Dry Season

Well, here in Mexico we are definitely in the middle of the dry season! No rain...for MONTHS..not a drop! It's so weird for this Virginia girl to NOT have rain in April and yet still see trees blooming. In fact, things are so dry and brown here at this time of the year that when the trees do start turning a vivid green, it is even more vivid sitting next to dried out brush! It's hot and dry and dusty, but the rains are on their way--June. It's not that far away, and that will be a new experience for me. Hot and humid at all times, but rain! I'm excited to see it for myself!Anyway, the other day Sandy and I went out on the road between Cofradia and Arrayanes so that she could take pictures of the green that is coming out right now in the midst of this dryness. I thought I would post some. Enjoy!

As you can see, the green is coming out! It's something that happens pretty suddenly: one day it's all brown as you can see close to the ground, and the next day there's a canopy of the most lucious, verdant green!!

This pic (above) doesn't show much green, but it captures a bush that is covered in white (just over their right shoulders), and the pic below this comments is a close-up of that bush. She said she didn't try to get the pic to come out this way...just shot the shot, and look what came out! Ironically, almost all of the best pics she takes have the same history: "I wasn't trying, I just took a picture!"

This is the kind of dryness that typifies the dry season!

Again, more of the green canopy!

Being in black and white, this doesn't show the green, but it's a close-up of the same boys biking it in the pic above it. It has that 1950's childhood kind of feel to it!

These were the only two blooms on the bush, and none of the other bushes around it had any blooms. The leaves on this bush crumbled in Sandy's hands, and yet somehow it had these two beautiful bright yellow blooms!

This was the last pic she took that day. This is the baseball field at the entrance to Arrayanes. If you look closely, you can see a kneeling, praying angel in the clouds there over the field. I love this pic! The angles are praying with us for this town!

Conviction

Pastor Goyo has been doing a series the last couple Sundays on conviction, and he's been drawing from John 16:5-16, specifically where Jesus tells the disciples that when the Holy Spirit comes, "he will convict the world of guilt in regard to sin, righteousness, and judgement" (v. 8). Both times he started the sermons saying that he was not going to focus so much on the part about conviction of sin because as followers of Christ, as His Church, we have already received conviction of sin and are therefore now just and righteous through the blood of Christ.

Last week he pointed out that very often we as believers go around calling ourselves sinners when in fact Scripture says we are now righteous saints, a holy priesthood (1 Peter 2:4-5, 9). Then today, we had communion and he referenced Paul's rebuke to the Corinthians for not taking the communion seriously, not respecting it and regarding it as holy. Basically, for approaching the elements with a sinful attitude. He said today that for us, the just and righteous (in Christ's blood), to come to the table calling ourselves sinners, what we're in fact doing is not taking God at His Word, and that is part of that sin of not respecting what Christ did for us, or treating that sacrifice irreverently.

Both weeks, I found myself convicted (go figure!) concerning just these tid bits of the sermon. Last week I found myself thinking about his statement that we call ourselves sinners when in fact we are now the Just, and I asked msyelf why I do that. Because it's true: I do do that! And the answer I came up with was that I'm giving myself an easy out for when I fail (lower expectations) and an excuse for my laziness. Because if I were to keep in my conscious mind that I am now just before the Lord Almighty, I'm convinced that there are many things I would live and do differently. Yet, I continue to walk around with this mistaken, yet automatic, mentality that I'm a sinner, and the end result is that I trick myself into living as such, I convince myself back into the sin of unbelief.

Now the issue is how do I take these things captive and make them submissive to Christ? What does that look like, and what changes does it require of me both in my way of thinking as well as in my actions? These are questions for which I do not yet have answers, but it is a joyous thing to know that in the midst of conviction of sin, I can take comfort in the fact that my God is so merciful and gracious that He never gives up on me even when it's the same thing over and over again! What a great God we serve!

Footprints...

So, last week there was a youth retreat in Tepic, hosted by our mother church La Fuente. However, none of our youth were able to go. We decided to take Friday off and cancel youth group, and on Saturday we took them all to the beach! We had 5 leaders, 10 youth, and 4 children. It was a ton of fun! We went to Playa Novillero; it's about 2 hours away, and we got to drive on the new toll road for part of the way! It was very exciting. Some played sports on the beach or dug holes. The kids played in the water and with their sand toys. Sandy, Mili, and I had a good time talking and walking on the beach for the while, and then most of the youth ended up in the water. Since I'm not a big swimming fan, I didn't go in, but it was so much fun to watch them having such fun!

