It has been a long silence here on La Vida Ixtlan.
I wish that the news wasn't so bitter sweet. Yesterday our brother Roberto went to be with God. He was such an amazing brother in the church and will be missed so much by all of us. I don't know how much I will miss hearing 'doscientos, hermano' when singing in the church. I can't describe his love for the body of Christ. I can't describe his love. We will miss him and his smiling face.
As much as we will miss him, his family will miss him more. His wife Rosa, daughter Ana Rosa (her husband Edgar), his grandchildren Roberto (7 or 8 years old) and Eric (seven months). Rosa has the joy of knowing that she will see him agian in heaven. Pray that she will take comfort and strength in that. The rest of the family doesn't have that hope. Pray that they would be comforted and strengthened, but above all else pray that they would see the light and hope that is in Christ through this. Pray that the veil would be lifted from their faces and that they would come humbly before God in repentence.
It is a bittersweet day. We will miss Roberto, for that we are sad. But, more, we rejoice knowing that he is healed completely through God's amazing grace. What a beautiful hope we have.
Sunday, August 16, 2009
Monday, June 15, 2009
The news
So it has been a little while. Oops.
Roberto:
Some who have visited Ixtlan over the years will remember Roberto. Roberto had a hernia surgery a couple of weeks ago and during the surgery they discovered that he really had relatively advanced stomach cancer. The doctors said there was nothing they could do and have given him anywhere from a month to a year.
Roberto is an older brother in the church here with an incredible amount of love and passion for the church. He is always excited to see visitors in church and will always come up to greet them with his wife Sister Rosa following behind. It's always fun to watch him as he welcomes American visitors who often jsut look back smiling without understanding a word, but with complete recogntion of the love behind his words. Roberto can't read, but loves to be in church. Loves singing. Loves the word. Loves Christ. Roberto loves the hymns "Con que Pagaremos" and "Engrandecido Sea Dios", one of which he will call during each service. Roberto is passionate for God and one of the most, if not the most, grateful man I have ever known.
Roberto's response to hearing about the cancer was essentially "Whatever the Lord wants." (I don't know exactly what he said) He immediately placed himself in God's hands and gave God reign in his life. An incredible testimony of faith and confidence in God's goodness and mercy. We pray his faith can be a testimony to the church, his family, and his community in San Cristobal, a nearby town.
We are naturally sad with this information. It is always difficult to loose a loved one and someone so appreciated by the church, but behind the sadness is the joy of knowing that he is going home. Joy of knowing that he is finishing his race, he is finishing the fight in this life, and that he is going to his reward.
Pray for Roberto. Pray for God's hand to be present with him, comforting him and continuing to give him peace. Pray that his faith would continue to strengthen. Pray that his testimony would grow stronger. Pray for God's will to be fulfilled in his life.
Pray for Rosa, Roberto's wife. Pray that she has strength and courage to face the difficult times ahead. Pray that her faith too would grow strong. Pray that she would stand strong by her husband and take joy in knowing his future is in heaven. Pray that she would embrace God's will and be thankful knowing that it is being completed.
Pray for Ana Rosa (his daughter), Robertito (his 7 or 8 year-old grandson), and Eric (his recently born grandson). They need Christ badly and above all our prayer is that this can bring them to him. Pray that Roberto and Rosa's testimony will show the truth of God's love and the hope we have in Him clearly.
Queretaro:
On a very different subject. We are pleased to have started a new outreach/church in Mexico. I don't know technically whether it is called a church yet or not, but it's on its way at the very least.
Lalo, he was a minister here in Ixltan for a time, moved to Queretaro with his wife (and now 3 children) about 4 years ago to help his family. Lalo has recently started up church services in his home there on Sundays. We are excited about this new opportunity and the potential outreach that we have. Lalo has many contacts and from all reports are good. There are a couple of families that have been coming as well as a nephew of Lalo's who has given his life to Christ and repented.
It is exciting to know that the ministry here is definitely expanding and that there is need all over Mexico for solid Christian churches. For those that are curious and don't know. Here are our outreach locations in Mexico at this point.
Ixtlan: There is the church, school opening to at least first grade next year and multiple other outreaches in the community.
Magdalena: There is the orphanage, church, and there community outreaches and much more for the future.
