As I return home from my sixth mission trip with my church, I find myself reflecting and wondering why I go on these mission trips.

I started going on our annual mission trip in 2011 when we went to Cedar Rapids. I had friends that had gone on the mission trip and had wonderful experiences, so I decided I wanted to go as soon as I was old enough to. I was super excited to go on the mission trip to serve others and get to know the people I go to church with. I saw it as it was just the thing you did every year. You go out of town for a week to volunteer and hopefully make a difference in the community you are in.

In Cedar Rapids we worked at multiple places. One day we worked at a summer camp to help paint a couple of their cabins. The following year, in 2012, we traveled to Denver where we worked with a lot of different people. One day, we went to the King Adult Day Enrichment Center, a program that works with those who have MS or suffered from a traumatic brain injury. While we were there we played games, such as tennis and volleyball, and wrote songs with them. I had the pleasure to meet a women who was on a wheelchair and could not use the left side of her body. It was incredible to see her participate in all the activities and have such a positive attitude.

My favorite part of going to Denver was working at a church that provides daycare services to the children that live in the motels on the main street in the neighborhood. We did crafts and played tons of games with the kids. We also took the kids on a tour of the Broncos Stadium. I remember I played with a little girl named Janessa. At the end of the day, when they took the kids home, I waited outside with the kids for the driver. While we were waiting I noticed Janessa was standing at the back of the van just staring into space. I bent down and asked if she was ok. She said yes. At that point the driver had come and opened the van doors. I then asked her if she was going to get into the van. Again, she said yes. She turned to get in, but before she got in I asked her for a hug. She turned to me and her face lit up like a Christmas tree. She gave me the biggest hug. I never knew that a simple hug could have such an impact on a person. I realized that I took that for granted. This moment is part of the reason why I go on the mission trips.

This year I found myself wondering even more why I went on the mission trip. I love going, but sometimes I feel like I am just going through the motions—ride in a car for several hours, attempt to get any sleep on your air mattress, get up in the morning, eat breakfast, and go volunteer all day. But why do I do this? Why do I choose to get four to five hours of sleep each night and work all day every day for a week?

This year we traveled to Milwaukee, Wisconsin. We went there last year also. We returned because last year we started a project at Summerfield United Methodist Church, so this year we wanted to finish our project. The church is a very old church with a small congregation. They do not have the funds to maintain it. This we were able to finish and completely transform their Fellowship Hall. The pastor and her family were very grateful.

We also had youth on the mission trip this year. We went to several nature centers and weeded. My favorite place was the Concordia Garden. It is a community garden in the middle of a neighborhood. The residents can rent a raised bed for $10 a season and plant whatever they want. There are also various fruits and vegetables planted that the community can come and pick anytime. The garden's slogan is "move grass, grow food." It showed me the significance of a garden and how much food can be produced. The other nature centers also allowed me to see the beauty of the Earth.

As part of the mission trip, the youth had our own worship time throughout the week. We had prayer partners, someone to pray for throughout the week, and had good group discussions about the ways we experienced Fod throughout the week. This helped me realize the reason for going on the mission trip.

This year I learned that I go on the mission trip because I want to make a difference in the world. I like to think that I make a difference in the lives of the people we help. At least, I hope we do. But this year I learned that we do make a difference on the mission trip and are able to help other people because God has nudged us to go serve Him and has provided us with the tools and talents to make a difference. I go on the mission trip because the Lord has called me to do so. I go because I want to make a difference. I go because I want to and I love to.