Over the Horizon

Canyon Hills Team, June 20-29

We were super blessed to welcome a group from Canyon Hills Church in Bothell, WA for a ten-day outreach from June 20 to 29. What a great and dynamic group!! They all came down ready to serve and give their all for the cause of Christ, and it glowed in them every minute they were here!

I was especially excited to work with this team this year. The last time they came down was in June 2007 while I was in Virginia for my youngest brother's funeral. I arrived back in Cofradia 2 days before they left to return home that year, and since I was still reeling from the grief of it all I wasn't all that present in what was going on. So, this year was a really fabulous opportunity to get to know this team and really dig into ministry with them, and let me tell you I had the time of my life with them!

Each morning they worked in construction at the new church facility. They installed lighting in the sanctuary, leveled the second-story office floor, poured second-story classroom beams, hauled rocks, dug trenches, and many other small but significant jobs around the property. We are in the process now of preparing the property for the height of the rainy season (August-September) and the halt to construction work until after the rains end and the Elias’ return from their trip home to Canada. The Canyon Hills team efforts were incredibly helpful as we get closer to this goal.

In the afternoons, this group took to the towns doing evangelism outreaches in five different locations. Three of them were towns where we are already present and ministering on a regular basis: Cofradía, Las Pilas, and Paso Real. However, two of them are towns we have never ministered in before. We were blessed to partner with the church in Rosamorada to evangelize in the town of Minitas. Then at the end of their trip, we partnered with the church in San Vicente in putting on the group’s Carnival outreach there in the plaza! There was a good turn-out in every town, and the group did a fabulous job playing with kids and youth before and after each outreach as well as presenting puppets, music, testimonies, dramas, a gospel message, and craft projects. They did a great job walking through each town inviting people to the event, and then they showed no reservation at the conclusion each day as they walked out and just started praying with people who were in attendance, whether they could find a translator or not!

 

(left) The team singing a song in Spanish; (right) Praying before puppets

   

(left) A drama done to the Lighthouse song "You're Everything"; (right) Praying with local men at the end

Since this was a ten-day outreach, on Thursday I accompanied them to the beach and Jungle Tour in San Blas. This is always a popular outing and a great way to relax and see more of the Riviera area of our state (Nayarit). They had a blast looking for crocodiles, swimming in a natural swimming hole surrounded by mangrove trees, playing volleyball on the beach, and eating really amazing food including the most amazing fried bananas you've ever tasted! What a fun day that was!

   

(left) Playing volleyball on the beach in San Blas; (right) Man, can this team eat!!

As I mentioned, at the end of their trip, they put on a carnival for the kids in San Vicente. They had all kinds of games that they manned in addition to their regular program of puppets, drama, testimonies, and a gospel message. It was a ton of fun, and the kids had the time of their life! We staff even got involved as the human pins in the bowling game!!!

   

(left) Puppets; (right) Ring Toss

   

Baseball toss

   

Magnetic Darts

   

(left) We the staff as the pins for Human Bowling; (right) Ducky Draw (the number on the bottom was how many pieces of candy they won)

 

Face Painting!

I thoroughly enjoyed working with this team, and I especially enjoyed participating in their team devotions and debriefs and being able to hear from each of them on a more personal and individual level about how the Lord was touching them, teaching them, and changing them as a result of their service to Him in this area. We are definitely looking forward to having them back again in the future!

 

Me and some of the girls from the team

Oaxaca Report

Well, our first ever youth missions trip was a slam bang, blessed success!! PRAISE THE LORD! We had such an amazing time, and we all came away from it with amazing lessons learned and precious moments where we could see God just reaching down in tangible ways to change our lives and those of the youth in Oaxaca. Thank you for your prayers and your support! We definitely couldn't have done any of this without you!

Here is what I shared in my recent monthly report:

We kicked off April with our youth missions trip to Oaxaca, April 3-11. It took us 25 hours to drive there and 19 hours to get home. We all fell in love with the area and the people. Our days started very early (to prepare our meals), and they typically ended well after midnight, but we never really noticed the fatigue. We were too energized to let that slow us down!

