2019 Training Trip

After the annual conference of the Mexican Lutheran Apostolic Alliance (AALM), Alma and I spent a couple of weeks with each of our pastors and congregations in the Mexican states of Puebla and Sinaloa from February through May. Here are a few of the highlights.

While in the northern mountains of Puebla, we stayed with our dear brother pastor Floriberto and his family in Huahuaxtla.

Alma had a chance to learn the fine art of cooking Poblana style.

I was able to learn the fine art of fixing a wheelbarrow... with a big rock!

At the same time, we spent time with them teaching how to lead small groups to lead people to faith, make disciples, and start new churches. 

It was a lot of fun being able to teach a little more guitar to pastor Floriberto's daughter Andrea who I taught guitar to when she was just a little girl, now she has her own daughter. (I taught her with the little guitar Alma has)

Part of our practice time with the pastors was going out sharing the Gospel and then setting them up to continue discipling them afterward. This is a little village with no church at all called Chalahuico. 

                                                                                                                   

Pastor Flori and his wife Concita continue discipling Jose and Lupe, the first believers in Chalahuico

We also helped the congregation in Zacapoaxtla to begin new groups in homes as well. 

The Lord blessed us with a little 125 motorcycle to use while we were in the mountains so that we could get around a little easier. 

To be continued...

Conference Pictures Zacapoaxtla Puebla 2019

Link to Latest Prayer Letter January February 2019

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1xoXkK_o0oyU2hA1j11YG6srNRB-BySc3X9O9CNUUAqs/edit?usp=sharing

Shooting in Nogales

See Breitbart News Article on Nogales shooting at the border.

Journey Missions at Triumph Lutheran Nogales

We had a great group of believers from St John Evangelical Lutheran Congregation at Schwer in Milford Illinois. Jon Nelson, the director of Journey missions worked to organize the project to replace to old roof with a metal roof. They enjoyed our warm weather of around freezing at night to the 70's in the daytime (note the T-shirts :-). God is good! 

Thank You Jon, Hiedi, Jeramiah, Quentin, Matthew, Ken, Robert, Austin, Andrew, Paul and Ruth. God bless you and reward you for your giving, serving hearts.  

There shall be showers of blessing. Ezekiel 34:26

"There shall be showers of blessing". Ezekiel 34:26

We had a wonderful time in Masiaca Sonora Mexico celebrating Jesus coming, and seeking Him as we welcomed the New Year. The church in Masiaca invited me to preach at the service that began at 9:00 pm and went until after midnight.

Our prayer is that the church be revived and grow in the grace and knowledge of Jesus Christ, and that the many unbelieving and uncommitted that were present would be convicted and come to the love of God that Jesus brought to us on that first Christmas. 

The trip back up to the border was exceptionally easy. I thing we were ahead of the rush because we came back on the first. Most of the tolls were closed, I think we only had to pay once (about $9), which was a blessing in itself. 

When we got home we noticed dust and dirt all over Alma's desk chair. Upon further investigation we noticed a hole in the ceiling and a hole in one of her notebooks. It was reminiscent of last year finding a bullet hole in the roof of our camper and a 45 slug on the floor. This time it was a 308 round! 

And that wasn't all, we had two more rounds through our roof. One through the front porch, the other into the kitchen. After patching the holes to keep water from pouring in, I went to the police station to report it. They said I was the tenth person to come in to file a report. One person had a round go through there car window. But no injuries. They said they even had a round go through their roof, all of which come from Mexico, just the hazards of living on the border.   

Honduran migrant says that beans and tortillas are food for pigs

This video has become in-famous in Mexico because as everyone knows, in Mexico we love refried beans. Even in many parts of Mexico they are considered a luxury that cannot always be afforded.

Alma and I visited with Raul, a 27 year old man sitting on a sofa outside his apartment in la Anza. After a few questions, he shared that he expected he would get into heaven because, well, he hadn't done anything exceptionally bad. So, after looking at a few of the Ten Commandments, he changed his story, confessing his guilt and inability to enter heaven. So, after presenting the love of God sending Jesus to the cross to pay the penalty for his sins, we asked if he was ready to repent and trust Jesus as his Lord and Savior. He then brought up this story of the Honduran and the beans. We can be so ungrateful sometimes, like the Honduran and the beans. I don't want to be like that, and so we prayed together. Pray for Raul and his wife Itza, and the people of the migrant caravan.