Parts of the program are very good Parts of the program are very good, some others need a little polishing. My students and I enjoyed being able to mix them up in the their groups each day as to who was working together. The particular site we were on wasn't extremely organized and there were a few frustrations along the way. I'd spoken with other youth leaders prior who had had very good experiences other places, so might have been a rarity. Admin staff prior to the trip was excellent!

Count the Cost. It’s Still Worth It. The Lord used this time to point out areas of my life that needed to change. Being surrounded by imperfect but committed believers in a new environment is a bigger blessing than you can imagine. I hope that if you read this, that you choose to set aside time to break from the rush of American life. It’s worth it. I promise.

3 Months Belize Baby Every single thing was absolute fire. Literally everything was unbelievably incredible and I'd give anything to live it all over again for the very first time. I absolutely love my host families, I love my Belizian friends, I love my astounding IMMERSION team, I genuinely couldn't say anything bad about this experience. Was there days where I wanted to absolutely nothing, but sit in bed and cry, yes there was, was there times I just wished I could be comfortable like I'm comfortable in my house back home, of course, there were many a time I didn't wanna see or hear anyone or anything, but those experiences are not unique to IMMERSION, we literally feel those things in our 'normal' lives all the time, maybe on a less prominent level so we don't realize it, but that doesn't take away from the fact that it's literally so normal, so yes there'll be days you question your sanity for going on this trip, but every. single. day. you will love and you will cherish every single memory, character growth, relationship, etc. for the rest of your life, and don't you want that opportunity, so why not go for it and you might just have the best time of your literal life ever

Keep the main thing the main thing Overall immersion is a wonderful program and it truly does work. An experience is what you make it, if you are focused on all the negatives you will miss everything else. It’s important to remember that you are there to serve the Lord. It’s not about you it’s about Him. Keep the Main thing the Main thing and you will be blessed beyond your wildest dreams.

People Over Projects When we arrived at La Iglesia Familia, we were greeted by Diane and Ed, who gave us a great overview of what our week might be like. From the very first meeting with them, we knew that God was guiding us in our work for the week. Our group really wanted to be able to make connections within the community. We had been praying for this before and during our trip, and our prayers were answered ten-fold. We had so many opportunities to talk with, pray with, and learn from people in the community. Every day was a different experience and we really got to live out the "people over projects" approach of mission. This, to me, is so important and I'm glad we were able to take part in this mission experience.