Acts 20:35 “In everything I showed you that by working hard in this manner you must help the weak and remember the words of the Lord Jesus, that He Himself said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.”
Over Spring Break I went with LifePointe Church to Puerto Penasco, Mexico. We partnered with Amor Ministries (amor.org) to build a house for a family in need.
The family consisted of a Father, and his two twin 17year olds – a boy and a girl. Jose Enriche (the father), Jose Mario (the son), and Maria Jose (the daughter).
The above picture Maria, Jose Enriche, and Jose Mario (this is in front of the completed house).
Sixteen of us piled into a mini bus, and a yukon and started on our journey. From Fort Collins to Puerto Penasco. The road trip wasn’t bad, we got to bond and talk. It went by pretty fast, and I got to work on my crocheting. It was good to have some extra time to work on some of my crochet orders (a fundraiser that I have been doing).
Before we departed for the trip we had a chance to get the whole team together ONCE. So, we all were a little worried about the team unity and how we would all work together. Although, God is faithful. We had been praying about unity prior to our trip, and He definitely delivered.
The first day we drove, and then we drove some more. We stopped in Arizona for some much needed In and Out Burger, and then we stayed at a church that evening. The funny thing is, that night we were probably in more danger than the whole time that we were in Mexico.
The second day we drove to the border, and… The border crossing went amazing! They sent us on through without checking all of our stuff, and we were on our way. It was fast, and easy. We finished our drive into the camp site and then we set up our tents. Yes, we camped in a very hot and dry desert. After camp was all set up we headed into town to look for the ocean. We found a rocky coast and Wes (the youth pastor) sent us all out to find an object that represented our relationship with God in that moment. Later that evening around the campfire we shared each of our objects.
The third day we woke up early, ate breakfast, and were on our way. We got to start the build on this day AND meet our lovely family. Jose, Mario, and Maria were so welcoming – the neighborhood kids definitely enjoyed our presence as well. All three of the family members were living in this tiny trailer, with no running water. All three of them got to stay with us and help us on this day. We laid the foundation, and worked on nailing together the frame of the house. The kids didn’t hesitate to help us with the mixing of concrete, the hammering, and the sawing. Tonight we invited the family over for dinner. They came to our campsite for Chili and Corn Cakes (the dough of a tamale grilled in oil – pretty delicious). The father got to share how grateful he was for us why we were eating – and Kiley translated for us. We got to send the extra chili home with them. It was nice to get to spend extra time with the family outside of the build site. It was less chaotic – and there were no little kids to steal your attention. Andrew got to teach Jose Mario how to play the drum too.
The fourth day we woke up early again, ate breakfast, and headed back to the build site! We had to get the rest of the framing built, and put up the walls! We wrapped the house with wire, tar paper, and chicken wire (the base of the stucco). Then we had to nail in the chicken wire to make sure it was tight. The kids got to help with more nailing, and sawing today. There were some points today that not all 16 of us were needed so we got to hang out with the family, and play with the kids. There was this 5year old girl Aria – who loved getting attention. When she was there she was always in someones arms. The kids loved the little crackers and cookies we gave them too. When we gave them water they bit the bottom of the plastic bottles off instead of unscrewing the top… When they left them around the build site you would pick one up that was in the way and the water would spill out all over you. Maria had to work this day so we didn’t get to see her until later, and Jose the father had to work as well, until about 2 in the afternoon. He works as a fisherman and brought home fresh fish and shark. He butchered it up for us and sent it back with us!
The above picture is me holding the shark that Jose caught for us! I walked over to greet him, and he handed me the shark and said “photo”. I don’t speak a lot of Espanol but I knew what he was saying. I told him I had to go find a camera and sheepishly handed him the shark back. After finding Rebecca I asked her to take a picture of me holding the shark – per Jose’s request! I am glad he suggested it. That evening we feasted on fresh shark and fish tacos! With a yummy jalapeno and pineapple salsa. Pastor Eladio got to join us for dinner on this night, and he told us his story on how he decided to become a pastor. He is the pastor that is working with Jose, Mario, and Maria. He is good friends with them. It was a really cool experience to get to hear him speak. Kiley translated for us again, I am so grateful that she went on this trip!
The fifth day, and final build day! We had to do all the finishing touches as well as stucco the whole house on this day! I mixed the concrete for the first half of the day, and my back regretted it by lunch. It was fun mixing it with Jose the father though. The team really worked well together. They were stuccoing like a well oiled machine! The son Mario was at school on this day, and Maria was at work – but we got to see them all later when we handed them the keys. We all picked a bible verse that meant a lot to us and we marked it in the bible we were giving them. It was hard to believe the build was finished when we handed them the keys. The last couple days went by so fast!
The above picture was the whole team in front of the completed house! They were so grateful when we gave them the keys to the house. It really was amazing telling them that we came to build them a house, because Jesus has a house for us all up in heaven. This evening an Amor worker came and shared with us more about Amor ministries. She also shared her story. We were all so exhausted as we listened around the campfire.
The sixth day we packed up camp. We woke up, ate breakfast, and then tore down all the tents. We didn’t know what Wes had in store for us on this final day in Mexico – but we all were excited to find out. On the drive out we got to stop and see the house we had built the previous year! the kids weren’t home, or the grandkids, but we got to talk with the mother. It was really cool to see house and how they had chosen to decorate the inside. After that we drove to the beach! Wes had set it up with a resort where we could go to an actual sandy beach and play in the ocean for a couple hours. Unbeknownst to us he was planning a culture shock.. After we all got to play in the ocean, lay out on the beach, relax in the hot tub after a long couple days – we met back around the pool. Wes told us that we would be staying the night at the resort. A lot of people were pretty negative about staying at the resort – they felt greedy or guilty, they would’ve been fine camping another night and just spending more time with the family, etc. I on the other hand was pretty excited. Yes I felt all of those feelings too, but I saw this as a blessing. I had been praying for this trip to be relaxing in some way, and that I would be able to de-stress. This was an answer to my prayers. I have also been to resorts down in Mexico before, and have done serve days – so the culture shock wasn’t something I hadn’t felt before.
Above picture is after all of us girls took showers (real ones, not the bucket ones we have been trying to do all week at camp)!!
At the debrief that evening Wes told us that he had planned the whole thing and asked us all for our feelings on the matter. He wanted us to see the difference in how we are accustom to living (running water, air conditioning, beds, etc.) immediately after seeing how the family lives (instead of letting it dull down on our long drive home). I understand what Wes was doing, and I think it was really impactfull.
The seventh day we drove, and then drove some more… again. The border crossing went smoothly – even though we all had to get out of the van and go show them our passports. And then we drove all the way to Raton, New Mexico and stayed the night there. I got to work on my crocheting some more in the bus!
The eighth and final day. We drove the rest of the way back to Fort Collins. Cleaned out the vehicles, sifted through all of our stuff, and then went on our way. A whole week gone, now all we are left with is amazing experiences and new friends – but the family was left with a house. Even though it isn’t quite up to the standards here in America, it was so much better than the living conditions they were in.
