These testimonies come from teenagers and young adults whose lives have been changed by AIM. Names and ideas have been used with permission by the author, though words may have been changed for coherency.
I look back on the summer of 1994 as a time of tremendous spiritual growth. I was 15 years old and was part of the England/Northern Ireland team at AIM. This was my first mission project with AIM and my first missions experience. I was scared and very homesick. I can remember, early in the week of "boot camp", that having thirty minutes to spend in prayer and quiet time with God every morning seemed to stretch out and leave me with nothing to say after five minutes. But, I also remember that by the end of the week, those thirty minutes were not enough. I met God personally and in a very real way through my experience at AIM, and I was challenged to face Him on my own, not through my parents or my church. Because I knew no one on my team, I was forced to bring my concerns and my fears to God, and I watched as He provided for my needs and strengthened me. Not only did I gain a new understanding of my Lord, I also witnessed his Word lived out in a way I hadn't experienced before. Ephesians 4:29 is a verse I hope I never forget and it is a verse that I witnessed and lived in for my three weeks at AIM. When our team focused on building each other up and only saying things that benefited those who listened, I understood why God inspired Paul to pen those lines to the Ephesian believers. Christians who choose to encourage rather than discourage create an atmosphere of love and support that allows us to see God's mighty hand working in our lives. I will always look back on that atmosphere and consider it a small window into the glories that we will experience in heaven. Our team accomplished much for God's kingdom in Wigam and Belfast, probably more than any of us realize, but one very real accomplishment was made in my own life. I was powerfully changed. After witnessing how good obedience to God really is, even if it will only be temporary and inconsistent here on this earth, there is no other way I want to live my life. Ephesians 4:29 is a good verse to have memorized and the goal of truly living that verse is one I carry with me still to this day, more than ten years later. I thank God for using AIM to open my eyes to the necessity of a personal commitment to Him, and also for giving me such a wonderful memory of how sweet it can be to truly live out His commands.
Samantha (Cote) Dill
Iowa City Church of Christ
"AIM changed my life. It forced me to go out of
all the comforts of home--running water, warm water, clean clothes, hot home
cooked food, showering daily, etc. It took away all of my securities from
my average American life and forced me to depend on God. It made me
realize how horribly we take advantage of our gifts. We as Americans are
never satisfied with what we have. We always want more, we always want the
best, nothing is ever good enough for us. We stress over the littlest
things, when there are people in this world who have never experienced half of
the luxuries we possess. AIM made me grateful for all the little things
that we take advantage of.
AIM also taught me another aspect of life that is so
important, yet simple: love. Never before have I felt as loved as I
did traveling with teams of people that I had just met. I learned what the
true meaning of Brotherly and Sisterly love is. That no matter what, you
love this person because Jesus loves them. To truly love Jesus is to truly
love His people. I loved seeing the expression on the children's faces in
N. Ireland when we told them they could keep the craft they made in VBS that
day. Or the joy that the Filipinos beamed just at the simplicity of
meeting a Christian from America.
Overall, my experience with AIM gave me a totally new world view.
I am a better person because of my AIM projects. Jesus is doing incredible
things all over this world, and it was awesome to get to be involved in just a
tiny part of His work."
-Alita Tombleson
I have been involved with AIM since 1995. Through
AIM I have met life long friends and my faith has been challenged continuously.
In 1995 I went to Jamaica, my theme was "Deal With It". Time
after time things never seemed to go as planned, the most memorable time was our
last day there. The buses seemed to have their own time schedule and they
never seemed to work with ours. One time we were waiting at the house we
stayed at for the bus to come and take us to the church. The bus ended up
being three hours late, we figured that by the time we got to the church the
kids for VBS would have given up on us. Boy, were we wrong, when we got
there these kids came running down a steep hill full of rocks, to greet us!!!!
I have never seen so many smiles and so much excitement, it was then that I
understood how much a difference we had made in these kids lives.
In 1996 I went to Australia, I have never seen God's creation in a better light.
Though our task seemed mundane God still made it be an exciting project.
That year we went door to door doing surveys about what people were looking for
in a church, music, family, and excitement was the key. The funniest part
was, that I think we got greeted by more dogs than people!!!! :)
In 1997 I went to Antigua, where we held VBS. The kids there
really got into it. In 1998 I went to the Philippines, and the theme that year
was "Why So Downcast All my Soul? Put Your Trust in God". Yes
that chorus ran through my head the entire project. It was one of my
toughest projects cause my team had trouble binding but through it all God was
still in control. The country itself was great, I have never seen a
country with so much love. In 1999 I volunteered, it was the first year I didn't
go on a project, yet I grew just the same. It was also awesome watching
everyone else change, especially kids I have know all my life.
The biggest lesson I have learned from AIM is the power of
prayer. God doesn't care what one ask for big or small he will answer it
but remember it will be in His time and His answer but not necessarily yours.
-Katie Nice
"To God be the glory." God is
totally awesome!! He knows exactly what we
need when we need. My involvement with AIM started back in 1993, I was 20
something. =) I came to Christ at the age of 12 and was a faithful
attender
at my church. I found church to be a safe haven, a place of
comfort. I
lived in a non-Christian home and it was my grandmother who as instrumental
in my introduction to Christ. Through the years I encountered numerous
battles and often wondered why I was in the mist of all these painful
struggles. Before I went to AIM, life came to a sudden halt and I came
crashing down-hard!
In July of 1993 I went on my first project- not trip! =) to
Mexico. I'll
never forget it as long as I live because God used that team and the AIM
staff to bring about a totally new and improved life. Sometimes during
boot
camp I wondered if I was in heaven or ... you, know that other place!=)
During that project I learned how to start building a relationship with
Christ, the importance of spending time in prayer and reading the Bible each
day!! I also learned what it meant to be a servant to others and what hard
work was all about. God took this broken down shell and began to transform
me into a more self-confident (many thanks to the Wall ) growing
Christian!!
My project was incredible, the team members and leaders were the cream of the
crop. We laughed together, cried together, prayed together, we moved a lot
of dirt together, faced opposition together and grew together! As the
result
of this project, I knew I needed more of AIM, so, I became a year long
intern. As it would be said: it was the best of times and it was the worst
of times!! during this year, I learned how important it was to lean on God
and totally trust Him in every situation. I had to opportunity to work
with
some of the greatest people ever!! To this day I praise God for them and
the
chance to serve along side them.
While was there, some major life changing events took place
in my life. Once
again, God being the all knowing God, had placed me in right place at the
right moment. He opened my eyes to see the reasons why I faced those past
struggles, It was to prepare me for even greater heartache, the loss of my
mother and sister. He wrapped His arms around me through His Word and
through His people. He allowed me to praise Him in ALL situations.
Many great, and not so great things have come and gone since
the time I left
AIM. I am here today to say that God is good-all the time.
He used AIM to
reach out and touch my life forever! many thank you's go out to God,
my
Mexico team and the AIM staff: Ken & Virginia E., Charlene N., Ronnie &
Amanda B., Char P., Dick & Lane Bruce, Susie S., Sue S., Kelly H., Gaylette
C., Robert C. and Richard & Carol A. God bless you all.
Melanie Bailey(Cope), summer '93-'95