Mexico Mission Miracles - Part 2

The team met regularly from May through October to prepare for their time in Mexico. First we tackled our fund raising, which went very smoothly. A local electrical firm donated their scrap wire and we spent many enjoyable hours stripping the plastic coating to net bare copper and aluminum, which we then sold to the metal recyclers. Not only was it very profitable but it also proved to be a great team-building endeavour.

We also put a call out to our church family, friends and places where we worked for pop bottles and other recyclables, and they put aside many dollars worth of returnables for us. I'm sure the very helpful bottle depot employees got tired of seeing us arrive weekly with a number of big black bags in tow. Most importantly, our church family were very generous in their support, as always, and the offering plates were overflowing at our one "Mexican Lunch" fundraiser in September.

Soon our budget was pretty much in the bank and we could focus more intently on preparing for ministry. We were blessed to have a team member who speaks fluent Spanish and is gifted in leading worship with his guitar. He patiently taught us a half dozen Spanish worship songs, some of which we hoped to sing as special music in the church service in Mexico. As we stumbled through them, trying to get our tongues to cooperate around the unfamiliar words, we were not sure how the finished product would sound! But we persevered, praying that God would be glorified in our weakness.

We arrived in Nogales on a Saturday and got settled into our hostel. That night we drew up a plan for the Sunday church service because our missionaries assured us that the people would love to see us up front leading a portion of the program. We chose 4 songs that we thought we knew well enough to be presentable, Pastor G would do a children's feature and we delegated two of our team members to share the testimonies they had prepared. However the next day we learned quickly the lesson about "being flexible."

The church service was just starting as we pulled up to the gates. We had no chance to confer with the pastor ahead of time about what he wanted us to contribute. Seconds after we got seated in the three front rows which they had saved for us, the worship team began singing. To our initial dismay, three of the four songs we had chosen were among those they sang as a congregation that morning. But soon it dawned on us that God hadn't prepared us to sing for the people in Mexico, He had prepared us to worship with them!

When we were invited up to participate in the service, we sang the one song they hadn't sung yet, which was a medley well known to them, and they joined in enthusiastically. The pastor's daughter had earlier sent us a special request via e-mail, so we sang that song in English and in Spanish, even though they had sung it previously. And just for fun, we repeated one of our favorites, which they didn't seem to mind one little bit, judging by the clapping in time and the joyful voices singing praise to God along with us.

One of our team members got up to share a heartfelt testimony and G shared his object lesson, both translated by L, our bilingual team member. By then, the time was getting late, so we cancelled the second testimony and sat back to listen as Pastor Jésus delivered a very inspiring sermon about the people of Israel building the temple. He challenged us and his church to go forward into the week of work ahead with an attitude of building this structure for God.

We were so grateful for how he and L worked together to share this message from God's word in both Spanish and English. One of our prayer requests and goals for this trip was that we could somehow participate more fully in worshipping with our Mexican brothers and sisters. God pulled it all together in a most remarkable way!

Mexico Mission Miracles - Part 1

Nogales. To some this refers to a dangerous border city in Mexico plagued by drug cartel violence, human smuggling, and underage sex trade. To me, it is a city with a growing church that has a special place in my heart. You see, five years ago, I led a team of 5 people to help build a warm and weatherproof bedroom for an aging lady and lead a kids club for the children in her neighborhood. After we returned home, that kids club became a Sunday School in an empty lot under the hot sun, and by the time our next team of 11 people arrived a year later, a lot had been purchased and a church building was going up. We spent a week renewing our relationship with the pastor and his family, and our friendships with the children who remembered their Canadian friends.

Four years have passed since our last visit. We had left them with walls reinforced by concrete pillars and a top header, and they finished their church with a temporary roof of wood and tin. Attendance had increased to the point where they needed to knock out the inside wall and expand their sanctuary. They desired to build a second story for classrooms, but to do this they needed to put on a proper cement ceiling on the lower level. They prayed for a couple years that God would send a team from the USA or Canada to help them, but Mission teams were choosing less dangerous places to go.

In the early spring of 2010, it was time to start planning another short-term mission trip for our church, and our immediate desire was to go back to Nogales. The missionaries we had worked with previously now live 4 hours south of the city, but they agreed to meet us there and coordinate our visit. We knew that Nogales was one of the places where the drug wars were killing many people involved in the drug trade, but we moved forward in our planning, trusting that God would close the door and detour us if it was not safe to go. When the Los Tapiros congregation heard of our intention to come, they were over-the-top excited and full of praise to God who had heard their prayers.

Experiencing His Generous Lovingkindness

The original motivation for writing a blog was to share with people the many ways I witness God manifested in my life and in the world around me. There are so many stories to tell from our trip to Ethiopia, but as you can see, the busyness of life took priority over writing blog posts. Shortly after my last submission, we became grandparents of delightful twin girls who live 10 minutes away, which added another activity to my already busy life - cuddling babies!

But last week God did something which compels me to shout His praises from the rooftops, and I figured this was a great way to share my experience.

