2012 Mexico Mission Trip: Day 9 and 10

Day 9 in Mexico was Friday and it was definitely a great day to finish the trip. Our team woke up early to have breakfast and Bible study. Then we made our way to a local orphanage in Rosarito. This location is nearly finished getting prepped and certified to be opened for little kids. This particular orphanage will be used to house kids with illness, disease, and disabilities. Our team went throughout the facility cleaning and praying for God's blessing. After a quick break for lunch we got prepped and went to Vista Marina, a local neighborhood that HCR has been ministering in for over four years. We got to be a part of their Friday night church service with worship, preaching, sharing testimonies, and playing with the neighborhood children. We finished the night with street tacos and a game of futbol rapido.

Saturday morning was day 10 and it was our travel day. We woke up early to pack up and get across the border. Our border crossing went so quickly and smoothly that we were able to share a final breakfast at a local San Diego diner with the team and the Godwins. Once breakfast was over we made our way to the airport and got through security so we could fly back to Seattle.

Thanks to everyone for your prayers and support for this trip. The team did amazing work and saw great results for their efforts.

2012 Mexico Mission Trip: Day 8

Thursday was Day 8 and it was a big day for us. Thursday was the final day of painting. We finally finished the upstairs classrooms and room dividers. The students did an awesome job revamping these rooms.

Thursday was also our final day of Vacation Bible School. We saw the group grow this day in the number of kids in attendance and their energy was infectious. Our students did an awesome job leading the group of kids in a teaching about HOPE and how our hope in Christ cannot be robbed by anyone or anything. The kids learned that HOPE in Christ changes our lives forever and propels us to do amazing things for the Kingdom of God.

The night concluded with Pastors Don and Sandy Godwin sharing their gratitude and appreciation with the team for all of their hard work with the projects and the VBS.

2012 Mexico Mission Trip: Day 7

Day 7 was Wednesday and we spent it continuing our painting projects around the church and ministering to the kids during day 2 of our Vacation Bible School. It is so cool to see these painting projects come together after days and days of hard work on behalf of the team. They've put a lot of energy into these projects and we know it has a been a huge blessing to the church.

The VBS was a lot of fun for the students as we taught the kids about having FAITH in Jesus. They learned about Noah's Ark, colored beautiful drawings and made amazing Rainbow Rattles. The students have really come together as a team during the VBS and we've seen then rise to the occasion and give their best efforts in putting on the best VBS possible.

We finished our Wednesday with a trip to the futbol rapido game to support the Hope Chapel Rosarito Team as they began game one of the playoffs.

2012 Mexico Mission Trip: Day 6

Day 6 was the first day of our Vacation Bible School at Hope Chapel Rosarito. The students started the day by continuing our projects around the church, but then in the evening we were ready for all the kids to come and learn about Jesus. The first day of the VBS had 6 kids in attendance and all of them loved it.

VBS began with eating dinner together, we then had a group game where the kids popped balloons and received candy that had been hidden inside the balloons. Our students led the kids in a couple worship songs full of energy and hand motions. Then we began our rotations.

Different students led different rotations. We had a puppet show about the prodigal son, there was a coloring station, we had a small game, and we concluded with a craft. The theme word of the day was LOVE and so all of our rotations and teachings had to do with God's love for us. Our memory verse was 1 John 4:19, "We love because He first loved us."

It was a great day of ministry for the students and the kids. Our team really did an amazing job keeping things organized as they put on the VBS. It was really encouraging to see them not get discouraged when the turn out was lower than expected. They recognize that God is up to good work in this community and sometimes great things start small. We are a part of HCR's first ever VBS and we're a part of starting something for this church that could have lasting results.

2012 Mexico Mission Trip: Day 5

Monday was day 5 of our trip and it was our team Sabbath for rest and relaxation. After breakfast and Bible study we went out and hit the local shopping market so that the team members could buy Mexico souvenirs and trinkets. Who knew that boys liked to shop? Our team is almost all boys and yet we spent hours navigating the shops, haggling for deals, and browsing for great buys. The team was really excited when Sean told them that they all were going to receive a hoodie poncho of their choice.

Once we finished our shop time we grabbed some street tacos (including tacos de lingua), and then made our way to the beach. At the beach some of our team braved the chilly waters to play in the waves while others played in the sand or soaked up some rays.

Our team has been working really hard together so it was a lot of fun to see them play together and share some laughs. The day of fun was perfectly placed in our schedule because Tuesday marks the beginning of Hope Chapel Rosarito's First Ever Vacation Bible School. The students will be working hard to put it all together so your prayers are greatly appreciated.

