Author: Erin Smith

Erin Smith serves as the Girls Minister at Johnson Ferry Baptist Church in Marietta, GA. She holds a degree in Adolescent Development from the University of Alabama and an M.Div in Christian Studies from Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary. Erin has worked with students in a variety of ways since 2011. She is passionate about students seeing and delighting in the big, beautiful story of the Bible and encouraging students to consider how they can live sent in their neighborhoods and around the world. Erin and her husband Bryan are happiest when hiking, reading good books, playing board games with friends and family, and traveling to national parks.

Every Student

After the Trip Is Over: Making Short-Term Mission Trips Better
ByErin Smith September 6, 2023December 18, 2024

We sat on the steps of our lodging in Guatemala cutting fresh pieces of mango to devour in between playing games of soccer on the nearby field. My friends and I had just experienced a week of ministering in orphanages and helping a local church serve their neighborhood in Guatemala City. I was a senior in high school on my first overseas mission trip, and I had the thought, “This might be as close to heaven as I’ll ever get on earth.”

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