A Community That is Christian

We are currently reading a book called Community That is Christian. It is by a professor from Fuller seminary and is about leading Christian small groups. It was a "recommended reading" for Jennifer in one of her classes at Asbury, and we are just now getting around to reading it, but have found it to be a very helpful read as we are in the process of starting a small group in our home.

Last week we had our first get-to-know you dinner at our house for the small group/Bible study that we are starting in our home. 10 people attended not including us or the children. It went well and we were very up front about the purpose of the group. The purpose is to form an authentic Christian community, one in which we are there for each other and we grow together as we study the Bible. (See Jennifer's notes on facebook for more details or e-mail us if you would like a copy of them). With the exception of 3 people all of those who came to the dinner are not attending a church and come from a catholic background. In our group it doesn't matter if you are catholic or not. All that matters is that you want to grow and know God better. There is one stipulation of our group. Each member has to take it seriously, meaning that no one misses unless they have to and that it is a commitment. Why? Because without commitment we will not grow as a group. We will not know each other well and we will be like every other small group. That is not our goal. Our goal is to be different!

Initially, we were super encouraged by the attendance and interest in the group. Lots of people asked us if they could come and expressed a desire to be a part of the group. We want so badly to do the right thing and make everyone feel welcome. While we were hoping for 15, 10 was a good turn out. Sadly, our neighbors approached us afterwards and said they didn't want to be a part of the group. This kind of hit us hard because we don't really understand why. One neighbor said she has had a bad experience with Christians (and she really has), and that made her weary, even though she knows we are different. Our other neighbor told us that she and her family just didn't want to make a commitment. This breaks our hearts because we think that if we do not sacrifice the time once a week to study and grow together, we will never really learn. Mmm....Please pray for our friends and us as we take this journey together. Still we are not sure if we will have 5, 10, or 12 to start with, but there is a hunger, an interest...The question is will the people respond or will they listen to the voices that are often stronger telling them that it is a waste of time, not worthwhile, or that Christians are weird. Aren't we all longing to be part of a community that is Christian? One where we can grow, be ourselves, be challenged, study, pray, and walk through life together?
Many people we've talked to here and in the States are. Are you part of one?

Everything Changes

Wow! Our apologies for going so long this time between posts. We are not sure where the time is going...

Much has changed over the past few weeks. Thank you for praying for the May 5th meeting between the church we've been working with here in Leon and the WGM Mexican national church. You all deserve an explanation. So here it goes...

On Tuesday May 5th, the church here in Leon met with the WGM national church and told them that they would be separating from the Organization. They no longer wanted to be part of WGM and therefore wanted to be an independent church. The consequences mean that the church here in Leon will no longer receive support, covering, or WGM missionaries. Thus, the decision affected us. We could no longer work in that church because it was no longer part of WGM. Therefore, last weekend was our last weekend there. Saturday we painfully said good-bye to the sweet kids of Canon de la India where we have been working on Saturdays. Sunday was a very awkward day as we told our friends at church good-bye. Some did not understand what was happening, and others did. What broke our hearts was to see how torn up many of the youth were when we told them it was our last Sunday at the church. Our intention is to continue with our friendships even though we will no longer be in the church. Please continue to pray for the Leon church as it goes through many changes, and that the congregation will follow God's voice.

What does all that mean for us?

Most of you received our newsletter, or will be getting it in your mail box soon. We explained that we would be leaving the Leon church and starting other things. One of those activities will be having a small group in our house. We plan on putting a lot of energy and work into this small group with the hope of reaching our neighbors and friends who do not have a deep relationship with Christ. The idea is to grow together in knowledge of God and as a community. We already have lots of people interested and will be having the first get-together this Thursday. Also, there is a church here in Leon that is looking for WGM's covering. We will be helping them with a Bible study there once a week and may get more involved. In addition we hope to work with a friend who has a music school where we will teach English and Ballet classes. So, no worries...We will be busy and we are grateful we will not have to move from Leon.

And the big news...

