Hey, everyone;
I just want to say thanks to all of you who prayed for me last weekend for the Mexico missions outreach that I took part in. The outreach was awesome, and I was so blessed to have been there. Here is a synopsis of all that happened. I also have some pictures posted of the outreach, but unfortunately, the CD that I have most of my pics on isn't reading, so I'm going to try and get another one made up. Meanwhile, you can see some of what went on in the album that I posted.
We left the states around 6 pm, and arrived in Ensenada around 2 am. The team stayed at a beach house owned by one of the church members...so incredibly peaceful!! That particular part of the beach didn't have a lot of traffic, and apart from a couple of the houses that surrounded ours, it was pretty isolated. The beach in Ensenada is a lot different than the beaches that I'm used to in California...very little noise, less crowded, and a lot more tranquil. That part of Ensenada may not have a lot of wealth, but what it lacks in wealth it totally makes up for in atmosphere. It was beautiful. I felt so spoiled.
Saturday morning, we woke up, ate breakfast, and did our morning devotions. We visited 3 places that day. The first place we visited was a small church on the beach, called Hermosa. We basically dropped off some supplies there, and prayed with the pastor and his wife. The church has about 30 members...very small, but a huge love for God.
The second place that we visited was a special needs orphanage called Gabriel House. The children who live there have mental and physical disabilities, and have basically been neglected or abandoned by their parents. Many of them have been rescued from these abusive or neglective situations, and some of them were just sort of dropped off at the house. You can find out more about this ministry at:
http://www.gabrielhouseofmexico.com/images/bios/pages/04thelma.htmAnyhow, our main reason for being there was to bring supplies to the home, and visit with the children. We sat with them, held them, sang songs to them, and basically just loved on them. It wasn't hard to do. These children were amazing!! I spent most of my time with one little girl in particular, named Thelma. She had a very high fever, and I just basically sat there and cuddled her, rubbed her forehead, and talked to her. She didn't understand English, but love has no linguistic boundaries. I just basically hugged her and loved on her, and I could just feel God's love working through me.
Most people, when they see children like this, have a tendency to feel sorry for them, and truthfully, I thought it might be the same for me, but it turned out not to be like that at all. When I walked into the room, and saw them all sitting there, I didn't feel sympathy, but I felt such a love for them, and overjoyed to be there. I know that God was giving me a real love for these children...not like "Oh, these poor kids," but I felt honored and blessed to be with them. God definitely used these children to bless me...even more so than I blessed them, I am sure. Seeing God's hand working in their lives...seeing them cared for and in a Christian environment, really reminded me how much God loves and cares for His own...and especially those who cannot care for themselves. God intervenes, and provides, and the whole experience profoundly blessed me.
Some of the kids there could not feed themselves, so I had the priviledge of helping to feed lunch to one girl in particular named Sonia. I just basically talked to her, and I guess she thought I was funny, because she kept smiling and laughing. Out of the 3 places we visited, I think I learned the most from these children.
We spent about 4 hours visiting the children there, then we ate lunch at a taco stand in the area. I wondered why no one else ordered the pork tacos, then got really nervous when one of the team members told me that he and some others had gotten sick from eating them before. Well, what could I do? I just scarfed them down and prayed that I would be okay, but it sort of ruined the whole experience. I was fine, though...and I could have really rubbed it in their faces, but I'm a bigger person than that :)
The next place we visited was a home for abused women and children called Casa de Esperanza. It's a transitional facility for women escaping abusive relationships, where they are housed, counseled, discipled, and taught skills they can use to be self-sufficient. They can stay there with their children for up to 5 yrs., depending on their situation. We arrived there, then a couple of the men went to buy supplies for the house, and the team stayed there to spend time with the kids and do a short VBS. One of the ladies read the story of Daniel in the lion's den, then we led them in arts and crafts. It was basically a chance to just reach out to the kids and let the moms have some time to themselves. We spent about 4 hours there.
A couple of us also helped to clean up some of the fire damage to the facility. The building was constructed by stacking bales of hay, then plastering over them, so much of what we were cleaning up was hay. Thankfully, the fire was in an old part of the facility that is no longer used.
The next day, we returned to Casa de Esperanza and conducted another more formal VBS for the kids. Pastor Bob (the team leader) and one of the ladies held church service for the women, and the rest of us held VBS for the kids. We started out leading worship, then one of the women led them in the story of Jonah. After that, we again led them in arts and crafts, and also snack time. The kids ranged in ages from 2 yrs. to 10 or so. After VBS, the team just spent time ministering to the women and children. Those who spoke Spanish counseled the women, and the rest of us spent time with the kids. Around noon or so, we left.
We ate lunch in downtown Ensenada, then came back over the border.
It was only a 3 day trip, but God taught me so much during that time. Despite the language barrier, I was able to minister God's love, and be blessed and a blessing. It was wonderful seeing God's hand of provision at work...how that same hand of provision that works in my life is also working in the lives of those around the world, in different cultures. Despite the language and culture barriers, there was such a sense of belonging, and it was strange because I didn't feel one bit out-of-place, because I knew that these women and children were a part of my spiritual family.
I hope to go back in a couple of months, should God lead me to. Thanks again so much for your prayers. I know that the Lord heard them and honored them.