El Calor traveled to Casas Grandes, Chihuahua this weekend, a 9 hour bus trip from San Pedro. Both the 4th division team and the 3rd division pro team were victorious. The game started out badly for the 3rd division team: the opposing team scored at the 9 minute mark, 2 players were penalized and one thrown out at the 35th minute of the first half, and the refereeing was biased toward the home team. However, the team pulled together and in spite of playing the majority of the game one man short, won 7-2. For those soccer fans who read the blog, you will know that players have their individual celebratory rituals after scoring. However, they have to be careful because they can be penalized or thrown out if the referee deems their actions excessive or taunting toward the other team. Several of the boys on the team wear tshirts underneath their jerseys with messages such as, "I belong to Jesus", or "Property of Jesus". After scoring the 6th El Calor goal, one of the boys who lives here on the property and who was wearing one of these shirts, asked the referee if he could lift up his jersey and show the message on his shirt underneath, as a testimony. The same referee, who had previously penalized El Calor and thrown out their lead scorer, replied, "I believe in Jesus - go ahead and show the message. I won't penalize you." After the game the team returned rapidly to the dressing room because they were afraid the crowd of several hundred people would turn violent. As they were changing they heard fists pounding on the dressing room door and ran to block the door against intruders. Instead, they were greeted by supporters of the other team who wanted to take pictures with our players because they admired how well the team had played!
El Calor will be traveling again to Chihuahua this coming Saturday. Please continue to pray for their safety, success, and for more opportunities to share the Gospel.
MINISTRY NEWS FROM SAN PEDRO, COAHUILA, MEXICO
Sunday, February 14, 2010
Friday, February 12, 2010
News from Haiti Team
Here is a letter we received a couple of days ago from the Mexican Christian medical team in Haiti, where two of our young people from Templo Cristiano Libertad are serving.
Greetings from the CIRENE team.Today has been one of the hardest days that we have had here, but it has also been one of the days when we have been most touched by what it is that we have been able to do here. To begin the day today, we separated men from women, the women stayed at the house with the two doctors that are still here with us (Oscar and Luis). The rest of us went to a different part of town where there is a concentration of more than 7000 people, a surprising number. It is difficult sometimes to understand the people here, not so much because of the language barrier, but because of the few actions that they take in the face of the catastrophic event that has just occurred to them.
Today we went to the zone which is said to have been most damaged by the effects of the earthquake. We arrived at a huge building; There was rubble everywhere and the second floor was collapsed, which left the first floor was holding the weight of the entire building. At the beginning, they told us that we were going to be helping remove the rubble from the building, but upon our arrival they wanted us to remove the benches and a few other things that were usable. Out of the Haitians in the area, we only counted two people that had come to help. One of the men that had come with us, along with some of the guys, went inside the building to see if there was anything that we could do, but we were told that there was no reason to try, it was too complicated and could also be dangerous. Apart from this, there sadly were three bodies still trapped in the rubble, one of which was notably visible.
Since we arrived in Haiti, there has been no word of the Haitian people mobilizing to help their own. It is not my intention to criticize because I understand what these people are going through. The majority of them lost everything; many lost family members, parents, children, friends, and the much or little they did own collapsed around them. Apathy is a very strong force in this nation, above all now, in their time of need. It is one of the biggest challenges that we are facing; helping the people help themselves out of the situation. We have much work ahead of us.
In the end, we were able to do nothing, so we returned home. It was a tedious trip and there was a lot of traffic. Upon our arrival at the house we were surprised to find that the doctors who we left behind were inundated with work. People wanting medical consultation filled the patio. The problem was that the majority of the people were not sick, they merely wanted something. There were people that wanted us to look at their children because the sweat a lot, or because their eyes were slightly yellow. Others came because they had the flu, but they didn’t display any symptoms. Despite all of this, we pressed on trying to attend to as many people as possible. In reality, the people who weren’t really sick made our job much more difficult, but we were still enjoying being able to help. The whole event was somewhat striking to me; the whole world was joking around about it, and we were amiably taking care of every person in the place.
