To The Ends of the Earth: February 2009

Hello again! This is Lauren. So this morning we had breakfast and went to the site bright and early. When we got there I got to help Caroline explain about her family to the mother of the Lopez family- she loved that! Then I was on painting duty again. Breanna and I were “touching up” all morning. Then we started to bring in the furniture. We built the two bunk beds and set out all the new toys, silverware, crafts, and food. Then I started to work on the sign for the front of the house- it said “Familia Gaynor-Lopez.” Then came the reveal! Yay! We took a picture with the family, then said thank you’s and gave them a framed copy of the picture (technology is amazing- new just printed it on site), a Bible, Cami and Mel’s cross pillows, and the key. Then they went in to see their new house- they loved it! Once they had had a chance to see everything, everyone piled in and we said a prayer to dedicate the building to God. We learned that when the house is dedicated, the family remembers- and they know they have a new start. To finish the day we went shopping in downtown Ensenada. It’s been a very good experience.

Hi, this is Joel. Mexico is a fun place. I hope you all can come to see all the wonderful things I’ve seen. It took us three days to build a 24 x something house. I put up shingles, trim, a wall, and I put the door together. There are many dogs running around free, and I feel bad for them.

This is Rachel. Well since I’m dictating to Brian I’ll make this extra long. We had a great day today. And, we were very excited to give the keys to the house to the family. Ummmmm It was great to see the look on their faces when they let us into their new home. This is hard I don’t have anything composed, and he’s typing that right now, so now this is going to get posted. But, we did have a great day and it was also nice to take a shower and get clean at the end of the day. And, I enjoyed having fellowship with our fellow mission trip people at the end of the day. I really enjoyed that we met up at Starbucks in Ensenada at the end of the night. It was like a beacon of hope in the midst of Mardi Gras madness. And, as if some unspoken force was drawing us all there Karen, Tom and I [who were avoiding the Darth Vader policemen – you had to be there, I know]were walking down the street and I commented, “Wouldn’t it be funny if everyone else was sitting inside of Starbucks when we got there?” It has been a great week, and, I’m very thankful to all of those who made it possible for us to be here through their prayer and financial support, and I also want to thank the YWAM staff for their hospitality and friendliness, especially our local host Luis who has handed over driving privileges to Tom Nelson who now drives like an Ensenada local.

Hello Everyone back home! It’s Breanna again. And, I can hardly believe that four days have gone by so fast. The entire time that we have had the privilege of being in Ensenada, I have been astounded by the humility of the people, the love that they have in their hearts and the incredible ways that God reveals Himself each and every day. Today was the final day of working on the house and as I finished my third day of painting, touching up little fingerprints and trim, I found myself thinking about all of you back home and I began to pray for many of you. Thank you so much for your support that has helped us be able to do this good work in Ensenada. The joy on the family’s face as their keys were inserted into the door and they beheld their home for the first time was an expression and feeling beyond any price. The sound of the children’s laughter and screaming as they saw all of the toys purchased in their new room and as they sorted through drawers filled with coloring books and cars and beach balls made my heart overflow. It is impossible to adequately describe the incredible experience that we have had during this time in Ensenada. Thank you for your prayers and your support we have seen God use both for His glory during our time here. I can’t wait to come home and tell you all about it. But, it’s still going to be hard to leave. Adios! Hasta Manana! (See you tomorrow).

Hey everyone, it’s Brian. Thank you so much for following our 2009 Woodbury Community Church Ensenada, Mexico Mission Trip Blog. This has really been a wonderful week of ministry. I’m so proud of my teammates, and the way that God worked through each one of them. One of my favorite parts of a mission trip is being able to meet the local missionaries. I’ve been so impressed with YWAM’s local Ensenada team. They run a top notch operation. God is using this ministry to make a phenomenal difference in the poorer neighborhoods of Ensenada. Luis, our local host shared his testimony with our team tonight. He was married at 15 years old and had a child at 16. He and his young bride came to America, and did quite well – owning three homes in Los Angeles. After 15 years of marriage they divorced, and when they did he hit rock bottom. He began to drink heavily and waste all of his money. Within a year he moved to Wyoming and had a good job working for Chevron. He then moved to Las Vegas where he built a couple of casinos, including Mandalay Bay. It was in sin city where Luis was introduced to God. Ten years ago he made a commitment to Jesus Christ, and his life has never been the same. This man, a senior citizen, who used to make $2500 a week eventually enrolled in YWAM’s Discipleship Training School. This is a three month intensive discipleship program that is usually attended by teenagers and twentysomethings. He has spent the last two years at the YWAM base in Ensenada and hopes to begin a DTS in South Africa in the next year. What a joy to hear his story and see how God has worked in his life.

I had a chance to share Christ with a young man for a couple of hours today. Please pray for him. He is so close to making a commitment to give his life to Christ, but is really struggling to get past some issues he has with God.

We leave Ensenada tomorrow and look forward to coming back home. We won’t post anymore pictures because we want to save some surprises for our Mission Trip Report next Sunday, March 1st at 6:00 PM at WCC. Hope to see you there. And, as I sign off a big thank you to Darlene Wendlandt, who planned much of our trip and was unable to join us. She was a huge blessing to us. Thank you too to Tom Nelson and Ken Mosner who led our team devotional times and to Carolyn Benson who served as our team accountant. We have been blessed with an awesome group.

In just a couple of minutes we'll be eating breakfast and from there we will load onto our vans for one more day of ministry here in Mexico. It's been a good few days. I'm amazed at how quickly the home for the Lopez family has gone up. It's so cool to see the joy on their faces and the pride in their eyes as they watch their home go up.

Last night our entire team went to Wal Mart in Ensendada to purchase several items for the family. We were able to purchase them food, bedding, toys, and more. We also purchased a second bunk bed from YWAM. It's going to be great to see how they feel as their home is completed and fully furnished.

Please continue to keep our safety and strength in your prayers. If all goes well we will probably finish the home around noon today.

We asked you to pray for so many things before the trip began, and I truly feel like God has answered all of those prayers. We have seen no hint of the danger that the papers have been talking about, we have felt safe everywhere we have traveled, we have seen wonderful team unity and God has protected us on the job site. Please pray for an awesome finish to the trip and that God would keep our eyes open to what He wants us to see and learn today.

Most interesting ice cream flavor accidently ordered last night: Tequila (by Tom)
Number of times our A Builders name has been mispronounced (it's Josue, pronounced Ho-Sway): at least 4 that I can think of (Jose, Jesus, Josuela, Consue)
Most common form of communication with our family: Smiling