Youth Mission Trip Reflection 2026

Written by Sean Gilland

Here at Waypoint, every summer we do a Youth Mission Trip (which means no parents unless they are volunteers for the Youth) where we go away from the Triangle to help and serve other people. Serving is not the only thing we do, we also hangout and build friendships within the Youth Group, learn more about God, and ultimately have a great time.

My name is Sean and I’m part of the Waypoint Group and a rising 7th grader. In this blog, I’ll be telling you about my first experience so maybe you’ll be inspired to do a Youth Mission Trip or just so you can learn what this Youth Mission Trip is all about:

This year’s Mission Trip destination was Knoxville, Tennessee and we partnered up with Next Step Ministries. They led us with sermons, songs, organizing our jobs, providing food for us, and leading us alongside the Waypoint Youth leaders. Our basecamp, in which we would sleep, eat and hangout, was at a United Methodist Church. It was a nice place overall.

Now, this was my first Youth Mission Trip. We had to fill out a form a couple months back that basically gave parents permission for their child to go. There was also a part where the Youth and the parents had to fill out for their children. It went like this: From 1-5 how skilled were they at certain areas like painting, using a ladder, etc. I put 1-2 on all of them so I was a bit worried I would get boring jobs but they ended up not being as bad as expected and were actually pretty engaging and “enjoyable” jobs (in the sense that I had tasks to do and I wouldn’t just hang around the whole time. But truly, jokes aside, it was great to serve people and to be together as a church community).

On the afternoon of the first day, everyone was led into the sanctuary. We were split up into different groups which had certain jobs and workstations. We were also introduced to a new series that we would be doing throughout the 5 days called, “The Heart of The Father” (by Francis Chan). It was centered around what God’s character is like and what he wants for us and how he shows Himself to us in everyday life. We would be doing a morning devotional, a lunch devotion, and evening programming.

Now you might be wondering what we did during those three things, especially asking, “What is programming?” But before we talk about that, I want to get you some more context on what a usual workday would look like:

I was put into a group called FISH. FISH is a Food Hospitality Pantry where we serve other people by giving them food no matter their status, income, religion, gender orientation etc. Before we went serving people food, we had to go into a warehouse and sort food out into categories. Now, you may think at first glance that sorting food would be uninteresting and I won’t say it wasn’t, at some points it was uninteresting but it was oddly satisfying and enjoyable overall, seeing the food being sorted and our efficiency going up. On the second night, we were put in new groups. I was (surprisingly) put in Construction. We were building a new deck for the homeowner as the old deck wasn’t looking too good. The group before us already did old deck demolition and set in the new deck foundations. Over the course of the next two days, we got the deck boards and railings done and started on the ramp that would go with the deck. Serving was a really great thing for me to do because I don’t really serve very much in my own city and serving other people is a really healthy part of life. And serving was fun and I realized how much that serving other people could impact other people, especially more at FISH pantries. We had heard stories from the Next Step leader that was leading FISH that FISH was a sanctuary for the people who came and she emphasised how much our serving really did affect these people (in a good way) as well as the leaders at FISH. Serving other people really is one of our purposes here on Earth and is rewarding, seeing how the people really do appreciate us just volunteering for a day.

A typical workday would go like this:

First, wake up, get ready, eat breakfast and after, go to the sanctuary and do a 20 minute morning devotional in quietness. Now, this, at first thought, invoked boredom in me. 20 minutes of quietness doing a devotional? I can’t even get through a simple devotional without getting uninterested on the 2nd day of doing it and start doing it less and less frequently. But surprisingly, it was peaceful, engaging and enjoyable, reading about God in a short little passage, answering simple questions that made me reflect back and made me ponder my thoughts. And to my surprise, before I knew it, the 20 minutes were over and we had to go to our workstations. I guess, the way that the devotional was in a quiet, focused room where there was no distraction where you could just swipe out of the devotional and do another activity so quick, or just the way it was presented and the way it was structured but whatever it was, it made me feel that it was less than just a routine and more of something that would help give a good start to my day or a time of peacefulness.

