Baja Blog

This Week's News

This past week, we were blessed to have a small, but very ambitious group of visiting short-term missionaries from British Columbia, Canada.  With only about 12 people, they built a house for a poor family AND did a "Vacation Bible School" for neighborhood kids at a local church.  Most of their construction was done in the mornings and, in the afternoons, a few of the crew would run the VBS for up to 60 kids.  It was a busy week, but many lives were impacted.  To top off the week, the family that received the new house also received Jesus Christ as their Savior and Lord!

Also, we have re-welcomed our visitors from Jerusalem!  Zvi and Lisa, who operate a ministry to victims of terrorist bombings in Israel called Springs of Hope have returned to prepare for a summer camp.  A summer camp???  Yep.  Their plan, (and they believe it's God's plan), is to bring children and a few adults who have suffered from terrorist attacks to our little piece of Baja for a summer camp.  Terror attacks are used because they are very effective.  They cause - big news here - TERROR.  These victims suffer long-lasting psychological problems that affect everything in their lives.  Some victims refuse to leave their homes for fear of another attack.  A couple of weeks in Baja, thousands of miles away, is a good opportunity to relax, have fun, and develop normal relationships.  One little thing to keep in prayer is that the U.S. would give them the visas for their passports so they can land in California and drive over the border into Baja.

In other news, I've recently been given the assignment of "Base Director".  I'm not wild about the title, but that's what it is.  This means I'm in charge of IDT's facilities here in Zarahembla, Baja.  If the grass needs to be cut, it's my duty to get someone to cut it.  If we build a new building, it's my duty to be heavily involved in the planning and construction of it.  If a doorknob is broken on one of our dorms, it's my duty to get it replaced.  My main reasons for being here in Baja has been evangelism and I don't want that to change.  Maybe the Lord wants me to learn something from this new position.  I want to learn it quick and move on.

Loreto Praise Report, etc.

Just over a week ago, we returned from our mission trip to Loreto.  Over 30 of us loaded into a borrowed school bus and went 500 miles south to the land of sportfishing and beer.  However, our purpose was to participate in a youth conference themed, "To live, we must die".  The idea being that when we Christians die to our desires and comforts, God is able to use us to bring life to others and, in the process, give us the abundant life He promises.  Too often, we trade God's abundant life for temporary comforts.  We don't know what we're missing.

Golgota, the all girl Christian worship band, traveled with us and led worship during the conference.  My job was being the sound guy.  During the week, the youth and band did an evangelical outreach at the malecon (think boardwalk) along the beach in Loreto.  Everything in Loreto happens at the malecon among the local Mexicans and visiting Americans & Canadians.  One man came forward to publicly accept Jesus Christ as his Savior and Lord!  We also distributed some "Este es Jesus" (This is Jesus) books and tracts.

The Lord completely blessed the whole week.  We had no problems while traveling.  He even let us miss a bull standing in the middle of our lane at 1:30 a.m. on the way back to Vicente Guerrero.

Since the trip, I've done evangelism at our house construction sites and am preparing to implement a new street evangelism idea with the help of another IDT missionary.  Please keep it in prayer.  Details to follow in a future post.

Walking With Jesus

During the past 3-4 weeks, I've acquired a new appreciation for how many of the people in our area of Baja  live.  You see, the water pump that faithfully helped cool the engine in my Toyota pickup for 165,000 miles finally gave out.  That means I've had the opportunity to put some miles on my tennis shoes and a few miles on the local bus instead.

During this time, I've borrowed an IDT pickup to haul the film equipment for a showing of "The Story of Jesus for Children" in the Triqui village and my first ever showing of "La Esperanza" in Playas Guerrero.  You can see La Esperanza in English at http://www.thehopeproject.com.

When there hasn't been a load to haul, the walking from IDT's base to evangelize at the house construction sites and to help families has been good.  Being the only "Americano" on the bus into Vicente Guerrero has never been a problem.   I've ridden the bus several times to gather parts to fix my water pump.  In fact, the bus service is reliable and very easy to use.  I recommend it if you don't mind a lack of legroom!

