Update from Mexicali

It’s less than 24 hours after a magnitude 7.2 earthquake struck northern Baja and we’ve all been praying in earnest for the communities and our friends impacted by the tremor.  We have some good news and praise reports we’d like to share with you.

We’ve already talked with 4 out of 5 pastors in the villages we served a few days ago.  Information was initially slow to come out of Mexico but as the hours passed, many of you began to receive information via cell phone, Facebook, and text messages from our friends in the communities we served.  As of this morning, Carlos Corro has been able to talk with all the pastors except Odilon in Quintana Roo.  All of the pastors Carlos spoke with report that their people are safe and well.  Julie Gerughty has heard from one of our translators who spoke with a friend in Quintana Roo who reported that the church has sustained damage but all the people are safe and well.  Join us in praising God that all the pastors and their congregations are safe, well, and uninjured.  Some structural damage has occurred, especially in Quintana Roo, but the other church buildings are fine and intact.  It’s been reported that folks in these communities have drinking water but no running water for everyday chores.  Plumbing has also been affected in many towns.  Power outages are widespread and as of this morning the border has remained closed.  It seems from reports that significant damage has occurred to roads, making clean up, restoration of power, and other infrastructure a significant challenge as Mexican authorities now embark on the overwhelming task of restoring basic services.  Please join us in praising God for the well-being of the people and the safety, energy, wisdom, and strength of folks seeking to restore important services and provide care.

APU has reported that all students, leaders, and staff checked in safely yesterday.  After a thorough assessment of damage to roads and infrastructure, they’ve decided it’s safe to continue with their service efforts this week. Please pray for the 29 churches and over 1,000 students who now embark on the effort to assist local communities in clean up and recovery.  You can read their updates at www.mexicooutreach.org.

As we continue to pray earnestly for our brothers and sisters in Mexico, I’m reminded of Paul’s words to the church in Thessalonica:  “We loved you so much that we were delighted to share with you not only the gospel of God but our very lives as well, because you had become so dear to us.”  There are echoes of these words in our friendships with the people we’ve grown to love in Mexico because of our shared faith in Jesus.  These folks touched our lives and through them we experienced the joy, grace, and love of God. Please continue joining our MPPC community in lifting our brothers and sisters in Quintana Roo, Nuevo Leon, Michoacan, Echeverria, and Reacomodo up in prayer before the Lord.

We will continue to post updates as new information becomes available.

Praying for Mexicali

By now, you’ve probably heard about the magnitude 7.2 earthquake that struck Northern Baja, approximately 1 hour south of Mexicali and near to the towns of Quintana Roo and Reacamodo where we served just a few days ago.  There have been many news reports from Southern California and the Palm Springs area where communication lines have remained intact but not much news yet out of Mexico.  Cell phone service in Mexico has been spotty and we haven’t been able to reach the folks in the villages that we know, though we’re continuing in trying to get through.  Our High School Ministry intern, Carlos Corro, has been in touch with his family living in Mexicali and while there have been reports of structural damage, power outages, and downed service lines around the city, everyone in his family is safe.  I’ve been in contact with Azusa Pacific University’s base camp in Cuernavaca where we stayed and was told that while they experienced a short power outage, there has been no damage to their immediate area.

As you may know, APU is running another camp this week and over 1,000 folks arrived at Cuernavaca from the States a day after we left.  When the quake struck, students and leaders were out serving at their ministry sites.  APU is in the process of checking everyone back in and will know shortly about everyone’s whereabouts. APU has released this statement on their www.mexicooutreach.org website:

“Over 1,000 team members from 29 churches are currently participating in Mexico Outreach in Mexicali, Mexico. We’ve experienced a 6.9 [upgraded to 7.2 by USGS, http://bit.ly/9cUisc] earthquake with an epicenter about one hour away.  There continues to be many smaller after shocks, but so far everyone is ok. We are in the process of confirming that all the teams around the city and in the valley are ok. Base camp has lost some power, and cell services are not all working. We’ll continue to update you as we find out more information. In summary, everyone in camp is ok, and we are still confirming that all our teams are ok around the city.”

The staff member I spoke with said that as soon as everyone is checked in then they will release a follow-up statement on their website.

Please join us in praying fervently for our brothers and sisters in Quintana Roo, Reacomodo, Nuevo Leon, Michoacan, Echeverria, and Mexicali.  Pray specifically for the pastors and congregations in those towns as they care for their loved ones and respond to needs in their communities.  Additionally, let’s pray for the safety and well-being of the many students, leaders, and APU staff as they care for their folks in Cuernavaca, communicate with families back home, and respond to needs in the communities they’re serving throughout this week. Once we hear more about specific needs in our villages, we’ll begin to assess our response as a church community. As soon as we hear more, we’ll let you know.

