Impact

The American Heritage Dictionary defines impact as “the effect or impression of one thing on another.” Chelsea Heckathorn of Plano Texas was impacted by a mission trip to Zambia this summer. She is no stranger to world missions. Chelsea and a group of teens went to Zambia with Global Expeditions part of Teen Mania Ministries for a month in June.

Chelsea has been to Romania and Mexico with her Willow Bend Church youth group. The mission oriented environment of her church has impacted her. And she in turn wants to impact others.

The trip this summer consisted of two weeks of VBS (vacation Bible school) in Zambia. The first week she stayed in the secluded village of Chibebe where the teens roughed it. They slept in tents under primitive conditions. During their stay they ate simple foods like "mealypop," which is something like grits and peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.

The second week of vacation Bible school was in Livingstone, a small city-type setting. It consisted of daily singing, lessons from a Bible story that the children acted out. The children were then asked questions. Next come craft time followed by lunch and the activities were repeated.

Chelsea was impacted by the singing. She says, “Some of the most amazing worship comes from the country of Zambia. They are all very passionate about singing.”

The conditions never dampened Chelsea’s enthusiasm for what she was doing. She quickly bonded with the kids, the other teens, her interpreter and the other people she met. In her own words:

“It was definitely a life-changing experience. There's just something about being surrounded by incredible Christians who love the Lord and are on a mission to tell the world [about Jesus] that really causes amazing bonds to be formed. I met some awesome people from all over the country”

Would Chelsea do it again? Yes, “I just can't afford to have an ordinary life in the States while there's a world in need of a Savior.”

Chelsea plans to attend an international nursing school in Spain with the hopes of returning to the mission field one day.

How can you get involved with Teen Mania Ministries?

· Visit their website at Teen Mania Ministries
· Donate to Teen Mania Ministries through their website.
· Support a child from Zambia. The children Chelsea met in Zambia all need sponsors. It cost $43.00 dollars a month, and it provides education, health care, and food for the orphan. If you are interested email me at goodnewsnow@goodnewsnow.com and I will have Chelsea contact you. She has seven sponsorship cards.
· Go. Contact Global Expeditions through the Teen Mania Ministries website.

Posted by Ruth Eshbaugh. Ruth is the webmaster for Good News Now. She writes about Ministries for Lifted Magazine.