Looking ahead, we have a busy March.  We're planning a concert outreach at the Dome church in the Las Misiones village for the youth of that area.  Our youth will soon be heading 500 miles south to Loreto to present a youth conference at Ancla de Fe (Anchor of Faith) church.  Other opportunities for movie outreaches are just on the horizon and we have our ongoing house-building program, too.  Please pray that the Lord would bring many people into His Kingdom during these outreaches.

Luke 9:23-24

When I came to Baja 1 1/2 years ago, I thought it was to serve God by going out to villages and agricultural camps to evangelize by showing the "Jesus" film.  If it were my choice, that's what I'd be doing all the time.  But, Jesus said "If anyone wishes to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me.  For whoever wishes to save his life shall lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake, he is the one who will save it."

This verse has taken on new meanings for me.  Sometimes, denying ourselves means we sit and relax when we want to be "doing something for God".  Sometimes it means buying a burrito of very questionable origin from someone on the street just for the opportunity to speak to them.  Sometimes it means hanging out in a grocery store waiting for a family to finish shopping.

During the past two weeks, I've had opportunities to talk to a couple of pastors about showing films for their outreaches, but nothing has developed.  God has given me  opportunities to go shopping for clothing and groceries with families and to help a local man with a couple of trips to the hospital and trips to pharmacies for medicine.  The Lord has also been slowly expanding a new ministry of distributing gospel messages and bible stories on CD in the Mixteco and Triqui languages.  Even though there are few opportunities to do what I think I should be "doing for God", if I submit to Him and His will, He will glorify Himself.  All of this reminds me of a quote by Pastor Greg Laurie:  "You can't be too small for God to use, only too big."

God's Blessings

For whatever reason, it seems the Lord has chosen to send many blessings to us here at IDT Baja lately.  Our visitors from Springs of Hope completed their visit and returned to Jerusalem.  Just before they left, the Lord sent an amazingly faithful couple from Cornerstone Church in Lodi, CA with a 5th wheel load of clothing, water, and household items for us to distribute.  While they were here, He also sent four servants from the Global Response Team in the Lodi/Stockton/Modesto, CA area with several tons (I'm not exaggerating) of food plus two clothes washers and a dryer.  Wow!

This past week, God sent an awesome group of missionaries from Chico, CA to build three new houses for poor families.  They constructed the houses with time left over to also help one of IDT's missionaries with a project at her house and help a very poor family buy some needed clothing and other items.

Now, as I type, God is sending us water from the sky.  Really!  I'm serious!  I think many people call it rain.  Anyway, it's causing all sorts of beautiful plants to grow all over what seemed to be empty, dusty, rocky wasteland.  Under that dry, seemingly useless land, God left millions of seeds just waiting for the right amount of moisture.  Our normally brown land is green everywhere and the local farmers are watching their wheat grow.  In a few spots, you can even find fields of wildflowers.  Thank you, Lord!!

Jerusalem Comes to Vicente Guerrero

This week, IDT Baja is the honored host of the founder and directors of Springs of Hope (check out http://springs-of-hope.net/blog/).  The Lord has blessed us with a visit by this couple who serve victims of terror in Jerusalem and throughout Israel.  They are here to speak to the Church in Mexico about how God is using Springs of Hope to bring reconciliation to Jews and Arabs who have been victims of terror attacks in Israel.  Their message is simply what Jesus would probably say.  Love is the only weapon that can be victorious over terrorism and evil.

One large speaking engagement was held last night at the largest church in our area.  A full house of about 700 people heard the founder of Springs of Hope speak about how her son, an Israel Defense Forces soldier, was attacked and nearly beaten to death by a mob of Islamic terrorists.  They saw her photos of bombings, rocket attacks, etc.  They also saw hundreds of photos of children at summer camps held by Springs of Hope.  These summer camps are designed to help the young victims of terror attacks deal with their terrible memories and psychological problems (inability to sleep, behavior problems, etc.) that result from the terror attacks.  Springs of Hope also holds events to help widows and widowers who have lost spouses in terror attacks.

