When Emery Hardin, former experience specialist, and her husband, Braden, prayed about their 2025 vision trip, they both knew one thing for certain: they wanted to serve children. That desire led them all the way to Chile.
As soon as they landed, the vision trip team headed straight to a church service where Emery met Kent and Dona, leaders with SportQuest (a part of All4One Ministries). Together, they prepared to visit schools where the team would lead sports activities followed by short Bible lessons.
Having recently joined the construction team in Lubbock West, Emery initially planned to teach on the wise and foolish builder, but the Lord unexpectedly stirred something different in her spirit at the last minute. As she pivoted to this completely different lesson, memories of her previous vision trip to Betel in the UK surfaced. While there, Emery learned that testimonies aren’t meant to be hidden, but rather they’re meant to be shared so others might see the goodness of God.
In Chile, Emery saw a group of teenage girls living in a culture overrun with hypersexualization, broken families, and deep wounds of abuse. She knew her own story could speak directly into their reality. With Kent and Dona’s encouragement, she shared vulnerably about her search for love as a teen, that she often felt “not enough,” and how that search left her empty until Jesus revealed His redeeming, unconditional love.
The girls leaned in. Some gasped, others nodded knowingly. Afterward, they pulled her aside with questions, confessions, and tears. Through broken Spanish, Google Translate, and the Spirit of God, walls came down. Emery was able to tell them, “This is who God says you are: worthy, loved, and made for more than what the world tells you.”
The school chaplain later told Emery that a student came to him after her talk, saying she knew Jesus by name but had never understood the depth of His love. Emery’s teaching awoke a desire to know Him more, and it opened the door for meaningful conversation.
God used that trip to Chile to heal Emery’s heart. As Dona told her, “You’ll leave more blessed yourself than the blessing you bring.” And that blessing didn’t end in Chile.
After the vision trip, Kent and Dona invited Emery to speak at All4One’s Father & Daughter Challenge Camp (4MUS) in West Virginia. She was hesitant to share her testimony so publicly, but she trusted God’s nudge and said “yes.” Surrounded by fathers and daughters from across the U.S., Emery again taught boldly and vulnerably about God’s redeeming love. The result was powerful: teenage girls recognizing lies they had believed, and fathers realizing the gaps in how they expressed love to their daughters.
At one point, dads were asked to rate their relationship with their daughters. Most gave high marks. But when asked how many daughters felt unworthy, a majority of the girls stepped forward. That visible disconnect broke walls of pride and opened hearts. Emery’s testimony became a bridge between fathers and daughters, showing them that only Jesus provides a love that satisfies and restores.
For Emery, these moments were a reminder that God doesn’t waste our past. “As someone who has made mistakes, I can say with confidence that listening to the world isn’t the way. The only way is Jesus. What He says is truth.” Emery now has a standing invitation to speak at future Father Daughter Challenge Camps, and she plans to be there.
Betenbough offers vision trips to give team members and their families the unique opportunity to experience the work God is doing around the world and catch the vision for what ministry partnerships are all about. Emery truly did return home with a renewed sense of purpose, lifelong relationships, ongoing ministry opportunities, and a personal journey of healing. She saw firsthand how God can take our most vulnerable stories and turn them into lifelines for others — reminders that His love is steadfast, redeeming, and more than enough.
