Guyana

Intervarsity has been going to Guyana South America for at least five years. Hearing God’s call to reach out to this country, we go and serve the community by helping construct buildings for churches, and participating in various church events. Two other main parts of the trip is the AIDS ministry and the deaf ministry. God has been working through these trips every year and we look forward to seeing what He’ll do next.

NYCUP

The New York City Urban Project, or NYCUP, is an ongoing project where students from all over the US come to experience God in the city and be a part of His work there. The Spring Break Plunge is when students come to work and live in the South Bronx for one week. Students are exposed to the realities of the inner-city, given opportunities to serve at local non-profit and church run organizations, and given a brief overview about what God has to say on issues of poverty and justice. For more information contact Rachel Unkle at rmu2070@rit.edu or by phone at (814) 460-3814, or visit the NYCUP website.

Habitat for Humanity

We get to work with this non-profit organization building houses for those in need. Recently, the team has gone to the Niagra Falls area where they have not only been able to construct homes, but build relationships with people there. This trip will also be happening again this year.

New Orleans

Hurricane Katrina was a full display of the awesome power of nature. In a way, disaster shows people what they value, as well as what they should value. The true damage felt by the people of New Orleans goes beyond the destroyed houses and buildings. The pain in their hearts was injected by death; through losing wedding bands, or photos of loved ones. The very evidence, of the memories from their life was destroyed.

The volunteers in New Orleans are continually working to restore that community. There are several host organizations, but many of us worked with Samaritan’s Purse. We worked to “gut” the houses so that they could be rebuilt. It would take each group about 2 days to remove all of the furniture, clothes, drywall, ceilings, etc. from the house, until all that remained was the structure. Then all surfaces were sprayed with a chemical to kill and inhibit the growth of mold. The owner could then begin to seek permission to rebuild their home.

As Christians, it is our job to love. Most of us that volunteered went in the hope that we might rebuild more than homes. The Bible says that people will know that we are Christians by our love (John 13:35). We knew that by going to them, serving them, and getting dirty and tired to help them, we would show them a visible love. As we worked to restore their home, we knew that God was beginning to restore them, using love to knead the pain out of their hearts.

Our prayers are that they would question why we came; question our joy as we were covered in sludge, cleaning their home; question our devotion to serve a complete stranger. The real reason we were there is that we know what they truly need. We know that if they question, and look for the answers, they will arrive at God. Then they will know that the love we gave is merely a glimpse of the depth of love that we have been shown by Christ, our Lord.