Oscar keeps painting his face like a clown, even though he can’t perform for anyone because if he did, the kids wouldn’t understand. Morales and Emmanuel continue to blow up balloons and make little animals out of them so that each child can have at least one. Meanwhile Mike, who is from the North, Edwin, from Guatemala, Isodoro and Will, from Oaxaca, Biso, a guy from San Luis, and myself on occasion, help by putting together the food rations that will be given out during the day. It is a bit tiring because the food rations are in a metal container outside of the house, and you can imagine the heat after being inside for five minutes is almost unbearable. I wish I could say it is helping us lose weight, but that is not the case, because our food here is too delicious. Also, on top of this, we are incredibly careful about hygiene, as we try to avoid everything that could possibly cause some kind of infection.
All of the women here are fundamental for the team to function. Yesica and Anayansin are in charge of efficiently distributing the medicine that we have to each patient that is indeed sick. Cristina and Nydia are in charge of taking the patients’ blood pressure and checking to see if they are truly sick. Paloma and Pati are nurses and they help the doctors immeasurably. Today alone, they had around 60 consultations before noon. Julio, who is also from San Luis, along with Aaron, help in any way they can; when they aren’t working with the food rations, they are working crowd control or working on whatever else is needed. Iveth along with Luckson are the ones who help us translate and there are times when they never stop because of the constant flow of people. Pancho and Pedro, along with Jorge, were in charge of going to the embassy to ask for more help. When we began the day, we were hoping that we would receive more help, but we could have never imagined how much.
Later in the day, after we finished attending to all of the people that had come, we were informed of the enormous amount of help we were going to receive. Luckson took charge of locating three semi trucks to bring all of the goods possible and the three left immediately to the embassy. Around four in the afternoon the first truck arrived. The truck was filled to capacity with food; it took us around three hours to unload it. We had to move some girls sleeping in one room, over to another, where the rest of the women from our team sleep in order to use the room for the food. After we unloaded everything we were able to realize that there was a variety of goods in the truck. There was also the medicine we needed so badly, diapers, powdered milk, and clothes. We were all laughing when we realized that some people had packed thick winter coats to send to a country of such high temperatures, but any and all help is appreciated. We have unloaded a mass amount of Red Cross boxes, along with boxes from many other institutions. Many Haitians are incredibly grateful to the country and people of Mexico, for their generosity.
We had around two hours to arrange everything that we had unloaded and rest a little. Finally the second truck arrived, just as full, if not more so, than the first. The inside of the house is filled with medicine, bottled water, cans of tuna, and so much more. The room where we had started to unload things was filled to capacity, so we even had to begin unloading some things onto the roof. This truck even had huge quantities of blankets; there is no doubt that as Mexicans, we know how to act in solidarity, even in moments of hardship.
Right now we are taking a little break, as we wait on the third truck that Pancho is bringing, which should arrive soon, and we’ve been told that it is filled just as much as the first two. We have all helped; the girls have also put forth a lot of effort. We have received so much today that we don’t even know where we are going to store everything from this next truck. We have done inventory and now know that we have received approximately 35 tons of food. This means that we are ready to hand out more than 1000 food rations per day. This is going to require a great deal of personal strength for each of us on the team, and we ask you to keep us in your thoughts.
Well, I will say goodbye for the moment. I need to rest a little before Pancho arrives with the last truck. I don’t know that time we will be done, but tomorrow we have to get up early enough to be able to make up the food rations and have enough time to be able to hand them all out.
We continue to send greetings and many hugs from everyone on the team. We hope you are all well and we thank you again for all of your support. The CIRENE team.
Greetings from the CIRENE team.Today has been one of the hardest days that we have had here, but it has also been one of the days when we have been most touched by what it is that we have been able to do here. To begin the day today, we separated men from women, the women stayed at the house with the two doctors that are still here with us (Oscar and Luis). The rest of us went to a different part of town where there is a concentration of more than 7000 people, a surprising number. It is difficult sometimes to understand the people here, not so much because of the language barrier, but because of the few actions that they take in the face of the catastrophic event that has just occurred to them.
