Hope Midtown

Join us tomorrow at 10 + 11:30am as we continue our series on the book of Nehemiah and celebrate baptisms! Come worship with us and join us in encouraging those who are taking this important step in their faith journey.

(1/2) “My parents migrated from Cuenca, Ecuador; it was a long journey with crossing the border from Ecuador to Arizona and then coming to New York. My three siblings and I were born and raised in a small NY town.

We met sweet and loving people. But we also encountered individuals who constantly reminded us that we weren't white, that our parents were undocumented, and that we didn't belong.

I had an anxious childhood. I knew about God, but I felt so far away from Him. My siblings and I would hear, "Say nothing, or 'la migra' (ICE) will come. They'll take us away. They’ll take you all away and you’ll be alone here in this country". We didn't know who was safe to open up to.

But change came when I met my 4th-grade teacher, Mrs. Windels (Jen). She and her husband, Henry, are special people to my family—two of many who share love with us.

As we got to know each other, I shared with her the fears of my family through a writing piece in her class. I told her about my parents' migration journey. Instead of saying, "They came across the border? They broke the law and are illegals. They shouldn't be here", she would say, "That's amazing, and you can be proud. Your parents went through that long journey to be here." I remember thinking, Someone sees us. We're finally connecting.

She shared about this summer camp that she volunteered with. In 6th grade, Jen brought my siblings and me. At this camp, we felt so safe. We felt so free. The love there felt so real. We met more spiritual mama bears like Shandra, Sheyla, Jasmine, and others who felt like family. It was a home, and we kept going back.

Life fractured more during my youth years. I spiraled a lot with anxiety and depression, constantly scared for my family. The only homes we felt we had were Jen & Henry and the summer camp group.

As a high school freshman, we had (at summer camp) a campfire time one night. At the end of it, a young adult camp counselor shared about God as a loving Father, How He met her in the pain she’d been through with His Son, Jesus. Her pain was like my own. I felt so far away and I wanted Jesus to meet me like he did with her.” (continues in next post)

As Jordan Varghese shared on Sunday, when we face hardship, many of us are tempted to disconnect from God. But as Jesus approached the cross, we see that it was actually through his wresting with God that he was strengthened to continue to engage. ⁠⁣
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The strength was not to resolve the issue or even to give him peace about it in order to go forward; it was to pray more earnestly and to remain connected to God.