How to Be Fully Alive

"The glory of God is a human being who is fully alive.”
(Bishop Irenaeus of Lyons, 2nd century A.D.)

The above quote is one of my favorite quotes out of the annals of church history.  It reminds me that I don’t have to work at being extraordinarily beautiful in order to reflect God’s breathtaking beauty.  In fact, animals, plants, and rocks all have in common that they don't have to work at being beautiful; they just EXIST and that’s what makes them beautiful and that's what gives meaning and purpose to their being.  Likewise, God created each and every one of us with a unique purpose that only we can fulfill.  There is nothing complicated or stress-filled about being who we truly are. “Tapping into our inner desires, dreams and God’s special will for us enables us to have the same kind of freedom that all of creation basks in. When we grasp this truth and claim it for ourselves God is glorified and we enter into the life that we were truly meant to live!”[1]

I spent the last weekend not in the US, but in Tijuana, Mexico, as some among you may  know.  When I first read about Bethel’s adult mission trip to Mexico, I jumped at the opportunity to participate.  Little did I expect then that I might be the least fit, the least strong, and the least adept at Mexican construction techniques among the group.  Alas! I am really glad that I went – as one of 4 “newbies” to this ministry; and I hope that some among the Bethel community who have never gone on this trip, would consider participating next year.

In working alongside the new home owners, a group of Mexican college students, and the group of Bethel volunteers, I felt truly alive.  Not only did I feel everyone of my muscles, not only did I ache, pant, and sweat, but I was elated.  I immediately saw the impact of my labor (which I often don't get to see as a pastor), I watched the pride of the new home owners, I watched how their work, their sacrifices, and their life choices empowered them.  I witnessed "raw" emotions -- tears, joy, exhaustion, laughter, shame, guilt, forgiveness -- emotions that we North Americans so often hide behind a happy facade or masque.  I was blessed to feel the heat of the sun, the joy of friendship, and the refreshing chill of drinking  water.

Saint Irenaeus reminds us that as we find our purpose, as we practice God's love, as we promote mercy and compassion, we implicitly also witness to God's glory. God's glory inhabits us, makes its home within us, as we seek to love others as he first loved us.

I had departed on the journey to Tijuana with a bit of skepticism: Was the purpose of this trip that we end up feeling a bit better about ourselves and our excess affluence?  Was this more a feel-good mission --  making me feel good about myself similar to the way I may feel after giving money to a homeless person? I have come away from this journey, though, with a great sense of appreciation for this project.

Early on during the mission trip I heard about other organizations working to build homes in Tijuana.  One of them - Amor Ministries - has developed a model where, in only three days, a group of international volunteers builds a wooden house for a Tijuana family.  The advantage of this model, obviously, is that the volunteers are able to immediately see the gratifying outcome of their work -- a completed home.  The disadvantages include, in my mind, that the house will deteriorate faster than a concrete structure and that the receiving family has less involvement in the process of constructing their new home.

Bethel works with a Mexican partner organization named "Fundacion Esperanza de Mexico."  Esperanza's philosophy entails that international volunteers work alongside marginalized people in Mexico.  The organization's mission is to build dignified, sustainable homes, mutually accountable communities in the "colonies" surrounding Tijuana, and respect and solidarity among US and Mexican participant.  Once a family has been accepted into the program, the have to prove that they own the plot, they have to raise 10% of the cost of the construction materials (the remainder will be loaned to them by Esperanza or a micro loan bank), and they will manufacture all the cement blocks used for the foundation and walls of their home-to-be (communities often work together on this).  In addition, Esperanza teaches money management, hygiene, and other skills.

In result of this approach families in the Esperanza program are deeply invested in the construction process.  They are also expected to provide lunch for the volunteers working at their site.  While building dignified homes for marginalized people is the primary mission of Esperanza, the organization's secondary mission is to foster solidarity and cultural awareness across the US-Mexico border.

Building homes with Esperanza is not an act of charity, where one party is the giver and the other the recipient of aid.  The Esperanza process involves truth telling (i.e., breaking down cultural stereotypes and learning to see the true face, hopes, and reality of the "other"), empowerment (the families entering the Esperanza program take pride in learning new construction, money management, and health-care skills; they learn to set their hopes high and work towards goals), and justice (marginalized people get to live under less precarious conditions; the privileged share some of their resources).

To me, this mission trip embodies my favorite passage from Psalm 85:
     Mercy and truth meet,
     justice and peace will kiss each other.

     Truth will spring up from the ground,
     and justice will look down from the sky.  (Psalm 85:10-11)

Here are 10 things I learnt over the last weekend:

1. Houses in Mexico are MUCH smaller.
2. Often, they are constructed from a hodgepodge of materials.
3. 19 people working together can pour one entire concrete roof in a day.
4. One can communicate very well without many words across the cultures; smiling helps a lot.
5. I made a new best friend by the name of Advil.
6. My iPhone makes pretty decent photos and can be stored in a pocket of my work shorts.
7. Concrete splatters all over you, even if all you do is to catch empty buckets.
8. Home-made Mexican food is very different from food we eat in US Mexican restaurants.  It is MUCH better.
9. It feels oh sooo good to enjoy a cold beer at the end of a hard day.
10. Most Mexicans would prefer to live in their own country, rather than to come to the US in search for work.

Thank you for reading my reflections.  May god bless the three families on whose future homes we worked with peace, good health, and prosperity.

[1]  This quote comes from an article written by Canadian /songwriter and author Barb Elyett.  www.barbelyett.com.