This final entry is being written after we arrived back in Muskegon. It is rewarding to me to reflect on Saturday and Sunday and see how God works, even when the “work” is supposedly done. Here is the final recap:
Saturday went pretty much the way the schedule from Friday’s post stated it. We ate breakfast and the Merge staff led a debrief asking questions that caused the students to reflect and consider their experiences on this trip, apply it to their lifestyles when back in Muskegon, and challenged them to be part of the small percentage who actually live out what they experienced.
Cleaning the Seminary in record time was motivated by the incentive of more time at the Mercado. I do not believe the site has ever been cleaned as quickly, and as well, as accomplished by our kids.
Soccer shirts, blankets, and vanilla seemed to be the big hits at the Mercado, along with a trip to the second floor (a meat market rather different than Meijers).
One more lunch at Pollo Loco’s before heading out of town. We did celebrate our second birthday of the trip for Holly Jantz, minus the Saltillo tradition!! The return trip back to McAllen ended up being as “uneventful” as getting to Saltillo was “eventful”. Dale Lusk led us again. No stops by the policia or military, short lines, and helpful border agents on both sides, made for an “on time” arrival in McAllen.
The kids had some well deserved “rest” time at the pool before we met for a final debrief, consisting of worship in song, personal experiences, and Brian’s challenge to use the freedom that God has given us to serve and glorify Him. We were even joined by two women, volunteers for the Hurricane Dolly relief team who sang with us, listened, and reflected on what INCREDIBLE kids our team was made up of. They left each team member with a gift of a bracelet stamped with one of the fruits of the Spirit, which just happened to have been our theme for the week. God is with us, even in the details!!!!
Sunday was spent driving, flying, and riding some more and approximately 1:00 am Monday we said hello to our loved ones. Thanks again to all of the volunteers who drove, provided food, and prayed for us. Brian and I would also thank those who kept up to date on our trip through this blog.
Friday, August 1, 2008
Saturday, July 26, 2008
July 25, 2008
El Ultimo dia (The final workday) and the teams left the seminary a little weary but excited to see how much they can accomplish.
Several of the walls at Vista Hermosa are four feet above grade level, the tile at Nazario is beginning to cover the floor, and at Espinoza Mirales the rebar beams for much of second floor are laying on the wood boards that will support the concrete. The kids have really taken ownership in their projects, whether it’s mixing mortar, tying rebar, or painting that last window.
Cameras and tears are an addition to VBS today as the relationships built through the week come to a “temporary” end. All five Fruits of the Spirit were introduced and taught through song,, skit, memorization, and craft.
Tonight, all of the teams will eat at their churches. The families of each church put on a “Celebration” dinner to give thanks to their students and adults for the work done with their children and projects. In addition to dinner each church will have a time of sharing between the local congregation and the groups that served alongside of them.
We just got done debriefing the evening that we talked about above. The students had a great time with their hosts, enjoying amazing food and spending quality time relaxing with the friends that they made here in Mexico. As we sat and talked every comment came back to what an amazing week we had. No major discipline issues, no major interpersonal issues, very little complaining and minimal need for redirection. God is so good! Hopefully the next time that we blog it will be from the comfort of the Pear Tree Inn in McAllen, TX.
The plan for tomorrow, Saturday, is to:
(Realizing that every schedule set in Mexico is subject to change.)
7:00 a.m. Wake up
7:30 a.m. Breakfast / Merge staff presentation
8:15 a.m. Load vans / clean the Seminary
9:15 a.m. or whenever we’re done cleaning, Depart for the Mercado (market) in downtown Saltillo (or whenever we’re done cleaning)
9:30 a.m. Shop at the Mercado
11:30 a.m. meet in the central plaza
11:45 a.m. depart for Pollo Loco
12:00 p.m. Lunch at Pollo Loco
1:00 p.m. travel to border
5:00p.m. cross border
7:00 p.m. Arrive in McAllen (Pear Tree Inn)
El Ultimo dia (The final workday) and the teams left the seminary a little weary but excited to see how much they can accomplish.
Several of the walls at Vista Hermosa are four feet above grade level, the tile at Nazario is beginning to cover the floor, and at Espinoza Mirales the rebar beams for much of second floor are laying on the wood boards that will support the concrete. The kids have really taken ownership in their projects, whether it’s mixing mortar, tying rebar, or painting that last window.
Cameras and tears are an addition to VBS today as the relationships built through the week come to a “temporary” end. All five Fruits of the Spirit were introduced and taught through song,, skit, memorization, and craft.
