Overall Reflections from Mexico Missions Trip 2014

While finishing up putting things away from unpacking, gathering pictures to put in one place to be available to everyone, and doing some of the day-to-day things around the house, I’ve been reflecting on our time in Mexico. Before the trip, I wasn’t sure what all God was going to have me do, or what my “specific” purpose on the team was—I just knew God wanted me to go.

As we traveled to the guesthouse in Texas, and as I was talking with Jesus, I told Him I wanted to come back changed.  This being my third missions trip, I’ve learned not only to expect God to do amazing things on the trip, but to allow Him to do something in me, as well. That was my expectation for Mexico—and I was not disappointed.

Yes, we did various forms of ministry such as door-to-door visitation in the neighborhoods around the ministry compound; VBS using various skits,   songs, and crafts; feeding people and ministering to families at the hospital; praying for people; etc. Interestingly enough, though, none of these have been at the top of my list of highlights of the trip. Nor are they considered catalysts for the “changes” that are beginning/continuing to take place.

What stands out to me are some things that may get overlooked on a missions trip and one thing that caught me by surprise.

First of all, I was amazed and thankful the entire trip—who gets to do stuff like this?! Who gets to ride ten hours in a 15-passenger van through the countryside and mountains of Mexico? Who gets to ride a horse up and down one of the mountains in an old silver mining town in Mexico? Who gets to meet and work with brothers and sisters from New York, Seattle, Virginia, Missouri, Kansas, and Mexico all at the same time while in Mexico? Who gets to go scorpion hunting at night in Mexico and critter hunting in the middle of the night in Texas?  And all in the midst of a missions trip.  Seriously, who gets to do this stuff?!

The entire time I was blown away by the opportunities King Jesus gave me during the trip.  And it’s just like how I’m amazed every time I set foot on our mission...I mean, softball...field.

Secondly, I enjoyed all the joy and laughter that was part of this trip. I roomed with Sophia and three girls from New York (Victoria, Makayla, and Jen [Makayla’s mom, associate pastor’s wife]) while in Mexico, and one night, while trying to go to sleep, we all started laughing and could not stop for at least a half an hour. I had tears streaming down my face while trying to hold back the laughter that was preventing me from falling asleep. Then, another night our Mikalah, Sophie, and I had another laughing fit on the roof of the ministry compound in Mexico. 

The guys also had a few of these fits of laughter. Once back at the ministry guesthouse in Texas, many were swimming in the pool and Zech, Sam W., Sam K., and Jacob were laughing hysterically. I don’t know how it began, but I know it continued with those four trying to remember some goofy stuff Jacob had said during the day. I have seen those guys laugh a lot before, but I had never seen or heard them laugh that hard. It was great.

Thirdly, I loved how there were three different teams—New York, the Dayspring team, and ours—yet we all worked together as one team; we were one team.

It reminds me of how the Godhead has three personalities, so to speak: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Yet, they are One God. Each of our teams had different personalities and callings; yet we were one team with one calling. I’m not even sure if one could tell we were three different teams if they didn’t know it. And that’s what happens when all involved have been praying and seeking God’s will.

Now for what caught me off guard. During the week I watched everyone, and my attention was drawn to Pastor Jeff, Les, Zech, Roger (Dayspring), Tavo (Dayspring), Dennis (Dayspring), Travis (New York pastor), and Joe (New York youth leader)—the married guys. Some were able to experience the week with their wives, while a few were not able to do so. In any case, I was like, “Lord, I want to do this kind of stuff with my husband. When do I get to get married?”

I wasn’t (and still am not) whining or complaining; simply asking. The desire has always been there, but I didn’t expect the longing to surface during this trip. And yet, it makes total sense. What comes to mind are lyrics to the song, “Spirit and the Bride” by Tom Dickson, Mercy/Vineyard publishing.    

Deep within, there’s a fire that can’t be quenched

A love for You as strong as death 

Hear us Lord,

the longing of our hearts  

is to be where You are, not apart 

We feel You near, Your presence all around us 

Oh, Lord we want to see Your face 

So take us away 

The Spirit and the bride

cry out to You 

Lord, we cry out to You 

Come quickly 

We long for the day when we will see Your face 

We long to be with You 

Come quickly 

And breathe on us until You come 

Breathe on us until You come 

I long to always be with Christ, my One True Love, my Bridegroom; and He patterned earthly marriage after our relationship with Him. So, why wouldn’t I long to be with that man of God that is going to be my husband when the Holy Spirit has placed that desire in my heart? Why wouldn’t I want to experience all God has for me with my future husband? And what do I do in the mean time?