Today we went to the zone which is said to have been most damaged by the effects of the earthquake. We arrived at a huge building; There was rubble everywhere and the second floor was collapsed, which left the first floor was holding the weight of the entire building. At the beginning, they told us that we were going to be helping remove the rubble from the building, but upon our arrival they wanted us to remove the benches and a few other things that were usable. Out of the Haitians in the area, we only counted two people that had come to help. One of the men that had come with us, along with some of the guys, went inside the building to see if there was anything that we could do, but we were told that there was no reason to try, it was too complicated and could also be dangerous. Apart from this, there sadly were three bodies still trapped in the rubble, one of which was notably visible.
Since we arrived in Haiti, there has been no word of the Haitian people mobilizing to help their own. It is not my intention to criticize because I understand what these people are going through. The majority of them lost everything; many lost family members, parents, children, friends, and the much or little they did own collapsed around them. Apathy is a very strong force in this nation, above all now, in their time of need. It is one of the biggest challenges that we are facing; helping the people help themselves out of the situation. We have much work ahead of us.
In the end, we were able to do nothing, so we returned home. It was a tedious trip and there was a lot of traffic. Upon our arrival at the house we were surprised to find that the doctors who we left behind were inundated with work. People wanting medical consultation filled the patio. The problem was that the majority of the people were not sick, they merely wanted something. There were people that wanted us to look at their children because the sweat a lot, or because their eyes were slightly yellow. Others came because they had the flu, but they didn’t display any symptoms. Despite all of this, we pressed on trying to attend to as many people as possible. In reality, the people who weren’t really sick made our job much more difficult, but we were still enjoying being able to help. The whole event was somewhat striking to me; the whole world was joking around about it, and we were amiably taking care of every person in the place.
Oscar keeps painting his face like a clown, even though he can’t perform for anyone because if he did, the kids wouldn’t understand. Morales and Emmanuel continue to blow up balloons and make little animals out of them so that each child can have at least one. Meanwhile Mike, who is from the North, Edwin, from Guatemala, Isodoro and Will, from Oaxaca, Biso, a guy from San Luis, and myself on occasion, help by putting together the food rations that will be given out during the day. It is a bit tiring because the food rations are in a metal container outside of the house, and you can imagine the heat after being inside for five minutes is almost unbearable. I wish I could say it is helping us lose weight, but that is not the case, because our food here is too delicious. Also, on top of this, we are incredibly careful about hygiene, as we try to avoid everything that could possibly cause some kind of infection.
All of the women here are fundamental for the team to function. Yesica and Anayansin are in charge of efficiently distributing the medicine that we have to each patient that is indeed sick. Cristina and Nydia are in charge of taking the patients’ blood pressure and checking to see if they are truly sick. Paloma and Pati are nurses and they help the doctors immeasurably. Today alone, they had around 60 consultations before noon. Julio, who is also from San Luis, along with Aaron, help in any way they can; when they aren’t working with the food rations, they are working crowd control or working on whatever else is needed. Iveth along with Luckson are the ones who help us translate and there are times when they never stop because of the constant flow of people. Pancho and Pedro, along with Jorge, were in charge of going to the embassy to ask for more help. When we began the day, we were hoping that we would receive more help, but we could have never imagined how much.
Later in the day, after we finished attending to all of the people that had come, we were informed of the enormous amount of help we were going to receive. Luckson took charge of locating three semi trucks to bring all of the goods possible and the three left immediately to the embassy. Around four in the afternoon the first truck arrived. The truck was filled to capacity with food; it took us around three hours to unload it. We had to move some girls sleeping in one room, over to another, where the rest of the women from our team sleep in order to use the room for the food. After we unloaded everything we were able to realize that there was a variety of goods in the truck. There was also the medicine we needed so badly, diapers, powdered milk, and clothes. We were all laughing when we realized that some people had packed thick winter coats to send to a country of such high temperatures, but any and all help is appreciated. We have unloaded a mass amount of Red Cross boxes, along with boxes from many other institutions. Many Haitians are incredibly grateful to the country and people of Mexico, for their generosity.
