The final day in Abaco was full of hard work and fun for the LCOH-Revive IMPACT team. A highlight of their day was listening to every team member’s IMPACT story and sharing what lessons they would bring home with them. Enjoy their final blog, written by Kenna, Kenzie, and Kimmie!
The team woke up a little sleepy this morning after staying up until about 2 am worshiping and bonding outside around the fire pit, enjoying the breezy night with no bugs. After our morning devotionals and breakfast, we headed out to Driftwood Farms to help Glen, his older son, Joshua, and Duran build a shelter over their water well. The shelter was being built in preparation for another Farm to Table event happening on the site in December. The first time they had the event, while eating dinner, the guests were rained on; therefore, the Kelly family wanted to build a shelter to be better prepared for future events. After a quick build, we had a little community time of playing sand volleyball, grilling burgers, and getting to know the family behind Driftwood Farms.
We had a little down time after returning to Camp before we got ready to go to Agape Christian School, the school our team leader, Laura, and her husband, coach volleyball at.We got to watch the big rivalry volleyball games. We got a glimpse into how the community comes together to support each other and how their school sporting events compare to ours in the states. The volleyball jerseys have Isaiah 40:31 written on the back which is “but those who trust in the Lord will find new strength. They will soar high on wings like eagles. They will run and not grow weary. They will walk and not faint.” The team’s mascot is an eagle but this verse has also been very visible in our time here on the island. The Bahamian people have such strong trust in the Lord and aren’t afraid to share it.
At dinner we asked team members to describe the trip in one word or short phrase and we wanted to share some of the responses:
- Joyful
- Resilient
- Impactful
- Community
- Camaraderie
- Healing
- Encouraged
- Refreshed
- It’s going to be okay
- God is always there and on time
- Loved and hospitality
After dinner we got to share our Impact stories. Impact stories are used to connect our experiences during the trip and then how the trip will transform us as we return home. For this experience, we split into three groups of five to share our stories. Each group got the chance to open up to each other about how this trip impacted us. After sharing in a small group, we came together as a larger group to reflect on this past week.
Within the larger group setting, the importance of the trip became very clear. The trip was advertised as hurricane relief. Many of us came in with the intention of cleaning up debris. The first few days of the trip lead to many internal battles for a lot of the team members. Internal battles that we didn’t necessarily share with each other until tonight came up. As we reflected on our experiences during the trip, we came to the conclusion that the purpose of mission trips, like this IMPACT trip, isn’t to “fix things.” We can’t fix what’s going on in the world by traveling out of the country for a week. What we learned is how important community and love is for the healing of others. The impact we made on each other’s hearts is going to go beyond Camp Abaco.
As we make our journey back to Iowa, the impact and healing we received during this trip is going to come home with us.
Don’t just pretend to love others. Really love them. Romans 12:9
—Kenna, Kenzie, and Kimmie