Ruben even found a couple of live crabs in the water and it was cool to see him get them to fight a little bit, despite the pain of having them latch on to his finger! Mirna found a live starfish, and we watched it walk! I've never seen a live one in person. Some of the guys dug a huge whole in the sand, filled it with water, and called it their "jacuzzi"!! It was hillarious to see them just hanging out in their mud whole as though it were a relaxing jacuzzi!!!

And of course there was food and shade! Many of us cooperated and provided different aspects of the eating portion of the day. I was to provide sodas. Pola made cebiche (pronounced "say-bee-chay"), which is this sort of shrimp salad type of thing, and we ate it on tostadas. Of course, the Mexicans like to put lime, salt, and chile on it as well. Regardless, it's VERY tasty!

And of course the camera was present as always, and almost all of the pictures were taken by Sandy. So, enjoy the pics! Yea for fun in the sun!!!

Playa Novillero (Novillero Beach)

Shade, food, and good company--three important ingredients for a great day at the beach!

The lovely Cecilia. She just turned 13 in March.

Miss Mirna, cousin of Mili and Sandy, and part of our youth group as of her 13th birthday in February!

We came upon this boat in our walking, and Sandy wanted to take a pic of it with Mili and I in it. We refused to climb in, but we stood by it anyway. This is Sandy's favorite because of the reflection in the sand.

The cold cocanut guy! There were numerous carts like this.

One of he crabs that Ruben found while swimming.

It's alive! You can see the starfish's feet suctioning to the table!

(L-R) Julio, Riki, and Goyito enjoying their mud jacuzzi. These three are our pastor's three youngest.

Pola and Julizza (on the right) and Isabel and Josue (on the left) enjoying the beach. Pola is Mirna's mom and Julizza her younger sister.

An apple a day...

...keeps the doctor away, or so I'm told. I don't know if that's true, but I recently had my first personal encounter with the Mexican health care system. I've heard from others on the staff about how the medical staff in this area isn't quite up to parr and about how local hospitals don't really pay much attention to you when you go to the ER or something, so I was a little nervous. But I had to see the doctor because nothing I was doing on my own was working to treat the health issue. So, I walked across the street to the clinic, made an appointment, and then later that afternoon went for my exam. The doctor was very cordial, but in the end his diagnosis left much to be desired. I went for some blistering in my mouth that will not go away and is very painful. It looks like thrush, yet he told me that I have a bacterial infection caused by fillings in my teeth that have been there for almost two years. Now, maybe that's possible, but I've never heard of such a thing. I took the medicine anyway...WHICH WAS FREE...and went home to talk with a missionary nurse that I know. I ended up going with different medical advice, and have started treatment, but I thought I'd just take a moment to share what I know about healthcare here.

It's quite interesting because these doctors and nurses have been to medical school, but it never occurred to me that they would be taught something other than what I have always understood to be medical science. Our understanding is that medical science is not a subjective thing. It just is what it is; doctors learn it and treat their patients accordingly. I had never thought that medical science could say one thing in one country and something very different in another. Yet, that is what I keep encountering when people I know get sick and relate to me what their doctors diagnosed them with! For example, a friend of mine got sick last October with something like a sinus infection. She went to the doctor and they gave her like 10 injections to give heself to treat it. However, what blew my mind was how they told her she contracted it: they said that it happened because she had been working in the watermelon fields so her body was heated up from the work and the sun, and then she went home and opened the refridgerator and the extreme change in temperature is what caused her to get sick. I'm sure your reaction is the same as mine was, but you'll have to let me know. I hear similar things quite frequently. Some of it to me seems a little superstitious or akin to old wives tales, but I'm not a doctor, so who am I to say for certain? But it's certainly taking some serious redecorating of my mental file cabinet to wrap my mind around the idea that what is medical fact in the US isn't necessarily medical fact in Mexico.

