MÉXICO, Ana Echavarría Barros •
Experiencing the Family Missions is always a gift from God and the Blessed Mother. From 1-6 August, we shared the joy of going on mission in Tapona and Obregón, two small communities in our state; Fr. Felipe Ríos Correa accompanied us. The people welcomed us warmly into their homes, and they joined us at the workshops for adults, youths, and children we had prepared.
Mrs. Marcela’s testimony
The roads that God has for us that touch our hearts are often unforeseen. One morning, we visited Mrs. Marcela, an elderly woman who lives completely alone, in extreme poverty with only two rooms for a house, and where you have to stoop to walk because of the very low roof. Talking with her and seeing how she lived, seeing her so alone, and hearing that she depended totally on the help of one of her neighbors to eat, since she is practically blind, touched our hearts. She was so happy with the visit of the young missionaries, as well as welcoming Fr. Felipe, talking with him and receiving a blessing from his hands.
Being Schoenstatt missionaries makes us live our Covenant of Love
During this week, we met many more people just like Mrs. Marcela; each one touched our hearts with their simplicity, their way of seeing life, their desire to share the little they had with us, the joy of receiving God, participating in the workshops, and in the Mass. This experience with them caused us to return to our homes full of love, with the awareness that we if we wanted to, we could be small instruments of Jesus and Mary.
We must allow ourselves to be used by God wherever he needs us.
To be Schoenstatt missionaries makes us live our Covenant of Love with the grace of apostolic sending forth as a wonderful gesture of friendship, of giving and receiving.
Original: Spanish, 18 August 2017. Translation: Celina M. Garza, San Antonio, TX USA. Edited: Melissa Peña-Janknegt, Elgin, TX USA
