They packed lunches in a hotel hallway. They planted radishes and spread mulch at a community garden. They sorted clothes for women experiencing homelessness. And by the end of it, the kids had made best friends and the adults had worshipped together under the same roof.

That’s a Resurrection family mission trip.

This year, a group of families traveled to Omaha for two days of serving alongside local organizations including The Big Garden and Open Door Mission. The work was hands-on and unglamorous in the best way — 500 sack lunches packed and delivered, garden beds prepped for spring, clothing sorted so women in need could shop with dignity.

But the moments that stayed with people weren’t always the serving itself.

One girl admitted that eating lunch and just hanging out with people at Open Door Mission pushed her outside her comfort zone. “It was a little more out of my comfort zone,” she said, “but it was still good.” Another said her favorite part of sorting clothes was simply this: “It gave people clothes. It made it easier for them to shop.”

A dad said the highlight of his trip was evening worship — singing and praying together as a group.

And the youngest voice on the trip, when asked what her favorite part was, didn’t hesitate: “Everything!”

That’s what happens when families step out of their routines and into someone else’s reality. The work matters. But so does the worship, the taco dinner, the late-night games, and the friendships that form when kids are thrown together with a common purpose.

Mission trips change the people who go. That’s not a side effect — it’s the point.

Interested in joining a future family serve trip? Visit our Local Missions page to learn more.