I’m CSPC member Catherine Martin. This is how I’m living deeply. 

“I told them all no. [CSPC Director of High School Ministry] Sarah Braden kept saying, ‘You should go.’ And I was like, ‘I don’t think so.’ And then she texted me the day of the deadline to sign up: ‘Your mom and I talked, and we think you should go on the high school mission trip to Costa Rica.’ I finally gave in: ‘Okay, sounds fun.’ This past summer was my last summer before college, and I really wasn’t planning on going to Costa Rica. I’d been gone all of June, and I was like, ‘I kind of want to be home for the last month before I leave.’ (I’d already been to Costa Rica two years before when CSPC took a trip there.) But Sarah and my mom made it really clear they thought it would be a good thing for me to go again, so I signed up. I’m really glad I did. We went to San Jose to help an organization called Christ for the City in La Carpio, one of the most poverty-stricken places in that area. It’s a very different lifestyle than we live here for sure. We helped run a program called Renevevos (‘renewed’ or ‘restored’ in Spanish). It gave kids something to do during their two-week winter break (yes, our summer is winter there!). We’d run VBS for younger kids in the morning, then older kids in the afternoon. Walking through La Carpio, I saw thousands of people living in a very small area. Their homes are very small shacks, usually made out of metal with corrugated roofs. A lot of family members living in one home. One day we went into the homes and talked to some of the people. There were a lot of single mothers, a lot of drugs and abuse, young mothers- situations that aren’t nearly as common in West Knoxville. It was eye-opening to be taken out of my bubble and see how other people’s lives are so much different than mine. But there were similarities, too. They have the same deep heart need for real hope and joy. We all share that. So some were very open to hearing the hope of the gospel. It was cool to see the same God I know working through other places in the world.

There’s one moment I’ll never forget. During our VBS we would have worship- mainly kids’ songs that we would dance to. There’s one song that all the kids pretty much knew, a classic kids’ worship song with a dance to it. The older kids would always be hesitant to dance; too cool. But then the leader was like: Dance battle of the gringos! (They called us the gringos.) So we were all against each other doing a dance battle to the song. And then at the end we all joined in and danced together. It was so fun and joyful- a beautiful picture of how the Lord unites us all, even though we’re so different. The Bible talks about all nations coming together to recognize the Lord, and I saw a little bit of that there. But on a more personal level, the biggest tug on my heart in Costa Rica is a girl named Lismari. I met her the first time I went, when she was nine. We just clicked and became buddies. When I came back this year, I saw her and was like, ‘Lismari!’ She did not remember me at all (which is fine- she was little). Now she’s 11. I got to hang out with her again that week and renew our friendship. At the end of the week, she wrote me a really touching letter in English. (She doesn’t know any English, so she must have had to look it up or asked somebody.) She was like, ‘I love you. Thank you. God brought you here for a reason.’ It was decorated with little hearts. Really sweet. This time I’m pretty sure she’ll remember me. Who knows what struggles she carries around every day? So strengthening that connection, being able to pray for her going forward, that’s an honor I wasn’t expecting. And that’s my main takeaway: the Lord shows me time and time again that the things I don’t expect are always the best. My heart may plan what I think should happen, but ultimately His will is way better than I could ever imagine. He goes before me and is already working, and I just get to step into that every day. Partly through this and two other CSPC mission trips, He’s led me to pursue serving kids in difficult contexts for my career. I’m studying special education at UTC. That desire is another gift from the Lord, and I want to use it for His glory.”