We had around two hours to arrange everything that we had unloaded and rest a little. Finally the second truck arrived, just as full, if not more so, than the first. The inside of the house is filled with medicine, bottled water, cans of tuna, and so much more. The room where we had started to unload things was filled to capacity, so we even had to begin unloading some things onto the roof. This truck even had huge quantities of blankets; there is no doubt that as Mexicans, we know how to act in solidarity, even in moments of hardship.
Right now we are taking a little break, as we wait on the third truck that Pancho is bringing, which should arrive soon, and we’ve been told that it is filled just as much as the first two. We have all helped; the girls have also put forth a lot of effort. We have received so much today that we don’t even know where we are going to store everything from this next truck. We have done inventory and now know that we have received approximately 35 tons of food. This means that we are ready to hand out more than 1000 food rations per day. This is going to require a great deal of personal strength for each of us on the team, and we ask you to keep us in your thoughts.
Well, I will say goodbye for the moment. I need to rest a little before Pancho arrives with the last truck. I don’t know that time we will be done, but tomorrow we have to get up early enough to be able to make up the food rations and have enough time to be able to hand them all out.
We continue to send greetings and many hugs from everyone on the team. We hope you are all well and we thank you again for all of your support. The CIRENE team.
Monday, February 08, 2010
Update
A couple of news items:
This weekend El Calor played here in San Pedro on Saturday afternoon and won 8-0. The team is undefeated this season and travels this coming weekend to Chihuahua.
Last Tuesday we opened up a Bible-training institute, run by the pastors of Templo Cristiano Libertad, and headed by our youth pastor. The school is on Tuesdays from 6-10 pm and there are almost 30 people enrolled.
This weekend El Calor played here in San Pedro on Saturday afternoon and won 8-0. The team is undefeated this season and travels this coming weekend to Chihuahua.
Last Tuesday we opened up a Bible-training institute, run by the pastors of Templo Cristiano Libertad, and headed by our youth pastor. The school is on Tuesdays from 6-10 pm and there are almost 30 people enrolled.
Wednesday, February 03, 2010
Update
Good morning!
Here's what's been happening the last little while in San Pedro:
The second half of the soccer season began on Saturday January 23, with El Calor at home facing a team from Chihuahua. The game ended in a 9-0 victory for us.....last Saturday the team traveled to Ciudad Juarez and despite a poor playing field, came out victorious with a 5-1 score.
We have started construction on a new church building, or rather at this point, destruction, as we have had to knock down a wall to make room for the new building. This past Monday was a 
holiday here so a team of young people and men from the church gathered to finish tearing down the wall and crush the cement blocks for later use.
holiday here so a team of young people and men from the church gathered to finish tearing down the wall and crush the cement blocks for later use. Finally, this weekend we had an update from the girls the church sent to Haiti. They are part of a group of Christian medical workers and they are hard at work caring for the wounded, distributing food and supplies, and sharing the Gospel. Here are two pictures of the team taken at the airport before flying out last Wednesday. They stopped in Cuba and the Dominican Republic on their way to Haiti, and were able to minister in both places, even though they were there only a short time. Please continue to pray for the entire group as they work to help rebuild Haiti.
Friday, January 22, 2010
Destiny Missions Conference and Haiti Relief
On Thursday we returned from this year's missions conference at Destiny Church in San Antonio. The conference was a blessing to all of us who went and we would like to thank everyone at Destiny for the time and effort that went into the week, and for their hospitality and kindness to us.
The situation in Haiti was definitely a topic of conversation and prayer during the conference, and we were challenged to take action and do something to help. To that end we are sending two nurses from our church to Haiti to serve there. One is a nursing student and the other just graduated and is a registered nurse. They are leaving tomorrow night for Mexico City where they will be until Wednesday, organizing supplies and applying for paperwork. God provided the money for their plane tickets, and at tonight's service there was an outpouring of generosity from the church and they are leaving with all their needs met. Please be in prayer for them as they travel and minister in Haiti: pray for safety, for strength, for a supernatural ability to communicate (they both speak Spanish and some English, but no French), and pray that God will use them to bring his Word to Haiti.