Anyway, one of the nice things about Mexico is that you do not have to have a prescription to get medication! You just go to the pharmacy and tell them what you want, pay for it, and go home! This means that although the clinic gave me meds according to what the doctor prescribed (an antibiotic), I can go to any pharmacy and get something totally different no questions asked. So, that's what I've done. We shall see how it all turns out. The other nice thing about Mexico is that if they prescribe you meds at the clinic, you get them there for free. But if you buy meds at a pharmacy, they are not expensive at all! In addition to that my entire doctor's appointment, free meds and all, cost me a whopping $2.80 USD!!! Now how's THAT for affordable healthcare! And that's without health insurance. For the local people, if they have health insurance, it's FREE!!

Here's another illustration of the overwhelming difference in medical costs between here and the US. One of our staff couples is expecting a baby, and they recently went to Tepic to find a hospital for the birth. They figured out that in the states, if they were to end up with a C-Section birth which is more expensive, without health insurance, they would spend a total of $22,000 including all the pre-natal care. Here in Tepic at the most expensive hospital in town, even if they were to have a C-Section, it would cost them a total of $750 USD. That is, however, in additoin to the cost of her doctor visits which cost a whopping $50 TOTAL each time, without insurance!! I don't know how they run their healthcare system here, but I'm thinking we might be able to learn a little something from this affordability!

Mexico never fails to keep me guessing, but for now my dinner awaits! And it's off to the beach tomorrow with our youth group! May you have a blessed weekend!

Menos Macho..

So, living in Mexico has its bonuses and its downsides. One of the things that drives me crazy about living in this culture is how men treat women. In the states there's always this abstract concept--perhaps more abstract for some than for others--that there are indeed men who objectify women, but for the most part I myself have never REALLY had to deal with this. Even if there were men walking down the street who passed me and made comments, they did so in a way that never made me aware that they were doing so. Perhaps part of that equation is my own naivte or obliviousness. Regardless, that aspect of male-female interactions was never really an issue for me before.

That is not the case here. In Mexico, it is just normal for a girl to walk down the street and be cat-called or whisteled at or some such response by men on the street. Some girls like it, others don't, but it's just part of life here, so those who don't like it just go on their merry way ignoring these guys.

On top of that, male-female interactions in Mexico are very different in other ways. For example many would consider it flirtatious for a girl to look a guy directly in the eye...at least here where I am. Perhaps it's not so in the city, but in the country, that can illicit flirtatious behavior from a guy.

Anyway, the point of this discourse is that for the most part, I ignore the male popluation here in Cofradia unless they are part of the youth group (and then I don't interact much outside of youth group) or married to a woman whom I have befriended. Yet, ignoring the male population does not seem to help free me from being cat-called on every other corner and whistled at by the guys across the street or the truck driving by, etc. I honestly despise that part of this culture, but I have learned to just ignore it and keep walking. Yet, I have also learned not to expect respectful interaction from men.

Sunday, however, after returning to Cofradia from the church service in Arrayanes, I headed over to Jay and Faith's to borrow a movie. I drove over with them in their truck, but then I had to walk all the way back to the base which is on the other side of town (12 blocks away). It was a lovely evening, so I just meandered my way down the street enjoying the sunset and the cool evening air. The street was pretty empty for the most part, but at one point a man passed me on his bicycle. I kept my eyes down and on the road and didn't really acknowledge him, but as he passed he greeted me cordially: "buenas tardes." I was shocked out of my mind, but I somehow managed to remember to greet him back as I kept walking. Not very many steps later, a younger man, probably around my age, passed me in the street on horseback (yes, that's a common mode of transportation here!). I had even LESS intention of looking at or acknowledging a man in my own age range, so I kept my eyes down and kept walking. Yet, he too greeted me quite cordially: "buenas tardes." I looked at him and greeted back and kept walking, but I found myself stunned. In a matter of a few minutes, TWO men had greeted me so nicely, so politely...so NORMALLY...as though I were a person and not just their eye candy. I believe this was the first time this had happened like this with complete strangers! And it was very pleasant!

I related this story to a couple of my Mexican women friends, Antonia and Sandy. Sandy told me that a similar thing had happened to her and her aunt Erica a couple of days before. That they had been walking somewhere and a teen boy cat-called then and greeted them as they expected. They ignored him and kept walking only to be passed immediately by an older man who greeted them politely with "buenas tardes." They greeted this man back, and the youth guy noticed that they ignored him but greeted the man who treated them with respect, and it caused him to shut his mouth.

