the five15 blog

Chris’s Mx08 Testimony

April 13, 2008 7:56 am

Good evening. Just last week, I had the wonderful opportunity to go down to Mexico and help serve Dean and the orphanage in whatever way they needed us. I also had the unique opportunity, along with only a few others, of staying at the Ranch for the whole week, while most of the others went to work at the Pastor’s College. This was a particular delight because I got to spend a lot of time with the kids there.

God showed me many things through this. One was that He showed me just how blessed we are to be living here in America. Here we don’t have to worry about taking one minute showers, or getting sick from just drinking the water. We live in the richest county in the United States; one of the richest in the world, and yet we take advantage of so many little things that God has blessed us with. And yet these things are of no worry for the children. They were still tremendously joyful, which spoke volumes to me. Many of them had been very badly abused yet rarely did I see the children without a large smile on their face. It was something that you don’t see often here.

Where do you see a child here in America who runs up to you and gives you a hug after just meeting them? Where do you see a child who gives you a rock as a gift and starts laughing hysterically? Where do see a child take a trash can and use it to roll themselves in for hours at a time? Where do see a child wait patiently at the door for you while you eat, just so that you can push them on the swing? I don’t see that here very often.

The power of the gospel was clearly at work there. God also showed me of the great opportunity we had to spread it further, through our own example of love and joy. As I looked around on the last night I saw nothing but smiles from our own team, and I knew that these people are God’s own, and that we had been called down there by God for a reason. Maybe one day I’ll get to meet a David, Angel, or Jesus, but this time as they plan to head up a new church in Oaxaca or Mexico City. Maybe I will meet again a Jonathan or Cristian, but this time as they are the new director of the orphanage.

Romans 8:28 says, “And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.” I don’t know who, when, where, or what exactly will happen, but I do know that God has and will continue to work in the lives of these orphans for the advancement of his kingdom. And I thank God so much that we had a chance to be a part of that. Thank You.

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Anna’s Mx08 Testimony

7:55 am

I was really impacted by all the joy that the kids and the Adamek family exuded at Rancho 3M. Before we arrived at the ranch, we had been informed that many of the kids came from abusive backgrounds, or had been abandoned. We were told this so that we could be sensitive when speaking with them. The attitude of the kids was completely different than I had expected. The kids were very open and cheerful, and the transforming work of Jesus Christ was clear in many of their lives.

Another thing that touched me was the care that the older kids at the ranch had for the younger children. Some of the children were related, but even the unrelated children treated the younger kids as if they were their own siblings. They all looked out for each other. This is an evidence of God’s grace in their lives, because without God they would only look to their own interests instead of preferring others above themselves.

The best part for me was the way that the “language barrier” dissolved after the first few days. I don’t speak Spanish, and some of the Rancho 3M kids didn’t speak any English, but we all got along very well together. The bilingual members of our team enjoyed translating for us, though I wonder if they were ever tired of hearing ” ¿Cómo se dice…?”

The passion play at Gracia Soberana (”Su Pasión Por Ti”) was a tremendous display of the gospel. The play began with Creation, and the Fall, showing our need for a Savior, and proceeded to the garden of Gethsemane and the events leading up to Jesus’ crucifixion. They mixed scenes from The Passion (film) and songs about Christ with the drama to bring everything to life in a very powerful and compelling display. They constantly returned to the gospel and emphatically repeated our need for a Savior, and after the presentation, the pastor gave an invitation to Alpha. I hope that the presentation impacted the visitors as much as it affected our group. The message of the play bridged any language gap, and it certainly glorified God in the way it was presented.

It was so beautiful to hear “every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father” (Philippians 2: 10) while we were in Mexico, and I’m very grateful for this amazing experience.

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Ted’s Mx08 Testimony

7:53 am

Liane and I had the honor of being able to join Steve Whitacre in a team of 48 individuals, sinners all, saved by the rescue and work of Jesus Christ, and sent by your prayers and financial giving to serve Dean’s orphanage as well as the Latin American pastors college at Sovereign Grace church in Juarez. A lot has been said about the testimonies on the noticeable the absence of whining and complaining as well as the evidence of humble servanthood. What struck me was that in addition to all of this was a more pronounced speaking of Christ and a sense that all was done for Him who gave himself for us as a substitute for deserved wrath. There was less dwelling on sin and more on grace, more on the person and life of Christ, and that in working heartily unto Him we were ultimately reflecting his righteousness in us. Less about us, and more about Jesus and His glory. This was reflected in times of morning worship where everyone carried with them throughout the day a sense that we were merely continuing a worshipful response to God… not that we “had to do”, but “we get to do!” This was extraordinary and something that was an example to Dean and his staff, the staff of the church in Juarez and the orphans themselves, many whom were subject to very sad and difficult circumstances. What was affecting the kids at the ranch was the life of the Saviour in each of the students and their parents. Overall, I saw a visible and concentrated picture of our day-to-day life together in this church. five15, we were merely a reflection of the life of Jesus in all of you. We are all on a mission together as a church… one toward Heaven. This picture will remain with Liane and me for decades to come. Thank you five15 for sending us!

