It was a late night and an early morning. A long drive and conversation on the way.
Titeres, or puppets, were unloaded. Stages set up. An apartment complex in a refugee neightborhood. Swarms of small children arriving in small clusters till there was anywhere from sixty to a hundred children.
A pastor in a red shirt, and it spoke of how he was too blessed to be stressed. He'd been in the area since 1967. Eyes that had seen many people, probably many in different walks of life. He spoke of the sex trafficking that went on there. Twelve murders in one month in a ten square mile area. Almost enough people to fill my graduating class. Twelve names. Twelve faces. Twelve stories. But will we every hear of them? No.
Two hundred and sixty-seven apartment rooms filled with children left to fend for themselves while parents are away. Left to run drugs across the dangerous intersection. Left to play in the parking spots that are in the shade.
I could see it in his eyes. Sadness, or was it loneliness? He was so young. Cuantos anos tienes? Tres.
Three little grimy fingers he held up. Five fingers on his hand I got to hold while we did the Limbo. Five fingers that were willing to be held. Five fingers that were not bothered by holding a stranger's hand. Five little fingers I got to hold.
What will happen in his home tonight?
I don't know. I do not even know his name.
I could not hold every child's hand. I could not find out all of their names. All I could do was give of myself. I can not give of myself to every child. But I could hold his hand.
Maybe someday he will remember that we sang of Jesus.
Maybe he will remember a girl who came to tell him about Jesus.
Jesus te ama.
Jesus te ama muy mucho.
Tuesday, October 2, 2012
Wednesday, July 25, 2012
She Had Jesus
Hello friends.
Months have passed since I have last blogged. But today I want to tell you a story, a story of a girl. A girl who second guessed herself more than once, felt small and unsure, nervous and a bit excited.
How could she just ask if she could go?
Wouldn't she be intruding?
How did she go about asking?
She sent the email a couple of weeks after being invited to go. And waited. A reply was sent. She received permission. Before she had even fully made up her mind. God made the decision for her, the flight was booked. Everything was falling into place. She would be flying to Guadalajara, Mexico. Would she fly alone? Into Mexico with her blond hair and fair skin, plus limited Spanish? Obviously God had the details worked out, she would come to find out.
Money was given towards her trip. The flight was paid for. And she would not have to fly alone. She was so grateful.
Approximately two months after finding out about the trip, she flew to Mexico. Greeted by the pastor she, and the others that met them there from a different US state, would be staying with. They left for their home for the next eight days. Packed into a van she looked at the city with a happiness of returning, but with sadness at the things she was seeing.
She arrived at the church and saw more old friends from her last trip there 2 years ago. Hugs and greetings went around.
The next day she found out the specifics of her purpose for this trip. Laying bricks for a new church that was 30 minutes from the home church that was sending out leaders to start new churches.
Her day started a little before seven am and did not end till around eleven that night. She worked from about nine am to about eight-thirty pm. She carried buckets of water, concrete, and kept bricks wet through out the day.
Never before had she been thankful for construction equipment. Equipment that mixed concrete, and moved dirt. Yet here she was thousands of miles from home and she came up with stuff she had never even used but she was thankful for them back home.
Each night as she laid down for bed after a long day's work of dirt, concrete, bricks and water. She tried coming up with ten things she was thankful for. Usually at the top of the list was hot water, but she tried to not use the same thing twice. When she got home she could not remember everything, but she did thank the Lord for gloves, gloves that saved her hands from scratches and blisters. Hot water that freely ran from her shower. And there was more, but for some reason when you are again surrounded by the things you were thankful for, you forget what all things made up your lists.
This girl saw sad things, she saw people surrounded by depressing situations yet those with the saving grace of Christ, she saw immense joy. Joy that freely flowed. These people had little, but they had the most important Thing of all.
Jesus
These people surrounded by garbage, sadness, grim statistics, (eighty percent of Mexico is in poverty) and the reality that by age twelve most kids will start using drugs. They had joy! And by being around these people who had joy, you started picking it up as well.
The lady that opened up her home for them to track mud and dirt into her home to eat most of their meals, had a beautiful smile. A smile that lit up her entire face. She had joy! Why?
To put it simply, she had Jesus.
A Savior who put joy in her heart. She didn't say it out loud, or at least out loud in English, but there was no need. Her actions said it all.
And your actions will too.
What do your actions say about you?
Months have passed since I have last blogged. But today I want to tell you a story, a story of a girl. A girl who second guessed herself more than once, felt small and unsure, nervous and a bit excited.
How could she just ask if she could go?
Wouldn't she be intruding?
How did she go about asking?
She sent the email a couple of weeks after being invited to go. And waited. A reply was sent. She received permission. Before she had even fully made up her mind. God made the decision for her, the flight was booked. Everything was falling into place. She would be flying to Guadalajara, Mexico. Would she fly alone? Into Mexico with her blond hair and fair skin, plus limited Spanish? Obviously God had the details worked out, she would come to find out.
Money was given towards her trip. The flight was paid for. And she would not have to fly alone. She was so grateful.
Approximately two months after finding out about the trip, she flew to Mexico. Greeted by the pastor she, and the others that met them there from a different US state, would be staying with. They left for their home for the next eight days. Packed into a van she looked at the city with a happiness of returning, but with sadness at the things she was seeing.
She arrived at the church and saw more old friends from her last trip there 2 years ago. Hugs and greetings went around.
The next day she found out the specifics of her purpose for this trip. Laying bricks for a new church that was 30 minutes from the home church that was sending out leaders to start new churches.
Her day started a little before seven am and did not end till around eleven that night. She worked from about nine am to about eight-thirty pm. She carried buckets of water, concrete, and kept bricks wet through out the day.
Never before had she been thankful for construction equipment. Equipment that mixed concrete, and moved dirt. Yet here she was thousands of miles from home and she came up with stuff she had never even used but she was thankful for them back home.
Each night as she laid down for bed after a long day's work of dirt, concrete, bricks and water. She tried coming up with ten things she was thankful for. Usually at the top of the list was hot water, but she tried to not use the same thing twice. When she got home she could not remember everything, but she did thank the Lord for gloves, gloves that saved her hands from scratches and blisters. Hot water that freely ran from her shower. And there was more, but for some reason when you are again surrounded by the things you were thankful for, you forget what all things made up your lists.
This girl saw sad things, she saw people surrounded by depressing situations yet those with the saving grace of Christ, she saw immense joy. Joy that freely flowed. These people had little, but they had the most important Thing of all.
Jesus
These people surrounded by garbage, sadness, grim statistics, (eighty percent of Mexico is in poverty) and the reality that by age twelve most kids will start using drugs. They had joy! And by being around these people who had joy, you started picking it up as well.
The lady that opened up her home for them to track mud and dirt into her home to eat most of their meals, had a beautiful smile. A smile that lit up her entire face. She had joy! Why?
To put it simply, she had Jesus.
A Savior who put joy in her heart. She didn't say it out loud, or at least out loud in English, but there was no need. Her actions said it all.
And your actions will too.
What do your actions say about you?
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