Mexico Mission Trip Day 5-6
We have had a wonderful time here in Mexico at the Casa Hogar Emmanuel Orphanage. Tonight we were able to finish some of the painting of the playground that had been started earlier as well as create a bonfire for the children where we shared smores. It is amazing how the walls continue to fall and we get closer and closer to the children. God is good. He has created opportunities for everyone on the team to interact with the kids here. We are honored and blessed to have spent time with them.
Coach Rader
"We can do no great things, just small things with great love. It is not how much you do, but how much love you put in to doing it" -Mother Theresa
Here are a few comments from our team members as we prepare to leave Mexico:
"I have been blessed to come on this trip. Not only did I know I was coming to help these kids , but they also helped me. It's a huge eye opener to see what these kids lack in their daily lives, yet they are so grateful and happy. These kids really look up to us, but I really look up to them. They have taught to me to love and to be thankful for each and everyday."
Sarah Sterling
"It has been inspiring going on trips with these ladies the last four years. I learn new things about each girl's life and see their God given talents and spiritual gifts come alive. I have been learning so much about being a servant leader and how to put myself last."
Jessie Bartlow
"My favorite part of this trip was being able to play with the children and show them God's love. It has been extremely humbling to see how little these people have, yet they have so much more than we could ever dream of having because they are so gracious and thankful for every little thing. I have thoroughly enjoyed being able to spend this week with my team and grow more in our faith together."
Maddie Lewis
"This mission trip has been a very amazing experience for me, plus it was my first mission trip. The children here have amazing hearts even with such little material things and they make the best out of every single day. Walking around house to house delivering food was by far the most eye opening part of the trip. You then realize that everything you've ever complained about is nothing compared to what they COULD complain about but don't. I'm so very blessed to have been giving this opportunity with such a great group of girls and I can't wait to begin our season together."
Ryanne Purcell
"Before this mission trip, I had never been out of the country. I was extremely nervous before we left, but I put my faith in God, and was not disappointed. Some of the most powerful moments for me were distributing food to families in Naco and praying with the men in the rehabilitation center. Through my experiences in Naco, I have learned that the children and people in Naco have helped me more than I have helped them. It is a beautiful thing to be able to interact with the people here and to play with the children. I look forward to these next four years at Asbury as I continue to grow in my faith and share these memories with my team."
Kayla Morlan
"Being able to build relationships with my teammates, the children, and in God, in such a short time has been beyond indescribable. I will never forget how much love and compassion these kids have shared with us and each other, I can only hope that we were able to touch their lives as much as they have impacted mine."
Lindsay Kurz
"Coming to Mexico on my first mission trip, I didn't know what to expect. once i got to Naco I was completely and utterly amazed at how little these people have. I had heard stories about the poverty but it was nothing like I had imagined. We are talking homes full of people with no air conditioning, dirt floors and some homes aren't even the size of the dorm rooms we are moving into this next week. The community is completely consumed with abuse, drugs and alcohol...yet these people who are surrounded by that and practically have nothing are so grateful, generous and kind. It makes me wonder why am I not like that...God has been able to touch my life through the children, community members and my teammates, in more ways than one."
Hannah Truax
"This experience has been unforgettable. Being my first mission trip I wasn't quite sure what to expect. Friends of mine have been on multiple mission trips and they all tell me their experience was life changing. I hoped for the same experience, but wasn't positive it was going to happen to me. The minute I stepped foot at the orphanage I knew it would be life changing. The kids are so affectionate and giving. What really touched me was when we were giving out food bags in the neighborhoods and the people would offer to cook the food for us. They have so little, but yet they are so giving. The people here really do give in the way that Christ wants us to and they should be an example to all of us. That is something I strive to grow in. I am so incredibly blessed to have experienced such an awesome thing with a great team surrounding me."
Jade kong
" I really didn't know what to expect coming down on my first mission trip. But once I got down here, I loved it! Everyone was so welcoming and friendly even when they had so little. The kids were great and warmed up to us pretty quickly. It was an awesome experience getting to know them. Delivering the food to the neighborhoods was a huge eye opener. They were so appreciative and welcomed us into their homes. It's not very often you see that. I'm so glad that I got to come down here and it's an experience I will never forget."
