I just wanted to write a quick update on the status of Shaun and his wife Beatrice, the couple I wrote about in the last blog entry. Gracias a Dios, we went into Hermosillo on Monday to pick up both Shaun and Beatrice from the hospital to take them back home! Indeed, Shaun had a bout of dengue as well as some kind of infection in his stomach. But when we went to pick him up, he was doing much better, ready to go home.
Marilyn survived three nights with the little ones. She got little sleep the first night but the two were probably too tired to miss their parents the second and the third night! They were overjoyed to see their parents again as they probably had never spent a night apart from them before! Though I'm not sure who missed who more, whether it was the kids missing their parents or vice versa.
Continue to pray for them. They are a young couple both in age and spiritually as well. They are Christians but they have not found a Church body which they regularly attend. Pray that God would provide for them, not only a job for him but also that He would be at work in their hearts and lives, drawing them closer.
Thanks for being a part of this and keeping them in your prayers!
Wednesday, September 28, 2011
Friday, September 23, 2011
Desperation and Prayer
It's hard to reconcile sometimes, the differences between the life that I live, the lifestyle that I am used to, and the lifestyles of many people I keep crossing paths, here in Mexico. I know that I by no means live an extravagant lifestyle by the measures of what would be considered "the norm" in Canada, but judged by the standard of too many people here, I live like a king. That's not to say that the vast majority of people here live far below the "Canadian Standards" but, it is scary to see what conditions some people consider to be "the norm" for their lives.
I'll bring this to a more concrete level and share about a young mother, who I doubt is much older than 20, if even that. She showed up at our door yesterday with her three year old girl, one year old boy, in a state of desperation. We know who she as, as her husband who is a "Yesero" by trade, working in construction doing plastering with a plaster-like material called "yeso", has worked on some projects for us. First of all, to understand what it meant to even show up at our door, they live in Guaymas, a half hour bus ride from here. The bus only goes along the main street in San Carlos and the mission center is another mile and a half from the nearest bus stop. So she, with her 3 year old in two and the baby in her arms, walked the mile and half in the hot September sun, just to get to us for help.
Answering the knock at the door, I asked her how she was and she said, "muy mal", very bad. She went on to share about how her husband had been in the hospital for 5 days with what they thought was dengue fever. Except that the night before he was transfered to Hermosillo, the capital city of the state that we are in, because things had taken a turn for the worse. She had been trying to find out how he was and what was going on but wasn't able to find anything out, other than that he had been transfered.
So we took her in, gave her and her children something to eat and set about to see if we could track down some more information. However, over the phone, they wouldn't give us any more information other than that he was stable but still in the emergency ward. So, we packed the kids up, got in the van and drove to Hermosillo, about an hour and a half away to go see him and to see what was up.
When we arrived, we quickly found him in good spirits, but with fever, and other issues that the doctors weren't sure about. They weren't sure if he had Dengue Fever, or Rickettsia, a tick related disease. We went and purchased the prescription medication that was needed for the treatment and made sure that he was OK. The doctors wanted to keep him in the hospital there to continue to observe and wait for the results of the analysis.
They didn't want his wife to stay in the city but rather to return to the house so we packed her and the kids back up and made our way back to Guaymas, planning to keep in touch with him and the hospital by phone.
This morning, I went to her house with Augustine to bring her a food hamper, as her husband wasn't there and in fact had been without work for some time, to also help take care of some holes in the roof of their house, and to do some spraying around the house for bugs and specifically wood ticks, if that was in deed what had caused the sickness in him.
We arrived at the house, which was no easy task in and of itself! They live on the side of a hill, literally. There are often times when the higher a house, the better a view, the more expensive the property. This situation was quite the opposite. The higher the house, yes the better the view, but to get their you pretty much drive up the street, as far as it goes, park the vehicle, then get out and start climbing. At first there were nice cement stairs. But after those run out its just you and the paths carved up the hill taking you to the final row of "houses". We had to admit, the view from up there was amazing, but the "houses" left something to be desired. The small two room shack that this family of four lived in was literally built on the side of the hill, with three walls, a roof, and the back wall being stone from the hill itself.
I wish I had pictures, but it truly is hard to imagine living in conditions this family so bravely not just survived in but even thrived in. If you have ever met Shaun or his wife Beatrice, by the joy that is always on their faces, you would never imagine the humble little shack they live in.
As Augustine and I did what we could to mend the very dilapidated roof and sprayed for whatever critters might be crawling around, she told us how she had received a call in the morning saying that her husband and taken a turn for the worse and was going into surgery. We didn't really know anything more than, only that we had to get her back to Hermosillo.
It's really hard to imagine, to begin with, what survival would look like, living as they do, much less with a young family, and I think I forgot to mention, a third on the way!! But then to have to deal with your husband, sick in bed for days, and not knowing what was going on with his health, I can't imagine. Praise God that He sustains us through every storm that we may face in life! Praise Him as well that Shaun and his wife are Christians and that they know this truth for themselves!
So, we finished things up, locked up the house as best we could, knowing that this is a dangerous neighbourhood, and brought her and her family to San Carlos where Marilyn would take care of the little two while we sent her on the bus to Hermosillo to take care of her husband.
I guess I share this somewhat long story with you for two reasons. One, that you would be in prayer for Shaun and his wife. He is a dear friend to us her, and we just pray for God's hand of protection and healing over his body. We also pray His peace over him and his wife Beatrice.
I also share this story cause it reminds me of the things that are truly important, and the things that are not. Jesus told us not to worry about what we would eat or drink or wear, and oddly enough, it seems that often those who have more than enough are the ones who preoccupy themselves with these very same things, and become worried about this that in reality, don't deserve even a moment of worry. But those who have next to nothing, live with a joy, peace and contentment, that many of us seem to miss altogether. Isn't this all a little backwards??
Anyways, thanks for sticking with me here...God bless!
