Where to begin?
It has been nearly impossible to overcome ,my paralysis of analysis regarding the Mayan Mission’s Trip. So much happened! Then, to my utter astonishment and relief I discovered the 10 blog posts on the adventure on none other than my own wife’s blog!!
Traitor! LOL!
Actually, she’s a hero for doing this—now I can leave it to her! So…with no further adieu,
Take Away #1
This little girl followed Juliana around like a puppy dog… they became fast friends.
March 1, 2010 · Filed under Links
So many of you have requested that I post stories from our Mexico trip. And now that Juliana is beginning to show signs of improvement, I am able to wrap my head around this incredible journey. I learned so much and am happy to share with you. I call these nuggets of knowledge Take-Always.
Our departure day started off with many challenges:
* 4:30am received phone call that our flight to Atlanta was cancelled
* 5:00am rented vans… drove to Atlanta
* problems shipping shoes… Atlanta airport would not honor Charlotte shipping arrangements ~ negotiations
* Atlanta flights over-booked due to storm in the southeastern states
* 7:30pm re-routed to Mexico City (largest populated city in the world)
* Spent the night “freezing” in an open air restaurant
* Finally arrived in Cancun… more issues
* luggage lost and damaged
* translator locked keys in car
Note: this is a short list and not inclusive of the trials we encountered during the first 2 days of our trip.
The biggest challenge happened once we arrived in Cancun. As we were retrieving our luggage, a single shoe fell out of a bag. It happened to be a stray shoe with a price tag of $20.00 and a “made in China” tag. An airport official saw the tags and pulled us aside. He flagged our bags, slapped a duty tax on us and presented us with a $6000.00 bill. Payment due before he would turn over our luggage!
Of course, that wouldn’t work. Not only were we not prepared to pay, but also, that would set a precedent for future missionaries bringing supplies. After 6 hours of negotiations, the fee was reduced to $400.00.
Our trip which should have taken 8–9 hours ended up taking 40 hours. we were tired and hungry but amazingly, no one complained. Not even the kids!
Late that second day, we made it to an outdoor restaurant with very good Mayan food (I ate Tinkin Xic ~ a Mayan white fish specialty). It was unusually cold outdoors but the sound of the ocean waves was refreshing.
What was the purpose in this crazy travel comedy of errors? Why the hassles? Why so many delays?
I don’t have these answers. What I do know is that God allowed them. The obstacles were out of our control. So were the resolutions. It became very clear, very evident that we were on God’s agenda, not ours. We were helpless, without any power. And we must rely on Him for every detail of the trip. Yes, His plan for this trip would not be accomplished by our own means, but rather through complete dependence on Him.
Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit, says the LORD. Zechariah 4:6
At the airport, the kids practiced their balloon techniques which they used at our makeshift “Village Backyard Bible Schools.”
Dane catches a wink at a very cold open air restaurant in the Mexico City airport. He was sleeping in a booth. This was taken after being up 24 hours. We were desperate for some shut-eye!
Caroline and Juliana find a second wind at the ocean front restaurant ~ 42 hours and still working on no sleep.
Dane gives Nathan and Keenan a lesson in constellations. The stars were beautiful and abundant that night.
Rob keeps me warm!
Meet our translators (Jonathan and Jamie) and hosts of Sandra’s Mayan Ministry House.
