As a teenage girl from rural North Carolina, I used to view the Hispanic immigrants in our area in a very negative light. I harbored a high degree of disdain for this people group as they continued to move to the area as migrant workers. After some time, however, I realized that my heart was very much unlike Christ's in this respect. Faithful to sanctify me, the Lord began to do a huge work in my heart.

Over the course of the past few years, God has been warming my heart to this precious sector of His creation. Not only has He blessed me with a passion and ability to speak Spanish, but He has also granted me the opportunity to serve many Hispanic patients during my clinical rotations in nursing school. For this reason, one of the aspects that I most anticipated about Summer Project was our medical mission trip to Mexico. Visiting Mexico would afford me the opportunity to learn more about a portion of the Hispanic population in North Carolina so that I can be more effective in working with them.

Just as anticipated, our team traveled down to the outskirts of Ensenada, Mexico for a weekend in order to run two medical clinics in El Zorillo and Maneadora. Members of our team took on different roles, including clinicians, pharmacies, painters, translators and children's ministers. Throughout the day, it was absolutely amazing to see the Mexicans in the area come to us for medical care-and to see God make us able to help meet their needs adequately. Despite our busyness and the villages' dirtiness, the radiance and appreciation on the faces of the parents and children were so gratifying. Most importantly, meeting the needs of these impoverished people opened doors for us to share the gospel with them. Furthermore, we truly grew as a ministry team because we recognized the necessity of the contribution of each member to fulfill our purpose there. For many, despite imperfect Spanish, it was encouraging to see the Lord put years of studying and practicing the language to good use for His kingdom.

Having the opportunity to serve in Mexico opened the eyes of Project participants to the great need for foreign medical missionaries. On of the resolutions discussed among group members was to seriously pray and consider the Lord's will for the "where" of our medical careers, and to follow hard after his guidance. In conclusion, despite differences in culture and material privileges, we and the Mexicans are inherently the same: we need to receive the love of Jesus Christ and to accept the forgiveness He offers. Our best accomplishment in Mexico was sharing the hope of Christ.