Mid-day Visitor

So, as I was working on my computer this afternoon, I heard some rustling in the leaves behind my appartment. That's where we keep the water boilers for my and the Elias appartments, but there are also some cages there from when the Eliases raised rabbits. There are no more rabbits now, but from time to time iguanas will find lovely resting places amidst all the leaves and stuff. So, I went back to my kitchen window, and sure enough there was a rather large iguana emerging from behind the cages. I caught this picture as he was leaving our property. What interesting things we find in our backyards down here!

As he scotts up the walls...check out those claws! Iguanas are very fast little critters!
Ya know they eat iguana here, but I think it's the green ones that they eat, not the black ones because the black ones don't taste good.

Making his escape over the wall

A fond farewell..

So, for the last month we've had a Mexican young man from Guadalajara staying with Jan and Doug: Israel. He's my friend Erika's older brother, and he's from the same church that Jan and Doug and I all attend when we're in Guadalajara. Anyway, he came here because he feels that the Lord is calling him to something and thinks that might be missions but isn't entirely sure right now. So, he wanted to come and be discipled by Doug and have a month to really dig into the Lord and get a taste of missionary life and see what the Lord would have him do next. One of the things he did while here was help out with the youth group. This was especially nice for me becuase there were a couple of Fridays that Steve was not here for youth group. Normally, that would mean that I give the Bible study that night; however, since Israel was here helping out, he did it instead of me, and he did a wonderful job. The kids paid such great attention to him, and when they started goofing off or not listening, he had such a knack of confronting them on it and re-corraling their attentions. He was very effective, and the kids really enjoyed having him here.

It was neat also to see the friendships that he made with some of the youth guys here. One of the things that really jumped out at me when I first came down here a year ago was how desperately the girls I met seemed to soak up the presence of a real friend. That has been such an effective tool so far with the girls that I've met and gotten to know--just being their friend makes such a huge impact. Well it seemed that the same was true with the guys this month. Any free time they had they spent playing video games with Israel or doing something else, just hanging out, etc. It was neat to see how they responded to him in that way, and it was such a blessing to see them finding that need being met in that way!

Anyway, tonight was his last Friday night, and so for youth group we had a going-away fun night rather than a Bible study. Usually for about 30-45 mintues before starting youth group we let the kids play games and just hang out; they behave much better in group if we do that. Then we usually have our Bible study time and then they can play more when it's all over. Tonight we did the hang out time, and then we had a time of sharing for folks to share with Israel how he affected them or what they were thankful to the Lord concerning his time with us. Then we presented him with a few gifts, and we spent some time praying for him. Then more fun and hang-out time. It was a great night! Suffice it to say, Israel is welcome to return any time he chooses! He will always find open doors here!

Please keep this young man in your prayers. The Lord has certainly blessed him with a gift for communicating the truths of Scripture with others and in how he relates to people. Please pray that the Lord will reveal to Israel what the next steps are he is to take and that Israel will be willing and able to walk into the future that the Lord has prepared for him!

Israel is also a great drummer, and just before he left he taught a drum workshop. Here is he with Diego and Fursio.

And Nature speaks of His glory!

So, I thought I would take a moment and share with you some of what I find surrounding me on a daily basis and year-round! One of the things I find so precious about Mexico is that it's people and culture are so vibrant, and their natural surroundings reflect that! Some of these pictures were taken by me, some by Sandy, and some were donated to me by members of the His Place team that was here at the end of January. I hope you enjoy the pictures as much as I enjoy being surrounded by these sights!

I love walking this stretch of this road. It feels like I'm walking under a bower of blossoms for how the branches canopy adorn the road! :)

A close up of the blossoms of the tree above!

This is my favorite tree, and following are some close-ups of the flowers. I think there are three different trees all mixed up in there, and I KNOW that there are two different types of blossoms and three different colors that come out when it's all in bloom. The window behind this tree is where I often eat lunch or dinner almost daily--at Restaurant Heidy, owned by members of our church. That window is my favorite place to sit in the spring and summer!

