Adventures in Missions

I Felt Freedom for the First Time in my Life

Shannon Cornuke went on a mission trip to Guatemala thinking she had life figured out. She knew Jesus died for her, but she didn’t really know Jesus and didn’t have a reason to need to know Him. Through the people she met, Shannon fully realized God’s love for the first time—and got to share it with everyone around her. All my life I thought I was on the right track. I thought I could control my life. I knew Jesus died for me, but I didn’t strive to know anything else—like knowing Him. I thought I could go along with my life and look to God...

I Thought He Wanted Food, But He Was Hungry for Something Else

While on a mission trip in Chicago, Hanna Miecznikowski paused to give a man a few coins. But it turned out he wanted something else. The traffic whirled around me as I headed downtown that afternoon. I grew up in Chicago, but five or six years had passed since I’d driven in the Chicago rush hour traffic. To call it an adventure is an understatement. As I approached Pastor Robert’s house for a late afternoon ministry planning session, I noticed a homeless man standing in the middle of the road holding a sign and asking for help. I scrambled to get ahold of the few coins in my...

God Reminded Us He Had the Power to Heal

While leading a missions trip to the Dominican Republic, Neil Bruinsma saw a man healed in a surprising way. One of my favorite things is helping people realize they can hear God speak. At the center of Adventures trips is listening prayer. It’s a part of everything we do, from nightly debriefs to setting aside entire blocks of time for God to lead us into ministry we wouldn’t have found ourselves. There’s not anything mystical about it, but every time God does something amazing, something that only He can do, I get excited. That’s what happened in the Dominican...

I’ll Never Forget Him: How a Syrian Man Changed My View of Refugees

While on Greece on a short term trip, Adventures Fellow and Race Alum Hannah Midgett met a man she will never forget. It was my last day working in Lesvos, and my first day working at the International Rescue Committee (IRC) transit point. After 2 weeks, I had become very accustomed to receiving refugees and making them feel welcome. Most refugees were timid, yet very thankful. While some kids would open up and play, others would attach themselves to their parents, and start to tear up the moment their parents weren’t in their line of vision. Most would huddle into circles,...

A Mission Trip to Jamaica Changed My Life

Christian Bunch went on a 2 week Ambassador trip to Jamaica in 2010. And that trip changed his life. My first encounter with missions was on an Adventures Ambassador trip to Jamaica in 2010. My life was completely changed as a result. It began when I saw the power of God in a tangible and physical way for the first time. A severely lactose intolerant teammate accidentally ate cheese at Training Camp, one of the Adventures staff prayed for her—and she was healed as a result. I was shocked by this because I didn’t think God did those kinds of things. Then, the night before my...

A New Wave of Gap Year Routes: 5 Countries in 9 months

Sign-ups for WR Gap Year are exploding! We’re responding by launching a new route this September to FIVE different countries. Sign up and change the trajectory of your life. Costa Rica 1 month Costa Rica is a hot spot for surfing and just enjoying “pura vida” – literally, “pure life”, it’s a concept of a “chill,” relaxed, laidback way of life. The beautiful beaches that line both coasts are the perfect setting. Among the Central American countries, Costa Rica (“Rich Coast”) lives up to its name. While the natural...

From a Mother Who Lost Her Son: I Still Have Hope for this Generation

World Race Expedition Coaches Gary and Lisa Black serve as missionaries in Spain. They have dedicated their lives to raising up and pouring into the next generation. Almost three years ago, the worst form of tragedy imaginable shook their family: their 19-year-old son, Michael, committed suicide. Today, they are still on the front lines of fighting for this generation. Lisa says it best: despite everything that has happened, she still has hope for this generation. I get it—the lack of hope in our current society: the shootings, the violence, the elections, the human...

This is What Happens When Women Experience Freedom

World Race Alum Erika Michael is on a 6 month Kingdom Journeys trip, sharing hope and healing with women throughout the world. While in Peru, her team held a retreat for women who were able to experience hope, healing, and the freedom of choosing forgiveness. Purple table cloths on tables. Journals written in, and set on the tables. Flowers in tea cups. Banners on the walls. We were all set up and ready for the women. The day we had been planning and praying about had come. We waited on the balcony for the comvie bringing the women. The comvie came and the women poured...

They Sleep on the Streets of Jamaica

When Passporter Katie Hassler set out to pass out food and drinks to the homeless of Jamaica, she had no idea just how much this ministry would impact her. Every week, my Passport team does street ministry in Mandeville, Jamaica. We go into town, buy food and drinks, and walk around, passing out these items to the homeless around town. I’ll never forget our first week of street ministry. It was a beautiful day and the sun was hot on our backs. Cars drove past us blasting reggae music as we walked to the grocery store. Out of the corner of my eye I saw a dirty sheet in the road. But...

Because High School Students Can Change the World

World Race Alum and Adventures Staff Deborah Jones has a few things to say about high school students and her job with the Ambassador program—and it might not be what you think. In July of 2015, I led my first Ambassador trip for Adventures in Missions. Was I expecting it to be a breeze? Maybe. I mean, I had just finished the World Race – 11 countries and 11 months. How difficult could one month be? So I went to the Philippines with one co-leader and 10 high school girls. And let me tell you, it was hard. Try taking ten 14-18 year old girls who have never met...

Why My Heart’s Not Broken for Lesvos

While in Greece on a short term trip, Adventures Fellow Alice Sudlow found something completely unexpected pretty much everywhere she looked: hope. I went to Lesvos prepared to cry. I’d read the news, seen the pictures, heard the stories. I imagined the perilous, sometimes fatal sea crossing from Turkey to Greece and the collective mourning of thousands of families passing through chaotic refugee camps. I expected my heart to be shattered. I expected to be broken by what I would experience, broken in a way I’d never been on the World Race, broken to a depth that would...

Announcing the 2015 Storytellers Contest Winners!

A few weeks ago we announced the 2015 Best of Adventures Storytellers Contest. We asked you to view our favorite pictures, watch our favorite videos, and read our favorite blogs. And we gave you this reason: “We are our stories, so it’s important to live good ones. But living a good story isn’t the end. Good stories need to be shared. God has given many of our missionaries unique abilities to tell stories beautifully, through writing, photography, and videography, and we want to celebrate the best stories.” So for the third year in a row, we hosted the Best of...

Author: Adventures