Student Perspective: Lexi

So far, this trip has really opened my eyes. My goal for this trip was to really learn how to be still and know he is God, just by being a tool for him to use. I learned right away that it wasn’t going to be easy at all. We got right off the plane and started unloading some really heavy wood and tools for this house. Now if you know me well, you know I’m not one for real physical work. I really wanted to quit right there, be grumpy, and go to sleep. Through the devotions that we got in our field guide, (our first day was themed ‘BE STRONG’) I found that God made sure that most of the verses that I had read that day kept running through my mind. That for me, really kept me pushing on, but also made me realize that if I couldn’t do just the unloading by myself, I was going to have to have this whole trip relying solely on God. The next day, our devotions were all about ‘TRUTH’. (We’ve been going through Ephesians 6:10-20, so this would technically be the belt of truth). Some of the things I was writing down in my journal after a very hard yet accomplishing day of work really began to start clicking. All I really wanted was to be a tool for God to use so I could make a difference. Even if there were people that I struggled with, hard things that I didn’t want to do, and a lack of sleep, I wanted to do it because God would be the one supporting me and using me to be a living testimony for him. Just because I was building (really just painting for meJ) a house doesn’t mean I wasn’t making a difference. That changed my attitude about everything completely. The next day, God even rewarded me by letting ten of us go to a school to sing and share testimonies, which was such a remarkable experience. I got to play with the kids after school, and began to connect with some of the kids here where we are staying. Building and making relationships is my favorite thing to do, so this was so much fun for me. Even after all of that- our team got all four of the walls up, with all of them painted. We will be finishing that house tomorrow! All in all, just these three days has been so incredible. I can’t wait to write about the rest of my trip!