Progress

As Jesus sent out the 12 in Matthew 10, He gave them the motive for their ministry in verse 8: “Freely you have received, freely give. Their mission of mercy–healing the sick, casting out demons, and even raising the dead is the logical response to the mercy that they had already received in the form of God drawing near. They had seen Him, touched Him, and from Him received divine power. In Matthew 10, they are sent out to tell others about Him.

What Jesus modeled is the end of any discipleship program. He made disciples who in turn made disciples, and, here in the Yucatán, we had the privilege of seeing this cycle come full circle. This past Saturday night, the ministers and members of the Assemblies of God of Yucatán met to commission and send out Norma Uitzil, a missionary, born here in Yucatán, who will be ministering among the “Untouchables” of Calcutta, India.

Yucatán has freely received. Silverio Blanco, the director of the Bible Institute, took time during the service to tell of the first evangelical missionaries who arrived in 1866 to preach in what was then the inhospitable conditions of this predominately Maya state. Since that small beginning, many have come, Presbyterians, Baptists, and Pentecostals among others. In what was once an area devoid of believers, now roughly 1 in 10 attends an evangelical congregation. Granted, there is plenty of work to be done, but the work here in the Yucatán has entered a different stage. It is time for this district to take its place in the evangelization of the world, and missionary Norma Uitzil is one of the first to respond to that call.

About a year and a half ago, I spoke of Jaime and Jaqueline Chacon, missionaries from Costa Rica that are now serving in the U.S. I echoed in that post the words of our regional director, Dick Nicholson, who said that missions is no longer the U.S. or the traditionally Christian Nations that are sending missionaries to the ends of the earth; missions has become a movement in which God is calling people from everywhere to go to everywhere. We believe more than ever in that idea. To that effect, we are currently heading up the missions program in the church that we attend, and we are committed to continually preach missions in the various congregations in which we are invited to speak.

Some might say that it is an impossibility to promote missions in an area where the minimum wage is $5 a day, but people like Norma are proving that we serve a God who makes the impossible possible. So, as we were called forward to pray for her, I asked as well that God would begin to call others to respond to His world-wide mandate, that others would hear His heartbeat for the nations and dare to believe that they can make a difference. After all, freely we all have received, its only natural that we all freely give.

About two weeks ago, (yes, the events of our lives and ministry have taken a toll on my blogging) we celebrated the birthday of our youngest, Jonathan. It was filled with parties–one at school and another here at the house, as well as a mountain of presents, many of which have already made their way to the black hole that our boys call their closet. Of course, all of these things came as no surprise. After celebrating the 19 kids’ parties that we have, from Princess to Bob the Builder to Spider Man to Jungle themes, we’ve come to expect the anticipation, celebration, and sugar withdrawal cycle that each party brings. However, after all of the celebration was over, and Jonathan had time to reflect, he did something unexpected: he decided to testify. In fact it was such a surprise that we didn’t have our camera. The blurry picture was taken with my cell phone.

Now, I know what you’re thinking, testimony night has gone the way of Sunday morning prayer requests in most churches, they’re just not done, but here in Mexico, testimony night is alive and well, and two weeks ago last Sunday a certain recently turned 5 year-old decided to step forward and thank God for another year that God had allowed him to complete.* Not only did he testify, he also sang “Open the Eyes of My Heart” (”Abre mis Ojos, Oh Cristo”) in Spanish.

To me, this is the sign of two things happening:

1. that our son is rapidly acculturating: Testifying is expected of church members when they celebrate their birthday. That Jonathan noticed this and wanted to do it tells me that he’s becoming more “Mexican.”
2. that our son is recognizing God as part of his life: It was hard for me to choke back the tears as I listened to our “baby” asking Jesus to help him to truly see Him as he is. It’s my desire as a father to be a part of the the answer to that prayer.

*Spanish idea: We don’t “turn” years old as we celebrate birthdays, we complete years or “cumplemos años” hence the Spanish salutation “Feliz Cumpleaños”

September marked for us the end of one year of ministry here in the Yucatán, and to celebrate, we brought back a best of disciplemexico.org so that you could revisit some of the highlights of our journey thus far:

1. Day of the Dead–Written as a response to a request of an friend, this post is by far our most popular post of the past year, and, with the celebration of this event less than a month away the hits are building again. This piece reveals the difficulty that we have as we try to understand the culture of the Yucatán and their ancient traditions.

