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Mexico Mission Trip 2009 Sunday, February 15, 2009 We're getting this international calling business down pat, now. Freddy calls me, and then I call in back on my Vonage line over the Internet. It costs about $0.09 per minute that way. Anyway, the latest news is that yesterday, in Pasteria, they saw 70-80 medical and 36 dental patients. Freddy said it was a good day, and they handed out almost a whole case of Bibles. A few years ago, that would have been unheard of in this village! Today the team went to Rascon and joined fellow believers in a moving worship service. Carol said the ladies can sing in Rascon and that there was music being played a good bit of the day. After lunch, they worked until 8 p.m. seeing about 90 medical and 20-some dental patients. Friday, February 13, 2009 Freddy called in this evening with an update. On Wednesday, the group went to Caballerias (I may not be spelling everything correctly, by the way). They saw around a hundred medical and 30 dental patients. Thursday, at La Pendencia, not only did they see 90 medical and 31 dental patients, they toured a Mescale (Tequila) plant built in 1621. (If that dates sounds familiar, the Pilgrims sailed in the Mayflower in 1620; part of the fascination with Mexico is the Spanish history there.) Nobody came away with any Tequila, but Freddy said it was interesting--they also saw the fermentation room with the vats. The folk in La Pendencia were nice, friendly, and helpful. Today, after seeing 65 medical and 31 dental patients at La Cerca (another nice village), they were invited to the home of the president of Villa Hidalgo and ate tamales at his 1,000 acre ranch. This weekend, some of the group return to the United States and others will come to join them for the remainder of the trip. The construction team accomplished most of their goals, including fixing the huge skylight at the elderly home in Estancia de Animas. Villages yet to visit are Pasteria on Saturday, El Rascon on Sunday, San Nicolas on Monday, Maravillas on Tuesday, and Estancia de Animas on Wednesday. Praise the Lord that everyone is doing well and nobody has gotten sick. Keep the group in your prayers. Wednesday, February 11, 2009 At long last, the phone rang from Mexico today. Our missionaries have been busy. Off the bat, they were finally able to retrieve the medical supplies and bring them across the border. Sunday evening, Mike Warren, Georgia Paul, and Chinco headed for Texas and returned at 4 a.m. Tuesday morning. Here's other information conveyed by Freddy. They arrived late in Estancia around 11:30 p.m. and attended church there in town Sunday. On Monday, the group went to La Lagunita and saw a combined 130 medical and dental patients. At Providencia on Tuesday, they saw around 30 dental and 90 medical patients. They are leaving early and returning late each night. Friday, February 6, 2009 Freddy has asked for prayers regarding the medical supplies still needing to be brought into Mexico. While the medicines finally were permitted to cross the border, Freddy said that it will be hard to work without the supplies. There are some additional permissions and procedures that need to transpire, and then Paul will try to bring the supplies into Mexico again. Please pray about this, as it has the team discouraged from the start. The group flying out of Charlotte on Saturday are now in Charlotte spending the night and getting some rest. Background The website for the Bethshean Mexico Mission is at bethsheanmexicomission.org.
Visit the 2008 trip website: Mexico Mission Trip 2008 The Mexico Mission Trip is an annual trip headed by Dr. Frederick Martin of Blountville, Tennessee. Each year, he leads a group of medical and dental professionals and assistants from east Tennessee, southwest Virginia and eastern North Carolina to Zacatecas Mexico (Zacatecas is a state). There, in tiny Estancia de Animas, is the Bethshean Mexico Mission, founded by Cris Garcia. The Bethshean Mexico Mission includes a home for elderly people, a Christian camp, and a growing team of pastors and regional Evangelical churches. Working in Estancia and outlying villages, the medical team sows the seeds of the Gospel by seeing hundreds of patients during their brief, but intense, visits.
Back in 2001, I had the opportunity to join the two teams on location, doing computer work for the Bethshean mission and taking promotional photographs for Dr. Martin. I was amazed at the receptiveness of the Mexicans to us. For many of the villagers, our medical team is the only medical help they receive from one year to the next. |
In conjunction with
the medical mission is a carpentry team that usually travels during the
same week. Led by Gary Edwards of Heaton Christian Church (Elk
Park, North Carolina), this team builds buildings, cabinets, podiums,
pews and other things for budding Mexican congregations.