A "Make Do" World

One of the things I am going to miss most about Mexico is their mindset and ability to “make do.” Most have little and some have even less than that, but they still manage. You see it in a variety of ways. Follow me to the street and watch as people bicycle, walk and catch public transportation to work. See it in the tools of their trade strapped to the bicycle or the tattered tarp hanging over a huge pot of tamales. Let’s go back inside and discover that five, six or seven people are living in a small two bedroom house. Clothes hang from every conceivable angle as they dry in the afternoon sun.

Don’t have orange cones for construction workers? No problem, use some big rocks. No job prospects? Then hit the traffic light industry and juggle, wash windows or sell flowers. Can’t afford electric for heat in the winter? Just add on a few more layers of clothes. Need a big bag for market shopping? Use a sown up feed sack.

We see it too in the lives of Christians, and it boosts our faith. A young man recently shared with us how he asked God for a simple thing – a pair of jeans to replace the tattered ones he wore to his Bible training classes. A few days later on a trip to visit relatives in another state, an uncle asked about his pant size. He discovered that indeed the offering was a fit and he was given…………………………… SEVEN pair. I’ll tell you that those seven pair of jeans in this “make do” society was met with as much rejoicing as the gift we received a few years ago from the sale of a house in Alaska.

I’m sure my ideas along these lines can be overly romanticized. While it can come across as contentedness and simple living, in truth it’s probably more often stark reality and limited options. None-the-less I’m going to miss this “make do” attitude.

Aluminum Art Work by Maria

Tulips and More

We recently began a men’s Bible study. First night up was a serving of the beatitudes and fresh homemade tamales. We’ve been going now for about a month. Answer well or you may be cut out of the picture…sorry about that Dan.

Thursday worship turned into a birthday party for Brenda, a friend of Christina. We had a typical birthday party meal of cake and jello. Then we sat around the table for a few laughs.

Tis the season for tulips. Vendors set up shop beside traffic lights with promising sales. As you can see one such person came by and indulged in one of those beautiful potted plants. Are any of you green thumbs out there enjoying spring flowers yet?

Looking down into our community of Momoxpan. You can see a number of important landmarks like the church tower and the entrance to the cemetery on the left. We have witnessed many funeral processions on this road complete with playing band, flower petals being dropped and people carrying the casket.

After a long layoff Diana and I have started walking for exercise once again. This is the majestic view that awaits us early in the morning. I lift up my eyes to the hills—where does my help come from? My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth. Psalm 121:1-2

Beginning to think in terms of a few Mexican backgrounds for powerpoint.

Thursday Night Goings On

We’ve been meeting on Thursday evenings since June and find it one of our best ways to connect. It’s a worship and prayer time that has a koinonia (community, fellowship) feel. Here’s what a “typical” evening is like:

5:35 – I’m “late” and waiting in the papelaria for copies of some new songs we are singing tonight…was suppose to be at the Oxxo five minutes ago for some of the folk.

5:58 – I’ve been at the Oxxo for 15 minutes and no one has shown up yet ………oh here comes three of them now. “We’ve got to wait; two more coming on the bus in 10 minutes.”

6:26 – Finally arrive back home...five more already here. There are kisses all the way around from everyone. Christina and some of the younger ones are outside jumping on the trampoline.

6:34 – Stephen is tuning his guitar….tuning………tuning…. He introduces us to Sam and Kifi who are new to the group. We’ve been meeting for three months now and the feeling of friendship and community is growing. Everyone from El Puente is invited, but it mostly tends toward young adults.

6:40 – Arianna grabs the djembe; Isaias an egg shaker; Esteban a tambourine as we hand out the song books.

6:43 – Finally under way with a Scripture reading. Our first song tonight is Mighty to Save and then we sing Todopoderoso. Worshiping through song, prayer, Scripture reading fill the evening.

7:30 – Diana heads to the kitchen to begin preparing for the meal. She turns on the coffee pot on the way by.

7:36 – Stephano arrives after finishing football practice.

7:44 – I peal off as the group begins to wind down so I can go up the street for roasted chicken, tortillas and soft drinks.

8:10 – The meal is ready for the fourteen of us who came tonight. The roasted chicken with the adobado seasoning is extra tasty. Someone has brought cookies for dessert.

8:20 – Most of us are crowded around the table eating, while a few continue to play guitars. It’s a fun time……..lots of joking and laughing. Arianna connects on the internet with some friends in South Carolina, and we talk. Danielle tells us stories from Maine.

