Hello from sunny…. or rather freezing Mexico. That’s right, the climate is pretty cold right now as talk around the church is that “this may be the year for snow.” Our kids are quite excited about the possibility of a freeze, while Jessica and I sit here trying to get warmed up.
I do want to say “thank you” to our partners once again. Jessica and I have been so blessed these last few years and even weeks with the unyielding support of our partners. We have seen both in good times and in tuff times that you are behind us and support us. This task is so much better with your partnership.
Because of some of the extra outside communication last month, we decided to send a mixed September and October update. In September we had a pretty slow month with just a couple of events. We started the month off with another clothing drive for the new school year. People in Mexico are so needy (even among our members), and so it is a real blessing to be able to give in a society filled with great poverty. This year we had four large tables of clothing with several hundred items to choose from. It was a real blessing to see so many people find items to wear. Likewise, it is exciting seeing Christian brothers wearing clothing that we no longer need. The other major event this September was for Mexico’s Independence Day. Our annual party is always a good evangelism tool and opportunity for meeting those of the community. This year we had dozens of visitors who shared in our piñata-making contest, enjoyed the traditional Mexican sweets, and played carnival style games with us.
October events included a marriage seminar, small group parties, and our annual mission Sunday. We were blessed this year to see James and Erin Henderson (Erin is my cousin) arrive from Mexico City to teach our marriage seminar. James taught an incredible series of classes to encourage faithful marriages in a culture where such fidelity is not always common. Although we passed out three thousand fliers for the event, it was good to see a couple of visiting families take part in the event and join with our members in discussion and study together. In the same way, Jessica and I have enjoyed getting together with our Spanish small group as the group has really begun taking off. We now have a group weekly with three Mexican families, three AIM students, and our family. The group is very close nit and has been one of our greatest joys here. Finally, we enjoyed a positive mission Sunday this year. In 2006, we began mission Sunday as a chance for our congregation to support outside mission works and to develop a mission spirit even here in Leon. This year we were able to raise $300 USD that was given to an outside mission work. Cans were given to each family in our congregation as a way to collect change for the donation. It is exciting to see Mexican Christians act in a way that reflects the hearts of so many of our American partners.
Besides major events, there are lots of other things going on here in Mexico. Jessica and I have really found great peace in jumping into our work and discovering God in the lives of the Mexican people. We praise God for you in your partnership with us and look forward to sharing more of our news with you as 2007 rolls into 2008.