Thank you for praying and supporting our daughter on her mission trip this summer!  We wanted her to share all the Lord did in and through her!

Bula (Hello in Fijian)!

I want to say thank you with genuine gratitude. I wouldn’t have experienced this amazing mission trip without the help of your support and prayers. I truly felt the power of prayer and the presence of God due to your endless prayers and God’s faithfulness to me.

              On July 1st I arrived in Suva, Fiji. My team and I then met the Cru Fijian Student-Life who helped us immensely during our time in Fiji. I was able to connect with many of them and learn so much about their culture. The schedule throughout my two weeks in Fiji consisted of visiting Gospel High School each day to lead classroom periods throughout the day while sharing the gospel. Our classroom schedule consisted of an introduction, a game, a gospel presentation, a testimony, and small groups where we had many spiritual conversations. I had the opportunity to share the gospel 20+ times in different class periods. The start of sharing the gospel was scary for me but the Lord gave me so much strength and courage that I was able to share with such confidence. My team helped me so much by encouraging me and giving me several tips to improve. Words can’t describe the feeling I felt in front of each class, there would be times I would forget what to say yet God would speak through me. I felt His peace so consistent as I shared and was able to add my style to the gospel presentation with human visuals and explaining more in-depth. My favorite part of sharing the gospel was leading the salvation prayer out loud and hearing voices repeat after me as students prayed to receive Christ right in front of me. It was an unreal and truly beautiful moment to experience. 

Another opportunity I was given was to lead many small groups in the classrooms where we played Soularium (a card game with photos and questions). Examples of the questions I would ask are: “Pick a card to describe your life right now”, “Pick a card to describe your relationship with God”, and “Pick a card to describe your view of God”. This was a casual way to arise spiritual conversations. I was able to connect with many students and learn so much about their lifestyles and culture. Although some answers I received broke my heart, such as the one girl who shared in tears how she recently lost her brother. Others shared how they wished they had a “picture-perfect” family. As I listened to these hardships, I shared the love of Jesus and shared the importance of putting God on the throne of their lives. 

  One last encounter I had with a student I will never forget is meeting a boy who was blind. I co-led a small group with a blind student and deaf students and an interpreter. I started asking the questions but felt called to focus on the blind student and let my friend lead the rest of the small group. I described each card to the boy as he chose a card that best answered the question for him. As the spiritual conversation started I asked him about his faith and relationship with God. He shared his strong faith in God and gratitude for his life. I was so humbled to connect with this sweet boy speaking with such kindness and happiness even when describing how he could barely see me. He shared about his culture and asked questions about America, such as if there were blind people where I live. My heart sank imagining how he felt wondering if he was alone and wishing to see a bit clearer. I then shared how he isn’t alone and connected with him. 

The whole two weeks of sharing the gospel many times in classrooms were exhausting and we had packed schedules. Yet I wouldn’t trade the experience for the world, my connections made with students made it so worth it. On the days I felt “off” or with no motivation I cried out to God and He gave me so much strength. I experienced so many fruits of the Spirit on the mission.

Here are some statistics from our time on mission in Fiji:
 
· Spiritual Conversations: 563
· Group Evangelism: 2706
· Group Evangelism Decisions: 470 
· Total number of Classrooms: 55
· Total number of schools visited: 7
 

One last experience my team and I had in Fiji was visiting a village to distribute water filters. We visited the village of Verata and distributed water filters to homes in need and shared the gospel with the filters. 16 people prayed to receive Christ during our visit to the village!  I was able to visit 2 homes with my small team and share the gospel at both homes. I shared how God is like the water filter that purifies and cleans us from our sins. I also shared the prayer to receive Christ and led 2 people to Christ! It was a very humbling experience to walk into these homes in the village that are in need of clean water. Looking into the eyes of those in need and hearing why these Americans are here to give them clean water was truly a beautiful experience. Many got teary eyed, and you could see their attitude of true gratitude. I felt very privileged to give some houses the gift of clean water and a relationship with God.

On July 14th, our team then flew to Auckland, New Zealand. During our time in New Zealand, we visited a school at the beginning and end of the week. During our visits one day, I led a small group of girls where we went over a devotional and soularium cards to get into spiritual conversations. I then connected with the girls learning about their culture, comparing foods from the US to NZ, popular sports, and fun random questions. On another visit to the school, I was able to help lead worship for students before we started our gospel presentation. It was a beautiful experience to worship with my team and hear the voices of students sing out. Our team also had the privilege to hang out with students during their lunch. I was able to play volleyball and soccer with students. I also shared God’s love by chatting with random students and getting to know them. It was a special time visiting a school of students eager to know about God and welcoming us Americans so well.

In the middle of the week, our team visited the University of Auckland (New Zealand’s largest University). During our visits here we launched the Student Life and Athletes in Action Clubs. We visited during “Club Rush” where we promoted learning and joining a Christian community on campus. Our role as a team was to approach strangers and to ask them to fill out a quick survey with spiritual and personal questions, in order to invite students interested in God to their clubs. This was out of my comfort zone, but with prayer and courage gained from God, I approached many students. Even with the smallest interactions I had with students I shared the love of Jesus and complimented   students to bring a smile to their faces.

Our time then ended in New Zealand where my team and I had a debrief remembering all our special moments together on the mission and preparing    ourselves for the transition back home. I grew very close to many members of my team which made the goodbyes very hard. It was a very bittersweet goodbye to my team members that lived in other states and far away from me. But I feel very thankful for technology to be able to stay in touch and connected with my team and people I’ve met overseas. The transition back home was difficult for me since I have so much love for my team members, those I’ve met overseas, two beautiful countries, and two new cultures. But God taught me after missing so much to be grateful. Rather than wishing I was back, to change my mind set to gratitude. The gratitude of the door that God opened for me to grow in so many ways. The gratitude of all the people I connected with. The gratitude of an amazing team knit together by God. SO MUCH to be grateful for. Lastly, I want to thank YOU for supporting me financially and prayerfully on my mission trip. I feel very blessed to have you in my life and all of the support you’ve given me. But in all glory to God, I couldn’t have gone on this mission trip without Him and His faithfulness to me.

God Bless!

Thank you with a heart full of gratitude!

Love, Jessica Butlig 🙂