PANAMA | Desiree

Hello, Charter Oak Church family, I would like to share my experience that I had on the Panama mission trip. I was nervous and excited to go. This was my very first time on a mission trip and my very first time out of the country. I was nervous because I didn't know what to expect. I was excited because this was a brand-new experience for me. I was part of the evangelism team. The first picture I have is my point of view from the airplane heading to Panama. I was so amazed at the beautiful view God had created for us. This picture really had me in awe of His creativity. Towards the right of the picture it looks as if God took a paint brush and gently swiped the brush over the cloud. I knew this trip was going to be amazing.

On day 1 of clinic, I started to question why God had me there because I couldn't speak Spanish and I couldn't communicate with the children. I felt like I didn't belong. I started to pray and I asked God to open my eyes and help me see why He called me to go. A little bit later that day, there was a little girl that couldn't quite speak yet and she showed me where she wanted to go and what activity she wanted to do. God showed me through this child that I could communicate with actions and not words. It was nice to have an interpreter, but it made it even better to use actions of love towards others just as well.

The second picture I have is one I took on day 2 of Clinic. It filled my heart with joy seeing how happy the kids were while playing soccer and volleyball with some of our team. The final picture was taken on day 2 as well, while I was working with adult evangelism, and the man I got to speak to was already saved and knew about Jesus and how he died on the cross for our sins. He was very nice, and I was glad that I had the opportunity to pray for him. During this trip I got to experience so much. I got to witness 4 people accept Jesus into their life. I had the chance to learn more about our other team members. It filled my heart with joy to know that we were all able to do what God had sent us there to do. 

After I returned from my trip, I took a giant step back and reflected on everything I had witnessed. My biggest takeaway from this trip is that the people of Panama have so much less than we do and they are happy and content with what they have. We take so much for granted here. God helped open my eyes to see everything I had been blessed with already. God showed me that I don't need a lot to be happy. I can be happy and content with God.

 Desiree Sheffler, Panama 2025