I Saw a Man Walk...

"For you died when Christ died, and your real life is hidden with Christ in God. And when Christ, who is your real life, is revealed to the whole world, you will share in all his glory." Colossians 3:3-4

If I had to judge, I would say this Lent was one of the hardest and longest for me in a long time...if not ever. At the beginning, I was excited (and nervous) about following Christ in forty days of fasting. Filled with hopes and dreams about how close I would be to Jesus, I embarked on this adventure! By the last few days, I was just ready for it to be over. My prayer in the first few days of Lent for the Lord's protection when Satan's testing came (probably near the end of the fast, like it happened for Jesus) was a distant memory, hazy in the recesses of my mind.

Iglesia del Gran Pastor (The Church of the Great Shepherd, my church in Mexico) had a retreat on Spiritual Warfare on Maundy Thursday and Good Friday. I planned on not going. I was tired. I was busy. I didn't want to, but I went and God showed up and showed out!

I can't recount everything that happened, but I saw a man walk. He had been bound to a wheelchair for five and a half years due to a stroke. More than he was bound by physical limitations, he was bound by fear...fear of trying to walk, fear of falling, fear of failure. But I saw other believers surround him with prayer, I saw Jesus meet him at the point of his fear, and I saw him walk. They were halting steps, steps taken as he leaned on his wife, but they were steps free from his wheelchair.

And as I watched him walk, I wept. I watched his steps and realized that that is just how Jesus sees all of us. Crippled, bound by imaginary threats and fears, unwilling to try...again. But, more than that, He sees us rising from our place of captivity with the help of our brothers and sisters, taking a few halting steps. Most likely, our healing will be a process. You see after this man walked for a while he returned to his wheelchair. Our first steps of freedom are usually shaky and there will be many advances and retreats. Scripture says our new life is still hidden. On our best days we catch glimpses of it; on our worst we doubt its existence. But it is still there...as clear as the death of Jesus and as sure as His resurrection. One day, the lame, once bound by crippled, useless feet, will dance in His presence, and the blind will see who they really are....beyond this Lenten Land, Resurrection awaits us! He is risen! Allelujah!

Dulce & her imagination

Today I had the chance to play with one of my 4 year olds, Dulce (which means "sweet" in Spanish). This morning in my Bible class with the adults we were finishing up our study of the Lord's Prayer. We talked about praise and the phrase "For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory forever!" So, I decided to pull out some old club instruments (you know cans with beans and bells inside) and praise with Dulce. I was so excited to hear the news that her father who had been ill had found a new job and was glad that we were going to read the verse about singing a new song to the Lord. Although Dulce wasn't quite as enthusiastic as I was about singing, she enjoyed playing along on the instruments.

I think the part both of us enjoyed the most was playing with blocks. We made our very own house--with a bed for Dulce, her little brother and her grandmother. I enjoyed seeing her creativity blossom right before my eyes. She kept adding rooms and beds and windows until our house was complete. Then she used our "car" to move all our things back to their box.

As I played with her, I got inspired all over again to dream! I began to think about playing and imagining and their importance in the life of children. And I wondered why we stop imagining as adults. I've been thinking about the creative imagination that God has given us and how He wants to put His dreams, plans, and desires in our hearts. I pray Dulce keeps dreaming...watching her, I'm learning to dream all over again!

Team Thanksgiving

Yesterday I was able to celebrate Thanksgiving with the CFCI missionaries here. We had a great time. Everyone made some food and we had a celebration of Thanksgiving for God's goodness to us this year.

I was glad to get to share the holiday with the missionaries and to also be able to be with my family for the Holiday. I can't stop being thankful to God--He indeed does all things well!

Dios esta conmigo dondequiera que vaya (God is with me wherever I go!)

We knew that something was wrong when the grandmother approached the van with her head down. Elizabeth and I were on our regular route picking the kids up and this particular grandmother is usually pretty chipper and happy to see us. We listened as she explained in tears that her granddaughter no longer lived with her. Her daughter had taken her from school and moved across the border with a boyfriend who was bad news. As she cried softly we prayed with her that God would give her peace, that He would protect the little girl and help her remember and draw comfort from what she learned in Club.