I'll bring this to a more concrete level and share about a young mother, who I doubt is much older than 20, if even that. She showed up at our door yesterday with her three year old girl, one year old boy, in a state of desperation. We know who she as, as her husband who is a "Yesero" by trade, working in construction doing plastering with a plaster-like material called "yeso", has worked on some projects for us. First of all, to understand what it meant to even show up at our door, they live in Guaymas, a half hour bus ride from here. The bus only goes along the main street in San Carlos and the mission center is another mile and a half from the nearest bus stop. So she, with her 3 year old in two and the baby in her arms, walked the mile and half in the hot September sun, just to get to us for help.
Answering the knock at the door, I asked her how she was and she said, "muy mal", very bad. She went on to share about how her husband had been in the hospital for 5 days with what they thought was dengue fever. Except that the night before he was transfered to Hermosillo, the capital city of the state that we are in, because things had taken a turn for the worse. She had been trying to find out how he was and what was going on but wasn't able to find anything out, other than that he had been transfered.
So we took her in, gave her and her children something to eat and set about to see if we could track down some more information. However, over the phone, they wouldn't give us any more information other than that he was stable but still in the emergency ward. So, we packed the kids up, got in the van and drove to Hermosillo, about an hour and a half away to go see him and to see what was up.
When we arrived, we quickly found him in good spirits, but with fever, and other issues that the doctors weren't sure about. They weren't sure if he had Dengue Fever, or Rickettsia, a tick related disease. We went and purchased the prescription medication that was needed for the treatment and made sure that he was OK. The doctors wanted to keep him in the hospital there to continue to observe and wait for the results of the analysis.
They didn't want his wife to stay in the city but rather to return to the house so we packed her and the kids back up and made our way back to Guaymas, planning to keep in touch with him and the hospital by phone.
This morning, I went to her house with Augustine to bring her a food hamper, as her husband wasn't there and in fact had been without work for some time, to also help take care of some holes in the roof of their house, and to do some spraying around the house for bugs and specifically wood ticks, if that was in deed what had caused the sickness in him.
We arrived at the house, which was no easy task in and of itself! They live on the side of a hill, literally. There are often times when the higher a house, the better a view, the more expensive the property. This situation was quite the opposite. The higher the house, yes the better the view, but to get their you pretty much drive up the street, as far as it goes, park the vehicle, then get out and start climbing. At first there were nice cement stairs. But after those run out its just you and the paths carved up the hill taking you to the final row of "houses". We had to admit, the view from up there was amazing, but the "houses" left something to be desired. The small two room shack that this family of four lived in was literally built on the side of the hill, with three walls, a roof, and the back wall being stone from the hill itself.
I wish I had pictures, but it truly is hard to imagine living in conditions this family so bravely not just survived in but even thrived in. If you have ever met Shaun or his wife Beatrice, by the joy that is always on their faces, you would never imagine the humble little shack they live in.
As Augustine and I did what we could to mend the very dilapidated roof and sprayed for whatever critters might be crawling around, she told us how she had received a call in the morning saying that her husband and taken a turn for the worse and was going into surgery. We didn't really know anything more than, only that we had to get her back to Hermosillo.
It's really hard to imagine, to begin with, what survival would look like, living as they do, much less with a young family, and I think I forgot to mention, a third on the way!! But then to have to deal with your husband, sick in bed for days, and not knowing what was going on with his health, I can't imagine. Praise God that He sustains us through every storm that we may face in life! Praise Him as well that Shaun and his wife are Christians and that they know this truth for themselves!
So, we finished things up, locked up the house as best we could, knowing that this is a dangerous neighbourhood, and brought her and her family to San Carlos where Marilyn would take care of the little two while we sent her on the bus to Hermosillo to take care of her husband.
I guess I share this somewhat long story with you for two reasons. One, that you would be in prayer for Shaun and his wife. He is a dear friend to us her, and we just pray for God's hand of protection and healing over his body. We also pray His peace over him and his wife Beatrice.
I also share this story cause it reminds me of the things that are truly important, and the things that are not. Jesus told us not to worry about what we would eat or drink or wear, and oddly enough, it seems that often those who have more than enough are the ones who preoccupy themselves with these very same things, and become worried about this that in reality, don't deserve even a moment of worry. But those who have next to nothing, live with a joy, peace and contentment, that many of us seem to miss altogether. Isn't this all a little backwards??
Anyways, thanks for sticking with me here...God bless!
Thursday, September 8, 2011
To all the prayer warriors...
I don't know who was all praying for me yesterday evening but I know that someone was! You would think I would be used to the process already because it is pretty predicable. The preparation to preach for yesterday evening was good. But then came the couple of hours before the actual preaching where I start to go into panic mode, not feeing confident at all in how the sermon came together and more than anything wondering how in the world I'm going to communicate this in Spanish, much less English!
But spending some time in prayer just before I went out the door, I sensed the panic give way to a peace which I knew had to be coming on behalf of the prayers that many of you offered up. And sure enough as I got up to share I almost forgot to follow the notes that I had written and it just flowed out. I didn't see too many blank faces out in the audience either, so that is always an encouragement, right??
I guess God felt if fitting that before I preach about the faith we need to "walk on water" as Peter did, He needed to teach me about it. It seems there is no substitute to learning water-walking faith than actually getting out there and trying it out for yourself!
Anyways, all of the glory goes to Him and the thanks goes to you!
God bless!
But spending some time in prayer just before I went out the door, I sensed the panic give way to a peace which I knew had to be coming on behalf of the prayers that many of you offered up. And sure enough as I got up to share I almost forgot to follow the notes that I had written and it just flowed out. I didn't see too many blank faces out in the audience either, so that is always an encouragement, right??
I guess God felt if fitting that before I preach about the faith we need to "walk on water" as Peter did, He needed to teach me about it. It seems there is no substitute to learning water-walking faith than actually getting out there and trying it out for yourself!
Anyways, all of the glory goes to Him and the thanks goes to you!
God bless!
