Anticipation . . . Hesitation . . .

There comes a moment (or many moments as the case may be) when preparing for an endeaver such as this that you begin to wonder . . . why am I doing this . . . there is an element of danger involved here . . . air planes don't always make it to their destinations . . . they don't speak my language where we are going . . . what if I get sick . . . what if I get hurt . . . what if we can't finish the house in time . . . what if I don't make it back to my family. . .


Those hesitations, fears, worries can paralyze, but I have to go back to the strong sense that God has called us to this mission. The vision for this trip came to us over a year ago as our college students began to sense a call to risk even more in God's kingdom work. They wanted to reach out beyond their comfort zones and minister to the people in this world who are in the most need. We prayed . . . researched . . . studied the opportunities . . . prayed . . . Our group came to a consensus that this trip is what God had planned for us. So here we go!


God, we place our trust in you. We give you our time, our efforts, our all, and we ask that you would work through us to bring peace and security to the Hernandaz family in Mazatlan as we build for them a simple, decent home in which to live. We don't know anything about their spiritual journey, but we pray that this mission will bring them close to you--that they would glimpse your love for them through our actions. And keep us safe, Lord. We want to return for many more opportunities to serve you and our families.

Packing

I don't know about everyone else on the team, but I am finding that packing is a real chore. We have to limit our bags to 50 lbs and 62 linear inches, and yet we also have to take tools to build a house. We have to take enough clothes for a week in tropical weather. Our liquids have to be in 3 ounce containers that all fit within a quart sized zip lock bag. We have to remember all of the important stuff like passports, (oh yeah, don't forget your vaccinations at the health department tomorrow) digital camera, video camera, laptop computer, cf card reader (so we can post pictures from the mission), Spanish New Testaments and gospel leaflets, etc.

This is not the most enjoyable part of the trip.

Getting Ready

Nine members of First Baptist Bristol will travel to Mazatlan, Mexico June 18, 2007 to build a simple house for a needy family.

We just received these pictures of the family and of their old "house."
The old building has now been cleared and a concrete slab has been poured (the family is staying with friends). All that remains is for our team to arrive and start building.

Please be in prayer for our team and for the family for whom we are building (the Hernandaz family). Our hope is that God will shower his grace and love on this family as we share our time, labor, and faith with them.