Last night I dreamed that we were meeting in the church at Sanborn Rd and that the two key families had returned to our fellowship. There were many first-time guests. When I looked out from the stage, the sanctuary was very full. Some extra pews even had to be brought in. I am not an expert dream interpreter, but this was a SURPRISE dream for me. I am believing that this means that there is a hope and a future for New Life Church.
Today, Louie will speak/preach/teach on John 13, and especially on the disciple whom Jesus loved. Louie has been taken by the phrase that John "leaned back against Jesus" (13:25). This leaning back and resting on Jesus is a sign of intimacy and love and trust. We too need to lean on Jesus for our decisions and questions and friendship.
Today at 7:00 a.m., we had a leaders meeting with Melissa. PLNU student-leaders and all other adults are considered the leadership team. These early morning meetings will be daily for throughout the week.
After our meeting and cereal breakfast, we drove to Tijuana and worked with the TJ Central Church, led by Pastor Alejandro. Our team had been assigned to the haircutting booth, one of our seven ministry booths set up at a popular central park in TJ. As we were setting up the canopies and tables, a four year old girl came and asked me (in Spanish) if she could have some water to drink, from one of our blue jugs. It was a genuine pleasure to fill her water bottle with fresh water. It was a pleasant SURPRISE to learn that one of our teammates, Brooke, actually does hair as a profession. She kept quite busy with the scissors, working alongside the three other women form the TJ Church. I tried using my Spanish to converse with a few of the "clients". We also played Frisbee, American football and soccer with the kids and teens. For lunch, the church brought us brown bags of PBJ, an orange, and chips.
After the ministry fair, we had to pack out all the gear (it was quite a sight with 130 people each carrying something out of the park), load the vehicles, and then drive to TJ Central church where we would have our evening meal. The church is in a residential neighborhood, surrounded by streets in disrepair. We saw a couple a dogs wandering the streets, a typical scene in TJ. As we entered the church property, we found multiple kids jumping on a trampoline, men grilling carne asada, and women working in the kitchen to prepare the meal. We were all seated outside on a large patio (driveway/parking pad). Bowls of pico de gallo were the first food to appear. Then out came the plates, one by one, of burritos de frijoles y carne asada, and a side of guacamole. Then came the coke and then came some ice. The meal was awesome and really hit the spot. I think we were all starved.
After dinner, the Youthworks team members began playing all sorts of impromptu games. A stray super ball was found and became a wall ball game, right against the church wall. A circle formed, and a mystery murderer game began. There was arm wrestling, wrist/sword fighting, the one vs. one balance game, flips on the trampoline. Conversations and laughter filled the space as we rested from our day of work and ministry in the park. We felt quite welcomed by our TJ church family.
On the bus ride back to Tecate (east of TJ), we brought siblings Omar, Raquel and Karen. Omar, the youngest and most sociable of the three, revealed his gift for singing as he joined seatmate Mark in Spanish versions of Open the Eyes of My Heart and Shout to the Lord. There were also games of Rock, Paper, Scissors and various conversations. Joy, a principal from Bishop, served as a translator for the sisters. Lidia and I sat by closely and quietly, just watching and listening and feeling just fine doing so.
Back at camp we gathered for small group, played a name recognition game with a tarp between us, and then debriefed the day's events. We were especially grateful for the partnership shared in the haircutting booth. Melissa then brought around Grandma cookies as a special treat. We were late to bed, but it had been a good day. Tomorrow we head two hours sought to the coastal town of Rosarito for another ministry fair.
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