This past Saturday, I had the opportunity to go on a day long outreach trip to Nogales, Mexico with Glad Tidings church. We left Tucson around 1100 and arrived in Nogales a little past noon. We met up with pastor Hector who pastors two churches in the city and is heading the first Christian television network in Mexico – soon to go live in the next few weeks. He also started a restaurant that helps fund the television project. After stopping there to eat, we continued out to the dump where one of the churches was located. According to pastor Hector, the normal congregation consists of about thirty people; that night, nearly one-hundred and seventy people showed up (about seventy of them children). The worship team preformed and the pastors from Glad Tidings shared a message that paralleled the game show Deal or No Deal – known as “Vas o No Vas” in Mexico. The main point talked about who we were choosing to make a deal with in our lives, Satan or God. Near the end of the service, the pastor had an alter call and nearly seventy people (not including children) decided to give their life to Jesus! I had the opportunity to pray with some of them in Spanish - which I had never been able to before. After the service was over, we handed out food and clothing to the adults and candy to the children. We left church around 2030 and got back to Tucson at 2200.
One thing that this trip has really shown me is how easy it is to reach out to those in need and share the love of Jesus. It doesn't take very much: a few hours, a day. Its not that much of a sacrifice. God has blessed me so much! The least I can do is share what I have with those less fortunate than me....
“As for the rich in this present age, charge them not to be haughty, nor to set their hopes on the uncertainty of riches, but on God, who richly provides us with everything to enjoy. They are to do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous and ready to share, thus storing up treasure for themselves as a good foundation for the future, so that they may take hold of that which is truly life.”
- 1 Timothy 6:17-19
Vince
That's an awesome story. One of the biggest impacts from Turkey that stuck with me was when I prayed with turks, romanians, and bulgarians. We all prayed in our native tongues. Really makes you thirsty to see the global church come together. blessings man.
ps. that's pretty cool but we missed you at the party