At the age of six, Garrett Bailey understood that his sin separated him from a holy God and that he was in need of a Savior. After a conversation with his mom, he prayed and accepted Jesus as his Savior. From that moment, he pursued a life of following Jesus and got involved at the church where his family had attended since before he was born, East Cooper Baptist.

As a high schooler, Garrett began serving and being discipled through the local church. While in college, he wrestled with understanding where his identity was truly found. As someone who loved sports, Garrett felt a burden to choose which path he would follow, sports or Jesus. He called a mentor from high school who lovingly reminded him that his identity in Christ was not based upon his performance or anything he could do to earn salvation. He simply had to choose to follow Christ and rest upon grace alone. This reminder set the course for the remainder of his time in college, where he looked again to a local church and community to hold him accountable to following Jesus daily.

He was first exposed to global missions as a child as his parents took him along on family mission trips to Europe. Through a partnership with a local church in Hungary, they taught English classes and shared the gospel with kids of all ages. As he grew in his knowledge of who God is and the Great Commission, Garrett's desire to go overseas on another trip grew.

In October of 2022, Garrett joined an East Cooper team traveling to a state in northern India, where less than 0.1 percent of people have heard of Jesus. "I had a desire to go overseas, so I had been looking for an opportunity to go. I knew this trip was going to a place where there was hostility toward the gospel, but people are yearning for truth and in need of it." Over eight million people live in this area and ninety five percent of people worship idols through the Hindu religion.

Although Garrett had been on mission trips and experienced other cultures, he still had some concerns and nervousness about this trip to India. "I was comfortable with the idea of experiencing another culture, but I was hesitant about my own performance. What if I can't present the gospel in a way they understand? What if I stumble over my words? How will people perceive this message?" Knowing that this would be the first time many of these people would hear the good news of Jesus was an encouragement as he struggled with these hesitations before the trip. "I reminded myself that we are called to be faithful to speak the gospel and trust God to do the work in their lives."

The team spent three full days engaging with the locals and sharing the gospel in remote villages in the Himalayan mountains. Local Indian pastors and our global partners went out with the team to translate as they asked questions about their culture and lives. People throughout the villages welcomed the team into their homes, served chai, and shared about the many idols they worship in their homes and villages. This provided an opportunity for many spiritual conversations. Throughout this trip, the team was able to share with over 80 people, and most of them had either never even heard the name of Jesus or had never heard the full gospel. For Garrett, the opportunity to hear the gospel was as impactful as sharing aboutJesus himself. "I was reminded how sweet it is to hear the gospel proclaimed. I felt ministered to most days by hearing others on my team share the good news."

After the trip, Garrett returned to his workplace with a broadened perspective on who God is and how He calls His people to live day-to-day. He felt a refreshed urgency to share the gospel in his workplace and his relationships, and to consider how he can continue to participate in the Great Commission through praying, giving, and going. Right now, that looks like prayerfully and financially supporting partners on the field and being open-minded to whatever God calls Garrett to next. "Going on a short term trip is a wonderful way to see how big our God is. He is not only the God of our local church or our country; He is a God of all people groups and will make His name known among the nations. We have a mandate in the Great Commission to participate in that."

One of the initiatives East Cooper has over the next few years is to send 500 people on short term mission trips. There are many opportunities to participate in one of these trips to a place like India, where people desperately need the good news of Jesus.