Wednesday Reflections

See more photos on PHOTO TAB above!

Pastor Starke encouraged the students and leaders on this last build day in Tecate: to dig deep and to be encouraged because we are building the Kingdom of God.  By serving in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, we can transform Tecate! God calls us to feed the poor and house the homeless, and He will give us all the strength we need.

Psalm 127 - Unless the Lord builds the house, the builders labor in vain.

1 Peter 4:11 - If anyone serves, they should do so with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ.

REFLECTION ONE

Hard work is good for the soul! Our site worked really hard each day especially yesterday. The reason I know is that we drank all the 3 x 5 gallon jugs of water we brought out. It is amazing that this group comes together for building this house for this family, hardly knowing each other from their normal school or work days, but in the past few days, we have become a unit with the goal of providing this shelter for this family here in Tecate. The freezing cold nights, the loud dogs, the scorching sun, the passing rain storm which soaked us, all were worth it to be in fellowship with the Lord to serve here. Our family and the neighbors do not have much but opened their heart and shared what they had. They open their humble homes to allow all of us to use their baños. They always had smiles, especially the children who loved to play soccer in the streets. We are blessed with so much in our daily lives, it is a blessing to give to the people here. We can see the appreciation the have for us. We also see their happiness, even when they have so little, they are content. It is wonderful for the kids to see the faces of the local people here, to see their happiness and simple lifestyle. Indeed the whole Tecate experience is a blessing given to us from God to help us as well as helping other, fir we are all His children.

-Dien Nguyen, TKA Parent

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REFLECTION TWO

Today, was sadly our last day with the precious niñitos. We taught them about the story in Judges about Gideon, the fearful soldier and his 300 men. Señora Coulter explained how Gideon trusted God and he was victorious because of it; the children were inspired to bring all of their worries, problems, requests and praises to Jesus Cristo! We gave them prizes, lollipops and helped them with their craft, a sign with the memory verse from Judges to hang in their home. Afterwards, we played in the bouncy houses with the kids and enjoyed "pato pato ganzo" or duck duck goose. One of the highlights for both the niños and Kids Club team members was all of us being able to sign each other's t-shirts. The niños were very eager to write their names on our shirts and write us goodbye cards. The three days of The Kid's Club sessions were very fulfilling experiences and all of us students are so thankful to be able to love these kids and show them the love of God. It was incredible seeing how much joy each one of them brought to our days and how much love they had for us. The children were so eager to learn more about God and were fascinated with each one of Señora Coulter's teachings. We ended the session with many hugs, goodbyes and, even a few tears. The Lord has truly worked through the students and faculty in Kids Club to spread love, joy, and most importantly the Gospel.

-David Benkert & Maddie Payne, Grade 10
Kids Club

REFLECTION THREE

Today was the last day of Tecate. There were so many blessings that happened today to keep track of. Natasha, Miss Rosi, Miss Maria, and I were packing up the van to leave for the church when the camp kitchen ladies came to us with tons of food to take with us to the church for the people of the community. There was so much food that none of us could almost fit in the van without having to hold things! God has mysterious ways of working! The next blessing today was when we were praying in the church before the women came, and we invited Pastor Fransisco to pray with us. The prayers overwhelmed us to the point that Natasha and I were in tears. I have never felt so filled by the Holy Spirit. One of the last major blessings of the day was being part of the key ceremony at site 16. We had finished early, and Natasha and I decided to go help them, and it was a blessing to be part of building the house as well. Getting the chance to be part of the key ceremony because we helped a little was a huge blessing! God is good, and He always has plans full of love!

-Abigail Speer, Grade 11
Family and Health Ministry

Tonight, anyone at camp had an opportunity to share how they saw God at work this week.  About a dozen students shared.  A common theme was feeling an overwhelming sense of gratitude for the many blessings they have:  a home, plenty of food, education, their parents. And, they felt humbled by the generosity and love shown to them. Students who worked in Kids Club were in awe at the genuine joy the children expressed when given simple gifts of pencils, pens or glue.  A family at one site made lunch for all of the team, using their time and precious few resources to feed them.  There were often tears in the families eyes at the key ceremonies, and among the team members.  The people of Tecate clearly blessed us as much as receiving a home or being part of a ministry blessed them.  Evidence of God's "overwhelming, never-ending" love at work in and through us. 

The worship team closed with "Reckless Love" and we sang together:

Oh, the overwhelming, never-ending, reckless love of God
Oh, it chases me down, fights 'til I'm found, leaves the ninety-nine
I couldn't earn it
I don't deserve it
Still You give yourself away
Oh, the overwhelming, never-ending, reckless love of God

There's no shadow You won't light up
Mountain You won't climb up
Coming after me
There's no wall You won't kick down
No lie You won't tear down
Coming after me