I found this little guy while setting up for a team. These frogs are pretty common. When they are very babies, they can fit under our doors. It's interesting to be watching TV in the evening and then all of a sudden see a frog barely the size of your finger nail hopping through your living room!

I know we have flowers like this at home, but I don't know what they're called. Their height is astounding, and they are beautiful in this garden! One of my favorites to walk by. It always looks so cool, refreshing, and inviting!

This rose bush is in the same garden as the previous flowers.

Birds are EVERYWHERE. There is never a lack of birdsong around us. They nest in the roof of our church and chirp all day long!

Unique, no?!

Butterflies..something that seems so elusive at home...they're all over the place here! And they're stunning!






This was taken on top of the hill that overlooks the town of Cofradia

These flowers are some kind of vine that is growing on a tree just on the inside of the north wall of the new church. I love how they drape on the wall!

Post for March 25

So, our organization, Alternative Missions, has an intranet. Each staff member has a database there and we are supposed to post on the intranet each week so as to keep a sense of community as an organization and not just in our specific locations. I decided that I would share with you my post for this week. So here it is:

So, I have two things to share this week, one ministry-related and one personal.

1. Ministry-related. So, we've been doing things slightly different in our weekly youth group meetings. A couple of months ago, Steve started pairing the kids off--some with other youth and some with leaders--usually in groups of 2 or 3 (if the numbers weren't even) for the final prayer time of the evening. We've noticed that this is a much more effective strategy than a large group prayer with one person praying because this way everyone is participating and sharing with others. Well, this past week as I was driving one of the girls home to Santa Fe, and couple of others accompanied us. During the ride they shared with me how "way cool" their prayer time was with the girls they got partnered with. Both were partnered with girls who are younger, and with whom they have both begun to develop a mutual trust. The greatest thing was that they were both SO EXCITED about how the prayer time had gone that they were about to jump out of their seats. I mentioned to one of them about how awesome it is to get to see God use us in the moment, and she said, "YAH! That's it...HE USED ME!" And we were able to talk about how that's the essence of discipleship and how she can continue to encourage those girls with whom she prayed. It's just so neat to see how God is moving and growing our youth!

2. Personal note: So, I too am doing this Bible study on the fruit of the Spirit with the other ladies on staff here [Living Beyond Yourself, by Beth Moore]. It's a great study, and I'm actually doing it in English [with the staff ladies of course] and in Spanish [with Sandy] simultaneously and having to adapt the videos for the Spanish study. So, I'm getting to know the material pretty well. But something that Beth Moore presents in the study is that living in the Spirit won't just change our lives but it will change our day--that it's a long-term process but that the changes are accessible right here right now too. This week the Lord has been making me acutely aware of how NOT in the habit I am of calling on him in my NOW needs: moments when frustration rolls in unexpectedly, interactions that I wasn't planning on, when things aren't going the way I'd like them to either in me or in others, etc. Short of posting notes all over my appartment to remind me to call on Him NOW, I'm not entirely sure how to go about fixing that bad habit, but I know that God is faithful to accomplish His will in me. And calling on Him is definitely in His will. So I'm looking forward to seeing how God changes things in me over the next several months and what He has in store for putting those changes into practice in the world around me. One thing's for sure: it will definitely be a ride to remember.

I highly recommend this study. Some of it is so basic, but at the same time it is NOT! The entire study is available online at www.lifeway.com--videos, homework, and even study helps and an online community for those participating in the study online! You can do it on your own, or you can do it in a group using the online study as the video source. That's what we are doing here. Her other study, Believing God, is also available there and is also highly recommended by me!

Praise the Lord that keeps plugging away at me! And how amazing that even though I'm still not anywhere close to "arriving" he lets me witness His plugging away in others as well! OOOHHHHH, He's GOOD!