We worked with A.M. missionary Jeffrey Simons to kick-start a para-church youth ministry in an indigenous village called San Juan Guelavía. During the mornings, our youth leaders (Martin, Mily, and Sandy) led leadership workshops with local youth who have been involved with Jeffrey’s ministry. During this time, the other half of our team headed to a local home to do construction: they prepped the home to have a cement floor poured. When it came time to pour the floor, they were helped by all the workshop youth in an effort to put into practice one of their discussion topics: Service.

 

Each afternoon for three days, we put on THE CHALLENGE to draw in new youth. The youth were divided into three teams and given the chance to pick a name from a Bible story we provided them and then make their team flags. They spent time in get-to-know you activities on the first day, and then the race really began. They raced to put together a paper person blindfolded with only the screamed instructions of their teammates guiding them; they did relay races including our famed Coke Race and Olympics (tooth-pick javelin throw, paper plate discus, and balloon toss); they battled to be King of the Circle, they threw water balloons at a huge bull’s-eye in an effort to win big points by nailing their team captains; and they shot M&Ms out of their noses trying to make it into a bucket five feet away. And throughout it all there were devotions and Biblical messages to teach them who God is, how He loves them, how to know Him, and find their identity in Him. On the last day of THE CHALLENGE, we had a hot-dog social, allowing all the youth to just spend time hanging out, playing games, and enjoying hot dogs. That evening culminated in our awards ceremony where we presented awards for the winning team, the Olympics winners, the King of the Circle, and recognition of the local student leaders. It was such an incredible time!

 

Our last day in Oaxaca was spent seeing the sights. We started by visiting the ruins of Monte Alban, and then went down to the historic center and spent time shopping in the market. WOW! So amazing! We finished the evening with a great dinner at a restaurant in the heart of the historic center, and then we headed home to pack and clean for our trip back to Cofradía. What a week! Our youth were changed, and they are all looking forward to going back next year!

 

If you would like to read Steve's report, then go here.

You can also read testimonies from our youth team members by clicking on the following links!

Abraham's Testimony

Chuy's Testimony

Martin's Testimony

Mily's Testimony

Ruben's Testimony

Sandy's Testimony

And finally, Sandy wrote her own report of our trip, and I thought you might like to read her perspective. So, here it is. If you would like to see it in full-screen mode (so as not to strain your eyes reading the teeny print), just click on the arrow in the upper right hand corner of the document.

Team Shopping

So, I just recently found this picture while I was looking through all my files. I thought you might be interested to see what kind of shopping we have to do when teams come down. This pic is of the groceries we bought for the Southside team this year. They brought 41 people, which is gigantic for us! After a few days of doing kitchen inventory and tweeking the shopping list, Sandy and I headed to Tepic. We walked through Sam's Club, Wal-Mart, and Soriana (a local grocery store) at a brisk pace the whole day, and we still didn't get back until almost 6 pm. And we barely got everything in this truck!! Welcome to STM Prep 101!!

Southside Team, March 29-April 3

We were blessed to be visited by Southside Christian Church from Spokane, WA once again. This was their sixth trip to Cofradia, and it's always exciting to see how those relationships continue to grow. They worked hard on construction at the new church planting trees along the outside perimeter, transferring thousands of bricks to the second floor of the education wing, completing the installation of new fencing for the Arrayanes church property, pouring a concrete soccer court for the Arrayanes junior high school, and cleaning up the Cofradia public dump. The work wasn't always very glamorous, and was more often than not rather back-breaking, but they worked hard and had great attitudes. It was obvious they were serving their Lord and not man!

Here's what Pastor Goyo shared in a recent report about this team's work:

"This month was impressive. A group from the USA left a great lesson for all of us in the community. Yes, it was a month of blessing. Why? Well, because they worked for the benefit of the town. Out at the town dump, a large pit had been dug. It's about 10x20 meters (~30x60 ft), and there in that pit supposedly is where trash should be dumped. Some of it was actually thrown in the pit, but much more was just dumped all around outside the pit. And all along the road to Arrayanes there was a lot of dumped trash on the sides of the road.

Well there was a great proposition for this group, and being pleased and full of encouragement, the task was given to them. It ended up super clean, all around and on the sides of the road. Everything was dumped inside the pit, and I can say that even still we have a pretty dump.

