By Katie Woods, Graduate Student in Addiction Counseling
As an online student, I was looking for a way to make a stronger connection with my school and peers who attended GCU. I had no real way to go about this since I do not live in the Phoenix area, or so I thought! Over Christmas break, I received an email about the mission trips planned for the spring and summer of 2009, and wondered if this was my opportunity. I called the Office of Spiritual Life and found out that online students were eligible to go on these mission trips. I was excited to begin making the connections I had been seeking.
Once it all started to come together, I felt nervous. Not only am I a graduate student, but I wondered if I was going to be a lot older than the rest of the team. This is when I decided to stop worrying because I knew God would bring together the perfect group of people for the Germany mission. It could not have been a more perfect fit. This trip has given me the friendships and connections I was seeking. I have not only made strong connections with other students, but with God as well. I have always had a passion for helping people, and this trip was consistent with that. I believe that in everything we did, each person we met and built relationships with, God was shining through us. It is not everyday that you get a group of young people who are willing to get dirty and work hard for the benefit of someone else, but that is exactly who we are and what we did!
My faith and love for God has grown and that is due to this mission trip. I would whole-heartedly, without a doubt, participate in another Grand Canyon University mission trip…and who knows, I just might!
