Experience Clintonville | Happy to Call it Home | Going to Piedras Negras Was Life Changing

mexico3 — Going to Piedras Negras Was Life Changing

There were 10 of us from North Broadway United Methodist who made the flight from Columbus to San Antonio, Texas. From there we drove on down to our final destination just across the border from Eagle Pass, Texas; our destination was a moderately sized city named Piedras Negras. This name translates to “Black Rock”, which we later found out was because they mine coal there. We were housed at a hotel several kilometers away from the place where we would spend our time at La Casa Misericordia (The House of Mercy). The Casa (as it is referred to) is an orphanage of sorts where 21 kids between the ages of 3 and 19 are housed. The leader of The Casa is a man named Pastor Miguel who is also a local Methodist church leader. The first day there we met the kids, then went to work taking down an old barbed wire fence around a pasture on the grounds of The Casa which is used for grazing. Nearby neighbors were dumping their garbage in the pasture, as they have no sort of trash pick-up service, so Pastor Miguel decided that a more sturdy and permanent fence would suffice in keeping people out. After the old fencing was taken down, post holes were dug, posts were placed and pounded, and concrete was mixed and poured around posts to set a new chain link fence.

The next day we put up the fencing, then played with the children. It was amazing how quickly they opened up to us, and how much love we were not only receiving, but also giving. In the following days stories were shared, piggy back rides were given, bandanas were taken and flaunted, food was eaten, prayers prayed, songs sung, and dances danced. It was amazing to see children so genuinely happy and enthusiastic about having the attention we provided during our stay. It cannot be accurately communicated through words how thrilling, emotional, and epic the friendships we made, the culture we learned, and the atmosphere we took in was, but speaking on behalf of the group I would say we are all changed people for having gone on the trip.

Realizing how different our lives are from the children at The Casa really makes me think about all the things I take for granted, like my family, access to the internet, a job, and living far away from the influence and realm of drugs. However, we all have in common the love of Jesus Christ and accept him as our Lord and savior. This trip showed us that in Columbus, Piedras Negras, and all over the world, Jesus is a part of everything. On our last night with the children, we had a collective prayer with Pastor Miguel and the children which asked for blessings and care for the children at The Casa, and for us on our journey coming down. We ALL fell in love with the children there, and more than a few of us vowed to return.

Co-written by Andrew and Thomas Fellure

For more information contact Pastor Anna Guillozet, North Broadway United Methodist Church, 48 E. North Broadway, Columbus OH 43214, www.north-broadway.org , info@north-broadway.org

Click here to cancel reply.

Going to Piedras Negras Was Life Changing

Related posts

Leave a comment