What do I do? I keep seeking Christ—His Word, His plan, Him. I keep talking with Him about everything, and praying for that guy who will one day be my husband.

Okay, so by now you may be wondering, “What about how God changed your life? You’ve mentioned everything but that.” I haven’t told you about everything, but as for what God is doing in me, well, let’s put it this way:

¨ I want to always be healthy, fit, strong, and ready to go wherever God wants me to go and do what He wants me to do—even if it’s just walking out my own front door.

¨ I want to be able to pack everything I need for travel in a carry-on bag—it’s easier to be ready that way, and easier to travel.

¨ I want to always be willing to go wherever, yet “content” to stay and serve, as well.

¨ I want to learn to serve better and more, and actually put it into action.

¨ I want to always be hungry for Christ and His Word—because, as we know, we can never get enough of Him; yet He is enough.

¨ I want to continue to always have my passport up-to-date, and always know where it is. My Spiritual one, as well—I am an ambassador of the King, after all.

(Oh, and one more thing. I did make a few animal friends, too. I found a katydid, Les found a huge moth for me, and Sophia found cave cricket for me—all of which I held. I also held Ralf, a puppy friend. He’s more of Joe’s buddy, though.)

[There will be more explanations, stories, and pictures in the near future. The above is an article I wrote for our church newspaper.]

I'm Amazed

This evening after dinner I was trying on a number of pairs of pants one of my sisters had given me. When I was almost finished going through the small pile, I thought, "I'm amazed." Then I realized what CD I was listening to: Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir's I'm Amazed. Then I realized what song was playing: "I'm Amazed". Wow. How appropriate. I love how my King has perfect timing, and how He never ceases to amaze me.

I'm so amazed right now because of what all has happened in the past week.(You may want to skip Thursday's if you have a weak stomach or cry easily.)

• Wednesday evening during church, I found out that our church's choir may have the opportunity to go to the Dominican Republic for a missions trip. My first thought when I heard my pastor say that was, "Do you need chaperons?" That thought was partly a joke because right now there's no one in our choir who needs a chaperon, and I wasn't part of the choir. However, I've been to the D.R. on a missions trip before (2007) and I want to go back. Also, I'd been in the choir during the summer of 2003, but hadn't been able to jump back in due to many things. So, that night I began praying, "Lord, I want to go back to the D.R. Can I go back? Can we go? Can I? I want to jump in with both feet, but I don't want to put more on my plate unless You say it's okay." In addition, our family dog, Snuggles, was not doing well. I mentioned about the seizures in my previous post, and she'd been doing okay until a few days before this. Snuggles hadn't been eating or drinking for about 4 days and it wasn't looking good. I went to bed with some questions:
• The Bible says not to kill--not to intentionally murder. What's the difference between euthanasia for animals or euthanasia for people? When "putting and animal down", people do it so the animal won't suffer. Isn't that what people say about euthanasia for humans? Either way, we're still killing them. Lord, please take Snuggles peacefully when it's her time. I don't want to kill her by "putting her down". Yes, I know there is a difference between humans and animals. For one, humans are made in the image of God. But, still.
• Since the Bible says not to kill, then what's the difference between killing a mosquito or killing a person? Yes, the Bible says God's given us animals for food, but if we're intentionally killing something that we're not going to use for food, then aren't we breaking God's command? That is, unless it's in self-defense or cannot be avoided? I've killed many bugs, as well as a mole or two and a groundhog/woodchuck. Did I want to? The bugs, yes. The groundhog, no. The moles, not really. And when it comes to bugs, I don't kill most of them. Mainly just mosquitoes, flies, some spiders, and gnats. Yet, who am I to choose? Who am I to kill what God created?
• Thursday morning, Mom woke me up about 20 minutes earlier than normal, around 7:10 am, because Snuggles was dying. I quickly got dressed and was with her during her final few minutes. I covered her with an old blanket, tried to tuck her legs in as best as I could knowing she'd be stiff soon, tried to close her eyes, and put her in the garage. The kids hadn't left for school yet, but only two of the older ones knew what was going on (one was crying a bit, so we had to make her laugh before the bus came). During the course of the rest of the day, I took Snuggles' collar off, I went with my dad to my aunt and uncle's to help bury her in the family doggie graveyard (there are 4 dogs there now). And, being who I am, when taking off Snuggles' collar, I poked her in various places amazed at how quickly rigor mortis set in. During much of the day one though kept going through my head: "I'm going back to the D.R. I may be going back to the Dominican Republic soon." I went to bed with more questions:
• Lord, why did you create rigor mortis? What's the point of it? It reminds me of how when we're spiritually dead, our heart is hard. Even if part our lives are hardened toward You, it's like that part of us is dead. Thank You, though, that You are Life and You give life, and can soften any dead, hardened are of our lives if we allow You to.
• Friday morning I played outside in a few inches of snow with three of our boys who are around 4 and 5 years old. For much of the hour outside, we played with Ariel (my brother's black lab/pit bull mix) and did baseball/softball slides. I had fun practicing those slides. I thought I'd practice because I never know when I'll need that skill. I found out that in the snow is the perfect place to learn and practice those slides.
• Saturday I spent relaxing most of the day and thinking about going to Mexico and the Dominican Republic both possibly in the same year.
• Sunday, during pre-school church, one of the dads came in to get his son and told his son to ask one of the girls if her mom was going to play softball this year. The dad then told his son to ask his teacher (me) if she was going to play softball this year. I automatically said no because I didn't have time for it. Then, on our way to lunch, I thought, "I'm playing softball. Wait...Lord, I'm playing softball this year? Okay, I'm playing softball." I played softball with our church's co-ed team during the summer of 2006, and every winter since then I've thought about whether I'd play that summer or not, and I've prayed about it. This year, I didn't even really think about it, and the Holy Spirit tells me I'm playing softball. So, I've begun spring training since I don't like to run much. 
• Monday and Tuesday were "normal" days, and I was excited about going to choir practice on Wednesday.
• Wednesday (yesterday) I went to choir practice at church before youth group. Oh, how I've missed being in choir. I'm glad it's time for me to jump in again. And by jumping in I mean I'm singing with the choir on Sunday during service. I just heard the song for the first time, sang it once in practice, and am learning it on my own this weekend. I'm thankful for the basic music stuff I've been taught, for the many years in school choirs, for a wonderful church choir, and for an amazing choir director/pastor/softball teammate/friend/big brother/another dad/etc. 