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Coach’s Mx08 Testimony

March 31, 2008 6:29 am

Highlights of My Easter Vacation

I went to Mexico to chaperone my son, Logan. I also went to benefit from time and toil spent shoulder to shoulder in the dirt with him. I went to experience the dry climate, the Mexican culture and people, and more importantly, to revel in the fellowship with other “workers”.

I expected to enjoy the company of the church youths that made the trip. I anticipated playing games and “chatting” with the children there at 3M (really just making hand signs and motions, because Hola, Adios and Gracias are the only Spanish words I know).

I looked forward to a week of deep and meaningful devotions up at the foot of the cross each morning after the 1.1 mile hike to get there. God always seems bigger when the horizon stretches out endlessly in every direction you look. When you can see miles and miles in every direction there is a special appreciation for Job 38:4 where God asks Job, “Where were you when I laid the earth’s foundation? Who marked off its dimensions? Who stretched a measuring line across it?

But while I was in Mexico I caught something I did not anticipate. I caught the vision.

My son Logan related to me a comment from his Mexican buddy, David’. (I don’t speak Spanish so I just call him David.) David had explained how he regularly feels the need to speak up in school to challenge the evolutionary and humanistic teachings his instructors espouse in class and in lectures. THAT’s when I caught the vision.

I caught the vision that amongst the pastors being trained in the Pastors College that I was constructing, one day there would be men who were, at one time in the not so distant past, boys who had grown up at Rancho 3M. There, in the building I was privileged to be wiring and dry walling, would be boys/young men that had been trained and guided in God’s word from a young age under the direction of a godly man, now ready to receive graduate level training in Godliness and Preaching.

I caught the vision of the gospel moving across the heart of Mexico through these boys and other young men from other Latin American countries. I could see God’s Sovereign Grace being carried down through Central America into the heart of the South American continent. I could envision Spanish speaking pastors going out from the Pastors College we helped fabricate, and returning to their native countries to share the true gospel and to teach and train others in biblical principles.

I was thrilled to see the seeds of something SO LARGE and so influential taking shape right before my eyes. I was excited to see part of God’s plan unfolding right in front of me. And I was delighted that I was permitted to see it when it first started and be a tiny, tiny part of it.

That’s the Highlight of My Easter Vacation

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Jed’s Mx08 Testimony

6:28 am

Over Spring Break, 48 of us went to Mexico for a week– seven long days filled with countless stories of God’s grace and care. During our flights, in spite of security breaches at Dulles and Cowboys fans in San Antonio, all of our flights went well. Every day as we drove back and forth from Rancho 3M to Juarez, God guided us through erratic traffic patterns, wrong turns, and raging roadside fires. At the Pastor’s College as we worked, God protected us from all the dangers involved with construction–including broken ladders, hazardous insulation, and hanging an enormous sign. At Rancho 3M, God gave us wisdom and skill in work and patience with exuberant kids. God protected us from bacteria-infested water, dinner at local restaurants, and ambitious venders at the market. And through it all, God sustained us physically (by giving us strength to work) and spiritually (refreshing us each day from His Word and through worship). I don’t think that a single one of us returned unchanged or unaffected by this trip.

For me personally, although I was extraordinarily excited about going, I did to an extent begrudge giving up my Spring Break. I was tired of school and figured I could use a week off from it and all other responsibilities. Yeah, I was going to get off of school, but it was not like we were going to be resting in Mexico. And yet though I returned physically exhausted, God refreshed me spiritually. While I had left tired of school, as I returned, God gave me fresh enthusiasm for work. Even though rest was generally the farthest thing from my mind in Mexico, God still used that time to bless and encourage me.

Romans 8:32 says, “He who did not spare his Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things?” Having already given up His Son for us, God blessed us more abundantly than we could ever have imagined. Although we went to Mexico with the primary purpose of blessing Dean Adamek and Rancho 3M, God faithfully provided us with all that we asked for and far more than we could have imagined. Ephesians 1:3: “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places.”

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