Waiting for Someone to Come

Cindy never thought she’d find herself on a mission trip. But after prayer and planning, she decided to join a PEACE trip to Germany to serve with Saddleback Church Berlin. Cindy had heard that these trips were transformational, but she never expected that her life would be totally changed just by hearing one person’s story. 

Initially, Cindy felt like she'd never be able to travel abroad or go on a mission trip. She believed that she lacked the spiritual gift of evangelism and that she was simply unequipped to serve overseas. She also hates to fly. But she has seen God remove her anxiety and those other barriers.

Cindy, who lives in Long Beach, says she found Saddleback in a roundabout way. She had grown up going to church. Her dad, grandfather, and uncles were all pastors. But at 15 years old, Cindy experienced a wound she thought she’d never recover from. Her dad was experiencing his own faith crisis and ended up abandoning his family. Reeling, Cindy walked away from the church. In the years that followed, she allowed the busyness of work and life pull her further and further away.

Years later, pregnant with her first child, Cindy felt God calling her back. She sought out the Bible that had been given to her as a gift when she graduated from nursing school, and got down on her knees. And she decided to give church another try. While attending a new church, she met her soon-to-be husband, John. 

“My family had never stopped praying for me,” Cindy said. “God has been so faithful and loving toward me, every step of the way.” 

A few years later, Cindy drove to Laguna Woods to care for her mother. There, her mother said out of the blue, “I want to go to Rick Warren's church.” Cindy took her to Saddleback the next weekend. Though Cindy went for her mother that weekend, Cindy immediately knew that she had found a new church for herself too.

At Saddleback, Cindy began to get more involved in ministry: going through all the Classes, learning her SHAPE, volunteering, and eventually stepping up to go overseas on a PEACE trip. It was on the trip to Berlin that Cindy had the eye-opening experience that would shape the rest of her life.

In Berlin, Cindy had a conversation with a Saddleback member that she will never forget. The young man had shared with her that before finding church, he had never felt so alone and ready to give up on life. In the bustling city of Berlin, he was unhappy, unfulfilled, and felt worthless. He didn’t know anything about Christ. He’d never been to church. Everyone in his family was an atheist. He couldn’t imagine that there was anything left in life to live for.

But then, he reconnected with an old friend who suggested they check out a local church — Saddleback Berlin. What he found at Saddleback Berlin changed his life. He found a community, learned about his life purpose, and is now challenged to live his life to help others discover their purpose. 

Wrapping up his story for Cindy, his last words stood out to her, “I couldn't believe no one had ever told me about Jesus.”

“People are just waiting for someone to come and tell them about a hope that can save them.”This thought rang through her mind and stuck with her long after returning home.

Cindy, worried that she wouldn’t be able to contribute much on the PEACE trip, had all those fears and anxieties dismissed as God demonstrated to her that all it takes is someone who is willing to show up. 

“God showed me he equips the called,” Cindy said. “When I took that step toward being used by God, I became open to caring and living every day as an opportunity to reach people, by modeling what it means to be a Christian, by serving global communities or local communities — whatever the need.”

Learn more about living life on mission at saddleback.com/peace

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