We had another great missionary team visit us October 15-18 who were wonderfully named, Team Amistad. We are grateful for their hard work and dedication and the impact that they made on the community in such a short time.
Everyone that comes on a mission trip looks forward to the “fun” parts such as feeding the needy. This team was able to do some of that by distributing food in the “colonias,” some of the poorest areas of Laredo. They were also able to bring food to the families that live in the horse stables and to the needy in Pueblo Nuevo. Feeding the poor is an integral part of outreach ministry because it opens a door to talk about spiritual food and to talk about Jesus Christ. We rely on our mission teams to help us do this on a regular basis.
In addition to the “fun” tasks, there is always the hard labor that is necessary in the field. The men in the group were gracious enough to help us clean out a house we are in the midst of renovating. They took several loads of garbage to the city dump. The team also worked along side the women from the community in our ceramics center and helped install the kiln. The center trains women in entrepreneurial skills, another integral part of our outreach ministry.
What this team will be most remembered for is for its record breaking service here at New Vision Community Church. They served close to 300 elderly in our Silver Star Program — that is the most we have had to serve in one day. In addition to handing out bags of food to the seniors, they also helped put together each package before the doors were opened to our recipients.
Amazingly, none of our mission team members knew each other before the trip. Through their labor of love they found common ground and bonds were formed. It was an awesome testimony at how seamlessly the body of Christ can work together when united by His purpose. By working with such cohesion, they were able to accomplish so much in such little time!
Thanks again Team Amistad!!
And once again, we know our mission team took away as much as they gave from their short trip. One of our missionaries wrote:
“The work being done there is so real and down to earth – and our physical labor and hearts were appreciated 1000-fold, so the question is – who benefitted the most? I hope those kids and parents and elders got as much out of our team’s impact as I did personally. My co-worker says I seem happier since my return…..I want to go back……I thank you Luis and Lucy, for giving me the chance to serve and work long, hard, loving hours with you.”