The situation in Haiti was definitely a topic of conversation and prayer during the conference, and we were challenged to take action and do something to help. To that end we are sending two nurses from our church to Haiti to serve there. One is a nursing student and the other just graduated and is a registered nurse. They are leaving tomorrow night for Mexico City where they will be until Wednesday, organizing supplies and applying for paperwork. God provided the money for their plane tickets, and at tonight's service there was an outpouring of generosity from the church and they are leaving with all their needs met. Please be in prayer for them as they travel and minister in Haiti: pray for safety, for strength, for a supernatural ability to communicate (they both speak Spanish and some English, but no French), and pray that God will use them to bring his Word to Haiti.
Monday, January 04, 2010
Happy New Year
Happy New Year!
We are at the start of another year, and the activity and excitement of the holidays has slowly given way to normality. Every January many people resolve to change something about themselves and say, “This year I will be successful!” While it is good to plan and prepare for what may come in the future, it is also important to remember to live day-by-day. Lately I have been reading stories of people’s successes and failures with their New Year’s resolutions, and many of those who have failed to fulfill their plans say that they get bogged down when they think in terms of an entire year. “How can I (exercise, eat more vegetables, read the Bible, etc. etc.) every day for a whole year???” When we are overwhelmed by thoughts of the future and how we will cope, we can remember what the Bible says:
Because of the LORD's great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. (Lamentations 3:22-23)
Whatever our goals for 2010, knowing that God’s mercy is with us day after day can give us the strength to meet our goals, to grow in our walk with Him, and do what He asks of us.
Here is a summary of our activities in 2009 and some of our plans for 2010.
1- Church in San Pedro: We are now full in both services on Sunday and are running over 300 people. With the exception of 4 people, all are new converts who have never served the Lord before. There are now 2 young men full time on the pastoral staff. We are planning on building for 700 in 2010. We are studying the most economical way of doing it because we refuse to go in debt.
2- The Soccer ministry has grown and now has 3 travelling teams covering two cities. We are reaching a group of about 200 young people from the ages of 13-19. Since August, 22 have become Christians along with several parents. Our goal is to win at least 80 to the Lord by next June. All of the teams are winning a lot and 2 of them are in the top 10 nationally. That's just added blessing!
3- The Drug rehab is still treating about 300 men each year. We are now receiving many who are also hiding out from the drug cartels because they are trying to escape that kind of life. Please pray for protection from violence for this center. We will be partnering with PROJECT AK-47 (Marcus Young) this year to start ministering to the kids caught up in the violence of the gang warfare.
4- The missions training School graduated another 5 students this year. Four of the students were also able to make their faith trip to a small town on the west coast and were able to help start another home missions work. We are still planning on sending out Latin American Missionaries to foriegn fields in the near future. Our evangelism teams still do campaigns with dramas at least twice a year.
5- In the social area we continue to teach English to underprivileged students. We have also opened a small secondary school for young people who dropped out and were not able to finish secondary school. the economic crisis has really rocked our city and over 5,000 jobs were lost this last year. We have built houses, fed the poor, scholarshiped 30 students, and helped create some job sources for the needy.
Please be in prayer for these programs and ministries and remember that those who send and those who go receive the same reward before God. We are your extension here in Mexico.
We are at the start of another year, and the activity and excitement of the holidays has slowly given way to normality. Every January many people resolve to change something about themselves and say, “This year I will be successful!” While it is good to plan and prepare for what may come in the future, it is also important to remember to live day-by-day. Lately I have been reading stories of people’s successes and failures with their New Year’s resolutions, and many of those who have failed to fulfill their plans say that they get bogged down when they think in terms of an entire year. “How can I (exercise, eat more vegetables, read the Bible, etc. etc.) every day for a whole year???” When we are overwhelmed by thoughts of the future and how we will cope, we can remember what the Bible says:
Because of the LORD's great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. (Lamentations 3:22-23)
Whatever our goals for 2010, knowing that God’s mercy is with us day after day can give us the strength to meet our goals, to grow in our walk with Him, and do what He asks of us.
Here is a summary of our activities in 2009 and some of our plans for 2010.