Monday, September 5, 2011
Back in the (sweaty) swing of things!
Have I mentioned that summers here are pretty hot? It seems that spending a bit of time in southern Manitoba during summer makes you forget about things like mid to high 30's, just about a constant 80% humidity, showering several times a day, and not drinking water by the cups but by the liters or even gallons some day it seems! It makes me sweat just thinking about it! Nonetheless, it is good to be back in Mexico! Between hosting weekend retreats, connecting with the pastors and churches that we work with, the days are pretty quickly filled up with things to do.
It's neat to see how God continues to work in people's lives here. One such story is a young man, about my age, who is from San Carlos. Over the past year he's been working with us, volunteering as much time as he can, though he was not actually a Christian. He came from a past that had nothing to do with God whatsoever, involved in a typical lifestyle of alcohol, relationships, etc. About a year ago, he just sensed that he wanted a change in his life; he wanted something different. Being a good friend of Agustine, he began hanging out with us at the center and accompanying us as much as his job would allow as we would be out doing ministry with the teams. Though he loved knew he wanted to change his life and believed in God, throughout the past year he never made the actual commitment to follow Christ. We could see that God was at work in his life, though, and coming back now to Mexico, I found out that he finally took the step of giving his life to the Lord - something we've been praying for for a while now. Some of you may have met him if you've been here in the last year or two. His name is Omar, though we all know him as "Gummy". I'm not sure how he came to that name, but we are so excited to know that he has made a commitment to follow the Lord!
On the other side, though, is a prayer request. Many of you know Alex, if you've been here at any point over the past couple of years. I believe I've blogged about him recently, in how God has been at work in his life. He too comes from a very difficult background, having left his home at the age of 12 or so to travel around in a traveling circus. Several years later he ended up in the home of a pastor couple in the town of Banamichi, about 5 hours east into the mountains from here. During his time there he gave his life to the Lord and though it has been a tough road for him, we have seen a lot of growth in his life over the years.
That takes us to the summer, though, and coming back I have found that he has returned to a life of drugs and alcohol, a life he has come back to from time to time, though this time, he doesn't seem to want to have much to do with us. I know that he knows the mistakes that his is making, and that the life he's living isn't what's truly going to give him joy but for whatever reason, he's returned to that life. Please pray for Him that God would soften his heart, and drawn him back to Himself. Pray for us as we reach out to him, that he would truly desire to leave that lifestyle behind him once and for all and run after Christ!
For myself, I've been busy, buried in the books these past few days, having been asked by a pastor last week if I would preach this Wednesday at a service at his church. Ironically, or rather appropriately, I'm planning on speaking about Peter walking on the water, and how it's those times outside of our comfort zones that we, as we truly put our faith in the Lord, that we will experience Him in new ways and draw closer to Him. I would love your prayers as yes, preaching in Spanish is something that is far out of my comfort zone!
God bless!
It's neat to see how God continues to work in people's lives here. One such story is a young man, about my age, who is from San Carlos. Over the past year he's been working with us, volunteering as much time as he can, though he was not actually a Christian. He came from a past that had nothing to do with God whatsoever, involved in a typical lifestyle of alcohol, relationships, etc. About a year ago, he just sensed that he wanted a change in his life; he wanted something different. Being a good friend of Agustine, he began hanging out with us at the center and accompanying us as much as his job would allow as we would be out doing ministry with the teams. Though he loved knew he wanted to change his life and believed in God, throughout the past year he never made the actual commitment to follow Christ. We could see that God was at work in his life, though, and coming back now to Mexico, I found out that he finally took the step of giving his life to the Lord - something we've been praying for for a while now. Some of you may have met him if you've been here in the last year or two. His name is Omar, though we all know him as "Gummy". I'm not sure how he came to that name, but we are so excited to know that he has made a commitment to follow the Lord!
On the other side, though, is a prayer request. Many of you know Alex, if you've been here at any point over the past couple of years. I believe I've blogged about him recently, in how God has been at work in his life. He too comes from a very difficult background, having left his home at the age of 12 or so to travel around in a traveling circus. Several years later he ended up in the home of a pastor couple in the town of Banamichi, about 5 hours east into the mountains from here. During his time there he gave his life to the Lord and though it has been a tough road for him, we have seen a lot of growth in his life over the years.
That takes us to the summer, though, and coming back I have found that he has returned to a life of drugs and alcohol, a life he has come back to from time to time, though this time, he doesn't seem to want to have much to do with us. I know that he knows the mistakes that his is making, and that the life he's living isn't what's truly going to give him joy but for whatever reason, he's returned to that life. Please pray for Him that God would soften his heart, and drawn him back to Himself. Pray for us as we reach out to him, that he would truly desire to leave that lifestyle behind him once and for all and run after Christ!
For myself, I've been busy, buried in the books these past few days, having been asked by a pastor last week if I would preach this Wednesday at a service at his church. Ironically, or rather appropriately, I'm planning on speaking about Peter walking on the water, and how it's those times outside of our comfort zones that we, as we truly put our faith in the Lord, that we will experience Him in new ways and draw closer to Him. I would love your prayers as yes, preaching in Spanish is something that is far out of my comfort zone!
God bless!
Saturday, July 23, 2011
The storm before the calm...
That's about how I'm feeling these days as I'm in the process of...well, maybe thinking about starting the process of packing my bags so I can get on a bus later today and head up north to Canada to spend some time with family and friends in Manitoba.
The last couple of weeks have been a whirlwind of hosting groups here at the center, and preparing to be gone for several weeks. As many of you know, there are very few Canadian/American groups that come down during the summer. Well, actually, in the four years that I've been here, there's only been one! My youth group from the Blumenort Mennonite Church in Rosetown, MB are the only ones who have braved a Mexican summer missions trip (way to go, guys!!!). Needless to say, with they way summers go in Canada and the US combined with the crazy heat and humidity we have, summer is definitely the slow season as far as "foreign" groups go. However, that's not the case for "national" groups!
