We're Doing Okay...!

Well, if you've been watching the news, you have seen that the violence that was mainly in western Mexico has now moved to our part of the world. Competing drug-cartels engage in an almost-all-out battle for control of the trade routes that bring drugs to the U.S. Towns and cities in our area that were for the most part tranquil have seen a rise in violence.

Last night (Friday, March 19), we had our weekly small-group gathering from church in the San Jerónimo area. During our Bible study and share time, we received news that just five blocks from where we were, the federal troops were in a gun battle with suspected drug-traffickers. At the same time we were meeting, the church youth were gathered in another house some blocks away from us...perhaps a little closer to the fire-fight.

This is the closest we have been to the upsurge in violence. Living in a city of some 6,000,000 people, a city with some of the greatest wealth in the western hemisphere (if not the world) and some the most abject poverty, a city of limited natural resources and limited job opportunities, we expect violence to be a part of the mix. However, this is a new violence that has drug-cartels and federal troops fighting it out on the streets and highways of the city. Thankfully, in most of the clashes, the federales (as they are known here) come out on top. If there are casualties, the narcotraffickers are the once who suffer most. (Not that we're happy when anyone suffers or dies!) However, there are those times when innocent by-standers, or passers-by, take fire and end up wounded or dead. This tragedy of violence has us praying and hoping like we haven't before.

People have often said in the US, "Well, when I take drugs, it only hurts me." Or, "Hey, man...I'm not into the hard stuff--I just use a little pot...and it's cheap...just a few dollars a joint." I have news for all of those people--when Americans buy drugs, no matter which ones, it's hurting a LOT of people and it's costing a whole lot more than a few dollars. It costs lives and futures and sons and daughters. We don't have a "Mexican problem"--we have an intricate, international issue that is fueled by an American appetite for drugs. I don't know the answer, but I know that the violence we are seeing is all about getting marijuana, cocaine and heroin across the border into the US.

Our prayer is three-fold--one, first and foremost, that the narcos would see a better way, a life that is constructive rather than destructive, that they would find the One who can fill the emptiness in their lives. Two, we pray for peace...whether it come by the success of federal forces or a divine act. And, three, we pray that Americans who use drugs or involved in the drug trade would see the incredible path of death and destruction that their addiction or "recreational drugs" leaves behind them...and that they, too, would find that perfect Thing that will address their cravings and needs--the person of Jesus.

Please pray for us. Pray that we know best how to live, that we live with prudence. Pray that we can be voices of hope and calm and peace in this part of God's world.