BUILDING BLOCKS

Hey family and friends! Tomorrow I will be embarking on my eighth-month journey, where I will be volunteering at an orphanage in the small village of Hazrapur, Bangladesh. Bangla Hope is home to 166 children ranging from infants to teenagers. In addition to supplying housing and these children's basic needs, this organization contains a school to provide the kids with an education while at the orphanage. Although I am uncertain as to what my exact role on campus will be, I'll primarily be there to mentor, play with, and love the kids I come in contact with. I may even end up teaching at the campus school! While this past week I have been growing a bit more nervous waiting in anticipation for my departure date, I am so grateful for this opportunity to put myself out of my comfort zone, acclimate to a new culture, and devote this time of my life to serving others. I have created this blog to post pictures and keep anyone who is interested updated on my time in Bangladesh. 

aerial view of Bangla Hope

Below is an explanation of my own personal mission/goal for serving as a student missionary :) 

My high school religion teacher used to say, "Preach the gospel, and if necessary, use words." For the past couple of years, I have been grappling with the idea of evangelism. In general, evangelistic strategies seem to be condensed into this dichotomy: verbally sharing knowledge of Christ and then witnessing by emulating His character through one's actions. While it would make sense for a Christian to create a balance between these forms of evangelism, I noticed that, in general, most Christians have a propensity to excel in one method over the other. In considering this, I began to wonder what the most successful method of evangelism was, witnessing through knowledge or actions? While the answer to this question is ambiguous, I found my answer by looking in the gospels to the best missionary to walk the earth, Jesus. Throughout Jesus's ministry on earth, strangers were drawn to him. What made Jesus's ministry appealing? In looking at the gospel stories, I saw a theme in Jesus's work. Of course, His sermons and stories were remarkable, but I think that over anything, strangers were drawn to His teachings due to his actions. Actions preceded knowledge. Jesus was loving and merciful to those He met, despite cultural norms and people's societal standings. He was a fish swimming upstream, and it made others look at His mission in awe. For instance, in both his encounter with Zacchaeus and the Samaritan women at the well, Jesus first breaks societal and cultural norms by showing compassion towards both individuals. Once they realize that Jesus is not there to condemn them but to be their friend, it is then that these individuals are open to His teachings. Emulating the love of God came first, then knowledge of who He was came second. 

In contemplating this, I think as Christians, if we want to share our knowledge of who God is, first, we have to show who God is. I believe that sometimes in order to witness to others, we must return to the building blocks of faith, as Jesus did with each person He met during His time here on earth. Christianity, in its rawest form, is love. In Mark 12:30-31, Jesus says, "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength. The second is this: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' There is no commandment greater than these."

My objective as a student missionary is to preach the gospel and if necessary use words. Although a vast majority of the kids at the orphanage have not had the privilege to experience a parent figure in their lives, I would love to help draw them closer to the most incredible Heavenly Father they could ever have. My goal is to be a friend/super awesome playmate/mentor to the kids I end up meeting because reflecting the love of Christ through my actions as best as I can is, in my opinion, sharing the gospel.

Thank you so much to everyone who has supported me either financially or through your prayers! I am truly grateful for all of your encouragement and look forward to keeping you updated as time goes on. 

All the best,

Sarah