04/21/2026
The Shut-In Ministry - Pastor Gary Simpson
For more years than I can remember, a dynamic lady named Inés has run our ministry to shut-ins in San Luis. This indefatigable woman cares for well over forty people who are either incapacitated or too sick to leave their home.
Ines took us to see a woman way outside of town where the land is flat and desolate. This area used to be part of the dump which was burned and covered with a foot or two of sand. Here and there, lots, marked with rows of old tires and small shacks made out of wooden skids, cardboard, and plastic sheeting dotted the barren landscape. Our group pulled up to one and we were met by a woman named Norma. She had beautiful eyes set in a tired and weathered face.
Norma sat in a wheelchair working at a sink that was set on four legs right outside her door. Her home was tiny and part of it didn’t even have a roof. She and her teenaged son, who is autistic, made piñatas out of cardboard boxes and newspapers to try and eke out a living. Someone had built the beginnings of a kiosk in the yard by the road where she hoped to hang the piñatas for sale. The sad irony is that they were so isolated there was no traffic of any kind, nor would she be able to get to it because wheelchairs don’t work in sand.
We talked with her through our interpreter, Isaias, and prayed with her. Isaias noticed the boy was wearing a crystal on a string around his neck and asked him about it. He said someone had given it to him to ward off evil spirits. Isaias took it from him and promised to replace it with a cross. The next day, my wife, Reneé, went shopping and bought two crosses so the young boy could choose which one he wanted.
Please pray for Norma and her son, and also pray for Inés as she works tirelessly to visit and care for her patients. Returning to the states, to my house, my hot shower, and my king size bed, I thought of Norma and her son, sleeping in that half-built shack. I felt spoiled and even guilty for having so much when they had so little, but I also remembered that feeling pity for someone is of no value to them. It made Reneé and I rethink our giving and our commitment to Caring Hearts.
In the parable of the sheep and goats in Matthew 25, Jesus said, “I was sick and you looked after me.” That’s what Caring Hearts does through Inés and all the volunteers who go to San Luis and accompany her.
Want to support Norma and her son? Follow this link! https://www.caringheartsmexico.org/sponsor-shut-in/norma/