Cy-Fair Youth Outreach

So, we just finished up a great team that came down from Cy-Fair Christian Church in Houston, TX! This is the same group that arrived the same day as I did last year when I first moved down here, so it was extra special for me to work with them again this year. Just another way of remembering and celebrating all the Lord has done in my life this year! Anyway, this team was STELLAR! It was such a blast to work with them, and they came down raring to go! Our youth LOVE this team! They had been looking forward to their arrival for months, and especially after the youth leadership conference in February, which was led by the two pastors who come down with this group each year. And from what I can tell, the outreach as a whole lived up to the expectations!

Of course, they too worked on the construction of the new church facility, and man did they WORK! They poured the ENTIRE SANCTUARY FLOOR in four days...actually, in 8 hours total if we want to be really accurate. They worked about 2-2.5 hours each morning on a different section of the floor. In addition, some friends of Dave and Kathy's (a father and son team) came down from Canada to help with this project because the father is a concrete expert! So, not only did this team get it done fast, but they got it done well. It's truly beautiful to look at! Anyway, this is such a feat because this floor is slightly larget than a full-sized basketball court, and it will serve not only as the floor of our sanctuary but also as the site of various sports activities: basketball, soccer, volleyball, relay games, etc. (Yes, we are also installing soccer goals and basketball hoops, which means the ceiling of this structure will also be a gigantor project!). Anyway, like I said, they worked hard and they worked well, the end result being a beautiful sanctuary floor!

An areal view, from the roof of one of the storage rooms next to the platform.

Corner to corner (diagonal). As you can see, this floor is so big, I can't get the whole thing in a picture!

For their outreach, this team focused on our youth once again. The first day of activities, Sunday, they were all divided into four teams, and everyone played get-to-know-you games. Monday, we played more games but in the direction of team building games, including a huge human Sudoku game. For this game, we actually sketched out four huge Sudoku cubes and the kids had a game printed on paper that they had to solve and then transfer to the chalked games on the soccer court. This turned out to be a very interested experience because each team consisted of both Mexicans and Americans, which caused a language barrier, and many of the Mexicans didn't even know how to play the game. Despite these barriers, two of the teams (one girl, one boy) worked well together as a team, overcame their barriers, and finished well. However, two of them did not, and the overall result of this experience provided some extremely useful and practical life examples of what it means to be part of the body of Christ and function as one! Some really great discussion came out of this, and it was only the precursor for the next day's activities!

Tuesday, the kids participated in a mini-Reto (which means "challenge"). This was something like what we do here in Cofradia in our youth ministry during the month of September each year. This was one basically a mini-Amazing Race set-up, and the end goal was that each team was to find the necessary things in order to make hand-made tortillas, which they later had relay races to eat! The cool thing about this is that in Sudoku, the Americans had the chance to teach the Mexicans something (the game!), and in the mini-Reto it was the Mexicans' turn to teach the Americans something (how to make tortillas by hand!).

The RED Team!
These girls called themselves the Amazons and painted one cheek with something girly, and one cheek to represent the warrior inside of them!

The ORANGE Team!

The YELLOW Team!

The BLUE Team!

So, here's how it worked. At the beginning of the race, the first activity had them divide their teams into four mini teams that consisted of at least one Mexican and one American each. Then those four mini teams were given clues to the next location they had to find and the acitvity they had to do there in order to win what they needed for their end project. The four teams were "firewood," "water," "flour," and "griddle." Those were the things that they had to find and then all meet back up at a final location to actually make the tortillas by hand, each one having to measure exactly 13 cm in diameter: any more or less and they didn't count! They had to make 2 per person on the team. In order to win their prizes, teams had to do stuff like clean a yard (with machetes), wash dishes, sweep, mop, play another sudoku game, push a truck around a baseball field back to home plate, and some other fun activities.