2012 Mexico Mission Trip: Day 4

Day 4 was church day for our team. We had service at Hope Chapel Rosarito in the morning. Some of our team joined their worship team in leading the congregation in worship. Other members were greeters and ushers welcoming congregants. From HCR we made our way to Iglesia de Nuevo Esperanza to minister at another Foursquare Church. This has been our 3rd annual trip to Pastor Raul's church to preach, pray, and worship together. Pastor Sean preached about God as our Healer and the students got to pray for all the congregants suffering from physical, emotional, or spiritual wounds. It was a powerful moment for the entire team as the Holy Spirit worked through them to minister to the church members. We spent Sunday evening enjoying the company of Pastors Don and Sandy for dinner and games, which was a fun end to an amazing day.

Don't forget you can see more pictures from our trip by LIKING our Facebook Page

2012 Mexico Mission Trip: Day 3

Day 3 was a day of continuing projects around Hope Chapel Rosarito. Some of the team continued the painting project in the new children's classrooms. Other students were outside leveling, while the rest of the team prepped and cleaned the church for service on Sunday.

The majority of our meals are prepared by Pastor Sandy and her daughter Emily in their home. We eat together and share times of fellowship and food. These times are great also for mingling with some of the locals who volunteer around HCR. A handful of congregants have been serving alongside us and helping us learn our Spanish.

Saturday concluded with a team discussion time and a Q&A time with Pastors Don and Sandy Godwin. The team was able to ask as many questions as possible concerning missions, church planting, living in Mexico, moving to a different country, and following God's calling for your life.

2012 Mexico Mission Trip: Day 2

Friday was day 2 of our trip to Rosarito, Mexico, but the weather looked a lot like Seattle. In the morning it was overcast and cloudy and by the afternoon it was down pouring. Instead of weeding and leveling out the vacant lot next to the church we spent our time inside painting the new children's classrooms, new sound booth, and room partitions. There was a question of which ended up with more paint on it: the walls or the students? Overall they did a great job working together as a team and accomplishing the task at hand.

The team is really beginning to connect and build unity together. We see them laughing a lot and sharing life together. We created a buddy system that challenges them to spend the day getting to know one of their teammates and then sharing about them at the end of the night. It was really powerful to hear the students share about each other such kind and encouraging words. As you can see pictured above, some buddies are even helping each other with traveling from one location to the next.

Due to the rains we were unable to do an outreach in the Vista Marina neighborhood or attend the futbol rapido (arena soccer) game, but we're looking forward to good weather next Friday allowing us to enjoy these two facets to Hope Chapel Rosarito's ministry. In the evening we enjoyed some delicious tacos at a local hotspot. Students really enjoyed the tasty tacos and drinking Cokes from glass bottles. Friday may have left us standing in the mud, but it didn't stop us from being a part of God's ministry down in Rosarito.

2012 Mexico Mission Trip: Day 1

Day One of the 2012 Uturn Jr. High Mexico Mission Trip is underway. Today began at the early time of 5:30am as the team met at Sea-Tac Airport for our flight to San Diego. We were praising God as we got all of our bags checked under the 50 pound weight limits and smoothly navigated the security checkpoints. After grabbing some tasty breakfast at Wendy's and Starbucks in the airport food court we made our way to sunny San Diego. Thankfully all of our bags met us at the baggage claim and we met up with Pastors Don and Sandy Godwin on the curbside. What a joy to see them and their smiling faces. Before crossing the border into Mexico we made a quick pitstop at In-N-Out Burger for some lunch.

Later in the afternoon we were praising God for guiding us through a smooth border crossing. We had no travel hiccups or issues and we safely made it to our rental home that we'll be staying in for the duration of our trip. After unloading our luggage we had a brief orientation about the trip and then made our way to Hope Chapel Rosarito to begin prep work for upcoming projects.

Once at HCR the team went to work cleaning out offices, taping walls in preparation for paint, and weeding the adjacent lot for parking. Our team easily will put in a 17 hour day and they still remain positive, upbeat, and they're working hard. Please continue to keep us in your prayers as the trip has just begun.

Don't forget you can see more pics from the trip on our Facebook page

Razors or Band-Aids

Proverbs 12:18

Some people make cutting remarks, but the words of the wise bring healing.

We all know that our words carry power and influence, but it is so easy to forget the tremendous impact they can have on a person. It is so easy to find ourselves around our friends joking with each other and making fun of each other's flaws, insecurities, and mistakes. We don't always intend to hurt, but even without realizing it we are sending out words to our friends that are truly damaging. These jokes, one-liners, gossips, and quips come in the form of text messages, Facebook posts and quick audible jabs; but no matter their form they still can be like little razor blades slicing away at the hearts of our friends.

As Christ followers it is crucial to remember that our words not only have the power to hurt, but as this Proverb mentions, they have the capability of bringing healing to others. When everyone else is joking around and being mean we can encourage. When everyone is criticizing someone for their mistakes we can accentuate their successes. When everyone is talking smack about someone on Facebook we can choose to delete the post from our wall. The people around us are constantly getting ripped apart by the words of others, allow your words to do just the opposite and build someone up. Use your words to restore, encourage, edify, promote, and heal the hearts of your friends.