The weekends are largely booked up with local church groups who have church retreats, women's retreats, youth retreats, etc., etc. here at the mission center. You may not believe it but over the past two weekends we hosted about 140 people altogether! Yeah, you read that right...for those of you who have been here before you're probably doing the math trying to figure it out. Each weekend had a group of about 70 youth. The first weekend they actually all managed to stay and sleep here...I guess "sleep" might be a bit of a loose term as there didn't seem to be a lot of sleeping for some of them! Saturday night anyways, I'm pretty sure I heard them going hard till about 5:00am. Thankfully the next weekend only about 40 slept here at the center and the rest in a local hotel. Even 40, you're probably wonder, how in the world did they manage to find enough floor space, never mind the 70 from the weekend before! Between our two dorm rooms (which typically hold 12 people each) and a whole truck load of foam mattresses borrowed from a neighbouring bible school laid out over the entire living room/dining room of the mission center, everyone managed to find some real estate to call their own for the few hours they did sleep!
Beyond the craziness of having to feed up to 70 people (80 when you count all of us as well) 3 times a day and keeping on top of everything, it really is a blessing to be a part of events like that, to meet people from different parts of Sonora and to just provide an atmosphere and place where God is at work in the lives of those who come.
So, you can imagine that getting away for a little bit sounds kind of nice! I am looking forward to spending time with friends and family and by all means, for those in MB, if you want to hook up over the next couple of weeks, let me know! I'd love to do coffee or something! Just send me an email, Facebook me or you can also call me at my parents house, 204 325 4496. I'll be heading up today evening and be flying out August 21.
Thanks to all of you, as always, for all the prayer support that we as a ministry receive, and me personally. I know I've said it before but you are all an integral part of this ministry! God bless!!
The last couple of weeks have been a whirlwind of hosting groups here at the center, and preparing to be gone for several weeks. As many of you know, there are very few Canadian/American groups that come down during the summer. Well, actually, in the four years that I've been here, there's only been one! My youth group from the Blumenort Mennonite Church in Rosetown, MB are the only ones who have braved a Mexican summer missions trip (way to go, guys!!!). Needless to say, with they way summers go in Canada and the US combined with the crazy heat and humidity we have, summer is definitely the slow season as far as "foreign" groups go. However, that's not the case for "national" groups!
The weekends are largely booked up with local church groups who have church retreats, women's retreats, youth retreats, etc., etc. here at the mission center. You may not believe it but over the past two weekends we hosted about 140 people altogether! Yeah, you read that right...for those of you who have been here before you're probably doing the math trying to figure it out. Each weekend had a group of about 70 youth. The first weekend they actually all managed to stay and sleep here...I guess "sleep" might be a bit of a loose term as there didn't seem to be a lot of sleeping for some of them! Saturday night anyways, I'm pretty sure I heard them going hard till about 5:00am. Thankfully the next weekend only about 40 slept here at the center and the rest in a local hotel. Even 40, you're probably wonder, how in the world did they manage to find enough floor space, never mind the 70 from the weekend before! Between our two dorm rooms (which typically hold 12 people each) and a whole truck load of foam mattresses borrowed from a neighbouring bible school laid out over the entire living room/dining room of the mission center, everyone managed to find some real estate to call their own for the few hours they did sleep!
Beyond the craziness of having to feed up to 70 people (80 when you count all of us as well) 3 times a day and keeping on top of everything, it really is a blessing to be a part of events like that, to meet people from different parts of Sonora and to just provide an atmosphere and place where God is at work in the lives of those who come.
So, you can imagine that getting away for a little bit sounds kind of nice! I am looking forward to spending time with friends and family and by all means, for those in MB, if you want to hook up over the next couple of weeks, let me know! I'd love to do coffee or something! Just send me an email, Facebook me or you can also call me at my parents house, 204 325 4496. I'll be heading up today evening and be flying out August 21.
Thanks to all of you, as always, for all the prayer support that we as a ministry receive, and me personally. I know I've said it before but you are all an integral part of this ministry! God bless!!
Tuesday, June 14, 2011
FAQ: How safe is Mexico?
There's a question that we often get from groups that are coming and down, and a number of you have asked me as well over the past couple of years, how safe is it really to be in Mexico? Good question, especially considering the kind of media coverage that Mexico has been getting over the past couple of years. It seems that every Canadian that gets hurt or killed in Mexico makes the headlines and puts another notch on the never-going-to-visit-Mexico side of the equation! Granted, there are areas in Mexico that I would rather not go to, if I could help it, but thankfully, the place where we are at is a very safe place.
Some of the most violent areas are along the border where there is much drug trafficking taking place and the most dangerous places include cities like Tijuana and most of all Ciudad de Juarez, or on the American side, El Paso, Texas. The amount of lives that have been claimed in Juarez as the military and the drug cartels clash has been very sad, but both of these cities are well to the East and West of where we are and where we cross the border, thankfully.
The city of Guaymas, on the other hand, (a city of over 100,000, about 10 minutes from San Carlos) has been a very peaceful place, largely untouched by the affects of drug cartel. It is somewhat out of the way of the mountains to the east, where lots of drugs are grown and a lot of trafficking takes place. But I was asking a good friend who is also the son of Pastor Rafael, the pastor for whom we built a house this past winter, why he thought this was the case, why Guayas has been spared of the violence that other areas of Mexico have seen. One reason, he said, could be because of the presence of the Marina, the Mexican Navy here in the city, with a Naval base present in Guaymas. But the other reason he shared had to do with God at work in this city.
From my perspective, over the past four years that I have been here, this has been one thing that I have loved about being here, seeing how God is at work in Guaymas. Not only is there a large number of healthy, active evangelical churches in the area, but they have an aliancia, an alliance among the churches, where they meet once a month. To see the spirit of unity among these churches and amongst the pastors is something very special.
