Written by a student: “NYC mission trip story: While we were picking up trash in a Manhattan neighborhood, Chris saw a woman smoking a cigarette on the steps of a hotel across the street. We decided to walk across the street and asked her how her day was going. She almost immediately started crying as she told us about her daughter’s sickness. She told us that her daughter has had an issue with swallowing food and drink since she was 15 years old; She is now 18. She was scheduled to have surgery on July 21st at 6:15 AM in Connecticut. They had just flown in from Denmark and were headed to be with her daughter. We talked to her and her husband about her children and her country. She told us that friends, family, and even strangers gave them $50,000 for the surgery and expenses. She asked if her husband could record Ellie praying for them. As Ellie prayed, you could see tears streaming down her face. She told us that this was such good timing. She’s been down and discouraged and maybe a little distant from God recently. You could tell she just couldn’t understand why God allowed these things to happen, but she told us that we helped her realize that God is always good, always loving, and always has a plan. Especially when it doesn’t feel like it.”