I think these actions have an impact on the people of Cofradia, and they could think, "Why do they have to do it if we can?" Maybe it will be difficult to maintain that way of thinking, but wouldn't it be just as difficult not to have that way of thinking? Therefore, we do not grow weary in doing good, and it will be an impact for generations.

I know that that work was a service to God. It is a manifestation of the character of Christ, a way of evangelizing without words, but with actions that have the power to make us reflect."

Yes, that dump cleaning was pretty impressive. The team this year was extremely large: 41 people!! So, it didn't take long with them all spread out to get the whole job done, and beautifully at that! Aside from being dirty and very stinky, it was a little dangerous as well: in the brush surrounding the pit, there are trees infested with fire ants, there are snakes that like to hide (tires, buckets, etc.--one was even found by one young lady), and of course there is always the lurking danger of scorpions which in this area are very small and easy to overlook if you're not careful. So, the sacrifice of this team to do this work and with such fervor and joy was no small thing, and we are very grateful!!

   

(left) Working on the sports court in Arrayanes; (right) Stuccoing the rear property wall.

 

Working on the property fence in Arrayanes

For ministry, this team put on another successful week of VBS/Kids Club. They dramatized and taught different stories about Jesus interacting with His disciples. This included the story of the crucifiction and resurrection and an opportunity for the children to receive Christ into their hearts. Each day they also had craft projects that coordinated with the story/drama of the day. And of course there were lots of fun games: relays, water balloons, bouncy balls, tag, etc. On their last day of ministry, after finishing their drama story, they took all the kids over to our new church facility where they had set up a fun carnival. They rented several air-bouncer slides and a mechanical bull, and they served hot dogs and lemonade and popcorn for all the kids and their accompanying family members. It was such a blast!

   

Serving food and drinks at the carnival

   

Fun in action!

This team always does such a stupendous job of playing with the kids of this area and connecting with them on a relational level that they can understand. It is often said that for children, love is spelled T-I-M-E. Well, this team has perfected the art of spending time with the children. We are looking forward to having them back again in the future!!

Cy-Fair Team, March 14-21

The following report on the Cy-Fair Christian Church Youth Missions Team from Houston, TX was taken from Steve's blog. What an amazing week that was! Please enjoy!

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March 14-21 we had some youth from Cy-Fair Christian Church in Houston here to work directly with our youth like they have done for the past few years (six, I think). The past couple of years there has been an interesting dynamic forming as we see the two youth groups coming together as one. It’s almost like they’re part of our youth group. When they come (even the newbies), they fit right in and have been able to overcome the language barrier. It’s amazing! When they’re here, they’re here to spend time with our youth and build relationships. They understand that it’s “not about them” and that they’re not coming down on a “vacation” with their friends from home. It’s so refreshing to see a short-term missions team be able to do this as effectively and they’ve done it. They don’t stay all together and form groups of Americans here and groups of Americans there, it’s not like that at all. They’re all hanging out together; our youth and theirs.

One of the ways that has helped break down the language barrier is by introducing an “Amazing Race” event with clues in half Spanish half English. It’s pretty fun! Whether it was making tortilla’s two years ago or making a meal for a family last year, they all work together to gather the supplies they need that are scattered throughout the town and reach their goal. This year, we did not originally plan this, so it came as a surprise not only for the Americans, but our youth and student leaders as well. As soon as the Americans got here from the airport, they ate lunch, had an orientation time, and went over to the church to “hang out” with our youth at our youth group meeting and do some “get-to-know-you” games. All of the sudden we started the race between two teams of guys and two teams of girls--mixed American/Mexican. They went to three different towns and chose what kind of activity they would do in each town. They finally returned to Cofradía to find out they were invited to “The Valley of Decision” (a rendition of Survivor's Tribal Council mixed in with a pre-make of Judgement Day found in Joel 3) to vote on who would have to do chores.

 
(Left) The Red Team headed off to one of the towns for their next challenge activity.
(Right) Mily's team doing the TEAM WALK...all working together to reach the finish line!

