Ever wondered what it would be like to go on a short term trip and whether it’s worth going?  We interviewed songwriter and worship leader  Luke Hodgin who came with us on a short term trip to South Asia last year, to find out how he’d found the trip and what he has taken away from it

What were one or two things that most impacted you?
I was most impacted by the beauty of the country. The landscape, the people, the food! It was such a beautiful place to visit. The heat was definitely a challenge, especially in the capital which is a really highly populated city, with unbelievable traffic, but it was such a great trip, it was worth putting up with the heat for sure! I think the thing that surprised me the most was the general openness to spirituality of all kinds. After being informed by the media and my own misconceptions I assumed that we would face some hostility, especially in places of worship or when it came to spiritual conversations, but it was the complete opposite. From people begging on the street to top Imams and Sheiks, when it came to conversations and experiences regarding Jesus they were open and willing to engage every time.

What did you learn about the role of short and long term mission?
This trip definitely opened my eyes to how big the world is and how in need of love it is. I watched the long term missionaries interact with locals in a way that we couldn’t as a short term team. This taught me a lot about building trust, learning language and customs, immersing oneself in a culture and committing to love and impact a community over years at a time. I also took note of how the long term team reacted to our team being there; we shared some special times together sharing stories of what we’d seen, praying and worshipping together and always eating together.  It seemed that some of our passion and wonder rubbed off on them too which is one of the benefits of short term visits.

Do you have any funny/crazy stories of your time there?
Well, the 11 hour flight home consisted of most of the team queueing for the toilet, slowly turning an off white colour, but I don’t think they found it very funny! For me, praying with people in 3 different places of worship and seeing people healed and encountering Jesus was amazing. Watching how Sheiks and Imams and even the police and translators reacted and celebrated healings, was mind blowing. Riding in the open top 4X4 with armed policeman was pretty fun too! 

Luke's new album is available on all platforms 
(Be The Light - Luke Hodgin)

Watch the documentary of 
Luke and the team’s trip to South Asia
https://bit.ly/2I7f4JU