will run back to Home Base and begin the challenge all over again.
• The challenge will end at 8:30 sharp (so, about an hour and a half to carry out the mission). Buckets will be collected, and the winning team gets a prize!

If you play the game, research the SEVERAL ways to play it! Last year we played with Skittles, and if caught the students would eat their Skittle. The issue was that everyone’s hands were covered with dye!!!