Christ Is Better Than Comfort

Is it better to be challenged to sacrifice than to remain spiritually unchanged? This past summer, five Judah students — Leyla Bugday, Kelsi Drollinger, Josiah McCullough, Carson Nichols, and Ivey Webb — learned the answer to that question. We went with our youth group from Meadowbrook Community Church to Majayjay (pronounced ma-hai-hai) in the Philippines, southeast of the capital, Manila. We went to serve Ver and Linda Jacinto and their children’s home and Bible college. According to trip leader, Adam Drollinger, everyone grew because of “the ministry we were able to do, the blessing we were able to be, and the blessing that the people were to us.”

This trip was life-changing. We were taught to have a different perspective on life than what we are used to and to see what we take for granted, like being on our phones all the time and being isolated from people and not engaging with our own community. Meanwhile, the people in Majayjay had a bond that showed love and a desire to be together. Senior Ivey Webb said she grew through “helping the community and having a new perspective on life after seeing things that were a lot different than the American life I’m used to. Seeing how people live and the things they’re used to was hard for us to adjust to. It opened my eyes on how different things were.” 

For example, sophomore Josiah McCullough said, “There’s a lot of work and no air conditioning. You get to see what it’s like in another country, and you get to minister up close in another culture.” Keep in mind we traveled in June, and the weather in Majayjay in June is hot, humid, and very rainy. Despite the heat and humidity, Mr. Drollinger said that the group “carried about a thousand cinder blocks from the street level up the mountain to the construction area where we were working on the children’s home.” That’s just what you do when you live in Majayjay.

But didn’t Jesus do the same? Jesus served and brought love to others. Peter said, “He went around doing good” (Acts 10:38). Jesus taught that “it is more blessed to give than to receive” (Acts 20:35). That isn’t a greeting card slogan; it is the teaching of Christ Himself. Christ is better than our comfort, though His comfort will meet us along the way. 

On this trip, we learned to rely on God as our comfort rather than relying on comfort as our comfort. As Paul said in 2 Corinthians 1:3–4, God is “the God of all comfort who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God.” Overall, we found that it was better to give and sacrifice than to remain unchallenged and unchanged.

The first night we were there, we met the kids and got to know them. Throughout the rest of the week, we taught music and crafts and lessons about Jesus. Meanwhile, the construction team built a new classroom for the children’s home for their schooling. Senior Kelsi Drollinger said, “It was really fun to get to know them and see them open up over the course of the week, because, at the beginning, they were super nervous. But by the end, they were running up to us, smiling, laughing, and hugging us.”

During the week, we also got the chance to lead a worship outreach for the community and an alumni gathering for the Bible college. Josiah McCullough talked about how “people just wanted to learn more.” We also got the chance to know people’s stories. During the outreach, many people wanted prayer. Kelsi Drollinger talked about how when she was praying with them, “they weren’t praying for a more comfortable living position, or a better job, or anything like that — just the things that really matter in the long run.” The people there taught us what truly matters and what is important in life.

Would we go back again? The answer all of us gave was yes. Mr. Drollinger talked about how he wanted to make sure this mission trip was something that we could build on “instead of just being a one-time, fun place to visit. I wanted to make sure that it was a place we could build relationships on if we went back.” The children at the kids’ home in the Philippines and the students at the Bible college really cared and showed love for us, even when they didn’t know us. Ivey Webb said, “All the people there that we stayed with were very kind and loving people; they almost felt like family.”  

Ver and Linda Jacinto, the couple who led the kids’ home and the Bible college, were really grateful for us, and we’re very grateful for them. Mr. Drollinger talked about “seeing God move in what they had planted, being able to see the Bible college, the children’s home, and all the people working alongside them from the Philippines.” Pastor Ver just recently passed away, but the legacy he left will live on. As the Bible says in Matthew 25:21, “Well done, good and faithful servant! . . . Enter into the joy of your master.”

Don’t let your fear and comfort stop you from giving and sacrificing to others. Yet, as Kelsi Drollinger said, “Don’t do it if you don’t have the heart for it. If you’re going on a mission trip because you want to experience a new place and go out of the country and have fun with your friends, then I think you need to stop and take account of all the reasons why you should go and why you’re wanting to.” 

We grew a lot from being in a new country that we weren’t familiar with. Mr. Drollinger said, “I saw you guys come out of your comfort zones. I saw you making friends with people that you did not know. Going up and having conversations with people is hard, especially when you’re in a place where you aren’t comfortable.” Being in a new place with a new culture is hard. But as Paul says in Romans 12:1, “Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God — this is your true and proper worship.”

—Leyla Bugday, class of ’29