A Journey of a Lifetime, by Jacob Huddleston

        Many Americans are born, raised, and will die in comfortable conditions. Some have never seen true poverty with their own eyes. I am one of those people. I am excited about visiting Haiti, not because its poor, but for the humbling experience. I'm sure that some would wonder why people would want to go to such a poor area when they don't need to. The answer is simple; to evaluate your priorities.

Going to Haiti will be an incredible experience for my faith and my world view. I'm certain that the experience will move me and put things into perspective. I look forward to learning about their culture and seeing how they've recovered in the few years since the earthquake. I feel that it's important to visit a povertous area, in or out of the country, to understand how blessed we are.

Hot Topic, by Allie Hanks

The hot topic this time of year at school is “What are you doing this Spring Break?” I get asked that question at least 10 times a day, and I respond with “I’m going to Haiti on a mission trip with my youth group!” with the biggest smile and most ecstatic look in my eyes. I am beyond excited for this trip and want everyone to see why. 
When I explain to them the purpose of the trip and the impact it will make on the lives of the people there, I see them start to think. They ask questions like why would I ever want to go there, and why am I not going to Cherry Grove with the rest of the high school and I tell them that I simply feel called to go serve. Yes I love going to the beach and relaxing while attempting to tan, but the beach will always be there waiting for me. I have an opportunity to go out and serve. To make an impact. I can’t even imagine what it means to the people there to see young teenagers coming to a 5^th world country to serve them, and just be there with them. That is something that I crave to be a part of.  I want to experience this part of the world in a real way, not from the shelter of my home or my family, but to really get out of my comfort zone and go for God. 
I was raised in a Christian home my whole life and I never fought it. I know plenty of teenagers who call themselves Christians, get baptized and even attend church every so often. I don’t want to only do the bare minimum though, I want to go out and see the ways in which God can use me. I feel like taking this step will only further my relationship with Christ and the people experiencing this with me. I’ve been praying about this trip since before you could even sign up and now it’s really happening. I truly am speechless when it comes to how excited I am, but this is my attempt at trying to explain it. I am truly honored and blessed to have this opportunity as a 17 year old and am going to take as much away from it as I can.

Losing Passionately, by Andy Szoke

The concept of a mission trip is simple: find a blighted part of the world, go to it, fix it. Before (and while) I volunteered my name and a week of freedom from my life towards fixing the devastation in Haiti, that was the extent of my knowledge of what to expect. While sitting in an air conditioned room and surrounded by electricity, technology, reliably clean water, and access to more information than mankind throughout history could fathom, I quietly tapped an email to Matt Barcalow through my personal laptop, requesting that I join his Haiti mission trip. I then casually tossed my finished Chic-Fil-A cookies & cream milkshake into the garbage bin in my room, a modest portion left unconsumed. I anticipated the loss of free time, relaxation, and my long-anticipated window of opportunity to decompress from the daily battery of school, and nothing more. After all, I had been through it before. I had gone to Pittsburgh. I had lost the aforementioned, and returned to life with a new appreciation for my possessions. While I would like to claim that I was fundamentally altered that week, I wasn't. I thought of the less fortunate every time I shot off a text message on my then-expensive cell phone for the following month or two, but then my materialism decided it would be more comfortable to override the section of my mind responsible for those thoughts of guilt and replace them with speculation over the next $50 plastic disc bearing the phrase "Xbox 360" that would be sold. My problem wasn't that I hadn't given enough; it was that I hadn't lost enough.

Humans have an interesting psychological tic called "loss aversion". While we will work hard to gain something new, we will throw our entire heart, mind, and soul into protecting what we already have. It's instinctual, it's universal, and it's heavily reinforced by the American values of self. I lost a bit of time and freedom when I went to Pittsburgh. But the closer I get to March 31, the more I see that I am being prepared to lose more than I ever have in my life. I can't see everything I will encounter, but I can feel myself recalibrating my ideas of possession in anticipation of losing what I would never expect to lose in normal life. I can feel myself get ready for a loss of comfort--not just physical, but social. Mental. Emotional. I can feel my perspective on an entire list of subjects brace itself for a complete demolition and reconstruction. I can feel myself get ready to lose my ability to live my life in proverbial ignorant bliss without consideration that there are those who would give all they had in pursuit of just a few of the things I take for granted. Through a combination of the leaders' description of what to expect in Haiti with my own personal sense of everything that I have held comfortably close in life preparing to slip away, I know that loss will define my trip.

But loss is where the power of God steps prominently forward. While God may work quietly within us in times of prosperity and gain, it is in times of loss that God fundamentally alters us. When our perspective and comfort is destroyed by the jarring destitution of poverty, God provides a sense of solidarity in Him while changing who we are as people. When our heart is broken by powerful visuals of nothingness, God repairs it with a desire to change it. When we, in our loss, witness the comparably unfathomable loss of others, God rebuilds us with a drive to help. God calls us to lose what we have not only for the sake of others, but for the sake of ourselves. And it is in this much-maligned time of loss that God reminds us that ultimately, it is not about us; it is about Him.

