PREPARING FOR CELEBRATIONS!

Cynthia, Javier and Esteban with their gift bags.

Our trip to Nuevo Progreso Tuesday was for several purposes, to visit friends, to firm up plans for our annual Christmas party and to make a stop to give a Christmas gift to the soldiers standing guard at the international bridge.

It felt like Christmas since it was colder than usual and slightly overcast.  There weren’t many tourists in the streets and traffic on the bridge was light.  Lloyd pulled into the open area near the customs lane where the military has their temporary headquarters.  One soldier standing guard with a rifle went to get the officer in charge at Lloyd’s request.  We presented that officer with a large mesh bag of mixed nuts in the shells to be shared with all those stationed in Nuevo Progreso.  It’s our way of saying thank you and Merry Christmas to the young men who keep watch over the town.

Then we stopped at Apolinar’s house to see how they had been getting along.  This was our first visit with them this winter, so it was good to see how much their kids had grown and how well they are. We had Christmas treat bags for Esteban, Javier and Cynthia containing candy, small toys and picture books.  The Christmas books with pop-up pages depicting the Nativity Scene seemed the biggest attraction.

Javier was delighted to see us and he enjoyed his bag of treats.

Apolinar was working in a nearby neighborhood.  He seems to be doing very well since the terrible accident several years ago when he was almost electrocuted.  He had severe burns over most of his body and was in a coma for three weeks.  It was many months before he could use his hands again because of scar tissue and burns.  Now he can once again support his family either by working in construction or by selling food to the numerous trucks that drive through Nuevo Progreso.

Cynthia was fascinated with her Christmas picture book and with her candy cane.

Carla had a cold and the kids all had sniffles.  It was a good thing we had thought to bring them cold medicines including Vicks vapor rub.  The weather has been cold and wet, temperatures are up and down.  Cold medicines are much appreciated by families with small children and Carla especially likes to use the chest rubs.  She says they are safer   for children than strong liquid medicines.

There were even treats for the family dogs!  We always carry a container of dog food in the Jeep so we can feed the dogs we encounter in our travels.  Most of them run loose and are very thin.

We had lunch with Pastor Gerardo and Miriam at the church.  It was a good time to catch up on recent news and plan future events.

Two mounds of caliche and fill material still stood beside the church.  It's a big job to spread this heavy material, but it creates a firm solid surface after a time.

Six truck loads of caliche, Mexican gravel, have already been delivered and dumped in the church yard.  Four loads have been spread out over the driveway where recent rains had made deep ruts and mud.  Pastor Gerardo and his son Nahum have done most of the work to spread the caliche.  Yesterday one of their neighbors named Angel stopped by to lend a hand.  We plan to order many more loads of caliche in order to build up the ground and prevent future flooding when it rains.

Pastor Gerardo told us about a sad situation in Nuevo Progreso involving many of the local churches and pastors and the ministerial alliance.   A popular evangelist from the United States claiming to be a prophet is preaching in many of the churches, causing problems.  Many of his prophecies were that certain people would soon die and he told Gerardo that he was one who wouldn’t live much longer.  It’s a ministry of fear.  Gerardo said he was alerted by the Holy Spirit that much of what was being preached and proclaimed by the “prophet” did not agree with the Bible.  Also there was a big emphasis on money in the services which was alarming.  Gerardo decided he and his family did not want to participate in the group meetings.  He quietly made it known he disagreed with what was being presented as being prophetic.


Please pray with us about this serious situation in Nuevo Progreso.  Almost all the other churches in town seem to be attracted to this prophetic ministry and they are caught up in the excitement and entertainment presented.  But when the excitement wears off and the errors are more evident, there will be disappointed and disillusioned people who will not understand all that happened.  Pastor Gerardo and Miriam will then be like a lighthouse in the darkness - constant and steady - always leading people in the right way.