Josh's little brother, Andy, has been visiting us this week, and he announced that he will be getting married on August 1st of this year in Ohio. Josh will be his best man. All that to say that we got the fun surprise of finding out we can go back to Kentucky for a few days at the end of July. We will spend 10 days between Kentucky and Ohio. Our time will be busy, but we are looking forward to it. We didn't think we'd be back to Wilmore until the summer of 2010. We said we wouldn't go back unless a close family member died or got married. There you go!

As you pray, please pray for us as we try to come up with money for the unexpected expenses of going home for the wedding etc. We are so excited about being at Andy's wedding, but did not budget for two plane tickets back to the states. If you could please pray for God's provision in this area we'd be very grateful!!!!!

This weekend....


We had a wonderful weekend, and yesterday we are thankful for the opportunity we had to share a testimony at the main WGM church in the area in the city of Irapuato. We spoke about the MTI car wreck, the pain and sorrow we've faced over the past 2 years and how God is not safe. We had shared this testimony many times before in the states, but translating it into Spanish and making some changes to it was a little nerve racking. The good news is that yesterday in the Sunday morning service God really moved and people responded to our message. The service was amazing and we are thankful we could be used to change people's lives. God is not safe is not an easy message to share and is not always received well, but we have come to find out that it is so true. God never promises our safety and though he is with us, we are not safe from harm and danger.
In the evening last night we drove to a little town called Valle de Santiago where there is a new WGM church plant. We also shared our testimony there and enjoyed getting to know the people of that group. The day went beautifully until we got lost in Valle de Santiago on the way home. Thankfully, we finally found our way back to the main road. ;) One big yahoo is that we were able to give the testimony in Spanish and were understood. Yah!


Thanks for reading this very long update!!!! Thanks for praying, thanks for giving, and thanks for caring!

God is good, and we are super excited about what he is doing and our plans for this year! Yahoo!

Update

Hello all!
Mmmmm...So many things we could say, but we aren't sure where to start.

Let's start with this influenza epidemic again...

Okay, honestly, by now we have come to the conclusion that this flu ordeal is not as big of a problem as the media and even the Mexico government is making it. We have reason to believe that they might want to blow it out of proportion because they want to put fear in the people to distract them from other things. If you have questions about our theories and why let us know. Anyway, some of you have heard that more than 100 people, or even bigger numbers, have died in Mexico. This is NOT true. Check out the World Health Organization for official numbers (www.who.int). We have been keeping close tabs on this and many have died due to complications with pneumonia as well as the flu. As of today 16 people in all of Mexico, a country of over 200,000,000 people, have died. Please do not panic or be alarmed. You can however pray that all this disappears quickly. It is killing the already terrible economy here and I'm sure around the world as well.

Special Prayer...

This Tuesday the 5th of May there will be an important meeting between the church here in Leon and the national Mexican church of WGM. The meeting is an extremely crucial one. Would you please join us in prayer that God's will would be done? Thank you!

Newsletter...

Many of you have been asking us when you'll be getting our next newsletter. It will be coming your way soon. It is just waiting for approval. =) Thanks for your patience!

God is doing something BIG...

Last week we started writing about the local church and a church plant model that God has been developing in our hearts. Jennifer posted her thoughts on her facebook page under her notes if you are interested in reading them. We have received many positive comments in response to what she wrote and in several conversations we have had with others. Now, we are excited and looking forward to the future because we think we will be able to use this model and help national pastors use it as well. In addition, we got to visit some friends in a nearby city last week who are using the same type of church model. God has honored them and their obedience and has grown their church plant like crazy in a matter of a few months. It was a treat to spend the weekend with this special missionary couple, be a part of their worship service, and share our ideas and callings. Josh was thankful they gave him the opportunity to preach or rather share a Bible lesson with them at their worship service last Friday. Our missionary friends are Honduran and they arrived here in the country the same time we did to work with WGM in Irapuato. We are thankful for them and their friendship and for what God is doing through them!

More to come soon...