Antonia made an interesting comment to me. She said, "Ya know Amber, it's true. Even though we don't believe it, there are still a few men who treat women with respect. I just wish that there were more like that." My friend Ruth, who teaches English in South Korea, recently blogged about a similar experience. Check out what happened to her and how she chose to respond!

Please pray for the men of this culture. Their culture is so rich and vibrant, but it could be even richer if they only knew what they were missing out on by not treasuring their women!

Southside

Well, we just had our final spring team, Southside Christian Church, finish up their ministry in Cofradia and head back home to Washington. They are from Spokane, and they were one of the three teams that came last year during my first three months in Mexico. Truthfully, it was because of how much I enjoyed the time I spent with this team last year, that I decided I wanted to be Short-Term Missions Coordinator when I returned to work here full-time. This church has a great bunch of youth, and they put together a stellar team every year. They are creative and full of energy, and that affects people! We had another great time this year.

Just like last year they did a Kids Club VBS in the afternoons and did construction at the new church facility in the mornings. But we started their trip off differently than last year. This year, on Sunday after church, they took a sightseeing trip to the Penas Mountain, returned for dinner, and then we took them to Arrayanes for a worship experience. It was a really neat experience not just for them but for me as well. We started off with some worship, and then Jay and Steve (who were leading the evening) explained the different stations and put music on and let them go at it. Basically the purpose was to allow the kids to worship in whatever way they could and creatively. There were stations for molding playdough, finger painting, drawing, writing sins in the sand as confession and then erasing it to symbolize their forgiveness, writing letters to God, a prayer wall where they could write names of people they know and love that they are praying will come to know Christ, and a music video station where they could just sit and worship before the Lord in music. It was a really cool experience, and I think it definitely helped set a correct tone for starting their week of ministry.

As for the construction aspect of their trip, this team (like Cy-Fair) had the added bonus that they were here last year to help start the construction on this facility. Last year, this team helped finish pouring the foundations for the property walls, and they made re-bar cages for the beams that support the walls. But at that time the facility was still just a piece of land that still didn't have a wall built. This year, they came back to find the property walls built to 2/3 their final height; a sanctuary floor (larger than a colegiate basketball court) completely poured and finished; a finished sanctuary platform with storage rooms on either side; and the property secured by a ginormous iron gate painted brown and ORANGE! :) I took them down to see the property on Sunday morning before the service started (the morning after they arrived), and as they approached the property, they saw the walls and their mouths just started dropping. The best part was when they walked inside though and saw all that the Lord has accomplished in this humongous project just in the last year! It truly is incredible. They couldn't believe it! The great thing is that this year in their construction work, they began digging and pouring foundations for the education wing, and especially the library. Not only that, but they were able to finish the foundations of the libarary, pour its floor, and start work on the brick walls! They worked hard, and they got a lot accomplished. It will be neat to see how far we are next year when they come back!

The Library

The Education Wing

For the Kids Club VBS activities, their theme was being the salt and light of the world. Each day they started off with some fun games for the kids, and some songs.

Day 1: Four-legged race.

Day 2: Hippity-Hop relay race



Day 3: Balloon-Stomping

Day 4: Balloon Toss
and...
Huge Balloon Relay. Some of these balloons were almost bigger than the kids carrying them!


This is a video of the kids singing "Jesus Loves Me" for song time

Then they moved into a drama that they had prepared for the Bible story of the day. Then finally, their pastor gave the short lesson and explained the craft they would be doing that was related to their story.

Day 1: Faith Like a Mustard Seed

Day 1 Craft: Seedling Planters

Day 2: The Sower and the Scattered Seed (this is the good seed)


Day 2 Craft: Coloring the different seed scenarios and gluing on stuff to decorate them

Day 3: Being Salt and Light

Day 3 Craft: Salt and Light of the World

Day 4: Fishers of Men

Day 4 Craft: A fishing game
They colored the fish and attached paper clips to each. They each got ten and then could try and hook them using other fish and their hooks!

The kids seemed to enjoy the activities and kept coming back each day. When everything was over, the youth on the team would just play with the kids in their groups. Some would chase them, some played on the swing set. Others played games with the hippity-hops. The greatest things was seeing the kids having fun with the youth. These youth know how to play, and the kids here appreciate and remember that. It was a really neat time, and I know the Lord used it!

