Hi, this is Nichole. So I have reached the end of my 4th and final mission trip with the Trinity UMC youth group. I'm not really sure where to start or how I could possibly put into words all that has happened and all that I learned, but I guess I will start by describing this year's mission trip and the impact it had on me. Each one of my mission trips has been spent with Adventure Serve and each one has been different and has stood out to me in its own way. This year, we did a home repair trip and I was on the team that did flooring and dry wall in the basement of the girls' cabin. In all honesty, when I found out that I was going to be working on this project I was a little disappointed because I wanted to be on the group that traveled offsite and got to meet and interact with other people. However, as the week went on, I became grateful that I was placed on that work team. From day 1, our team encouraged each other in everything. Whether it was when we had to take out floor boards and hammer them in because we had the wrong measurements, or when realized our strategy was not working, our team never gave up and never stoped pushing through each challenge that came our way. Even in moments where confusion and frustration took over, we found ways to laugh and make light of the situation. From belting out random songs to trying to turn the light switch off with a tape measurer, there was never a dull moment.
While I really enjoyed working on the basement and getting to to see our team work together, the highlight of my week was definitely traveling offsite on Wednesday and getting to meet a new family. At the home where we worked there was a grandmother and 5 kids. When we walked in, we were greeted by the grandmother and two of the kids. From the start, we could see how happy they were to have us there. We played lots of games with them and I personally spent a lot of time with the little girl and formed a special connection with her. Going in we knew that this family and these kids had seen struggle and that there were parts of their lives that had been broken. Reflecting back on our time at that house, I felt that we were there not only there to share God's love, but to show that we could be a very small piece to cleaning up that brokenness. The way that we transformed their garage made me feel that we had made a difference. By the end, all of the shattered glass and car parts were removed and in my mind these parts represented the pain and hurt this family had gone through. By cleaning out the garage, we were showing them that their struggles did not define them and that we, or more importantly God, could give them a clean slate. I was more than thankful to be placed on that worksite and to have the opportunity to interact with and help this family.
Moving on from the work site, a huge part of these mission trips has been "seed thought" devotions and worship. It has given me the chance to spend time with my own thoughts, focusing on God, and growing in my faith. This week our topic was righteousness; righteousness with God, self, others, and creation. We defined righteousness as having a right relationship with God. The biggest take away that I had from these devotions was that God placed people, nature, and situations in our lives for a reason and learning to acknowledge and appreciate all He has done can help our relationship with Him grow. There was a moment in particular that really touched me. One night at worship, we were discussing leaning on others to help clean our relationship with God and the question "when did you accept Jesus into your heart and if not are you willing to do so?" came up. What happened next was truly remarkable. While I will not go into full details of what happened or could even begin to if I tried, I think all of us there can agree that God was in that room with a hand on all of our shoulders as emotions and tears flowed. That moment meant something different to each of us, but all of us were touched and I for one can say I will forever remember that moment.
You see, that is what I love most about these mission trips. Each year our group is brought closer together in ways that we have never been before. Being taken away from technology and spending time devoted to God and serving others has an inexplicable impact on us all. Sharing moments of laughter, frustrations, and event buckets of tears has brought us together as one. The connections that I have formed over these short 4 years are not going to be easy to say goodbye to, but what makes it easier is knowing that they will all be here along the journey and when I come home.
As I prepare to end this already long blog post, I want to touch on our last day of the trip when we went rock climbing and repelling. The highlight of that day was by far getting to the top of the harder rock wall. I had been trying to get to the top of the wall for about 20 minutes and was struggling to get passed a particular part of the wall. I kept trying different footholds and grips, but each time I would fall in the opposite direction and my body was soon growing tired. However, I made an agreement with myself that I was not going to give up and sure enough I finally made it to the top. I felt so accomplished as I was sitting at the top of the rock wall. It seemed pretty fitting that this happened on the last day of my last mission trip. To me it symbolized how far I have come as a person and in my faith. My ability to persevere is something that I have formed over the years and is a quality that I believe God has helped instill in me. As I continue to climb in my journey of faith, I will remember the moment when I reached the top of the wall and I will remember how the encouragement of the group helped me to get there. I am thankful for all of the leaders and all of the students who have been a part of this journey. No matter how big or small, each and every person has helped me grow to be the person that I am today. I will forever be thankful for all of the memories I have had on these mission trips and my time spent in youth group. - Nichole
