Storms in the South

Right now there is massive suffering with 250 dead from the storms in the southern US. Alabama was the hardest hit with 162 casualties. Our prayers go out to the victims and their families. We are looking into finding what we can do to help. Contact us if you are interested in helping.

Rio Bravo

I finally feel like I’ve recovered from the trip to Reynosa! It was such a great opportunity to go on this trip with TWCD, and I am so glad I ran across another blogger’s post about going with them to Australia at the beginning of the year. I just decided to visit their website, shoot them an email, and before I knew it, I was on my way with the guys to Mexico!

On Saturday, I drove the 12 hours to Dallas from Alabama, and then on Sunday, we headed out for the daylong drive to Reynosa.

After that, I lost all track of time.

I sorted clothes, laid carpet and cove base, painted, scrubbed doors and furniture, and moved pavers. Others busted up concrete, hung sheetrock, and set up basketball goals for the kids. We worked from 8:30 till 4:00 everyday. And it was HOT! Then we’d head in, shower, eat delicious food cooked by the house parents, and play with the kids outside.

On Wednesday night we got to hear Ray’s testimony and the story of how Rio Bravo was started. The condensed version of the story is that he visited Mexico, felt called to be involved there, and did it. He followed God’s calling. Straight on. No hesitations. He just did it.

And it was hard in the beginning. Then miracle after miracle happened. They burned off the garbage that covered the place in the beginning. Hole by hole they dug the foundations, and batch by batch they mixed and poured the cement to fill these holes. With their own hands, and help from mission groups.

I was amazed at Ray’s dedication and faith. I’m sure my head would have been filled with doubts. But it was Ray’s calling, and he was pretty determined to make this home happen. Now, to see and hear how far Rio Bravo has come is amazing. There’s no doubt that God has His hand on this place and the people there.

It was SUCH a blessing to be a part of this trip. I’m so glad I took the chance to email TWCD, and to get involved.

I hope I get to go back down there to help again. Ray mentioned how their help has slacked off over the past few years. The Bible verse they hold to is James 1:27: “Pure and undefiled religion before God and the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their trouble and to keep oneself unspotted from the world”. I love this verse, and it really my touched my heart when Ray recited it as his life verse.

It was an awesome week of not only being involved in something I believe in, but being able to literally see the progress, and the impact that our group had while we were there. It was hard work, but it was such a refreshing experience.

Back From Reynosa

Had a great time at Rio Bravo Children’s Home and really got some good work done. Despite being a shorter trip than we usually do, I feel like we worked so much we still got a comparable amount done to some of our other trips! Over the four days we spent working we all got a lot done. I helped tear down a gym wall, lay down carpet in one of the boys’ houses and painted the doors of their school. It was hard work and hot days, but it felt good.

It’s always nice to go onto a new projet and find they have a lot for use to do, but those situations also tend to make it even clearer how much there is still left to do when we leave. Unfortunately, it’s not possible for us to do everything, but hopefully we’ll get a chance to go back and help out again in the future.

Rio Bravo Children’s Home

Well, we all made it back safely from Reynosa, Mexico. The trip was absolutely amazing. It is so much fun to get to play with the little ones whose lives are so impacted by that incredible place. Ray Hansen has built something amazing down there. I definitely hope that we get the opportunity to go down and help them out again in the future.

The sun was about as hot as I knew that it could get, and the work we had to do was exhausting, but there are few things I enjoy more than those days that I collapse into bed at end of the day and cannot keep my eyes open.

Tsunami in Japan

By now I’m sure everyone has heard about the earthquake and tsunami that just hit Japan’s coast. Our prayers go out to those affected by this tragedy.

An Awakening

I want to start out by thanking everyone that made this trip a possibility. Matt and Kyle (and everyone with TWCD) did such a great job getting things organized and set up. To everyone that gave, not only would we have not been able to go help out without your generosity, but also lives would have never been changed (mine included).

Personally, I could not have asked for a better first international excursion. I left the U.S. with the idea of having no expectations. I desired God to work through our group and through me in any way that He would. Looking back I am blown away by the things that happened and the people that I became connected to.

