Written by: Jaide-Simone Prejean
 
As I reflect on the end of my first mission trip, I am grateful to have spent my last day surrounded by such a loving group of kids, faith-devoted team, and supportive coaches and mission leaders. The morning started off with the team joined together for the final breakfast at Hotel Merliot. Neeley shared the morning devotional, which discussed the teaching of how we can use what we learned about service, love, and patience on this mission trip and utilize these values for how we carry ourselves back home. 
 
I was blessed to start the day at BeSport scrimmaging with the kids I have come to know and love. As I watched the smiles on their faces when scoring a goal or making a good play, I was reminded of how beautiful it is to combine faith and sport. I was so happy to know the impact we made on the kids just by being with them on the field again. The last scrimmage ended with capturing the happy memories in photos and a new knowledge of the rock, paper, scissors Spanish song. It was so beautiful to see children who weren't as blessed with an abundance of resources to be so rich in love and joy. This allowed me to see how leading with love and in praise of the Lord has the ability to transform so much in one's life. 
 
As we departed BeSport for a fun day at the beach, our team spent the drive with a Disney Song Competition about matching the lyrics to the spirit of the person, which I happily won. Our beach day was filled with laughter, sand piles, wave jumps, sand soccer, peaceful resting under the sun, many hugs, and being a witness to the beauty of God's creation.
 
As our beach day came to a close, I had the opportunity to witness Hailey's baptism. It was so beautiful to watch an amazing friend and teammate take this next step in her faith. We ended the baptism with many prayers asking that God continue to extend His grace to her and reflected on the special plan the Lord has for Hailey in her choice to be renewed.
 
The team's last dinner with Sports Outreach Impact was filled with happy tears as we celebrated the 10th anniversary of Lipscomb Women's Soccer's Mission Trip to El Salvador. We got to watch a video combining all the happy moments throughout the week and witness the community the Lord made in bringing the team here for a tenth year. I was then surprised with a cake to celebrate my 20^th birthday that would come the next morning and had the honor of hearing the El Salvadorian birthday blessing from the amazing SOI leaders, Hilda and Humberto. The Director, Humberto, shared his wisdom with us about the importance of love and spreading it to everyone no matter the amount we receive back. His speech showed how we act out of love speaks so much more than any words can. He believed that our love is part of what inspires us to keep coming back and work alongside him. Humberto then gifted everyone SOI diplomas, which read to be "for serving with love to the ones in need". This recognition emphasized the importance of acting from the heart and the impact of showing compassion to others. 
 
Following dinner, we gathered one last time on the beach around a fire to end the night with worship and reflect on our week. We reflected on our week utilizing an Ebenezer, which is known as the "stone of remembrance". Everyone shared a word the Lord placed on their hearts that deeply captured their experience and takeaway from the mission trip. After sharing our purpose behind the word, it was then written out on stones or shells people found on the beach and saw beauty in. As we prayed on the word or phrase the Lord put on everyone's hearts, the stones and shells layed together in the middle of our worship circle to illustrate the values we intend to uphold in the aftermath of the trip. There is no single right word to represent this trip and the variation of words revealed to me how God works in different people. 
 
The word placed on my heart was "present". My inspiration for this word was from wanting to meet the goal of being fully present in every training or scrimmage with the kids, worship, places we visited, or anything else the Lord called me to do that day.
 
Doing something as simple as sharing a smile, saying "como estas", or checking in on the people I was surrounded by that day, were part of my belief in the impact of doing the little things. Despite the situations and stories of these kids, it has opened my eyes to see how they continue to be so full of love and smiles because of how much SOI continues to be there for these kids everyday. This word spoke to me especially because of how our presence says so much more beyond what any words can. I am so happy to have been able to focus on how I can serve others without worry of outside distractions or worldly things, and feel the Lord's presence in so many people. 
 
The day ended with one last "girls night" by the pool, where we got the opportunity to hear one of the girls' testimony. It was comforting to see her vulnerability and strength as she shared her story with us. We then took the time to pray over them asking that God extends His grace and support as she continues her journey. 
 
As we sat in the night then discussing how fast the trip went by, I experienced a mix of emotions reflecting on my experience in El Salvador. While I am sad to leave such a great place, group of kids, and the inspiring SOI group, I am also filled with so much gratitude. I am happy to leave knowing more about how I can better lead in my faith and continue to be present in everything I do.