NGU takes on NYC: A recap of the New York mission trip
Photo courtesy of Matt Bullard
Samantha Meyeres, Staff Writer
This spring break, a group of around 15 North Greenville University students and leaders made their way to New York City to spread the gospel message.
From 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. everyday, the group traveled around to many of New York City’s boroughs, including Queens and the Bronx. Wherever they went, they would strike up conversations with locals in the hopes of sharing the light and love of Jesus.
Freshman intercultural studies major Matt Bullard shared how impactful it was to be able to have meaningful, God-centered conversations with people of all different backgrounds, religions and walks of life.
Even traveling from place to place, they encountered opportunities to tell people about the gospel. Bullard shared a story of a man he met on the subway as an example of how there are some times where you can share the gospel and see it make an impact, but don’t necessarily see it come to fruition.
The man on the subway was Hindu and said that he believed that God is real, but not that Jesus died and rose again. While Bullard didn’t get the opportunity to see this man come to Christ, he was able to pray with him and share the gospel message and his own faith.
Bullard said, “I got to pray with him. And he was in tears when we got off the subway.”
The team helped in a school in Jackson Heights, Queens, teaching children English. The school teachers were using Bible verses to help the kids learn the language. Bullard said it was a truly unique experience to hear and help the children figure out English through the word of God.
On another day, the group focused their efforts on homeless outreach. They walked around a park in the Bronx with a high homeless population and handed out coffee to the people there.
As they handed the coffee to each person, they would stop and take the time to sit with them and hear their stories. If given the opportunity, they would share the gospel with them and invite them to church.
Bullard said, “Mainly, we were just listening to them because they wanted to be heard and no one takes the time to pay attention to them.”
Even when not directly interacting with the locals of New York City, the missions team was actively working for the Lord. They did a prayer walk around the Bronx, praying for ministries, Christian churches and the Christians in that area. Most of all they were praying for the people of New York City to see the truth through Jesus instead of false religions.
Bullard shared that one of the biggest lessons he learned on this trip was that sometimes ministry is hard, but God is good. Sometimes you can get your hands dirty and have difficult conversations and never see your work come to fruition. Sometimes you can spend a week sharing the love of God with someone and still watch them turn away from faith.
But sometimes you experience those rare occasions when someone’s eyes light up with the love of life that only Jesus can bring. And that is what missions are all about.
