Mexico: From hot springs to Living Water

The León mission team consists of nine people divided evenly into three subgroups. The subgroup I belong to works with a group of homeschooled students Monday through Thursday each week.

We ended this particular week by going to some hot water springs near León. The only issue was figuring out our transportation to get back home in time to leave for our ministry in Brisas, an impoverished area in León.

Toward the end of our time at the hot springs, a thunderstorm had formed. It was pouring. My subgroup and I decided to call an Uber to take us home a bit earlier than previously planned. After waiting for some time, an Uber had agreed to pick us up. Our hope was short-lived because the driver soon cancelled. However, another Uber, Juan, was on his way to pick us up. He had called us to see if we could pay in cash, but we could not change that setting in the app. We ended up agreeing to pay in cash but were slightly frustrated because we thought that he was trying to double-charge us. We had no idea what was about to happen.

The first 10 minutes passed with minimal conversation. I had clarified that we would be willing to pay in cash but wanted to make sure we weren’t paying twice the amount. Juan was super understanding of our concern and explained why some drivers prefer cash. He asked us if we spoke Spanish to which I replied “Un poquito.” We asked questions back and forth about various topics. I told him that we were in León to help with a local church. The conversation kept going, but it wasn’t spiritual in any regard. It turned out that his favorite thing was to meet new people—which was great because we were new people!

Juan had worked as a bus driver 27 years and said that he loved it. I am so grateful for what one of my team members said next. Anna Morgan asked him if he went to church somewhere in León. I thought he didn’t want to talk about spiritual matters, because he seemed uninterested when I mentioned that we were in León to help with a church. The Lord used Anna Morgan’s faithfulness to turn the conversation quickly. He responded he was Catholic but that he didn’t agree with everything the church taught.

At that point, the Lord opened a door for the gospel to be shared. And that is what we did. I told Juan that though we were there to help the church, we were there foremost to share the gospel. I asked him what he thought the gospel meant. His reply was the word of God. From there, I affirmed that the word of God has everything to do with the gospel, but that it is more specifically the Good News that Jesus’ death on the cross is sufficient to pay for our sins. We talked about how it’s easy to fall into the trap of thinking that we must check off a to-do list to gain salvation. Going to church and praying are good things, but they do not contain the power to save. That belongs to God alone.

He was listening intently to everything we said. I am not fluent in Spanish, but I assure you that the Lord was helping me recall every ounce of Spanish that I knew to convey who he is. Juan asked us a question that also helped us gauge his eagerness to listen to us. He asked us, “Why is the gospel good news?” We then were able to share the gospel again and explain how we are all broken individuals in desperate need of a savior. After explaining that, he seemed to understand and said, “I want to live with Jesus in heaven.” So I followed up by asking him if he had ever had a moment where he acknowledged his sinfulness and his inability to do anything to save himself—a moment where he realized that Jesus was who he said he was and that his death on the cross is sufficient to cover our sins.

Juan thought for a second and said, “No.” I then asked him if he would like to make that decision. He replied, “Yes.” We were moments away from our apartment, so once we stopped, we prayed with him. In a matter of 40 minutes, we went from hot waters to living waters. De aguas termales a aguas vivas.

I have yet to meet with Juan again and am actively trying to set up a time to do that, but this story is powerful because the plan was not for an Uber to take us home. It was God’s plan without a doubt. Juan texted me later and said, “I hesitated to make the trip, and it was good that I did … .”

Join me in praying that Juan would understand the depth of the decision that he made. Pray that he would be able to meet soon, and that he would both grasp and grow in the transforming power of the gospel.

Morgun Mason is a student at Midwestern State University serving in Leon, Mexico, as part of a nine-person missions team. Four of the nine are Go Now Missions workers from Texas, and the others are students from other states.