How is my life significant??

Tonight I joined Jacque and Charla's Bible study (the one I originally attended with the med students on Fri nights) in a community service project. The plan was to meet at the church where Bible study is held, make meal bags and head out to downtown Guadalajara where we would meet up with a guy who runs one of the orphanages and knows of good spots to hand out meals. The goal was to talk with the homeless and share Christ's love through our gift of food and listening with virtually "no strings attached". Well, if you haven't read any previous posts, you might not have seen me use the word "Viva". Our plans....which we should know by now.....didn't work out exactly as we expected. I would have to say, they worked out as God planned instead.

When we arrived downtown, the man who was supposed to meet us had left. We decided to walk to a nearby park and try this mission on our own. On the way, we found an abandoned building where many young kids were camped out getting high. A few came out as we stopped and asked us to come in to hand out the food. Realizing this was potentially dangerous....as we couldn't see inside of the hole in the building from the ripped fence where we stood....we eventually decided to let a small group of the guys go in while the rest of us waited out front. Try to picture this neighborhood. For many of you (as it would be for me had I not seen it for myself) this will be difficult. The neighborhood is completely dark. There are a few street lights and lights from neighboring businesses, but it is dim. There are some random people walking along the streets, catching buses, looking strangely at you and wondering what a group of nearly 20 people (almost all American) is doing roaming a potentially dangerous spot at night. Some odd people, high on things you couldn't even imagine they could use as drugs, stagger up to you, stare and ask for food. Some follow you as you continue to walk down the dimly lit street. And don't forget the smell. As you stand outside of the ripped and falling fence looking into the crumbling and graffiti covered brick building, you begin to get brief whiffs of stale urine, feces and fumes of some type of fuel. You later learn that the fuel smell is the result of the things the people are using as their drugs.

The thing was, at first, I felt nervous and scared. I didn't know what to expect of these people. Could they possibly try to harm anyone in the group?? I was uncomfortable and on untreaded ground. Then, I slowly realized a different type of fear. The fear and realization that this could just as easily have been my life. I began to imagine the hopelessness many of these people feel on a daily basis. A hopelessness many have known all of their life. It is easy for us to say they should clean themselves up. Stop doing drugs. Stop drinking. Stop prostituting themselves. Get a job. Work hard. Find Jesus. But how??? How do you do these things when you know no other way to live but the messed up way you are living?? How and why do you trust some crazy white girl when she comes in to your world and prays for you and tells you she will continue to pray because God loves them. What does that mean to them??

We moved on from this area of town and drove further into downtown to watch a service conducted by local missionaries. To our surprise, the same people we had fed earlier came to this service. We were given a chance to sing and pray with them. After a few minutes I had in praying for Jose, I realized I was repeating the same phrase. "Release him Lord from the grip so many demons have on his life. Release him. Release him.....release him....."

While I sit in this huge house, in my comfy bed (well, ok, it didn't seem that comfy until now), typing on my personal laptop...........I think of Jose and Luz. The two people I was able to talk with tonight. Where are they??? At home in a comfy bed.....Claro que no!!! (clearly not!!!) What gives me any more right to this comfort than anyone else??? What gives me the right to have such a privileged life?? The thing is, I don't know why God has planned things the way he has. But I know we don't have "rights" to anything in our lives....all we have are gifts. And all I know is that he has a plan.....for each one of us, including Jose and Luz. I have no idea what this plan is or how he will use me. But I know I need to be obedient. And I know that, even though tonight was unusual and a little uncomfortable and scary (including the scary fact that we were advised...and I did...to take a hot shower when we returned home because some people have contracted TB after their time with this group of people), I know I need to do it again. I feel him tugging at my heart and asking me to help his children.

***Please pray for Jose and Luz. Both are addicted to drugs and living on the streets of Guadalajara. Both regularly attend these Friday night gatherings and go through the motions of worship and prayer to receive a meal following. Both have a look of hopelessness that can only be cured by the love of Jesus Christ. Please pray that they find this hope and commit their lives to it. Please also pray for another young boy who was with this group. I don't know his name, but he only could have been 12 or 13. He appeared to be the most afflicted of all, and crazy as it may sound, I believe he is possessed by many demons.

Thanks for reading through this....I know it was rather intense compared to my previous posts. But I couldn't go to bed tonight before getting all of this out and letting you know that God has a plan and a purpose for your life. Realize your privilege as you read this on your computer which you most likely own. Use your privilege to glorify Him!

Picture: Jillaine, Jacque, Luz and Charla. Luz asked me to take a picture so we wouldn't forget her.