1- Church in San Pedro: We are now full in both services on Sunday and are running over 300 people. With the exception of 4 people, all are new converts who have never served the Lord before. There are now 2 young men full time on the pastoral staff. We are planning on building for 700 in 2010. We are studying the most economical way of doing it because we refuse to go in debt.
2- The Soccer ministry has grown and now has 3 travelling teams covering two cities. We are reaching a group of about 200 young people from the ages of 13-19. Since August, 22 have become Christians along with several parents. Our goal is to win at least 80 to the Lord by next June. All of the teams are winning a lot and 2 of them are in the top 10 nationally. That's just added blessing!
3- The Drug rehab is still treating about 300 men each year. We are now receiving many who are also hiding out from the drug cartels because they are trying to escape that kind of life. Please pray for protection from violence for this center. We will be partnering with PROJECT AK-47 (Marcus Young) this year to start ministering to the kids caught up in the violence of the gang warfare.
4- The missions training School graduated another 5 students this year. Four of the students were also able to make their faith trip to a small town on the west coast and were able to help start another home missions work. We are still planning on sending out Latin American Missionaries to foriegn fields in the near future. Our evangelism teams still do campaigns with dramas at least twice a year.
5- In the social area we continue to teach English to underprivileged students. We have also opened a small secondary school for young people who dropped out and were not able to finish secondary school. the economic crisis has really rocked our city and over 5,000 jobs were lost this last year. We have built houses, fed the poor, scholarshiped 30 students, and helped create some job sources for the needy.
Please be in prayer for these programs and ministries and remember that those who send and those who go receive the same reward before God. We are your extension here in Mexico.
Tuesday, December 22, 2009
Merry Christmas!
'Tis the season for parties and presents and food...and food, and we have had our share (sometimes more than our share...) here in San Pedro. Last Thursday was the posada (Christmas party) for the Mexico-Canadiense English school. All the classes did a presentation in English, and there were songs, dramas, and games. On Friday the youth of Templo Cristiano Libertad held their own Christmas all-nighter, and on Saturday was the El Calor Christmas dinner. Finally on Sunday it was the church Christmas celebration with music, special choir presentations, and of course, more food....I was talking to a friend yesterday and we were both reflecting regretfully on the amount of food we seem to have eaten over the past few days, but then my friend shrugged and said, "Oh well, we have the rest of the year to work it off!" Which is true....and so, as I go in search of another sugar cookie, I would like to say thank you to everyone who has read the blog throughout 2009, to everyone who has supported us in prayer, in giving, in supplies, in visits. All of us in San Pedro wish you a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year, as we give thanks to God for the greatest gift ever given, salvation and eternal life through His Son, Jesus.English school posada:
El Calor posada:
Monday, November 16, 2009
Holiday!
Today was a holiday here in Mexico and we held a one-day mini youth camp. About 50 young people came and participated in a full day of games, team competitions, sports, and worship. There was a relay race, dodgeball, girls and boys soccer tournaments, and volleyball. Several new youth came for the event as well as some of our El Calor players. Thanks to everyone for their hard work!
A warm-up with some action songs!
A game involving a lot of pushing, pulling, and falling...
Dodgeball!
And finally, a disgusting game where you try to blow a tubeful of the most awful goop (Coke, raw eggs, water, hot chiles, and who knows what else) out of your opponent's end of the tube before they do it to you...may the strongest lungs win!
Saturday, November 07, 2009
Important Need
It's winter now, and yes, it does get cold here! Our soccer team is in need of winter uniforms, which will cost about $400. If you would like to help us with this expense, and bless the boys of El Calor, you can make an offering through the PayPal button on the top of this page, or send an offering through this address:
Seedtime and Harvest Ministries
8635 Callaghan Rd.
San Antonio, TX
78230
Thank you in advance for your support and prayers!
Seedtime and Harvest Ministries
8635 Callaghan Rd.
San Antonio, TX
78230
Thank you in advance for your support and prayers!
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
El Calor Photos 2009
Players from Professional and Select teams during a recent cell groupHere are the official photos of the main teams of the El Calor soccer organization.
