by Javier Márquez
The image that impacted me the most when I visited the Summer Ambassadors from Vida Nueva Church in Mexico City was that of a young couple lying on the ground on a blanket outside the doors of a pediatric hospital in Coyoacán. They rested their heads on a pillow worn down by dust, rain, and sun, and held each other to keep warm. Beside them were a couple of bottles of water and some bananas. They were waiting for the doctors’ assessment of their young son, who was still hospitalized somewhere inside the building and whom they had brought to the hospital the night before.
In an instant, the group accompanying Anna and Eunice surrounded them and asked for their names and about the situation that had led them to sleep on the ground outside the hospital. After sharing their story and receiving the supplies the church had brought to distribute, they prayed for their son together with the church group.
The work continued for another hour that Saturday. They distributed food and other supplies, as well as prayer tracts and information about the church for those who wanted to connect with the group or request further help and prayer. The visits continued for several weeks, at this hospital and another one, seeking to accompany people who were being admitted or those waiting for their family members, facing all kinds of medical circumstances.
As Ambassadors, Eunice and Anna had to take on a series of responsibilities they had never had to carry out before: preparing the outreach days, inviting people from the church to accompany them, interviewing people such as their parents and pastor who had done this kind of ministry in the past in order to better understand the work, organizing their personal schedules, and finding times when they could work together. At the same time, they had to face their own shyness and approach people, many of whom were understandably impatient or frustrated, talk and ask questions, invite them to pray, and accept both the good and difficult moments.
In the past, they had participated in community service, but in a different kind of role. Now they were the ones leading other young people and older members of the church. Their success was somewhat unexpected: not only because of all the people they were able to help during this difficult time outside the hospitals, but because of the team that gradually formed around them to accompany them in this work.
The outcome of leadership should not be measured only by its final impact, but also by the ability to bring people together and motivate others to become part of the work of service. In this case, the photograph makes that reality clear: it shows a congregation surrounding its two ambassadors and accompanying them in their service.
Javier Márquez
Javier Márquez is Associate for Community Cultivation and Leadership Development. He is an Anabaptist Colombian pacifist and poet. He is based in Bogota, Colombia.
Mosaic values two-way communication and encourages our constituents to respond with feedback, questions, or encouragement. To share your thoughts or send a message to Javier Márquez, contact jmarquez@mosaicmennonites.org.
The opinions expressed in articles posted on Mosaic’s website are those of the author and may not reflect the official policy of Mosaic Conference. Mosaic is a large conference, crossing ethnicities, geographies, generations, theologies, and politics. Each person can only speak for themselves; no one can represent “the conference.” May God give us the grace to hear what the Spirit is speaking to us through people with whom we disagree and the humility and courage to love one another even when those disagreements can’t be bridged.
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