"I will praise you, Lord, with all my heart and tell about the wonders
    you have worked."  Psalm 9:1 (CEV)

GOD'S UNUSUAL WAYS

Pastor Gerardo Estrada

God’s ways are not our ways, we’ve always heard that but didn’t always understand what it meant.  Now we’re learning that He uses unusual situations, challenging places and imperfect people to accomplish His will.  And we could never think these things up or plan them because they are usually opposite of our own thoughts.  Lately we like to say that God works in the negative to bring about results.

Establishing a church in a new area can be very difficult and demanding.  We always want what looks the best and what will eventually make us proud of our accomplishments.  The project is imagined from beginning to end with very few complications in between.  The envisioned church is seen finished, up and running and self sufficient.

Bethesda Church of God in Nuevo Progreso, Mexico is a different story, possibly because it was started in a place where no church had stood before.  Maybe it was because it was started from nothing except for a strong desire and vision for the project.  The church that has emerged is not exactly what was expected and it’s not about a building.  This is a church on the move, out among the people right where they live.

Pastor Gerardo Estrada pastors the church on the east side of Nuevo Progreso.  There are services held at the church, but most of the time he and his wife Miriam visit people and often they conduct worship services in their homes and outside in yards. Several people have accepted the Lord in these unique services because those visited invite their neighbors to join them.  The church is reaching many people this way, but it's not what we would have planned.

This year Pastor Gerardo’s oldest son Gerson started classes at the university in Reynosa which is over 25 miles away.  Gerardo drives Gerson to school every day and because it’s so expensive to make the drive, he waits there to drive him home.  But instead of it being wasted time, Gerardo has found a ministry on the streets of the enormous old city of Reynosa.  Somehow he was led to a group of homeless youth, some of which spent time in prison and now have no place to go.

Every day they wait for him to share God’s word and to pray with them.  Some days he eats lunch with them in the government soup kitchen so he can counsel and advise them.  He described eight different young people living in makeshift shelters who try to make a little money washing cars or doing other odd jobs.  He has become their pastor.

Gerardo and Miriam traveled all summer back and forth  25 miles to Matamoros where they conducted Saturday evening worship services in the home of  Edgar’s large family.  Edgar got saved while in prison and is now attending Bible School in Sonora.  As a result of these efforts, the district leaders have become aware of the need for a church in that area of Matamoros and they are currently searching for a full time pastor to continue the work of establishing a new church.  Even though Gerardo and Miriam were growing weary of traveling the distance every week, it was their dedication that brought about the birth of another new church.  How did that happen?  How did the Lord arrange all that?
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When we got to the church on a Monday afternoon, we saw that recent rains had made a muddy mess of the parking area. Problems like these were not imagined when we started the church in Nuevo Progreso. Now our first priority was to purchase several loads of caliche (Mexican gravel) to build up the parking area and ground around the church. The first load arrived late in the day, but instead of dumping the load quickly and leaving, the driver was afraid of getting stuck in the mud. His dump truck died and after he tried several times to start it, he announced the battery was dead. It took some time for Lloyd to jump start the truck from the Jeep battery and to finally see the material where it would do the most good. Nothing seems to go smoothly in Mexico, and certainly not always according to plan.

We all watched as caliche was dumped outside the church.  Even the dogs enjoyed the show.

Bethesda Church of God isn’t a beautiful building with well manicured grounds planted on the east side of Nuevo Progreso. Situated in a very poor area of town, it isn’t always an attractive place in very good order. But there have been incredible results from this unusual church and it’s unusual pastor and his family. The Lord has taken a lot of negative things and used them to advance the gospel. Challenges have turned out to be God's opportunities.

“Who can measure the wealth and wisdom and knowledge of God? Who can understand his decisions or explain what he does?”  Romans 11:33 CEV

GOD BLESS THE JONES SISTERS!

The Jeep and small trailer are usually loaded to capacity.

Every year at this time we leave our home in Illinois and travel to the Mexican border where we spend half of the year on the mission field.  Since our Jeep and small camper are usually packed and overloaded with supplies and gifts, our 1,200 mile trip takes us at least 3 days of slow and steady driving.

