During our service camp with youth in Nashville, I struggled with connecting to the students. I was tasked with playing and hanging out with them on the deck. Conversations were intimidating as much for them as for me. How could we connect with the vast age difference? How could either of us feel comfortable enough to engage? Breaking into a friend group seemed impossible because I did not want to diminish the enthusiasm. I appealed to the Lord for direction, for ways to break down the generational barrier. I feel confident I did not overcome this in the first service week.
We arrived in El Salvador to do another service week event. We prepared on a number of levels and I found myself filling in to help accomplish a few things. At a break point, I was asked to go hang out with the youth, play, and get to know them. My response to the Lord was, “Okay, Lord, here I go again and this time with the added challenge of the language barrier! Help me!”
I entered a circle of El Salvadoran youth and a few of our team hitting a volleyball around. We laughed, we responded to one another in our native languages, we made mistakes, and we played! We understood one another on a different level!
It was easy to see just how alike we all are regardless of the language we speak, the mistakes we make, our age, our athletic ability, our awkwardness, our country of origin, or socioeconomic backgrounds.
We were there because we shared values and our love for the Lord. We shared awkwardness, embarrassing moments, and our humanity. We connected! Praise the Lord!