3rd Division Professional Team
3rd Division Select Team
4th Division
Please be in prayer for all the teens, children, families, and coaches involved in this ministry!
Thursday, October 08, 2009
Update
Several items to share today....
Last weekend we were blessed with a visit from sister Lydia Chorpening. Sister Chorpening was a missionary in the Philippines for many years and in September she made a tour of Mexico, visiting several missionaries and holding services. We were blessed by her visit and glad that she had the chance to visit San Pedro.
El Calor won their last two games, 3-1 and 7-1. This weekend they play here in San Pedro. We are working on setting up a web page with live streaming video of the games, and I will post on the blog when this becomes available.
Today is Stephen's birthday, and we wish him all the best in the coming year!
Last weekend we were blessed with a visit from sister Lydia Chorpening. Sister Chorpening was a missionary in the Philippines for many years and in September she made a tour of Mexico, visiting several missionaries and holding services. We were blessed by her visit and glad that she had the chance to visit San Pedro.
El Calor won their last two games, 3-1 and 7-1. This weekend they play here in San Pedro. We are working on setting up a web page with live streaming video of the games, and I will post on the blog when this becomes available.
Today is Stephen's birthday, and we wish him all the best in the coming year!
Monday, September 07, 2009
Happy Anniversary
Congratulations to Stephen and Marcela, who, on September 5, celebrated 22 years of marriage and ministry!
Monday, August 24, 2009
Back to School
Today was the first day of school for most children and teens here in Mexico, and yesterday in the afternoon service we had a special time of prayer with about 70 students. Afterwards we gave out notebooks, pencils, calculators, markers, and backpacks so that everyone would be prepared for today.
70 students...two things come to mind when I see that number. First, wow. That's a lot of kids, and last night the church was absolutely packed. Which is good, but also bad if you come in late, unless you like standing...which brings me to a new but related topic: construction! We are planning to expand the current church building as we have not yet found a suitable piece of land to use for a new building. Also, we are planning to open a new church in Torreon, on the property that belongs to the rehab center there. So, as always when there are new projects on the go, we need two things: prayer and resources - prayer first, because that's how you get the resources, right? Please be in prayer as we plan these projects, that God will provide the money and people and supplies to see them through to completion, and that the church will continue to grow!
The second thing that comes to mind when I think about students are the ones we have living here on the property and being supported by the church and its ministers. We have one girl, a graduate of the Id Pues Bible school, who has entered nursing school, and 5 boys from El Calor who are from all over the country, who have come here to play on the team and are all in school, from secondary school to university. Some of them were Christians when they arrived, some have just come to accept Jesus in the short time they have been here, and some we are still waiting for, but please be in prayer for these students as well, that those who haven't accepted Jesus will do so, and that those who have will be strengthened in their walk with the Lord and be witnesses wherever they are - in school, on the playing field, or wherever God sends them.
70 students...two things come to mind when I see that number. First, wow. That's a lot of kids, and last night the church was absolutely packed. Which is good, but also bad if you come in late, unless you like standing...which brings me to a new but related topic: construction! We are planning to expand the current church building as we have not yet found a suitable piece of land to use for a new building. Also, we are planning to open a new church in Torreon, on the property that belongs to the rehab center there. So, as always when there are new projects on the go, we need two things: prayer and resources - prayer first, because that's how you get the resources, right? Please be in prayer as we plan these projects, that God will provide the money and people and supplies to see them through to completion, and that the church will continue to grow!
The second thing that comes to mind when I think about students are the ones we have living here on the property and being supported by the church and its ministers. We have one girl, a graduate of the Id Pues Bible school, who has entered nursing school, and 5 boys from El Calor who are from all over the country, who have come here to play on the team and are all in school, from secondary school to university. Some of them were Christians when they arrived, some have just come to accept Jesus in the short time they have been here, and some we are still waiting for, but please be in prayer for these students as well, that those who haven't accepted Jesus will do so, and that those who have will be strengthened in their walk with the Lord and be witnesses wherever they are - in school, on the playing field, or wherever God sends them.
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