Of the thirteen, the eldest traveler was 70 and the youngest was 14! In all, seven decades were represented on the trip. Having such diversity in age set the stage for a great trip!
But what did we do while there, you might ask? Since Feed the Hunger exists to address the physical and spiritual hunger of those in need, the preparing and delivery of food is critical to our ministry partners. But simply providing food isn’t enough. Much ministry happens when a team member makes that real connection with a child or a group of children. Whether it’s coloring, blowing bubbles, jumping rope, or simply sitting and holding a child, ministry is happening….and it’s happening both ways.
For example: the team would take a birthday cake to serve to 200 children since three of our travelers shared the same birthday, but the children wanted to sing to us, and share the cake with us. We would always gather around the children before we left and offer prayers for them, and they wanted to pray for us as well.
We asked the girls in the orphan home what their dreams and aspirations were, and they wanted to know about ours. We liked fixing their hair, and they liked fixing ours. But probably the most memorable two-way ministry experience was the children singing to us, and us singing to them. Such a strong bond exists between people when they can share life through music. The mission experience is one of giving as well as receiving the blessing!
What a blessing to see these folks obeying the Lord’s command to go into all the world, teaching the gospel and sharing his love with the orphans and the poor. How thankful I am that He allows us to share his gift of hope in an otherwise hopeless world.