Delivery of 2 million meals helps meet needs in Mexico

AMARILLO—Hands in Service Ministries, with help from the Texas Baptist Missions Foundation, recently sent 45 tons of food to help alleviate hunger for impoverished people throughout large portions of Mexico.

The food will be delivered by 256 Christian organizations in nine Mexico states ranging from the Guatemala border up through mountainous central Mexico. The supplies will be used in children's shelters, soup kitchens, street outreaches and to feed families living in remote rural areas.

A shelter serves families who travel to Guadalajara for medical attention in the Fray Antonio Alcala hospital. Hands in Service Ministries helps provide food for the shelter. (PHOTO/Courtesy of Hands in Service Ministries)

The lentel-based dehydrated sustenance supplement comes in 2.2-pound bags that can provide as many as 50 meals each. The composition of the rations enables families to prepare the meals easily.

Lee Baggett, executive director of Hands in Service Ministries, served as a missionary in Mexico 42 years. Baggett noted the meals make a drastic difference in the lives of people who receive them.

Poverty in the region where the food will go to is harsh, he said. People suffer from bloated stomachs, swollen legs, stunted development, cracked lips and malnourishment. Farmers in the mountains harvest enough food each year to feed their families for only three months.

"They will be healthier. They will be stronger," Baggett said of the food delivery's impact. "They will have stronger defenses from disease."

The food shipment is made possible by donations from people and groups who feel called to help the poor in Mexico.

Bill Arnold, president of the Texas Baptist Missions Foundation, views the food as an important part of the plan to evangelize parts of Mexico.

"We see times in the Bible when Jesus fed the people so they could better hear and understand his message. That's the purpose of this food, and we are very thankful for those who provided it and who are being the presence of Jesus by distributing it to those who are hungry," Arnold said.

Don Sewell, director of Faith in Action for Baylor Health Care System and chairman of the Hands in Service board, has seen Hands in Service's efforts to meet human needs lead to significant spiritual decisions. When Christians meet people's physical needs, individuals see they are cared about. They begin to ask questions and doors open for spiritual conversations.

Sewell believes it is every Christian's responsibility to reflect the ministry of Christ each day throughout ministries like the food delivery.

"When we pray 'Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done,' those are marching orders," Sewell said.

For more information about Hands in Service Ministries, contact Baggett at LBaggett1@gmail.com or write Hands in Service Ministries, P.O. Box 8875, Amarillo 79114.