Corazon: May '09

This past Saturday our church went down to Tecate, Mexico to build a house in a day for a family in need (one of the blessings of being so close to the border). There were 6 people all living in the same tiny house, not an uncommon situation in that part of the world, and so we built another house for them so that some of them could actually spread out a little. With all of the Swine-Flu hype and the exaggerated violence in Mexico, this was one of the smallest groups I can remember our church taking down so we were a bit nervous about if we could finish or not before the end of the day. But the community came to the rescue. Some local folks came and helped us and demonstrated their outstanding work ethic. It was quite a treat to be able to build along side the people in the community, Mexicans and Americans working side by side is what Corazon is all about anyway. It was a pleasant reminder that in the church and in God's kingdom there are no borders... that the kind of kingdom we were there to promote--a kingdom on earth as it is in heaven. It was emotional, as usual, when we presented the keys to their new home to the proud family. If you ever wonder if the poverty just south of the border should be taken seriously, ask yourself if you would be so appreciative of or moved to tears by the gift of a 16'x20' building with no insulation, no electricity, no plumbing, no carpet, no oven, no x-box, no a/c, etc. Is that your idea of a dream house? Well, for these people it's truly a dream come true.

The bad news is that while we were working on the house our pastor, Thomas Bentz, took a nasty fall down a steep hill, shattering his left wrist and breaking another bone in his right shoulder. The Mexican paramedics and doctros took good care of him and after getting wrapped up temporarily he joined us back at the site, laying down in a bed until we finished (he wouldn't let us take him back until we were done building). It wasn't until we made it back to a hospital in th U.S. that we realized how serious his injuries were. Please pray for him.