The long trip was tiring, but we experienced some unusual evidences of God’s presence with us along the way.  Once, after a long day of driving through Oklahoma, Lloyd and I searched without success for an RV park for the night.  Finally we stopped and asked a lady coming out of a store for directions.  She said she could lead us to one quickly so we gratefully followed her and her elderly sister.  It was a good thing they led the way, because even though it was close, it wasn’t easy to find.  Soon it was getting dark and we were glad to be parked and getting ready for the night.  Nothing seemed to work right, lights in the camper refused to work and Lloyd and I knew we wouldn’t be able to fix an evening meal.  About that time the same lady pulled her vehicle up next to our camper again and asked if we were ready for dinner.  Grumbling that we didn’t even have lights, I stepped outside to see why she had returned.  She had brought us two hot chicken dinners, ready to eat!  What a blessing that was, and what a blessing that the Lord took care of us in that moment.

The two women who led us to the campground, Carol and her sister Betty, said they felt the Lord urging them to help us and encourage us on our way.  They figured we’d be too tired from our travel to fix a meal and so they delivered one right to our door.  When I asked Carol why she would go out of her way to do this for two strangers off the interstate, she answered that one never knew when they would meet angels.  She never passed up an opportunity to help a stranger.  And all along Lloyd and I thought Carol and Betty were the angels!  God bless you, Carol and Betty!

"Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels unawares."  Hebrews 13:2

WHERE THERE ARE NO ROADS

Driving across the Rio Grande River where there was no bridge.

There is no road?  That didn't stop us!  Is there a little town across the river in Mexico?  Do they need Bibles?  That was a challenge for us and an adventure.  If other people forded the river, we could too! But we were careful to follow instructions and stay upstream from the rapids and the deeper water. And we were fortunate to have taken a picture of the experience.

There has always been a strong desire in us to take Spanish Bibles to people who want them throughout Mexico.  And through the years, we have given away over 8,000 Bibles, boxes of Sunday School literature and countless gospel booklets and tracts.  Only eternity will tell us the impact of these Bibles, how they changed lives and blessed the people.

There was always a door open before us.  We have always been welcome wherever we went in Mexico.  The people were friendly and many times we were invited to spend more time with families, overnight or a few days or an extra week.  But the urge to go a little farther was always with us. Another church was waiting somewhere for a blessing.

There were checkpoints, federales, soldiers and guards on the roads.  At every state line we'd have to stop and unload our cargo so it could be inspected.  But this provided more opportunities, as we were able to witness to uniformed men and pray for them and their families.

Church on the Gulf of Mexico.

The last trip we took into the interior of Mexico was very unusual. We had planned to drive one thousand miles to the state of Tabasco, leaving Spanish Bibles at churches along the way. Before leaving, our prayer was that the Lord would "clear a path" for us and open up the way.  And He did! We drove all the way to Tabasco and back without once being stopped for inspection, having to show our papers, our passports or visas.  It was as if we were invisible on the roads, traveling under divine covering as we carried God's word.

We've driven to every state in Mexico, leaving Spanish Bibles.

Our prayer now is that the Lord will multiply and bless His words through those Spanish Bibles we took into Mexico.

"Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path." Psalm 119:105

SUPPORT OUR PASTORS WITH PRAYER

The pastors at Bethesda Tabernacle in Nuevo Progreso.

We call on our pastors when we need prayer, when we need encouragement and when we need someone to lead us.  When someone is in the hospital, we expect our pastor to visit them. When someone dies, usually the pastor is the first to be called. The pastor helps hold the church, the Body of Christ, together.

But what about the pastor's needs and his family's needs?  Who does he call when he needs prayer and encouragement?  Do we take our pastors for granted?