I realized then how important our lessons really are. This little girl who was moving to a strange place needed to know that God was with her there too. God could provide for her the same way that He provided for Jacob when he was forced to flee his home. This wasn't just a story, it was her life.

I can also testify that God has been with me these five months that I've been in Mexico. I know that God is omnipresent, but sometimes I forget that He's right here with me....aware of what I'm feeling and in control of my life. This lesson has been driven home even more as the CFCI Board is making a decision about the Patio (the house we live in). They are deciding whether or not we have the funding to buy the house or if we are going to move to a different location. God has been with many CFCI missionaries in this house and I know He'll be with us....wherever He leads.

Please pray:

1. for this Club girl's safety as well as comfort for her grandmother--and most of all that they would come to know the Lord through this


2. for wisdom as the CFCI Board makes a decision about the Patio


3. for continued strength and vision as we finish up this semester of Club

ps: here's a pic from our All Saint's Party (Nov. 2).

Dios Provee (God Provides)

This week at Club we've been studying about how God provided a spouse for Isaac. We taught the kids that just like Abraham's servant all we have to do is pray and God will provide all of our needs. The phrase for the week is "Dios Provee" (God Provides). Thus, I've been meditating on the wonderful ways that God has provided for me here and on the faith I should have that He'll continue to provide in the future.

I've especially thought about how God provided Isaac with a wife. I pray that our kids (especially my 3 & 4 year olds) will learn early on that godly spouses come from God and that we have to be patient while He provides. I'm also praying that this truth will take root in the heart of so many singles I know who love the Lord, but are struggling to wait for His timing. I'm hopeful that the truth of God's perfect provision takes root in my heart and I'll use this time to focus on pleasing Him.

"Praise be to the LORD, the God of my master Abraham, who has not abandoned his kindness and faithfulness to my master..." Genesis 24: 27

Just for Fun!

I wanted you all to know that life in Mexico is not all work and no play! So here are some pics of some fun days! Some are from our trip to Zacatecas. Zacatecas is about an hour away from Fresnillo and it has the same name as the state (so it's Zacatecas, Zacatecas). It's the big city and has some American conveniences like Wal-Mart, Sam's Club, Burger King, Starbucks and (drumroll please!) McDonald's!! My roomies (Karen, Christen, Elizabeth) and I went to McDonald's and had fries (other food too, but that was most important :). The other pics are of my food accomplishments since I've been here. You all know how much I cook (LOL) and these are a few of my sucess stories--strawberry bread (meet Karen, my roommate in pic) & breakfast casseroles--both of which were consumed completely without a hitch :)

VBS & Club

We kicked off the beginning of the ministry year with VBS (Escuelita de Verano). Our theme was Hay Un Solo Dios Verdadero (There is only one true God!). We walked through stories from the Bible where God demonstrated that He is the only real God. Each day (VBS lasted 4 days) the children were taught the Bible story in a large group and then we reviewed the lesson, plus made a fun craft in small groups. This was my first experience working with my age group--the 3 & 4 year olds!! I thoroughly enjoyed it and am looking forward to a great year with these "tots."

VBS serves as a jumping off point for Club, which we started this past week. We have 3 clubs, 1 on Wednesday and 2 on Thursday. So if you get a chance please pray for us during these 2 busy days. Club days start with going to invite kids in the vans and on foot. I'm still learning my way around the colonia and it's a whole other venture to learn where my kids live, but poco a poco (little by little)! After inviting we again have a big group time where the kids are taught the lesson (for the first week the theme was Dios hizo a la gente (God made people). The kids learned about how God made each one of us special and in His image. After the large group, we do small groups where we review the lesson and do a craft (trabajo manual) to reinforce the lesson. Finally, we visit the children one on one to play with them, pray for them, and teach them something about the Lord!

• Please pray that God will open up doors for us to share the Gospel with the parents of our children when we visit them.



• Also, pray that the Holy Spirit will draw more children to Himself through Club.