Saturday, April 11, 2009 1:15:33 AM
We finished our trip well and arrived safely home tonight at 7 p.m. We look forward to sharing about our trip this Wednesday night at the Mexico Report. Be there at 6:15 p.m. in the worship center to hear all about it!
Friday, April 10, 2009 1:17:50 AM
The team finished their last day of ministry with a Fiesta and a church service for the community. It was a success lots of people attended the event. They are packing up and getting ready to head home in the morning. Pray for their safety for the border crossing and on the drive home.
Wednesday, April 08, 2009 8:58:49 PM
The team had another great day of ministry, despite a challenging wind storm last night. The team pulled together to secure camp late into the night. It was a great adventure! The wind is supposed to last through tonight and die down tomorrow. Today the team completed several more work projects and had even more children and women come for vacation bible school and women's ministry. Everyone is healthy and doing well except for some minor colds and coughs (probably due to the dust in the air). Please continue to pray for our team as they head into thier last full day of ministry tomorrow.
Wednesday, April 08, 2009 12:42:26 AM
Another successful day for the team, and they even smell good! 
The team had breakfast at the pastor's house this morning and then headed to the church for ministry. After a successful day of VBS, Women's Ministry, and Work Projects for the church they headed to the shower house. How long does it take 31 people to shower ???? Approximately 2 hours. But I think the team will all agree that it is well worth the wait. Here are some pics from the team of things that have happened so far.
Setting up camp in Cuernavaca
Giving the bus to the Church.
Painting a school in Mexicali.
Work Projects at the Church.
Tuesday, April 07, 2009 1:14:48 AM
If you want to hear other stories about things that are happening through the Mexico Outreach trip check out this website:
www.apu.edu/around/13699/
Tuesday, April 07, 2009 1:06:32 AM
Another busy day without much rest for the team. They started the ministry at the church this morning. They had 60 children attend VBS, 30 women in the Women's Ministry, and the Work Project Team started repairing some things around the church. Right after that was finished the entire team went to a school in Mexicali to do their service project. They picked up trash and painted some buildings on the school grounds. The team is looking forward to tomorrow, they will actually have time to take showers. They had a little set back with locking some keys in one of the vehicles first thing this morning. After a fireman & a policeman failed at getting the vehicle unlocked, a local farmer was attempting it. John & Jennifer prayed and right after they said "amen" the farmer unlocked the vehicle. Funny how God uses the little things to focus our attention on Him. Everything is still peaceful and the team is tired but having fun.
Monday, April 06, 2009 1:58:18 AM
The team had another eventful day. They had a church service at the church site this morning then they passed out flyers, for the VBS, around the neighborhoods surrounding the church. They had a really great time at the camp site worship gathering. They felt God's presence throughout the day and especially in the worship gathering this evening. Tomorrow they start the VBS, Women's Ministry, and Work Projects at the church in San Luis. Everything is peaceful and besides a few colds everyone is doing really well.
Sunday, April 05, 2009 1:43:20 AM
The team had a really busy day today. They started out with a quick stop at the Walmart, to collect anything they forgot to pack, right before they crossed the border into Mexicali. The border crossing went perfect and they were on the hunt for the new site in Cuernavaca. They set up camp and were able to catch their breath just in time to head to the church in San Luis. The church made them dinner and they had a quick worship service. The areas that the team have visited are all peaceful and things are going just as planned. They will have a busy day tomorrow. We'll keep you up to date on the progress of the trip.
Saturday, April 04, 2009 1:02:17 AM
We made it to El Centro. Everyone is healthy and happy. Miracles are already happening, we had no car trouble the whole way to El Centro. Everything has gone as planned. We are staying at the church tonight and crossing the boarder at Mexicali first thing after breakfast. We will get to camp in the late morning and set up our tents and settle into our home for the week.
Monday, March 23, 2009 2:16:56 PM
We made contact with our sister church in Mexico this week. One of our interpreters spoke with Pastor Vasquez of Iglesia de Dios in San Luis, Mexico. We have been partnering with Pastor Vasquez for about 8 years now and he has become a trusted friend and ministry partner. Among other things, they spoke about the safety in San Luis Mexico. Pastor Vasquez assured us that the region is peaceful and that there is nothing out of the ordinary happening. He is looking forward to our visit.
Wednesday, March 18, 2009 3:47:21 PM
How Mexico Outreach is Mitigating the Risks
· We are monitoring news articles, U.S. Websites, our Mexican contacts including border crossing personnel, Mexican legal, our ministry coordinators and full time staff living in Mexicali and Ensenada. They frequently assess the situation in our locations. We try to acquire all information from multiple sources.