 
(Left) Team leaders (L-R: Mily, Martin, Sandy, Riki) standing in formation with their teams at the Valley of Decision.
(Right) The voting area for the final team votes.

The next day we had our annual Award’s Banquet with a “Cowboy” theme this year chosen by our student leaders. We all dressed up and enjoyed a very authentic barbecued beef/steak meal.

Towards the end of the meal, we handed out our annual awards to our students...

 

...Jesus (Chuy) Orozco F. (left) and Aidé Garzón V. (right) received a Certificate of Achievement for  completing a year-long discipleship class (Navigators 2:7).

...Alfredo Garzón S. received the Spirit Award for his enthusiasm in the youth group.

...Guillermo Orozco F. received the New Generation Award (only for incoming 7th graders) for showing potential in leadership and responsibility.

...Abraham Águilar D. received the Servant Award for ALWAYS helping without even being asked. This guy is going to be an awesome leader!

...Jesus (Chuy) Corrales F. received the Brave Heart Award for his incredible spiritual growth this past year.

Also, we recognized our three Student Leaders who have helped us in a huge way this year to accomplish all that has been done. They are a true blessing and we’re excited to have them in leadership: Martin, Mily, and Sandy (from left to right below).

    

Every year the Cy-Fair youth serve us the meal and we all sit down and eat. When it’s all done, they go back to the mission base to have their sack-lunch dinners. This year, we decided to secretly flip the evening and serve them! As soon as we were done eating and handing out awards, our youth got up, cleaned and re-set the tables, seated the team, and proceeded to serve them.

It wouldn't have been complete without giving them awards, which wouldn’t work out any other year. So, we seized the opportunity and decided to give...

...a Brave Heart Award to Pastor Brad Pembleton because he is no longer the youth pastor, but Group Life Pastor, and he will be planting a daughter church within a couple of years. He is stepping out in faith as the Lord leads him, and we appreciate his example. Thanks Brad!

...a Servant Award to Pastor Dave Chavez who is ALWAYS wanting to help out and serve people. Especially when we have meetings at our house over a meal, he’s the first one to get up and wash the dishes...ALL THE TIME! Thanks Dave!

...a New Generation Award to Pastor Mike Skelton who is now the Youth Pastor, and we appreciate him and welcome him as the new youth pastor. Thanks for bringing the team Mike!

In the mornings during the week, the team had a number of different work projects to do and they completed everything from setting tile in the new youth room to taking out a beam and putting in a new one in a ceiling that was already poured (cement). They did a great job.

 
(Left) Our youth room with its newly tiled floor! (right) The new concrete ceiling beam setting.

In the evenings, we had some organized team building games, we went to clean the a basketball court area and soccer field of a neighboring town (Las Pilas), and we had a really great time the last evening walking out to the corn fields to see how they harvest corn here. There is quite a bit of the growth and harvesting process that we can relate to our growth spiritually.

Cleaning the basketball court and soccer field in Las Pilas


Walking through the corn fields


Team Picture: Americans & Mexicans united!

This was a seriously impacting week for everyone involved, and we continue to grow more and more excited for how the Lord uses the relationships this team has built and continues to build with the youth of this area!

Pastor Rafael Gradilla

On March 7-8, we were joined by Pastor Rafael Gradilla for a some great edification of the saints, baptism, and evangelism. Pastor Gradilla has come to visit and share with us for the past couple of years from Hosana Asamblea (Hosana Assembly) in Belvue, WA. He taught in the church on Saturday night and in the Sunday morning service. Here is what Steve shared about this weekend event on his blog:

"He spoke Saturday night and Sunday morning as he encouraged them to continue to grow in their faith. We had baptisms on Sunday afternoon and PRAISE THE LORD! My brother-in-law took that step of obedience. A number of others were baptized as well. On Sunday evening, Pastor Rafael spoke at an open-air meeting in a neighboring town called Las Pilas. Many were prayed for and the town seems to be pretty receptive of the gospel when we go there."

