Youth in Mission and Genesis Collaborate to Impact Queretaro
Lohuther René Gutiérrez Méndez
Two days ago, I wrote about the incredible things God did this summer through Youth in Mission in Mexico. One thing I omitted (on purpose, in order to share it here) is the following.
After several days of training and house-to-house evangelism, we came alongside the missionaries who are serving with the Genesis initiative in Queretaro. That state is known for its lack of openness to the gospel, and it forms part of an area that has been named the Circle of Silence.
The four missionaries there are doing a great job of reaching many people through classes or lessons on literacy, computer programming, football, and even psychological consultations. It was a privilege for us to listen to them and see the deep desire they possess to be part of God’s mission.
The Lord allowed us to work with many children and adults, giving educational talks to the parents, which was a great blessing. In the afternoons we presented dramas and free-style rap concerts that proved attractive to the kids and teens. Our purpose was to make relationships and share the gospel with them, and we were able to do so by emphasizing positive lyrics and topics in our music.
What a wonderful time we had in Queretaro: 25 days in all. We experienced so many beautiful things and witnessed the presence of God at work in the lives of the people in the community as they were being transformed.
The Lord gave us the opportunity to celebrate the first-ever congregational service in that Genesis site, which also included a marvelous time of prayer for healing. The people present opened their hearts and, with tears in their eyes, were able to give their burdens to the Lord and receive the peace that only he can give.
We were able to assist an elderly woman in moving from one house to another, and that opened doors for us to lead her to Christ. After she was baptized a few days later, we all gave glory to God because his Holy Spirit always goes before us, convincing of sin within and guiding us into the light of his salvation.
During our final days on site, we held an activity in a large park. We presented a sketch and shared the Word of God with all who were present. Afterwards we formed groups of two or three and prayed prayers of blessing for all who had gathered. The missionaries told us that this was the first service they had seen where all of their contacts came together; without a doubt, it impacted all of us.
When Sunday arrived, we were anticipating what would take place. This morning was important: all the months of the missionaries’ hard work was about to bear fruit. Ten Christians were baptized that day and we rejoiced with them, knowing that there had been parties all over heaven because of their decisions!
We knew that God was backing us up at every step. Our time in Queretaro was full of culture shock and moments when, as a group, we opened up and shared our concerns and conflicts. God helped us to become united as a team, and our ministry began to benefit from it. Out of the entire summer of Youth in Mission, our time in Queretaro was what impacted us the most.
*In our next entries we will share some testimonies that came directly from the young men who served as Youth in Mission missionaries this summer.
We dedicated a big part of our summer to assisting the four missionaries that are planting churches in Queretaro through the Genesis initiative. It was a powerful time. In our next entry I will share more about that specific experience.