The swine flu

Hello All! We've received some notes of concern about the swine flu outbreak that started here in Mexico. You wonder how are things where we live? First off we are not making light of the situation because it is serious and spreading, however, the number of infected people and deaths is still small in comparison to the shear number of people that live here in Mexico. The main problem has been in Mexico City where 30 million people reside. We cannot explain to you just how many people live here and live close together in these cities. For example in the city of Leon, where we live, there are over 2 million people. That puts things into perspective. Also, 6,000 children die of hunger daily, that is one every five seconds (hunger facts international), unclean drinking water kills 4,000 people a day, and in 2007 2 million people died of Aids. Last we checked the swine flue has killed 149 people. Once again we are not trying to make light of the situation as we know it is a real concern, but what if the papers and news made a big deal about how many die daily from hunger, dirty water, or Aids? Aren't those things that could be stopped or prevented? How sad that they are ignored.

There have been two confirmed deaths from the swine flu in the state we live in called Guanajuato. So far none in our city. Schools are closed for at least a week and many public events and museums have been cancelled or closed. The ironic thing is we had a trip planned this coming weekend to Mexico City with a lady that we are discilping because she is from the city, but of course we aren't going now.

Thanks for your prayers and concern. Keep praying and pray for the epedemic of world hunger as well. =D

Much more to come soon...

Up and Down and All Around

Hello All! Whew so much has been going on and we have many pictures and stories to share that it is hard to pick a few.

Last week we traveled north to the city of Saltillo to the annual WGM conference in Mexico. There the pastors and missionaries met for a few days to share about their congregations and talk about important matters. Our time there was very informative for us as we got to know the national pastors and learn more about the history of the the Mexico field. Currently the field is small and struggling, but we hope God will use it for his glory as it moves forward into the future. One of the highlights of our trip was getting to know one of the northern pastor's and his family. One night he took us to a very poor part of Saltillo where his church has an outreach to the poor who live in houses made out of boxes. There we sat at a table of a kind lady's house and talked for hours as we watched the sunset behind the surrounding mountains. In that humble atmosphere this national pastor shared his heart with us that he has for this country, his struggles, and hopes. We shed some tears and came away with a burden for the pastors of Mexico who are struggling to get things done and make ends meet.

This past weekend we had the opportunity to share Christ's love with several people. On Saturday Jennifer went over to one of our neighbor's house to talk with her about our pregnant cat (that is another story) and our neighbor brought up the fact that Jennifer was a different kind of Christian than many Christians she knew. Our friend talked and talked with Jennifer for a long time about Christ and the church and what we believe. She was encouraged and mentioned that if we start a Bible study she'd be interested in it. God works in amazing ways and uses us when we least expect it. Praise God!

Sunday morning we were on our way out the door to church when a young Mexican man approached us and started speaking perfect English with us. He shared with us about his story and how he recently got back from the states and was looking for a job so he could eat. We talked with him for quite a while and were able to give him the job of washing our car. =) He looks for jobs in our neighborhood and we hope we can build a relationship with him and feed him if he is hungry.

Sunday afternoon we had a single mom and her daughters from the church over for lunch. They stayed and talked all afternoon and it turned into a very long and delightful Bible study. This friend of ours is hungry to know the Bible and God and has so many questions. We are thankful we can be here to support her!

This weekend we head to a nearby city where we will visit with some other missionaries and Josh will share at a new church plant.

Thanks for praying for us and our transitions.

Sending each of you a hug from Mexico.

Semana Santa

Greetings this Saturday before Easter. The thought sometimes crosses our minds that we have no idea how many people read our blog, but we hope you find it somewhat interesting and helpful to catch a glimpse of our world and be a part of what we are doing.

This week we said good-bye to the group from Michigan that spend 10 days here in Central Mexico with us. It was a sad parting at the airport because the group was a mature group that brought us many smiles and reminded of us home. We're thankful for their visit, their help, and there attitudes. =) We didn't realize how much energy it takes to work with a short-term team. It was a challenge, but a good one. Jennifer enjoyed working in the kitchen and Josh enjoyed helping with projects. Unfortunately Jennifer got sick and had to stay at home a few days, but overall it went rather smoothly.