Praying

More Mexicali Photos

Home safe and sound!  The uploading begins – pics are flying around and here are a few places you can view:

Go to our Menlo Park Pres. High School Ministries Facebook page by clicking here.  I’ve shared my photos there including some newly uploaded.  If you or your student went on the trip and took photos, please share them to the Menlo Park Pres. High School Ministries Facebook wall so we can all enjoy them.

From Thursday while we were in Mexicali, I posted photos from my phone here if you haven’t already seen them.

If you’re reading this and you were in Mexicali, I hope you slept in this morning…you deserve it!

So far, I think this is my favorite photo…a few of our team in Michoacan with kids we spent the week with:

This one is pretty cool too:

HS Trip Hotline

Well, it took a little longer than we thought thanks to a slower than usual border crossing & clean-up at camp (see previous posts regarding weather conditions). For updated arrival info, please call the HS ministry trip hotline @ (650) 330-7530. When you call, it will ring for a while, just hang on & it will connect. See you soon!

Entrada a USA

Mexicali, Day 6

I woke up this morning thinking of our middle school ministry team in San Diego. No doubt, Chris, Eleanor, Jason, Tyler, & Brooke are doing a fantastic job & I can’t wait to hear how God has used all of them there.

I have to apologize for an oversight on yesterday’s update regarding our two sick students – we were in touch with parents immediately, so by the time I posted the update we had already talked a few times with their parents. We had a few parents call wondering if their girls were the ones not feeling well. Just so you know, on every trip we do, a call to parents is ALWAYS our first step so you would definitely know about anything involving your student immediately. The girls are doing great today. They and Dianna slept at the Comfort Inn in Calexico last night and returned to camp this morning. They even made it back to their ministry sites so we’re praising God for that.

Today was hands down the best day of our trip. We woke up to our Mexicali rap song being played over the camp loud speaker! Everyone was psyched. Jason Nikolao wrote it back in February in 1 hour! Yeah, he’s got some serious talent. Filming took longer but you can listen & view the video a few posts down at the bottom of this page.

This morning, the windstorm was over & was replaced by a rainstorm. Ugh. Everything & everyone was drenched. The mud stuck to shoes, car tires, & everything it touched. With the wind & rain, the past 12 hours felt like chaos. Organizing & caring for the 75 folks in our group has been a challenge but the kids have been champs & just rolled with it. I think it’s just us adults that that get discouraged by challenging conditions. The kids have been great encouragers & jumped in wherever needed to lend a hand. The rain delayed our departure but by the time we were on the road to our ministry sites the sun came out and it was a beautiful day in the low 70′s. Perfect.

So many great stories from today, Family Time lasted an hour. I think because we’ll be home tomorrow, I’ll wait and let your kids share their stories with you. More folks met Jesus today so the party in heaven & in our camp continues! Also, it’s almost midnight & we’re getting up in 5 1/2 hours to pack up to meet the buses so I’m going to try and catch some zzzz’s. I’ll try to post some stories when us drivers get to the airport in the morning.

Please check back here tomorrow where I’ll have our trip hotline number posted. You probably have the number but just in case…the hotline will let you know the ETA of the buses back at MPPC.

Thanks so much for reading and praying! It’s been an amazing trip and we can’t wait to share stories with you face to face of how God worked in the lives of kids. ’til tomorrow…

Mexicali Pics

I uploaded pics from my phone: click here to view.

I’ve posted lots more pics on Facebook…If you have pics, please post to Facebook & share to Menlo Park Pres. High School Ministries page on Facebook.

More updates to follow!

Mexicali, Day 5

I ate 5 pounds of dirt today. Not on purpose. And not all at once. I slowly ingested earth over a period of about 9 hours. We all did to some extent.

When I opened my eyes this morning, the tent was moving. Something was different. The usual barking dogs & roosters’ crows had been replaced with something more steady & unrelenting. I listened more & noticed the wind. I pryed myself out of my sleeping bag & stepped out into a windstorm. It’s dying down now a bit at 8:30pm but still blowing pretty good. There’s been some minor damage to our camp; some tarps & tables have blown away. Each morning, we drop our tents so the safety crew can visually see from one end of camp to the other. A group of us fellas wrapped our faces & put up a few tents tonight when we returned but now we’re waiting a bit for the wind to settle to put up the remaining tents. Most students are huddled up in the vans waiting for the wind to die down, which it’s forecasted to do around 10pm. It’s the end of another incredible day in Mexicali & we’ve experienced so many new things together. A little wind & blowing sand won’t stop this group from doing what we’re here to do. And now we have another unforgettable memory to bring home.