Morelia: This is about 2.5 hours from Ixltan and there are three members there and three converts. There are also many American visitors that go through when they study Spanish at the Baden-Powell Institue (a language school).
Queretaro: About 3 hours from Ixtlan. Newly formed. See above.
Barra Vieja: About 30 minutes from Acapulco, or 15 hours form Ixtlan by bus. There are four believers there that are expecting to be baptized in July, Lord willing.
Those are the Apostolic Christian Chruch's ministiries in Mexico. God is definitely working here and is going to do some mighty things in the coming years.
Prayer:
1. See above requests for Roberto
2. Pray for the new ministry in Queretaro and the other ministries here in Mexico.
Roberto:
Some who have visited Ixtlan over the years will remember Roberto. Roberto had a hernia surgery a couple of weeks ago and during the surgery they discovered that he really had relatively advanced stomach cancer. The doctors said there was nothing they could do and have given him anywhere from a month to a year.
Roberto is an older brother in the church here with an incredible amount of love and passion for the church. He is always excited to see visitors in church and will always come up to greet them with his wife Sister Rosa following behind. It's always fun to watch him as he welcomes American visitors who often jsut look back smiling without understanding a word, but with complete recogntion of the love behind his words. Roberto can't read, but loves to be in church. Loves singing. Loves the word. Loves Christ. Roberto loves the hymns "Con que Pagaremos" and "Engrandecido Sea Dios", one of which he will call during each service. Roberto is passionate for God and one of the most, if not the most, grateful man I have ever known.
Roberto's response to hearing about the cancer was essentially "Whatever the Lord wants." (I don't know exactly what he said) He immediately placed himself in God's hands and gave God reign in his life. An incredible testimony of faith and confidence in God's goodness and mercy. We pray his faith can be a testimony to the church, his family, and his community in San Cristobal, a nearby town.
We are naturally sad with this information. It is always difficult to loose a loved one and someone so appreciated by the church, but behind the sadness is the joy of knowing that he is going home. Joy of knowing that he is finishing his race, he is finishing the fight in this life, and that he is going to his reward.
Pray for Roberto. Pray for God's hand to be present with him, comforting him and continuing to give him peace. Pray that his faith would continue to strengthen. Pray that his testimony would grow stronger. Pray for God's will to be fulfilled in his life.
Pray for Rosa, Roberto's wife. Pray that she has strength and courage to face the difficult times ahead. Pray that her faith too would grow strong. Pray that she would stand strong by her husband and take joy in knowing his future is in heaven. Pray that she would embrace God's will and be thankful knowing that it is being completed.
Pray for Ana Rosa (his daughter), Robertito (his 7 or 8 year-old grandson), and Eric (his recently born grandson). They need Christ badly and above all our prayer is that this can bring them to him. Pray that Roberto and Rosa's testimony will show the truth of God's love and the hope we have in Him clearly.
Queretaro:
On a very different subject. We are pleased to have started a new outreach/church in Mexico. I don't know technically whether it is called a church yet or not, but it's on its way at the very least.
Lalo, he was a minister here in Ixltan for a time, moved to Queretaro with his wife (and now 3 children) about 4 years ago to help his family. Lalo has recently started up church services in his home there on Sundays. We are excited about this new opportunity and the potential outreach that we have. Lalo has many contacts and from all reports are good. There are a couple of families that have been coming as well as a nephew of Lalo's who has given his life to Christ and repented.
It is exciting to know that the ministry here is definitely expanding and that there is need all over Mexico for solid Christian churches. For those that are curious and don't know. Here are our outreach locations in Mexico at this point.
Ixtlan: There is the church, school opening to at least first grade next year and multiple other outreaches in the community.
Magdalena: There is the orphanage, church, and there community outreaches and much more for the future.
Morelia: This is about 2.5 hours from Ixltan and there are three members there and three converts. There are also many American visitors that go through when they study Spanish at the Baden-Powell Institue (a language school).
Queretaro: About 3 hours from Ixtlan. Newly formed. See above.
Barra Vieja: About 30 minutes from Acapulco, or 15 hours form Ixtlan by bus. There are four believers there that are expecting to be baptized in July, Lord willing.
Those are the Apostolic Christian Chruch's ministiries in Mexico. God is definitely working here and is going to do some mighty things in the coming years.