Here in Mexico, and in Latin America in general, this week is called Semana Santa. It is a very big week here as all of the schools are out and many people are on vacation. The catholic churches celebrate in a big way and mainly they celebrate the death of Jesus on Good Friday or Viernes Santo. Since we love Latin America we have always wanted to see a famous procession on Good Friday. Many towns have processions were they reenact Jesus' walk to Golgatha and his crucifixion and processions where they take Jesus' body and reenact taking it from Golgatha to the tomb. Much like there are many passion plays in the states, there are many processions here in Mexico. Some of them are rather eery as there can be a lot of self flagellation etc. Yesterday we were thankful for the opportunity to travel to the nearby city of Dolores Hidalgo with one of our Mexican friends and see a procesion del silencio. One of the processions where they walk around the city with Christ's body after he died. For us it was an extremely eye opening experience as we stepped into a new world and culture. Much of it was very beautiful and reverent. However, we were struck by the homily in the middle of the procession about Mary the mother of Jesus. We knew that the catholic church here puts a huge emphasis on her, we'd studied it, seen the evidence in churches, but we where shocked when a priest in the middle of the procession spoke about her. He said nothing of Christ and his sacrifice for us, but rather he spoke of Mary's sacrifice and her example that we should all try to follow. We were saddened by the more or less worship of Mary and the lack of emphasis put on Christ and his example for us. Sadly, the catholic church doesn't give much attention to Christ's resurrection and that he is alive. We are glad that this Easter we can celebrate his sacrifice and death, as well as his miraculous resurrection!

HAPPY EASTER! FELICES PASCUAS.


Photos:
Chichimeca children in the mountains. Josh went with the team to visit a Chichimeca congregation.

Josh with the indigenious Chichimeca pastor

The group from Michigan, us and other missionaries

Suffering Christ in the cathedral in Dolores Hidalgo

Michigan in Mexico

Hello this Saturday! Jennifer here, I just wanted to check in quickly and give you and update.
Monday morning a group of high school kids from Michigan arrived to spend their Spring Break helping out at the church and sharing prepared skits etc. in some poor neighborhoods. We've had a very busy schedule as we've been co-hosting our first short-term team. Josh has been helping out lead projects and I've mostly been in the kitchen preparing meals for the team with a Mexican, Honduran, and sometimes a Brazilian. Quite an experience and very good for my Spanish. Last week we had a very full week preparing for the team and we are thankful we also had the opportunity to help one of our friends in need when her six year old daughter had to go to the hospital. Praise God she is just fine. All that to say we've had some long days the past few weeks and sadly, the lack of sleep caught up with me and I started getting sick this week. Last night and all day today I unfortunately had to step out of my role and stay home. Though I've had stomach problems over the past year and half, I have not had a fever and sore throat at all. This is the first time in so long. Please pray that I will recover quickly so I can jump back in to helping and go on a trip that is planned for the group on Monday. I have a hard time sitting at home when there are other things I could be doing ;).

Muchas Gracias!

We hope you have a wonderful week as you prepare to celebrate Easter!

Love,
Jennifer Rebecca

Cultural Information

Some of you know a lot about the Mexican culture and others of you completely unaware of the culture in which we live. So, we thought we'd give you a taste of our surroundings.

First off, Mexico is extremely diverse and probably more so that the U.S. Just like the the U.S. it is made of states and each state has it's capital city. As most of you know, we live in the state of Guanajuato in the city of Leon. Guanajuato is located in the dead center of Mexico. We came from central KY and moved to Central Mexico. Leon is a huge city in comparison to the cities we are used to in the States. Many dispute the exact population, but it has aroung 2 to 2.5 million habitants and is growing daily! Honestly we thought adjusting to a large city was going to be more difficult than it has been because we were raised in the tiny town of Wilmore outside of Lexington which is not a big city at all. Thankfully it the adjustment to city life has been smooth, though at times we do miss the grass and the countryside.