We have several more events to go this week with Springs of Hope.  The most interesting one, I think, will be next Saturday when many Mexican women from our area will meet with the leaders of Springs of Hope.  These Mexican women have loved and served victims of terror in Israel by making challah bread covers.  Challah bread is the special bread served by Jewish families for their Shabbat dinner every week on Friday evening at the beginning of the sabbath.  The Challah bread covers are decorative towels used to cover the bread.  Each one is made by hand and says in Hebrew script "Shabbat Shalom" (Peaceful Sabbath).  When Springs of Hope distributes challah bread covers to terror victims, the Israelis cannot believe that a Christian in Mexico loves them enough to make and send a challah bread cover to them.  It's amazing when God uses something as simple as a hand-stitched towel to demonstrate His all-conquering love.

Merry Christmas!

Well, yes, I'm a smidge early for a "Merry Christmas" posting, but things are getting busy here and I may not be able to write again before the big day.

Things are busy here because our Christmas shoebox gifts have come in and are being distributed by local churches and missionaries here at IDT.  Thank you to everyone who paid for, prepared, and/or transported these gifts for the poor.  You are a blessing and you're making God smile!

Thank you also to two fine men from the Lodi, CA area who drove overnight to bring a big trailer full of shoeboxes from Canada and the U.S. along with food, clothing, etc.  You made God smile, too.

This week, we have two Christmas outreaches here at IDT.  I'm planning to show a movie to kids at a church in Camalu.  Also, we're planning to have a "Princess Dinner" for the girls at La Paloma children's home.  It will be a blast to throw a fancy party for these girls who, for various reasons, don't live with their families.  The Lord has given them IDT as their family and we want them to grow to be the godly women He wants them to be.

May you daily be transformed by the reality of the Lord Jesus Christ being born on earth with the purpose of giving His innocent life to pay for all peoples' guilt.  Merry Christmas!

What to Write? What to Write?

Writer's block is one thing in this world that I could do without.  It's not that nothing has been happening down here in Baja.  The Lord has been busy and we've been busy along with Him.  So, here we go....

We recently had visits from five people from Cornerstone Church who brought a TON of donated clothing, a bed, chairs, and too many other things to list.  Thank you!  The Lord brought them all the way down here with no problems at all!  A lot of the items have been distributed and others are in storage for future distribution.

Two new ministries are getting off the ground.  With so many people in our area having difficulty reading and with Spanish being their second language, I've begun distributing gospel messages, bible stories, and songs in their primary languages of Mixteco and Triqui.  My hope is to have CDs available at local churches that people can simply take home with them or share with friends.  This may be a way to reach those with limited Spanish and those who refuse to go to church.  If they hear these messages being played by their neighbors, God can change their hearts.  His arm is not too short to save!

The other ministry that has begun is administering funds to keep children in school.  Accepting Jesus Christ as your Savior and Lord is absolutely the most important thing in this world.  The second most important is to have some sort of education.  In this area, some children never go to school or they leave school by 6th grade.  Without a basic education, these people will be stuck in poverty and working in the fields for little pay their whole lives.  The schools don't seem to care too much.  If a child does not have the proper uniform and shoes, they may not go to school.

To address this problem, a wonderful family in California has begun designating the funds they send to keep children in school.  This money is used to purchase backpacks, uniforms, shoes, pencils, paper, typewriters (required for older kids here), and whatever else they need for school.  A big difference is already being made for one very poor family.

We're also getting busy with our Christmas shoebox gift program and should begin distributing the gifts to local churches in the next couple of weeks.  Also, just this past Thursday, the Lord led us to the right contacts to begin helping two churches, one in El Rosario and the other about 2 hours south of here in Catavina (say Cataveen-ya).  We simply rolled into town and the first person we met was our contact.  Sometimes, things are pretty easy when we do things God's way.

Responding Globally Unto the King

The past two weeks have been packed with opportunities.  Last week, Unto the King Fellowship and Global Response Team sent a group of six men to bless one of IDT's missionaries with a roof for her house.  Baja is nearing its rainy season and she was concerned about her un-shingled roof being damaged by water.  The Lord sent these men from Lodi & Manteca, CA and Oregon to provide a beautiful roof for her.

This group jumped off the roof and into their truck Tuesday evening to serve the poor by participating in another outreach to some of the poorest of the poor in Padre Kino.  They distributed warm clothing, bibles and bible story books to people who live in rented rooms, use towels as their front doors, and launder their clothing on slabs of concrete.  I'm pretty sure God was smiling.