· We have posted updated reports on our Mexico Outreach website on the safety and travel in Mexico. We note our response, communicate what to be doing and paying attention to, what teams responses should be, and who to contact here in our office if you want further info. We have made bi-monthly updates since October 2008 (and before)
· We emailed the link to these updates to all the groups/teams joining us to serve in Mexico
· We have posted blogs on our website of our recent experiences in Mexicali and from our missionaries in Ensenada.
· We have contacted the U.S. Consulate in Tijuana for updates and reports.
· We staff a security team in our Mexicali sites who patrol the perimeter and entrances to our camp 24 hours a day. This is coupled with police patrols provided by city officials because of our long standing relationship with the government.
· We have answered and responded to all inquiries and concerns of students, parents, church leaders, etc.
· We provide teams with Mexico Outreach bumper stickers that are recognized by the government and communities because of our 40 years of presence.
· We send the Mexican Government rosters and immigration docs (a special immigration process we agreed upon) of every team member, team leader and event staff. They know of every person that is there to serve and when they will be in the country.
· We have daily leaders meetings at our camps to inform teams of any updates to the situation in our regions.
· We are preparing to send a letter out to all our attending teams posting links to our updates and noting how the challenges of fear and economic uncertainty have confronted us this year.
In addition, our church is taking the additional steps of providing daily updates on our safety.
Wednesday, March 18, 2009 3:45:06 PM
Mexico Outreach continues to serve in 2009
This Spring break, Azusa Pacific is taking over 2500 youth and adults (250 of those our students) to Mexico to respond to the many needs there, support local churches, and proclaim the good news of real life in Jesus Christ.
* Azusa Pacific’s Mexico Outreach has 40 years of experience working with the government and communities of Mexico and is informed and monitoring the situation. We relay this to hundreds of churches and APU students that join us, as concerns arise.
- Since September 2008 we have been monitoring news articles, U.S. websites, our contacts in Mexico and our own staff living there concerning the issues occurring in Mexico. Having a complete and clear knowledge of what is happening versus reacting to one or two reports or opinions is central to our analysis.
In addition to our Updated Report of Safety in Mexico we have just posted blogs of our recent experience in Mexicali with 30 students, highlighting the absence of heightened risk there, and also from our resident missionaries in Ensenada. In addition, we have been communicating with other Mexico Missions groups discussing their perspectives and approach with bringing groups to Mexico this year.
- Many specific details of the situation in Mexico are not always clarified:
1. The incidents happening in Mexico are incidents centralized within narcotics- related areas and people.
A recent CNN news article quotes Monte Alejandro Rubido Garcia, executive secretary for the National System for Public Safety, saying: “most of the deaths involve just drug traffickers, not ordinary citizens. Ninety percent of the people who died last year in organized crime were involved in crime," Rubido said. "The problem is among criminal gangs." CNN http://www.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/americas/02/19/mexico.drug.war/index.html
Officials on both sides of the border say the American victims are rarely unlucky tourists. Some lived in Mexico and may have known their attackers. Others were businesspeople who crossed the border regularly and were seen as an easy source of cash. Still others were thought to be involved in drugs.
A San Diego article from the beginning of this year likewise highlights this reality.
Is it safe to visit the Tijuana region? There is no simple, single answer. Much like travel anywhere in the world, it depends on who you are, where you're going, and what you're doing. U.S. visitors have been staying away from Tijuana and other border areas, fearful they could get caught up in the rise in violence and kidnappings. Yet tourists are not being targeted, and major incidents in recent months have largely bypassed tourist areas…Some U.S. citizens and permanent residents have been targeted by kidnapping groups in Tijuana and Rosarito Beach, but they are not U.S. tourists or members of the large U.S. expatriate community. According to the FBI, these victims are kidnapped while conducting business or visiting family in the area. http://www3.signonsandiego.com/staff/sandra-dibble/
2. U.S. Travel Alert – The introductory paragraph of this alert highlights the necessary knowledge travelers should have, it does not tell them to avoid traveling to Mexico:
It is imperative that travelers understand the risks of travel to Mexico, how best to avoid dangerous situations, and whom to contact if one becomes a crime victim. Common-sense precautions such as visiting only legitimate business and tourist areas during daylight hours, and avoiding areas where prostitution and drug dealing might occur, can help ensure that travel to Mexico is safe and enjoyable.
