When Megan Bice boarded a plane to Jaqué, Panama, in February, she expected to serve and support—but what she didn’t expect was the way the trip would radically reshape her understanding of God’s heart for the nations.
“I always knew the Lord had a heart for the nations,” said Bice, the Full-Time Guest Relations Coordinator at Crossings Ministries’ Jonathan Creek location. “But it wasn’t until I went that I truly began to feel it. The Lord desires for all people of all nations to know and treasure Him, and His method in reaching them is us.”
During the trip, Bice and her team partnered with local believers in Jaqué to share Bible stories and the gospel. They witnessed firsthand the fruit of faithful storytelling and relational ministry. One powerful moment etched into Bice’s memory happened on the beach, where she watched a son embrace his father—now his brother in Christ—just after baptism.
“It was a picture of redemption and mission colliding,” she said. “I knew then that Crossings needed to do everything we could to help mobilize indigenous believers in Colombia.”
Back home in Kentucky, the ripple effect of that trip was just beginning. Bice’s home church, Beaver Dam Baptist, reached out to hear more about what God was doing in Jaqué. She made a simple video to share with the congregation, never imagining how God would use it.
The video stirred hearts, particularly among the youth group. Inspired and eager to contribute, they organized a church-wide bake sale to raise funds for Crossings’ Missions Offering. Parents, students, and volunteers came together to prepare cookies, cakes, and treats—raising $1,401.50 in one Sunday.
But they didn’t stop there.
Even after arriving at Crossings Camp, the students continued to give sacrificially, adding another $250 to their offering on the final night of camp. To Bice, the generosity meant more than numbers.
“That number isn’t just a dollar amount,” she said. “It represents prayers answered, sacrifices made, and the Spirit moving in people’s hearts. It’s humbling to know the very people who poured into my own faith journey are now fueling the spread of the gospel through me.”
The unity of the church body in action was clear. God had not only sent Megan, He had also mobilized the saints around her—students, parents, and church leaders—to go with her in spirit and support.
Youth volunteer Trinity Addington credited Crossings with sparking the idea.
“We actually saw the idea to host a bake sale on a Crossings info sheet,” Addington said. “Our students and parents bought into it and went to work! Megan’s video about Panama really challenged our students and congregation to support the path to Panama. Our church stepped up big!”
The students themselves walked away changed, not only by what they gave but by what they learned.
“When the Lord calls us to go, we go,” said student Brantley Alvey.
Addy McMichael reflected, “The bake sale was special because it shows that something as simple as a cookie can make a big difference.”
And for Caroline McKown, the stakes became real: “When I found out that 174,076 people die daily without Christ, it opened my eyes to the urgency. I may not be able to go to Panama, but donating helps in a small way.”
For Megan Bice, the entire story—from Jaqué to Beaver Dam and back again—is a testimony to the faithfulness of God and the power of the local church.
“It is nothing but a gift,” she said, “to see my home church be a small yet powerful part in the story of the gospel spreading in Jaqué and Colombia.”
