Love Like Jesus

Welcome back to my blog! I know that it's been a while but I'm excited to share this with you! Now, for those of you unaware, this past summer I went on a mission trip to Nicaragua with an organization called Amigos for Christ. This trip changed my life, and though words cannot adequately express all that I witnessed, my hope is to leave you with the same fulfillment that this trip gave me.

For starters, I believe this trip wasn't made known to me by coincidence. I believe this opportunity was an answered prayer. A year ago today if you asked me what I wanted to do when I grow up, I would've said dance without the slightest bit of hesitation. However, after pursuing this dream through SDI (summer dance intensive), the Lord started to shift my heart. This confused me greatly as I had thought this was my future, but the Lord had different plans. So, in obedience to Him, I began to pray for direction as to whether I should do SDI again or not. One specific time I had prayed, "Lord, if there is a mission trip opportunity, then I will not do SDI." And 4 months later, there was a youth mission trip opportunity; the first one since covid.

So just as the Lord directed me, I went on this trip, and I wouldn't trade it for the world. The first day, however, did not go according to my fantasies. A long day of travel, intense heat, and a lack of air conditioning was not what I had envisioned, but looking back on it now, even those little things I miss. Throughout the week we worked on a water system in the community of San Benito, visited a local school, and even pruned dragon fruit on a nearby farm. The work we did will have a long-lasting impact, but more so than that, the love of Jesus we shared, will live forever.

The key word is "shared." It wasn't just something we gave, but also something we received. I haven't seen a better picture of the verses John 15:12-13 than I had in Nicaragua, 

"My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends."

Nothing stood out to me more than their sacrificial love. One day while we were working, I was joyfully presented with their finest fruits. They were delighted to serve us, even if it meant there was less for them. Another day, two little girls gifted me with a bracelet initialed with one of their names. For a child to give that up still amazes me. And something that stood out to me the most, was their patience with the language barrier. Not once did they give up on trying to understand us. 

Even when things were inconvenient, they laid down their own desires to make us feel loved, and I will never forget that. We need to learn to sacrifice our conveniences for the needs of others. We need to learn how to love when it's hard, not just when it's easy. We need to learn how to love with genuine joy. We need to learn how to love like Jesus.