By Sarah Bullock, Providence Baptist Church
Sarah recently returned from a short-term trip to Thailand with a team from her church, Providence Baptist. We’re so thankful for church partnerships like PBC and are thrilled to share Sarah’s perspective from a week at camp!
As I reflect on my time in Thailand working with the kids at camp, two words come to my mind: worth it.
It was so worth it to me to travel all that way just to spend a few days in these kids’ lives. I am beyond glad that I listened to the Lord’s calling for me to go.
Were there challenges? Yes.
Did I miss home? Yes.
But, were there blessings? Absolutely.
So often, we think we are going over to a foreign land to be a blessing when, in fact, we are the ones to be blessed and learn many lessons. This week, as I worked with kids who could not speak my language, the Lord taught me about His love: a love that we cannot understand.
Most of these kids had never seen a white American person in their lives. They had no idea why we are there and why we would even care. Why would we want to come all the way to Thailand just to be with them and love them? They could not understand what that looked like until we showed them.
This is so much like God’s love for us. We cannot understand why He created us, why He died for us, and why He would want to love us. But when we accept His love, it is the best relationship we could ever have.
When these kids opened up their hearts and lives to our love, it was so beautiful. Just like the kids, we have a choice whether to reject God’s love for us or to fully thrust ourselves into His warm embrace.
At the end of the week, kids were hugging and crying as they said goodbye. In a culture where hugs are uncommon and emotions are hidden, it was a beautiful picture of God’s love towards us when we accept Him and are in relationship with Him. I’m so blessed that the Lord allowed me to have a small impact on these kids’ lives.
Camp was so much fun and partnering with the Sports Friends staff was something I’ll cherish forever! I encourage anyone who is thinking about working with Sports Friends on a short-term trip or a long-term trip to do it.
Trust me, it’s worth it!