The absolutely incredible part is that the government of Sonora has recognized it! Desperately wanting to do what they can, specifically in the drug war, they have actually recognized that something is different here in Guaymas, and actually approached the pastor's alliance, realizing that it was the presence of the evangelical church that was making a different in this city. About a month ago, they came to the pastors to encourage them in what they were doing and to offer help and resources to keep it up!
One of the things that the churches have been doing is evangelistic conferences for the city. This past week, they had a four day conference in Guaymas, outdoor, by the downtown plaza. The conference began with about 1,000 people on the first night and grew to several thousand as it went on. A number of people gave their lives to the Lord each night. The pastors are hoping that with the help of the local government they can tap into some resources to help promote and continue to have these types of events.
So is this a safe place to be? Well, first of all, is there really any place where we are guaranteed to be 100% safe? Probably not! Second of all, if God is truly at work here, there's no other place that I would rather be! There are other fruits of this conference that I would love to share but maybe I'll save that for a different post. Dios te bendiga!
Some of the most violent areas are along the border where there is much drug trafficking taking place and the most dangerous places include cities like Tijuana and most of all Ciudad de Juarez, or on the American side, El Paso, Texas. The amount of lives that have been claimed in Juarez as the military and the drug cartels clash has been very sad, but both of these cities are well to the East and West of where we are and where we cross the border, thankfully.
The city of Guaymas, on the other hand, (a city of over 100,000, about 10 minutes from San Carlos) has been a very peaceful place, largely untouched by the affects of drug cartel. It is somewhat out of the way of the mountains to the east, where lots of drugs are grown and a lot of trafficking takes place. But I was asking a good friend who is also the son of Pastor Rafael, the pastor for whom we built a house this past winter, why he thought this was the case, why Guayas has been spared of the violence that other areas of Mexico have seen. One reason, he said, could be because of the presence of the Marina, the Mexican Navy here in the city, with a Naval base present in Guaymas. But the other reason he shared had to do with God at work in this city.
From my perspective, over the past four years that I have been here, this has been one thing that I have loved about being here, seeing how God is at work in Guaymas. Not only is there a large number of healthy, active evangelical churches in the area, but they have an aliancia, an alliance among the churches, where they meet once a month. To see the spirit of unity among these churches and amongst the pastors is something very special.
The absolutely incredible part is that the government of Sonora has recognized it! Desperately wanting to do what they can, specifically in the drug war, they have actually recognized that something is different here in Guaymas, and actually approached the pastor's alliance, realizing that it was the presence of the evangelical church that was making a different in this city. About a month ago, they came to the pastors to encourage them in what they were doing and to offer help and resources to keep it up!
One of the things that the churches have been doing is evangelistic conferences for the city. This past week, they had a four day conference in Guaymas, outdoor, by the downtown plaza. The conference began with about 1,000 people on the first night and grew to several thousand as it went on. A number of people gave their lives to the Lord each night. The pastors are hoping that with the help of the local government they can tap into some resources to help promote and continue to have these types of events.
So is this a safe place to be? Well, first of all, is there really any place where we are guaranteed to be 100% safe? Probably not! Second of all, if God is truly at work here, there's no other place that I would rather be! There are other fruits of this conference that I would love to share but maybe I'll save that for a different post. Dios te bendiga!
Saturday, June 4, 2011
Off the grid...
After a super busy winter season, I suppose I have fallen off the grid for a bit! It's been a little while since I've let you all know where I'm at or what I'm up to. Actually, I'm writing from just outside of Bozeman, Montana, of all places, watching it drizzling out the window with no sun in sight, surrounded by snow covered mountains... a little different setting than what you would find in San Carlos this time of year, or any time of year for that matter!
I've spent the last two weeks here having come up with Itzel, one of the staff members who will spend the summer here in Bozeman along with Art & Brenda who farm during the summer season, as well as my sister. She spent from February till May down in Mexico with and together we made the drive up here. She later when the rest of the way home to MB. I've taken some time to rest and relax and also tackle the huge project of updating the website with updates, pictures, as well as work on a video highlighting this past year and also some projects that we are looking forward to for the year to come.
It's always rewarding to look back on the last season to see how God has been faithful. It's such an important thing to do, something I often forget to do, and something that you find continually in the Psalms, the Psalmist looking back and reminding themselves about how God has been faithful in the past. This season has been no exception to that rule with Him showing Himself in powerful ways. I won't go into anything here but encourage you to check out our website, www.koenesministries.com and in particular check out this story. Some of you might remember me sharing about this church in Batacosa. It has been exciting to see not only the church's growth but also how they've have overcome opposition and are now affecting the communities around them.
I'll be boarding a flight in a couple of hours for Phoenix and then take the bus down to San Carlos, leaving behind what has been a cold, rainy stretch. It might be a shock to the system, leaving 11 degrees, the temperature it is here, and going into highs of 35 or 37... Believe it or not, I think I'm ready!
I've spent the last two weeks here having come up with Itzel, one of the staff members who will spend the summer here in Bozeman along with Art & Brenda who farm during the summer season, as well as my sister. She spent from February till May down in Mexico with and together we made the drive up here. She later when the rest of the way home to MB. I've taken some time to rest and relax and also tackle the huge project of updating the website with updates, pictures, as well as work on a video highlighting this past year and also some projects that we are looking forward to for the year to come.
It's always rewarding to look back on the last season to see how God has been faithful. It's such an important thing to do, something I often forget to do, and something that you find continually in the Psalms, the Psalmist looking back and reminding themselves about how God has been faithful in the past. This season has been no exception to that rule with Him showing Himself in powerful ways. I won't go into anything here but encourage you to check out our website, www.koenesministries.com and in particular check out this story. Some of you might remember me sharing about this church in Batacosa. It has been exciting to see not only the church's growth but also how they've have overcome opposition and are now affecting the communities around them.
I'll be boarding a flight in a couple of hours for Phoenix and then take the bus down to San Carlos, leaving behind what has been a cold, rainy stretch. It might be a shock to the system, leaving 11 degrees, the temperature it is here, and going into highs of 35 or 37... Believe it or not, I think I'm ready!