There is one particular moment that I pray will be cemented into my memory and my heart for the rest of my life. A special family that my team and I were able to serve and, honestly, just enjoy life with for three days has struck me in a way I cannot get over. We met John Marshal on his beautiful farm the first day and I liked him at once. Instead of giving us random jobs, he would work with us all day and act like he wanted our opinion on things he obviously knew so much more about. I think that he has one of the kindest hearts I have ever seen. Each night we would sit on his porch with his precious family for hours just talking, eating, and enjoying life together. One night Mrs. Marshal cooked us a delicious lamb dinner and we just talked, played guitar, and got to know one another as the sun set. The only word I have to describe the night is beautiful. It was a beautiful moment.

Mr. & Mrs. Marshal

The Marshal Family

The Aussie people as a whole were so genuine and gracious. I enjoyed them and their beautiful country so much. I love the phrases like, “that’s a good drop,” let’s get this done and then “hit the frog and toad” (meaning let’s get on the road), and of course referring to the men as “blokes” and the women as “Sallys/Suzies.” Australia is a fabulous place. I have to say, however, as blessed as I felt by the Aussies, I came away changed by the team I was privileged to be a part of. From every walk of life we came together with the same goal: to stretch out our hand and serve those who were hurting. It was so neat for me to see how the trip touched us all in different ways and exactly when we needed it. People that I had never even met or hardly knew have become dear friends to me.

Experiences like this one are almost overwhelming. I think that is obvious by the posts thus far. You feel so much, you feel changed, you feel inspired. In my attempt to sum something up in my mind I keep landing on one word: hope. It’s something we all desire and it’s the one thing that inspires us when we are at the bottom. We long for hope for tomorrow. I believe that is what we gave a few Aussies and in return, that is what they gave us. I would do this trip a thousand times over to bring hope to those who have lost it. Praise Him.

 

Ineffable

Before I had even returned to the States I had began to process and evaluate our trip to Australia.  While I was there, I daily kept a journal in order to remember the intricate details of each day.  However, this attempt failed.  There were no words written on a page that could encapsulate the experiences of the trip.  So I began jotting down words to commemorate these experiences in hopes I could recall those experiences once I was home.  Now that I am back and re-read those words, they seem empty and disappointing.  Those words cannot convey my experience; however, I am hopeful that you will be able to get a grasp on the impact all parties experienced during this trip.

In Australia we were incessantly greeted with grateful attitudes as we explained our reason for being there.  Every individual we encountered was amazed that we would come from America with the single purpose of helping them recover from the flood.  As our time down there progressed we were able to see a tangible, positive change in the work we were doing.  While we were in Texas, Australia a group of us worked for four days with a farmer by the name of Ian.  In talking with Ian, we found out that between equipment, property, and product damage he lost about $300,000.  That doesn’t include the carry over to the next few years as his land and production will not be back to full capacity.  One day in working with Ian, three of us had just finished doing a line of fence posts.  He looked down the line and said, “Thats about $200 worth of work.”  And that was the third fence line of that length the three of us had done that day.  Wow, in just a few hours three of us had done about $600 worth of work!  Imagine how much work all 13 of us did in the time we were there.  That is a brief idea of the monetary impact we had while we were there.  There was also a large psychological impact as we were humbly able to positively lift the spirits of those we encountered.  Other group members have written on that psychological impact as well, so I will not elaborate on that.

In no way do I say this out of some sense of self righteousness or self justification.  We went to aid the Australians, but I believe we each came away changed in some way by our work and the people we encountered.  I want to convey, to whomever is reading or gracious enough to sponsor TWCD, the actual impact a small group of people can have in a time of distress.  This is written out of gratefulness, but also as a challenge.  You are able to make a difference.  Your donation makes a difference.  Your willingness to support TWCD makes a difference.  Please continue to sponsor and please continue to make a difference.  TWCD does a great job of mobilizing people who are willing to go and serve as well as providing opportunities for people to donate who may not be able to go themselves.

 

Personally, I am very gracious for the opportunity to go to Australia to aid in rebuilding their flooded country.  It was undeserved but I am very grateful for the chance to help out.  Without the help of TWCD this trip would not have been possible for me and many others