I do not have the luxuries to go on trips around the world or even within the U.S. but in the summer of 2014, I had the opportunity to venture to Mexico and attend a week and a half long missions trip with a few members of my church as well as people from all over the country from Chicago to Washington state. I recall feeling extremely anxious about meeting the people of Yucatan, mainly because of my inability to speak a single spanish word except “hola” but I decided this factor wasn’t going to stop me from reaching out to God’s people.

We had arrived at the missions base and settled in by meeting a few locals. Though I couldn’t comprehend a single word spoken by them, I grinned with the thought of knowing I was finally in Yucatan and ready to do God’s work which was simply to spread love and joy to everyone I encounter. I had no idea what to expect, but I can surely say I wasn’t prepared for the evangelism and training for the first couple of days. It was frustrating to come with no prior spanish background, but to sit back and realize how the people of Yucatan have no prior background of who God is and the love, joy and peace he can bring to them was even more frustrating. I realized the challenges I had to face, but I also realized the challenges the people of Yucatan have to face day to day which made my problems seem completely irrelevant. The people were incredibly inviting as we were greeted with hugs and kisses to the cheeks and the children were such delightful presences that radiated elation. My friends and I wanted to volunteer within the youth ministry because of how well we got along with the children. The day consisted of balloon making, face-painting, singing, dancing and skits. I understand how little these events seem but to the kids of the local villages, they showed how we wanted to be involved with them and to be part of their community. The children became so interactive with us it was unreal. During the singing and dancing, I was assigned to play the cajon which is a box-shaped drum. While I was playing, a little boy, around age eight, shyly walked next to me and sat down. We had a translator with us who had told me the little boy was curious as to how to play this odd, peculiar instrument and the minute he showed interest, I wanted to hand him the cajon to keep. His interest was genuine and as I allowed him to start hitting the cajon, he quickly acquired the beat to the songs being played. It was incredible. This young boy who had such a bashful appearance at first transformed into this outwardly, confident drummer. To give the boy an opportunity to see what he was capable of was incredible to me. Throughout the first few days I had felt useless, I had felt as if I had no purpose on this trip, and that I couldn’t bring anything to these people, but slowly but surely I had found the slightest ways to bring an impact. The pastor of my youth group, Tom, had ended up leaving this cajon for the community to have.

The people who have heard about my experience have criticized that this wasn’t exactly a missions trip and I strongly oppose their comments. This missions trip clearly didn’t involve physical labor such as building houses but the impact we had left was incredible. This trip was so important to me as I had been a part of aiding a community to help them grow, aiding a community to unify as a whole and to introduce the people of Yucatan to our God and how He has a plan for each and every one of them. To let them know how significant they are to this world, to show them God’s plans, to spread his word, love and joy, and to inform them of how they were created in His perfect image was our sole purpose and mission. The little things we’ve brought to the villages has created a substantial impact to their lives. I’ve found that giving my time up to spend with these developing communities has allowed me to grow as well. I have learned new forms of love, humility and purpose that can be brought anywhere and should be given to everyone. After my Yucatan missions trip, I felt empowering. My passion was ignited and my eyes had opened to other parts of the world. Walking out of my comfort zone led to an incredible experience that brought good into my life and gave good to others’ lives.