We’ve been thinking it might be time to get a bigger vehicle because it has been quite the back-breaking task moving two car seats in and out of our little 2-door Toyota’s back seat. My husband suggested I go to our local Honda dealership and let them know that we were looking for something larger with 4 doors, like a Pilot, and ask them to let us know if they ever got a good trade-in. When I went on Wednesday, there was a 2003 on the lot, and so I was able to test drive it Thursday, car seats and all, since I was babysitting the girls that day. I liked the model, but not that particular SUV. It had a number of scrapes on the outside, and the inside showed a reasonable amount of wear and tear.

I decided I’d prefer to add a little loan to the money we had saved and look for something a bit newer.

On Friday my Toytoa had an appointment in the city (an hour away) for some repairs, and while there I checked out what was available at Toyota, Honda and Nissan. Toyota wanted to sell me a van - a good bargain but not really what I thought I’d drive next. Nissan’s Pathfinder was too much of a truck for my taste. Honda was getting an 06 Pilot later that day and the salesman promised he’d e-mail me some pictures and let me know the price they’d be asking.

I was sad when he called at suppertime to tell me that the price of the Pilot. With GST, I was looking at a vehicle more than $5,000 over my budget. I sent him an e-mail thanking him for his kind and helpful service, but said that I was going to have to settle for something older or with more km.

Later that night I read Grace Fox’s devotional blog post "Pray First, Act Later," based upon the actions of the priest in 1 Samuel 14 who promted King Saul to ask for God's direction. She challenged her readers to take the priest's advice to heart next time we were faced with a decision. When we might be tempted to do whatever seems best in the moment, she reminded us to ask God first, and trust Him to guide us in the way we should go.

That really spoke to my heart and I realized that I was running way ahead of God in something that was quite a major purchase for our household. I hadn't spent any time with God, seeking His direction.

The next morning the plan was to head to Calgary with my daughters and daughter-in-law to help my eldest daughter pack up her apartment in preparation for her move. The cat woke me up far too early for my liking, but I figured I may as well use the time productively by spending some time with God. I brought the matter before Him and this was my prayer (when I do devotions, I always journal my prayers in writing, so this is a direct quote) ....

Lord, You know of my search for a newer vehicle that is better suited to carry more people. So far, I have gone looking on my own strength and wisdom. I pray that I will slow down and listen to Your leading, to Your still small voice in my heart. Help me to have an attitude of gratefulness for whatever You give to us, as well as the self discipline to be frugal and not want all the luxuries I have grown accustomed to. My mind keeps going to the Toyota van, even though that is not really what I want to drive. Please help me to know if this is Your will for us, because if it is, I know it will make me happy. Help me also be patient to wait for you to provide in the most amazing ways that I always can count on You to do. I pray for Your presence to be with us today as we go to Calgary to help my girl move. I ask for safety in all our travels. I ask for laughter and joy to be present during our time together.

And so this is how God heard and answered that prayer...

On the two hour trip to the city, I was rehashing the past week of car shopping. The girls quizzed me on what I really wanted and I said that I've seen Pilots in a nice green color which I really like. (We even passed one later, so I could point it out.) I said I preferred leather interior because it’s so easy to keep clean. I mentioned (mostly in jest) that a DVD player sure would be fun for the grandchildren. Oh, and while we’re at it, a sunroof would be nice. Basically what I wanted was the upgraded model, but those ones seem to be out of my price range.

By the time we arrived at Calgary, they had me convinced that we should detour into a Honda dealership as we went by to see what they had on their lot. I baulked at the idea because we had a lot of work to do, and besides, how could I get something without my husband? “Oh mom, let’s just look!” they coaxed.

A genuinely friendly salesman met us at the door and gladly showed us the three Pilots they had all lined up in a row; a plain-jane blue with cloth seats and no bells and whistles, but right in my price range; a little more expensive silver one; and a fancy black one which had no sticker with any information. He had also pointed out that there was one parked in another place on the lot which the owner was driving right now, which was also for sale. While he went inside to find the information about the black one, my girls wandered over to see this fourth one he spoke of. “Hey mom! I think we found your car!” they hollered.

It was a 2006 EXL Pilot in perfect condition. It was green. It had leather seats. There was a DVD player and a sunroof, not to mention heated front seats, climate control and 6 CD changer. There were two child car seats in the second row so I could easily see how much room we'd have back there. And unbelievably, it was well within my budget. The salesman returned to find the girls laughing at me and my incredulous reaction to how perfect this one was! Everything fit my shopping list. He let us take it for a test drive and before long I was phoning my husband to ask if I could do the unthinkable and actually make offer to purchase, without him even seeing it!! And being the amazing man that he is, he gave his consent. I even managed to get the price down a further $500!

I'm delighted that my girls and I got to share this miracle together and we laughed all weekend as we recalled our experience at the sales lot.

And that’s how God answered my honest prayer and how He chose to bless me abundantly, beyond all that I could ask or think. Monday morning, I sat down with my journal and re-read my prayer to God. I was moved to tears of worship and thankfulness for His lovingkindness to me. And I hope it is a good lesson to remind me to always pray first and act later.

My new car with the saleman

The beautiful ladies God used to lead me to His gift!