Jym Shorts

Jym Shorts - July 21, 2016

July 21, 2016

But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. (Philippians 3:8)

In June, I had the opportunity to spend a week in Mazatlán, Mexico. I have been to Mexico several times, but I have found that the unique experiences I have during each trip teach me something new each time. I really enjoyed going back this year and seeing all that God has been doing in Mazatlán since my last trip.

One of my favorite experiences this year was going to an impoverished community that Back2Back has just started working in. Despite the circumstances they lived in, all the kids were still so happy and were able to find joy in the things they did have. One of the girls I met there walked me to her house and, even though it wasn’t nice by any American standard, she was very proud to introduce me to her family and show me the place she called home. Seeing her joy over her house showed me that I need to be thankful for all the blessings I have been given and not complain when things in my life are not exactly how I want them to be.

Another highlight of the trip was going back to Rancho de Los Niños, a home focused on caring for special needs children. One of the Back2Back staff members told our group all the plans that they have for the children’s home and the land around it. Their vision includes starting a therapy program for the children at Rancho and other children in the community, building homes for the orphans to live with families, and expanding the Back2Back campus to accommodate more staff.

God certainly has so much planned for the future of the city of Mazatlán, but seeing Victor, one of the children at Rancho de Los Niños, reminded me that he also cares about each individual orphan and is working specifically in their lives. Victor is 12 years old but is at the developmental level of a 3-5 month old. When I went to Mazatlán for the first time three years ago, there were several therapists from LifePoint that spent many hours helping Victor gain better mobility and creating treatment plans. This year, it was so amazing to see the progress Victor has made over the past few years. This showed me that God’s glory is shown in the life of a small, disabled child just as much as it is in the large-scale development plans of Back2Back.

All of these experiences were put into perspective during the worship time we had each night when we spent time to reflect upon the one who was working behind everything we had encountered during the day. Throughout the week, we sang a song almost every night entitled Christ Is Enough. The lyrics of this song perfectly summarized everything I was seeing and processing in Mazatlán. It helped me to realize I need to be content in my circumstances and find my satisfaction in Christ. It is easy to fall into the trap of trying to find satisfaction in so many ultimately worthless things while growing increasingly distant from the only person that can fully satisfy us. Going to Mazatlán stripped me of all the things in my everyday life that distract me from Christ, and it allowed me to see the value of finding all my satisfaction and hope in Christ.

Even though we can do things to help hurting people in places like Mazatlán, the hope of Christ is ultimately the only thing that can provide lasting change for these people since we live in a broken world. He transforms the hearts of sinners. He has the power to heal the physical and emotional wounds of orphans. He provides for the Back2Back staff who dedicate their lives to the proclamation of the gospel. He is sufficient for the impoverished people in Mazatlán, and He has the ability to sustain us all. Christ is truly enough for everything we could ever need.

Anna Schmidt

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