After the men from CA and OR left last Saturday, a group of Canadians came to IDT.  They were very eager to do outreaches and the Lord provided an opportunity to show the Jesus film in the Triqui language at the Dome church.  The Canadians also distributed clothing and good, clean drinking water to the audience.  As usual, the neighborhood kids at the Dome church were pretty wild, but most of the audience was captivated by the movie.  There are very few resources available in the Triqui language because so few people speak it.  It was a real treat for the people to see a movie in their primary language.  My prayer is that the gospel is more clearly understood by everyone who saw the movie.

Today was another Pastors' conference here at IDT.  This one focused on persecution of Christians in the 10/40 window and was attended by 60-70 people.  The 10/40 window is a huge area of the world, including most of Africa and Asia, where the predominant religions are Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, etc.  Many eyes were opened to the suffering faced by Christians in this area of the world at the hands of proponents of the other religions.  The best Mexican worship band around, Golgotha, led us in worship and the Lord let me serve by putting on my "sound guy" hat.  It's time for a quick breath before next week begins.

Two Thieves and a Savior

First the bad news...If you see a red Dodge Ram pickup in Northern Baja, please contact me asap.  It may be stolen.  It was one of the vehicles used by Cornerstone, my home church in Lodi, California, for their mission trip.  After a fantastic week of ministry and fellowship, this truck was stolen in Ensenada along with it's load of camping gear while the group ate lunch.  This left my pastor and his wife stranded in Ensenada trying to work with the police to find the truck.  It will be a miracle if this vehicle is recovered.  Thank you very, very much to the couple who loaned the truck for Cornerstone's use.  It served us well and we're praying that it is returned to you, or that your insurance company is gracious to you, and that God provides an even better one for you soon.

Second bit of bad news....a group from Unto the King Fellowship and Global Response Team that just arrived last night for their mission trip had technical difficulties with their trailer about 20 miles north of IDT.  They had to leave it by the highway.  Rule #1 of driving in Baja is:  "Don't leave any vehicle by the side of the road" and they were forced to break it.  When we drove back up the highway to get it this morning, we found nothing but tracks as evidence that someone had dragged the disabled trailer down a side road.  We followed the tracks, found it and, after some ingenious welding by our mission pastor, recovered the trailer.  All of the donations were gone.  We're very pleased that the Lord allowed us to recover this trailer.  If you donated anything loaded in it, thank you for your selflessness and generosity.  Please don't let this incident keep you from sending things for the poor.

Now, the GOOD NEWS!!  Due to Cornerstone's evangelistic outreach filled week, around 50 people apparently will be in Heaven because they responded to God's good news and made professions of faith in Jesus Christ.  Hallelujah!  We had three outreaches.  One in Colonia Vicente Guerrero, one in a small fishing village called La Chorrera, and another in the small town of Padre Kino.  There were balloon animals for the kids, music, drawing lessons, dinner, and a showing of the "Story of Jesus for Children" during each outreach.  These activities drew the crowds, God touched hearts, and peoples' lives were changed forever.  That's my kind of week!

Please ask God to bless this coming week and cause the thieves to be so sickened by what they've done that they turn to Christ for His forgiveness.

God Can Do It!

Something is about to happen that I've been looking forward to for a long time.  Cornerstone, my home church in Lodi, California, is coming to Baja for their annual, week-long mission trip this Sunday!  Yea!

So far, we're planning to fill the week with outreaches.  We're trusting God to provide opportunities to share the gospel, serve the poor, and shine through us.  We're trusting Him to bring the eternal results.

The following week, Unto the King Fellowship is coming from Lodi for their own mission trip.  Many of my friends attend this fellowship and they're coming to do some construction work on a missionary family's house.  I'm sure their efforts will be a great blessing to the family and we're hoping the Lord will provide a few evangelistic opportunities along the way.

Also, a large group of missionaries is heading south to Loreto and Constitucion in Baja Sur.  They plan to hold several conferences to promote unity in Christ.  Wouldn't it be wonderful if all of the churches in these cities would lay aside their denominational differences and focus on the Savior they have in common?  God can make it happen and we're asking Him to use these conferences to do it.

