I've just gotten back from the Whirlwind Mission Trip. I'm not even sure where to start! (: God truly does work in such wonderfully amazing ways. For those of you who don't exactly know what the Whirlwind Missions are about- it's going out to the Azaelea Apartment Complexes and creating relationships with the kids there- basically playing with them morning noon and night! Those kids out there are some of the most wonderfully-made kids God ever created . So it really is worth it- They are so beautiful. So joyful. So loving.

This week I've learned so much about loving from these kids. Love is truly a broad term isn't it? It means so many different things to so many different people. How can anyone really define it? There's that love we see on TV and dramas. Those incredibly cutee kinds of love that couples sometimes seem to have. You see it in their eyes, in their voice, in their expression, that love- it's just so full of surprise. Then there's that love parents have for their children or brothers have for their sisters and vice versa. Family love, it's a really great bond, sometimes harsh, but the tough-love kind. I guess it's kinda like the love God has for us. . . but. . . not exactly quite. Don't get me wrong now, all these forms of love are so incredibly beautiful in their own way. I think that's why love is such a universal thing, you know? But my point being is that... as I started reflecting during the mission trip, I realized, God's love is really the ultimate kind. The type of love that we should all strive to work at- love that's never-ending, never-failing, always over-flowing with compassion and forgivness and all that really good stuff (like it talks about in 1 Corinthians).

What really stood out to me this time round (since it was my second time at the apartments) were the -hmm how to put it- the souls(?) and hearts(?) of the children. If you ever get to talk to them I think you'd know exactly what I mean but since we all can't go there at once... I'll just tell you a little bit. And I don't think it's just these kids that would be able to show you what I mean, I think it's many kids in general but we just never really take the time to find out. Hmm... maybe you'll get the essence of what I'm talking about from these two conversations with the kids.

Saul is a five-year old boy. Precious-
S: Oh look there's a bird! I like birds.
C: Why do you like birds, Saul?
S: Because they can sing.
C: Why do they sing?
S: Because they're singing to God.

Fabiola is maybe 6 or 7. She's a sweetheart too. They all really are.
C: If you could have any one wish in the WHOLE-WIDE-WORLD... what would it be?
F: Mmmm... I would wish for shoes.
C: Shoes?
F: ::Nods at me::
C: What color?
F: Black.
C: Black? ::Bit surprised::
F: Like the ones I have right now. ::Smiles::

Now the first conversation just made me think- How is it that such a young boy can see and appreciate the beauty of what God created around him, while I can't. It just made me realize how blind we can be as "older people." Age does not neccasarily make us wiser- because at that moment I think Saul understood way more about true beauty than I did. The second convesration, well, to put it bluntly, just made me realize how selfish we can be. Complain complain complain. Greedy greedy greedy. Even if she could have any wish, she'd wish for something she already had. That's being grateful for what God's already given you. That's pretty... wow.

I know this a bit of an abrupt ending but. . . that concludes PART 1. I don't know how I'll ever write about this trip. The kids, the team, were just truly really great and sweet. I feel so extremely blessed to know all these people it of half the barely was this because 2 PART for wait to have you?ll guess I well and strong (:<>