A few of our crew could use your prayers. Last night, 2 of our girls came down with a stomach ache & vomited a few times. Juice was up with them during the night providing Pepto, Gatorade, & lots of love. She & Abby McHugh took them to see the camp doctor this morning. They stayed back in camp to rest today, accompanied by Shelley Sousa & Dianna Branning. By mid-afternoon, the girls were having a hard time holding down food so the camp doctor recommended taking them back across the border to be checked out at an American clinic. Dianna gathered the girls’ passports & got on the road. They just called and are doing fine, feeling much better, but asked us all to lift them up in prayer. Dianna & the girls will get a hotel room for the night in Calexico, rest up, and check in tomorrow morning via phone. We’re so grateful for Juice, Abby, & Dianna knowing that the girls are in great hands.

We spent the morning doing some street cleaning in Mexicali, part of a community service program that APU has with the local government. Our kids knocked it out with great spirit & togetherness.

In the afternoon, our whole group headed over to Quintana Roo, a small village outside Mexicali. There we cooked a BBQ for the church and it seemed the entire town showed up. Jason Nikolao & the crew grilled up hamberguesas & perros calientes while the team played all sorts of games with the village children in the courtyard. Lots of pics to share. A drama team presented the Gospel & the pastor gave a short message. We raffled off the many donations we brought: clothes, small kitchen appliances, and toys. It was again total joy to watch students interact with local familes, extending a hand, jumping right in and engaging, and loving like Jesus.

I just took a break from writing to put up more tents. It was an all- hands-deck operation that lasted 90 minutes but the tents are all up. One tent is out of commission, a pole broke, not from wind but from someone stepping on it. Then wouldn’t you know it, just when we finished the last tent, the wind has almost completely stopped. Dave, Tom, Curt, Carlos, & Jay were gladiators today, working tirelessly to lead students, put up tents, and all in all making sure everyone had a blast together. What a day.

Thanks for reading. Thanks for praying. One more full day of serving & then a day of travel home. I’ll try to post pics tomorrow. ’til then, goodnight!

Mexicali, Day 4

First things first: two of our students prayed to receive Christ for the first time tonight! There’s a party in heaven right now & a party in our campground! Always AMAZING when Jesus touches the heart of a high school student & brings new believers into the family of God.

At Reacomodo today, Shelley Sousa, Clary Sawyer, Shani Taylor-Keeling, Brittney Badduke, Neeka Nazhand, Jenna Swartz, Maddie Gerhardt, & Lizzy Lips shared their testimonies with a group of women who live in the village. Afterwards, they found out that there were two women who didn’t know Jesus, so they prayed with them & led them to the Lord! Incredible day…now for updates & stories…

Not sure what music we woke up to this morning but it was pretty bad. Super loud sound system + bad music = grouchy high schoolers. We all decided to impeach the DJ. Breakfast burritos were awesome though & everyone pepped up after food, coffee, and morning chapel. After 4 days here, we’ve settled into a good rhythm of ministry, work, play, eat, hang out, worship, sleep…wash, rinse, repeat.

Here’s why I love the set-up here at the APU site we chose to go with this year:
1. We’re part of a larger group of close to 1,500 high school students, staff, volunteers, & supporters but we have our own camping area that allows our MPPC students to bond, connect, share, & have Family Time together.
2. Worship is awesome, the band rocks, the speaker is great, the energy of 1,500 people worshipping God is amazing.
3. All of our needs are met with enthusiasm by APU staff. They set us up so well to serve our individual ministry sites. We’re asked daily how they can serve us & pray for us. They are logistical ninjas, handling everything you could possibly think of & everything you haven’t.
4. The energy around the whole camp is awesome.
5. The security team surrounds the campground 24 hours a day. We hear them talking quietly to one another, standing watch, when we get up in the middle of the night. We are grateful for them.
6. They never run out of food.
7. The coffee isn’t great but it’s decent (thankfully, the Liggett’s brought Peets to brew in their RV!).

Walls are coming down among our kids & shy students are getting more courage to initiate with local families and children. New friendships are being made & it’s a blast to watch our students have such a great time together. I can’t wait to see how God will use the momentum of this community of students when we get back home.

Last night, our speaker was a 28 year old Mexicali man who met Jesus when he was 8 years old- it was a high school missions group who shared the Gospel with him back in 1990. So encouraging for our kids to see that God can use them to reach local children who will eventually grow up to have a family of their own. I wonder which ones of the children we meet & impact this week will share a similar testimony with American teenagers in 2030. God is awesome.

This morning we heard that the APU missions directors met with the mayor of Mexicali & his wife. It’s tradition in Mexican politics that a mayor’s wife oversees the city’s social services, (missions to the local community falls under this umbrella). The APU directors meet with the mayor a few times a year to coordinate this week of missions and while the current mayor has been in office for many years, he & his wife are stepping down at the end of this year’s term. They expressed gratitude for all that the APU missions groups (like us) have accomplished over the years while they’ve been in office. The mayor and first lady of Mexicali will be in camp tonight for our worship service.