Please join me in asking the Lord to change people's lives (and eternities) through what He has us do during the next two weeks.

One Big Praise Report

Thank you for your prayers for outreach opportunities!  The Lord's response gives me an opportunity for a praise report and that's always fun.  God recently gave me the opportunity to show two movies at two churches a few miles south of IDT's base.  In La Cali, I showed "The Passion of the Christ" at a small church.  No one seemed to respond to the gospel presentation the pastor gave after the movie, but the Word went out and we will see in eternity what the results were.

The other showing was of "La Historia de Dios" (The Story of God) which is a pretty good rendering of all time---from creation to eternity.  Yeah, the film company was pretty ambitious.  When the pastor's wife gave the gospel presentation after the movie, one man had the courage to come forward to accept Jesus Christ as his Savior and Lord.  Here in Mexico, it can be a difficult thing for men to come forward saying they are insufficient in themselves and that they need Jesus Christ to forgive them, help them in this earthly life, and give them eternal life with Him.  Some of you may be thinking "Hey, it was only one guy.  Is that worth a praise report?"  The Bible says the angels in Heaven rejoice when even one person repents from their sin and turns to Jesus Christ.  If the angels are rejoicing, I will join them!

In other news, our Israel focused prophecy conference on September 15 was an enormous success!  IDT was packed to the rafters with pastors and church members for a full day of teaching.  I got to run sound and video all day.  There's a strong need for deep, biblical teaching here and God provided it through our pastor at this conference.  A special thank you to my favorite Mexican worship band "Golgotha" which led worship at the conference!

God is soooo good!

We serve a good God!  Many people think the Lord is a big, powerful policeman who keeps us from having fun by telling us all the things we can't do.  On the contrary, the Lord is full of goodness and blessings!  We here in Baja experienced just a sliver of God's goodness this weekend.  He provided six short-term missionaries to bring several tons of food and supplies for our mission.  They will likely be used for outreaches, for our La Paloma children's home, and by missionary families.  He also provided a beautiful,  roomy, comfortable, well-stocked 5th wheel trailer for a missionary who lost her home and personal belongings to an arsonist a few months ago.  He requires us to give up some things we think we want, but He more than repays us when we are faithful and obedient.  We serve a GOOD God!

Right now, we are preparing for a prophecy conference on September 15 for local pastors to teach them about prophecies in the bible, the ways in which many have been fulfilled and how others may be fulfilled in the future with a focus on Israel.  We're expecting about 20-30 pastors for a full day of teaching.  Please keep this in prayer.

Also, Jesus film opportunities have been few and far between lately.  There are other outreach opportunities I've been taking advantage of, but the Jesus film can be particularly effective.  If God is willing, I want to be very busy showing it to non-believers who are willing to let God change their minds and hearts!

Last Days of Summer

It can't be!  It simply cannot be true!  Is summer really almost gone?  This summer has been one big blur.  Since the first of June, the Lord has allowed visiting missionaries the honor of building between 4 and 8 houses every week for poor families in our area.  He has let us have Jesus film outreaches and other outreaches to IDT's hometown of Zarahembla and several other towns.  He has also let us hold a pastors' conference and participate with local churches to reach out to youth.  Right now, we're preparing for another pastors' conference during which the pastors will learn about bible prophecy.  Much is expected of we who have been given much.

I just returned from a good trip to Kansas for a week to visit my family including an aunt I had not seen for way, way, way too long.  By the way, friendly and faithful Kansas is still there right in the middle of the USA.  It has not been blown away by tornadoes.....yet.

On my personal plate of things to do, the Jesus film ministry is foremost whenever God provides an opportunity.  There is always a need for street ministry and evangelism at our house construction sites.  This afternoon, I'm planning to help a fellow missionary and a couple of Mexican girls learn to play guitar.  May the Lord raise up the girls to lead worship in Spanish!