8:48 – We begin to think about going………..Isaias and Nancy stop by for their kids. We stand and talk for a few more minutes. Kisses all the way around for everyone as we say our goodbye.

9:12 – We pile the nine people in the van who need a ride home. Maria goes along. “Could you take Leslie home, too, so she won’t have to ride the bus so late in the night?”

9:25 – With everyone safely home we head across town to drop Leslie off.

10:22 – Maria and I arrive back home. Christina and Diana have done all the clean up and putting things away. It’s been another good evening.

What Has Been On Your Mind Lately?

Well, on a trivial note one thing that is on my mind lately is the weather. I’m not sure if my body has acclimated to Mexican weather, or if I’ve turned into a wimp, but it’s cold down here. I know, I know “cold” is relative. Here we are living with sunny skies with lows in the 30’s at night and some of you are standing in two feet of snow in sub-zero temperatures. But in my defense let me say that there is no heat in this house. Oh how nice it would be to roll out of the bed in the morning and turn up the thermostat. Instead the “thermostat” is a pair of warm-ups over the pajamas, an extra sweater, hooded jacket, and sitting on the couch for quiet time with an extra blanket and cup of coffee while holding the dog.

Much more seriously, Haiti is on my mind. The images of devastation along with the mounting problems of hunger, thirst, disease and looting reflect the pain of the Haitian people. This is not the first time of trouble in this country as an employee of our company wrote a few months ago, “The really poor have taken to eating dirt cookies to fill their stomachs. These cookies are made of dirt, salt and vegetable shortening and then dried in the sun. I have tried them. They do not taste good. But for the poorest of the poor, dirt cookies are eaten when they cannot afford to purchase food.” Their problems have not all been physical either. Another employee described a conversation with a local mayor who said, "As the mayor, I use the services of the witchdoctor. But, so do all the pastors." That comment led him to this insight, “The area is so steeped in Voodooism… that even the pastors are blinded to the truth they presumably teach.” Haiti needs our prayers on many fronts.

In a word - Daniel. His return to West Virginia for work has preoccupied our thoughts, too.

Out there on the horizon is that word………………..re-entry. Re-entry is a time when you come back to your home country and try your hardest not to go through the same “shock” as you did when you left in the first place. I’m sure we will be posting thoughts about it in the future, but for now it’s on our mind a lot. We are giving thought and conversation to what we have learned, who we are now, how all that translates into the future, and we are reaching out to people who can provide insight. That’s what has been on our mind a lot lately.

Charter Member of Our Wisdom Team

Used Prayers

How do you feel about using someone else’s prayers? Not for me I hear you say, they’re stale. Maybe it’s time to recognize that while we can fall into heartless ritual, we can also benefit from the thoughtfully crafted prayers of others. We do well to learn the language of heaven from godly men and women through the ages and today. It’s good for our imaginations to be stirred to new heights and find ourselves joining in and adding on. You’ll find them used but not used up. Here’s a start:

“O God, I have tasted Thy goodness, and it has both satisfied me and made me thirsty for more. I am painfully conscious of my need of further grace. I am ashamed of my lack of desire. O God, the Triune God, I want to want Thee; I long to be filled with longing; I thirst to be made more thirsty still. Show me Thy glory; I pray Thee, so that I may know thee indeed.” - A.W. Tozer

“Loving Lord and Heavenly Father I offer up today all that I am, all that I have, all that I do, and all that I suffer, to be Yours today and Yours forever. Give me grace, Lord, to do all that I know of Your holy will. Purify my heart, sanctify my thinking, correct my desires. Teach me, in all of today’s work and trouble and joy, to respond with honest praise, simple trust, and instant obedience, that my life may be in truth a living sacrifice, by the power of Your Holy Spirit and in the name of Your Son Jesus Christ, my Master and my all Amen.” - Elizabeth Elliot Gren

“O Lord, we pray for our country that God would bless it; and O that we might have a season of revival of pure and undefiled religion in the land. We perceive that Thou canst turn the hearts of the people, as the trees of the wood are moved by the wind. O that there might come a deep searching of the heart, great thoughtfulness of the Scriptures, reverence of God and the principles of justice and peace; and may this land make another stride in onward progress, and out of it may there be gathered a people whom Thou hast chosen, who may show forth Thy praise.” - Charles H. Spurgeon