High school student Liz Willson went on a two week mission trip to Guatemala last summer, and when people ask her how it was, she says it was amazing. But the truth is, when it came time to board the plane she didn’t want to.  When people ask me how Guatemala was, I tell them it was really amazing. I share the funny and touching stories and show them my favorite pictures.   But what I don’t mention is how hard it was and all the doubts I had before and even during the trip.   Coming into this mission trip, I just assumed everything would be perfect. I didn’t...

While in Guatemala, Ambassador student Alyssa Guzman experienced the healing power of God in a way she never had before. On my team’s last night in Guatemala we were visited by a couple we’d met earlier on our trip during ministry in Antigua. We all expected it to be a good talk and a good time based on our previous experience with Gabe and Marielle, but I don’t think anyone expected what was in store for us. We were told right before worship that Gabe was going to be talking about healing. We all were expecting God to move in a cool way, and that made the time of...

While on an Ambassador trip to Uganda, Tori Bueno and her teammates spent a lot of time praying in hospitals. One day, they met a man named Israel.  Serving God in Bugiri, Uganda, has been an experience I could have never imagined. It’s beautiful, mysterious, broken yet healing, and most of all, in need of what we, the healing power of the love of Jesus. When we are exhausted, and sticky and smelly and hungry, we remember that love, and push on. Our hope is this: in running the race with diligence we will see the light through the cracks, we will dance upon injustice, and...

Emma Bradley had many reasons for going on an Ambassador trip to Guatemala. She wanted to see God do big things, both in her and all around her. She wanted to bond with her teammates. And she hoped to receive direction for her future and all the questions surrounding high school graduation.  It turns out God had only 1 reason for sending her to Guatemala: to draw her closer to Him—and in doing so, share His love with the world.  “Emma, I didn’t take you on this trip so you could do great things for me. I took you on this trip to show you who I am.”  The...

High school student Rachel Holdeman didn’t think she had expectations for her mission trip to the Dominican Republic. Then she got a stomach bug at Training Camp. She expected it to go away quickly, but she ended up spending the beginning of her trip in the DR resting, unable to join in ministry. Rachel felt like a failure, like she’d let herself, her friends and family at home, her team, and God down. Then, in her weakness and disappointment, she heard God speak. I thought I had no expectations for my three week Ambassador trip to the Dominican Republic. All I wanted was to feel...

High school student Caroline Smith always loved hearing stories about mission trips. But she didn’t think she was good enough to be a missionary herself. She thought she was too young, too afraid, and even too insignificant to do something so amazing. Then God called her to GO on an Ambassador trip to Swaziland, and she discovered life beyond her wildest dreams. When I was in elementary school, I never would have imagined God would choose me for the mission field. I was always intrigued by the missionaries who visited my church. Their lives seemed so exotic and so adventurous, but the...