October 21, 2007

Matamoras, Mexico

I just returned from a 5-day mission trip to Matamoras, Mexico with the about 40 men from Johnson Ferry. They go every October. I had not been on a mission trip since my college days, so I was both nervous and excited at the same time.

We flew to Harlingen, TX and then took an old bus across the border into Matamoras. We spent a few days building four 10×14 houses. That’s 10 feet wide and 14 feet long! That’s smaller than my bedroom. Despite the poverty, they were so thankful and so wonderful and so full of joy. We also spent time talking to the people through translators, playing soccer with the children, and giving away Bibles, candy, hot dogs, and cold water.

An Openness to Christ

One morning we went to a city square and passed out cold water and told them about our relationship with Christ. I was surprised how open they were to hearing what we had to say. Had we done that in Atlanta, people would have gone out of their way to avoid us. But they wanted to know about how Jesus took away their sin on the cross.

They have a cultural and religious awareness of Jesus, but more often than not, their faith was never deeper than that. In one house, the only artwork on the wall was a painting of DaVinci’s Last Supper. So we told them about the personal faith in Jesus that we have. We prayed with them. And they began following and communicating with Jesus in personal way.

Adjusting My Perspective

I think because they have so little (materially speaking), they have a much more acute awareness of their need for God. Whereas people here think that they are self sufficient and don’t need him. I’m embarrassed about how often I live as if I have no need for God. I’m praying this experience will change all that.

I live in an affluent county in metro Atlanta. I drive by million dollar homes. Though I don’t live in anything quite like that, what I have is a mansion compared to their pieced together walls, dirt floors, and outhouses. It seems silly to worry about how I have weeds in my lawn, how we have an entire room with no furniture, or [gasp] an entire wall with no decorations. Even though their life is tough, they seem to be really joyful.

Looking to the Future

One of the neat things about this trip is that men are encouraged to bring their sons with them. Of course my Caleb is still way too young, but I look forward to one day taking him (and his younger unborn brother) and experiencing this together.

Wha…No pictures??

I didn’t take my camera, but lots of others on our team did. So, I think I’ll encourage them to upload them to Flickr. If they get posted, I’ll let you know.