First Impressions of YWAM Mazatlan, Mexico
Mission Report | Part 1 - Arrival Day and Part 2 - Spontaneous Combustion into Worship and Prayer
Part 1
First of all, it is so hot and humid here in Mazatlan. I’m dripping sweat in denim short and a cropped t-shirt and I’m thinking I should find some place with a little more breeze…
*walks 1 min to Cafe Selah on campus*
Well, this place is cute.
I knew it would be so nice to have a coffee shop on campus. Coffee shops are like home to me and also like my office, so I’m glad I don’t even need to leave the YWAM base to step inside a serious productivity portal.
*sips cortado*
Mmm yes, coffee is strong (and thankfully not too hot) and my words are flowing.
Hallelujah!
So I don’t even want to calculate how long I was in transit and how long I went without sleep, but I know I missed a full night’s worth. I had only slept with my face down on my airplane tray table for 30 minutes or so, roughly (and that’s me speaking on the quality of said sleep).
As soon as I stepped out of the airport in Mazatlan though, I didn’t actually feel tired anymore.
Is it a second wind or is it the Holy Spirit?
I hailed a yellow taxi (after verifying with a trusted source that the yellow ones were official and getting a quote on the cost to my destination - 480 pesos). Juan Carlos Garcia Guzman was my taxi driver’s name. He had a rosary pinned to the roof and a portrait of Jesus hanging from the mirror. I was in good company and the feeling only grew…
It was between 4-5pm, I think. The sun was getting low and Mexico cast her special terracotta glow all over the town of Mazatlan, which I was seeing for the first time. The ocean came into view and Juan Carlos pulled up to the YWAM base.
Up, indeed. The base was on a hill overlooking the ocean.
The entryway was small and besides a silvery YWAM /JUCUM sign and little festive check-in table, there was only a hallway going off to the right. A nice girl named Macy led me to my room and as we walked and talked, the place blossomed open all around me.
I felt like I had stepped into an alternate reality or had pressed “fast forward” on my walk with faith because I was surrounded by believers and not just the “church-on-Sunday-morning-crowd” but the young and missional ones. This was Discipleship Training School after all.
The first blessing was that she led me to the “wrong” room meaning I got to meet and bond with the 5 women living there before I discovered the room I was actually assigned to. When I found the bed with my name on it and the little bag of Mexican candy, chips, and Coca-Cola then I realized I would be sleeping above Mira, who was one of the two girls Mahdi had connected me with before arrival.
Keep the blessings rolling! God is so good!
Dinner was about to start. Each circular white table on the patio had a casserole dish full of chicken, a bowl of rice, and a bowl of fruit. I sat with Niqo (a member of the staff who I had been communicating with pre-arrival) and his lovely fiancé, who worked with a local ministry who sponsored her residency.
I kept getting glimpses of possible future realities. People have met their spouses here. People have found meaningful ministry work and gained residency here. At breakfast the next day I met a woman a little older than me that had done her missionary schooling in Los Angeles. She still worked in missions and she told me a story I’ll try to always remember.
She said she was on a mission trip to India where the streets are made of trash (this I’ve witnessed) and there were poor, naked children all around. I’m sure it was hot and smelled of sewage. She hadn’t seen anything like it before and she didn’t know what to do or how to help. Then she closed her eyes and asked the Lord for help. He said, “I want you to see what I see” and when she opened her eyes she saw the place as a beautiful green garden with the same people and children living there but now there were happy and had all they needed.
It was like man before the fall, before sin, living in harmony with all of God’s creation.
She then made it her mission to approach as many people as she could and at least bring them some of that love. There wasn’t always something to do, but just by seeing each person how God sees them and treating them as Jesus would you can make a difference.
People are making that difference here and when they leave here for the nations.
We’ll get to the home building and the medical care but sometimes what’s actually needed is a smile and a hug. It matched a sentiment I heard later in the day at one of the orientation sessions…
The son of the missionaries who had founded this base said this, “It’s not about what you can get done, but who you can become” and the goal is to be as loving as Jesus was when he walked upon the Earth.