Tonight, all of the teams will eat at their churches. The families of each church put on a “Celebration” dinner to give thanks to their students and adults for the work done with their children and projects. In addition to dinner each church will have a time of sharing between the local congregation and the groups that served alongside of them.
We just got done debriefing the evening that we talked about above. The students had a great time with their hosts, enjoying amazing food and spending quality time relaxing with the friends that they made here in Mexico. As we sat and talked every comment came back to what an amazing week we had. No major discipline issues, no major interpersonal issues, very little complaining and minimal need for redirection. God is so good! Hopefully the next time that we blog it will be from the comfort of the Pear Tree Inn in McAllen, TX.
The plan for tomorrow, Saturday, is to:
(Realizing that every schedule set in Mexico is subject to change.)
7:00 a.m. Wake up
7:30 a.m. Breakfast / Merge staff presentation
8:15 a.m. Load vans / clean the Seminary
9:15 a.m. or whenever we’re done cleaning, Depart for the Mercado (market) in downtown Saltillo (or whenever we’re done cleaning)
9:30 a.m. Shop at the Mercado
11:30 a.m. meet in the central plaza
11:45 a.m. depart for Pollo Loco
12:00 p.m. Lunch at Pollo Loco
1:00 p.m. travel to border
5:00p.m. cross border
7:00 p.m. Arrive in McAllen (Pear Tree Inn)
Friday, July 25, 2008
Comments
We just wanted to let everyone know that we are reading your comments and passing on your messages to the students. It has been a great encouragement to us knowing that you are staying up to date concerning the trip and praying us through each new adventure. We (Roger and Brian) are glad that our posts aren't just floating around in cyberspace, but are really being read.
July 24, 2008
Our fourth day in Saltillo is coming to an end and we continue to see evidence of God’s handiwork around us. The mountains that surround the city not only are beautiful but have been a buffer to the massive cloud systems caused by Hurricane Dolly.
Our fourth day in Saltillo is coming to an end and we continue to see evidence of God’s handiwork around us. The mountains that surround the city not only are beautiful but have been a buffer to the massive cloud systems caused by Hurricane Dolly.
All of the teams were able to continue working on their outside work projects and tile work began at Nasario. Brian and I had the opportunity to work with Pastor Juan Antonio laying tile. The method used here was one unfamiliar to both of us so it was slow going at first. Adapting to new ways of doing things is something the whole team has experienced at one time or another. You would not believe the transformation that is taking place at each of the sites as our teams work diligently every day. They are making a visible difference at each location.
We were able to spend some time at Vista Hermosa ( Orange) this afternoon for their VBS, singing “La Montana” (The Mountain), “Esparate” (Patience), and “Melodias en mi Corazon” (Melody in My Heart). All of the songs had great motions that had the children, our students, and even the old men of our group “moving”.
Our group had the opportunity to engage in a personal encounter this evening. Merge’s goal is to have families from each of the churches meet with our students. This gives them a chance to interact and learn a little about their lives and their cultures. This new perspective could deeply impact our student’s world view as they realize how different we are and how pampered our lifestyles are in comparison to our Mexican friends. Each team was broken up into smaller groups and sent out to enjoy a meal at the home of one of the church members. They came back raving! The food was fantastic and the conversations were excellent. There weren’t enough translators to go with every group, but our teams were troopers and waded in despite the language barrier. Imagine having dinner at someone’s home without sharing a common language. For some of our adults and students it was just the push that they needed to use their limited Spanish. Most of them found out that they could communicate more effectively than they had previously thought possible.
Our debrief time was filled with stories of the food and the people and concluded with a time of birthday celebration for Kyle Barkett, complete with a small cake covered with frosting being thrust onto his face (a Saltillo tradition). Our group is having a great time and is accomplishing much. Pray for a great last day and for smooth traveling Saturday as we drive back to McAllen.
Thursday, July 24, 2008
July 23, 2008
July 23, 2008
We made it!! Wednesday, midway, is traditionally the toughest day on trips like this. The body is tired from doing work it’s unaccustomed to and the spirit is stretched from all of the interactions that occur when 52 people live together in close quarters. God’s peace has definitely been at work in our presence. This is also the day when our students “needs” become clearer and the opportunity to be the “body “becomes available to the team.
It may appear from afar that diversions continue to challenge us, such as Hurricane Dolly, but God‘s plan at this time has not allowed this storm too hinder us at all. Due to the elevation and the surrounding mountains, we have felt no effects of the storm other than clouds and some minor rain. It is Thursday morning as we write this and all the teams are off and working, the rain is holding off and the clouds are growing lighter. God rules!