I'm amazed. Mexico, choir, the D. R., softball, many free pairs of pants...Lord Jesus, I don't know what You're doing with me right now, yet I'm jumping in with both feet.

*Jump* *Cannonball* *Splash!*

Missions Trip Mexico (part 4): Location, team, provisions

Yay! We know the details about the location! We will be going to Doctor Arroyo in the Nuevo Leon region, south east of Monterrey, in the mountains. I've heard it gets down to around 65 degrees F at night in July, which is good for sleeping. I'm excited about that one.

I'm excited about our team. We have a great team, and hopefully we get even better. It's going to be a blast spending over a week with all of them!

The Lord has already provided the funds for me to go. I knew He would, because He wants me to go, but I didn't know He would provide it all already! Thanks, dear Husband, my King! Please continue to pray for peace and trust for the team as God will provide for them, as well.

Missions Trip: Mexico (part 3)

We now know the dates of our trip: July 3-12, 2011. We'll be working with Roger and Carolyn Tomlinson from Dayspring Outreach Ministries.

Missions Trip: Mexico (part 2)

When I found out our youth group is going to Mexico next summer on a missions trip, I was already excited. As I've said before, I plan on going unless God tells me otherwise. Which would be okay, too. Over the past month I've become even more excited. You see, I've known Christ for about 24 years. Next year, around this time, I will have known Christ for about 25 years. It will be our 25th anniversary! I will have been married to Christ for about 25 years! That's so amazing! so, what does this have to do with Mexico? Well, my pastor and his wife celebrated their 25th wedding anniversary this past summer by going on a cruise to Alaska. For my 25th anniversary knowing Christ, we may be going to Mexico! A missions trip to Mexico...what an amazing way to celebrate knowing Christ for 25 years. I'm crazy excited about it. 

On to another aspect of the trip. In Powerhouse (our youth group), we've decided to give all of our offering, collected from now until July, to the missionaries with whom we'll working, They'll be able to use the money for the orphanage or whatever they need. It's our gift to them. Our youth pastors are encouraging us to bring our change to put in the offering. Now, this money isn't to help those of us going on the trip. This is separate from us saving up for the trip itself. This money is an additional gift to the missionaries and the people in Mexico. I think this is a good idea. It helps us all to place others first, and to trust God to provide for our needs (which He promised to do in Philippians 4:19 and other places in the Bible). And it's a good reminder to give.

Prayer requests:

• For our youth and leaders to be open to going on the trip, and for us to listen and obey the Holy Spirit regarding this.
• That our team will begin to prepare (spiritually, mentally, in terms of learning a bit of Spanish, monetarily) and not wait until the last minute.
• That our team will trust God for everything (funding, details, etc.), continue trusting Him, and learn to trust Him even more.
• That we'll begin/continue praying for every aspect of the missions trip.