I have to give a shout out to Kenna Harpell, Carly Reed, & Spencer Berry who did a great job sharing their testimonies today with women’s and boys ministries in Michoacan.

Today, Julie Gerughty’s team in Quintana Roo connected with a Mexican pastor named Enrique who runs a ministry teaching local Mexicali students to share Jesus with homeless kids, kids sold into prostitution, drug addicts, the abandoned, & runaways. Juice & our kids had the opportunity to pray with Enrique’s leaders & staff, close to 50 total. After praying in small groups, MPPC kids mixed in with Enrique’s leaders, Hanna Berggren led worship songs with a Mexican pastor playing guitar. Stories were shared, Enrique shared the vision God has given he & his leaders & the urgency with which they’re trying to reach their mission field. They stressed how important it is that we continue to lift up the children he & his leaders are reaching- 9 & 10 year old homeless kids, the forgotten. He impressed upon our kids that Jesus’ heart just totally breaks for these children. They prayed that our hearts would break for the things that break God’s heart.

This afternoon, Emily Liggett left for home, she was only able to be down here for 4 days due to previous obligations. Her leadership & wisdom have been a tremendous gift to students, leaders, & staff not just while we’ve been down here but during the planning stages as well. When you see her, give her a big hug for us!

Thanks for reading our updates & praying for us. Please pray tomorrow as we put on a worship service & proclaim the Gospel to the community of Quintana Roo. Also, there’s a hint of rain in the forecast & we’re camping in a dirt field (bad combination) so you could pray that the rain stays north.

Miss you Katie & Grey! Goodnight Moon!

Mexicali, Day 3

Amazing day! High School Musical woke us up early. Hoping for Lion King tomorrow. First full day doing ministry & serving in construction projects. We’ve been anxious to get our hands dirty- painting, digging trenches, knocking down walls & also making crafts, drawing, & doing Vacation Bible School. The Michoacan team joined up with the Echeverria team to take down some walls in the morning. Not metaphorically. Literally with a sledgehammer & jackhammer. Got some great pics of kids doing demo work. Will try to send pics later in the week. In the afternoon, we played soccer with local kids and shared testimonies & stories. Was very cool to see our kids share their stories & local kids respond. Our group of girls were amazing as they led local children in Bible stories & VBS activities. Local women of the church gathered for Bible-based parenting lessons led by our adult women leaders. Lots more construction & building projects tomorrow. Actually got a shower for the first time today, stoked for that.

Last night our speaker shared that when he sits down with new members at his church back home, he sometimes asks people the question, “Who is Jesus?” Often people will answer with a title: Lord, Savior, Son of God, or maybe something really impressive like Lamb of God. But if he doesn’t hear the word “my” in the answer then he wonders whether or not the new member has a personal relationship with Jesus. At that point, he’ll often go back through the Gospel with the new member. His point was that it’s possible to know a lot ‘about’ Jesus without experiencing him by knowing him personally. This thought led us into our Family Time where our MPPC group circles up each night to process the day. Towards the end of our time, I had students take a few moments of silence just between themselves & God to consider the question, “Who is Jesus to me?” They did this by silently finishing the sentence, “Jesus is my…” After the time of silence, students had the opportunity to share with the group how they answered the question. It was amazing to hear what some of them said: Jesus is my… Truth. Strength. Home. Joy. Healer. Safe place. Refuge. Friend. Daddy. Many kids shared but not all and that’s ok. Some just enjoyed having God speak to them in silence. Others wrestled with the question. I explained that we’re a safe place where it’s ok to wrestle with the tough questions of faith and life in community together.

It’s often in powerful missions experiences like this, away from our busy schedules, that Jesus will come to us in clearer ways than he might do back home. As we come outside of ourselves in service to others in strikingly different life circumstances, God can speak to our hearts in new & fresh ways, maybe even for the first time. As we choose to enter into community, God speaks to us through those we’re serving & through those we’re serving alongside. So much great stuff happening in the hearts of kids so far this week.

Off to worship service then tonight’s Family Time with our kids. Thanks for continuing to pray for us. Please pray for our kids tonight as they sleep & tomorrow as they serve. Please pray for those we serve. Please pray for a movement of God’s spirit in the communities we’re serving & in the hearts of our kids.

By the way, every night in my house at home we read “Goodnight Moon” to Greyson. When Katie & I travel & are apart from Greyson, we bring a pocket-sized copy just for fun. So now I know what parents on the peninsula used to read to their children – the high school guys in my tent & the tents on either side know almost the whole book by heart! ‘Til tomorrow…