Greetings! We are finally posting the stories of this crazy March Madness of building. We are busiest as a ministry during the school break seasons. I am proud to say that we, as an entire ministry, have built 57 houses this month! Julie and I were a part of leading three of those. Each family's story is unique and is full of need of God's grace. As you read these stories, remember that God, sending us to these specific families, is proof that he is pursuing their hearts and minds for freedom and life. How good is God that he would allow us to join in that. To all of you who are financially, prayerfully, and directly involved in these works, God is using you to accomplish a miracle of grace and intentional mercy.
(March 8th) Bertha Hernandez Jimenez and Her Three Children
On the week of March 8th, Julie and I built with a group of 20 from Evergreen, Colorado. They are from Evergreen Lutheran Church. I was really excited for this build because I have established a relationship with the Pastor and some of the members of this church in the last year. This was the third house I would be leading for this church. Also, Julie hadn't met anyone from this church yet and she finally was able to. This was also the church where Jim Ritter is from. Jim is my friend who gave me my truck. So needless to say, It's a pretty cool feeling knowing that there are people who care about us coming to serve with us.
This build was also unique because we were literally 5 feet from another house being built by another team with our ministry. This is unique because teams usually build in their separate location with their own group. We had two church group teams, from different churches, from different denominations, working side by side to build for two families. This was awesome. But what made it even better, was the ability to build for two families who were part of the same extended family.
We were unable to see Bertha(homeowner) during the week, because she was at work everyday. Being a young and single mother, she couldn't take time off of work to miss the income and, she couldn't afford the risk of losing her job. Her brothers were at the work site everyday, representing her. Bertha only made $60 a week for her and her 3 children to survive. We were able to see her children at the worksite during the week. The other house being built was for Bertha's parents. The children were being watched by Bertha's mother. Bertha's mother's name is Guadalupe. Guadalupe was the major ambassador to both teams from her extended family. The extended family all lived together in a shack built out of cardboard and pallets.
For families like this that we build for, there is a major glass ceiling over their heads. There are essentially no opportunities for a family like this to get out of the situation they are in. It is difficult to find a job in the city, education is too costly for a family that makes barely enough to survive, and the jobs that there are, only pay meager wages of $50 to $80 a week. Consequently, they cram together in a little shack of garbage, and live in an old city landfill. This is heart breaking. Through our ministry, we were able to meet a major physical need of this family, but the house we build does so much more than meet a physical need. Through it, we can display to these families that Christ loves them and cares for them in their desperation. The love and the free gift of a home is just a taste of what can meet them in eternity. Eternity and the life after becomes the only hope many of these family's will ever have. This hope is the greatest and most life giving hope of all. This hope is salvation, joy, and life through Jesus Christ.
We built the house in a quick 2 and a half days. The building was fun and laid back. God showed that he was watching over and taking care of us as we built. After we were finished, the group from Evergreen Lutheran did a neighborhood cookout in a local church as an outreach event for the local Mexican church. Mingling with the local neighborhood was pretty cool.
At the end of the week, we dedicated the houses together with both groups to the extended family. Both families received keys, new bibles, and gifts for their new home. Amazing!
It was a pleasure building with the group from Evergreen Lutheran. There were a lot of new faces from the year before. Their commitment to loving God and each other is inspiring. But more than that, their commitment to love the world around them truly is unique and remarkable. They worked hard and were able to change the lives of a family in need in Mexico for hope and life. Thank you Evergreen Lutheran for your service and love.
(March 15th) Eleazar and Laura Favela and Their Two Children
The build for Eleazar and his family was in our expansion city of Acuna, MX. The ministry expanded to this city a year and a half ago and have now built 50 homes in the city. Eleazar and his family is one of those families. I partnered with First Baptist Church from Willis, TX to build this family their first home. Eleazar and his family inherited a peace of property from his mother but had no means to build any shelter on this property. Eleazar had been out of work for a couple of years before we arrived. We were thankful to learn that he had found a factory job two weeks before we arrived to build them a house. Still...His wages were at a meager $70 a week. Eleazar and his family had been living in a friends house until they could find a place of their own.
Another piece of good news from this family was the fact that this family are fellow followers of Christ. When we arrived, they saw God coming to answer their prayer. Can you imagine the kind of feeling that gave us? Humbleness, thankfulness, and joy were in abundance during the week because we knew we were a part of God's plan.
Unexpectantly, the first day we arrived to pour the foundation, it rained like crazy all day. With determination and love, we still poured in the wet and cold. This act of determination from the group really moved Laura, Eleazar's wife, in her heart. She expressed to us how good it made her feel to know God and the group loved their family that much, to work in miserable conditions. The second day was sunny and warm and we were able to finish most of the house. Wednesday, we returned to finish several things on the house. Then we dedicated the home to the family around lunch time. There is no doubt in my mind that the family was touched by the love of God and that they are living everyday in thankfulness to Him.
Thank you First Baptist Willis for partnering with me to do an amazing work in a family's life. You provided shelter and safety for a family who never had a home of their own. Thank you for your continued partnership year after year with our ministry. Hope to see you next year.
(March 22nd) Irving and Veronica Gonzales and Their Two Children
By this point in the month, Julie and I were pretty tired. But, the group we worked with and the family we built for were the perfect combination for the weary missionaries.
We built with Vista Grande Baptist Church from Colorado Springs. This was also a unique experience because they brought 60 people, 40 of which were youth. Groups are not usually this large. Between the 60 of them, we built three homes last week. Julie and I led one of them. The group we led was made up of half Vista Grand church members, and half members from another local church. It was a pretty cool experience to be with two partnering churches at the same time.
The family we built for lived in the smallest and worst living conditions of any family Julie and I have ever built for. The shack they lived in was no bigger than the size of a queen size mattress. They were also a very young couple who had some issues with their extended family. Most families we build for cohabitate with their extended family. This is more economically smart for these families because they are able to combine resources from the family's past and present. But with this family, they didn't have that going for them and they were newly starting out on their own. Both Irving and Veronica were 20 years old with two children. Irving had a factory job and earned $70.00 a week for his family.
Another important aspect of this build was the obvious spiritual need of this family. They were not followers of Christ, and they needed His grace and His hope. A woman named Gloria who was on the team was very good at Speaking Spanish. Instead of primarily focusing on building, I had her focus on ministering and sharing the Gospel of Christ to this family. Gloria explained to the family that Christ wants them to be a part of the kingdom. He wants to save them, love them, and give them life. God sending us to build them a house was proof that God was pursuing their hearts and their minds for the benefit of what they could have in Him.
At the end of building the house, during the dedication, the family's sponsoring Mexican pastor reiterated what we had been claiming all week about Christ. Irving was moved by what we said and told us that he will be thinking long and hard about the words we have said to them.
Please join with Julie, myself, and Vista Grand in praying for this family, that God would aggressively enter into their hearts and minds and do work their. They need him desperately.
Thank you Vista Grand and partnering churches for the new relationships I was able to build with your group. It was energizing and worshipful to serve with you. Keep investing in the youth that you bring down every year. Love you Guys.
Also, Special thanks to Joe Curtis, who wouldn't want me to thank him publicly but I'm going to anyway. He purchased for me a very expensive and amazing tool for leveling the forms for the foundation. The tool is called a transit. Your the coolest PAPA JOE.
