Encouraged This Morning!

I am encouraged this morning as I reflect on the activity and ministry that happened this weekend among our little fellowship of house churches.  

 

On Saturday afternoon, Martin and Rosa called from La Piedad—just to connect and see how our week had gone.  They shared about their week and their ministry among addicts and their ongoing desire and efforts to see God’s kingdom come more powerfully to their own family.  Martin told me that his older sons and some of their teenage friends were planning to be together with the church that meets in their home on Sunday—that he was praying about the time they would have together and was preparing himself to tell them the story of Jesus’ encounter with the leper.  I wonder how it went.  But I’m encouraged to know how they are thinking and trying to live into their faith…

 

A few hours later on Sunday morning early, Jose Luis and Juliana called me from the street.  My family and I were with them and their church last Sunday in their colonia the week before—as about 25 members of their family and friends met to eat, sing, pray, share their hearts and read the Bible together.  Yesterday, they called saying they were on their way to visit and meet with Omar and the band of Jesus followers in and around Omar’s house in Jocotan (another area of the city).  Since the group with Jose Luis and Juliana doesn’t usually meet until the late afternoon, they wanted to take advantage of the early part of the day to visit and meet with the other church.  Nancy and I felt so encouraged at the news of their leadership…their initiative…the sense of love and responsibility that is developing among these groups.  They seem to grasp the importance of living in and incarnating Christ in their own neighborhoods and among their own families—yet they also know they are part of something larger than just this—they form a part of the larger body of Christ in their city.  

 

I had breakfast this morning with Omar—he told me that the day was great—he told of the encouragement he and his group felt from Jose Luis and Juliana—of how Omar’s wife is being drawn to Christ by the transformation in Omar’s life and by the community of Jesus followers around Omar.  

 

At the same time all of this was happening on Sunday, Gerardo and Carola and a few of those from the church in their colonia had plans to begin something new among a family on the other side of the city.  They planned to enter into this “house of peace” and to begin sharing and proclaiming Jesus as God gives them opportunity.  Their prayer is that this will be the beginning of a new Jesus community—a new church.  I wonder this morning how it went. 

 

But I’m encouraged to see evidence that God is moving among my dear friends… 

A Grace-Filled Weekend: On Mission to Kids with A House Church in La Piedad

We spent the weekend on mission with a house church in La Piedad, Michoacan.  This church began 2 ½ years ago.  Martin and Rosa are people of peace who invited us into their home and into their network of relationships to demonstrate and proclaim the Good News of Jesus and the Kingdom.  From the beginning of our relationship, they have wanted us to help them grow to be a vibrant spiritual family of Jesus in and to their neighborhood.  Experiencing God’s work through their lives has been one of the highlights of the past couple of years.   

Martin and Rosa—and virtually everyone around them—live in a world marked by alcohol and drug addiction.  Almost everyone they know fall into at least one of these categories:  addict, recovering addict, codependent family member of addict.   

They believe that God has rescued and graced them so they can participate with God to rescue others.  They especially feel fashioned by God to help kids and youth to choose a better path for their lives.   

This past weekend, we accompanied them in their 2^nd kids/youth weekend.  The 1^st one was back in November.  This time, four leaders from 2 of the house churches in Guadalajara joined my family and me and almost 30 kids and youth from their network of friends and family.   

We spent about 28 hours in and around Martin’s house ministering to, playing with, and talking and listening to kids.  It was messy.  At times it was wild.  There were really 2 groups of kids.  There were about 20 young kids (5 to 11 years old).  There were 8 youth (13-17).   

It felt good to be useful in God’s hands—to really feel like God reached in to the lives of desperate and hurting kids.   

We told and played three stories from scripture.  Early on Saturday, we told the story of Creation—were able to really talk about God’s dream for humans and for the world God made.  We listened to each other admit that the world we live in seems a lot different than the perfect one that God called “good.”   

Later on that afternoon, we told the story of the 1^st humans and their choice to not trust God and to disobey—we were able to really talk about the lies being spoken around us—about consequences—specifically the ones we’ve seen with our own eyes and experienced.  We discovered together again that God looks for people even when we’ve messed up.   

