Graduation 2013

The day after grad...  It brings back a lot of memories from the past, whether it's high school grad, graduation from Bible School, or just any such type of circumstances where you've grown used to being around certain people only to have them take off in many directions, wondering if and when you're going to see them again.

It's feeling a lot like that today, the day after our graduation ceremony for the 10 students that we've had the privilege of walking along side over the past 14 weeks.  Yesterday evening in front of about 75 friends of family members of the students, we celebrated what God has done in their lives during the time that we've been with them and said our tearful goodbyes.  It's always a mixture of feelings, relief in some sense that the marathon semester has come to an end, pride and joy in seeing how far the students have come along in this short time, but also a sense of sadness (and I know this reality will especially sink in next week as I head back to the now quiet and empty halls of the school) not knowing if I will see any of these students again, this side of eternity.  Fortunately five of the students live either right here in San Carlos or at least within a 45 minute drive.  But the other five come from further away, one from Nogales, three from the state of Sinaloa close to Mazatlan (about a 12 hour journey) and another from the city of Puebla, a 38 hour bus ride away.

CLASS AND STAFF OF 2013
Back L to R: Melina (assistant), Katie (office), Howard (director), Roberto, Joel, myself, Sergio, Manuel, Emanuel, Carlos
Front L to R: Yarely, Susan (kitchen), Luciana, Eric & Roxanna (main teachers), Areli, Esthefani

It's been a tremendous blessing for me to be apart of their lives, to see the passion for the Lord with which they are leaving the school and heading back into their homes as well as their places of ministry.  I've learned a lot and been challenged in my own walk with the Lord and what it truly means to serve Him with all of one's heart.  Yesterday evening during the grad ceremony, after we had handed them their certificates and prayed for them, the students sang a song together called Heme aquí, Here I Am, presenting themselves before the Lord, ready to serve, as Samuel did after hearing God's voice calling him.  To see them sing it with such passion, a number of them with tears flowing was very powerful.

As you think of it, pray for these students as they head back home into their places of ministry.  It's always hard to leave what is in many ways such a safe and closed environment and head back into the "real world" where there may not be the same support structure and where instead of being able to study the Word twelve hours a day, one has to resume with those normal day to day activities, whether it be work or just the routine of daily life.  But much more than being worried, I am excited to see how God will use them to transform the people around them in those daily routines to bring people to Himself.  Pray for them in that, that God would use them powerfully and that they would continue firmly planted in their relationship with the Lord, continuing to study the Word and grow in Him.

I'd like to over the course of this posting and the next couple of postings just give you a brief description of each of the students and how I saw God at work in them over the past couple of months.  For today I'll just start with one student, Sergio, the one who's come the farthest away and comes from a family of I believe it's 8 siblings.

Having traveled from the city of Puebla, about a 38 hour bus ride from here, he was not actually the first from his family to have gone through this program.  His brother had gone through it several years back.  He's a quiet guy who, as he shared with us the night before graduation, loves to listen and learn from people rather than speak.  He's one of those guys who is often the last to speak up and share what's on his heart, if he would speak up at all, but every time he would speak, he would have something very significant to say.  As quiet and contemplative as he may be, his desire is to ...well, I'll let him share it with you directly:

“Mi visión saliendo del CEC es predicar en las próximos pueblos, levantar nuevas iglesias y ir a misionar, trabajar con étnicas.” 

"My vision as I leave CEC es to preach in the surrounding villages, raise up new churches and to go and do missions, working with the ethnic people."

I've appreciated his quiet and deep devotion to the Lord, his sense of humor, and the humility in which he serves.  I know that God will use him mightily as he heads back to his home and helps his family in the ministry.  His family is very much involved in their church and he will be a valuable part of that ministry as he goes back and gets plugged in.

I'll leave it at that for now!  You can also pray for us as staff as we recoup and regroup, evaluate this past year and look forward to what we can do for next year.  God bless and thank you for your prayers!