Reflections from Jessica Lobaido

Wow what an adventure. This was my first mission trip, and really my 1st time out of the country. I felt God's calling to go, so I went and now I feel so grateful to have had this experience. It was so eye opening to me. Parts of the trip were tough physically and emotionally, but I felt God with us every step of the way. It was a spiritual journey for me. I had to break out of my comfort zone. But I read in a book once that 'God doesn't call us to be comfortable. He calls us to trust Him so completely that we are unafraid to put ourselves in situations where we will be in trouble if he doesn't come through.' I had situations happen to me on this trip where I had nothing else to do but put my complete trust in God and leave it in His hands. And the awesome part is He always came through for me. My favorite memory from the trip was when we stepped inside the orphanage for the first time and all the girls came running towards us with hugs and kisses. And one girl jumped into my arms. It brought tears of joy to my eyes. 

Another favorite part about this trip for me was the group of people I got to go with. Every single person was such a blessing to me. They all took me under their wing and I felt like I was part of a big family. If I was struggling, they prayed for me. I will always remember each person from the group because they each impacted me in a special way. Overall it was an experience I will never forget. And I praise God for our health and safe return. Gods blessings.