At the end of their trip, they headed back to Puerto Vallarta. Last year they flew through Mazatlan, and I was blessed to be able to go with them for their last night in the country. This year they came through Puerto Vallarata, and again I had the chance to go with them. It was cool cuz I had not yet had the chance to go to PV, so this was a new experience for me. We stayed at a hotel in the Romantic Zone, which was a very "interesting" experience for sure. But it was a very beautiful part of town, built on these steep hills. It had this old-town, antique feel to it, and was just very beautiful. The hotel was also beautiful and right on the beach. The room I was in with two of the youth girls had a balcony overlooking the beach and the ocean, so we got to sleep to the sounds of the ocean waves! There's nothing better than that, for sure!

The Tropicana Hotel, Puerto Vallarta

The view from my balcony!

Built into the hills..reminds me of pictures I've seen of Greece!

For their team banquet we took them to a restraunt called the Brazil. It was INCREDIBLE! This place is basically a meat/steak-house. You come in and sit down and they bring you about 10 different kinds of meat prepared in various styles, along with other side dishes and cold salads, and wonderfully delectable food! And let me tell you, these kids ATE! But everyone had a REALLY good time at the restaurant and in just hanging out on the beach or shopping in town. It was a great time with the team from Southside, and we're looking forward to their return next year!

The meat fest at the Brazil

Back there in the corner, you can see how they served us the meat--they just went plate to plate!

It is such a special thing to be able to build these long-term relationships with the teams that come down every year. They have such unique opportunities to minister because they build lasting and ongoing relationships with the people here, and it's neat to see how the Lord works through that regardless of the distance and the time. It doesn't matter that the people here don't see or speak to them for a year at a time. When they return, they are old friends! That is a very special gift from the Lord, and I'm looking forward to seeing how He uses those gifts He pours down on us to further His Kingdom in this area!

Meandering Thoughts...

So the past couple of days I've been dealing with some worrying. Now I wouldn't say that I'm a worry wort, but I definitely deal with my fair share. In the past couple of days the Lord has really been convicting me of this, of how it is the absence of living in the Spirit and relying on the strength and sovereignty of God in all things.

As I was preparing Bible study for mentor-time today, I needed to find those verses in Hebrews that talk about how Christ was made in every way just like us and was tempted with every temptation that is common to man (1 Cor 10:13), and yet was without sin (Heb 2:14-18; 4:15). I started wondering if Jesus was every tempted to worry. Those verses say that He experienced every temptation that we as humans experience, but it just seems preposterous to me to think that Jesus, who was and is part of the Trinity and therefore one with God the Father and therefore is also completely omnicient knowing the end from the beginning and everything in between and how it has, is, and will continue to all play out--it seems preposterous to me to imagine HIM, already knowing it all, to be tempted to worry. Now I know that He did NOT worry, or that would have been sin, but what about that temptation.

Sadly, as I pondered that mystery I did not receive any glorious or insightful revelations to answer my deep philosophical questions of God. However, I was reminded that He indeed knows it all from before the beginning to after the end. He is familiar with it all, as I was reminded while preparing Bible study for today. He has a file for everything that I will ever encounter, and HIS SPIRIT is living inside of me! All of that is inside of me through the prsence of His Spirit...what need have I to worry?

My biggest area of worry is the lives of other people. How ironic is that! Maybe it's not. But ya know, if I can trust in the Lord for myself, then I should certainly be able to trust in Him for the well being of others, especially if they too are believers. All of that which is in me is in them as well, and He loves them no less than He loves me! If you ask me, that's cause to rejoice if ever there was one!

Thank the Lord for His wonderful care and provision and omnipotence!! Nothing surprises Him and nothing ever will! The great thing is that as I came to these conclusions, even just this morning, I continued to ponder them on my way to mentor-time with Sandy. Before we jumped into our study for another week, she shared how God had spoken to her this morning as clearly as possible without actually appearing physically before her concerning some unclear opportunity that she was facing. I was left in awe once again at how amazing our God is, because as I was praying over this stuff and offering up my worry and seeking to trust in Him once again, there He was making things extremely clear to her!! He didn't have to allow me to know about that, but He did, and the joy abounds as a result! How awesome is our God!!