Browning, Day 5, De La Salle, March 13, 2026

This week serving at De La Salle was a reminder of something I often forget. Too often, as I move further into adult life, I am confronted with the seriousness, suffering, and weight of life. Especially in college, I can get so caught up in studying and responsibilities that I end up setting aside my faith, my relationships, and even my own heart. Everything began to feel like work, pressure, and expectations.

But being here at the school and working with these students reminded me of the joy that can still be found in life. Even in the midst of suffering, seriousness, and hardship—things that many of these students have endured far more than I ever will—there was still so much joy present. These students still made time to laugh, joke around, play games, and simply enjoy each other’s company.

At first, all of the playfulness confused me. After all, we were in a school—they were supposed to be learning, and the teachers didn’t often correct the behavior unless it truly became distracting or prevented them from completing their work. But after sitting with this experience and praying in gratitude for the joy that suddenly surrounded me, I began to realize something.

Even in the seriousness of life, in our suffering and in the things that weigh us down, the Lord provides countless opportunities for joy in the simplest moments. The problem is not that joy isn’t there—it’s that we often lose the childlike heart required to receive it. The stress and pressure of adult life slowly pull us away from that openness.

Once I realized this, I began to embrace that childlike joy and wonder. I played volleyball with some girls at recess, joked around in class when it was appropriate, and simply allowed myself to be fully present and authentic with the students. In doing so, I found that I began receiving far more joy than I expected.

One of the greatest sources of joy this week was the group of Carroll students I encountered on this trip. We were a random assortment of completely different “characters”—people I never would have imagined spending so much unstructured time with. Yet together we shared so many hilarious, faithful, honest, and vulnerable moments. My heart began to feel lighter, filled with joy and hope. I realized that I hadn’t laughed that much in a long time.

This trip reminded me of something simple but profound: the Lord calls us to have childlike hearts. Life is not meant to be lived under constant pressure and seriousness. Even in the midst of responsibilities, struggles, and suffering, God places moments of joy all around us.

This experience will remain a constant reminder to me of the child still present in my own heart. It reminded me that joy is not something reserved for the past—it is something we are all meant to live in, even now. If we are willing to slow down, open our hearts, and receive life with childlike wonder, we will find that the joy God offers has been there all along.

Brooke Vandehey, Carroll Alumni, FOCUS Missionary

When I first signed up for this trip, I didn’t have many expectations. I knew that we would be serving in a school with children between 4th through 7th grade, but I didn’t really know what a day in the classroom would look like. Like many service trips I have gone on before, I entered with the quiet assumption that I would be a great help to the community we were serving. Yet, as is often the case, I left realizing something different: I was the one who had been served. Our group intentionally chose to spend our spring break serving at a school in an impoverished community in Montana, hoping to give our time and energy to support the students and teachers there. But once we entered the classrooms and began working with the students, it quickly became clear that these children had just as much—if not more—to offer us. While we helped with schoolwork and spent time supporting them throughout the day, their joy, curiosity, honesty, and openness began to teach us something in return. Through them, I started to see more clearly what Jesus meant when He called us to become like children. To be childlike is to live with a certain freedom—to be ourselves, to receive each moment as a gift, and to genuinely enjoy the people God has placed in our lives. These students embodied that freedom in a beautiful way.

One of the greatest lessons I received during the week was learning to surrender. I quickly realized that my ability to teach these students was limited, and I found myself humbled at times when things did not go the way I expected. Yet as the week continued, I began to notice something important: the more I stepped back and let go of my need to control every moment, the more the Lord began to work. I didn’t have to be the perfect teacher or have all the right answers. I simply had to be present and entrust the rest to Him. In that surrender, I experienced a new kind of freedom. When I allowed myself to laugh with the students, learn alongside them, and simply meet them where they were, the Lord worked in ways I could never have orchestrated myself. What began as an opportunity to serve became an invitation to trust God more deeply and rediscover the beauty of living with a childlike heart. I am incredibly grateful for the opportunity to have been part of this trip, and especially grateful for the group I was able to share it with. Please continue to keep De LaSalle School and the Blackfeet community in your prayers. I will certainly be praying for them, and I ask that you join me in asking the Lord to continue blessing the students, teachers, and families who welcomed us so generously.

Noah Hitchcock, FOCUS Missionary