Steve's brother-in-law, Hugo, being baptized by Pastor Gradilla (left) and Pastor Goyo (right)


Pastor Gradilla preaching at the evangelism meeting in the Las Pilas town plaza

Pastor Goyo shared the following testimony of the weekend's events in a recent ministry update letter:

"On March 8 we were evangelizing in Las Pilas. The whole church was there as well as Pastor Rafael Gradilla, who visits us about once a year. He came on March 7 and preached in the church on a theme very important for growth. Then on Sunday, he preached during the service, and afterward we baptized 7 people. I want to say that it was a very memorable day. That's not all that happened that day because as soon as we finished teh baptisms, while we were talking with one man, another man came to us with a great need. He asked for prayer. This man was originally from Southern Mexico, and he shared that he had contracted a terminal venereal disease. So we prayed with him. I almost can't describe that moment; I felt like my heart was going to come out of my chest. I only say this so you can try to imagine! In that moment I felt a great thankfulness to God, and I prayed with pure conviction in favor of this man. Yes, March 8 has left its mark in my walk through this life.

"That same day at 4:00 p.m., we went to evangelize in Las Pilas, a small town near Cofradia. We split into four groups in order to go invite the whole town to the town plaza. I was the leader of one of those groups, and there was a child in the group who was handing out tracks in a very friendly way. In two homes I was impacted. In one we met an elderly lady who asked us to pray for her grandson for freedom from drugs and alcohol. So we prayed for him and for her. Then just a little later, we arrived at the home of a man who has been bed-ridden for many years. He cannot move his arms or legs, and he can't talk. We went in and realized that he couldn't talk, but he could understand, and he would life his hand a little bit to communicate "yes". So, I asked him if he wanted to be saved, and I asked him to pray with me in his heart, and he lifted his hand to indicate "yes". So, he prayed in his interior. His face was radiant. Those are such precious moments.

"So we went back to the town plaza and continued with the evangelism message, and several people accepted Christ in their hearts. For this I want to thank God and all of you for your spiritual support in the growth of the Kingdom of God. May God bless you all for being part of what is happening in this area."

It was truly a remarkable weekend. Please continue to pray for Las Pilas and the other surrounding towns in this area. The people are hungry for peace, love, and security in their hearts that can only be found in the Saving Grace of Jesus Christ! Thank you!

working in the bean fields

so... WE'RE GOING ON A MISSIONS TRIP!!! we will be taking our youth leaders and three other members of the youth group to the state of Oaxaca, which is about a 20-hour drive southeast from here. our goal is to partner with Alternative Missions missionaries Jeffrey and Sylvia Simons to lay the foundations for a Young Life type of youth parachurch ministry to the indigenous towns in that area. this is the first ever youth missions trip sent out from our Cofradia church, and we are totally stoked to do this!

missions trips mean fundraising! so we've been doing carwashes on the weekends. of course, it's kind of laughable to do a carwash around here, since as soon as your car gets clean it's totally coated in dust once again. but it's something to do and it will teach the team members about working towards their goal and not just depending on others to send in donations. they get it, and they're really dedicated and excited about it. and besides, it is also good for building team uinty and having a good time together.

each member of the team has to pay $1500 mexican pesos (approximately $100 USD) to reserve their seat. this covers the trip, housing, food, etc. in addition the team as a whole has to come up with $15,000 mexican pesos (approximately $1000 USD) to cover ministry and construction costs.

today, as part of our fundraising efforts locally, we went to the beanfield of one of our church members to pick out the prickly weeds that grow there. that was not easy, and the sun was hot; although i'm not sure i'd like to repeat it, i'm very glad i did it. it certainly gave just a little bit of insight what it must be like for the local people who go out into the fields day in and day out in the hot sun picking beans or chiles or tabacco, or whatever other crop is in season, just to put food on their tables! it's backbreaking work that is for sure. they deserve so much more than what they get paid.

we did all this work by hand. some of the team went up and down each row of plants hacking at the prickle bushes with machetes. then the rest of us went behind them picking up the hacked prickle bushes (with gloves of course) while two walked along carrying a tarp between them. it was heavy, that's for sure. at the end of each row, we dumped the load so that it can dry out and later be burned.

we earned $300 mexican pesos for the team for our 2.5 hours of labor. yea!

i just kept thinking that my grandmother would have loved to hear about this experience. she grew up on a farm in northeastern virginia during the Great Depression. she would have gotten a kick out of this! well, i hope she was watching from Heaven.

please continue to pray for our missions team as we continue to raise funds!

