Tag: Casas por Cristo

Testimony Tuesday: Corey Rhoades

Corey Rhoades served as one of the adult leaders for this year’s Birmingham Plunge trip, and in the spring he will serve as an adult leader for the Nicaragua Casas por Cristo trip.  Today, Corey is sharing with us how his past work on Mission has shaped his mindset.  Corey’s missions testimony encourages us to question our place in God’s story.

“Growing up in Southern California, just a couple hours drive away from Mexico, I was always involved in short-term, international mission trips. At least three times a year, I traveled with my church family to serve at an orphanage in Ensenada or to build a house with my youth group in San Felipe. These were formative years, in which I developed a love for the Spanish language, which would eventually become my college major. 

Corey is a Graduate Assistant and Bridges to Belmont faculty at Belmont

As a teenager, it was easy to neglect the reasons why we went on these trips. Mostly, I saw it as a road trip with my best friends. But my youth minister made us write essays before every summer Mexico trip—yes, written essays like in school, but this time not for a grade! And after much whining and complaining to our parents, we all begrudgingly complied. Only in retrospect do I appreciate the motives behind those dreaded essays. It compelled us to ask questions: Why are we going? Who are we helping? Are we actually helping? These essays forced us to contemplate our own blessings and privileges as citizens of the U.S., to discern our individual gifts and skills that we contribute to the team, and to wrestle through our relationship with God.

Group photo of one of Corey’s past missions.

These essays were a start, but college forced me to ask even more questions. What do I want to do with my life? How can I make a positive impact on the world? Does my career fit into all this? Additional opportunities to study abroad and participate in short-term mission trips led me to Honduras, Peru, Bolivia, Chile, Argentina, and Uruguay. I began to realize that Mexico is just one small part of the greater panoply of countries that make up Latin America. As I worked toward fluency in Spanish, I began to wonder what the point was. Every new place I traveled was like discovering and opening another can of worms. How could I, just one person, possibly make a difference?

Corey working construction on mission

During Spring Break 2020, I will be leading a group of Belmont students to Nicaragua to build a house with Casas Por Cristo. It will be yet another small attempt to help a family in need—another house that will not reverse cycles of poverty, not displace corrupt government leaders, and not make much of any difference in the scope of world history. But I still believe this trip will be important and worthwhile. If you are considering a Belmont Spring Break Mission Trip but are hesitant to commit, I would encourage you to shift your mindset away from answer-seeking questions and toward growth & trajectory questions. Rather than asking, “Should I go? Will I know anyone? Will it actually make a difference?” instead ask yourself, “What made me interested in the first place? Who might I meet? What might I learn?” Going on an international mission trip may raise more questions than it answers, and that’s okay.”

If you have any questions about the Nicaragua Casas por Cristo trip, or any other spring break mission trip, check out global.belmont.edu.  If you have any questions about Belmont on Mission events, reach out and follow us on social media @BelmontOnMission

Student Take: Elania Trimble

Today on the blog, we asked Elania to write about her experience in serving with Casas por Cristo, and how her time serving in the past has influenced her decision to serve with Belmont on Mission!  Here is Elania’s take on serving God by building the Kingdom!

“I have had the fortunate opportunity to not only work with Casas Por Cristo once but twice. I traveled to Acuña, Mexico in July 2016 and again in March 2017. My first time going, I was very nervous because I had no idea what to expect, and I had never gone out of the country for a mission trip before.

The first thing I noticed about Acuña was how small and brightly colored everything is. We met with Scott Dewitt, who was our trip leader and the Acuña field director. He told us a little bit about what to expect in the coming week. I honestly had no idea how a high school youth group was going to successfully build a house in only four days, but we were reassured that it could be done, and we were going to do it.

Our job site was in the middle of town and there was barely any room to move around, much less freely build a house. We had to build a lot of the parts in the middle of the street. It was the hardest work I’ve ever done in my life. Scott and his intern Alyssa took us step by step and by the end of day four we had a completely brand-new house. The most rewarding part of the trip was all the wonderful people I got to meet. The family we were building the house for had been living in one tiny house together. There were at least 10 people living there, and they were the nicest people I’ve ever met. I got to meet so many children from around town because they would all come visit us on the job site. They were so sweet and loved to help us out. We ended the trip with a little ceremony, during which we presented the house to the family.

Working with Casas Por Cristo was the most humbling and rewarding experience I’ve ever had. It made me realize how much we all take for granted in our comfortable and safe lives. The people who live there work so hard and get the bare minimum in return. They are so grateful for every little blessing in their lives and are the most kind-hearted people. The language barrier was not even an issue and didn’t stop me or anyone from connecting with the wonderful people of Acuña. When I saw that Belmont had a mission with Casas Por Cristo is was the easiest and fastest decision I’ve ever made. I am so excited to be going back to Acuña and can’t wait to make more lasting memories with Belmont on Mission over spring break!”

If you have any questions about Elania’s experience, Belmont on Mission, or upcoming Immersion, International, or Plunge trips, please reach out!

Host Partner Spotlight: Casas por Cristo

Over spring break, many Belmont students spend a week serving with Belmont on Mission. Groups of Belmont students travel to numerous locations both in the United States and abroad. International trips are a chance to be immersed in a local culture outside the U.S., grow in understanding of the cares and concerns of those communities, and promote fellowship and mutuality in your interactions with others. In other words, while there are opportunities to serve and complete projects, the emphasis is on learning and relationship.

This spring, a group of students will travel to Acuña, MX to partner with Casas por Cristo in the mission of building a house for a family who needs to be reminded of God’s love for them. For over 25 years, Casas por Cristo has been fulfilling their mission of building and serving the kingdom of God; there are now over 5,000 CPC homes in the United States, Mexico, Guatemala, the Dominican Republic, and soon Nicaragua.

During their time in Acuña, students will be building the Kingdom of God in more ways than one. Casas por Cristo seeks to build homes, relationships, and opportunities for growth. In striving to build the Kingdom, CPC cultivates opportunities for growth in structured experiences. Through these structured experiences, CPC builds relationships between people who, otherwise, would never have met.

The service that Casas por Cristo provides to so many communities is amazing. Through the building process, there are unique opportunities presented to us by God to serve each other. CPC’s guiding statement is as follows: “We are dedicated to meeting the physical need of better housing as a ways of also meeting the spiritual need for Jesus Christ.”

Belmont on Mission is so excited to be partnering with such a wonderful organization. If you have any questions about upcoming mission trips or Belmont on Mission in general, please reach out!