About five days ago, The baseball team and I travelled to Mexico to build a house for a family that was living in a tiny, thrown-together shack. We stayed in Tecate, Mexico while we were there in a nice hotel (for that area).
We set out to finish the house in one single day. We did it in 6 1/2 hours! the players were good workers, and they remained light-hearted throughout the entire day. And let me tell you, that day was hot. The sun was relentless, no clouds, desert, dust blowing around, etc. But, the guys remained good-spirited as they hammered, plastered, and painted the house. A lot of kids came and watched us, too, and tried to take our food and water.
At the end of the day, when the house was finally completed, we all held the keys in our hands and told the family an encouraging word. We then handed the keys over to them, as they cried from speechless happiness. This meant the world to them. We left in our vans as they walked through their front door for the very first time. We will likely never see them again, but we all know that we changed their lives forever. We will never forget what we did and who we did it for. For the family by the call of Jesus to bless those in need. We showed love, and both groups will not forget it.
“They will be hated for their words, but remembered for their love”
Man, was this trip fun, though. We only stayed there a full day to build the house, but we had enough time to walk around the city, visit a local Mexican restaurant, and for me to get leche con chocolate. going through the border was fun, as well. There were lots of sketchy vendors to buy tortillas, coke, shirts, and other home-made foods from. Yes, we bought an entire 24-pack of coke for five dollars, churros, and lots of tortillas. It was a good ride home.
I hope I get to return to do that kind of thing again. I love seeing the faces of people that have had their lives changed by the love that you’ve shown to them. It’s a gift beyond anything: a blessing bigger than the house you give them. You never take memories like that for granted.
Look at the photos from the trip here!
