Kelly -- South Africa

God is good! I went to South Africa with a closed mind, you could say. I didn’t know what specifically what we were going to be doing, or who we were going to meet, when I needed to share my story, or anything in between. I was so nervous and God really showed me that I shouldn’t be. People every day should be seeing or hearing about how God works and inspires others.


Even with being a believer I was amazed at how much I got out of the trip. One day we were at Noodsburg, which is an orphanage. The kids were so happy and loved playing with the team and the youth group that accompanied us. Seeing the joy in their eyes from the simple things in life really made me realize that God has truly blessed me and I need to not take the little things for granted, or even the big things. We also went to a few families’ houses that welcomed us in like we were part of their family and they served us first as if we were royalty. It was really different, in a really good way. The people there gave complete strangers, some which they may never see in their life again, food to put in our stomachs before their own family. It was really inspiring because that was the kind of thing that actually made us feel wanted there. They would literally save up weeks, maybe even months of their paychecks to make sure they had food to go around for us. Seeing how humble and selfless they were was really eye opening.

By the end of the trip God really showed me that I can make a difference. He helped me through speaking publicly about my faith and finally getting out of my comfort zone because that will go long ways when I share what He wants me to instead of me just listening to myself. I’m so glad I went on the South Africa trip! It was not only a life-changing experience, but a faith-changing one as well.