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February 28, 2006
A Selfless People
posted by Mackenzi
A tiny poor ejido (Spanish for a small town) hosts the meeting of the surrounding and wealthier churches, providing and making two meals for more than fifty people.
A teenage boy whose not well-to-do father buys him a brand new motorcycle and he willing lends this treasured possession to friends and family even after one of them accidentally hurts it. A teenager, who at times does not even have the money for a bus ticket home from music school to come see his family, insists on paying for his wealthier friends’ meals. A young man hits a pole with his brother’s car and his brother lets him drive it again. A woman, whose family owns a taco stand to make a living, invites two girls to eat potatoes at her taco stand since she rarely has them, and then she gives the richer girls tacos and Cokes to go along with them and wouldn’t let them pay for them. All of these are examples of the selfless Christians in Jaumave who give of themselves and their belongings. I’ve wondered if I will ever be able to be as unselfish as them and I’m ashamed of how much I hold onto my earthly possessions. They have the right attitude about what is important. I have yet to meet a Christian in Jaumave who wasn’t willing to share and it seems that their giving spirit is endless. People are more important than things and the witness of the Christians in Jaumave is very strong in following the verse "Freely you have received, freely give" (Matthew 10:8)
February 21, 2006
Pepe de Leon
posted by Randy
Our brother, friend, and pastor – Pepe de Leon:
God has blessed me/us so much with Pepe. He is a wonderful, godly servant of God who regularly and gladly gives literally everything he has to those around him. His faith is really amazing and wonderful to watch. Pepe’s focus is on ministering and giving the gospel to those with whom he comes in contact. God lead me to Pepe before we moved here. God had made it clear that I needed to find the Christian leader in our area with the exceptional integrity and good connections. After asking the local American missionaries and the local Mexican Christians, God made it abundantly and unanimously clear that Pepe was the man who would help guide us through many important decisions and help us with important contacts. Not only is Pepe our loving pastor, but he is the one who introduced me to and suggested the two godly managers of our door manufacturing plant. He continues to come 1-2 times per week and lead our daily devotions. He also shows up from time to time and visits with our employees. You can count on Pepe to look, listen (to the person and the Holy Spirit), and gently share Christ with them. He works tirelessly for our Lord. We praise God and are inspired by Pepe.
February 14, 2006
My Changed Life
posted by German
My name is German Antonio Castro de Leon and I am 17 years old.
Before I started working here I was the kind of person that did not like to hear any advice from others, and I did not care what I believed. But little by little and with help from the Word I have changed my life and it keeps on changing day by day.
Cuando ingrese aqui era totalmente inconverso me valia por lo que yo creia pero poco a poco y con ayuda de la palabra fui moldeundo mi vida y lo sigo haciendo dia a dia.
February 07, 2006
Sharing an Evening
posted by David
Edna and Erika, my workmates, and Erika's precious 23 month-old Alex, came over for dinner tonight. Edna is our M.D. translator who obviously speaks good English (she can even understand Tim's East Texas idioms!). Erika is our office manager and a single mom living with her parents. She studied English at university and can understand quite a bit but only speaks about as much English as I do Spanish, so Edna's translating duties carried over into the time.
I think we were all excited about seeing the two boys playing together. Jesse just had a really good time with his second cousin Gabe over Christmas so was a little primed for the meeting. Edna and I arrived a few minutes late from work to find the two boys feeling each other out in a delightful display of curiosity and play. We looked at books in English and Spanish, played with balls (with Alex calling out "GOAL" with every kick!) and toy farm animals. I pray that a real relationship develops between the two.
Erika, accepted Christ several weeks after joining the team and has been a wonderful picture of transformation over these last months. Before she joined us she was working in the capital, about 45 minutes away, while Alex stayed with her parents here in town and the two only had time together on the weekends. She's a rocket, really sharp and usually "on," keeping up with the many details of our various businesses and pushing ahead with all of the "next steps." We would not have had the success that we have without her. It was probably a bit of a struggle for her to really relax tonight, especially with Alex exploring as a young boy should, but I think she had a good time. (Edna told me that she teasingly told Erika a couple days ago that she should make sure that Alex didn't push Jesse or she might be in trouble with me. Edna told me today that since then Erika has been training him to not push!) We certainly enjoyed her presence.
Our friendship with Edna continues to grow, even though we haven't spent much time together outside of work—I think this was only the third time that Madeleine and she have hung out. We're so grateful for her beautiful spirit as well as her insight into the culture. 2005 was a really hard year for her physically, with a lot of doctor visits and even hospital stays. She told me recently that because of the drugs that the doctors have had her on she's gained over 40 pounds over the year—she was evidently very thin before all this happened. I got to meet her two sisters, both older, several weeks ago. They both speak very good English; in fact they both teach English. Then, last week, during a surprise visit, I got to meet her dad, a gentleman by all accounts. I am grateful for Edna's presence in our lives.
None of us shared deeply or even started notable conversations, but it was a really good time. It's just nice to be known a little bit and to know in return, to hear from "the locals" that our family has a place here. I'm probably being a bit dramatic, but tonight it feels this significant.
We continue to be grateful to be here. After this last trip to the 'States, our longest yet, the transition back home was the easiest yet. I was actually a little concerned coming back—I was ready to return to our rhythms here and the beauty and the lack of options and activity, but I was very aware of the lack of developed beauty: architecture, coffee shops, bookstores, thoughtful design, good food, and so on. I find I've been chewing more gum and sunflower seeds, and ordering various loose ends, but the deeper beauty consistently outweighs the lacking hospitalities, and the tostadas really are pretty good. As is the case for us all, it seems, it is in the absence of apparently unnecessary "needs" that our roots deepen and we discover new elements of our homes and even ourselves.