Mexico Mission Trip

As my husband and I went on our second mission trip this year with our youth group, Kendra was so on our minds. She loved her mission trips and just the day before she died, she was telling me how she couldn't wait to start going on more trips.

Our group went to Baja California, Mexico to the orphanages again and I remembered one of Kendra's favorite mission trips was to an orphanage in a different part of Mexico.  She came home and couldn't stop talking about the children she met there and the poor conditions of the home, the dirt playground and the surrounding areas.  She said she felt embarrassed st how much she had in her room when those children had only their bed and a small box the size of a shoe box that held their only possessions.  But she also witnessed their joy and happiness and how they enjoyed playing.   She loved that the children were so excited to see them and show them around, that they showed them their beds and little boxes of treasures with pride.  She was amazed that they played happily in the dirt and dust of their poor little playground and how excited they were for a little bit of candy.

We too witnessed these same things and it's a valuable lesson; we do not need possessions, fancy houses, the latest technology gadgets and the biggest TVs to be happy.  True happiness does not come from stuff, it comes from love.  True happiness starts inside us, not from outside "stuff".  Those children know they are loved, true it's not a traditional family, but it's the only one most of them know.  And that they are loved most of all by their Heavenly Father and that is the greatest love.

So Kendra you were totally with us as we served and loved on those kids, as we worked on the service projects, as we laughed, cried and prayed, you were there too.  I felt you in the ocean breezes, I saw you in the doves that were cooing in the trees by us the whole trip, I thought of you every time I played with a child.  You are so missed but I really miss your love and passion for missions.  I would have loved to see that light in your eyes again as you returned from a trip, to hear the excitement in your voice as you would recall the people you met and to have felt your passion for Christ and the joy in serving others. Only God knew that your final mission was with your group at rehab.  You left a lasting impression there too, you found yourself again, you embraced your relationship with God and shared that with others.  I praise God that you had your joy back again, that you were so excited to serve Him again and most of all, that you were ready to be called home, to see God, face to face.  That was the most exciting mission of all!