Highland Covenant Team -- July 5-10

We were very thankful for a few days of rest after the Keyport team's departure. Four days after they left Cofradia, we were a bit more rested and ready to receive the group from Highland Covenant Church from Bellview, WA. This was a youth team, and although they were only here for a short trip, they were GREAT! They worked hard and had a ton of fun!

 

This team was a construction team and in the mornings on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday, they spent their time scouring and painting steel rafters, all of which had been completed just prior to their arrival...all 22 COMPLETED!!! Those beams weigh a ton, but this team worked together to move them in and out of the painting area. They were often paining 3-4 at a time, and it didn't take them long to get their system in place. By the end of their three days of construction, they had painted all but 1 rafter!!! That's 44 hours of labor in 22 hours total! They also poured our last sidewalk section in the education wing.

     

   

They enjoyed many other activities aside from construction, however, as they got to know the town and the people. On Sunday afternoon, some of them went with Jay and our church soccer team to play/watch soccer. The rest of the team hiked up the Hill of the Cross with Dave, Jonathan, and I. From the top of this hill, you can see the entire town of Cofradia as well as the local reservoir. It was a really cool time for the team to ask questions and learn more about our ministry and this area as they got a birds'-eye view of it all. Before we headed back down the hill, we spent some time praying for the people of Cofradia and the surrounding towns. It was really special.

 

On Tuesday afternoon, the team enjoyed a mini-soccer tournament which Jay had organized just for their benefit. The field was wet and muddy, but the kids who played had a blast. The rest of the team either sat on the sidelines with the Mexican spectators enjoying each other's company and the game at hand, or they were up in the trucks conversing with other locals. There were several members of the team who spoke Spanish well enough to get by without a translator, so it was neat to see them putting their Spanish to the test and getting to know the people of this area.

   

On Wednesday afternoon, Faith and I took the team to Tuxpan to experience some local shopping and cultural flavor. It was really fun. Everyone enjoyed the most amazing ice cream from the Michoacana (my favorite ice cream..even better than Hagandaaz Coffee ice cream!). Then they all set out to the shopping plaza to see what was around. A few folks bought clothes or Cora bags (hand-woven with traditional Cora Indian designs, made by Cora Indians) or other native artisan goods. We were only there about an hour, but everyone seemed to enjoy themselves. As we were leaving town, a big rain storm caught us, so by the time we all got back to the truck, everyone was soaked. And they got even more soaked in the back of the truck during the half-hour ride back to the base. But they were having the time of their life! So, who can complain?

We were so blessed to receive a ton of rain during Highland Covenant's time with us. This kept temperatures down and also filled up cisterns from the lack of water we'd been suffering due to the town water having been off for almost three weeks. This team really enjoyed the rain, aside from the truck ride, they could be found most afternoons playing in the rain once it started. I kept watching them and thinking it was such a beautiful picture of getting out of our boxes and experiencing something different. Being from Seattle, this team experiences rain on a normal basis, but at home when it rains it's cold! Here it wasn't cold at all, and they would run around just enjoy it and dancing in it saying, "It isn't cold! It isn't cold!" What freedom and reckless abandon. May we all experience that in our lives as the Lord frees us from the cold and ushers us into the joy of warmth and watering in Him!

I had a great time with this team! The youth were stellar and such hard workers, and they certainly know how to have fun together. The leadership on this team was dynamic, fun, and yet had their ducks in a row when it came to leading their team, and it was obvious that the youth respond well to them and are growing under their leadership. I especially enjoyed getting to know the two female leaders: Julie and Lisa. Julie and I killed a snake together in my apartment one night, and Lisa and I actually found we have a lot in common and enjoyed talking and getting to know each other over the course of the week. It was a blessing to spend time with and work along side this team, and we're looking forward to seeing them back here again!

