It’s amazing how one week can change you. I left the US on December 26th skeptical of religion and faith. While I am no stranger to philanthropy and service trips, a mission trip was a completely different story. When Dee asked me to come on the trip to Jamaica I was excited at the opportunity. She told me that it was a mission’s trip, so I should expect to pray. I was nervous but eventually decided that just because everyone else was praying didn’t mean I had to.
To say I was out of my comfort zone in the first two days of the trip would be a huge understatement. I was an agnostic on a missions trip in a foreign country with a bunch of strangers…yeah that sounds about right. The second night when Dee asked me how I was feeling I said I was on “Jesus overload”. Even in the first two days I had been exposed to more prayer than I had in years. I was skeptical of faith, and felt uncomfortable praying to a God I wasn’t sure existed with people who were so sure He did.
After hearing Jim and Penie’s passionate stories about how God had come through for them when they needed it most. After talking with other members of the team and the staff about faith and how drastically different their faith was to how I perceived faith. After interacting with the children of Petersville and Gully Bank and seeing the joy in their faces as the pickup and van pulled up, or how proud they were when they got a math problem right. And after visiting the infirmary and hospital where patients asked me to pray for them, something was changing. By the middle of the week I began to have a curiosity about God and Faith and by the end of the week caught myself praying with the group.
Something happened during that week that I cannot explain, so I won’t even attempt to. I can’t claim that I am now a great Christian with an unwavering faith in God, because that would be a lie. I can claim that, in all likelihood, I wouldn’t have any curiosity about faith if I hadn’t gone to Jamaica. Maybe I’ve been feeling my life being pulled towards philanthropy and helping others because God’s at the other end of the rope. Who knows?
All I do know is that the week I spent in Jamaica was one of the most eye-opening and happiest weeks in my life. The people of Jamaica stole my heart, and they impacted my life just as much as I hope in impacted theirs. I hope I can keep my mind and my heart open to the possibility of God and faith back at home.
Until next time Jamaica, I know I’ll be back.
- Nicole (Nickels)
“What I do you cannot do; but what you do, I cannot do. The needs are great, and none of us ever do great things. But we can all do small things, with great love, and together we can do something wonderful.” – Mother Theresa
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