While we have almost every modern convincience here including Starbucks, (is Starbucks a modern convienience?), we live in a very different world than were we lived in the U.S. For one the social classes here are VERY distinct. It is as if three worlds are coexisting in the same city, but each world is unaware of the other. Yes, lower, middle, and upper class do not really overlap in daily life unless they run into each other at Wal-Mart. (Just a side note, Wal-Mart's prices are often high here.) For us the class system that is so pronounced makes us sad and often makes us stop and think. The sad reality is that those in the lower class or lower middle class will most likely never have the chance to better their circumstances and will remain in their class for the rest of their lives. As foreigners we are able to make friends with people of all social classes. The other day we were talking to our tutor about this and she said that it is not common to have friends in various social classes. We are thankful for the ability to live in all three worlds. We live in a middle class neighborhood, but have friends in one of the poorest neighborhoods in the city as well as the wealthiest. Sometimes we feel as if we are living in contrasts. The difference between the worlds is startling. God continues to give us the grace to move between all three.

Here are some fun facts:

-You only drink filtered or bottled water here. Most people, including us, buy our water jugs from companies that go from building to building and through the neighborhoods shouting "water, water" and their brand of water. Then you shout out to them how many jugs you want and they deliver it. The same is true for the gas. All homes have gas water heaters and gas stoves.

-It is true, Mexicans love spicy food and chiles. And so does Josh! From spaghetti to sandwiches, chile and salsa are everyday condiments. In central Mexico corn tortillas are also a staple! In fact, food in general is a staple. Much of life here revolves around food!

-Where ever you live there is a little tiny store nearby that you can go to for milk, eggs, and all kinds of things. Most likely it will be in someone's house. Here the norm is not to buy all your groceries once a week, but instead go to the market daily and get things you need last minute at the convinient stores. It is a different way of life and we are starting to enjoy it.

-Certain times of day traffic is crazy here and other times it is perfectly fine. Driving is sometimes very aggitating for us because the mentality is totally different from what we are used to. It is kind of like playing frogger only you are the frog dodging pedestrians, other cars, and bicicles oh and of course there's the pot holes and speed bumps everywhere. =)

-The prices of many things are not lower here though the salaries are. However, fresh fruits and veggies are way cheaper in comparison to the states. Even the apples from Washington that are imported are cheaper than in Kentucky. Being able to eat fresh fruit and fruit juice when ever we want is a huge treat. When we tell people the price of produce in the States they cannot believe a pineapple or an avocado would cost so much. One time we bought 2 lbs of oranges for 50 cents. Gas is about $2.80 a gallon and the economy is of course struggling.

-In the city everyone lives in town houses, houses right next to each other, or in apartments. Their is hardly any grass or green space unless you go to a park. There are some very nice parks here.

-Many people have cars and many do not. There is a good reliable, but slow, public bus system. There are taxis everywhere and of course all kinds of cars as well. We are thankful for our old Camry as it has been a huge blessing to us and others and given us a lot of mobility. We even found a reliable mechanic.



We could go on and on about interesting cultural things, but we will save some for the future. The short of it is we are in URBAN ministry and feel very at home in this setting.

Some of you have asked about our safety. Truthfully, central MX is much safer than the border when it comes to drug problems and kidnappings, though Mexico City is pretty dangerous. However, common theft etc. is on the rise right now here in Leon too because of the very high unemployment rate and lack of resources. And for us it is understandable. So far we have had nothing happen to us and aren't worried even if we were to have something stolen from us.

Okay, this post was way long, but one last thing...

This week a group from Michigan is coming on a short-term trip and we will be leaders and very occupied with them for 10 days. We look forward to sharing everything with you after they leave.

Prepared with Love

"Man, this pot is heavy," I thought as I carried the giant glob of spaghetti. We were loading up the car with enough spaghetti to feed a platoon of Marines and taking it to El Cañon de la India where our church has a work with the children of the neighborhood. Today, we wanted to do something extra special for the kids at our church's project by cooking them a big meal: spaghetti with meat and vegetable sauce plus Jennifer's world famous homemade chocolate chip cookies. We took so much joy in being able to provide something good and rare for the kids. Seeing their faces light up as we gave them the homemade cookies was unforgettable. Many of the kids in El Cañon de la India don't eat well nor with regularity (especially in these times of crisis) and very few of them have ever had the luxury of eating homemade cookies. Providing a meal every Saturday morning along with Bible lessons and tutoring is a pleasure for us, and seeing the smiles on so many faces that we have come to love and care for in the past months was a gift that cannot be repaid. As we served the food and saw the excitement on the kids' faces, we too were filled with excitement and joy because we knew that we were able to show God's love to these kids who so often are pushed to the margins and neglected. We pray that through the church's work in this neighborhood that many may see a new way of life and a new way to love.