Tuesday, April 26, 2011
Houses and Homes
It's amazing how time flies sometimes! Looking back at the date of my last post and thinking about that has taken place since then, I could be writing here for a long time! But I won't take away too much of your time - I'll just share one highlight in particular.
We've come to the end of our busy season with the final mission team have left just over a week ago. It's exciting to look back on this winter season and to see not just some of the projects that have been completed by the many teams that have come but much more importantly the lives that have been changed not only through the opportunities that the work projects have created but also the local churches at work in their surrounding communities. As I said before, I could write for hours here about the different ways in which God has shown Himself and lives have been touched by His grace. Look for a newsletter coming in the next few weeks taking more of an in depth look into this season. But for now, let me share with you the final project that we found ourselves working on.
Some of you have probably met a young man named Alex. He's a living testimony to God's grace and power, and how He can change a life around. By observing him now, you would never guess the past that he has come from. His testimony has left a deep impact on the lives of many who have heard it. Alex was born in the state of Durango but grew up living with his grandmother in neighboring Sinaloa though she struggled to make ends meet, taking care of him and some of his siblings. At the age of 12, he left home began traveling around Mexico, working in a traveling circus. Those of you who have met him probably saw him at some point balancing just about anything on his chin from a spade to a pick axe to even a chair! For about 4 years he traveled around even learning how to ride a motorcycle in those metal, circular cages with up to three bikes going around at once! Growing tired of this lifestyle, along with the drugs that tended to accompany it, he left the circus and ended up staying in a little town about six hours from here, called Banamichi. In this town there was a missionary couple, who themselves were originally from San Carlos and were planting a church. Having found a place to stay renting a room from a Christian lady, he was invited to the Sunday services at this church plant. As weekends were typically spent in drinking and drugs, by the time Sunday morning came around when this lady asked him if he wanted to go to church, the answer was a no! But one weekend, not having had anything to drink nor having had any drugs, the invitation was made and he said yes, meeting the pastor of the church plant, whose name was Nacho. Nacho and his wife, sensing that God had something in store for this young man, built into his life and encouraged him to look to the Lord. Eventually, he gave his life to the Lord and the process began of leaving the old life behind!
He will be the first to tell you that this is not always the easiest to do! Over the past couple of years he made his way down to San Carlos to live and find work here. I remember first meeting him probably about three years ago, helping him patch a tire on his bicycle. Those three years have been up and down for him, leaving drugs behind and then falling back into them. He drifted around from job to job, at times jobless, and moving from place to place, sometimes regularly a part of the local church and at other times not. But about three months ago or so, he came to the point where he had had enough of the old life. He shared with myself and Juan Carlos, a good friend who works here at the mission with me, his desire to leave the old lifestyle behind once and for all. He took us to his place where he had a little stash of marijuana. He took it and spilled it on the ground, (covering it with dirt and gravel so that he couldn't come back and gather it together later!) and together we prayed that God would give him the strength to live as a new creation, leaving the old behind once and for all.
Since that day, the joy that has filled him has been so evident. If you have met him in the last couple of months one of the first things you would notice about him aside from his servant heart and always positive attitude is the fact that he is almost always singing worship songs. It has been a joy to see him walk in this new found freedom!
So, back to the final project of the year, the final team of the year that we hosted was a youth group from Reno, Nevada. Having a little extra time on their hands and still having some extra project money, they took it upon themselves to build Alex a little place of his very own. As we worked to build a little 12' by 12' quarter for him, he would thank everyone of us time and time again, each and every day.
Not many of us would be super content with a little 144 square foot place to call home but for him, it was as if you had built him a palace! A place to call his home...security, something that he had known little of in his life.
The group wasn't able to finish it in the time they were here but we were able to put the finishing touches on it, getting him some basics such as a new bed to sleep on, a microwave oven, some drawers for his clothes, and curtains on the windows, transforming that little room into his home.
Looking back on this season, it is a joy to see God's hand at work in the lives of people. I look forward to sharing more stories soon about this past winter. Until then, Dios te bendiga!
We've come to the end of our busy season with the final mission team have left just over a week ago. It's exciting to look back on this winter season and to see not just some of the projects that have been completed by the many teams that have come but much more importantly the lives that have been changed not only through the opportunities that the work projects have created but also the local churches at work in their surrounding communities. As I said before, I could write for hours here about the different ways in which God has shown Himself and lives have been touched by His grace. Look for a newsletter coming in the next few weeks taking more of an in depth look into this season. But for now, let me share with you the final project that we found ourselves working on.
He will be the first to tell you that this is not always the easiest to do! Over the past couple of years he made his way down to San Carlos to live and find work here. I remember first meeting him probably about three years ago, helping him patch a tire on his bicycle. Those three years have been up and down for him, leaving drugs behind and then falling back into them. He drifted around from job to job, at times jobless, and moving from place to place, sometimes regularly a part of the local church and at other times not. But about three months ago or so, he came to the point where he had had enough of the old life. He shared with myself and Juan Carlos, a good friend who works here at the mission with me, his desire to leave the old lifestyle behind once and for all. He took us to his place where he had a little stash of marijuana. He took it and spilled it on the ground, (covering it with dirt and gravel so that he couldn't come back and gather it together later!) and together we prayed that God would give him the strength to live as a new creation, leaving the old behind once and for all.
Since that day, the joy that has filled him has been so evident. If you have met him in the last couple of months one of the first things you would notice about him aside from his servant heart and always positive attitude is the fact that he is almost always singing worship songs. It has been a joy to see him walk in this new found freedom!
So, back to the final project of the year, the final team of the year that we hosted was a youth group from Reno, Nevada. Having a little extra time on their hands and still having some extra project money, they took it upon themselves to build Alex a little place of his very own. As we worked to build a little 12' by 12' quarter for him, he would thank everyone of us time and time again, each and every day.
