This Week at TCL

Here's a quick overview of the events going on this week at the church.

• Monday: semifinals of the street soccer league. TCL's team has made it to this point...will they win tonight?
• Tuesday: cell groups
• Wednesday: Bible institute and choir practice because...
• Thurday: Christmas party! Potluck, music, and special activities to celebrate Jesus' birth.
• Saturday: youth Christmas party!

I'll be posting pictures from as many events as possible, so stay tuned!

As Promised...

Here are some pictures of the baptisms I mentioned in the previous post!

El Calor was eliminated from the playoffs after the first round (but at least they got a trip to Cancún....). They're back training regularly but will soon have a few days off for Christmas. Pray that they will be testimonies to their friends and families as they travel back home, and please continue to pray for the team as they prepare for the second half of the season.

All the boys who were baptised.

El Calor: Playoffs

As I mentioned in a previous post, El Calor made it into the top-tier playoff group and this Wednesday they played the home game of this first round. First, the bad news: they lost 1-0. Now, a more positive perspective: it was an own-goal, and the loss was against the top team in the group (and El Calor is at the bottom).....so.....is it possible for them to advance to the next round? Well, it's not as impossible as it may seem! The team traveled to Cancún yesterday (trials! hardships!) and will be playing on Saturday afternoon. As always, please pray that God will supply the needs of the team as they play and travel, and that he will be glorified no matter the outcome.

Team photo before game, Nov. 27, 2013.

Also, a note....three weeks ago 9 El Calor players were baptized after a training sessing...praise God that he is continuing to use soccer as a way to bring people to him. There are pictures but I'm having trouble locating them; they will be posted a.s.a.p!

Nov. 27, 2013

El Calor in the Playoffs!

El Calor won their final game of the regular season 3-2 on Saturday, and with the losses of the two teams above them in the standings qualified for the playoffs with rights to ascension (in 2nd Division there are two playoff groups: the Cup and the Ascension groups. El Calor was in position to qualify for the Cup, but now qualifies for ascension to the next division). The team will play here on Wednesday, Nov. 7 and travel to Cancún on Saturday, Nov. 30 for the return game. Please be in prayer for the team, as always, but in particular that God will provide the funds for the trip. It will cost about $8000, as the team will have to fly to Cancún.

Concert: Alvaro Lopez and Resqband

This Friday we're having a special concert at TCL, with Álvaro López and Resqband (pronounced "rescue band"). Álvaro López was a drummer for Luis Miguel, one of the most successful Latin artists of all time, but now travels with his own band ministering. We're hoping that this is the first of many concerts that TCL will host, and that we'll be able to reach many people who wouldn't normally think of coming to a church.

4 more days.....

El Calor update

El Calor is nearing the end of the first half of the season. Last week they traveled to Reynosa and won 3-1. They are in 8th place in the standings and need to win this week, their final home game, in order to qualify for the playoffs (right now they're occupying the final qualifying spot but other teams could overtake them). Please continue to pray for this ministry; an urgent need is for partners, investors and sponsors to help keep the team going.

Standings as of Nov. 11. The top 8 teams qualify for playoffs.

Prayer/Action Groups

In the last month in TCL we have implemented what I'm calling here prayer/action groups. It's a continuation of the march held in October, and the goal is to reclaim San Pedro for Jesus. Groups of volunteers have been formed and every week they go out and pray. In the next couple of weeks I will be doing a longer profile of each group, but for now I'll just give a summary so that you can pray with us. One group prays and talks to people in the main plaza downtown, another prays outside of clubs and bars, another goes door to door praying for each household, one goes to the hospital to pray for patients, and one group takes care of 3 children who have basically been abandoned by their family, taking them to eat and making sure their basic needs are met. God has been opening doors and the people of San Pedro have been receptive so far to this new outreach. Please partner in prayer with us and we will see real change here in the city. Stay tuned for more in-depth information about each group!

March for San Pedro

Here are some pictures from Saturday's march, claiming San Pedro for Jesus. The route went through the downtown, stopping traffic (I've been on the receiving end of marches like these but never on the giving end; it was a change!) and ending in the main plaza, where we held a concert and prayer.

Gathering at 5pm in a small plaza about 6 blocks from downtown San Pedro.

Getting organized....

Tambourine players from TCL leading the march.

Marching!

