I love mission trips. I love them because the people who serve come back changed and the people who are served are changed. I spent the last week in Mexico building 7 houses with 120 high school students and leaders. We built 7 houses in 3.5 days. On Thursday night, when the houses were complete I went to bed thinking about the families spending their first night in their brand new home-a home they waited years to receive, a home they couldn't build themselves, a home they couldn't pay for. It was an incredible feeling-it is every year.
Not only was this trip another life changing experience because of the work that was accomplished but for me this trip was another milestone in rediscovering myself. The trip went really smooth and at the end of the week I realized I can do this on my own. I can plan, organize and lead mission trips successfully and while I had a whole crew of leaders to make it work I was able to pull it off.
At a young age, I learned (from my beautifully strong mom) how to be an independent woman. I just recently realized how much my identity became wrapped up in my former husband. It's hard to tell when you're in it but once you're out of it you begin to see glimpses of how it really was. I'm an independent woman whose identity is in Christ Jesus and I can do this thing called life with Him and through His strength.
