Zapata, TX and Mexico

We drove through the rolling, rocky, yucca and aguave covered hills from Del Rio through Eagle Pass and Laredo to Zapata. The weather was definitely tropical. We saw numerous flowering shrubs, blue bonnets, and trees with new green leaves. The Four Seasons RV Park also had many blooming trees, shrubs, and flowers. We breathed a sigh of gratefulness as we backed into our level spot with ample power and water pressure. We called our friends, Pastor Raul and Amelia Hernandez to let them know we would be in church with them but discovered their services were all in Spanish. Raul suggested we attend First Baptist Sunday morning and their church, New Life Baptist, in the evening. Carlos Montano and family would be presenting a concert of music and message in both Spanish and English. We were welcomed at First Baptist by a warm Sunday school class and an excellent interim pastor. We then met Raul and Amelia for a tour of their new church building; Raul had spent many hours helping with the construction and painting. We had lunch with them in a quaint Mexican restaurant that served delicious food. We returned to our respective abodes for a much needed nap.

Sunday evening’s concert was most entertaining; Carlos and his family had a bilingual message in song and word for each of us about serving a living Lord. He was born in Bolivia, and his wife, Lorena, was born in Mexico. They have three lovely children who also sing and play various instruments. They had a special tribute to Bolivia in song, costumes, and Bolivian video scenes in the background.

The next day Amelia prepared a sumptuous breakfast for all nine of us prior to our traveling in two vehicles to Mexico. We toured two missions that are receiving aid from New Life Baptist Church. One is located in Mier and the other in Ciudad Nuevo Guerrero near the US border. The Montanos stayed behind in Meir where they were to perform that night. It was heart warming to see young pastors, their wives and their children working to grow a congregation of believers with few funds and minimal amenities in their churches.

The town of Mier, celebrating 253 years, has a boot factory that produces 60 pairs of hand made boots a day using 50 employees. As you can see by the photo, they have many styles, colors, and various raw materials. The Mexican alligator boots are the most expensive, selling for $500. To our surprise, the clerk brought out a long hide and let it unravel on the floor. It was the skin of a python—at least 20 feet long. Uhg! We were also impressed with the Meir city building that housed an interesting history of the town.

We then drove to Guerrero for another tasty Mexican lunch served on colorful plates and in true Mexican surroundings. We also visited a Medical School for the Americas construction site. The sidewalk was made of old car/truck batteries buried in concrete. The battery wall across the front of the campus was also made to look like the “black” sidewalk. We met Maria and Pastor Pedro Tobias as a ladies’ Bible study was just concluding. There were at least 25 women and many children in attendance. When Maria and Roberto arrived five years ago there was just one family left in the congregation. Now they have made many friends in the village and the church is expanding. The Montanos will also perform in this mission later in the week. We who live and worship in beautiful sanctuaries must reach out to our Hispanic brothers and sisters in order to spread the truth. All four of the pastors we met could be making a lot of money in secular jobs, but they have been called and have responded to work for the Lord. We left Zapata with warm and joyful hearts and full stomachs as we bid them farewell.