   

the rains!

well, we're anxious for the rainy season to really kick in! we've had some rain, but not the full on rains that are typically of a rainy season in full swing. our town water in cofradia was off for almost three weeks, and without good rains coming down there wasn't enough water to fill our cistern. but it's finally raining really good, and the town water is back on!

we have a team here right now from Bellview, WA, and they had such a blast playing in the rain storm that's going on right now. it's coming down hard and there are RIVERS running all over the base. the water is up to our ankles in some places!

somehow, kids playing in a summer rain storm seems like the way childhood and adolescent summers ought to be spent. thank you, Lord, for the rain and for how you water our hearts and lives every day just as you do your earth!

 

Keyport Team -- June 23-July 1

Following the His Place team, we were blessed to receive a brand new team from the Seattle area of Washington: Keyport Bible Church. This was a group of adults and teens, and they were a ton of fun! They came down to do construction and VBS Kids Clubs, so they got a lot done and we enjoyed working with them!

The men on this team worked construction morning and afternoon, and the girls only joined in during the morning hours. They did a ton of work on welding and putting together rafters, completing the fabrication of 10 rafters during their week with us, as well as threading all the steel rods.

    

The girls worked on smooth-walling, painting the beam that the His Place team raised, and putting up screens on the windows that were installed while His Place was here. They definitely faced some challenges in their construction projects, but those girls never gave up, and by the end of the week they had conquered their projects! Yea for perseverance!! They have much to be proud of!!

   

 

In the afternoons, Monday through Friday, we took the ladies to Pilas to do VBS. This is the first time that we have done a VBS outreach in Pilas, so we weren't really sure what to expect. It turned out to be really great. Each day the kids were waiting for us or would run down the street with the truck to get to the town hall where we played, sang, presented a Bible story, and then did crafts. And each day there were more kids. At the beginning of the week, there were probably 25 kids tops, but by the last day we had definitely doubled that!

   

 

Then on Monday afternoon, we took them up to Mojocuautla to do a VBS outreach with the Cora Indian kids. They seemed to really enjoy the singing and the Bible story and craft. It was really neat to watch!

On Saturday afternoon, we enjoyed welcoming the youth on the team to a youth event that had been planned entirely by our Student Leadership Team. Since it was the last Saturday of the month, it was time for a LIFE Night event, but with all the staff involved with the team, that was a little too much this month. So, the Student Leaders planned something a little lighter but just as fun with the goal of drawing in their friends that don't normally come to youth activities. Therefore, the girls planned a craft time and they guys played a mini soccer tournament. I hung out with the girls and had a blast, and when the crafts were all done, some enjoyed hanging out and chatting while others enjoyed watching the soccer games. There were several craft options: snowman picture holders, snowman door hangers/ornaments made of foamy material (2 different designs), and masks. We were also joined by the youth from Ruiz who have been regular attenders at youth group and church since our youth event in May. It was a truly enjoyable evening full of real fun and fellowship, and we really had a blast getting to know some new girls including the girls on the team and a young Mexian teen who has lived much of her life in the states and just recently moved back to Arrayanes.

 

On Sunday morning, I got up at 5 am to take all the ladies on a nearby hike. It's probably a 2-3 mile hike round trip, including the walk to and from the hill, and it's not very difficult. But it is a bushwhack (no trail), and we were doing it in the dark. To complicate things, I have only ever BEEN on the hike twice, and I've never LED it before. However, we found our way pretty well and got to see a bit of sunrise over the Sierra Madre mountains. It would have been even better if it hadn't been so cloudy, but it was still great!

   

Then on Sunday afternoon, one of the teenage guys got to play on the local baseball team in one of their games, so the whole team went out to watch him play. I did not accompany them, having much office work to catch up on, so there are no photos of that event. But I was told that it was an interesting experience to say the least!

This was quite a fun team, and I enjoyed hanging out with the girls, who ranged in age from 12-22. Their dynamic was quite different, but each one was a ton of fun, and I really enjoyed getting to hang out with them and talk and get to know each other! I also had a wonderful time talking with and getting to know their female leader. What a great lady with a fabulous testimony and a heart for the Lord's glory! It was truly a great week, and we're really thankful to the Keyport group for all their hard work!! We're definitely hoping to see them again next year!!

If you want to see more pics, check out the team's album on my flickr site!