A Couples' Retreat

The road was long and full of many curves, twists, and turns reminiscent of the roads in Eastern Kentucky. We were on our way into the mountains surrounding Leon for a marriage retreat in the Sierra de Los Lobos ("Mountain of the Wolves") where our friends from church have a cabin. We arrived and quickly set ourselves to cooking and putting up our tents. That night we had the privilege of talking with one another about our lives and our cultures. We enjoyed each other's company throughout the retreat and were challenged to reflect upon the areas of our marriage that need our attention and how we can be better spouses. One of the highlights for us was just being in the countryside again. We love living in the city but we didn't realize just how much we missed the trees, grass, and wildlife. The retreat was a time for getting to know our friends better, our spouses better, and enjoying the earth that God has given us. We don't often take time to talk deeply with one another about how we can be a more godly spouse and we think that for the couples who attended God worked in their relationships.

REGRESAMOS A MEXICO

We arrived home to Mexico safely and without any problems during our trip. We had a very long bus ride both to the border and back to Leon, but we are grateful we didn't have any accidents! And we are happy to announce that we missed it here while we were away and that, when we were in Texas, we felt very odd. Now we understand what our professors talked about during our training in Colorado when they said we would become a mixture of two cultures, two worlds: that of our home country and that of our new country. Now that we've been here for 7 months we truly understand this phenomenon of feeling at home and yet a foreigner in our own country and in our new one. This paradox is one that all missionaries live with and many other people who live abroad as well. =) This mixture of two cultures is where we live and why we find ourselves speaking with each other in Spanglish sometimes. Uh oh. All that to say that we are content here, but we did enjoy being on the border for a few days as well.

Thank you for praying for us and our meetings! Everything went smoothly and we sensed the presence of God with us as we discussed our future ministry and participated in our field meeting. God moved in wonderful ways, and we know he answered many prayers! We were also able to attend the 60th anniversary of Taylor Christian School in McAllen. WGM started the private Christian school in order to serve the Latin immigrants in the neighborhood where the school is located on the border. While we were there it was exciting to hear the vision the missionaries hold for the future of the school.

We have a lot going on in our lives over the next few weeks, and we are extremely grateful for your encouragement and prayers! Thank you for the phone calls and e-mails that have assured us of your support! You enable us to continue in our ministry here and your participation with us is invaluable!

As we work with our leaders to define our future ministry over the next few weeks we will let you know of those details as they become available. Meanwhile, please continue to pray for God's guidance and discernment as we meet with our leaders and work here.

PICTURES:
-One of our many views from the bus when we were close to Leon.
-Taylor Christian School's Anniversary
-Our friend and fellow missionary Jorge (from Boliva, but married to an American) celebrating his new American citizenship. He works and lives on the border.
-Our little friend Oscar after his school talent show here in Leon.

Headed to the Border

Hey family and friends!
Most of you received our prayer update, but we just wanted to make sure you knew that we were headed to the border today for a few days for field meetings. Just incase you don't hear from us for a little while that is. Please keep these meetings in your prayers and our travel safety as we will be taking the bus there and back. We will write a more detailed post when we return next week.

Thanks for all the encouraging emails and facebook posts. We appreciate each one of you!