Prayer:
1. See above requests for Roberto
2. Pray for the new ministry in Queretaro and the other ministries here in Mexico.
Monday, May 18, 2009
Beware the roaches...
Cockroaches.
Yes, this is a story about a cockroach. I didn't give him a name in real life, but perhaps we can call him Roachie.
Cockroaches, while not any sort of threat to life here in Ixtlan, do exist. Ask Jodi. One interrupted our Skype-chat conversation one night when it went crawling across my desk and I had to wage an impromptu war. I won that one. Raid spray is my favorite, then I don't have to deal with crunching exoskeletons and just sweep up the roach a couple of days later.
Anyway. Roachie.
Today I went to plug my iPod into the speakers I have in the classroom. The textbooks we have use quite a bit of audio and so I use my iPod during class. Well, I had a problem. The speakers weren't getting any juice. No matter how many times I pushed in the power button, nothing happened. No power light. No sound. Nothing. This can be frustrating, especially when you need sound. Thankfully I didn't need it today, although it came close.
Anyway. Speakers.
So I had class and went back to trying to figure out what was wrong. After trying different electric outlets and being generally confused, I shook the speaker to see if any parts were loose.
It sounded like a small etch-a-sketch. This made sense. It's been windy lately and dry. I just didn't think that much dust and sand could have gotten in the speaker while being in the school.
'Ah, well' I thought, 'Time to do surgury.' Of course I didn't have the screwdrive that I needed in the house so after borrowing one from Marshall and Jan, I proceeded to commence operations on my speaker. The operation was pretty typical. They put the screws in the deepest holes so you can never really tell what you are doing. You just have to have a long skinny screwdriver. I think the electonics companies are working with Craftsman.
Well, I got the speaker open and the 'sand' started to fall out. It looked familiar. It looked like the aftermath of a roach. By aftermath, I mean fecal matter. Not cool. So, with greater caution and over the trash can, I continue opening the speaker and, there, scared to death (with good reason I would think), staring back at me was Roachie. Roachie had made home amongst all the wires of my speakers. Considering that we haven't had classes for three weeks. I have no clue how long he had been living there.
I proceeded to do the only logical thing. I knocked Roachie out of the speaker and into the trash can and went for the Raid can.
That took care of Roachie, but what about the speakers. Allowing for the fact that I know nothing about the inter workings of electronics, I feel like I gave things a pretty good looking over, but I don't think Roachie like the way things were organized and had done his damage. Thankfully we didn't pay much for those things.
so I swept things up and and am ready to move on now. Excitement for the day is now over. I think, who knows what else may happen.
Here is Roachie on his way out. Poor guy. Wrong place at the wrong time.
Prayer:
1. We started classes again today. We have six more weeks. Pray that these weeks would be productive academically and in relationships. Pray that God would use this year for His glory and that He would do His work. Pray that we could finish strong leave these kids thinking about more than just English.
*By the way, I'm coming home June 29th and will be home until the 20th of July. Woohoo!
**Oh, it rained last Thursday and Friday night. Yea!!
Yes, this is a story about a cockroach. I didn't give him a name in real life, but perhaps we can call him Roachie.
Cockroaches, while not any sort of threat to life here in Ixtlan, do exist. Ask Jodi. One interrupted our Skype-chat conversation one night when it went crawling across my desk and I had to wage an impromptu war. I won that one. Raid spray is my favorite, then I don't have to deal with crunching exoskeletons and just sweep up the roach a couple of days later.
Anyway. Roachie.
Today I went to plug my iPod into the speakers I have in the classroom. The textbooks we have use quite a bit of audio and so I use my iPod during class. Well, I had a problem. The speakers weren't getting any juice. No matter how many times I pushed in the power button, nothing happened. No power light. No sound. Nothing. This can be frustrating, especially when you need sound. Thankfully I didn't need it today, although it came close.
Anyway. Speakers.
So I had class and went back to trying to figure out what was wrong. After trying different electric outlets and being generally confused, I shook the speaker to see if any parts were loose.
It sounded like a small etch-a-sketch. This made sense. It's been windy lately and dry. I just didn't think that much dust and sand could have gotten in the speaker while being in the school.
