Oaxaca Information: Global Frontier Missions

Oaxaca Profile

Oaxaca is a beautiful state in the southern part of Mexico. It is a rugged land full of diversity and contrast. The landscape, filled with mountains, waterfalls, vegetation, and ancient ruins, brilliantly shows God's handiwork, but it is really the people that make Oaxaca such a beautiful place.

Oaxaca contains the largest concentration of people groups in all of the Americas, many of which are unreached with the Gospel. Over half of Mexico's indigenous people groups are located in Oaxaca, speaking over 155 different dialects. These diverse cultures are sprinkled with many unique traditions, festivals, foods, and beliefs.

There are at least 40 unreached people groups in the state of Oaxaca. "Unreached" means there is no church in the group capable of evangelizing the rest of the people in the area. Many of these groups have no organized church meeting or Bible study, and in some cases, they have no Christians at all. A number of these groups still do not know Jesus Christ and have no one to share the Good News with them.

Romans 10:14 says, "How can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them?"

The people of Oaxaca are very "religious". They practice a version of Catholicism combined with ancient paganism. The spiritual blindness and darkness in Oaxaca can only be broken by the Gospel of Jesus Christ and His radical transforming grace. Who will bring the message that can break spiritual strongholds and shine the light to these people?

Poverty also grips the land of Oaxaca. The people live on a very basic diet of beans and tortillas. Most people live in farming villages, having little or no electricity and only limited communication to the outside. Some areas have no roads or local transportation (besides donkeys) and must be hiked to. Quality medical and dental care is difficult, if not impossible, to find. Education is inadequate, as some villages only have an elementary school. Spiritually and physically, Oaxaca is a land of great need.

Our base is located in the beautiful market town of Tlaxiaco, Oaxaca. Set in a valley amidst the vast expanse of mountains, it is a strategic location as each Saturday people from the surrounding villages pour in for market day. Often, people from the various Mixteco people groups come to Tlaxiaco to find work or to try and sell their wide variety of food, arts, and crafts.

Our goal is to see all of these people groups reached and to assist the existing churches in whatever ways possible. We utilize short-term teams who serve through work projects, medical clinics, and evangelism to minister to the physical and spiritual needs of the people. There are many opportunities in the surrounding villages, but the laborers are few. Who will come help fulfill our Lord's final command?