Hello Everyone!!!
     I apologize for the silence over the past few days! The words of encouragement that we have received from friends and family at home have been so powerful and encouraging! Thank you again for you support and prayers.
     The first few days of our trip have been packed! And let me tell you...these past seven days have been some of the most challenging and excited days of my life. Our flight went smoothly from Philadelphia to Toronto, and then from Toronto to Seoul. We were retrieved at the Seoul airport and rode on a bus to the GVCS campus in Mungyeoung. It was about 30 hours total of travel!!! Jaime, Audra, Valerie and I got to our room and crashed! As for the time difference, it barely affected us and we suffered minimal jet lag. Our first day here was quiet and we unpacked our clothes and prepared for the Global Youth Forum. During the second day, we watched other presentations under the categories "Social Media and Psychological Impact" and "Social Media and Education". We all watched in anticipation as we knew that our turn was rapidly approaching. Then the big day came! After practicing a few more times and proofing the Prezi one last time, our team headed for the stage to present the fruits of our labors. Our presentation went smoothly and each one of us performed to the best of our abilities. We were unsure whether or not we would be chosen to move on to the final round because some of the other teams' presentations were so good! We anxiously awaited to hear the results of the preliminary rounds with our friends from Red Lion! Much to our surprise, Delaware pulled though! Both Tall Oaks and Red Lion were chosen to advance to the next round of competition.
      That evening, we practiced some more and got a good night's sleep! In the morning, the team gathered for our daily devotions. Josh suggested that we sing our favorite song "Fairest Lord Jesus". After singing, we felt that this song would be the perfect conclusion for our presentation. Not because the five of us have wonderful singing voices...because we certainly don't! Later that afternoon our team sat in the auditorium waiting to present our project one last time. Let me tell you, never have I ever been so afraid. In my life. Sweat was pouring down my back as I envisioned myself singing the soprano descant...alone and without Sabrina...into a microphone!!! I looked around at my team mates. Audra, Jaime, and Josh were completely at ease and Valerie and I were seriously contemplating flight. But then Mrs. Baumann reminded us that we weren't singing for our own glory, but to share the glory of God with those around us. Suddenly, the fear subsided as I realized that I didn't need to impress the people sitting before me. I was singing with my closest friends to God.
      We all walked up on stage together and presented our project one last time. Then came the moment of truth. The Song. After Josh gave his concluding remark, we all looked at each other and began to sing a song that we have all sung a million times before. But this time was different. It wasn't different because we were on stage in front so many people, but because I truly sang it to the Lord. After we sang the past few bars, we all held hands and bowed, partly to the audience, but mostly to the Lord. That is a moment that I will never forget.
   At this point, I didn't really care what the outcome of the competition would be. I knew that my team and I put forth our best effort and did something that was out of our comfort zone. GVCS treated us to a beautiful gala dinner and we all dressed up and enjoyed an evening of fellowship together. The food was amazing!!!! Josh ate for a good hour. I don't think I have ever seen him so happy. We then headed down to the auditorium for the closing ceremony. We watched as popularity awards and awards of participation were distributed. We then sat in anticipation while 3rd and 2nd place were announced. We all grasped hands as Pastor Pak prepared to announce the Grand Prize Winner. Our hearts were in our chests and our breathing paused as he called out our school name. What a moment to share with my friends. I was so shocked and humbled. After hours of travel and weeks of preparation, God graced us with a win. I am having difficulty even finding the words to describe this experience.
     I have learned so much from this trip. I have learned so much about God and about what it means to be a follower of Him. Perhaps the greatest lesson I have learned is humility. We have been reading a book about humility together as a team and the words of the author really have resonated within me. I believe God granted us a win to provide us with an opportunity to exercise humility for His glory. There is no way that we won this competition on our own merit. No way. God has been with us every step of the way. Thank you so much to everyone who made this trip possible for me. I could never thank you enough for this invaluable gift.

Sincerely,
  Hannah Crismon