There were many orienting sessions that day, but the one that pointed me most in the direction I want to go was Asher Madsen’s (the founders’ son). He gave us some tips to make the most of our experience here, and my key takeaways were:
I want to let go of my pride and this means “dying to myself” “or dying to my flesh,” so letting go of my built up ego and my worldly desires [I took the mic on this one and shared how much it would mean to me and that I’m nervous but ready.]
I am the one who decided my intimacy with the Lord. If I want it, I have to pursue it. Also, along with that: “Intimacy is not my grand idea, it’s how God made me.” It makes so much sense! He is the One I’ve been craving all of my life.
Part 2
So much has happened since then. The next day changed me. I don’t know if it’s even possible to do justice with words what happened in the auditorium that morning, but I’ll try…
The founders of the base came in and spoke to us about finding this place and each other. They were warm and kind. Heather and Brent… you can read more about their story and the story of the Mazatlan YWAM base here.
Then Brent brought out the Bible, the Holy Book which had called me back to it a few years ago, which has already given me so much life and truth from what little I have read since then. My willingness to read the Bible and my willingness to pray allowed the Lord to step into my life and to sweep me up in his warm embrace.
What happened next was the strongest embrace I have felt from the Lord yet.
Brent told the story of Jesus walking with two of his disciples who didn’t recognize him. Heather affirmed that the disciples didn’t know Jesus was among them, but they listened to what the stranger said anyways and they realized their hearts were on fire and uplifted by Him.
I was sitting in the front row, right in the center. I started to cry and Brent (one of the founders) smiled at me. It looked like he was crying too. A song came on and people seemed to know the words and sang along. I hummed what I could in between the heavy welling of my tears. I had to sit down. Brent came over and put his hand gently upon my head and prayed the sweetest prayer for me.
I can’t remember exactly what he said but it doesn’t matter. I felt the presence of God smiling upon me and I was thankful I was able to receive the prayer. I felt the purification and the blessings of the Holy Spirit come through me.
Over the songs, the singing, and the crying out for the Lord… the leaders shouted to dispel the fear, to explain as best they could what was going on, and to encourage people to move and express what they were feeling.
Yes, some needed to fall to their knees and wail, some needed to shake (I was shaking involuntarily in my seat), some needed to whisper quiet prayers in their own language, or write, or walk, or run. The auditorium was alive with His presence.
I stood again and cried silently with my eyes closed and arms out, just wanting to receive whatever was from Him.
That’s when Heather (one of the founders) hugged me and held my shoulders and started to speak her prayer softly to my ear. She shared the visions the Lord put on her heart to share with me. The love she said He had for me, and the tenderness with which He treated me, and the way she envisioned me living my life with Him were beautiful. She said it involved movement, almost like dance but she wasn’t sure. She just knew I would flow and be so moved in my relationship with Christ. She didn’t even know me but movement is a big part of who I am (who I was created to be) and as she spoke, I cried in recognition and gratitude of the truth.
My school leader, Lauren, then turned to me, hugged me, and prayed for my protection and renewal.
The final person, or two people, to come up and pray for me really saw me and for them I’m so grateful. Alejandra is on the staff for this session of my school, Burning Hearts. She doesn’t speak English hardly at all. She came over to me with Alejandro, who could translate for us.
We sat together holding hands while Alejandro kneeled near us. She talked to me about the Father and what a father He could be to me. We related to each other over not having the strong presence of an Earthly Father. I appreciated them both so much for venturing to share the vision that might help me specifically, especially since neither of them knew for sure it would be true and helpful. It was and we prayed all three of us together to draw nearer to our Heavenly Father.
That’s all I want to say for now. I just can’t believe I’m here. I can’t believe classes, small groups, and 1-on-1s haven’t even started yet. Yet alone our elective (I chose to serve on the ship) and our ministry (I chose to serve in the local rehab center). I have a whole lot in store for me and I’m looking forward to a long, fruitful career in missions!
Thank you for reading!
Love,
Alyssa
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