2. Oh the Humanity!–is a piece I wrote about how God uses our humanness, something very evident to me as I suffered through a prolonged sinus infection, to reveal his perfect power.

3. Like riding a bicycle–is a family update/reflection on what it is that we do as missionaries. By the way, mastery of the bicycle is something that our kids are still working on. Come to think of it, we’ve still got a lot to learn about missions as well.

4. Topes–Life has a way of springing surprises on you, much like speed bumps that seem to appear when you least expect them on roads here in Mexico, but, as this post suggests, the jolts bring with them valuable learning experiences.

5. Coincidence or Confirmation?–This post about our providential guidance on the way to Mérida generated some lively if not completely related discussion.

As I look through these posts, one thing becomes increasingly clear. The job that we have been called to is not an easy one, but the God that has called us continues to guide and form us so that we can accomplish His work.

For those of you who prayed and have been waiting for my schedule to break in order to give you an update, I want to say thanks. The Prayer Wall presentation was overwhelmingly received here in the Yucatán. We had a full house in the church “Cordero de Dios” as well as our superintendent and assistant superintendent present.

Phil presented his vision for a continuous wall of prayer across Mexico as I interpreted. The photo to the left shows one of our more in sync moments. It was a stretching experience for me to be sure, but it was extremely rewarding as well as tens of volunteers signed up to be a part of a 230 strong group of prayer warriors interceding 24/7 for Mexico.

Again thank you for your prayers and notes of encouragement as I stepped out in this ministry.

With my running commentary on the state of my health here and here, one can get the impression that we have been shut down for a while on the ministry front. However, although I’d lost a few days in my recovery, we’ve also been active, planning for an upcoming missions team to work in Muna, starting a new semester here at the Bible Institute, and serving in our local church.

One especially noteworthy event was our Carnaval service. Every Tuesday before Ash Wednesday, the date that marks the beginning of the Catholic season of Lent (Cuaresma in Spanish), the city of Mérida hosts Carnaval. This event, which is very similar to Mardi Gras in New Orleans is one big day of “sinning” before the purification of the Lenten Season begins. Of course, as Christians, we don’t believe in this binging and purging habit when it comes to living a Christian life, so our church offered an alternative Carnaval service.

During the service, there was an atmosphere of celebration for what God had done in the lives of the believers, participation in games and singing, and a wrap-up teaching before we sat down to experience the culmination of the event, sharing some great yucatecan food!

I was in charge of the afternoon’s message. It was an opportunity to share with the people my message on the tongue. (You can read the message in Spanish here.) I was able to share that it is not only sufficient to avoid the apparent sins of the world (e.g Carnaval), but that it is necessary to subject our entire self, all the way to the unruly tongue, to the power of the Holy Spirit.

During the course of the message, I was able to utilize Kelly’s pink dish washing glove as an example of being filled with the Spirit, as well as invite others to try and refill toothpaste tubes as an example of the difficulty that we have in taking back the words that we say. The picture above is of one of the church members, Joel, as he attempts this impossible task. The wonderful payoff, though, was seeing several of the church members come forward to pray for a new experience with the Holy Spirit.

So, yes, we’ve taken a few steps backward due to illness, but we’ve also seen God taking a few steps forward utilizing His power through us. Thank you for your continued prayers on our behalf!

This Sunday evening, I had a chance to preach at Golgotha Assembly of God here in Merida. The church is only about 5 minutes away from our home, and is one of the few evangelical churches that is located near the growing northern section of the city. We have attended services at the church on other occasions, but this evening was special. This was the evening that the church welcomed us as one of their own.

In our work as missionaries, relationships are the key to effectiveness. Without an open door, we have no work. So we have been praying for pastors with whom we could share our vision, pastors with whom we could partner and assist in discipling their people and equipping them to reach out to the lost all around them. Also, we have been praying for a church that we could call home. As foreigners, it is difficult to “fit in” in all circumstances. We have the fairest skin, speak the poorest Spanish, and probably drive the nicest car (thanks STL). We need people who can accept these realities, and yet be open to accept us into their circle of intimacy, take an interest in our well being, and that of our kids. This Sunday we decided that Golgota was that place.