On Sunday morning we told the story of Adam’s and Eve’s children and how as 2^nd generation humans, they had to suffer consequences of their folks’ disobedience—and how they also got a chance to choose for themselves.  We challenged one another to not live as victims. 

In the hours after each story, there were conversations and games.  There were activities and some really powerful skits and object lessons.   There was singing and praying…and some crying. 

It was a great weekend—great to feel used by God for good in the lives of kids who really need some good.   It was especially good to see God work through my friends—to see people very dear to me live more fully into God’s design for their lives–and for them to know it. 

10 Years in Guadalajara

10 years ago last night, my family and a team of 4 other families began arriving in Guadalajara.  We were very “green” yet really wanted to be used by the Lord for good…for the expansion of God’s kingdom.  Our twins were 4 1/2 years old.  We were all young!  

I’ve been reading my journal entries for those days.  So much has changed in our thinking, understanding of the culture, understandings of our task…

Yet, so much remains the same:  a deep desire to follow God’s lead and be empowered by God, a deep desire to trust God, a deep desire to see the gospel make a difference in the lives of the Mexican people, a strong awareness of our imperfection and our need for God and for one another. 

I’m especially thankful to God for our coworkers today:  Joe and Elaine Pruett, Robert and Shelley Herrera, Pat and Malissa Sheaffer, Jason and Beth Gossett.  Lots of memories! 

Playing Together With God

Last weekend was a lot of fun!  About 30 of us spent Saturday and Sunday playing together with God in and around Martin and Rosa’s house.  Since they and their family began following Jesus a couple of years ago, they’ve wondered what God wanted them and their house church to do to make a difference in the lives of the children who live around them.  Though they are always ministering to and providing surrogate “parenting” for the kids around them, the idea of a “kid’s weekend” began to emerge…  They asked Nancy and me to help them.  It needed to be simple.  It needed to be reproducible for normal Mexican Christians.  It needed to be cheap.  So, after praying and describing to one another what we believed God was leading us to do, we decided to dive in.   

Beginning about noon on Saturday, we began the party.  There were seven adults and 25 kids (ages ranged from 3 to 16 with the average being about 9).  As we described what we were doing, two images were used over and again.  One image was that of caldo (Mexican soup).  Although Nancy provided a basic framework of organization, we talked about the weekend being like a soup that we make together, each one adding their ingredient and trusting that in the end it will taste good.  The other image was “playing.”  We reminded each other that we were just “playing together with God.”  And play we did!  We “played” three stories from the life of Jesus.  We “played” each one at least three times with different kids playing the parts in each telling—afterwards we talked about what we liked about the story—we wondered and discussed together what the stories mean to kids like us.  We played games.  We played soccer.  We played musical chairs.  We played with clay.  We had a campfire and roasted marsh mellows.  We sang songs to the Lord and to each other.  We sang silly songs.  We prayed together.  Everyone brought bedrolls and we “camped out” there in the house.  We ate simple meals that we prepared and cleaned up after together.  We talked and listened to one another talk about real life in a place where poverty, addictions and abuse are the norm.  There were tears.  And did I mention that there was playing?   

I wonder what God will do with the seeds planted in all of us last weekend?  I’m not sure, but I think something significant happened in the hearts of the adults.  Martin and Rosa want to do this again in January or February—maybe plan to have a kid’s weekend every month or two.  They see it as their way to incarnate Christ and his missional presence among children in their little corner of the world.  I wonder about some of the other small Christ communities around us and how they might choose to incarnate Christ among the children in their neighborhoods.

I Saw God

When Israel came out of Egypt, the house of Jacob from a people of foreign tongue, Judah became God’s sanctuary, Israel his dominion – Psalm 114:1-2

Yesterday I think I saw God… 

My family and I were invited to meet with one of the house churches that lives, meets and seeks to incarnate Christ in a rather poor area of Guadalajara.  Yesterday they gathered at Toñito’s house.  Toñito has had a difficult life.  He is the 3^rd of seven children.  He has severe physical deformities and is confined to a wheel chair.  Though he turned 18 yesterday, he looks like a 10-year old.  The doctors do not expect him to live much longer.  His family struggles to make it…to understand it.   

