In the heart of Oaxaca, Mexico, lies the region of Mixteca Alta, home to rugged mountains and the resilient Mixteca people—an unreached group scattered across hundreds of remote villages. These communities are nestled among dense forests and rolling hills, places where no churches exist, and the Gospel has yet to take root.
Yet, hope is stirring.
Missionaries are laboring, looking for ways to share the name of Jesus in the secluded corners of the Mixteca. These villages, often wary of outsiders, especially Christians, require a delicate and strategic approach to gain trust and acceptance in the community.
One such approach has been through Operation Christmas Child shoeboxes. Missionaries meet with village elders, offering to host a free Christmas program for the children, and soon the entire village gathers to hear the message of salvation.
I traveled to the Mixteca and visited village after village. Communities that were once closed to the gospel, but thanks to Operation Christmas Child, have now heard the good news and lives are being transformed.
I visited one village. A small community of only about 400 people. Perched high on a mist-covered mountain, the people survive through subsistence farming, eking out a living from the land. Until recently, they had never heard the gospel. But this year, that changed.
On a cold, gray morning, families began to gather. Parents and grandparents trudged through the biting winds, some walking for hours, their children bundled tightly against the chill.
Anticipation filled the air. The missionaries had brought presents!
The local missionary stepped forward with a warm smile. “Who received a gift this past Christmas?”
Silence. Not a single child raised their hand. Who could dream of such a luxury in a life marked by survival?
“Well, don’t worry,” the missionary said. “We brought a present for each child!”
Excitement rippled through the crowd as the missionary began to share the Gospel. More villagers gathered, drawn by the message and the promise of something new. The cold deepened but no one left. They huddled together, eager to hear the story of Jesus for the first time.
“Who wants to accept Jesus?”
Hands shot up, small and eager. Children came forward, their faces glowing with the innocence of faith and the wonder of hope. What a glorious day.
Then the shoe boxes were passed out. Each child received one and clutched it tightly.
“But wait! Don’t open them yet. Ready? One…two…three!”
Lids flew off, and the mountain echoed with laughter and squeals of delight. The children beamed and held up their treasures. A ball. A stuffed animal. A box of crayons.
Then a small girl near me lifted her hand. “What’s this?” she asked, holding up a slip of paper.
I knelt beside her in the frozen dirt. “It’s a note from the people who sent this box. Would you like me to translate it?”
She nodded, and I read the words aloud.
“We prayed over each item in this box. We hope you know that God loves you. We are praying that you accept Jesus into your heart.”
My voice catches and I stop. Could it be? I look at the girl. “Did you pray to accept Jesus into your heart today?”
She nodded, a small smile slipping through her otherwise somber face. “Yes, the pastor told us about Jesus. That’s why I went up to the front and prayed.”
Tears stung my eyes, a sudden warmth spreading through my frozen body. “Well, the people who sent this box prayed for you,” I told her, pointing to the picture included in the note.
Her eyes widened in awe. “They sent this to me?”
“Yes! But before you even opened this box, you had already accepted the greatest gift of all.”
The work in Mixteca is far from over. Missionaries remain committed, following up with children through a twelve-week evangelism and discipleship program through Samaritan’s Purse. They plan on reaching even more villages with OCC boxes and seeing more hearts transformed by the love of Christ.
Please pray for the new believers in these remote villages, that their faith will take root and flourish. Pray for the missionaries as they continue their work, that God will continue to make His name known even in the most unreached regions of the earth.