The catch in all this, however, was that this time they had to do it all with NO TRANSLATORS! And all of the clues had key words in a mixture of Spanish and English so that no one nationality knew exactly what was going on..they had to figure it out TOGETHER. While the immediate goal was to make tortillas and be the first to eat them all, the overarching goal was for them to learn what it meant to put aside their differences, work as a team, and aim for the very best for the team rather than the individual, just like we have to do in the body of Christ! And let me tell you, it was a very effective activity! In debriefing the teams afterward, by a landslide the most common lesson learned was what it really meant to be part of a team and to leave the individual behind. They learned that their differences didn't make as big of a difference as they originally thought, that they didn't have to speak the same langugage to communicate and work as one. They also learned that if they were just thinking of getting the thing done and finishing first that they fell apart as a team, but if they were thinking of each other and making the team the first priority, then they found it became much easier to reach their goal, and much faster at that! In addition, many of the girls in my group, Mexican and American, shared that before this experience they had never really been able to trust other people when something had to get done or when something important was on the line. But through this, they didn't have the choice, and they learned that trusting other people and allowing themselves to let other people play a part in the thing made all the difference in the world and created an intimacy and unity that all of them admited that none of them had ever experienced before! Praise the Lord for these practical lessons that He puts in our lives in the most surprising ways! Where would we be without them!

Anyway, Wednesday of that was a free day, and the boys went off to play sports in the afternoon while the girls hung out in Cofradia and did crafts! They all had such a good time making picture frames. The team had brought down simple, undecorated wooden frames and unimaginable amounts of decorative papers in all shapes and sizes and patterns, foam sticky shapes, wooden shapes, ribbons, sayings, inspirational words defined, verses, etc. It was a crafter's paradise! And we had a blast! When we were all done, they played a dance game called Little Sally Walker, and while the Mexican girls seemed very shy about this, in the end they were having as much fun as anyone else! It was a great time of fellowship and fun!

Our picture frames! Aren't they GRRRREAT?!

Mili, Sarah, and Cecilia playing one of the group games played after finishing our craft!

Thursday was the culminating event: the Oscars Banquet! And how cool did that turn out! Last year was the first year they did this particular activity. Our cooking staff whipped up a fabulous feast that was given for the Mexian youth, to honor and love on them, by the American youth. The Americans decorated the church in Arrayanes with white tool and candles, white silk flowers, white christmas lights, and just made it all so elegant and beautiful. It was even complete with red carpet for the entrance! When it was time to open the doors for the Mexican youth to enter, all the staff and American youth and leaders lined the red carpet and cheered as each one walked the red carpet and stood for pictures. Man did were those flashes going! It seriously felt like being at the Acadamy Awards (as if I'd know what that actually feels like!)

It was a candle light dinner during which the Americans served and the Mexicans and the missionary staff ate while a slide show of the week played in the background for all to enjoy. Then to end the evening, we presented awards to the Mexican youth for their progress in several areas over the last year. The team had brought down trophies that were similar in style to the Oscars statuette, and they had had them engraved with the winners names (though the winners did not know ahead of time that they were receiving the award). As Steve presented each award, he took time to talk about each youth and their progress over the year and why we decided to give them that particular award.

AND THE OSCAR GOES TO...

The Hospitality Award-- No Winner This award is given to the youth who is consistant about going out of their way to make teams that come down feel welcome, whether that be awaiting their arrival, visiting them during the week, comeing to say goodbye, helping clean to prepare for their arrival or after their departure, etc. We did not award this one this year, though we do have a statuette for it, because we did not see anyone showing hospitality on a consitant basis over the last year. However, Steve told them that we would have this trophy in a very visible place throughout the year to remind them as teams come and go to work towards this particular manifestation of Christian brotherly love.

The Most-Improved Band Member Award: 2 Winners!

Jose Luis (Fursio) received this award for his improvement as a drummer. He typically plays drums both in the morning and afternoon at the services in both Cofradia and Arrayanes. He comes on his own during the week to practice his drumming, and has improved significantly over the last year through his committment to do so.




Jose Angel (Chupa) also received this award for his improvement as worship leader in Cofradia. Steve began training him as one of two youth worship leaders a year ago, and Chupa has grown immensely as a leader in worship as well as a sinSger.





The Spirit Award: Claudia Claudia received this award because she always has a smile on her face and participates in whatever is going on without ever complaining. She never moans and groans if something seems hard or disgusting or unpleasant. She just does it! She has definitely set an example in the last year for what it means to do everything with joy and enthusiasm as though working for the Lord!



