FUMC Youth Mission Trip 2023
In July, the FUMC Youth embarked on their annual Mission Trip, this year in Denver, Colorado. Brent Lamberth, FUMC Youth Director, asked students in attendance to reflect on their experience:
“Going on this mission trip to Denver was an incredibly humbling journey for me and one that I will be forever grateful for. During the duration of our trip, we were blessed to meet some incredible people and work with equally incredible organizations. However, the most meaningful to me was getting the opportunity to work with an organization that helps build community gardens for the people within that community. The particular garden we worked at was very special because half of the garden was dedicated to becoming a sensory garden to help benefit children and young adults who have autism. I overall just felt nothing but goodness while helping set the foundation for what will be a beautiful garden that will serve its community. One of the biggest lessons I learned while on this trip is that the Lord is truly present everywhere, even in the darkest of places. His Light is always apparent. I came into this trip having the basic knowledge that there were things wrong in the world, but actually putting myself alongside these issues heavily changed my mindset and really opened my eyes to how severe some issues are. However, despite these troubles, the organizations we volunteered with always acted as an example of what it means to be a light for someone and using what you have to help benefit others. Throughout the entirety of this trip, it was obvious that God was working alongside each and every one of us helping us to spread his love to those in need. One of the biggest pieces of wisdom I received from God was to listen. Whether it was listening to someone’s story that we met on Colfax Avenue or listening to one of the directors of organizations we volunteered with, I learned that sometimes the best thing you can do for someone is just listen.”
Kayden G., 11th Grade
“The most meaningful work I think we did was for the garden at school for those with special needs. The work they had us do was not easy and required all of our efforts. We ended up laying down mesh tarps and then later covered them with gravel. This made the pathways throughout the garden not get weeds as easily as before. During this time at the garden, I learned how well this youth group is at working together. I would see everyone working together to finish what needed to be done. A piece of wisdom God gave me is to trust in him even though it may be hard to. Since I am going into college there are many things that come with that. These things started to feel somewhat scary and I felt like I was not ready yet. At that moment I knew I needed to pray to God and lift all my problems to him. Doing this calmed me down and truly helped me with my worries.”
Tate Milstead, Recent Graduate
“Denver was my first mission trip I was able to be a part of and I’m pleased to see the impact of this trip. Much of our mission included educational opportunities and forming a perspective of Denver’s culture and its way of living. The reality of poverty and suffering were shown greatly which taught me the true meaning of humility and compassion for others. I was able to more fully understand my true intention of being on this trip, not to applaud and serve for myself, but instead to put the needs of others above my own. I was ultimately serving God and those surrounding us. Throughout this journey, I was given the courage to reach out to strangers and openly express God’s love. Coming back home I was refueled with the purpose of being a Christ follower.”
Bella R., 11th Grade
“I would say the most meaningful thing we did on the mission trip was building the sensory garden. I also learned to not label others during Kevin’s Devotional. It really hit hard because you don’t realize what you are doing until you look back on it. God definitely gave me the strength to overcome some of my anxiety. I really feel like this mission trip helped me realize what I needed to overcome and stop overthinking many things in life. I am so thankful for this group and I don’t know where I would be without them.”
Jack S., 12th Grade
“Helping build a garden outside of a school for autistic individuals was very meaningful to me. They will be able to use that garden to help the children learn and eat the food that they have grown. That made me feel that God was sending me to a place that would help me better myself as well as help people that were in need. I learned that God always has a plan for everyone. When we went on a prayer walk we heard stories of homeless people sleeping in dumpsters, but having huge goals like going to college to be an engineer. They trusted in God and he gave them a path to success. Trusting in him will always lead to success, happiness, and being fulfilled. We saw a lot of grief and darkness in Denver, but everyone seemed to be living trusting in God so he could help them.”
Landon W., 12th grade
“One of the most life-changing experiences of this year’s mission trips for me was when we went into the city of Denver as groups and spoke with different homeless people. This gave me such a different view of how people live and changed my perspective on the homeless population. Seeing this different aspect of how people live changed a lot of prior judgments I may have made and allowed me to become a more compassionate person. As we cleaned up different neighborhoods and played games like Loaded Monopoly (which taught a valuable lesson about privilege), I learned truly how gifted I have been. This experience made me entirely more grateful for everything that I have. I am blessed to have seen all of these things which made me realize how important it is to treasure my friends and family because not everyone has people who continuously show them love and support.”
Kelsey K., 12th Grade