After spending nearly four months in Mexico at the end of last year, I had the wonderful opportunity to return for a second mission trip. I set aside 16 days in April, during which I drove 36 hours roundtrip from East TN to Matamoros, Mexico, stopping both ways for a pit stop in Louisiana. Last year I was in Baton Rouge one week after Hurricane Katrina to provide relief in a shelter that housed over 5,000 evacuees. For this trip, I revisited Baton Rouge and volunteered in New Orleans to aid in the tremendous relief efforts that are still going on there and in other hard-hit areas along the Gulf Coast. As I drove through the neighborhoods of New Orleans, my heart broke for a community that is still in ruins from devastation that occurred over eight months ago. Until this trip, I did not realize the full extent of the remaining damage and the work that still needs to be completed along the Gulf Coast. The lives of thousands of families are still on hold waiting for more help and volunteers. I had heard stories in the news, but my heart was truly broken when I saw the remaining damage and ruin with my own eyes.

To briefly sum up my return to Mexico (although some of you may question whether "briefly" is truly a word in my vocabulary!)

I arrived in Mexico to the open arms of Americans and Mexicans alike. I cannot adequately describe to you how my heart was stirred in returning to this place I had called my home for those intense months at the end of last year. Overall, my time was filled with fun and fellowship with some of the greatest people I know--the young Americans who are still a part of the AIM program until May 15th. From bowling to bumming on the beach, we enjoyed swapping stories, laughing and just loving on and encouraging one another. And I got to hear some sweet testimonies from the new FYMs who arrived in Matamoros for only the 2nd semester (as I had only been involved for the first semester).

One of the highlights of my trip was a planned ministry activity I had prepared prior to arrival in Matamoros. With my stepmom's help, we "packaged" over 400 plastic Easter eggs with candy. I made plans to take them to my favorite neighborhood that I had the privilege to work in last semester. "Cabras Pintas" a place filled with some of the most precious kids in a city of over 450,000. I easily acquired some volunteers to ride out with me to help with the Easter egg hunt. Since I knew we would have the kids' attention, I desired to use the time as an opportunity to share the Gospel and the reason why Christians celebrate this holiday. A slight disadvantage to the timing of my trip to Matamoros was that students were on a two-week break from school and many of the families had left for various trips. So when we arrived Saturday morning for the Easter egg hunt, there were not many children to be found. Before beginning, I prayed with our group that God would richly bless our ministry during this time and that He would receive all the glory. As we were about to begin with the handful of children (mostly grandchildren of the Christian woman I'd been staying with) a group of boys showed up for soccer practice. Katie and I approached their coach because I wanted him to "loan" us his boys for half an hour. I told him of the Easter egg hunt and why we were there. He replied, "I'm a Christian, too," and graciously offered his team's time for our ministry. So I'd estimate we had about 30 kids or more by the end of the morning. Robby and Becky pitched in as Hilda blessed our group by presenting the Gospel message to the children in Spanish while Katie, Danielle and I tried to quickly hide the eggs. The morning was a sweet success. The children had a great time searching for the treats. And hopefully seeds were planted in the hearts of those young ones during our time of remembering the sacrifice of Jesus' death on the cross and the miraculous blessing of His resurrection.

Of course I revisited the orphanage, despite the fact that "my son", Manuel, was not there. On my first visit, none of the 4 children with whom I had spent the most time with were there. But Hilda and I played with some of the girls on the swingset. I got a list of supplies that they were in need of and was able to purchase some groceries, etc for them to take back on Friday. When I arrived Friday, to my surprise, all of the four children I knew best--Adriana, Ameliano, Christian, and Rouel--were there crowded around a television watching Chicken Little. The youngest, Adriana, at barely 2 years old, immediately wanted to be held. In no time, she was fast asleep and I had the sweet blessing of rocking her into a deeper sleep so I could lay her down to bed without her putting up a fight as she usually does. I watched the 3 boys and remembered the precious memories of last semester. I didn't fight my way toward them for a hug, I just said a prayer for each of them and thanked God that He was providing for them in that place.

And as always, attending church service each time was amazing. Once again, I cannot begin to explain the worship experience in that place. The Spirit of God is so powerful and almost overwhelming when you allow yourself to truly get on your knees before God and thank Him, praise Him, and sincerely worship Him. I pray that I continually carry with me the same heart of worship as I have so often found in Matamoros.

By now you may be wondering, so what is this about finding God in broken down cars and tornadoes? So glad you asked...

