Jesse Penna | EFC-MAYM, Director of Student and Young Adult Ministries
It is hard to fully explain what God does with a group/person that raises money, prepares themselves to serve God and others, and then gives up a full week of time to sacrifice on behalf of others in general but in this case in a foreign country. So much of what was “accomplished” or done this year during Spring Connection can only be learned in eternity…. However, I wanted to attempt to capture a few of my own highlights and would like to conclude with a few from some of our spring connection team leaders. We are truly better together in EFC-MAYM and are even further better together with our friends and co-laborers in the Kingdom in Mexico….For a biblical defense for being better together see Ecclesiastes 4: 9-12, Ephesians 4: 1 – 6 and John 17: 21 – 23.
My personal highlights: We had groups from Chandler, Bethel, Derby, Iowa, Argonia, Miami, Haviland, Friends University, Northridge and Friendswood this year during Spring Connection serves churches in the state of Coahuila knows as Nacimiento, Palau, Refugio en Dios, Nueva Rosita and Agujita. One unique dynamic this year, was that several teams were paired with other teams who they did not know that well. Below you will hear some of what God did through this dynamic. I for one, was nervous ahead of time with some of these pairings, but given that God does some of his best work through us when we are “others focused” in serving, we did not have any major issues and in fact had some awesome testimonies about God’s work through breaking through some of these team dynamics. We learned first hand that local churches are better together with other local churches that are “different” than themselves… much more to say ( if you want to hear more about spring connection in general or would like for me to make a visit to you church about ways you could participate in the future, please let me know ) for now I offer a few bullet point highlights followed by a few personal testimonials;
- Booker Friends Church letting a first-time group in Friends University borrow their church van, and Haviland Friends letting that same group borrow their trailer and join them in Ministry for the week.
- Having my family with me in Mexico for the first time since 2020
- For several groups, being able to, for the first time ever, participate in Sunday morning worship having decided to miss a day of school on Friday, to cross the border on Saturday.
- Having a few young persons accept Christ at an evangelistic outreach in a park.
- Hearing about Zue Bales who played an instrumental part in leading Susie Vasquez to Christ which is and was the first “connection” for spring connection and the main reason we have been going there since 1993.
- Being able to visit the first site for me in 1999 this past spring connection and to hear some stories about God’s faithfulness to the community there.
- Seeing the skit “Church wake up” twice at Agujita friends and being challenged in deep and profound ways.
- For seeing so many youth developed as they stepped out and served and others through testimony, teaching, VBS leadership, construction work, etc…leadership development at it’s FINEST!
From Josiah Brown, Chandler Friends Church: I can only credit God with bringing our team(s) together the way He did. I heard absolutely no grumbling, arguing, or complaining. We all seemed to “fit” the roles we found ourselves in—students and leaders alike. The discomfort we experienced from new place, food, language, no beds, no showers, etc. could have divided us, but God used it all to bring us together for His purposes. Simply put, seeing how God brought the team together (from four churches!) knocked my socks off.
From Andreia Moore, Bethel Friends Church: That unity is possible and important. The prayer calendar that Bethel put out for our prayer partners involved many requests/petitions for unity. I created that calendar because of the diverse dynamics on our team before we even knew that we were going with Chandler/Derby–but people were still faithful to pray. I could talk for hours about the 1000 little ways God showed up to provide unity, connection, and community. Something we each desperately needed–adults and students alike. The trip and our time in Nacimiento was a precious gift.
From Malissa Rednour, Chandler Friends Church: I loved watching our kids push themselves out of their comfort zones to grow and learn. They all four did something way out of their comfort and nailed it! They all just meshed really well, no complaining or negativity and I think for the most part they all encountered God in a new way. Each of our chandler kids came home able to articulate what God had taught them and how it transformed them in one way or another. That was the biggest highlight for me, just watching them grow and watching God work in and through them.
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