Not only was the church conveniently located to us and strategically located to reach out into an unreached area, but we found at Golgota an attitude that drew us in. The pastor, Orlando Vazquez (pictured at the pulpit) a minister for over 50 years, has shown an openness to new ideas and a vision for reaching the world that I have seen in few congregations. In the 4 services that I had attended prior to last night, Mexican world missionaries were preaching in 2 of them, sharing their work and giving opportunity for the people to join with them in prayer and giving. For a church of about 60 members in Mexico, that was an amazing sight.

So we have a new church home away from home. Now that is not to say that we have been assigned to work with only one church, but in working and relating with the members of Golgotha Assembly, we now have another open door both to minister and to be ministered to here in Mérida.

As I had mentioned in my previous post, I have been in Tuxtla Gutierrez for the past 4 days. Here we have witnessed the events of the 49th General Council of the Assemblies of God of Mexico. We have seen the reelection of the current leaders of the organization and the passing of several resolutions, some of which brought encouragement and some of which brought disappointment to those of us observing and helping the work here in Mexico. However, all of us were ecstatic to see the presentation of the Mexican missionary body last night as several veteran missionaries brought reports of the work going on in world and three new families were committed to the work of “going into all of the world” in order to introduce people to the freeing message of the gospel.

Our prayers and support go with these who have responded to the call to go, and our desire is that more will follow their example so that this largest Spanish speaking nation in the world will extend its influence for the good of those who have yet to respond to God’s love.

This Monday started the new bimester at Bethel Bible Institute and with it began a whole new slate of classes. The new schedule finds me teaching Dynamic Evangelism to a class of seven first-year students (from front to back: Diana, Alejandro, Karin, Alicia, Lázaro, Bernardino, and Adrián.) This marks a sort of coming of age for me as a missionary. This is my first class that I am teaching on my own, completely in Spanish, but to me, much more is riding on these next set of weeks than solely an opportunity to “cut my teeth” teaching. What I desire is that these students not only understand me, but also learn.

The course, Dynamic Evangelism, is a subject that strikes fear, guilt, or both in the heart of many Christians in the U.S. and, I’ve come to find out here as well. Three of the seven students told me that they hope to be able to learn, through this class, how to get overcome fear that they have in talking to others about Christ. What I hope to do is to assist these students to begin making evangelism part of their lifestyle so that it becomes, not a dreaded task that they have to do, but a natural outgrowth of their Christian lifestyle.

I was reading another Guy Muse’s M Blog yesterday, and it seems as though he has the same idea. His post: What is the most effective way to evangelize is about finding God’s method to “continuously evangelize,” and he and his group is waiting for God to answer the question.

So we begin this prayerful foray into the experimental task of reaching people: How do we open minds and hearts to the Gospel? How to we pull away all that is culturally and traditionally bound to what we call Christianity in order to present the message of Christ to a culture that has deemed our message obsolete? How to we remain faithful to the biblical message and yet relevant to the society in which we live?

Stay with us as we embark together on this adventure with God. Follow along with our experiences, which I hope to post frequently, and above all pray for God’s direction and intervention in our class and in the work that takes place because of it.

Dividing up duties in my hermeneutics (Bible interpretation) class with Paul, I got a chance to lead the group in making observations about the texts that they had been given for homework.

What they were assigned to do was to determine the component parts of the passage, verbs, pronouns, conjunctions and the like, as well as to find any comparisons, contrasts, and cause and effect sequences that there might be within the text. From there, I began to show them the way that their observations can lead to questions that can guide their study of the passage.

I found it interesting to note that, although these students had taken a class in hermeneutics, before, many of them had never mined a passage in this way. While I find that to a certain degree alarming, I also see the opportunity that we have. We have the opportunity to teach them what it means to be true students of the Bible, disciples of the Word, and it is my prayer that they will be disciples that will make change in Merida and throughout southeastern Mexico.

No, not back to language school, but back to the bible institute. We have just begun a new semester in which I will be team teaching, of all subjects, Hermenéutica, (say that five times fast) or Hermeneutics in Spanish. The picture above is of missionary Paul Kazim, teaching the class of 32 students who come from as far as Tabasco in southern Mexico in order to attend classes at Bethel Bible Institute. I’m excited as this will be a great way to expand my vocabulary and train others to interpret correctly the Word of God: one way in which we are beginning to fulfill our mission here in Mérida.

We certainly didn’t want you to think that we have fallen off of the end of the earth here in Merida, although you don’t have very far to go to reach the end of Mexico from here. We only have about 20 minutes to reach the Gulf and on a clear night, they say you can see that lights of Havana Cuba from there. The reason for not updating on our progress has been our lack of internet connection.