The work projects at each site are progressing nicely. Block walls are appearing above ground at Vista Hermosa, the support for the second floor structure at Espinosa Morales is almost complete and ready for concrete to be poured, paint and sealant is done at Nasario and tile work begins Thursday.
We were able to spend most of the VBS session with Nasario. Brian led the group in a rousing version of Buen Fruto (Good Fruit) and Tengo Paz (I’ve got Peace). The attendance continues to increase as word spreads and relationships are developed. God is clearly working through our team.
Wednesday night was free from scheduled activities with our hosts from Merge ministries, allowing us the freedom to plan the night ourselves. Sensing that the students and our adult volunteers needed a break, we sent all of the adults with the exception of Brian, Jaime and the Merge staff out for some well deserved time away from students while the rest of us played soccer, jumped rope and relaxed on site at the seminary. It was a refreshing time for both students and adults.
After free time we gathered for another time of worship together. We had a wonderful time of worship through song, followed by a message on pushing through distraction and weariness to accomplish the task. We are very aware that we need God to complete the mission that He has brought us here for and that the enemy would love to derail us this week. In light of that truth, we took some time to pray through the armor of God passage from Ephesians. It was a powerful time of prayer as we spent a few minutes on each piece of armor, asking God to equip us for the task at hand. Our evening ended with a beautiful sharing time in which students poured out their hearts about fears, struggles, joys and pain, allowing others to pray for each student as they shared. The body of Christ was clearly at work during that time as individuals were ministered to by the adults and their peers. We went to bed knowing that we were covered by the grace and protection of God.
We made it!! Wednesday, midway, is traditionally the toughest day on trips like this. The body is tired from doing work it’s unaccustomed to and the spirit is stretched from all of the interactions that occur when 52 people live together in close quarters. God’s peace has definitely been at work in our presence. This is also the day when our students “needs” become clearer and the opportunity to be the “body “becomes available to the team.
It may appear from afar that diversions continue to challenge us, such as Hurricane Dolly, but God‘s plan at this time has not allowed this storm too hinder us at all. Due to the elevation and the surrounding mountains, we have felt no effects of the storm other than clouds and some minor rain. It is Thursday morning as we write this and all the teams are off and working, the rain is holding off and the clouds are growing lighter. God rules!
The work projects at each site are progressing nicely. Block walls are appearing above ground at Vista Hermosa, the support for the second floor structure at Espinosa Morales is almost complete and ready for concrete to be poured, paint and sealant is done at Nasario and tile work begins Thursday.
We were able to spend most of the VBS session with Nasario. Brian led the group in a rousing version of Buen Fruto (Good Fruit) and Tengo Paz (I’ve got Peace). The attendance continues to increase as word spreads and relationships are developed. God is clearly working through our team.
Wednesday night was free from scheduled activities with our hosts from Merge ministries, allowing us the freedom to plan the night ourselves. Sensing that the students and our adult volunteers needed a break, we sent all of the adults with the exception of Brian, Jaime and the Merge staff out for some well deserved time away from students while the rest of us played soccer, jumped rope and relaxed on site at the seminary. It was a refreshing time for both students and adults.
After free time we gathered for another time of worship together. We had a wonderful time of worship through song, followed by a message on pushing through distraction and weariness to accomplish the task. We are very aware that we need God to complete the mission that He has brought us here for and that the enemy would love to derail us this week. In light of that truth, we took some time to pray through the armor of God passage from Ephesians. It was a powerful time of prayer as we spent a few minutes on each piece of armor, asking God to equip us for the task at hand. Our evening ended with a beautiful sharing time in which students poured out their hearts about fears, struggles, joys and pain, allowing others to pray for each student as they shared. The body of Christ was clearly at work during that time as individuals were ministered to by the adults and their peers. We went to bed knowing that we were covered by the grace and protection of God.
Wednesday, July 23, 2008
July 22, 2008
Our second day of service in Saltillo is almost done and again God has shown that he works in different ways. It was another hot day and all three teams spent a good share of the day out in the sun. More testimonies of how the teams are watching out for each other both physically and spiritually continue to be shared.
Being relational in our serving is a real hurdle for teams coming here, often caused by the language barrier. Many of our students and adults have found that a smile and a willingness to work make that barrier minimal at most. What is beautiful to see is that just as in Muskegon, the children here want to build relationships with our kids. That often occurs through play (throwing water balloons is a great icebreaker), song, skit, and word. Laughter is the same message in all languages, how often I forget that. Watching a group of students/adults wander the streets around their churches and see the children flock to them is moving, no matter how many times I have seen it.