Many people don’t realize there is a huge difference between a travel alert and travel warning. According to the FAQ section of the U.S. Embassy in Mexico website, the travel alert used to be called a public announcement and in January 2008 they adjusted the terminology to “alert”. So a travel alert is simply a public announcement of information about travel in Mexico (see footnote below).[1]
A travel warning is issued to describe long-term, protracted conditions that make a country dangerous or unstable. A Travel Warning is also issued when the U.S. Government's ability to assist American citizens is constrained due to the closure of an embassy or consulate or because of a drawdown of its staff.[2] This is not the case in Mexico.
Additionally, most people do not realize that the recently updated Feb. 2009 travel alert is only slightly altered from the October 2008 and April 2008 Alert. We have parallel copies of these alerts with the highlighted changes.
* The locations we take our students and churches to serve in are not high-risk areas that are recurrently mentioned in U.S. or media reports (the cities of Ciudad Juarez, Nogales and Eastern Tijuana are the main cautionary zones)
- During our Easter trips, especially in Mexicali, we have a team called Team Ezra that serves as our security and watchmen for the camp (mostly for theft). They maintain a perimeter and patrol the base camp 24-7 while also building relationships with the local suburb. In addition, Mexican Police provided by the government because of our long-standing relationship patrol our base camp, sometimes staying all night. In Ensenada, we are many miles from the city and people, and the camp is fully enclosed with fencing and full time staff living there with excellent relationships in the region.
* What teams do in Mexico and why they do it is immensely opposite of most spring breakers. Teams spend a majority of their time at ministry sites (churches, orphanages, medical clinics, community service) and are in our base camps in the evening.
Many of the suggestions one find’s on sites regarding safe travel in Mexico has to do with issues un-applicable to our Mexico Missions trips:
- Avoid using public transport at night – we drive in our own vehicles, usually in multiple car caravans.
- Do not travel alone – students and groups are always in teams
- Limit your alcohol amount so as not to be a target for theft – that’s not why we’re there.
- Be aware and alert to your surroundings at all times – something we encourage teams to do, and that people need to do when they enter any unfamiliar city. -- Keep your perspective: Would you avoid a country after reading this official warning? "Crimes of violence are common, especially in large cities. Seek advice locally on areas to be avoided. Stay in the main tourist areas and be security conscious at all times." That's how the British government warns its citizens who are thinking of visiting . . . yep, the United States.
The U.S. Dept. of State’s website notes that nearly 100,000 students travel to various parts of Mexico for Spring Break. The greater part of them travel in small groups with the goal of relaxing on the beach, partying, excessive drinking, and clubbing. Often this will be in urban areas late at night, and they may leave intoxicated and thus unaware of their surroundings. Most precautions are for students like these. Our groups travel with responsible church leaders and parents and the Mexican Government receives rosters from us noting their presence in Mexico to serve. The students who go with us are doing something far more meaningful and life altering during their spring break.
* Hundreds of Mexican churches and multiple government services (the Mayors office in Mexicali, DIF Social Services – Desarollo Integral de la Familias) continue to invite us to come to partner with them and impact their city and communities. We are responding to their invitation and need.
- Each group/team that joins us has the Mexico Outreach bumper stickers on their vehicles that identify their team as being part of the outreach happening there. The government and community on a whole recognize and honors what the teams are doing and we feel it has been a blessing that God has provided towards our security.
Finally, the reality of our ministry and where and why we do it.
We are encouraged by a great perspective from John Piper in his book “Don’t Waste your Life”. From page 81: “Risk is woven into the fabric of our finite lives. We cannot avoid risk even if we want to. Ignorance and uncertainty about tomorrow is our native air. All of our plans for tomorrow’s activities can be shattered by a thousand unknowns whether we stay at home under the covers or ride the freeways. One of my aims is to explode the myth of safety and to somehow deliver you from the enchantment of security. Because it’s a mirage. It doesn’t exist. Every direction you turn there are unknowns and things beyond your control. The tragic hypocrisy is that the enchantment of security lets us take risks every day for ourselves but paralyzes us from taking risks for others on the Calvary road of love. We are deluded and think that it may jeopardize a security that in fact does not even exist.” You can read more of this on pages 79-98 online athttp://www.desiringgod.org/media/pdf/books_dwyl/dwyl_full.pdf
You can’t be any safer than where the Lord wants you to be. We firmly believe that.
[1]The level of caution for U.S. citizens traveling in Mexico in the Travel Alert has not been raised; only the name has changed. Effective January 2, 2008, the State Department changed the name of two country information sheets world-wide. Consular Information Sheets are now Country Specific Information and Public Announcements are now Travel Alerts.
Wednesday, March 18, 2009 3:40:45 PM
This page has been added for members and friends of our Mexico Outreach 2009 team. The purpose of this page is to provide some basic information about our safety in Mexico and to provide daily updates about our well being while we are in Mexico.