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| We have a team that just returned from
Mexico where they stayed in an orphanage from April 2nd through April 9th, 2005.
The team lived at the Lily of the Valley II orphanage along with the 115 children. They joined the children for
morning and evening times of praise and worship and participated in prayer walks, personal devotions, Bible
studies, and Bible memory verses. |
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The team also continued the work being done on the food storage
building. The members spent alot of time laying blocks and leveling the floor area. Some of the children joined the team
on the work site, which was a real encouragement for them. They also enjoyed time with the children after work.
Life at the Casa is different than any orphanage they had visited. They have learned not
only to be happy with the little they have but also give back to the Lord what they have
been blessed.
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04-02-05
to
04-09-05 |
The Spring Break Mexico Team traveled to Lirio de los Valles (Lily of the Valleys, a.k.a. “The
Casa”), an orphanage between the city of Chihuahua and the village of Aldama, 250 miles west of
Houston. They played, prayed, sang, and lived with the 115 children, went to church with the kids, and
visited a local dairy farm that regularly donates milk to the Casa. Because of the generosity of many
donors, the team brought in lots of toys, towels, and hairbands, along with many other needed items.
They also had the opportunity to treat the kids at the Chihuahua Dairy Queen with money donated by
team members and some thoughtful supporters back home.
The team also worked hard laying block walls and leveling the floor for a building which will
serve not only for food storage, but also as a food bank for local orphanages, convalescent homes, and
Indian villages in the surrounding mountains. The sun was hot, but there was a good breeze. Of course,
that blew the dry dust around, but no one minded…much. One toolbox (and some luggage) didn’t arrive
with the team on Saturday night, but they prayed and the box came in on the Sunday night flight and
was delivered Monday morning, just as the team was ready to start work! God also heard the sincere
prayers of some frustrated first-time block layers and answered them with rows of well-placed blocks!
Each day started with devotions, and each evening, after saying “Buenas noches” to the children,
the team had Bible study with great teaching and interaction. God granted incredible unity, openness,
and fellowship. The team ended each night by breaking into groups of 2 or 3 and prayer-walking around
the grounds, beseeching God for His hand upon the Casa, its occupants, themselves, and their work
project.
Saying goodbye, as always, was hard, but God has forged a lasting bond between hearts and
across borders. Two team members are already planning to return this summer!
Here are the words of some team members:
"I think this trip has helped me refocus on the important things in life. God has given me a better
worldview and a deeper desire to serve Him."
"I always pictured the trip as a work project. I see now that people and kids are what it is all about. My
heart is broken for these kids. I feel my love for the unloved has been taken to a new level."
"Coming has showed me the great sense of community when Christians work together."
"I want to keep coming back to the Casa with Mission Possible!"
"He taught me that if I’ll spend the time with Him in His Word, He’ll show me the 'gold
nuggets' that I love to find in there." DL
"I always pictured the trip as a work project. I see now that people and kids are what it is
all about. My heart is broken for these kids. I feel my love for the unloved has been taken
to a new level." PA
"I learned and realized the power of prayer. Also I need to surrender daily my flesh and
rely on the power of Jesus to fill me." PA
"God just showed me this week that He is just an awesome God. Somethinges we try to
define Him with our vocabulary and we can’t, he’s way to big.
I think this trip has helped me refocus on the important things in life. He’s given me a
better world view and a deeper desire to serve Him." AK
"This week God has really been speaking to me. I think He’s telling me I have a heart for
missions. We’ll see what the future holds. This week I learned to be content." BB
"I learned that I should totally live and do everything for Him and I should share His
word with others without fear. I have learned we take way to much for granted and that we should be content with what
we have been given by God. I would like to not think what people care about my faith. I want to live, breathe, speak
God and be able to help others." HK
"I learned to fear Him. I’m really scared of a lot of things and I’m going to try to be
stronger with my fears because God is the only thing I need to fear. I feel closer to God now because doing devotions
everyday instead of just on weekends has made me stronger." JO
"When Tyler and I were laying bricks we were having a ton of problems and we had like 2
bricks on the wall and everyone else was almost done. So I told Tyler that if we didn’t get
it next time, we would quit. Then we put our hands on the brick and prayed and then the
brick went in perfectly. We did this with every block and it worked." JO
"I’d like to be more giving, get out of my comfort zone in order to serve God, be more
aware of all my possessions and not take them for granted." SM
"I learned to have a better passion for the Word. I learned to trust in God and He will always
provide." SS
"Coming here for one thing has made me appreciate the things I have. Also, it challenged
me to become a more prayerful person. It has showed me the great sense of community
when Christians work together. Finally, it gave me a real heart for mission work and
made me think of how I can help.” SW
"He showed me that we should fear God and Him only. He really brought to my mind the
beauty of creation and how He uses it to display His glory and majesty. He showed me
that to be a woman of beauty, it is not in appearance or charm, but in fear of the Lord.
I think I was getting lazy in my Christianity because of the business in my life, but this
experience has brought me back to God and I’ve really grown in my relationship with
Him, especially through the constant prayer." SW
"This was unlike any other experience I’ve had, and I’m very grateful to Mission
Possible for offering it to me." SW
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