This week churches in Mexico have emphasized the importance of supporting pastors.  Bethesda Tabernacle Church of God in Nuevo Progreso had a special celebration service to show support for Pastor Gerardo Estrada and his wife Miriam and their children Gerson, Nahum, Dana and Esly. Pastor Gerardo and Miriam have worked hard to establish a mission church in Nuevo Progreso. They have had many challenges, problems and severe trials during the eight years they have pastored the church. It has not been easy, but they always emphasize that God is blessing them and they can see that God is in control.

The pastor's family, Gerardo, Nahum, Gerson, Esly, Dana and Miriam.  They all work together at the church.

At the recent celebration for the pastor, a dinner was prepared by ladies of the church.  Sister Catherine prepared chicken pozole and everyone brought something good to share.  Pastor Gerardo and Miriam shared God's word with everyone, plus they shared about the work of a pastor and how the pastor's whole family is involved.

Miriam shared how their four children take part in the services, playing musical instruments, taking care of all the equipment and cleaning and maintaining the place of worship.  The children also have their school work to manage, along with regular household duties.

We should all consider it our responsibility to pray for our pastors, that the Lord will continue to lead them and speak to them.  This will keep the church fruitful and make it a place where we can all find refuge.

Pastor Gerardo working with the children at the church in Nuevo Progreso.

"And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ."  Ephesians 4:11,12.

MISSION IN MATAMOROS

Pastor Gerardo preaching God's Word.

Gerardo and Miriam continue to drive the 25 miles to Matamoros every week to hold services in an old garage.  Edgar who is a converted gang member, lived with his family in Matamoros before being incarcerated.  He asked Gerardo to visit his family and pray for them until he can return.  Edgar feels called to preach the gospel, but he has another year to spend in Bible school after he was recently released from prison.  Edgar's family, his friends and his neighbors gather together and enjoy the music and the preached word.  It's the makings of a new church.

Mexican soldiers patrol the highways, especially between Nuevo Progreso and Matamoros.

Matamoros has been called "ground zero" in the war against drugs and gangs.  There have been numerous gunfights in this large and very old city that sits on the border of Mexico across the Rio Grande river from Brownsville, Texas.  Interesting bit of trivia:  the name "Matamoros" means "killer of Moors (Muslims)."

There are two international bridges that cross the river in Brownsville and another in nearby Los Indios.  We have spent many hours in Matamoros ministering to people who live in the poorest areas.

There are many churches in Matamoros, but there is not a pentecostal Church of God anywhere nearby.  Pastor Gerardo began this mission solely for the purpose of praying with Edgar's family, but it has blossomed into a regularly scheduled event.  The people of Matamoros are hungry to hear from God!

Please pray for the city of Matamoros.

"But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth."  Acts 1:8

PRAY FOR THEM!

Lucia and her husband have a small coffee shop in the city of Nuevo Progreso.  Their shop is neat and clean and although it's not on the main street where tourist traffic usually swarms, they have a good business.

Lucia has been battling cancer.  She is a Catholic, a wife and the mother of grown children.  She has had cancer for more than a year and has endured several chemotherapy treatments.  Last summer Pastor Gerardo and Miriam met Lucia through a mutual friend, and they prayed for Lucia to be completely healed.  Lucia's faith was greatly stirred through prayer and she began to have hope that she would live.

Pastor Gerardo and Miriam in Nuevo Progreso.

Since that time Gerardo and Miriam have continued to visit Lucia, reading encouraging scriptures and praying with her and her husband.  And although Lucia is still undergoing chemotherapy, she continues to believe God for her total recovery.

Santiago (name changed for his protection) has made a decision to change his life and serve the Lord. But leaving his present lifestyle will be dangerous for him.  For this reason, Santiago has decided to leave the area temporarily and enter a place of rehabilitation.  When he is "clean" once again and ready to become a responsible citizen, he will rejoin his family.  Pastor Gerardo has been counseling Santiago and his whole family,praying with them and teaching them from the Bible, showing them the right ways to live.

Please pray with us for these two special individuals in Mexico.

"Thou art my hiding place and my shield: I hope in thy word."  Psalm 119:114 KJV