It is because of this that I have committed myself to overcome my own selfish sense of loss aversion and instead embrace losing everything that I have. From the modern conveniences of suburban American life to my personal comfort zone, I am preparing myself to lose anything I can find. I eagerly anticipate waking up one hot Haitian morning and realizing that much of what I possess today is gone, because then I will know that God is actively working inside of me to change who I am as a person. Loss is a powerful agent of change. But just as I know that I couldn't force a camel through the eye of a needle if I tried (assuming I could find a camel to try it with), I know that the loss I am preparing to withstand will positively and fundamentally change my life. It is this that I expect from Haiti, it is this that I will spend the next month preparing for, and it is this that defines why I passionately anticipate losing all I have.

Super Duper, by Kyrsten Gable

I’m super duper excited for this mission trip to Haiti! When I was eight years old, I took my very first mission trip to Nicaragua. At first, this was very scary to me because I had never experienced anything like it before but at the end of the trip I didn’t want to leave because I had built friendships with the people. Each time I’ve been back, I leave changed and impacted by the love and joy of the people. Instead of doing something meaningless during Spring Break, I wanted to serve and love on people while having an experience that will change me for the rest of my life. I love seeing the power of Christ change people’s lives through his love and grace and give them something to live for. I also want to build a stronger relationship with God and step out of my comfort zone.

When I first started raising money for this trip, I thought it would be a breeze and I would get the money in no time; to my surprise, it has been a lot harder than I thought. The Lord is definitely testing my faith and making me realize how impatient I can be. The verse that has gotten me through this is Matthew 6:33-34. “But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore, do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself." This verse shows me how important it is to trust in him no matter what! I can’t wait to see what God has in store for me and how he will use me to impact others while also deepening my relationship with him!

A Complete Turn Around, by Brian Emery

When the earthquake hit Haiti back in 2010 I honestly could of cared less. I thought to myself, " I don't know anyone there, why should I care about those people? " At the time I wasn't a Christian, and really didn't care about anyone besides myself. After I gave my life to Christ last January I slowly but surely started having a change of heart.

When Ryan Carson shared his experiences with me about all of the broken people there, I came to realize they were no different than me. They might of lived in a different part of the world, and had different struggles then me, but they're still human beings. Broken people that need Jesus just as much as me. If it wasn't For Mark Hudak sharing the Gospel with me, I wouldn't have the passion I have now to share it with the Haitians.

I can say that I have experienced a complete turn around about my views of Haiti. I went from not caring at all, to being eager to help and serve as many Haitians as I possible can. I want to ask that my team and I will stay in your prayers, and that we can help glorify and help build up the Kingdom Of God! 

A Step in the Right Direction, by Lauren Nalevaiko

We all have bad days and good days.  We go to school 5 days a week and come home sit on the couch in a heated/ air conditioned house and complain about how much homework we have,  we open our closets full of clothes and complain that there is nothing to wear, we open a fridge full of food and complain that there is nothing to eat, we complain when there’s no toilet paper left on the roll because someone forgot to change it, and we complain and complain and complain. 

            This Spring Break I get the privilege, along with my peers, to travel to Haiti and spend time with beautiful people building relationships and partaking in a life changing experience.  We are so use to having such simple luxuries that we forget to be thankful for full meals, warm clothes, and a good education that so many are deprived of.  So I am going to Haiti to help make a change.  God has blessed me with so many gifts that I am beginning to discover.  1 Peter 4:10 says, “Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God's grace in its various forms.”  This is exactly what I hope to do down in Haiti.  In our last meeting with the Haiti team we took a test to see some of the gifts God has given us, and I had the highest score in problem solving.  Although I’m not yet aware of how my gift will aid me on this trip, I’m sure it will become clearer soon as I continue to prepare.

            My goal from now until I leave is to step back and be more aware of what’s going on in my life as well as how I affect the people around me.  We need to stop complaining and start showing compassion.  I know this trip will shape me into a better person; I can’t wait to be taught new life lessons by my team and the Haitian people.

The Chance of a Lifetime by Patrick Kavanaugh

This is not my first mission trip. Two summers ago I went to Zimbabwe with a team from Samaritan’s Feet.  We distributed a few thousand shoes, mostly to children but also to government officials and teachers as a sign of peace and healing.  Ever since that trip I have felt a calling to get out into the world and make a difference somewhere, even though it may be out of my comfort zone.   There is no greater time to spread the love of God than now, especially to such a hurting country as Haiti.

            Many of my friends don’t understand why I would want to give up my spring break to do something that may not be as “fun” as going to the beach or the lake. I don’t see it as a less enjoyable activity, but rather, I see it as exchanging a meaningless activity for one that will have a lasting impact somewhere in the world.  There will be plenty of other spring breaks, but going on this trip and impacting this country is the chance of a lifetime.