Volume 1, Issue 2
March 2002
Page 2
by Julie Luoma
I’ve been trying to imagine holding an event at our church that would bring in 1300 people in 5 days…I’m a practical person, though, and I also wonder how we’d deal with the noise and confusion, the wear and tear on our pretty carpets, the aroma of unwashed bodies, the press of too many people in one area, the mud and mess when it started to rain, the frustration of not having the perfect supplies...the occasional head crawling with lice...
And yet, when I think back to that week last October, in Mazatlan, when our brothers and sisters in Christ at La Iglesia Cristiana opened their doors and their hearts, none of that mattered a bit. Incredible patience, unending love, and true servanthood are the first words that come to mind. My eyes well with tears as I recall how the Gospel of our Lord was offered to each person, individually, with respect and love in a semi-private location.
Our team had the privilege of offering glasses and dental work, but we were only offering temporary solutions to mostly minor problems. The real gifts, after the Gospel was given, were the smiles, the gentle touches, and the unconditional acceptance of each patient as a special gift from God.
I can not adequately use words to describe the feeling I had as I stood in the middle of the joyous confusion each day, watching some of our team members share gifts they didn’t know they had, while others used their professional skills in less than ideal settings. I was amazed at the quiet, calm, patient attitudes of all. I felt surrounded by God’s grace.
Even now, back at work and my daily routines, I find my heart back in Mazatlan and I pray for the people I saw and touched. I also find myself more patient and compassionate for the “undesirable” people around me, for we do not need to go to another country to find people longing for the Gospel. May I never be the same as I was before I went to Mazatlan last October.
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