Adventures in Missions

The Life Changing Lesson I Learned in Haiti

Elizabeth Wood went to Haiti hoping to make an impact, but she didn’t expect the powerful lesson she would learn from the very people she went to serve. When you come home from a mission trip, you might get asked, “What did you do for the people? Did you feel like you made an impact? Did God speak to you?” Honestly, during the trip I asked myself these questions every day, and I struggled to find the answers. I eventually reached out to my team members and leader about my concerns and they had encouraging responses, but in the end God gave the last word. During the week...

Why I Know God Is at Work in the Red Light District

November 15, 2016
Adventures
Human Trafficking

Walk down any Red Light District and you will sense the spiritual darkness permeating the area. But when Passporter Kristie Watkins and her team did this in Thailand, she left feeling hope—not because the pain she witnessed was any less, but because walking beside her was a young woman who just four months earlier had left the bars and gave her life to Christ. Words can’t really describe what it’s like to walk through the Red Light District, but I’m going to try. Tonight was a night my team all felt specifically called to do. Together we walked on a road...

She Shared the Gospel Hundreds of Times Before She Believed It Herself

Sometimes it’s really surprising who is impacted most by a missions team. Adventures staff Nicole Ricketts saw this firsthand while leading a youth group trip to Nicaragua. Their translator was a young woman, Fresia, who wasn’t a Christian, and though she didn’t realize it, she was hungry for God’s love. By the end of the week, Fresia had shared the Gospel hundreds of times. She’d translated testimonies and she’d shared her own story with the team. And then something amazing happened! I could tell our youth team was a little uneasy when...

A Witch Doctor Paralyzed This Man, Then God Healed Him

While on an Ambassador trip to Uganda, Tori Bueno and her teammates spent a lot of time praying in hospitals. One day, they met a man named Israel. Serving God in Bugiri, Uganda, has been an experience I could have never imagined. It’s beautiful, mysterious, broken yet healing, and most of all, in need of what we, the healing power of the love of Jesus. When we are exhausted, and sticky and smelly and hungry, we remember that love, and push on. Our hope is this: in running the race with diligence we will see the light through the cracks, we will dance upon...

She Heard about Jesus and Wanted to Know More

For first time in over 50 years, it is safe to openly share the Gospel on the streets of Cuba. When Neila Betancourt and her team went prayer walking in Santi Spiritus, she met a woman named Maria and told her about the local church. Maria wanted to know more. Then Neila told her about Jesus, and Maria heard the Gospel—perhaps for the first time. Being from New York City, I don’t see horses very often. So when my team started walking down the country road in Cuba and I saw horses in the next field, I squealed and pretty much made a fool of myself. Thankfully, my...

How God is Working in Baton Rouge

When Baton Rouge flooded August 2016, it’s estimated over 40,000 homes were destroyed, over 30,000 residents displaced, and over 20,000 people had to be rescued. At least 48.5% of buildings in the city were damaged by rising water. Baton Rouge resident Steve Wallace tells us of his journey to safety as his home filled with water, and how God provided help for his family through an unlikely source at a time they needed it most. It’s common for students of culture to reserve some of their harshest criticism for the members of our millennial generation. They’re...

3 Powerful Ways to Stop Human Trafficking

October 11, 2016
Adventures
Human Trafficking

While on a Kingdom Journeys trip to the Philippines, Adventures staff Meghan Tschanz was talking with a young dancer in a bar when a man nearby bought her for the night. Roxy, the dancer, was trafficked before her very eyes and no one could stop it. Read the story below to see what happened, and discover what YOU can do to stop human trafficking. I sat down and cringed. I knew he had spotted us, and in a bar like this, the very last thing you wanted was to be seen by the men who frequent them. His hair was long and greased back, and his small beady eyes looked at us with disdain;...

God Sent Me on a Mission Trip to Show Me Who He Is

Emma Bradley had many reasons for going on an Ambassador trip to Guatemala. She wanted to see God do big things, both in her and all around her. She wanted to bond with her teammates. And she hoped to receive direction for her future and all the questions surrounding high school graduation. It turns out God had only 1 reason for sending her to Guatemala: to draw her closer to Him—and in doing so, share His love with the world. “Emma, I didn’t take you on this trip so you could do great things for me. I took you on this trip to show you who I...

October 2017 World Race Routes Are Live!

October 3, 2016
Adventures
World Race

We know you’ve been waiting… and the moment is FINALLY here. Our October 2017 World Race Routes are LIVE! Have you ever thought, “There’s got to be MORE to life?” This is more than being frustrated with a job or keeping up with social media. This is a passion to experience something beyond anything this world can offer. It’s a desire for something more. World Race is unlike any mission trip out there, because it combines missional service, adventure, and community living with a unique 11 month spiritual journey through 11 countries. The World Race...

How Baton Rouge is Responding to a Record-Breaking Flood

When a catastrophic storm hit Baton Rouge last month, it sunk southern Louisiana in over five feet of water. Over 40,000 homes have been destroyed, over 30,000 residents were displaced, and over 20,000 people had to be rescued by the Red Cross, Salvation Army, and Louisiana National Guard. The massive scale of this disaster prompted President Obama to declare a state of emergency for the state of Louisiana. It’s estimated a flood of this magnitude happens only once in every 500 years. In the wake of devastation, Adventures staff Reid Mason saw something...

I Would Have Done Anything Not to Go on a Mission Trip

September 20, 2016
Adventures
Family Mission Trips

Ric Peterson would have done anything to get out of going on a mission trip to Appalachia. But God told him to GO and his wife wouldn’t let him out of it, so he went—reluctantly. It ended up being a week he’ll never forget. When my wife suggested we go on a family mission trip, I begrudgingly agreed. Years ago I would have been excited about the opportunity but the older I get, the more set in my ways I am. Plus, I’m a law enforcement officer and over the years I’ve become increasingly suspicious of people, their motives, and their willingness to...

What These High School Students Did Was Totally Unexpected

September 13, 2016
Adventures
Youth Missions

While leading a student missions trip to the Dominican Republic, our Adventures Staff saw something that took her breath away: the next generation of the Church rising to the challenge of what it means to live out the Kingdom of God on earth. As Adventures staff, I have the opportunity to lead short term trips every year. While praying about where God was calling me this summer, the Dominican Republic wasn’t originally on my list. Yet I felt a nudge I couldn’t explain every time I saw the trip. Eventually, I requested to go as a leader. However, by spring of 2016, there...

Author: Adventures