It's hard to believe how fast time has been flying! Yes, it's been too long since my last posting - I guess life has been pretty normal out here, as normal as it can be living in Mexico that is! A couple of noteworthy things that have happened though. The other day we were tubing with a friend on a little bay in San Carlos when suddenly a seal popped up and swam around for a bit about 20 feet from our boat before it dove under and swam away.

The picture above is from last Saturday when we took to four older guys from the orphanage out to the beach for a couple of hours. After a whole bunch of piggyback rides, frisbee in the water, chips and lemonade, we were officially tired but it was a lot of fun.

Other than that, a fair bit of my time has been taken in prepping for my sermon this Sunday. It's been a lot of work but rewarding at the same time. Thanks for all the prayers that you have all offered - they have been needed and appreciated!

Comfort zone shattered...again

It's no suprise that spending four months in a different country with a very different culture where English isn't spoken away from family and friends is outside my comfort zone. I had many miles to contemplate what might await me here during my three days of travel out here. And God has answered so many prayers so far from meeting new people, making friends, getting opportunities to serve God and be involved in ministry out here and more. Perhaps I made a mistake, though, when I first arrived by determining not to say no (or even think about saying no) to any opportunities that might come my way.

Well, as can be expected, whenever a promise is made to God, He takes you up on it. It didn't take long to push the edge of the comfort zone. On my second Sunday here I was already leading worship in the English Church. Of course I would have liked to have some more time to get a feel for how things were done here but God's time table always seems to be different than ours. And of course, this wasn't the end. Tuesday I have an opportunity to share my testimony at a local alcholics rehabilitation center (through a translator). But these opportunities are all eclipsed by a chance to preach in the English Church in two weeks. I have to admit that I did take some time to think about it but in the end I knew what I needed to do.

Just when you think that God has pushed the envelope and stretched you far enough, He comes up with a new way to push you even farther. So, needless to say, I would appreciate as much prayer as you can spare! The date is July 1 and you're all welcome to attend!

Adventure Hermosillo...

Well, yesterday was filled with a little more adventure than either Jody or I were counting on. We were looking forward to some adventure, heading into the city of Hermosillo, the capital city of Sonora (about the size of Winnipeg) for a day of shopping and relaxation. One thing we did have to accomplish, though, was getting a new water pump for the house to replace the current one which had stopped working. The water system here is quite unreliable and if you want to count on having any water supply, you need a pump. Well, warranties don't seem to mean the same thing that they might mean back in Canada and after two hours of trying to work it out, the old one was sent away for repair, not to be returned for upto 6 weeks and we had to buy a new one for now. The only one they had left, though was a display unit which we had to play full price for. Adventure number 1.

The rest of the day went well, though the temp was up to 42 degrees. Hermosillo is usually about 5 degrees warmer than San Carlos, though it's a dry heat. We did some shopping, got some good Mexican cuisine, and caught a movie with Spanish subtitles. Adventure number 2 came as we were driving back. About half an hour out of the city, I had to pull over after hearing a horrible sound coming from underneath my car. As it turned out, my exhaust system had come apart about mid car from all the crazy ridiculous sized speed bumps here in Mexico that I had bottomed out on and it was dragging on the highway. It took us a while to find a way to suspend it and make our way home bu we eventually did.

That day did finally come to an end and today morning we got the pump hooked up with the help of a neighbor and I got my car fixed in about half an hour at a local shop for 70 pesos ($7!!). Indeed, a new day has brought us a new start!

Fishing Mexican Style!

Well, the adventures continue! Friday evening some of the Mexican guys I've been hanging out with crashed at my place for night and we got up the next morning at 5:30 for a authentic Mexican fishing expedition. As Mexican time usually goes, we only actually got on the water at about 8:00. There were 6 of us (without life jackets) in a 20 footer fishing boat with a 15 horsepower engine that took us to a little bay on the ocean about an hour away. Fishing rods were not needed as we just used beer bottles or cans which had fishing line wrapped around them. We attached a barbed hook along with a large bolt for weight and loaded up the hook with pieces of squid as bait. Once all was in place we'd cast and let it sit until we got a bite or until you lost the bait.

One the way to our fishing site we came across a sea turtle out for a casual swim. He must have been almost 3 feet long and took a dive once we got to close - I wish I had pictures! The only fish that I caught was about 4 inches long and was only worthy of being thrown back in. Other than that I only got a few nibbles. The other guys however did pretty good. I'm not sure the name of the fish that they caught but they were very round, about 8 inches long, 6 inches high and a couple of inches in width. Altogether we came away with a good pail full of fish!

Two's Company

Well, I made the hot trip in my non-a/c car up to Phoenix on the weekend to pickup Jody. It was a 7 hour trip one-way where I managed to almost burn my left arm. By the end of the trip, because my one arm was usually hanging out the always-open window, my left arm was quite noticably darker than the left one. It sure is good, though, to have company in the house (besides the dog...).

Life continues on out here and the days fill themselves up. We have been hanging out with the boys in the orphanage Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, usually playing soccer in the late afternoon heat in one of the nearby villages. We usually just start with the 6 of us but by the time we're done, the crowd has grown upto over a dozen. Though most of the guys who play are only about 10 or 12, we don't really have to hold anything back when we play them - soccer's in the blood down here!

The water is beautiful and we spent an hour this afternoon floating on the ocean in our cheap $2 Mexican water mattresses until Jody spoted a fair sized blue-bottle jelly fish (who give an intense, painful sting) floating a little too close to her. She didn't need much encouragement after that to head in off the water.

I'm going to be leading worship again this Sunday in the English Church and would greatly appreciate your prayers in that! I've also received an opportunity to preach one of the coming Sundays in the English Church as well and would appreciate your prayers for God's guidance in that. Until later, thanks again for all your prayers!