Just Go.

When people ask me how my first international mission trip went I can’t really describe it. Not in a bad way but in a way that expresses how great it really was. I am; however, going to try my best to type/paint a picture of how awesome this trip was.

If you’ve been under a rock or haven’t kept up with me on social media you may not know, but in March I got to go on my first international mission trip to Sosua, Dominican Republic with a few friends from camp. Never in a million years would I have ever seen myself going overseas to do any type of missions; travel for fun, sure, but never missions. Over the last year, though, God really put a burden on my heart of this. As Christians we are called to be missionaries. In our homes, schools, jobs, cities, states; and yes, outside of America. The thought of going out of the country to bring the gospel to people who may have never heard Jesus’ name kinda scared me. I have had so many friends and family that had either been missionaries or had done mission trips I could no longer ignore the little flicker that God had started in my heart.

So the first week of March this year, after many months of fundraising and praying for God to bless this trip He’d called me on, I got on a plane and flew out of the country for the first time in my life. To say I was nervous isn’t really true. I wasn’t nervous at all about leaving the country. I was really excited about it. Sure having been warned about things that could happen or go wrong while we were there and after did make me a little nervous. I could get Zika virus or could get injured. I could lose my passport or have issues getting back in the country for some reason or another. I was really excited to meet the missionaries that worked day in and day out with the people we would be working with and for. These missionaries were literally from all around the world; Mexico, the United States, Dominican Republic and even Holland!! That’s crazy to see God use people from all over to share in this ministry. Of course I could have never gone without the support of my friends, family, coworkers and my church.

“Jason, what did you do while you were there?”

“Did you have a good time?”

“What was your favorite part?”

So many different questions have been asked and I really don’t know where to start. So I might as well dive in….

I’ll start with what we did. Over the week we had the opportunity to go to the garbage dump and provide food; including bananas, soup, coffee(yea I know right?!) and peanut butter sandwiches, and cold fresh/clean water to people that were either there scavenging for clothes or food for their families or they were living there because they had nowhere else to live. There were different ages of people from kids to older adults. Yes it was hard to see for sure, but a recurring theme I saw and I hope to share is even though these people had little to nothing they were smiling. There were different races here as well. It was not just Dominican people there were also Haitians that had immigrated to the DR in hopes to make a better life for themselves and their families.

We also got a chance to tour the different villages and communities the missionaries worked with; stopping to pray with different individuals and families. These communities have houses that were built by a partner ministry that wanted to help provide housing for those living in rough conditions or didn’t have a home at all. Each little home had a living room and kitchen area as well as a bathroom and bedroom(s). All of them looked the same but awesome little houses that were bigger than my one bedroom apartment. I would definitely be grateful for the space if it was given to me as well. With each area we got to meet some families and kids that had different stories to tell. One family had a father who had an infection that couldn’t be cared for so he couldn’t work. One family that father had had a leg amputated from illness. Many families it was just a mother and children, maybe a sibling or two living with them. I can’t imagine living in this way, but again these people were smiling and living life as they could. Most people in Sosua don’t have vehicles or transportation means to get to a from a job so they may walk or ride a motorcycle taxi which were pricey for what they were. Money was definitely scarce. Many of the homes didn’t have running water or electricity but some did. That was crazy to me. I’ve always had basic utilities where I lived and it’s hard to imagine life without running water, but they do it and live like that every day.

We also got the opportunity to participate in an English class with high school age teens that were learning basic English. They would learn to read and speak English, ask questions and even learn scripture in English, that they would be tested on later in the week. These students were learning from a Hispanic woman named Genesis. She is awesome! She has such a passion for these students to learn English. She’s just one of the missionaries that love on these people. While her English isn’t “perfect” it was still evident that she herself was a student of the language and wanted to learn more and more English as she taught these students.

One evening we split and the guys went to “boys life” and our female went to the girl’s ministry. Each of these groups did different things. With the guys it was sports. Lots of basketball. LOTS of basketball! After the basketball drills we walked with the boys to a place where Daniel, our missionary; taught them scripture out of Psalm 15. I could tell just from how he spoke his passion for these boys to have an experience with the Lord. After he finished talking they all sang “How Great is Our God” in Spanish. Yall, that was definitely an experience that is unforgettable. It was priceless to see these teenage boys singing praises to God in spanish…. Just beautiful.

The stand out of this trip was something that made me nervous before, during and after we did it. While many people could easily see why I would be nervous I don’t think that I can fully explain how awesome God is through this. On our final night in Sosua we had the opportunity to go into downtown and meet/pray with young women who have resorted to the streets to make money for themselves and their families. Prostitution is very prominent in this area. Human trafficking runs rampant in Sosua and other places; sadly the Domincan is the 4th highest human trafficking country in the world. That’s really scary when you think about it. There we were in the middle of it. The area is a big tourist area; used to be more for families, but now has become a hotspot for older generations that this is including single men who will come to the area just for the prostitution.

Of course no mission trip is not complete without an opportunity to be a tourist. On our last full day in the Dominican we were able to go out and snorkel! It was fun, and a lot harder than I would’ve thought. I’m not a fan of wearing flippers to help me swim. They hurt my ankles; but I digress. There’s not a lot to write about that. Before and after our snorkeling adventures we spent some time walking around the little touristy shops with all the touristy, tacky knick knacks that everyone must purchase before they leave the country! I managed to walk away with a bracelet for a friend and then two coffee mugs. I have enough useless stuff at home, the last thing I need was more. It’s always nice to have the memories so I opted to keep the extra pesos I had and I also ordered a Dominican flag to hang up at home. It’s my reminder to pray for the people of Sosua and the missionaries that are on the ground working with these people!

If I could sum my trip up in one sentence; which is hard for me to do, I would simply say this:

“Never question God’s calling, just go”

I had a good time that’s for sure. Got to experience a culture I’m not used to. Having grown up in the United States and always hearing about missions and actually going is two different things. Before this trip I had no interest in going out of the country cause honestly there’s hurts and needs here as much as there is in other countries. Going out of the country and seeing it first hand really allows you to better understand your call as a Christ follower. Love God; love people. It sounds simple when you go overseas and it seems almost impossible when you’re at home in your town and state. There is a call for you to be a missionary, be a missionary where you are. There are so many people in your community that don’t know who Jesus is. That’s hard to comprehend when you live in the Bible Belt, but you’d be surprised.

There’s a need all over the world; including your backyard. So don’t wait get out, and share your faith!! The worst thing can happen is someone says NO. I’ve been reading The Explicit Gospel by Matt Chandler and in the book he says this “People are going to respond to the gospel every time is is presented. They’re going to respond in belief, or their heart is going to become more and more hardened toward God. But no heart can ever be too hard for God. Some hearts will grower harder and harder each day until God’s mercy blows them up like dynamite” (pg 84).

That really struck me and changed my attitude about sharing the gospel. Wherever I am and whoever I’m around I must represent Christ, share His love, show His gospel to any and everyone! They may not respond in a way that we would hope, but they will respond one way or the other. By going overseas or staying in your hometown your mission field is where you are! Don’t let stop you from sharing Christ to those around you!

My trip was just the beginning. It changed my views and my heart for missions in so many different ways. Because of this trip I am seeing God work in crazy ways in my own life and how my future looks. He’s placed in my life ideas and visions of my campaign to raise money through different mediums and I can’t wait to share more as I do more research and how this is going to look in the future.