Traveling at Home

JANUARY 4, 2021    |    3 MINUTE READ
KATELAND VERNON, STAFF WRITER

What if we told you that you could travel to another country without leaving your house? That you could do devotionals with other team members, learn from global workers serving there, and even visit a local’s home, all during the midst of a pandemic that’s limiting international travel?

When short-term mission trips had to be postponed in March 2020, World Gospel Mission started to dream about a new way of doing things. How could we still offer people an opportunity to connect with and serve alongside our long-term global workers? Thus, the idea for our first virtual mission trip was born.

In November, we sent our first team to Albania—virtually. Twenty-five team members received a daily email with two videos, devotionals, and prayer guides that helped them experience Albanian culture and meet the people serving there. Meagan Morrow, a student at Asbury University, discusses the virtual trip and how it impacted her in a recent interview with WGM.

Tell me about yourself. What year are you at Asbury? What are you studying? How has this different school year been for you?

Meagan: I am a sophomore at Asbury. I am majoring in elementary education with an emphasis in special education. This school year has been different for me because COVID majorly impacted my learning. In a typical semester, I would be able to do education observation hours in the physical classroom. Instead, this semester I had to do observations fully on Zoom. This limited my ability to truly learn and get to know students. This was really hard for me, and I pray that I am able to have a typical semester of college soon.

Why did you sign up to be a part of the virtual mission trip to Albania?

Meagan: I signed up to be a part of this mission trip because a virtual mission trip really sounded great! I have been on an in-person mission trip before, so I was really curious to compare a virtual mission trip to an in-person mission trip. I also just really love seeing how God is working in different countries.

What surprised you the most about the virtual trip?

Meagan: I was honestly surprised at how well it worked. It was super cool to be able to still “be” in a different country and learn about it while being in the middle of a pandemic. I was able to interact with people still and see things that encompassed Albania. I loved it!

Describe the visit with an Albania family. What was it like? How did it impact you?

Meagan: The visit impacted me because it was a real story. I was able to connect with the family and walk out of that meeting and say that I knew someone from Albania. I felt so connected to them—it was wonderful.

What overall impact did the trip have on you? What can you do now that you couldn’t do prior to the trip?

Meagan: The trip impacted me by reminding me that I am not in my own little world. There are people in the world that need to hear about Jesus. There are people that do not have the same luxuries as me. My job is to share the Gospel with other people. I believe that we showed the love of Christ through this trip even virtually! That speaks volumes!

Why should someone go on a virtual team? What would you say to a fellow student considering it?

Meagan: I think everyone should go on a virtual mission trip because even though it’s not in person, it still is so impactful and rewarding. You are able to interact with people from a different culture and show the love of Christ to them. It is such an incredible way to take part in a mission trip while also staying safe. To anyone who is considering it, do it! You seriously will not regret it. It is an incredible learning experience.

If, like Meagan, you’re looking for a way to get involved in missions during this season, we’d love to have you join us on a virtual mission trip. Sign up for text updates from WGM by texting CONNECT2WGM to 55498. When we have a spot available on our next virtual mission trip, you’ll be the first to know. In the meantime, check out your opportunities to get involved in missions below!

You don’t have to wait until the pandemic is over to start partnering with God in the work He’s doing around the world. You can start right now.