Women’s Spring Break mission trip to New York sees God at work among ‘brokenness’

While many students spend their time going to the beach, going on vacations, or just catching up on rest, 10 women from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary and Texas Baptist College spent their Spring Break serving the Lord in New York City where they saw both human “brokenness” and God at work. Sponsored by the World Missions Center and working through SEND Relief, a partnership of the North American Mission Board and the International Mission Board, the women spent four full days serving alongside Graffiti 2 Baptist Church and its ministries in the South Bronx.

Ashley Allen, assistant professor of women’s ministries at Southwestern, led the group of six graduate-level students representing the seminary’s four graduate schools and three students from the undergraduate college on the mission trip. “I have been on and led several mission trips, but I think the way this was planned is the best,” said Allen. “We intentionally asked what we could do to help the church in their normal ministries.”

A team of 10 women from Southwestern Seminary and Texas Baptist College worked alongside Graffiti 2 Baptist Church in the South Bronx.

The group worked in the neighborhood of Mott Haven. Alongside the pastor, Andrew Mann, the group was able to serve the church in specific ways to meet their needs, not to simply lead a special project. “I have known Andrew since 2011,” said Allen. “It is amazing to see how the church has grown in their community over the last 12 years.”

The team of women was split up among different areas to help the church reach its community as a whole. Daily the students were either handing out coffee to people in the community to use as an evangelism and outreach tool, going to a local school to help do any tasks they needed help with, or would work with the church’s stop-and-care ministry which seeks to help the homeless in their community have various things needed for their everyday life.

The entire team would come together to assist with the church’s after-school program for elementary through high school students. “It was a joy to help with the kids,” said Cristina Aguilera, a Doctor of Education student who is originally from Columbia. “This place is a refuge for some of the children and teenagers where they are loved, encouraged and they learn about the Lord and the Gospel.”

Graffiti 2 Baptist Church is one of the Graffiti network of churches, with the original church, East Seventh Street Baptist Church, on the Lower East Side of Manhattan.

Though the mission trip showed how God was moving in the city of New York, there were still some things that were tough to experience for the group. “The women’s trip to New York City was life-changing for me,” said Catherine Chan, a Master of Divinity student who is from Malaysia. “For the first time, I was up close with people suffering from drug addictions. All my life, I have lived in a safe neighborhood, and I have never seen so much brokenness.”

Through the stop-and-care ministry, the team was able to spend specific time sharing the Gospel and providing for the physical needs of the homeless people in Mott Haven. “I walked around this neighborhood with our team and talked with several homeless people,” said Hannah* a Master of Music student from East Asia. “We initiated conversations with them, connected them to the church, distributed hot coffee and food kits to them, and shared the Gospel with them.”

“This was a heartbreaking experience,” said Aguilera when talking about the stop-and-care ministry. “We encountered many people using drugs or showing symptoms of withdrawal.” Aguilera said Mann was instrumental in “modeling for us how to approach and engage in conversations” with those who are struggling in this way. “The idea is to foster opportunities to spend more time with them and be able to eventually share the Gospel,” she added.

While some can be distracted by the depictions of New York City from various media outlets and movies, one Master of Theology student from Southeast Asia, Alexandra*, said she saw the “darker picture” of the city. “Before I went on this trip, I never thought New York City had this darkness,” said Alexandra. “I always thought that New York was this place where everyone had a beautiful life.”

After seeing this city, Alexandra said she knows that “there are many souls” who need “the Gospel” and “who need to be shown the love of Christ.”

“I pray that God [will] send light to those people who are in darkness,” said Alexandra. “And if God wills it, I would love to be the one to show that light.”

Graffiti 2 seeks to reach its community, the Mott Haven neighborhood in The Bronx, by providing free coffee and pastries in an effort to care for the people and foster relationships.

One aspect of the trip that all team members participated in was the after-school program hosted by the church. “There is an after-school program where students come to the church to be tutored and discipled,” said Chan. “Some of these students are very bright but most of them have never been out of the Bronx.”

Chan recalled being shocked that some students “don’t know about the famous tourist sites like the Brooklyn Bridge or Statue of Liberty.” She even said that one student’s career aspirations post-high school were to work at a fast-food restaurant and this made her feel “very sad to hear it” for that child, but, “nevertheless, God is at work in this place.”

On Thursday evening, the group was able to participate in and help the church put on their Thursday night community dinner. At this dinner, the church invites people from the community to enjoy a warm meal together in fellowship. Alexandra recalled feeling immense “joy” when she saw a particular individual come to the dinner.

“While working with the stop-and-care ministry, we met Charles*,” said Alexandra. “He was about 35 years old and indulging in a drug problem and living in a shelter.” The group “met him and took him out to lunch” to continue to minister to him. He was “surprised that someone would do something like this” because in that city, “everyone only cares about themselves.”

The church hosts two after school programs that provide homework help, Bible study and discipleship, and fun times for the students.

After sharing a meal with him, the group invited him to the Thursday night meal. “I was waiting for Charles to show up,” said Alexandra, but he was not there. The meal continued for about an hour and a half when she “saw him standing in the door” and her eyes “were tear-filled with joy.”

“I spoke with him during the meal and asked if he would be willing to come back to Graffiti,” said Alexandra. “He said he would ‘happily’ come back to the church. That is how God worked in his life and I think this is the beginning of his new life in Christ.”

While the group experienced a “different ministry context than normal,” according to Allen, this trip served as a “reminder that everyone in the community is an image bearer of God.” The group saw “a lot of brokenness” and realized that the “church’s job is tough,” but they did see God work in great ways.

*Names changed for security reasons and to protect future mission work.