Jesus in Triqui in Triqui

Nope, I don't stutter....especially not while typing.  Jesus was in Triqui in Triqui.  The Lord provided an opportunity to show the Jesus film in the language known as Triqui San Juan Copala in the Triqui Indian village this past Wednesday.  Triqui and Mixteco are spoken in the Oaxaca area of southern mainland Mexico where many people in this area lived.  A good crowd of about 50 came to Capilla Cristiana (Christian Chapel) to watch.

On Thursday, two small Oaxacan ladies welcomed me back to Capilla Cristiana while they were sweeping the floor to prepare for the evening.  The Jesus film was shown to a smaller group in the Mixteco Juxtahuaca language.  Many people seemed to benefit from hearing the gospel in their native language.

The previous week was filled with showing videos for a youth conference at Iglesia Torre Fuerte (Strong Tower Church) in Santa Fe.  This conference was an outreach event to youth in Santa Fe by a pastor who is eager for God to transform his community.  We had good crowds ranging from 35 to 100 people every night.  The conference ended with a drama performance by a group of youth from Iglesia Ancla de Fe (Anchor of Faith Church) in Loreto, Baja Sur, Mexico and a local band of four young women playing modern Christian rock worship music.  When all was done, the pastor was wiped out, but I believe the Lord will honor his efforts.

Along with all of the above, the Lord has allowed me to continue evangelism at our house construction sites and street evangelism to kids in Las Misiones.  This next week, I'm scheduled to show the Jesus film again in Spanish at Capilla Cristiana in the Triqui village.  Please ask God to draw people into His Kingom and transform their lives. 

Patience

Thank you for your patience and thank you to those who e-mailed asking why I haven't posted in a while.  Well, as we say down here south of the border, we are in FLEXico and that requires FLEXibility when the web doesn't work.

This is the heart of IDT's housebuilding season and the Lord has been using us to serve the poor with our visiting missionaries.  God has had a wide variety of things for me to do like helping a family with a child in the hospital, our daycare center, participating in several outreaches, some evangelism at our construction sites, and some street ministry particularly in Los Misiones.  A big thank you goes out to a visiting worship band from the L.A. area who put on four big outreaches.  It's so refreshing when our visiting missionaries go out of their way to build the Church!

Next week, I have four events at the same church in Santa Fe on Monday through Thursday evenings and another event at a house construction site.  Also on the horizon is another outreach at the Dome church.  I can't wait to see what the Lord does! 

When It Rains, It Pours

When it gets busy at IDT/Baja, it gets BUSY!  This past week we had groups from California building houses for poor families and doing construction on a church.  They served the Lord about 30 minutes south of IDT's base.  My role, as usual, was to do what God had for me - and He had a lot.

On Tuesday, He let us partner with a church from the Stockton/Lodi, CA area to serve dinner, treat dogs for mange, and show the Jesus Film for Kids.  This outreach was at the "Dome" church in the Triqui Indian village.  This church meets in an enormous geodesic dome that was brought down from Oregon years ago and reconstructed on site.  The crowd was 95% children and most were very attentive and appreciative of the opportunity to see the movie.  Over 500 hot dogs were served and about 30 dogs were treated.  Yeah, I know, the dog clinic sounds strange, but people who would never go to a church event will go to a dog clinic and it leaves the community much healthier.

On Thursday afternoon, the Lord provided an opportunity to partner with another visiting group of short-term missionaries for an outreach to children in Morales.  I showed the Jesus Film for Kids inside a church building.  It was at least 80 degrees inside the church and the projector shut down twice due to overheating, but we finished the movie anyway.  The church's pastor led all of the children in prayer after the movie.  Only the Lord knows the eternal consequences of this outreach.  Immediately after this event, I got to lead worship at our church service.  Yea!

On Wednesday evening, I showed the Transformation video at a church in San Quintin about 10 miles south of IDT.  On Saturday evening, I showed it again to a group of youth at a church in the Triqui Indian village.  This video is a documentary of how God has transformed lives and communities around the world when people turn to Him and cry out for His help.  It's used to provide an opportunity for another missionary to talk to groups and encourage them to turn to God and allow Him to transform their community.  "I am the Vine; you are the branches.  If a man remains in Me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from Me, you can do nothing."  John 15:5

Ready for Summer

Things have been a little slower than usual at IDT lately.  We've had only a few visitors and, I think, one house building group during May.  We're in the starting blocks and ready to sprint through the summer house building season.  The street ministry has also been a little slow with most kids in school and many adults working, although God provided Irene (pronounced Eraena) with new shoes.  Praise Him!

