Two years ago, I got the opportunity to join 26 other students in a monthlong trip run through Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary. This trip involved a month without any technology, growing in leadership, and developing a greater love and trust for God. We had three expeditions: a wilderness expedition where we hiked for 10 days in the mountains of the Adirondacks, a theological expedition where we investigated difficult questions led by Gordon-Conwell staff, and a ministry expedition where we traveled to Nicaragua and worked with children in the communities of Managua. It was a life-changing trip where I learned more about myself and God than I ever have before.

And two years later, I am still learning from that trip…

Wilderness expedition.

Be here now. There is not a lesson more prominent than that when you are out in the mountains with 60 pounds on your back sweating from the hot sun with no clue how long you’ve been hiking. We take so many things for granted, including time. While in the Adirondacks for 10 days, we learned to not worry about what was to come. We learned that being in the moment was the best thing to get you through the day. Ultimately, it didn’t matter how much longer we had to walk or what we would be doing tomorrow. What mattered was being in God’s creation surrounded by His people and enjoying the time spent, even if some of that time was challenging and strenuous. To this day, I think back to days under the sun and nights under the stars, hearing the music of nature, and witnessing serene landscapes. And I remember being in the moment with no concern for the future, because I knew the future was in God’s hands. And I continue to have to remind myself of that today. Oftentimes, we get so caught up with the nonstop goings-on of the world that we barely take a breath. However, it’s so important to live in the moment, because soon that moment will be over and we will have wasted it thinking about the future. The future will come but in the meantime, we have to let the future be God’s. We have to be here now and trust that God has everything in His hands.

Theological expedition.

We’re not God. We don’t know everything. For a week, we got to spend discussing extremely difficult questions that we could not find a definitive answer to. Questions like, “Is God really sovereign in every circumstance?,” “What kind of God would allow us to suffer?,” and, “What is the purpose of prayer if God already knows everything about our lives?,” racked our brains until we came up dry. There were no set answers to these questions and we often left frustrated. This week led us to understand that we are only human beings and cannot know everything. Only God can. To this day, I often remind myself that my life is not in my hands, but in God’s. When things go wrong or don’t go my way, I must come to understand that God has a plan and it is a perfect one. I need to learn to be patient and I need to let Him have control. And I need to always repeat when the going gets tough, “Thy will be done.”

Ministry expedition.

Love knows no bounds. In Nicaragua, we got to learn a new culture and interact with children of poor communities. I had no clue I would be entering a place so full of love even though they had so little. The children accepted us immediately into their community even though there was a language barrier and we looked different than them. They played soccer with us and we chased them around and they found great fascination in taking pictures with our cameras. Love poured out of them in a way I can never describe. You just knew they loved life and you knew they loved God. One child, Tito, served his family in a way I could never comprehend. He continually sacrificed his food so he could feed his brothers. Yet somehow he always had a smile on his face despite living a strenuous life. At the end of our stay he cried as we left and we knew then that love knows no bounds. I strive every day to love others and love God like those Nicaraguan children do. I don’t want material things to determine my happiness. I want love to be the first and foremost concept in my life. I want to love God with abandon and spread His love to everyone I encounter. Although there are days when I don’t feel like loving, I need to remember how those kids loved. Love like a child who has nothing. Yet love like a child who has everything through God.

As I scroll through pictures from my Compass trip, it’s difficult not to smile from the nostalgia that comes with each click. That trip changed my view on life and on my faith in so many ways. It’s been two years and I still remember the sound of thunder clapping through the mountains, the silence of a room struggling to find answers, and the taste of sweet Nicaraguan bread on my lips. But what I truly remember is the lessons I took with me as each expedition came to a close. Sometimes it’s difficult to attain those lessons after two years and encountering “real life” again. Sometimes I forget to live the way I learned to on a trip with 26 other students and no technology. But when I do look back, I can see how that trip has shaped my life and when I remember the lessons I learned, I strive to learn them again.