The rest of the day usually continued with work. And when we would have lunch at work, we would have lunch devotionals. They have different passages than the breakfast devotional but still focus on God’s character, what he wants for us and how he appears in everyday life. Unlike the devotional in the morning though, with a quiet 20 minutes where we silently read a passage and reflect and answer the provided questions, these devotionals are discussion based devotionals. The person who will lead the devotional will read a little passage and then read a question. Then we will discuss it with everyone being able to speak up about their thoughts on the question. This was also enjoyable and engaging, being able to get everyone’s point of views on the question and it was a good time to have community with everyone. Instead of reflecting back on ourselves with God, we were able to connect ourselves as a group with God. People would sometimes share some stories, some opinions, and we would go on topics that were a little less serious. The devotional opened up a great discussion and I am glad of that.

When we got back from work we would just have free time and then showers and then we would eat dinner and then have programming. To answer the question of, “What is programming?”, programming was when we all shuffled back into the sanctuary. It was structured more like a typical Sunday service. We would be introduced to a video on the series, “The Heart of The Father” by Francis Chan. He would talk to us in the video about his life and how God helped him in his life, etc. He would tell us more about God’s character and different aspects of that in each video. Then one of the Next Step leaders would do a sermon, not particularly about the video but related to it. We would also sing songs and the beginning and end of each programming session. We might also do a little activity during programming, for example, one of them was writing one thing that we have felt guilty or shame about and nail it (literally) on a wooden cross. We would give our worries and shame and guilt to the father. Another activity we did was footwashing (this took place in the Fellowship Hall). Oh! And I forgot one thing about our programming. After the first song we would split into our crews (jobs) and do, “Yay God!”s. In each crew, we would discuss how we saw God working throughout the day. We pick representatives to say what our Yay God was (with many other stuff like our chant that we would’ve already created, and the answer to a funny question). These “Yay God!”s that we did every night made me reflect back on my day and help me realize that God is always working somehow in our day whether it’s big or small and that he’s never not there. It also helps me, when in the day, to try to find ways God is working through people, ourselves or other things.

I’ve learned a lot of things on this Youth Mission trip. And not just about God, about the people surrounding me, how to use a nail drill (or whatever it’s called) or about the work we’re doing and how it can actually make a difference in someone’s life, whether big or small.

Reflecting back on this experience, I’ve realized that I really do enjoy it, and I would do it again. And to those who haven’t done it yet:

No one’s forcing you to do a mission trip. I may not be able to 100% guarantee that it will be fun but I can 99.99% guarantee that it will be a great time to have fellowship with the youth, learn more about God and find more joy in that and make some great and special memories…

“Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up” -Galatians 6:9 NIV

-Sean from Waypoint Youth

Traveling the Eldercare Road

Written by Kevin Pearce

Are you in a season of caring for aging parents—or do you know that season is coming? Most of us expect to prepare for dating, marriage, raising children, and building a career. But few of us prepare for the day when the people who once cared for us begin depending on us for their care. As followers of Christ, we are called to honor our father and mother, and one of the most  significant ways we can do that is by walking with them through the uncertainties of aging— often without knowing what the next doctor's appointment or late-night phone call will bring. It is meaningful work, but it is also demanding and emotionally draining. Changing health, difficult conversations, and countless decisions can leave even the most prepared family feeling overwhelmed.  

When Helena's parents retired, they moved from Arkansas to Durham to be closer to us.  Looking back, that decision became one of God's earliest provisions towards preparing us for eldercare. Over the years, we accompanied them to medical appointments, learned their healthcare routines, helped with finances, and built relationships with their doctors. Helena also began researching retirement communities. That early planning became invaluable. If we could encourage families with one practical lesson, it would be this: begin planning before you think you need to. When a health crisis comes, having already explored your options brings clarity during an otherwise confusing season.  

During a routine doctor's appointment in 2014, my 87-year-old father-in-law C.C. was diagnosed with leukemia. Although I was a cancer survivor and understood much of the medical terminology, the diagnosis still was a lot for us to take in. Almost overnight, our world filled with questions. Should he pursue treatment or focus on comfort? Should C.C. and his wife Kathy remain at home? How should we navigate the emotional, financial, and spiritual implications?  One of the surprises of caregiving was that every important decision created several more questions that needed to be answered.  

