April 8, 2006
I’ll never forget how powerless I felt when they placed her in my arms. She was 7 years old. Her mother was murdered and left in a ditch. Her aunt brought her into the church and the little girl was kicking and screaming.
“Please pray for this little girl,” she said.
I was in Brazil. It was one of the most amazing missions trips I had ever encountered. We were in the rainforest on the Amazon. We slept on a boat in 
hammocks and in small closet-like bunkers. It was rugged and hot and most of the team was struggling with sickness.
And then there was the girl. I took the girl from the woman and held her through service, praying that God would comfort her. I felt helpless, as I did most of the days. We worked with an optometrist to distribute eyeglasses. There were never enough hours to meet the needs. There were always more waiting, arriving in canoes, hopeful that they would see a doctor.
But as I held the girl I felt God’s presence. I was tired. I was unsure of myself. But it wasn’t about me. He wasn’t asking me to fix all the problems. He wasn’t asking me to do anything, but to love the person in front of me.
Suddenly the little girl stopped crying and snuggled on my shoulder. For the rest of the week she was my little shadow.
A lot of people ask why I go on missions trips like these. My answer is that short-term missions changes people. Yes, it impacts physical needs hrough medical care. Yes, it helps missionaries as teams build churches and paint rescue houses.
But the person who is normally changed the most is me.
It expands my horizons to see cultures beyond the American culture. It helps me to grasp what real poverty is — not a lack of stuff, but children without families or food or shelter. It allows me to watch God at work through unexpected moments and miracles.
Have you went on a short-term missions trip?
If you haven’t, I hope you will consider it. It’s life-changing. These are a few organizations that offer short-term missions trips for teens both abroad and in the U.S.:
- Student Venture
- Teen Mania
- Teen Missions International
- The Dream Center (Urban Missions)
- YWAM (Youth with a Mission)
Kaitlin says:
Wow!! I’ll have to look into a short-term mission trip. Thanks for the idea!
Mandie says:
I’m praying to go on a short term mission this year to Poland with my church. I pray I can have an experience like yours. that is amazing.
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