The Braveheart Award: Sandy This award is given to the youth who has taken the biggest steps in their Christian walk over the last year, and Sandy has definitely earned it this year. Sandy has shown over the last year an unrivaled willingness to do whatever it takes to follow her Lord and allow Him to mold her for. She has grown into a woman who loves the Word and stands firm on it in the face of strong and intimate opposition, and it has been incredible to see how the Lord has changed her as she has submitted herself to His Potter's Wheel.




The Servanthood Award: Martin Martin has grown by leaps and bounds over the last year as well in His relationship with Christ, but we chose him for the Servanthood Award because of his unequaled willingness to do any task asked of him no matter what it is. He serves always with a smile on his face and a willing joyfullness in his heart that challenges all of us in our own hearts as to having an attitude of servanthood and not just moments.


This week of outreach had some pretty profound effects on our youth, and I believe on the American youth as well. I'm sure many of them don't even realize yet the depths to which this experience has affected them and will continue to discover those effects for years to come as they grow and mature and submit to the Lord's work in their lives. Please continue to keep them in your prayers: for deeper, more intimate relationships with Christ and for more willing hearts to get out there and take the risk of serving Him with their ALL!

February Update

GOINGS ON

"Warm" greetings to you from Cofradia! And when I say warm, I mean it! Temperatures have been heating up since the beginning of February, which was, by the way, and exciting month. It began with a youth leadership conference led by two pastors from Cy-Fair Christian Church in Houston. They will be returning with their youth group for a short-term missions trip in just a few days, and this will be their fourth year coming down here. However, this was the second year they have done a leadership conference. Last year they talked about servant-leadership. This year they spoke on authority. This is not a new topic for our youth, but the angle was slightly different, and it was even a blessing for me to hear it presented in this way: authority = love. That's right. They taught about how authority is not about enforcing rules or putting a damper on our find in life, but rather it's about protecting those whom we care about, and especially so with the Lord. He disciplines those he loves, but he also places guidelines on us so that we may stay away from what will hurt us and run headlong into the goodness that He has in store for us! It took a little tooth-pulling to get the kids to participate in the discussions, but even then there were illustrations abounding of love and lack of love through their honesty or lack thereof. They even used a local soccer game to illustrate our need for authority and the guidelines that the Lord gives us through His love and in His word. It was truly a wonderful weekend.

HOME AGAIN...JIGGIDY JIG!

At the end of that weekend I then headed home to Virginia for a whirlwind, two-week vacation. It was time to renew my visa, and the cost and timing worked out so that I could just take a trip home rather than a border trip. It was able to take care of some much-needed tasks, such as my 2006 income taxes and a new haircut, but more than that it was such a blessing to spend time with my family and friends. I wish I coul dhav ehad more time with each one, but I'm so thankful fo rthe time I did have. I was able to hug and kiss one of my nephews; I was able to hold new babies born to dear friends, although sadly I was not able to meet my new neice, Alison Joy, born Feb 10; and I was even able to get all gussied up and go out wiht some girlfriends in VA Beach one night just before returning to Mexico. That is something I've actually missed a little lately, so it was such a blessing! In addition I got to experience the cold and SNOW for the first and only time all winter!! The Lord knew how much I had been missing that part of winter, and I had told everything that although it had warmer than usual all winter, the Lord was saving the cold for me and would unleash it upon my return, so much so that it would snow! Well, that's exactly what happened! The day I flew home there was an ice storm, and as we broke through the clouds to land in D.C., everything was white. I almost cried in gratitude! Then, the day before I left, it snowed all day. My church services were canceled, and I arose in the morning to about 4-6 inches of real, life, fluffy SNOW! What a great pleasure it was to show the girls videos of snowball fights and sledding, and even more so to actually stand in it! God is truly so good to me!! I also was able to spend some time with friends in Guadalajara since I was there a couple days before and after my flights. That too was a blessing as Guadalajara is about 4-5 hours east of us, and it is difficult to visit for short periods only.

