Not All Poverty is Created Equal

Blog post by Jeff P., Team Haiti 2011

We were visiting with some children in an orphanage in central Mexico.  The Casa Hogar is about 2 hours inland from the Gulf of Mexico.  It sits in a valley that is mainly agricultural.  The two crops of choice are agave and sugar cane. The Casa Hogar sits 5 miles from the Sierra Madre and 5 miles outside of a city.  This city is a typical middle class city of Mexico.  It has a population of around 100,000.  There are a few wealthy people, a moderate group of middle class, and many poor people who live in the area.  The only major industry in the city is a sugar mill.  Many of the poor live in the outer edge of the city or in a rural areas.

Children, Bible Camp, & the Country of My Ancestors

Blog post by Penny S., Team Moldova 2011

When I was 12 years old I felt God calling me to foreign missions. When I was 41 I went on my first foreign mission trip. You’ll understand now why my life verse is Isaiah 55:8, “For your ways are not My ways, neither are your thoughts My thoughts, declares the Lord.” His timing is certainly different from my timing…only by 29 years!

Hearts Melted in Mexico

Blog post by Jeff P., Team Haiti 2011

My name is Jeff Peterson and I am a Firefighter in Longmont, Colorado.  I am excited to be a part of this [Haiti] team and I am anxious to see where God takes us on this Journey.

In 2007 some friends, family, and I traveled to Ciudad, Mante in central Mexico.  We traveled there to work on a couple of projects.  One project was furnishing a home that was purchased in the city to house girls attending nursing school.  Most of them are indigenous girls from the mountains above Mante.   The second project was to work in an orphanage outside the city.

We knew working in an orphanage would be an emotional time.  The group talked about not getting to attached to the kids, so we tried to prepare ourselves knowing that only so much could be done to help.  We wanted to prevent ourselves the emotional pain, foolishly hoping that we could feel good about helping but be able to go home unaffected.  After getting out of the car the first morning, a few of the kids ran over and gave us big hugs.  One of the kids, with a huge smile on his face, wrapped himself around my son’s leg and wouldn’t let go.  We knew then that this was going to be harder than we thought.