Two weeks ago, my family and I had the opportunity to travel with friends down to Mexico to serve at a local orphanage. What started years ago as a meaningful trip has slowly become something even more significant for us. It is no longer just a tradition on the calendar. It feels like a marker in our year, something that shapes us and gives us perspective.
There is always adventure built into the week. We enjoy the scenery, the long drives, the conversations, and watching our kids make memories with their friends.
But what stays with me the most is not the travel or even the projects. It is what happens in our hearts when we step outside of our normal routines.
There is something powerful about leaving the comfort of what is familiar. When we move beyond the bubble we live in most of the year, God often uses that space to stretch us. He reminds us that life is bigger than our schedules, our homes, and the pressures that usually fill our days.
Over the years, I have been blessed to travel to more than 30 countries. Those experiences have opened my eyes to how much of the world lives without many of the comforts I take for granted. And yet, I have consistently seen deep joy. Joy in faith. Joy in family. Joy in community. That perspective has shaped me, and I have always wanted my girls to experience at least a glimpse of it.
One of my favorite moments from this trip was simply watching my daughters play with kids who do not look like them and do not speak the same language. None of that seemed to matter. The room was filled with laughter, games, and smiles. It was a simple reminder that connection does not require perfect communication.
We also had the opportunity to walk through parts of the community and meet families whose home foundations we helped pour. Standing on a cement slab that will soon support a home changes the way you think. It stops being about a task to complete and becomes about people and their future.
Each time I go, I find myself taking inventory. I am grateful for our home, for the church I get to serve, and for the community we live in. But beyond those visible blessings, I was given stability growing up. I had a family that loved me, parents who provided for me, and a home where I did not fear where I would sleep or what I would eat. Those may seem like basic things, but they are foundational. Without them, my perspective on life could have been very different.
Trips like this do not create guilt in me. They create gratitude. They remind me how much God has provided, protected, and positioned me over the years. And gratitude should lead somewhere. The book of James reminds us that faith without action is dead. If we recognize how much we have been given, it should move us toward generosity, service, and trust.
So I have been asking myself a few simple questions. Where have I grown too comfortable? In what areas have I quietly started to feel entitled? Is there a step God might be inviting me to take that would stretch my faith?
Sometimes when our gratitude feels low, it is not because God has stopped working. It may simply be that we need to see from a different angle.
A change in location often brings a change in perspective. And sometimes, a change in perspective is exactly what our hearts need.
Wherever you find yourself right now, the Lord is with you. He is working in ways you can see and in ways you cannot. If it feels hard to recognize, maybe what you need most is a fresh perspective.