Alex Bloss is a graduate of IM’s Emerging Leaders program. Hear her story as she shares her heart behind Miles for Mission.

Miles for Mission was inspired by my time on mission trips with International Ministries. The idea came to me after I returned from the Philippines. Going into the trip, I knew that I would be spending time with people rather than completing projects. As a doer, the thought of just being unsettled me. But I figured I was flying halfway around the world, so there was likely a greater plan behind the trip than I knew.

A day after my arrival, the global servants I was there to work with dropped me off in a poor suburb of Metro Manila. My host family spoke very little English, and I knew no Tagalog. The roads were littered with trash, rubble, and excrement. Electrical wires were a tangled mess hanging above us. Everywhere we walked, people stared; many had never seen a white person in real life. Needless to say, everything made me uncomfortable.

A few days later, after church, a woman invited me and my companions to see her home. We followed her through the rubble-strewn streets, across a highway, and through a hole in the sheet metal wall. In the blistering heat, we walked through what resembled the remnants of a jungle: a few trees scattered here and there, with trash coating the trail we walked. As we turned the corner, her home came into view. The structure had about three rooms, with a single light bulb hanging in the hallway between them. She explained that they had to run a motorcycle to power that bulb. Her children were running around the yard in varying degrees of dress, poking at the various animals in cages spread around.

She explained that the government required them to move because their home was situated on a floodplain. As we returned to my host’s house for lunch, I was overwhelmed with emotion. I wanted to help them, but what could I do? I didn’t have any money, resources, or connections. I found a place to sit and cried into my hands. I called out to Jesus, and I heard Him speak to my soul. It was as if peace had descended. I knew that even though there was nothing I could do, Jesus was there for them. He was caring for them, providing for them, and loving them.

For that woman and her family, it wasn’t anything I did that mattered to them. It mattered that I was present, getting to see what her life is like. How many of us struggle to see the lives of those around us? Where are we falling short in loving others because we don’t invest time in their lives? My hope is that Miles for Mission will provide us the opportunity to walk alongside one another, meet each other where we are, and grow together as a community in Christ.

Miles for Mission is the tangible expression of serving in God’s mission and walking alongside communities worldwide. Will you walk with us? Register today.