January 2010

Wow! 2010 has started like a flash and began with a short term missions trip to Juarez, Mexico. Juarez has been labeled the deadliest city in the world right now with an average of 10 murders a day, most of which are related to drug trafficking and cartels. The record in 2009 was 3 days without any homicides. While we were there, my wife saw a headline on a local paper that read (roughly translated): “A major incident: 93 murders in 9 days”. Many children are left on the street, whether orphaned or left to fend for themselves as their parents leave their homes at 5 AM to cross the boarder for work in factories in El Paso, Texas. So if there was anywhere that needed to hear the hope and good news of Jesus Christ, it is Juarez.

So we left for the Sacramento airport to meet about 25 other people from our church to head down to Juarez. Our mission was to assist in an Operation Christmas Child shoe box distribution (an outreach of Samaritan's Purse). Each year shoe boxes are filled with toys, candy, hygiene items and small clothing items (mittens, scarves, etc.) and shipped around the world to children in poor villages. Once the shoe boxes arrive, volunteers help to distribute the shoe boxes as well as hand out booklets to the children, written in their own language, telling them about the Good News of Jesus Christ. That's where we got to step in.

At the airport, I got to pass out several tracts to people at both ends of the terminals. One lady's son ran up to me asking for more, and another lady said no to an offer of a tract, but after watching people take one, she asked for one later. I even got to hand a tract to a TSA person walking by who said thanks, and also extended one to a cashier near our gate and he was so excited about it. After traveling all day Thursday and crossing the boarder into Mexico, we finally arrived at the missions base in Juarez. Oh and we event got to pass out tracts through the van windows to those selling items across the border in the road ways.

Now every time you try to do something great in the name of the Lord, the enemy will try to thwart your plans. And that is exactly what happened. I'm so thankful we serve a Mighty God. We got word that due to the extreme cold and the possibility of snow, all the local schools had canceled school for the day on Friday. So that night, back at the base, during our devotion time, we prayed for the first miracle of the trip. We prayed that the children would still find a way to get to the gym to hear about Jesus and receive the shoe box gifts. When we woke in the morning it was still quite very cold but no snow. Slowly the gym started to fill until it was about half full. We were so excited to see how the Lord had answered our prayers. It was such a joy to see so many kids and parents overwhelmed with joy and thankfulness.

 I have to tell you, if you really pray something and really mean it, the Lord will answer your prayer in abundance.

 

(My Wife handing out boxes and the Gospel)

(Me (in the back) after handing out boxes and the Gospel)

It was amazing to see how God orchestrates things. The children made it to the gym, our team was working together amazingly well despite the bitter cold, the children were excited to hear about Jesus and to get their gifts and prayers were being answered all over the place. We did two separate distributions on Friday and by the end of the day, our team was tired but quite fulfilled. Before we headed back to the base, we made a quick stop at a local strip mall. Before we left for our trip, we had been told that there would be opportunities for ministry out in the community. So my wife and I came prepared with Gospel tracts in Spanish. So while at the mall we walked around in big groups handing out the tracts that read “Eres una persona buena?” (Are you a good person?) The response was great and we had a blast.

Sunday brought us another fun filled day. Sunday afternoon our team piled back in our bus and headed for the city plaza in downtown Juarez for a community outreach. We had been given some Spanish gospel tracts, invitations to the Amigo Fiel church and New Testament bibles in Spanish. Of course, I had some of my own Spanish gospel tracts as well. I even found a bag of gospel tracts from livingwaters.com left on a bench there. I knew that it was the Lord affirming that we were certainly supposed to be there to reach the people. A man who was fairly fluent in English came up to talk with me. He had a catholic background but didn't know if he was saved. I went through the court room, and air-plane illustrations with him, and told him he needed to repent and trust in Jesus. After praying for the man, I left him with a tract. We could tell by the look in his eyes that it was a divine appointment.

(Me using the curved illusions in Spanish)

At one point a few people from our group, my Wife and I included, found ourselves surrounded by a group of young men (late teens to early twenties) asking to be prayed for. They said they were Christians and by the worn-out bibles each of them clung to, we believed them. They wanted to be stronger in their faith and to reach out to those around them that they loved. We agreed to pray for them and soon they were praying, two or three of them at a time. It was an amazing day.

The next morning seemed to come too quickly as we all dreaded having to leave such close fellowship and return to the "real world" of jobs and bills and commitments. We left with a piece of Juarez and a compassion for the lost like never before. The day we left Mexico was one of mixed and heartfelt emotions. There was still so much still to be done and so many souls still to be won. I was able to leave a few more tracts behind and even got to give one out to the boarder patrol man who viewed each of our passports. We got to give a tract to the people next to us on the plane too on both flights home. It was an overwhelming time and an awesome experience growing closer with the Lord. I was able to talk to a serviceman on the way home named "Woods" at the airport and thanked him for his service to our country. He stood up and immediately gave me a one handed man hug thanking him for being thankful for what he had been doing. I gave him a gift of a book called "One Heartbeat Away" by Mark Cahill. As we turned around to leave for the flight, he was reading the book.

I got to leave several more tracts at the airport before we drove home, and since being back home I've passed out more tracts since. There was no reason that the missions trip had to end. We just moved to a new location as we came back home to family, friends and co-workers who don't yet know the Lord. And after you have read this I hope you feel encouraged and challenged as well. Please prayerfully consider the platform Jesus has given you in your life where you can let your light shine brightly for Him.

It seems to me that there are two ways that the enemy likes to attack us. One way is by loading us down with the pleasures of this world that we forget God, the other is to make us so down and out that we become bitter and angry with God. However the second attack actually leads more people to Jesus, because once someone has a humble heart they are ready for the Gospel. Whereas the first attack cause people to become prideful and deceived by telling themselves that they are in need of nothing, including God (this is where the Law and addressing their conscience can help). As this world is falling apart, I thank God that our heart still hears the call, and that God helps us give up our pride.

Thank you to everyone who prayed for us while we were in Juarez. Now I pray that you will join us and watch God grow your faith too as you reach the lost. Everyday is a missions trip, are you ready?

Seek and save that which is lost and press on in Love,
Tim Molter