But yesterday I think I saw God at his house… 

When we arrived at his house, we were ushered to an open area out back.  25 or 30 people were sitting around a small table and a huge pot with a fire under it.  On the table were the bread and the grape juice for the Lord’s Supper.  In the pot were several chickens and Pozole, a delicious Mexican soup.  For the next few hours, there was a fiesta:  a “potluck” of shared songs, scripture, stories of God, good conversation, pozole, birthday cake, jokes and laughing…lots of laughing.  I was struck by the diversity of people:  Jesus followers, seekers, curious people…I was struck that almost everyone came from difficult pasts:  addictions, abuse, rejection, sickness, marginalization, oppression…yet yesterday there was belonging, relationship, plenty, laughing.   

Yesterday, I think I saw God at Toñito’s house.  I think Toñito saw God too…

International Internet Day

Today is International Internet Day.  Supposedly there are over 20 million internet users in Mexico…this number has increased dramatically (more than doubled) in the last 3 years.  With just over 100 million people living in Mexico that means that 1 in 5 Mexicans are connected in this way.  I guess some of these 20 million users may be the same person with multiple usernames.  Anyway…there are alot of Mexicans connected to the internet…and the number is growing.

Its not what most people envision when they think of Mexico.  Burros, tortillas, sombreros, tacos, tequila, mariachi music, siesta…internet.  I don’t think so. 

I’m reminded that Mexico has changed and continues to be on the fast track for change.  What will the “new” Mexico be?  The lists are long of both the good and the bad that comes from this and other sources of change.  But its still happening…

What does it mean? 

I’m not even sure sometimes what the questions are…much less the answers. 

Mexicans–Ties That Bind

Two or three weeks back I listened to an interview with researcher Dan Lund who lives and works in Mexico City.  He has recently done research on Mexicans and what are the common ties that hold Mexicans together–whether in Mexico or living abroad.  The gist of his research question was:  “What are you most proud of as a Mexican?” 

Surprisingly, instead of turning up symbols of the Church or of patriotism, he said he discovered a unique configuration of family, food and place.  How does it work? 

Family.  Mexicans are extremely family oriented.  They love getting together in family groups…often extended family.  Typically the group comes together around a meal…around the table…around the grill…sometimes its a birthday party or some holiday…sometimes its just the weekend.  Food.  Mexicans are proud of their food…and Mexican food is fabulous–tacos, carne asada, mole, pozole, barbacoa, birria, tamales…  And the thing is that Mexicans love to cook and love to eat.  What’s more the food is the conversation.  Each dish has a history and varies from region to region.  Mexicans can talk for hours about the food.  Lund says the metaphor for Mexico is table.  Place.  To be a Mexican is to be from a specific place.  Mexicans feel a strong tie to some specific place…some city or pueblito.  Even when you don’t presently live there, eres de alli.  You are proud of where you are from.  Lund says that the money sent back to Mexico by Mexicans living in the U.S. is not just about the money…but about the connection to a place…it is a social relationship. 

So what does all of this mean?  What does it say to those who want to understand and connect with Mexicans (in Mexico or in the U.S.)?

I think about Jesus and the way table was so important to him, to his ministry…so important in the Kingdom message he lived and proclaimed. 

I think about the potential blessing of eating alot of good Mexican food!

fruit of machismo?

i want to understand better what’s going on in mexico. 

i want to understand what causes some mexicans to do whatever it takes to find a better life. 

i read a quote today from mexico’s president felipe calderon saying that there is a culture of “machismo and misogyny” that pervades in mexico…said that in 2006, 49% of all homicides against women were at the hands of their husbands.

the president called these figures “chilling.”  i agree. 

i wonder what the connection is with drugs and alcohol. 

i wonder what the figure is in other places.