We have moved from the Kazim’s home to our own rental, which means that on top of saying good-bye to Sandy’s home cooked Mexican food, we also have had to say good-bye to our internet connection. Fortunately, they still let us drop by from time to time to mooch their wireless and sometimes a cup of coffee. On the subject of saying goodbye, we said good-bye to Kelly’s father this morning. He flew out this morning, breaking up the two Daves team, but reuniting with Kelly’s mom and brother, Micah, who have been more than generous in letting us borrow him.

Saying good-bye to family certainly has not left us with lots of time on our hands. We’re getting straight to work, learning to navigate through the city, buying what we need for the house, starting up the children’s home school, and turning attention toward the ministry. I went yesterday to a service that marked the start of the semester for Bethel Bible College here in Merida. This semester I’ll be a part of a hermeneutics class that Paul Kazim is teaching. I’ll also be preparing to team teach as soon as we get our feet on the ground, something that I am looking forward to.

So, continue to lift us up in prayer for our continuing transition, that we will be able to make our house into a home very soon, that the kids can get on a good schedule that will enable them to thrive here in the city, that we will find open doors to our ministry, and that we will boldly proclaim the gospel.

As you can see, the two Dave’s finally made it from Springfield MO, all the way to Merida. The two hour trip from Campeche was very uneventful, which was a pleasant change from the travels of the previous days.

We arrived in Merida at about 10:30 AM and got right into the work, unloading boxes, receiving deliveries, and getting things situated so that we can officially move in to our home. While we’d been driving, Kelly had been doing the real work setting up house here in Merida, and we’re certainly getting close to that point. In the meantime, we’ve been enjoying the hospitality of fellow missionaries Paul and Sandy Kazim.

Of course, the sweetest thing about the journey was the reunion and the realization that even though we have moved seemingly all over the world, home is where the family is.

Even though our journey has ended, our mission is just beginning. Keep checking back to stay updated, and keep us in your prayers.

How does the song go? When the dog bites, when the bees sting? Yes, when things don’t go the way that you’d like them to go, it is always refreshing to think about your favorite things. In this case, I thought alot about my family. I sure miss them, and the Dave’s are doing there best to reach the reunion. We would have like for it to have been today, but the local police again made that impossible. We’ve made it as far as Campeche, which sits about 2-3 hours south of Merida on the Yucatan.

I’m choosing not to dwell on that though so I’ll talk about the picture above. It is of Kelly’s dad sitting behind one of the waiters of the restaurant “El Gran Café La Parroquia” which is located in Veracruz. We had a chance to experience one of their famous “lecheros” or cafe con leche, which they pour from a distance. It was a true delight, especially after some of the unsavory experiences that we have had over the past few days.

Still, we’re blessed. Our vehicle has been great, we have our health and our stuff, we’re going to arrive in Merida tomorrow, and while our run-ins with the law haven’t been the best, I could sure imagine worse. Thanks for your continued prayers and stay tuned for the reunion post!

We’ve made it to Veracruz, though not without a bit of hassel from the Mexican Authorities. Suffice to say, although Vincente Fox has told us that it is getting better everyday, there are still some out there, on the bypass around Mexico City, that want to take your money. Watch out.

On now to Villahermosa, with a possible stay in Campeche before the final push to Merida.

Did you ever feel that you were a bit out of control, kind of like you were riding in the back of a pickup with a gas grill going 50 mph? Well the experience crossing the border can feel that way, especially if you are bringing in all that you own!

We crossed into Mexico today, leaving Laredo, TX at about 8:30, hoping to get in a decent amount of miles. All went well until we chose the recommended self-declaration line in the customs process. Once there, we were told that we would have to pay taxes for many of the items that we were carrying into the country. However, it helped to be a bit unprepared in this case. I had only taken out about $100 USD worth of pesos, and after paying tolls and entrance fees, I was down to about $70. The taxes were $130, but the official basically took what I had. That was a relief as the next automatic teller that took my card was on the other side of Monterrey about 150 miles away. Still, after that situation, we basically had smooth
sailing (except of course over the speed bumps), and we are now in San Luis Potosí where the picture above was taken.

We are currently about 400 miles into Mexico and have driven about 1200 miles in two days. Please continue to pray. We have about 1100 miles still to go until we make it to Merida.

