Mexico Trip #2

Our trip back to Mexico was quite an experience. We went with a team of about sixty people, mostly parents and students from Sierra Grace. It was the annual SGF Ajusco trip. The trip is designed to be a chance for our church to serve Jorge through multiple ministry opportunities (building projects, VBS, and relationship building with the migrant workers and members of Jorge's churches).

Our role on this trip was two-fold. Our main job was as members of the kitchen crew. Breann and I, along with our kitchen leader Diane, were in charge of making sure that all of the team members were fed. My second role on this trip was as the leader of "Operation Playset."

We recently received from the county (through Andy Fisher) a playground set that no longer meets the necessary codes. It was donated to Global Fellowship so that we could in turn give it to Jorge and the ministry in Mexico. Jorge is working to purchase a plot of land just behind the church which he planted in Ajusco where the playground set could be built. It would be quite an addition to the neighborhood and would greatly increase the amount of youths that Jorge would interact with to present the Gospel message. "Operation Playset" was the actual act of getting the playground down to Mexico.

First of all, the playground is HUGE! Through very careful and precise packing, we were able to fill the back of a pickup and a 16' trailer with the set. It bulged out the sides and over the top of the trailer. It was a beast to load.

Secondly, the real fun: driving the thing to Mexico. As the leader of "Operation Playset" it was my responsibility to tow the trailer to Mexico. No problem, right? Well, slight problem. I have NEVER towed ANYTHING before in my life. Now I am going to be towing an overloaded trailer full of overflowing playground equipment all the way to Mexico? Should be fun.

Thankfully, it went off without a hitch, all the way to San Diego, where we spent our first night. All things considered, it went great. Only one piece decided to shift positions while I was driving, but we had tied it on well enough that it didn't fall off the trailer. Praise the Lord.

The second day was when the real fun started. Driving from San Diego to Ajusco.

First, the border crossing took us (Derek Greenacre, a Spanish speaker, rode with me) four hours to accomplish. It was super. We paid the fees to "import" the set, then, after 90 minutes, received two pieces of green paper and drove 100 feet for an inspection. At this point, it took another 150 minutes to turn the two pieces of green paper into one piece of green paper. Once we got our one sheet of green paper, we were on our way. Four hours isn't all that bad, really.

Second, we got lost in Tijuana. This was the real adventure. Making multiple U-turns (not easy with the trailer), we ended up being lost in TJ for about 90 minutes. It seemed MUCH longer. Eventually, we arrived on Highway 1 and made it down to Ajusco. We missed all of camp setup and lunch and dinner with the team. It was quite a day. Derek and I had plenty of time to get to know each other though between sitting at the border for so long and then being lost for awhile. It was quite the day.

In the end, we made it safely to Ajusco. God was certainly with us as we made our long and arduous trek.

Upon arrival, it was time for me to take up the mantle of kitchen worker. Mostly, my job all week entailed lifting heavy pots, lighting the cook stoves, boiling water for dishes, doing the dishes, and just generally making sure that the ladies in the kitchen were able to avoid heavy lifting. I was also dubbed the "camp sentinel" as I was around all day to make sure that the campsite was watched over as everyone else was out ministering in the community, leaving camp practically empty. Breann and Diane did all of the preparation and cooking for the team all week. It was quite the experience. It was a wonderful chance for us to serve the team with food and refreshments and hopefully words of encouragement throughout the week. It was a different capacity than previous experiences, and we were grateful for the chance to serve Him in a different way.

God was clearly with us all week. His touch was evident on the students that went on the trip. We were extremely impressed by the attitudes of the students all week. There was very little complaining, no drama, and an overall sense of gratitude for God's provision. The trip clearly had quite a spiritual impact on many of the high schoolers as well as the adult leaders.

Another example of God's provision on this trip was that on the way home the truck pulling the kitchen trailer broke down. The transmission was shot. The truck was done for a couple of days at least. Because of the last minute addition of "Operation Playset" to the Ajusco trip, we had another truck available to tow the kitchen trailer. And, it just so happened that there were exactly three available seats to be filled by the three students who had been riding in the truck that broke down. It was perfect. God provided just exactly what we needed. No more, no less. Another example of how our Lord is a God of order and precision. What a mighty God we serve!