missions trips 2022

3 Things I Learned On Mission This Summer

September 8, 2022
catanzaro - staff pic - march 2022
Alissa Catanzaro

This summer was one for the books — at least for me! I had the opportunity to participate in three of Browncroft’s four trips that our church sent out this summer. While I was not able to go with our South Carolina team, I am eagerly awaiting this Sunday’s recap event to hear from them (keep reading to learn more). But I did get to visit Senegal with our Wolof partners, Peru with Faithe and Miguel Saccsara from Empowering Quechuas, and Ohio with Browncroft high school students.   

Here are lessons I learned on each trip: 

God Uses Missions

In Senegal I feel like I finally learned what “missions” is supposed to look like.

Each of our partners cares so much for the Wolof people of Senegal, but they know without local believers their ministry will not be as effective. Missionaries can be pulled out of their field for a ton of different reasons, so discipling local believers ensures the ministry will continue with or without the missionary.

It is so beautiful to hear the stories of believers turning to Jesus and now being a part of leading the ministry that brought them to Christ. Missions is temporary, but worship is forever. 

By the way, if you want to be a part of reaching the next generation in Senegal, please consider sponsoring a child at one of our three partner schools! Many of these students come from Muslim households but will attend a Christian school because of the importance of an education. Learn more by clicking the button below.   

God Is Kind

In Peru, as we aided soccer and eyeglass ministries, I got a sweet reminder about how kind God is to His people.

Despite it being winter in Peru in July, the jungle of Tarapoto was HOT! The leaders of the church we stopped at handed out coconuts to all of us who were basically melting because of the humidity. Then one of my team members turned around to me and said, “Isn’t it so cool that God put trees with water inside in a place that is so hot?”

God in all His goodness sees the people of Tarapoto and provides electrolyte-filled coconuts at their disposal. It was an amazing reminder of the intentionality and kindness of the God we serve! 

God Hears Prayer

In Ohio I was reminded how encouraging prayer can be and how important it is to be praying for one another.

On my worksite, we were talking about praying out loud — a nightmare for many a high schooler (and adult!). There is pressure to make a prayer sound “good” which discourages a lot of people from praying. That evening I was praying for the girls on my team to be bold in their faith. When the prayer time ended the two girls ran up to me and said, “We are praying at lunch tomorrow.” And they did it! They were able to experience working alongside God through leading others in prayer, and I got the sweet reminder that God hears and answers prayers – sometimes immediately!  

These are just some examples where I saw God at work this summer. Again, we are having an event this Sunday (September 11) at 7:00pm in the Browncroft Café to recap and celebrate all the trips that were sent out this year. Just like I am doing here, team members will have a chance to share about what they learned and where they saw God show up.

If you have never been on a trip before but have considered taking that next step, I really want to encourage you to be there! You can sign up using the button below. And bring a friend!  

Photo by Eva Darron on Unsplash

About The Author

catanzaro - staff pic - march 2022
Alissa Catanzaro

Alissa Catanzaro is Browncroft’s Outreach Director. She has lived in Rochester all of her life and truly loves this city. Missions has been a passion and calling on her life since high school, and she is grateful for short-term missions trip experiences she has been blessed with. In addition to leading Browncroft efforts, Alissa is very involved with a nonprofit called Guitars for Glory that puts instruments in the hands of worshipers all over the world.

Further reading

Browncroft’s Wolof Ministry and Bible Project

In 2024 Browncroft is celebrating the 25th anniversary of our partnership to reach the Wolof people of Senegal! One new way of making an impact that we are excited about is the sending of $25K of the Browncroft Reach 2024 ministry funds to help make God’s Word available in the Wolof language.
Read more

God Is Moving at Browncroft

As we wind down the school year and officially head into summer, I am thankful for our church and the ways that God is moving through the hearts and lives of so many.
Read more

A Praying Church

As part of our ongoing effort to be a praying church, Browncroft has a weekly Prayer Sheet distributed to our congregation via email. If you would like to commit to praying over the people in our church, you can sign up to receive it! My hope for Browncroft is that we continue to be a praying community– humbly approaching the Lord on behalf of one another, especially during challenging times.
Read more