Monday morning early, and I mean early, the kids and I arrived at the Springfield-Branson Regional airport to board a plane that would take us first to Atlanta, then to Mérida, Yucatan, Mexico. Everything went smoothly, albeit slowly with 3 young kids, through scanners and checkpoints, with each one carrying their own carry-on luggage

When we got to Atlanta, they led us down the steps from the plane to what seemed to be an employee entrance below and then we took an elevator which brought us to the main portion of the terminal. After learning that our connecting flight was in a different wing . . . surprise, surprise, we made our way taking the airport mini-subway train, then walked to the correct gate in terminal E.

After settling in our seats we decided to make a trip (and it’s always a trip with kids and luggage) to the restrooms which were actually fairly close. However, just before heading off, Joseph asked where he should but a piece of trash, and I pointed to a trash can a mere 5 feet away, directly in front of us. Not thinking anything of it, I turned to deal with Jonathan and getting his backpack on, etc. and lifted my head to address Joseph to do the same, but he was nowhere to be seen! Panic immediately set it and I started calling for him and moving toward the main hallway looking toward the bathrooms in case he had decided to head in that direction. But no Joseph. I turned back toward the kids asking them if they knew where he went when a Yucatecan lady pointed the opposite direction. There he was, at a TRASHCAN that was totally obscured behind a column - throwing away his scrap of of paper! His look showed complete oblivity (is that a word?) and mine some kind of mixture of anger and relief. Let’s just say he got a firm talking to . . .

To continue, we boarded the 2nd plane which was less than half full, or nearly empty, however you would like to view it, and caught a few minutes of zzzzzzzs here and there, between overtired kids and bathroom breaks and snack time on the plane, during about 2 hours of travel time. At the airport in Mérida, we got through the line at immigration and proceeded to the luggage area where our action packers (incredible, versatile pieces of luggage) and car seats were waiting on the turnstile for us. The guys that help with luggage loaded them up to move them about 20 feet to customs where there were 3 ladies doing the luggage checks. They asked me if all this luggage was mine and, after confirming that question, I was asked to push a button on a mini traffic light of sorts to see whether I would get the random “green” all clear to pass right on through or the “red” where they would have to look through all the luggage. We got red. It actually only took 10 or 15 minutes at most to do that and we were greeted by veteran missionaries Paul and Sandy Kazim, who took the kids to get something to drink during this process. Thanks Uncle Paul! Thanks Aunt Sandy! (Side note: missionary kids call other missionary adults “aunt” and “uncle”)

So, here we are. Everyone is safe and hopefully rested this morning as I write this. Thank you, Lord, for Your hand of protection and favor. Thank you also to those who have been praying and continue to pray as the Daves continue their journey on the roads of Mexico.

1. If the Boarder Patrol follows you for two miles seeing if two guys from Missouri really are pulling personal items into Mexico.

2. If you see a green beetle taxi that looks like it still is in service.

The two Dave’s made it to the boarder tonight! We saw Kelly and the kids off at Springfield Regional and then headed out ourselves, logging over 800 miles before we made it to our room in Laredo,TX, just a few short miles from Mexico. Now, after 2 hours of sleep in the last 2 days, it’s time to go to bed.

We are now in the final preparations for the journey to Mérida. Six of us, Kelly the kids and I along with Kelly’s dad, Dave Yaple, drove on Thursday through the night from Erie, PA in our Speed the Light vehicle (pictured above) to make it to Springfield, MO. From here, Kelly and the kids are going to be flying in front of tropical storm Ernesto to the Yucatan on Monday at 6:45 AM and Dave and I will be traveling over the roads through Mexico.

What remains is the packing. We need to unpack from our time in Costa Rica, and repack to fit our worldly belongings into 8 action packers and what can fit in the back of our Ford Expedition. When all is finished, we’ll send the action packers along with Kelly, while the Daves take the rest of the items for the 6 day journey. Keep coming back as we attempt to keep you up to date with each phase of the trip.