Bailee Settle
"This was my first mission trip and my first time out of the country. The experience has been unforgettable and I have had so much fun. When we first left I didn't really know what to expect when I got here. Seeing how most of the people here have very little to nothing, and they are still so welcoming to us and offering for us to go into their homes, was something that really opened my eyes to how much I need to appreciate what I have at home. The kids at the orphanage were so fun to play with and get to know. It took them a while to actually warm up to us but once they did it was amazing. The whole team was so welcoming and kind to me when they first met me, and I know that I have formed bonds with them that will last a long time. Getting to know all of the other girls has been amazing. This has been an unforgettable experience for me and I can't wait for more to come."
Ashlee Rose
Throughout these past four years at asbury I have gone on many different mission trips around the world and I have never been challenged in my faith like I have here in Mexico. I'm not quite sure what the huge difference was. Whether it was the early morning quiet times with God or playing with the kids that were so desperate for love or the book we read or the people we fed, I have been changed by this trip. I have done a lot of thinking and reflecting during this trip and reanalyzing my purpose and I am going to rededicate my life to God and His people. I want to show the love that Jesus did in the same way He did. Not just through giving money in church or to the homeless man on the street or to charities, through being with them and talking with them and living with them in community. I want to live life more simply so that others may simply live. I don't plan to change the world but its like mother Theresa said its the small things done well that make the greatest impact on this world. (Something like that) God is working in amazing ways on this team and I can't wait to go on this journey together.
-Alyssa Downs
Naco Sonora Mexico was a huge culture-shock and definitely a humbling experience. I really enjoyed getting the opportunity to form relationships with the kids and love on them (they stole our hearts right away) as well as serving as the hands and feet of Jesus in the simplest of ways: distributing food to families, painting a swing set, cleaning, and just showing God's love, all of which felt like we were really making a difference in somebody else's life as well as impacting our own. It was most shocking to see how little these people had and how willing and graciously they wanted to share it with us. It really put things into perspective. They are rich in ways that are so much more important than money: they were rich in love, friendship, and generosity. God was really working in and among us and we visited here. JJ set an incredible example for us, showing us that God dwells in communities that generally rely on one another for survival and trust that God will provide for their needs. We learned that little things done with great love can go a long way, and how grateful we should be for all the blessings God has given us. I was so lucky to be able to serve in Mexico alongside my team and sisters in Christ, and the hard-working adults who accompanied us.
-Shelby Anderson
I never know what to expect when approaching another mission trip with the volleyball team. Having gone on four trips now with the team and Coach, I knew that whatever happened throughout the week, our focus needed to be on God at all times, and everything else would fall into place. To be honest I was pretty nervous about this trip in particular because I knew that I would be expected to help translate. Don't get me wrong, I love speaking Spanish and am more than happy to help in any way that I can. However, based on previous mission trips, there always came an opportunity to share with large groups of people, whether it be at volleyball camps we held or in a local church. I am more of an introvert and get pretty anxious when it comes to speaking in public. God has definitely been helping me grow in this area over the last few mission trips we've been on but I have a long ways to go. As it turns out, the translating I have helped with on this trip has been on a small scale, and primarily when playing with the kids. As the trip is coming to a close, i feel foolish for even worrying about it. I have felt God teaching me through this experience that I don't need to be worried about where God will lead me in the future or what He will call me to do, because He won't give me anything I can't handle. On another note, it has been a pure joy to get to know all of the kids here at the orphanage and I have definitely learned more from them than they have from me. As always, it has been a rewarding trip for the team and I am excited to see how we can use it to shine for God in the season ahead.
-Allison Rehner
This mission trip I wasn't really sure what to all expect. I've been learning to praise God through everything and to serve others in all situations. Whether it be just hanging out with the kids to let them know that you care about them, painting, taking out the bathroom garbage, or whatever small task might need to be done, I've been learning to serve God and others by doing those small things with a joyful heart as unto the Lord. I also am glad that we got to do food distribution and personally deliver food to those in need. JJset an incredible example of living like Jesus and getting to know the people he was helping personally.
-Hillarie Dyck