I’m Diana McGeough, a rising senior at George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia where I was born & raised. I first attended Daybreak on a short-term mission trip in 2008, and since then I have regularly volunteered through Saturday Outreach.

Even though I was involved at Daybreak, I was hesitant to apply for the summer internship after a mission trip to Haiti. After that experience, I thought it would be hard to fully love and serve Lincoln Heights. I knew I would be faced with the complete opposite of what I had in Haiti; hardened hearts and resistance towards my teaching. After praying about it, I felt like God could use me to bring Christ glory at Daybreak so I applied and accepted the internship.

Throughout the first few weeks of summer camp, my reservations were confirmed-I encountered much resistance and hardened hearts. As a teacher of 5 six-year old boys, I was met with negative reactions that were often discouraging. I heard comments like, “I hate Daybreak” or “I hate teachers they are so bossy”. I’ve learned that all the negative reactions I received from the children are because of the devil’s stronghold in their community. However, I have come to realize the broken world we live in has taught them to put up fronts and caused them to act out. When times got difficult and my patience was running low, I stopped and remembered why I was interning, for Christ’s glory. He was always faithful, providing strength and peace in the midst of chaos.

God was faithful and gave me the strength to tear down the walls of one boy in my class and allowed me to build a relationship with him. After talking with him about his behavior, I found he was trying to be expelled from Daybreak. I was shocked that this whole time he was trying to act tough and be disobedient so that he could play with his kitten at home! This shows that underneath the tough exteriors of the children, they are really innocent and loving.

As God continued to give me strength to dig past the walls of the children, I saw Christ transform them in little ways. There was one boy who was being raised by a Muslim mother. I saw his transformation as he began talking about “Cheesus” as he called Jesus in conversations and drew pictures of bible stories.

One of the most encouraging moments at Daybreak occurred after a child in my class randomly ran out of the room in disobedience. I was frustrated by his behavior but God humbled me to take that time to share the gospel and offer him a chance to ask Christ into his heart. He agreed and after praying with him, I began to see the change in him. He was always one of the children eager to pray the blessing before lunch. Instead of praying “God is good, God is great… let us thank him for this food” like his peers he would talk to God, he would tell Jesus he loved him and thanked him for the various things that occurred throughout the day. I saw his behavior transform, as he became more servant-like and less like the boy I initially knew.

After spending these past few weeks at Daybreak, I have no doubt that God is present and working in the lives of the boys I initially knew. I saw phenomenal change in the hearts of the boys that at first seemed resistant to God’s teaching. This experience has humbled and shown me to walk in God’s strength and patience alone. I am so grateful for the opportunities where he spoke truth into the children’s lives through me. Please pray for the first grade boys at Daybreak that God will continue a work in their hearts and in Lincoln Heights! Please consider getting involved with Daybreak if you are not already and investing time in the lives of these children. It is through these relationships that God works to tear down the walls in the children’s lives.