Love,
Josh and Jennifer

Getting to Know One Another

Since we've been here our stereotypes of Mexico have been challenged as we learn more about the people and culture we've grown to love. One thing that surprised us is how long it has taken to get to know people. We noticed that many people generally seem happy and cheerful. And if you ask, "Cómo estás?" They are going to respond, "Muy bien gracias." If someone asks you the same question and you say something different it will most likely surprise them and they may not understand why you would give another answer. One of our language professors told us that many Mexicans function this way. They are happy and cheery in front of everyone, but when they are behind closed doors it is a different story. I don't think this phenomenon occurs only here in Mexico, but maybe it is more common. As we've been trying to deepen relationships here the idea that one is always fine (especially if you are a Christian) has been a roadblock. Thankfully this week we saw some progress. We had commented to each other that we wish this one family would open up to us because we know they are struggling right now and we'd like to talk to them about their situation. And it happened! Transparency! When we asked the famous question this week, "How are you?" finally the father responded "actually I'm really sad." He then began to open up about all the problems he had been having with his children and how devastated he felt because of all that had transpired the week before. Wow. We were shocked. And last night during a Bible study the same family admitted that they felt more comfortable around us and were glad that we could all share honestly with one another. Mainly, we've learned that if we are open and real with others, they are more likely to be open with us. Only in a community with a spirit of honesty can we grow. Sometimes it takes sacrifice on our part to humble ourselves enough to be honest about the things that we are struggling with in our lives. But lets be truthful...Isn't it freeing? We can only experience God's deep love for us in true Christian community. Have you ever experienced that? Are you striving for it?

Also, last night we celebrated our friend Jorge's birthday. Jorge and Erika have become good friends of ours. Why? Because they have opened their home to us time and time again. They've invited us out for tacos and invited us to super numerous times. They have been there for us when we've felt lonely and for that we are grateful! Jorge has his own salsa business and Josh has enjoyed helping him make them on a few occasions. Jorge's birthday celebration was special because his family didn't ever celebrate his birthday and to this day his mother doesn't even call him to wish him happy birthday. We were glad we could celebrate with him and bring a smile to his face. =D

A full weekend

Last week was a special week because it was our last week of language classes in Guanjuato. Friday was a bittersweet day as we said good-bye to our teachers and several students with whom we had built relationships, but we look forward to our new schedule. We will meet with a tutor several times a week as well as meet with people every day to focus on conversation. Meanwhile, Josh is gearing up to start some English classes at the church and Jennifer is hoping to launch some ballet classes if she can get the details worked out. We are also looking at the possibility of starting a small group in our home, and we will continue our involvement in various ministries at the church and community. In addition, we are preparing to teach some theological education classes this summer for a ministry training program at our church. Yes our plates are full. =)

Thanks for praying for us and Blanca this weekend. Blanca is recovering, taking some time off of work this week and she is still very sore.

Saturday was a great day in spite of the fact that Friday afternoon Josh came down with a 24 hour virus and was very ill. We had to cancel our Valentine's date for Friday night and pray that Josh would be well enough for Saturday's activities. Thankfully, by Saturday afternoon he was feeling much better and was able to go to the youth Valentine's party and the couples' meeting. The youth group party went smoothly, and we think that those who attended were interested in our story. We hope we were able to connect with them and help them understand how important it is to have Christ in your relationships. Afterwards we were encouraged because we had several youth approach us and ask us some deep questions. Following the youth party we attended the couples get together. There we met some new friends and had a wonderful time of reflection and fellowship as we discussed the theme of complaining and how it is destructive in a marriage. Saturday was a late night as we stayed up late cooking for Sunday's big international potluck at church. Sunday morning Jennifer enjoyed helping in the kitchen and serving a variety of plates from the Americas. We are grateful for the way God worked through the various activities over the weekend!

Quick Update

Good morning!

We just wanted to ask you to pray for our dear friend Blanca who had hernia surgery yesterday. She is a single mom who has had many difficulties come her way lately. We are thankful she came through surgery okay and that today she is supposed to be released from the hospital. Her two daughters are also near and dear to our hearts and as you can imagine they've been worried about their mom over the past few days.

Today is our last day at language school in Guanajuato and tomorrow we have a full day. After working with the children at Cañon de la India we are sharing our testimony with the youth group at a special Valentine's Day party and then we will be attending a couples meeting. Of course our testimony will be in Spanish so we are hoping it goes smoothly and we don't make too many embarrassing mistakes and that it makes an impact on the youth.

Thanks for your prayers and concern for these matters! We will update you again shortly.

¡Feliz día del amor y la amistad!

Con amor,
Josh and Jennifer

*Picture is of Blanca being baptized in January