El Florido, Mexico - Summer 2016

A quick jet flight from Seattle to San Diego then by van through Tijuana and there, not far from the US/Mexico border, in an eastern suburb called El Florido, our team of 24 partnered with MCM (Mexico Caravan Ministries) to build houses for one week for families caught in deep poverty. But that’s not the whole story by a long shot. 

What was truly in store, was a much deeper, heart-impacting, experience, involving visits to orphanage, a shanty town at the landfill and visits to some of the poorer quarters of this area of the Mexico. Prior to each  workday the team gathered in the MCM dorm’s Worship Center, where we learned about God’s love for the world and His unfulfilled plan to share that Love, and Good News, to the ends of the earth.

Missionary speakers from Columbia, Papua New Guinea, India – were rich and inspiring and added to Eddie Passmore, Mission Leader/teacher’s, daily Scripture reading and discussions about missions around the world. Incredible videos and first hand stories from large cities and remote island jungles, punctuated the conversations. We prayed for people groups and learned how to listen better to God’s voice in our daily lives.

As we learned in our conversations during the week, we Americans spend more on Halloween costumes – for our pets – than in supporting missionaries to reach those people groups that have not heard the name of Jesus.

During each day’s building, we spent time with the families we were building with. They provided a meal that may well have cost them a week’s wages to provide the team. We will long remember the families who were so grateful to get a Bible at the end of each build day. The kids we met and played with at the orphanage will be part of our prayers.

The week was full of bonding with our “build teams”, meeting and being with the precious Mexican people.  Yes, we built houses, and the people will be followed up by local pastors and invited to church. And beyond all that, we have come back home as different people. God not only did work thru us, He did work in us. Come join us next time!