Every year I’m blessed to lead a group of students to serve others in Mexico. One of the things we do here is take food to members of the church who are in need. One of the ladies we visited this week is hermana (sister) Migdalia. Brother Reyes, the preacher at the church in Colonia 89, took us to visit with this sweet lady who loves the Lord & the church deeply. She doesn’t have much, but every time we go to see her we learn so much from her & from the other families we go to visit. Here’s what I’ve learned & am reminded of over & over again when we do this.
No matter where you live or what your circumstances are…
- Pain is universal. As parents, our hearts break for our children. When our children hurt, we hurt. At each house we visit we pray for the family. When we ask how we can pray for them, the one common request is that we pray for their children. And through many tears we hear story after story of children who are lost to addiction, involved in drugs, suffering from some sickness or in the middle of some difficulty. No matter what language we speak or where we live, as parents our hearts break for our children.
- Joy is not contingent on circumstance. At the end of each day our team will often share things from the day that had an impact on theme. Every time I hear something like this, “These people literally had nothing but they were so happy.” That’s joy. Pure joy. And it’s not based on present circumstance. It comes from knowing God & having trust & hope in Him. We who have much & are miserable could learn from those who have so little but are full of joy. Joy comes from a personal relationship with God.
- The church is one family. I love that when we go we take time to talk, pray & worship together with each & every family. We’re reminded every time that though we live miles apart we serve the same one true God. That there is no one like our God. And that one day we will be reunited with these brothers & sisters because we are part of the same family.
Some may call this poverty tourism. The idea of taking a group from house to house in a poverty stricken area. I hear that & I feel the tension. But I also think there’s much be gained by everyone when hearts are in tune with the Spirit of God. This photo is what we call a family photo. Because we are all brothers & sisters in Christ. We take a family photo at every home we visit. Yes, we deliver food & we go to serve & to bless. But we always walk away feeling like we have received more than we have given. If you look at the picture os our group with Brother Reyes & sister Migdalia you may think we don’t look the same. But the truth is we’re more alike than we are different. We live miles apart but we are of one Spirit. We speak different languages but we have the same Father. Praise God for bringing us together. May He be our ever present teacher as we seek to know Him more.