Not many of us would be super content with a little 144 square foot place to call home but for him, it was as if you had built him a palace! A place to call his home...security, something that he had known little of in his life.
The group wasn't able to finish it in the time they were here but we were able to put the finishing touches on it, getting him some basics such as a new bed to sleep on, a microwave oven, some drawers for his clothes, and curtains on the windows, transforming that little room into his home.
Looking back on this season, it is a joy to see God's hand at work in the lives of people. I look forward to sharing more stories soon about this past winter. Until then, Dios te bendiga!
Friday, March 11, 2011
Poverty
I don't know if you ever get used to seeing poverty or if you ever should for that matter! But every once in a while God opens your eyes again to the needs of people around you and He did that just the other day!
We took a group of about 11 Bible School students from Providence College to a small fishing village probably about 50 miles up the coast called something like Sahuimaro I believe. Let me just back up a little bit more first. Two days before this, we went to another fishing village a little ways up the coast where, together with a local pastor from that village, Pastor Guillermo we spent an evening playing with the kids and showing the Jesus film as an outreach into his community. As we were there, he shared his passion for this neighboring village, Sahuimaro, a very poor village with no church, and very little Christian influence. In a couple of days, he, along with the students of a local Mexican biblical training center, were going to spend a day in this town, going door to door, sharing Christ with the people and inviting them to a service he was planning to having with them later in the week. He was exciting at the possibility of having us join them with a kids program and the Jesus film.
So, we packed up the vans and made the two hour trek, first down nice four lane highway, turned into two lane pavement, then pavement with some potholes, the pavement with LOTS of potholes, to pavement which really should no longer be called pavement, to finally probably about 10 miles of continuous washboard. As we neared the village though, the scenery changed drastically as we neared the coast. From desert wasteland densely populated with cactus, large sand dunes of white sand rose up spotted with a type of pine trees. We drove up over a hill and descended into a narrow valley with a hill covered in cactus on one side and a sand dune on the other side.
The village, not having any power or water, was a collection of wood, tin, and tar paper thrown together with the houses sitting very close together, with the occasional cement block structure. Because of the sand dunes all around, there wasn't much room to build. But not only that, as we got there, the wind was howling off the water and I couldn't imagine you would want to build your house too much in the open anyways. The told us that the village would go from 200 to up to 800 people during the high fishing season, though you could hardly imagine half that many people living there in such a small area.
We settled in an area that has been relatively cleaned by the students for our use, at least with as much of the garbage cleared out as possible, and set out to invite the children to come. A modest crowd of about 20 children braved the wind and the blowing sand and we had a great time with them. You could bet we were the only attraction in town that day or that week or probably even month for that matter!
Two things in particular struck me during out brief stay there. One was the passion that Pastor Guillermo had for this place. God had definitely put a passion in his heart for it. It was a dirty, hard to get to place, and with the conditions, the wind and the sand blowing in your face, not an altogether pleasant place to be. And perhaps others had come and gone to share the gospel or reach out to these people, but no one had come and stayed. His desire was to come back and build into this community and eventually raise up a church. He had plans to come during popular party time Semana Santa and even to spend his vacation time here in this village, spending a number of days working with the children and the adults. Praise God for this pastor and his desire to reach his own people!
The second thing that struck me as we were there was the idea of poverty and wondering how God sees poverty. The physical poverty in this place as more than evident in the tar-paper, wooden structures for houses and the lack of basic services such as power and water. I know that God has a huge heart for those in physical need, many times commanding us to watch out and take care of the poor. But spiritual poverty is not always so evident, yet I know that God's greatest concern is for those who do not know Him. Looking over this village it was easy to see the physical poverty but if I had God's x-ray vision, what would I see? What does He see? How would He see our village or town, or wherever we live? If I think about my "hometown" Winkler, a small city with many beautiful homes, carefully manicured yards, what would He see? What would His x-ray vision find? Would He rather see a ghost-town, a bunch of shacks thrown together with spare pieces of wood, tin and tar-paper?
And yet even in this poor village of Sahuimaro, there were little lights that were shining. Dispersed among the tar-paper homes were a couple sturdy, block homes. As we were winding things down and preparing to show the film, a man came up to me and asked me where we were from and whether we were Christians. He shared how he himself was a Christian as well and was excited to see us here. Even in the darkest of places, God has His light shining, whether it was this man or Pastor Guillermo.
Give us eyes to see the true needs of the people around us and help us to lead them to You, the only One who can truly meet those needs!
We took a group of about 11 Bible School students from Providence College to a small fishing village probably about 50 miles up the coast called something like Sahuimaro I believe. Let me just back up a little bit more first. Two days before this, we went to another fishing village a little ways up the coast where, together with a local pastor from that village, Pastor Guillermo we spent an evening playing with the kids and showing the Jesus film as an outreach into his community. As we were there, he shared his passion for this neighboring village, Sahuimaro, a very poor village with no church, and very little Christian influence. In a couple of days, he, along with the students of a local Mexican biblical training center, were going to spend a day in this town, going door to door, sharing Christ with the people and inviting them to a service he was planning to having with them later in the week. He was exciting at the possibility of having us join them with a kids program and the Jesus film.
The village, not having any power or water, was a collection of wood, tin, and tar paper thrown together with the houses sitting very close together, with the occasional cement block structure. Because of the sand dunes all around, there wasn't much room to build. But not only that, as we got there, the wind was howling off the water and I couldn't imagine you would want to build your house too much in the open anyways. The told us that the village would go from 200 to up to 800 people during the high fishing season, though you could hardly imagine half that many people living there in such a small area.
We settled in an area that has been relatively cleaned by the students for our use, at least with as much of the garbage cleared out as possible, and set out to invite the children to come. A modest crowd of about 20 children braved the wind and the blowing sand and we had a great time with them. You could bet we were the only attraction in town that day or that week or probably even month for that matter!