I returned to Cofradia on March 1, just in time to celebrate the one-year anniversary of my "move" to Mexico (March 4, 2006)!!! I am now in the process of catching up on all that I missed while gone as well as preparing for our next short-term group arriving March 10 for a week of youth ministry that is looking to be quite exciting!

IN CLOSING...

Please continue to keep me and this ministry and the Mexican people in your prayers:

• The last 12% of my monthly support that is still lacking: about $150/month. (Also a praise report! Only 12% to go!! WAHOO!!!)
• Sandy and I are beginning a new study: Living Beyond Yourself by Beth Moore--her choice!! It will be a challenge however on my end due to the fact that the videos are not in Spanish, and I'm doing this study in English with the staff ladies as well. Please pray that the Lord will provide wisdom and perseverance on my end and that he will continue to strengthen, encourage, and grow Sandy.
• For Sandy and Mili and their family. They are facing many personal difficulties right now that cause friction amongst them. Please pray for Sandy to continue standing strong on the word of the Lord in the face of opposition, for Mili to stay true to her first love, for her father to give his life over to Christ, and for their mother to have wisdom to know how to navigate all this.
• Our radio ministry is going VERY well, but we would like to expand it to be 2-3 times a week instead of one. This requires funds. We are in the process of seeking supporters for this ministry. It costs us $200/month for one half-hour spot each week. To increase to three it will cost $600/month! Please pray for the Lord to provide consistant support for this ministry.
• We are excited that our Short-Term Missions (STM) season is jam packed. Please pray for the Lord to be preparing and working through the teams on our schedule, for the ground to be fertile for both harvest and spiritual growth, and for stamina and excitement and wisdom for us the staff as we navigate short-term missions and long-term ministries simultaneously!

Thank you for all of your support! Your prayers and encouragement and financial support are precious to me. I would not be here without each one of you. I see the Lord working every day. Some days are easy and others are battles, but how awesome to know that the war is already won! And because of your support, we are spreading that good news here in Cofradia and the surrounding areas and seeing the Lord do great things in each life that receives it! Praise HIM!!

FACE TO FEET
ams :)

PS: Please forgive me for my gross neglegence in keeping my blog and photo site updated. I am in the process of correcting that. I am so grateful for your patience. Please continue to check both from time to time to see the newest, old news. :)

Happy Anniversary to me!

So, one year ago today, I moved to Mexico for the first time. I had no clue what the Lord was up to, but I new that He was moving me into something. I was petrified on one level and thoroughly exhilerated on another. I missed Fredericksburg TERRIBLY, but I new I wouldn't be content if I stayed put. It took a couple months to figure out that the Lord was sending me here for more than three months, but He got that message through.

Now, one year later, here I am marveling once again at how indescribably amazing the Lord is, and how I truly have the best life ever. Sure, there are times when I miss things or the lonliness gets to me, but even then I wouldn't trade this for the world right now. Maybe there will come a day when it's time to trade it for something else that the Lord wants to do in and through me, and at that time it will hurt, but I'll go. Until then, I couldn't imagine anything better than this, and who could possibly ask for more than that in this life?!

One year ago, I made some new friends...
April 2006

One year later, my life has been completely transformed....

Group shot at the end of my first three months..
May 2006

Mili and I at my 27th birthday party, hosted by her mom...
November 2006

Favi and I at the very first Thanksgiving feast at the Arrayanes church...


Me and the girls giving much thanks at Thanksgiving for God's gift of friends...


Mili and I with lights we used to decorate the entire Cofradia church...
December 2006

No one told me there would be KISSING in this movie!!....argh!...

Their introduction to hot apple cider at my Christmas decorating party...

Coffee buddies before church...
January 2007

Claudia and I at Mirna's 13th birthday...
February 2007


And one year later, I'm surrounded by the greatest girls placed on this planet...
April 2007

And God's goodness knows no end!
Happy anniversary to me and Cofradia. Happy anniversary, Lord!