Going through downtown San Pedro, by the market (left).

Arriving at the main plaza.

Concert....traditional northern music.

TCL's worship team and choir, complemented by musicians from other San Pedro churches.

Enjoying the music...

Action song!!

And they kept playing, despite major issues with the sound system...

 

El Calor

Tonight El Calor will be traveling to Aguascalientes to play tomorrow at noon. Please be in prayer for their safety and victory. You can follow the game on Facebook.

El Calor on a recent trip.

Marching....

Tomorrow, Saturday, October 19 there will be a march held here in San Pedro, coordinated by the churches of San Pedro, claiming the city for God and making a stand against sin and violence. Please be in prayer for this event, that God will begin to change the lives of the people living without him and without hope, and that the violence that has been surging in the area will be overcome by the power of the blood of Christ.

San Pedro: Bought with the blood of Christ

Update!

Hi everyone! It's been a while (oops...), so I'll try to catch you up on what's been happening here in San Pedro.

• El Calor: Getting ready for their 6th game this week and playing at home, which is the city of Gomez Palacio, about an hour from San Pedro. The team is 1-1-3 so far this season and we're looking for improvement as the team comes together and learns to play as a unit. About half of the team is staying here on the property, and we're continuing to see lives change as a result of God's love.
• Celebrations: in the past month we've celebrated several baptisms, two weddings and September 16 (Independence Day here). We're also getting ready for Christmas....

Paloma and Karen

Festive Jell-o!

Stephen and one of our best soccer players....

• Teaching: the English school is going strong and functioning, as always, as an outreach tool. We have started leadership training courses at the church during the week, as well as a Bible school, which we hope to turn into a fully-accredited course of study in the near future. Right now we have about 10 students who come together on Wednesday evenings to learn about the Bible and different aspects of ministry.

Please keep San Pedro in your prayers, as always. We're uniting with other churches in the area to pray for peace, and in a couple of weeks a prayer meeting is scheduled in Torreon with all the area churches; some estimates say that 10,000 people could gather to pray for safety and for God's presence to be felt here and all over the country. We know that the enemy reacts when we start to pray, so please join with us and pray for safety and for God's anointing to fall on San Pedro and the Laguna region.

Id a Las Naciones

This week a missions conference was held in our sister church in Torreon. It was called "Id a las Naciones" (Go to the Nations) and was directed by  Mitch Arbelaez and Jim Oxindine. Stephen, Marcela and Elisa all participated as translators throughout the week, and a large group of young people from TCL attended. There were lessons and group discussions about different aspects of missions work, and we're excited to see how God will lead us to use the knowledge that was shared. Pictures!

Stephen translating (as you can see, it's a very serious occasion because he's wearing a tie!)

Translating, with a member of TCL.

Conference attendees.

Young people from TCL.

During the conference.

Summer 2013 Newsletter

Those of you on the mailing list have already received this, but here is our summer newsletter for 2013 (JPEG format). Please let me know if you would like to receive it in a different format.

El Calor Update

This week Stephen and Marcela traveled to Mexico City to register the players of El Calor for the new season, which starts the weekend of August 23. Thankfully all the paperwork was accepted, and all 25 players and staff were registered successfully. We had planned to have a 3rd Division team in addition to the 2nd Division team but the soccer federation's rules changed this year and we weren't granted permission. There are several boys staying with us right now who were going to play on the 3rd Division team, so please pray that we will be able to find them spots with other teams, and that while they are here God will touch their lives. Please also be in prayer for the 2nd Division team as they prepare for the upcoming season.

Youth from TCL along with some of our 2nd Division players

Wedding

On Saturday Elisa and Paco got married here at the church (the civil service was two weeks ago in Guadalajara). For those of you who haven't seen the (hundreds and hundreds) of pictures on Facebook, here are a few!

Haiti and Panama Missions Trip

As you've probably read, this month we sent 5 young men from the church to Haiti and Panama to minister through soccer. The boys gave short testimonies last week in church and they were greatly affected both by the extreme poverty and need they saw and also by the presence of God in the different churches they visited. Ironically, they found that soccer became less and less their focus as they had opportunities to visit with and minister to many people. Here are some pictures from their time in Haiti.

Soccer ministry: #3 Paco, #4 Vicente, #8 Samy, #5 Carlos, #14 José