Two things in particular struck me during out brief stay there. One was the passion that Pastor Guillermo had for this place. God had definitely put a passion in his heart for it. It was a dirty, hard to get to place, and with the conditions, the wind and the sand blowing in your face, not an altogether pleasant place to be. And perhaps others had come and gone to share the gospel or reach out to these people, but no one had come and stayed. His desire was to come back and build into this community and eventually raise up a church. He had plans to come during popular party time Semana Santa and even to spend his vacation time here in this village, spending a number of days working with the children and the adults. Praise God for this pastor and his desire to reach his own people!
The second thing that struck me as we were there was the idea of poverty and wondering how God sees poverty. The physical poverty in this place as more than evident in the tar-paper, wooden structures for houses and the lack of basic services such as power and water. I know that God has a huge heart for those in physical need, many times commanding us to watch out and take care of the poor. But spiritual poverty is not always so evident, yet I know that God's greatest concern is for those who do not know Him. Looking over this village it was easy to see the physical poverty but if I had God's x-ray vision, what would I see? What does He see? How would He see our village or town, or wherever we live? If I think about my "hometown" Winkler, a small city with many beautiful homes, carefully manicured yards, what would He see? What would His x-ray vision find? Would He rather see a ghost-town, a bunch of shacks thrown together with spare pieces of wood, tin and tar-paper?
And yet even in this poor village of Sahuimaro, there were little lights that were shining. Dispersed among the tar-paper homes were a couple sturdy, block homes. As we were winding things down and preparing to show the film, a man came up to me and asked me where we were from and whether we were Christians. He shared how he himself was a Christian as well and was excited to see us here. Even in the darkest of places, God has His light shining, whether it was this man or Pastor Guillermo.
Give us eyes to see the true needs of the people around us and help us to lead them to You, the only One who can truly meet those needs!
Wednesday, February 16, 2011
8 days, 1600 patients, 1000 Bibles, many stories!
Though it is rewarding to see so many physical needs met from people who just had bad colds to things more serious like a young woman who had appendicitis, the most rewarding part is to help meet the spiritual needs of the people. There was always a table setup, loaded up with Bibles and manned by people ready to pray, share, and speak to these deeper spiritual needs. Personally, this was the most exciting place to be! There was one woman who served in particular the entire week, Maria Jesus. She was rescued from a past of witchcraft and is now a powerful testimony for Christ, sharing boldly with anyone and everyone the truth of the Gospel.
I could share a number of stories, but one story jumps out in particular. Many times we pray in a situation like this that people would be drawn to this place, that people would see Christ in us and that they would sense His presence as they come. Well, God showed us the answer to that prayer in one man...I don't even remember his name! He approached our table and shared how he had once been a devout Christian but had walked away from the faith for the last number of years of his life. He shared how he had a gift of discernment and as he was walking in the street past the clinic he could see a light coming from this place. He could sense God's presence and knew that he needed to come and to give his life back to the Lord. So, with pleasure we prayed with him and for him, and could see the joy in his heart at having come back.
If you want to see a 20 minute video highlighting the week of medical clinics check out this video!
It's exciting to see God touch one life at a time and it's also exciting that we can be a part of that in His ordained time and way. Thanks to those who have been praying! I can't say it enough how you are an invaluable part of this ministry!
Dios te bendiga!
Monday, January 24, 2011
4 Walls and a House...
Yes, four walls usually equals a house but in this case the Winkler MB church youth and later the adult team managed to put up four walls in addition to a little one room house for a young woman in need in a needy area of Guaymas called Fatima.
I'm sure many of you have heard about the pastoral house project that we have taken on this winter and I want to share just one of the stories that have come out of working in that community.
Last spring we were handing out food hampers in Fatima with a team. Each recipient was asked if there was something that we could pray for. One young lady, Elsa shared about her lifestyle caught in drugs and how she wanted to be free from that. The team prayed for her and to God's glory, shortly after that she left that lifestyle and began regularly attending Pastor Rafael's church where she still goes.
She has two sons, one two year old and a 3 month old. Her husband left her and she was living with her mother though it was not a healthy environment for neither herself or her sons. When the youth group came on the scene, she was living in the church temporarily until something else could be arranged.
Her situation touched the hearts of several people on the team and they as a group decided to take a love offering to raise money to build her a place to live. The next day they began to put up a 12' by 16' quarter on a piece of property donated by a member of Pastor Rafael's church. They finished the house and the adult team that came in right after them were able to paint and furnish the place. The last evening they were in Mexico, they were able to deliver the keys over to her in an emotional farewell.
The pastoral house projects is still going and we praise God for providing for these types of physical needs but we praise God even more for touching people's lives as He did in Elsa's case and as He does so often!
Check out the updated photo gallery to view pictures of this and more!
I'm sure many of you have heard about the pastoral house project that we have taken on this winter and I want to share just one of the stories that have come out of working in that community.
Last spring we were handing out food hampers in Fatima with a team. Each recipient was asked if there was something that we could pray for. One young lady, Elsa shared about her lifestyle caught in drugs and how she wanted to be free from that. The team prayed for her and to God's glory, shortly after that she left that lifestyle and began regularly attending Pastor Rafael's church where she still goes.
She has two sons, one two year old and a 3 month old. Her husband left her and she was living with her mother though it was not a healthy environment for neither herself or her sons. When the youth group came on the scene, she was living in the church temporarily until something else could be arranged.
Her situation touched the hearts of several people on the team and they as a group decided to take a love offering to raise money to build her a place to live. The next day they began to put up a 12' by 16' quarter on a piece of property donated by a member of Pastor Rafael's church. They finished the house and the adult team that came in right after them were able to paint and furnish the place. The last evening they were in Mexico, they were able to deliver the keys over to her in an emotional farewell.
The pastoral house projects is still going and we praise God for providing for these types of physical needs but we praise God even more for touching people's lives as He did in Elsa's case and as He does so often!
Check out the updated photo gallery to view pictures of this and more!
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