Brian and I have had the honor of praying with each of the teams as they begin their day. To hear the teams’ requests for prayer for individuals and team needs is not only humbling but also allows us a glimpse of God’s handiwork at each site. Transporting teams, materials, and water around a city of a million people is time consuming but our goal is to spend a VBS with each team. Having Brian sing and play the songs we’ve been practicing will be an encouragement to our students and more fun for the children than singing along with a cd of his voice.
Tonight we had the privilege of worshipping at one of our worksites, Espinoza Morales. We were asked to share some testimonies and to sing for their congregation, so we spent some time thinking through which songs we could sing that they might know in Spanish. Our hope was that we could be unified by worshipping together with the same songs in different languages. God’s plan was even better, as the church worship leaders had also chosen songs that they thought we might know. In fact both of the songs that we had chosen had also been chosen by the leadership from Espinoza Morales! Three of our students, Adam Stefoniak, Alyssa Marsh and Abby Mead shared their testimonies before the whole church. They all said prior to agreeing that they felt like their testimonies were boring, but they were far from that. We were all moved by the story of their faith journeys, filled with highs and lows, but eventually a solid trust in the God of the universe. The pastor shared from his heart about his vision for the church to be unified in its efforts to reach the lost and was excited that our presence in their church represented that unity that he had been praying for. Over all it was a wonderful experience and a great way to end our second day of work in Mexico.
After church we headed back to the seminary and spent some time sharing the high points of our day. Once again the adults and students had nothing but praise for their teammates. God has truly blessed us with a fantastic group and protected us thus far from interpersonal difficulties.
More pictures coming soon!
Our second day of service in Saltillo is almost done and again God has shown that he works in different ways. It was another hot day and all three teams spent a good share of the day out in the sun. More testimonies of how the teams are watching out for each other both physically and spiritually continue to be shared.
Being relational in our serving is a real hurdle for teams coming here, often caused by the language barrier. Many of our students and adults have found that a smile and a willingness to work make that barrier minimal at most. What is beautiful to see is that just as in Muskegon, the children here want to build relationships with our kids. That often occurs through play (throwing water balloons is a great icebreaker), song, skit, and word. Laughter is the same message in all languages, how often I forget that. Watching a group of students/adults wander the streets around their churches and see the children flock to them is moving, no matter how many times I have seen it.
Brian and I have had the honor of praying with each of the teams as they begin their day. To hear the teams’ requests for prayer for individuals and team needs is not only humbling but also allows us a glimpse of God’s handiwork at each site. Transporting teams, materials, and water around a city of a million people is time consuming but our goal is to spend a VBS with each team. Having Brian sing and play the songs we’ve been practicing will be an encouragement to our students and more fun for the children than singing along with a cd of his voice.
Tonight we had the privilege of worshipping at one of our worksites, Espinoza Morales. We were asked to share some testimonies and to sing for their congregation, so we spent some time thinking through which songs we could sing that they might know in Spanish. Our hope was that we could be unified by worshipping together with the same songs in different languages. God’s plan was even better, as the church worship leaders had also chosen songs that they thought we might know. In fact both of the songs that we had chosen had also been chosen by the leadership from Espinoza Morales! Three of our students, Adam Stefoniak, Alyssa Marsh and Abby Mead shared their testimonies before the whole church. They all said prior to agreeing that they felt like their testimonies were boring, but they were far from that. We were all moved by the story of their faith journeys, filled with highs and lows, but eventually a solid trust in the God of the universe. The pastor shared from his heart about his vision for the church to be unified in its efforts to reach the lost and was excited that our presence in their church represented that unity that he had been praying for. Over all it was a wonderful experience and a great way to end our second day of work in Mexico.
After church we headed back to the seminary and spent some time sharing the high points of our day. Once again the adults and students had nothing but praise for their teammates. God has truly blessed us with a fantastic group and protected us thus far from interpersonal difficulties.
More pictures coming soon!
Tuesday, July 22, 2008
July 21,2008
July 21, 2008
Yesterday God gave us rain. Today He gave us sun, and lots of it!! Sunscreen and water were in high demand.
Cold showers (this will be the norm all week), breakfast, and devotions started our day. We sorted tools, packed lunches, joined with our Merge staff, and headed to our individual churches. Morning was spent working on individual work sessions and VBS took place in the afternoon. Somewhere between 30 – 50 children attended at each site today, a great start for the week.
