Fear and Loathing in Piedras Negras

For those of you wondering, our mission trip went well, and here is the piece I wrote about it for the newsletter:

On March 7 a small team of five left San Antonio, TX and headed to Piedras Negras, Mexico. It was a short two and a half hour drive, but to hear the media talk about it, our team was risking life and limb to enter a battle zone. Mexico had been captured by drug lords and corrupt cops, and was allegedly on the brink of civil war. You can imagine our shock when we were greeted with a warm smile and bear hug by a Danny Devito-esque Mexican priest, Padre Miguel.
Padre Miguel is the priest of El Buen Pastor, a congregation that has grown exponentially and considers its mission to be very simple: tell people about Jesus and help whoever you can. This church stood in stark contrast to everything we had been prepared to encounter in Mexico. Where we were expecting to see pain, suffering and death, we instead encountered hugs, smiles and vibrant life. The whole time we kept thinking, these people live where we are afraid to go.
Our team spent four days in Piedras Negras building relationships in the church and digging a ditch that will be used to lay the foundation for an addition to the church. This addition will be used as a computer lab/ sewing center and will give El Buen Pastor even more ways to serve its city. We saw the living conditions of many of the poor, the dirt floors, the crate walls, no heat, and no water. Even these poor welcomed us, and rather than being angry or dejected they were hopeful that perhaps these American Christians could help.
Maybe we can help. That question has haunted me since we returned to San Antonio. Maybe we can help. We should be able too. We have the means, the talent and the energy. But we are also gripped by fear. Unlike past years, the overwhelming response to this trip, was, “Don’t go, its too dangerous.” We took the media descriptions of violence to be gospel truth. We took general government warnings to be specific calls on our life. Maybe we can help. Maybe, but it is going to take trusting Jesus more than our local news anchor, and loving our neighbors more than we love our own safety. Maybe we can help. Our team prays that we can.