It was a cool walk through the town this morning as we headed to breakfast. I love how quickly the walk has become comfortable for the team. Even familiar. Each student knows the way. They know what turns to take, where the potholes are and even the names of some of the people we pass each day. The students voices fill the air with the words “buenos dias,” greeting each person we pass and being greeted in return. Even with the diesel fumes from passing trucks and the whizzing motors of the three wheeled taxis that maneuver through the town, the students meet the cold morning air with joy and eagerness, watching the town come alive with the morning sun.
After a hearty breakfast, we broke into three teams and headed out to build houses for families in need. Over the years the organization we are working with has built over 1000 houses in the hillsides surrounding San Lucas Toliman. They are simple houses. Cement floors with a few rows of concrete blocks to begin the walls. The rest of the house is built from rough cut lumber. The roof is made from sheets of tin. It is certainly an accomplishment for each team to construct a three-bedroom house from any material in a single day, but the truth is the houses are simple. There is no plumbing. There is no electricity. But when the families walk through their finished homes they are filled with joy. They are moved to tears knowing that for the first time, in what feels like a lifetime, someone has heard their cries for help and their pleas for mercy. Each of the families we built homes for today have hard stories and we were privileged to hear them. And we were honored to not only build a home for them but to share a bottle of coke and some chips with them and to listen. It was an honor to share a day together and to end the day praying a blessing over their new home and over our new friends.
I wonder if the man beaten and left for dead on the road from Jerusalem to Jericho felt like the families we served today did when the Good Samaritan stopped to help him. To acknowledge his presence. To lend a hand. To bring hope and healing. I wonder if he too finally felt seen and loved and known. We considered this tonight as we studied Luke 10:28-37 together. Serving is hard. It takes time. It takes a commitment. It means rearranging our own lives to make room for the suffering we encounter along our journey. Along our own walks through town. Along our daily commutes and as we go about our day. Jesus tells us that loving our neighbor means stopping for them. Today the students took the time to stop, to help, and to see and experience the suffering of another.
The day ended with a rain soaked game of basketball in the local park that we walk through each morning. Our students wouldn’t quit. Even the heavy afternoon rains couldn’t dampen the excitement they found for meeting and loving new friends.