'Ah, well' I thought, 'Time to do surgury.' Of course I didn't have the screwdrive that I needed in the house so after borrowing one from Marshall and Jan, I proceeded to commence operations on my speaker. The operation was pretty typical. They put the screws in the deepest holes so you can never really tell what you are doing. You just have to have a long skinny screwdriver. I think the electonics companies are working with Craftsman.
Well, I got the speaker open and the 'sand' started to fall out. It looked familiar. It looked like the aftermath of a roach. By aftermath, I mean fecal matter. Not cool. So, with greater caution and over the trash can, I continue opening the speaker and, there, scared to death (with good reason I would think), staring back at me was Roachie. Roachie had made home amongst all the wires of my speakers. Considering that we haven't had classes for three weeks. I have no clue how long he had been living there.
I proceeded to do the only logical thing. I knocked Roachie out of the speaker and into the trash can and went for the Raid can.
That took care of Roachie, but what about the speakers. Allowing for the fact that I know nothing about the inter workings of electronics, I feel like I gave things a pretty good looking over, but I don't think Roachie like the way things were organized and had done his damage. Thankfully we didn't pay much for those things.
so I swept things up and and am ready to move on now. Excitement for the day is now over. I think, who knows what else may happen.
Here is Roachie on his way out. Poor guy. Wrong place at the wrong time.
Prayer:
1. We started classes again today. We have six more weeks. Pray that these weeks would be productive academically and in relationships. Pray that God would use this year for His glory and that He would do His work. Pray that we could finish strong leave these kids thinking about more than just English.
*By the way, I'm coming home June 29th and will be home until the 20th of July. Woohoo!
**Oh, it rained last Thursday and Friday night. Yea!!
Thursday, May 14, 2009
We had one day of school on Monday before schools, at least what would be elementary and middle schools, were told to shut down again as precautionary measures and to clean the schools. So here I sit again.
I am not blockmaking this week. I have to catch up on some other things. I finished an online course for teaching English and am going to try to get some more things figured out for the next year. Not much going on really.
I will say this. I am looking forward to rain. It's like a game right now. A really bad waiting game. It could rain any day, but you never know when that will be. I miss the peacefulness of a good soft rain and the power in a good storm. So I wait for the rain. Maybe today, maybe not.
Also, Grant Herrmann is coming back for the summer. He will get her the 22 of May, in about a week. So there will be another person around here. The summer will go fast I know and soon I will be teaching again, but that's okay. That's why I am here, no?
Prayers:
1. Pray for the last couple of weeks of English classes and praise God that we have been able to make connections with many kids here in Ixtlan. Pray that we can continue those relationships.
2. Pray for the continued work on the school. We still have a lot of work to do and there are still many things that need to be pulled together. Pray that we would have wisdom as we work through these things.
I am not blockmaking this week. I have to catch up on some other things. I finished an online course for teaching English and am going to try to get some more things figured out for the next year. Not much going on really.
I will say this. I am looking forward to rain. It's like a game right now. A really bad waiting game. It could rain any day, but you never know when that will be. I miss the peacefulness of a good soft rain and the power in a good storm. So I wait for the rain. Maybe today, maybe not.
Also, Grant Herrmann is coming back for the summer. He will get her the 22 of May, in about a week. So there will be another person around here. The summer will go fast I know and soon I will be teaching again, but that's okay. That's why I am here, no?
Prayers:
1. Pray for the last couple of weeks of English classes and praise God that we have been able to make connections with many kids here in Ixtlan. Pray that we can continue those relationships.
2. Pray for the continued work on the school. We still have a lot of work to do and there are still many things that need to be pulled together. Pray that we would have wisdom as we work through these things.
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
Swine Flu and blockmaking
So, because of the Swine Flu here in Mexico, schools have been shut down until at least May 6th. Although we are not an official school, that means us too. No classes at the Colegio de las Americas until next Tuesday. So I have this short little vacation. So instead of teaching, I suddenly have all this free time. So...
I am now a bolqueador, a block maker. Mario and Efrain are starting a a block making business. I mean blocks like construction blocks. So today I went and helped them. I officially made several blocks and threw around a lot of sand and concrete. It was a good time and I enjoyed the time with Mario and Efrain. I think that tomorrow I get to play at being a abanil, an mason (bricklayer). It should be fun.
