For senior Emilie Moneyhon, last year’s Intervarsity mission trip was a spiritual reset.

“We spend so much time in college doing things for ourselves,” Moneyhon said. “It’s so crazy to be in this environment where everything you’re doing is for the sake of other people. It was an environment that was filled with so much love and so much peace.”

Last year, a group of Hillsdale students chose to spend their spring break in Hillsdale, visiting the county jail, evangelizing at a mall, and helping elderly members of the community with yard work.  

“Our hope is to equip people and not just let them go on the trip blindly,” senior Elizabeth Sible said. “We don’t send people out if they’re not trained because if they aren’t, they could do damage.”

Moneyhon described the learning curve students faced while on the trip.

“If you really want to be impactful in God’s kingdom, you have to give up some of your comfort in your own desires and wills,” she said.

Sible said she learned how to see people through God’s eyes.

“The trip transformed my heart and opened my eyes to see how God values and loves people and wants to use his people to help reach those that do not know Him or are just simply in need to experience Christ’s love,” Sible said.

She said she learned how to let go of control and surrender both herself and her day to God. 

“You’ll grow so much closer to the Lord and they’ll grow in love for his people,” Sible said. “It’s kind of just like a transformative process. Because you’re dying to yourself every single day. The day ahead of you is not your plan at all.”

Moneyhon described the challenges of evangelization. 

“All we can do is just plant the seed and you’re not going to see it come to fruition, but it was still very powerful to see how grateful people were for the help,” Moneyhon said.

Sophomore Eden Ryan wrote a song from her experience on the trip based on John 14:23.  

“The verse talks about us loving like Christ and how Christ and the Father will come to us and make their home within us,” Ryan said. “There was a devotion that Father Rick gave about us being an outpouring of him. So I mixed those two ideas together.”

Ryan said Christians share a supernatural love that binds them together.

“The people in a different country don’t need Jesus more than the people in your own town,” Ryan said. 

Sophomore Rebekah Preston also said her understanding of God’s love deepened on the trip.

“I think God really taught me how to love other people well, without judging them and realize that it’s not my job to judge,” Preston said. “It’s just my job to be his hands and feet and to love others.”

Sophomore Jihye Kim said she and her peers left the mission trip with an urgency to share the gospel with others.

“We want to keep running the race and not just slack off,” Kim said.

Students should prayerfully consider going on the mission trip since they are in the prime of their life and are called to go and make disciples, Sible said.

“If you can’t go on this spring break mission trip, I would encourage you to look for an opportunity within your church to learn how to disciple others or share the good news.” Sible said. “We should always have an eye for the lost and a heart for the lost.”