Week of Hope 2014 || This Girl is On Fire

Last year, my church went on a mission trip to Cincinnati, Ohio through Group Mission’s Week of Hope. And I had a fantastic time. To those of you who don’t know, Week of Hope is a time for Christians from across the U.S. to fellowship and serve the community.

It’s pretty weird to be stuck living somewhere where you only know the select few that came with you. You’re forced to get out of your comfort zone and completely desert your fears. As I may have let on before, I’m a very backward person when it comes to socializing and pretty much everything else.

But to my surprise, I had an especially liberating experience this past summer; I rededicated my life to Christ. I thought it’d change my life like crazy and at first it did. Until the fire within me soon became extinguished.

A year later and it was time to head back to Cincy where my spiritual journey with God had refreshed and then burnt out all over again. I had high hopes that He’d work on my heart again and give me the strength to stay on track this time but boy did I have no idea.

Everything that had broke me down and built me back up again within this past year gave me this courage to open up like never before. There’s something about being in an atmosphere full of believers that honestly recharges every single part of you possible. There’s no worries. No shame. No boundaries (in a good way). You’re not afraid to cry and pray and take your sorrows to the altar cause that’s exactly what everyone else is doing. You’re all there for the same reason; you’re at the battle front of God’s army, and you’re prepped & ready to go.

Being back in my hometown for a couple of days now makes me realize just how much I miss it; how different the superficial world is from the Godly one I’d much rather have. These people I met were from all over, Pennsylvania, Alabama, Illinois, Michigan, Wisconsin and Massachusetts. The chances I’ll see them face to face again are slim to none. But there’s power in knowing we’re still brothers and sisters in Christ and we’re all united no matter how far away we live from each other.

Summing up this week is an impossible feat. But there was a lot of love, a lot of people and a whole lot of Jesus.