On June 17th, 2006 the summer before I started high school, I went on my first mission trip to Mexico to serve with Cris Garcia through SOAR. It was my first time riding on an airplane, and my first time leaving the country. A lot of firsts happened for me on that trip that changed my life and my faith forever. On our trip we visited the church at Rascon, and it was the first time I had ever seen anyone worship God in a different language. They didn’t have PowerPoint or fancy bulletins, but they had stronger, more passionate faith than I had ever seen. One of my favorite parts of the trip was getting to spend so much time with the children there especially through the camps and VBS programs we helped with. Their English and my Spanish were about on the same level, so it was the easiest to communicate with them. Everything about them was so genuine and pure. They didn’t have much, but they were so full of joy. I tried cactus for the first time on this trip and so many other delicious meals. We went to a nursing home that was part of Cris’ ministry and sang songs and did devotions with the 15 residents that lived there. It was the first time I had been exposed to the idea of caring for all of a person’s needs, not just their spiritual ones, and that really stood out to me. As we walked around the cities and took in the architecture and culture, I learned for the first time about the corruption of the Catholic church there and how people needed a renewed view of what a relationship with Jesus could look like. SOAR did an incredible job guiding our group through the whole experience. From fundraising and packing, to travel, to touring us around the city and allowing us to be a part of what God was doing in Mexico, to debriefing our experiences and giving God all the glory- it was all done with such excellence and in a way that made me want to return as soon as we arrived back in Atlanta. 2 years later, I did just that with SOAR.
Then my freshmen year of college, I went back to Mexico to help build a house with Casas Por Cristo. I had fallen in love with these people and this country. Looking back that first trip is such a formative part of my story. I believe all those firsts stirred something in my heart about loving and serving others and giving my life fully to be used as Christ saw fit. In high school, I continued to lean into that and decided to attend Atlanta Christian College (now Point University) to become further equipped to teach others about God.
After graduating, I took a job at Bread Coffeehouse, a campus ministry and free coffeehouse serving Emory University students. After starting as an intern here, I have fallen in love with the diverse students here that are from all over the globe. Five years later I am still here, now serving as the Team Leader. We say here that our sermon is hospitality. We serve free coffee and free baked goods and do anything and everything to meet the needs of our students and invite them into a community where they can encounter Jesus in a way that will change their lives forever.
I love my job, and I am so humbled that God has provided me with this opportunity to have front row seats to all He is doing in the world and in the lives of our students. I am so grateful that through SOAR, I was able to experience a trip that ignited my passion to serve God and his children all over the globe!