This past Tuesday, another IDT missionary and I joined with a local pastor at the "Dome" church in the Triqui Indian village of Las Misiones to hold an event to foster unity in the local churches.  We showed a video that documents how God has transformed communities all around the world.  If you've ever been to Las Misiones, you know that it could benefit from some transformation.  Unemployment, lack of education, alcohol, drugs, adultery, mangy dogs, theft, vandalism, and witchcraft are a few of Las Misiones' challenges.

The evening went very well with about 100 adults attending from various churches and the village in general.  The kids were running, jumping, and climbing, too fast to count.  The audience seemed to be excited about what God is capable of doing with respect to transforming their community.  Of course, anything is possible with God, but He waits until we are willing to lay down our selfish desires and seek Him with our whole heart.  And rightfully so...after all, He is God.

A Week in Loreto

First, some business:  It has come to my attention that some folks don't know how to operate the photo albums you see to the left of all my babbling.  Simply click on a photo album of the photos you would like to see.  This will allow you to view all of the photos in that category.  When you see a group of small "thumbnail" photos, click on one and it will become a more viewable size.  Then you can click "next" to view all of the photos.  Don't worry.  It's easier to do than it is to explain.  Post a "comment" to me if you find the pic of the Mexican jail!

Our mission trip to Loreto was a success!  Last week, a small group of missionaries from IDT traveled 500 miles south to Loreto to support and encourage pastors in the Loreto and Constitucion areas.  I followed a couple of days after them because God gave me the blessing of a visit from a couple of guys from Lodi.  When they left Vicente Guerrero, I packed up the Jesus film equipment and some clothes for Loreto.

A hard-working, very outreach oriented pastor in Loreto arranged three outreaches during the week.  Two were at agricultural labor camps in San Juan (north of Loreto) and one outreach was at a construction labor facility in Loreto.  By the way, don't bother looking for San Juan on a map.  It's more of a place where people live between farm fields than it is a town.  You must know which gravel road to take from the main (only) highway.  There are a lot of places like that here in Baja.

All three outreaches went well.  The Lord allowed us to encourage Christians living in these places and, altogether, about 25-30 apparently responded to the gospel and accepted Jesus Christ as their Savior and Lord!  This is just further proof that, if we step out in faith, God will guide, provide, and work in peoples' hearts to glorify Himself.

The balance of our trip consisted of visiting and encouraging pastors in Loreto and Constitucion.  We accompanied one pastor in Constitucion on his weekly visit to a jail.  A Mexican jail is a place I could happily not visit, but the inmates and pastor held a wonderful church service.  It was a terrific opportunity to encourage inmates who have accepted Christ while behind bars and also demonstrate love for all the other inmates with whom we spoke.  Our God is endlessly creative and full of surprises!

Mucho Ministry

The past couple of weeks have been busy since we returned from Israel.  Last week, the Lord provided opportunities to do street ministry with kids by giving them bible story books.  He provided new shoes and socks for ten barefoot boys and girls in Las Misiones (a Triqui Indian village) that required a trip up to Ensenada.  These shoes may allow some of them to attend school again.  If they don't have shoes and the required school uniform, they cannot attend school.  That's the rule here.  Since families around here earn just enough to keep from starving, there is not much left over for shoes whether they're needed or not.

This week, I've been building a movie screen on which to show the Jesus film.  It's wooden with "blanco brillante" paint.  You can see pictures of my craftsmanship (yeah, right!) in the Jesus Film photo album on this site.  The screen can be easily dismantled into 5 pieces that fit in my pickup.  It bolts together, is fairly light, and will stand up in Baja's wind.

Also, a few Jesus film opportunities are possible next week.  There are a couple of Mexican citizens who are in the process of arranging venues and appointments in and around the towns of Emiliano Zapata, Santa Fe, and Playas Guerrero.  The Jesus film may also venture down south to San Ignacio, Mulege, & Loreto within a week or so.  Tune in next time to see what pans out!