Laredo, a city of many blessings...

Laredo, a city of many blessings…

I returned last night from a four-day adventure to Laredo, Texas. Laredo is about three and half-hours from Austin and it is the last city before reaching Mexico. The city is located on the Rio Grande River. Spanish is the prominent language in Laredo. Over 17,000 trucks enter the city daily from Mexico. The majority of the population of the city of Laredo is Hispanic. Almost 30% of the residents of Laredo live below the poverty line. There are countless illegal immigrants that are not factored in to that number.

As many of you know, I have traveled to Haiti many times and I have seen the poor. I have also seen people of great faith that are so thankful for what God has given them in the midst of their heartache. Although there are many poor people in Laredo, they too are people of faith. I feel so blessed to have had the opportunity to hear the stories of some of the people of Laredo. I am grateful that they would share their lives with me.

During our visit to Laredo we meet with pastors, administrators of non-profits, boarder patrol officers, citizens of Laredo and most importantly, immigrants of other countries seeking a better life in the U.S. A recurring theme in my mind was how could this much poverty be happening in my own country. Another theme was how much ownership the citizens of Laredo felt to help those in need. I was also overcome by the amount of hospitability that was shown to my classmates and myself over the weekend.

Since coming back from Laredo I have been processing my experience. My ministry in Laredo, Texas would look very different than my ministry in Birmingham, Alabama, although some of the same issues exist in both cities. As far as I know, there is only one Hispanic Episcopal Church in the Diocese of Alabama. I can’t imagine numerous members of my congregation speaking a different language than me. I can’t imagine not only tending the flock of my parishioners, but of the Seventh Day Adventist that worship at Christ Church Laredo and the literally thousands of poor people in my community including some in my parish. When faced with this situation, what do you do? The first thing you do is get down on your knees and pray and the second thing you do is learn Spanish. Finally, you have amazing faith.

The people of Laredo blessed me this weekend. I was amazed, inspired, and most importantly, felt God’s presence in this city. I hope you will all join me in praying for those that have less than we do.

I head back to class tomorrow and I am off to a Hispanic speaking Episcopal congregation in Houston on Thursday. I look forward to updating you all on my trip when I return.

Blessings to you all as the ride continues…Mary Balfour