Here’s an idea of what is taking place at the work projects in your children’s churches:
Vista Hermosa – site work for a new worship center including back-filling wall trenches, mixing concrete, hauling cinderblock, and block work.
Nasario – Site work, paint ceilings and walls, wall and ceiling repair, and floor tile.
Espinosa Morales – cutting and tying of rebar, bearing load beam construction, and site work.
Dinner was outstanding (Muy Buena) again, homemade tacos were the menu tonight.
All of the kids had some “unwind” time after dinner to sit and talk, visit the local Mercado (store), or play some “futball” (soccer) with the Merge staff.
Our evening was spent worshipping God outside on the Seminary terrace. Brian led us in a time of worship through song, prayer and God’s word. Some of the songs were sung in Spanish to encourage greater participation at individual church sites during VBS. Students and staff were able to debrief their day by sharing stories of others in their group. This could have been a time of much laughter with funny stories being traded back and forth, but instead our group focused on praising the efforts of their fellow teammates. It was beautiful to hear them talk about the selflessness they had witnessed within their groups. Each studentsseemed to think that their particular group was personally chosen by Jesus because of how well they worked together. Yea God!
Brian shared from the last chapter of Acts where Paul is given the chance to speak to his Jewish accusers who have had him thrown into prison. Paul passionately presents the Gospel from morning to evening, but many remain unconvinced because of the hardness of their hearts, their inability to truly see, hear or understand. They had shown up, but they had come without an open heart or mind. For those who did come, God was ready for them to turn to Him so that they could be healed. The group was asked to examine their own hearts and consider which category they fell into; those who were here in Mexico, but with hardened hearts, or were they open to what God has for them this week and for the rest of their lives? We sang Come Thou Fount and asked God to help us to allow this week to be an “Ebeneezer” or marker in our lives. Many students were convicted and are clearly hungering to go deeper with God. After worship the students retired to their beds and crashed hard to sleep the kind of sleep that only comes when you have given everything that you had during the day. . .
Hope you enjoy the pictures, more to come.
Yesterday God gave us rain. Today He gave us sun, and lots of it!! Sunscreen and water were in high demand.
Cold showers (this will be the norm all week), breakfast, and devotions started our day. We sorted tools, packed lunches, joined with our Merge staff, and headed to our individual churches. Morning was spent working on individual work sessions and VBS took place in the afternoon. Somewhere between 30 – 50 children attended at each site today, a great start for the week.
Here’s an idea of what is taking place at the work projects in your children’s churches:
Vista Hermosa – site work for a new worship center including back-filling wall trenches, mixing concrete, hauling cinderblock, and block work.
Nasario – Site work, paint ceilings and walls, wall and ceiling repair, and floor tile.
Espinosa Morales – cutting and tying of rebar, bearing load beam construction, and site work.
Dinner was outstanding (Muy Buena) again, homemade tacos were the menu tonight.
All of the kids had some “unwind” time after dinner to sit and talk, visit the local Mercado (store), or play some “futball” (soccer) with the Merge staff.
Our evening was spent worshipping God outside on the Seminary terrace. Brian led us in a time of worship through song, prayer and God’s word. Some of the songs were sung in Spanish to encourage greater participation at individual church sites during VBS. Students and staff were able to debrief their day by sharing stories of others in their group. This could have been a time of much laughter with funny stories being traded back and forth, but instead our group focused on praising the efforts of their fellow teammates. It was beautiful to hear them talk about the selflessness they had witnessed within their groups. Each studentsseemed to think that their particular group was personally chosen by Jesus because of how well they worked together. Yea God!
Brian shared from the last chapter of Acts where Paul is given the chance to speak to his Jewish accusers who have had him thrown into prison. Paul passionately presents the Gospel from morning to evening, but many remain unconvinced because of the hardness of their hearts, their inability to truly see, hear or understand. They had shown up, but they had come without an open heart or mind. For those who did come, God was ready for them to turn to Him so that they could be healed. The group was asked to examine their own hearts and consider which category they fell into; those who were here in Mexico, but with hardened hearts, or were they open to what God has for them this week and for the rest of their lives? We sang Come Thou Fount and asked God to help us to allow this week to be an “Ebeneezer” or marker in our lives. Many students were convicted and are clearly hungering to go deeper with God. After worship the students retired to their beds and crashed hard to sleep the kind of sleep that only comes when you have given everything that you had during the day. . .
Hope you enjoy the pictures, more to come.
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