I'll fill you all in later.
Prayer:
1. Keep praying for those suffering throughout the world because of the swine flu. More pray that God calms the fears of people throughout the world.
2. Pray for continued growth here in the church and in each member and new believer. Pray that each one can grow in the word and in prayer.
I am now a bolqueador, a block maker. Mario and Efrain are starting a a block making business. I mean blocks like construction blocks. So today I went and helped them. I officially made several blocks and threw around a lot of sand and concrete. It was a good time and I enjoyed the time with Mario and Efrain. I think that tomorrow I get to play at being a abanil, an mason (bricklayer). It should be fun.
I'll fill you all in later.
Prayer:
1. Keep praying for those suffering throughout the world because of the swine flu. More pray that God calms the fears of people throughout the world.
2. Pray for continued growth here in the church and in each member and new believer. Pray that each one can grow in the word and in prayer.
Monday, April 27, 2009
Maybe that's why they were called unclean...
So, I don't know what you all have heard of the swine flu up there. Probably more than I have. Apparently I am right in the midst of the excitement. Rumor has it that schools in Mexico are all closing until May sixth. I have my suspicions about this though since they already had this Friday and next Monday off, so it might just be a good excuse to have a couple of more days off.
Actually, it isn't really a laughing matter to a lot of people. The last statistic I read said that there are 140 deaths being blamed on the swine flu in Mexico with thousands of suspected cases. We haven't seen anything around here, but people are starting to put on the masks. As far as I know most of the cases are still centered around Mexico City, but I am sure it will be spreading. It brings good reason for prayer.
1. Pray for the people suffering from the sickness. Flu is never fun, especially, I imagine, when it's connected to something of this proportion. Pray for fast recoveries and God's provision for all the care providers out there.
2. Pray for the families of those who have already lost family members to the sickness. Pray that they would feel God's true comfort and come to know him through the pain and loss.
3. Pray for those who are working to stop this. Pray for the scientists and the many who are working to contain and prevent the further spread of this flu.
We know that the world is fallen and because of that things like this happen. We also know that God is in control. God loves us and He is working his wonders and mercy in the midst of this pain and suffering we have brought on ourselves.
It may sound bad, but we are all doing just fine here and look forward to continuing to serve the community here in Ixtlan.
Also, pray for the school. We are being inspected tomorrow. Hopefully this will be the last step for getting the incorporation for the school. Pray that all goes well and that we can move on with the school for next year.
Actually, it isn't really a laughing matter to a lot of people. The last statistic I read said that there are 140 deaths being blamed on the swine flu in Mexico with thousands of suspected cases. We haven't seen anything around here, but people are starting to put on the masks. As far as I know most of the cases are still centered around Mexico City, but I am sure it will be spreading. It brings good reason for prayer.
1. Pray for the people suffering from the sickness. Flu is never fun, especially, I imagine, when it's connected to something of this proportion. Pray for fast recoveries and God's provision for all the care providers out there.
2. Pray for the families of those who have already lost family members to the sickness. Pray that they would feel God's true comfort and come to know him through the pain and loss.
3. Pray for those who are working to stop this. Pray for the scientists and the many who are working to contain and prevent the further spread of this flu.
We know that the world is fallen and because of that things like this happen. We also know that God is in control. God loves us and He is working his wonders and mercy in the midst of this pain and suffering we have brought on ourselves.
It may sound bad, but we are all doing just fine here and look forward to continuing to serve the community here in Ixtlan.
Also, pray for the school. We are being inspected tomorrow. Hopefully this will be the last step for getting the incorporation for the school. Pray that all goes well and that we can move on with the school for next year.
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
First, official appologies. Water came back on day 12. That was a long time ago, so if you were still worried about the water. We are doing fine now. (Although it still isn't raining and won't for another couple of months probably.) And while I am at it. Wow. It has been too long since I posted here. A lot has happened. Eye Clinic. Jeff visited. Went to Barra Vieja. Abe came and visited. Classes started up again.
So, first things first. Eyes.
Bryan and Kara Stoller were here with their son Derek for an eye clinic. They brought along their neice, Lynette, as well as Corey and Beth Steffen and three of their kids, Tiffany, Tammy and Ryan. Bryan worked with in the eye clinic all day. The kids helped to give out glasses and did a very good job. There was a lot of help from the church as well since there was a lot to do. Corey did some work in the guest house and Kara and Beth prepared meals for all the help. It was a great week and everything went really well.
