Mission: Upward basketball camp

God is already there. That’s the funny thing about a mission trip. We sometimes believe we are going to bring God and the good news to some remote area where he isn’t already. After all, if it’s in need of a mission trip, it must be in pretty bad shape.

We began our trip at 4 AM on a Saturday morning from Ocala, Florida. A short drive to Orlando and a flight to Toronto went by quickly and uneventfully. After we landed at the International Airport in Toronto, we only had to drive about thirty minutes to reach the location where our Upward Basketball Camp was to be located.Hardly the lower developed, underprivileged area I had imagined. As far as I could tell, God was there presently, and had been there for quite some time. I kept asking myself: Is there no other place in more need than here? After all, this is Toronto, the financial capital of Canada. Do the Canadians really need missionaries?

Monday morning, as the children began to arrive, I didn’t see the poor, underprivileged children I had expected. They didn’t appear to be so far on the other side of the spiritual spectrum that I should be afraid of them either. They were just your average, run-of-the-mill children, and I was there to teach basketball, and more importantly, share Christ. And that is exactly what we did.

Monday and Tuesday showed little signs of life when it came to devotional time. By Wednesday for some reason, the kids began to lose the eye rolling and long sighs and started to show a little interest. By Friday, we had changed people’s lives. Funny thing is...it was fun. The children and coaches alike had a blast. I couldn’t help but wonder: “Should we be having this much fun?”

I don’t know how many children were saved that week. However, I do know that Friday when the camp ended, I was so aware of God’s presence in all of our lives my heart ached. My idea of a mission trip may not have been to a city like Toronto, but it certainly was God’s.

We, by the Grace of God, did work for The Church.  Neither the building, nor the people associated with that building, but for all Christ followers around the world. The Kingdom. And when I put it in that perspective, geographical location doesn’t seem to matter. All that matters is we were able to guide God’s treasures toward the person He made us all to be.

Ben Adams