Go, Going, Gone....Back

Well, I'm back from Mexico. We, I, had an amazing time down in Ensenada. So much was accomplished for the Kingdom of God. A desperate family of 10 received a new house that our team built in four days. Over 100 filthy poor people receive new clean clothes for their families. About 50 different kids that don't get to eat very much were served breakfast every day. It was amazing.

It was very eye opening, seeing their poverty, knowing that there is zero chance of them ever rising above that poverty, and also knowing how much I have back here in the States. I mean, this poor family of 10 lived in a 1 room shack, made of scraps of wood. They slept on two beds, had a dirt floor, an old card table to cook on, and the world's worst bathroom located right outside their house. They got their water from this big tank with a garden hose running out of it. They would pinch off the hose between some rocks when they were done using the water.

They were poor. We built them a 16 x 20 (320 sq. ft.) house that had two bedrooms and a loft, along with a main living space, on a concrete slab. This is going to dramatically improve their life.

Yet I come home to my 2 bedroom, 1 bathroom, nice kitchen, separate living and dining rooms, 1 deck apartment and am not sure where to put all my stuff.

I was encouraged this week by the clothing distribution that we did. We often say, "Dios le bendiga" - God bless you - when we are down in Mexico. I felt very much that I was living out the Kingdom of God that Jesus spoke of many times as I was able to give someone clothing that they desperately needed, and say, "Dios le bendiga."

But now I'm back to reality, well, my reality. My nice (small?) apartment. My TV. My internet. My bed (only 2 people are in this bed, not 5 like in Mexico). My car. My wealth. I want to live differently, I want to live out the Kingdom of God with my resources now, here, not just in Mexico.

I was thinking about our trip...about going. How we left, physically packed up and went to do God's work. But then we returned. I don't want to return the same. In my thinking about 'going', I read Jon's blog on the word 'go'. I recommend the read. You can find it here:

http://jonknapp02.blogspot.com/2005/08/go-matt-10.html