Meeting the President

Last night it finally happened. After two years of talking about it, trying to work the magic and massaging the network (all to no avail), the pieces came together, and I had the privilege of meeting President Felipe Calderon face to face.

Craig Johring, my co-director, shared the honor with me. We kind of felt (and probably looked) like two kids in a candy shop...two very white kids. It's not just the fact that he's the president, but the parallel paths of our journey, that made our meeting so special.

Craig and I arrived in Mexico City in September 2006. A special electoral court had just certified that indeed Felipe Calderon Hinojosa would serve as Mexico's next president, rejecting a request by an opposition candidate to annul the election. About the time we showed up, the city was in turmoil with protesters blocking major traffic veins and effectively seizing the downtown historical center.

As the storm passed and Calderon took office on December 1st, an even bigger battle began. Vowing to fight the systemic corruption and powerful drug cartels, he assembled military assaults on known criminal strongholds, even dissarming local police forces suspected of aiding druglords. His victories didn't come without a cost. Execution style murders escalated as these dilenquents found their livelihood threatened. Several law enforcement personnel were assinated and even the innocent became a target.

And then a big blow last week. The crash of a Learjet on a crowded Mexico City street that carried the Secretary of the Interior, a close personal friend and ally to Calderon in his war on organized crime.

This particular night, in front of several thousand energetic Christians, I saw a man who bore the scars of sacrifice but who still held high a hope for a Mexico filled with justice, prosperity and love. His vulnerability and humility in asking for prayer and referring directly to the Savior while quoting Scripture roused affectionate cheers from the crowd. At one point, he stated, "Pray for me that I may share the strong faith that you all have."

It's no coincidence that God called us here when he did. We have a six-year window to work alongside a God-fearing leader, sympathetic to the cause of Christ to help transform a supercity and touch a nation. Our stories share more similarities than I can even recall in this post.

I continue to eat, sleep and breath citywide transformation, which made it even more special to see that the new Christian project rolled out that evening (with the full support of President Calderon) bore the title....."Transformaciones Mexico".