As many of you know, the life of Hannah is not without its adventures! Sometimes the adventures stem from my own causing (i.e. accidents, losing things, moments of ignorance), and sometimes the adventures sideswipe me without cause or warning! As I already knew, Mexico is certainly not the best place for two things: animals and cars. Luckily, I had no reason to bring my cat along for the ride, but un-luckily, my car was a necessary item. The shocks of my car perhaps got the greatest beating from the many potholes and dirt roads. However, the "Check Engine" light became a familiar sight after only a few days into my time in Mexico. I attributed the "alert" as perhaps having to do with the $7 of Mexican fuel I put into my car. No biggie, I thought, I will just have someone look at it when I get around to it while in Texas or something. As Katie, Robby and I were crossing the border on Saturday to buy groceries for a dinner we had planned with Hilda and her family, my car started acting up. The tape player stopped working properly, and at first I was simply frustrated at the thought of not being able to listen to my iPod on the LONG drive back to Tennessee! The radio began humming a tune that sounded like alien spacecraft and so I was further bummed that even the radio would not be my traveling companion. As I am in line to cross the border, I pay the attendant, begin to drive off to the next stop (the Border Patrol) and my car shuts off completely. To shorten this story, I have help to restart my car and manage to cross the border, spend 3 hours at AutoZone and come out over $100 in the hole, but with a new alternator installed and a new belt that I need to have installed PRONTO. Needless to say, we had to cancel our dinner plans (BUMMER!) but I was able to use a familiar mechanic in the church's neighborhood who installed the belt. There were some other worries he had, so I had my car briefly inspected on Tuesday before driving to Baton Rouge. They assured me my car should make it to Tennessee and I could get it further inspected once I arrived home. God answered my prayers for His provision as far as arriving home safely and having enough money for gas--since I had spent such a large unbudgeted amount for the new parts.

And finally, the latest adventure occurred on my last day of driving as I took a self-made detour to avoid an upcoming accident that was said to have all north-bound lanes closed for some time. As I drove down the new route, I looked to the left and saw dark clouds. I was thankful that perhaps I had avoided driving into a storm by changing my drive up a little. Well, I reached the next highway and looked again to the left (the turn I was about to make) to notice that the storm was a lot closer than I had hoped not to mention it was sitting right on top of the path I was about to take. I stopped for my last needed tank of gas and made some interesting observations there were many people and not just ordinary people people with cameras news cameras and a Storm Tracker van. Hmm I figured this could easily mean one thing, and my assumption was quickly affirmed by one word: Tornado. Lovely. We watched the skies turn and clouds whirl as the rain begin to come down--hard. The winds picked up ferociously and it began to hail. Honestly, if I had one worry it was only for the safety of my car and I desired that the storm would pass quickly so I could get back on the road. But as the winds started tossing large items around the parking lot, most of us found shelter inside. Yeah, gas stations probably aren't the best safe haven considering the large amounts of glass that make up the entire front entrance. Once again, this thought was confirmed as I was standing only five feet from the floor-to-ceiling window when it became a shattering waterfall of glass as someone opened the door causing the wind to send it smashing through the window. In total, I was at the gas station for about an hour observing the reactions of people who were taking shelter there. Some were in a panic, some (like me) had cameras and cell phones ready. And in the midst of it all, I was completely calm and ready for whatever might happen. My main line when any of them asked my opinion: "I am not worried--I know where I'm going." I called my parents, hopefully not to worry them, but just to give them a heads up in case anything did happen. I will never know exactly how close the tornado was, but apparently it was within a mile because the "stubborn" onlookers finally came running into the station when they spotted it. I thanked God once again for His provision, and continued to pray for it once I set back out on the road. It was a slow drive for several miles because of fallen trees and a dense fog. One of the sweetest parts of this story, and I will close, came from a conversation I had later that night with a friend who asked what time this occurred. He excitedly remarked that at precisely the time when I took cover in response to the high winds and tornado sirens, I had entered his mind along with an uneasy feeling. At that moment he told me he immediately began praying for me. We both can't escape the fact that it was no accident God brought me to his mind at that moment. And along the same line, I would say that God heard and blessed his prayer by protecting me during the storm and providing me with complete peace. Praise God! :) And whatever storms are yet to come, I will not fear because I have put my all trust in Him. I have blessed assurance that my life on earth and beyond rests only in His eternal grace of salvation. I willingly put my life in the hands of One who knows both where my journey leads and where my journey will end.

So what's next for me? Since I was not satisfied to spend only four days helping to rebuild the city of New Orleans, I will return this summer as a project leader with New Orleans Baptist Theological to help lead Youth Group trips that come down for one week at a time. I am SO excited for this opportunity and pray that God uses it in great ways to both help the community of New Orleans and to pave the way for the next round of ministry God has waiting for me after my time there.

How can you help? Pray, pray, pray. Keep me in your prayers as I earnestly seek God's plan and purpose for my life. Keep national and foreign missions on your heart as we pray for more workers to be sent out to the Harvest. Pray for ways that God would specifically have you to get involved with the work of His Kingdom. And please feel free to contact me if you ever want information on more ways you can support my ministry or any of the ministry organizations I partner with.

As always, thanks for your support! You are each such a unique blessing to my life!

"Faith , like light, should always be simple and unbending; while love, like warmth, should beam forth on every side, and bend to every necessity of our brethren... Faith is a living, daring confidence in God's grace. It is so sure and certain that a man could stake his life on it a thousand times." -Martin Luther-