One of the big reasons why I wanted to go on this mission trip was to have the opportunity to love on children. I have always had a heart for African kids and some day in the future I want to adopt from Africa. One of my dreams since I was in middle school was to go to Africa and love on kids, but more importantly show them how much God loves them. In these past two weeks that dream has become a reality. The CarePoint I was able to serve at was called Bheveni. At Bheveni I was able to play with kids, serve them food, and just hold them in my arms. All of the kids would run up to you and just want to hold your hand. I could tell that they are just yearning for human touch and love. In the mornings you would play with the preschoolers and in the afternoon the older kids would start trickling in after their day at school. I was able to have small conversations with the older kids for some of them knew a little English. But even through those small conversations I was able to learn so much about them and their lifestyles. Some of the older boys were intrigued that I was Chinese and would ask me to play karate with them just like they had seen in the movies. At the end of each day I would be thoroughly exhausted and ready for rest, but my heart would be bursting with joy because I knew that I had shown love to others that day.
In these last few days in Africa I hope that I will be able to soak in everything all of the memories and experiences. I can see that my relationships with my teammates and leaders have grown into something beautiful, and I will never forget everything that they have done for me. I also can definitely see that my relationship with the Lord has grown. I hope I will be able to continue to dig deeper in my relationship with the Lord while I am still here in Africa, and even when I get home. This trip has changed my life greatly, and I will never forget how the Lord has used me to show His love to others!
All of my love,
Maria Croyle