reflections. part 3.

Hello everyone!

Wow, the last week was busy and wonderful in such a way that all the days are blurred together in my memory, especially because each day seemed the length of two, by standards of tiredness. That aside, it was a pleasure to serve at the Bowery Mission and interact with those I’d usually be very wary of and realize that they’re not all that different from us, and as I’m fairly sure you’ve noticed that was definitely a big takeaway from the week. In addition to that, it really touched me how concerned all of the people there with our well being and taking care of us. Rocco of the kitchen staff wanted to make sure we knew the importance of education and not dating before we were 25, Gretchen (also of the kitchen staff) shooed us out of the kitchen and made us take a break, Amy said multiple people came up to her to ask if we were resting enough, and many of the guys going through the program wanted to make sure we were having fun around the city in addition to helping out. It was all very unexpected. I guess that was probably because I anticipated it being more like our experience at Operation Night Watch, where there really isn’t much interaction with the people except to explain what a peanut butter no-bake cookie is, but instead we experienced meaningful interactions and listened to incredible stories and got to know wonderful people. I know it’s a bit cliché, but despite going with the intention to be a blessing, we surely were blessed in return.

Thanks!  Jennifer

Hello everyone!

Melanie here, with some reflections about our recent week spent in NYC. I think this trip will stick with me, perhaps even more than the other mission trips I’ve been on. It was a unique experience in so many ways. The most important distinction for me was worship. Seeing the men at the Bowery during worship services encouraged me to be authentic in my worship. Whether they were singing with us or just sitting and listening, they took the words very seriously. The words we were singing had a very different and very real meaning in their lives. It’s all too easy for me to get distracted during worship or forget what I’m singing. Not so with these people. It was inspiring to see them praise God.

On other mission trips, we serve and worship in separate places. On this trip, everything was in the same building with the same people. We shared our worship time with them, just as we shared our service time. This created a sense of closeness and familiarity with the people we were serving that I hadn’t really experienced on previous trips. We got to really enter into their community rather than pop in and pop out. In this way, it really felt like we got to be the heart and hands of Jesus, entering into life alongside these people (albeit for a short time) rather than simply lending them a hand. That was a cool experience.

Thank you again for all your support! I feel so blessed to have gone on four mission trips in my high school career, and look forward to serving God wherever he may place me in the future.

-Melanie