Medical/Construction Trip Oct. 7-14

We thank Jim Nichols, DDS for the following report from last weeks missions trip. And we thank all the team for making it an incredible week. We appreciate your kindness to us and the people of Chiapas. We will never forget you!

Another wonderful, wonderful trip!! Eleven people, representing six different churches (but one Body) went to several different villages. First, a church was constructed in Chacte', a Tzeltal village about 4 hours from Chenalho. The Tzeltal people seem to be more primitive, more isolated, and possibly even more impoverished than the Tzotzils with whom we have been primarily working. Our group was inspired by hearing Jose (through an interpreter) tell how he had walked 12 hours to get to this village to reach out to them. Our team had 3 dentists, including Dr. John Mahoney and Dr. Ken Morgan, an optometrist, Dr. Pat Magee, and our Mexican physician Dr. Lulu, who worked on Indians in Chacte' while the church was finished. On Wednesday, some of our group worked in Chenalho, and some worked in Santa Marta, and on Thursday, we all worked in Monte Bonito. All villages had different personalities, but all were wonderful and loving. On Friday, we visited a village that hopefully will become a new site for evangelism in the near future, and prayed extensively for it.

On Tuesday, at the dedication of the new church in Chacte', we saw Indians (and Americans) crying. One elderly Indian man told us through an interpreter that these people were so isolated and poor, that they didn’t even know if God knew that they existed. But after our coming, and our building a new church building for them, he said that now they know that God knows them and loves them. Tears abounded! On Wednesday, after finishing up the medical/dental campaign in Santa Marta, one elderly lady came up to us, with tears streaming down her face, and thanked us profusely. Also, Pastor Juan from the same village thanked us with tears, and told us that they were so poor that there was no way that they could have ever paid for the type of care that they had received, and there was no way that they could repay us. He didn’t understand that his tears were payment enough! Then on Friday, as we were beginning our trip back to Tuxtla, our group had a powerful morning of praise and worship, with Americans feeling a fresh touch from God, resulting in American tears.

There have been many trips where God has blessed a group by withholding rains during a construction project, and then letting the rain come down after the church is completed and dedicated. This is important for Indians, since they are an agrarian culture, very much living off of the land. To them, pouring-down rain is a sign of God’s blessing and favor. This trip, I was impressed that, in much the same way, the pouring down of tears from Tzeltal and Tzotzil Indians, as well as from Americans, was a sign of God’s blessing for us. This special touch from God showed that God’s favor was extended to us and our work for Him!