After many conversations and much prayer, we decided together that quality of life mattered more than extending life at any cost. Initially, the thought of entering C.C. into first palliative and then hospice care felt frightening, almost like giving up. But we discovered that these wonderful people cared deeply for both patients and their families. God gently taught us that trusting Him sometimes meant accepting care rather than trying to control every outcome.  

The months that followed were some of the hardest of our lives. Medical staff, family, friends, and our church all became part of the journey. When the time came, we also had to gently convince Kathy to let us hire professional caregivers because she still wanted to care for her husband herself, even though it had become more than she could physically manage. On multiple occasions, a caregiver would cancel at the last minute, and either Helena or I would spend the night with my in-laws to help my father-in-law when he needed to use the bathroom. It was a tender reminder that caregiving isn't just physically exhausting—it is emotionally exhausting as well. No spouse or caregiver is meant to carry this burden alone. We need people who will pray with us, bring a meal, sit through a doctor's appointment, offer practical advice, or simply listen without trying to fix everything.  

Eventually, my father-in-law moved into a skilled-nursing facility, where he died peacefully about a week later. Looking back, I remember surprisingly little about the paperwork, medications, and scheduling that once consumed our attention. Instead, I remember conversations around a meal, visits with our daughters, friends who travelled to visit, and the simple affection between my in-laws. Those ordinary moments became sacred. God used them to teach us what honoring our parents truly looks like.  

Our experience reminded us that eldercare is not simply a family responsibility; it is an opportunity for the church to embody Christ's love. Those who have already walked this road have wisdom worth sharing, and those just beginning should never feel they must reinvent the wheel. By telling our stories, we help prepare one another for seasons we cannot predict.  

If you are caring for aging parents today, I hope you hear this: you are not alone. Christ walks with you, and His people walk with you as well. And if this is not your season yet, look around.  Someone in our church almost certainly carries this burden. Your prayers, encouragement, presence, and practical help may become God's answer to their prayers. Life is hard, but God continues to redeem it through His people. As caregivers, we must remain spiritually and emotionally recharged so that we can continue faithfully loving and honoring the parents He has entrusted to us.

On the bookshelf: Summer Reading 2026

Written by Erika Castiglione

It’s that time of year when I like to remind everyone that we have a Waypoint “library”

(two bookcases located to the left of the back entrance, between the prayer room and

the restrooms). We are always adding to our collection that ranges from practical

theology to poetry, and we encourage you to make use of this resource. Here are a few

books you might want to check out as you consider what to read the last few weeks of

summer:

The Language of Rivers and Stars: How Nature Speaks of the Glories of God by

Seth Lewis

Psalm 19 tells us that, “the heavens proclaim the glory of God…day after they pour forth

speech, night after night they reveal knowledge.” With this premise in mind, Lewis

combines observations about the complexity of nature with truths from the Bible as he

walks the reader through interpreting the beauty and wonder of the world around us.

Hope Heals: A True Story of Overwhelming Loss and Overcoming Love by

Katherine and Jay Wolf

Katherine and Jay Wolf seemed like they had the perfect life, but all of that changed

when Katherine experienced a massive stroke that left her severely disabled. Through

God’s faithfulness to them, and their growing faithfulness in God, they were able to

navigate recovery and start a ministry that exists “to create spaces of belonging and

belovedness for families affected by disabilities to experience the hope of Christ within

inter-ability communities.”

What Grows in Weary Lands: On Christian Resilience by Tish Harrison Warren

Warren draws from ancient stories and practices from the “desert mothers and fathers”

as she tells what she learned in her own season of spiritual dryness and exhaustion.

She aims to offer hope to those who are experiencing burnout and disillusion, guiding

us to lives of “resilience, renewal, and flourishing.”

Theo of Golden by Allen Levi

I’ve mentioned this one before, but if you’re looking for a novel that is both engaging

and uplifting, I recommend this story of a stranger who transforms a community with his

creative acts of generosity.

Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis

This book came up several times in Waypoint’s recent podcast, “Why Study Theology?”

If you haven’t read this Christian classic on apologetics, it might be time to give it a try.