"Victoria" Mission Spring 2012- Winning Essay

All you can hope for when God leads you to take part in a mission or service trip is that you will be a blessing to the people you are serving and that you grow not only in character but in your relationship with the Lord. I always find when I participate in service trips that the people I’m trying to serve end up blessing me so much more than I feel I was a service to them.

The catalyst that lead me to participating in Global Projects’ spring trips was actually participating in another Trinity outreach program called Nightshift last year. I loved going Monday nights to Surrey with fellow students and meeting people in the downtown core and genuinely listening to people’s stories and getting a glimpse of what their lives are really like. After weeks of doing this you begin to recognize God’s work in their lives, even if the individual doesn’t recognize it as God’s hand, prayers are getting answered. That’s when God started to whisper in my life that this type of service is something to be looked at closer and I started to look for other opportunities in that I could serve those that society tends to cast aside. At that time God directed me to the Global Projects spring teams, and the fact that three weeks before the teams were to leave I was able to be placed on one, was God’s work at hand. Going to Calgary was a growing experience, I didn’t know anyone on my team and I was out of my comfort zone. But the people I met and the stories that I head were aspiring and encouraging. Once again, even though I gave up a week of work, God blessed me in so many little ways on that service trip that I feel I got so much more than I gave. After going to Calgary I knew that the next year I wanted to once again give up my reading week to serve others. Although the decision to go didn’t seem as significant this year because I knew what I was pursuing, God had a plan to make this opportunity another  growing experience that would push my comfort level, when He gave me the opportunity to lead a team this reading break. Although I don’t see myself as leader quality since I tend to be quiet and shy in larger groups, I have to trust God that his strengths will continually work through my weaknesses so that I may not boast in my accomplishments, but give the glory of my accomplishments back to God knowing that this experience will challenge and allow me to grow in character. You may wonder why this fact pertains to inspiring stories of missions, and its relevant because on previous trips I listened to people’s stories of how they reached the bottom; where they felt there was no way getting out of the pit they had created. But then organizations like the Mustard Seed in Calgary give them a place where they can find a source of hope again. These organizations, whether Christian-based or not, give those in need a hand in battling addictions, they walk beside the broken as they fight against weaknesses; they have decide to take the time and befriend those society wants to ignore. I hear these stories of redemption, of people fighting for their lives, overcoming what seems the impossible, and I ask myself why wouldn’t people want to help even for a couple days? Why wouldn’t you want to be a hand that the Lord uses to bring even the smallest positive influence on another person’s life? I’m always amazed and in awe of the way God works in people’s lives, the way he reshapes and claims them for his own and then uses those very people who had hit the bottom, who were on the edge to help others yet again. At the Mustard Seed in Calgary I met numerous people who were volunteering there because they wanted to give back to the organization that was helping them. I understand that some stories may be fabricated, and many people who live in poverty are there because their money always goes to their addictions, but what stops us from helping, from trying? In my mind, giving up a week of income to serve others within an organization that provides a source of hope is a blessing all on its own. I’m excited to seeing God’s plan develop through this trip, to see Him at work through the organization that my team volunteers and to see my team grow and be challenged.

-Megan Schellenberg