Tuesday - The House that Love Built...along with Danny and Steve and Paul and Tom and Bob....

The walls are up, the rafters are in place and the plywood is down on the roof. Tomorrow's crew will only need to finish the roofing, windows and door. Then we'll turn the keys to this humble home over to the family and God will continue the story that we have been honored and privileged to begin here. 

It's a wonderful thing to see teens, many of whom have never used a hammer, have the experience of raising a house and offering this free gift of God to one of His children of humbler circumstances. The very act of building a home for someone else builds us up and gives us a physical metaphor and lifelong reminder of God's free gift of a home in Heaven. On this day and in this place, we have acted merely as His hands and feet, His messengers. It feels good to do the work of angels.

Our teens can always say, when others may talk of their summer vacations on the beach, visiting Disney World or relaxing at a resort, that they came to Mexico to serve an orphans home, distribute food and clothing to those and need, and build a home from the ground up for a Baja family. There's certainly nothing wrong with spending your free time relaxing and vacationing. And this isn't meant to make anyone feel guilty. It's just to recognize -- that in an age when teens are thought to be selfish and self-absorb and characterized as the Selfie Generation -- that there are many members of this generation who are selfless. 

It's nice to see and say, we're in good hands with this next generation. Lord knows.