Around 250 glasses were given out in the course of 4 days. It was a great opportunity provide for the people in the Ixtlan community. Pray with us that the generosity of Bryan and so many people back in the states that have given glasses would result in people seeing spiritually for the first time here in Ixtlan.
Here are the visitors: (Front: Derek, Lynette, Tammy, Tiffany, Ryan Back: Bryan, Kara, Beth, Corey)
More visitors....
Jeff came on the 30th of March to visit. We left on at about 5:00 in the afternoon on April 2nd for Barra Vieja. There is a small group there of 4 believers that the church has been discipling for some time now. (We are hoping to have some baptisms this summer.) It was about 15 hours by bus to get to Acapulco and then another 45 minutes to get to Barra Vieja. It was great to have a break and to relax a little for a couple of days. It was also great getting to know the believers there and discuss the Easter story with them and the great work of Jesus for us.
Abe Habegger met us in Acapulco and we shared a great week there. For all of you stuck in cold weather. It was VERY warm there, but we survived. Here is a picture looking out at the ocean from the roof of the house that we stayed in.
Here are Jeff and I on the bus on the way back to Ixtlan. Abe really was here, but he didn't leave me any pictures of himself, so I guess you just have to take my word for it.
So we all came back to Ixtlan together and had a nice weekend to finish everything off. Now I am back in the groove of things and ready to tackle the last couple months of classes before summer and a trip home!
Prayer:
1. Pray for God's continued work in the lives of the believers here. Pray especially for the new converts that we have. We had five people start repenting in the past month and a half. Pray for their continued growth and for their sincere desire for a new life with Christ.
2. Pray for God's continued work in the community of Ixtlan. Pray for the many, many people who remain decieved. Pray that they would see the light, that they would be thirsty for the truth and that blind eyes would be opened.
So, first things first. Eyes.
Bryan and Kara Stoller were here with their son Derek for an eye clinic. They brought along their neice, Lynette, as well as Corey and Beth Steffen and three of their kids, Tiffany, Tammy and Ryan. Bryan worked with in the eye clinic all day. The kids helped to give out glasses and did a very good job. There was a lot of help from the church as well since there was a lot to do. Corey did some work in the guest house and Kara and Beth prepared meals for all the help. It was a great week and everything went really well.
Around 250 glasses were given out in the course of 4 days. It was a great opportunity provide for the people in the Ixtlan community. Pray with us that the generosity of Bryan and so many people back in the states that have given glasses would result in people seeing spiritually for the first time here in Ixtlan.
Here are the visitors: (Front: Derek, Lynette, Tammy, Tiffany, Ryan Back: Bryan, Kara, Beth, Corey)
More visitors....
Jeff came on the 30th of March to visit. We left on at about 5:00 in the afternoon on April 2nd for Barra Vieja. There is a small group there of 4 believers that the church has been discipling for some time now. (We are hoping to have some baptisms this summer.) It was about 15 hours by bus to get to Acapulco and then another 45 minutes to get to Barra Vieja. It was great to have a break and to relax a little for a couple of days. It was also great getting to know the believers there and discuss the Easter story with them and the great work of Jesus for us.
Abe Habegger met us in Acapulco and we shared a great week there. For all of you stuck in cold weather. It was VERY warm there, but we survived. Here is a picture looking out at the ocean from the roof of the house that we stayed in.
Here are Jeff and I on the bus on the way back to Ixtlan. Abe really was here, but he didn't leave me any pictures of himself, so I guess you just have to take my word for it.
So we all came back to Ixtlan together and had a nice weekend to finish everything off. Now I am back in the groove of things and ready to tackle the last couple months of classes before summer and a trip home!
Prayer:
1. Pray for God's continued work in the lives of the believers here. Pray especially for the new converts that we have. We had five people start repenting in the past month and a half. Pray for their continued growth and for their sincere desire for a new life with Christ.
2. Pray for God's continued work in the community of Ixtlan. Pray for the many, many people who remain decieved. Pray that they would see the light, that they would be thirsty for the truth and that blind eyes would be opened.
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