In the barrio

The Word became flesh and blood, and moved into the neighborhood. John 1:14 in the Message

What a great verse, especially this time of year—the almighty, eternal God shows up in the barrio-- and nothing is ever the same. It helps me remember what’s at the heart of this season.
It’s also really been the theme of my last couple of weeks. Two weeks ago in Panama we met for strategic planning for our region, and also to meet with a small team of leaders who and interested adults who are starting Young Life ministry there. They have a neighborhood chosen, they’re starting to move into the world of teens in that neighborhood—and we’re excited that kids there will not only hear about Jesus’ love but see it in action through their lives.
This past week in Mexico was a great reminder of how powerful that vision can be. We had a meeting Monday night in Monclova with people with a group of Christian businessmen and church leaders who desire to see more done to reach out to teens in their town. This group meets each week and previous weeks’ attendance had been down because of the busy-ness of the holiday season, so we’d been told to expect a decent sized group but not much more. Instead, OVER 100 PEOPLE packed out this meeting, filling every seat in the room and spilling out into the hallway. A few had come from an hour and a half away to take part. We were able to present to them our vision for ministry and our hopes for starting Young Life in their town, and they were able to share with us some of their hopes and needs. The meeting was very well received as they promised to pray for and support the new ministry. We had some great conversations with people afterwards until the lights were shut off, and then went out for dinner at 10:30 at night to keep talking! The next night we held a training meeting just for those who were interested in being volunteer leaders and investing time each week in the world of teens….and over 30 people came back and invested another few hours of their week! It was truly awesome to see their excitement and response.
We now have a potential team leader in this town, a very talented and highly educated Christian businessman who feels this may be God’s next call on his life, a group of people ready and able to support the ministry, and a group of people willing to invest their time into the teens of their town. What an amazing blessing to be part of and see how God is still all about moving into the neighborhood today. Please pray for these ministry starts in Panama and Monclova and for these leaders we’ll be training in the months ahead.

Merry Christmas to you all.

Scott

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