I know that I finished my last short post with a more later promise, but circumstances precluded a rapid expansion of  the details of the journey, as we have found ourselves bouncing from home base to home base without a broadband Internet connection.  This post is an attempt at correcting this shortfall.  Forgive the low-tech listing nature of this update, but the frustrations of dealing with dail-up access can sap the creative and literary juices:

• We arrived in the United States last Sunday after roughly a full day of airline travel.  We found the new restrictions a bit more challenging to meet, but the full breakfast on the Delta flight was a welcome surprise.
• We were met at the airport with our new Speed the Light (STL) vehicle and the help of our friend John Morton  We received a 2005 Ford Expedition from Gail Mitchell, the STL project coordinator, who was able to find us a vehicle although the funds in Southern Missouri (our home district) did not permit us to purchase one.  Thanks Gail for your work, and thanks Southern Missouri District for approving the transfer.
• We temporarily invaded the house of Dan and Lori Van Veen, raided their refrigerator and ransacked their basement in an attempt to organize our belongings and recoup from travels.  Thanks Van Veen’s for the landing pad. 
• We travelled to Erie, PA on Friday in order to take care of some final details for our Visas and to see family.
• We are planning our departure for Mexico this Thursday, leaving Erie for Springfield where Kelly and the kids will board an airplane for the journey to Merida, and I will begin the 6 day trip to Merida by car in our STL vehicle along with Kelly’s dad, David Yaple.  
• We’ll be devoting the large majority of our web space for you to track this journey.  Hopefully with frequent updates and pictures, when available, to help you experience this journey with us.

Yes, we have finally made it to the end of our language school experience. This Friday, Kelly and I, along with 15 other missionaries and university students graduated from the CINCEL program. More later, but we’ve got to get some sleep. We just finished packing and we leave for the airport at 4:30 AM tomorrow

We’d like to say thank you to all who had been praying for us as we travelled to Mexico for our meeting with the general presbytry there. Here are some things that did not happen:

• We did not have trouble exiting Costa Rica or entering Mexico.
• We did not find ourselves delayed or detained as a result of the protests that have gridlocked Mexico City following the July 2nd elections.
• We did not have any problems on our return trip and arrived in Costa Rica, albeit tired, nearly on time yesterday.

Here are some things that did happen:

• We have received an invitation from the Mexican Presbytry to work with missionaries Paul and Sandy Kazim in M�rida Mexico. (The picture above is of the municipal palace there.)
• We have secured housing in M�rida, which mean we’ll be able to move right in when we arrive at the end of August.
• We were able to leave a number of personal items in Mexico during the time we were there, making our move from Costa Rica that much easier.
• We have benefitted from the strength of your support and prayers. Thank you!

We now are facing the task of packing up our apartment here in Costa Rica in order to prepare for our August 13th departure. Please continue to remember us as we go through this time of transition.

As many of you read this post, we will be preparing for our first taste of Mexico this weekend as we prepare for our meeting with the national church leadership there in Mexico City. Please pray for the following:

• The will of God to be accomplished as we ask permission from the Mexican A/G to work in Mexico.
• Safety of the kids as they will be staying in Costa Rica as we travel.
• Freedom from complication as we leave and re-enter Costa Rica, and as we spend time in Mexico. The tumultuous aftermath of the Mexican presidential elections has caused disruptions in transportation in the city and may extend to transportation methods into and out of the city.

When we arrived in Costa Rica last August, one year seemed to be such a long time. We had images in our mind of how we would become almost natives, learning the language perfectly, and knowing every corner of this country. On the contrary, we have found that one year is only adequate to get your feet wet in the culture of a country. At no time is this more clear than when you begin to say goodbye.

This past Sunday, we said our first goodbye to our “home” church during the time that we have lived in Costa Rica. It is the place that we first learned to worship God in Spanish, and it has also been a place where we have felt God move in significant ways. This is a picture of the back wall of the church called Centro Evangelistico. The Bible verse in Spanish, although maybe a bit difficult to make out, was a confirmation of the hand of God on our lives when we arrived. It reads “Lift up your eyes and look to the fields because they are white for the harvest –John 4:35″

As we were itinerating last year, I had felt in April that God had given me this verse in order to encourage us to reach the field as soon as possible. Thankfully, many individuals and churches responded to help us reach our budget goal and leave on time. When we arrived at the church Centro Evangelistico, we received this confirmation that we were on schedule. Now as we depart, I feel that this verse is sending us out. Telling us that now is the time to put our hands to the work.

And so, as we begin to wrap up our time here, we look toward the near future which includes packing, planning, and preparing ourselves mentally and spiritually, but we also look back, remembering the hand of God upon us here and the relationships built, and how each has affected us greatly.

As language school students for the past year, we’ve had the benefit of taking a lot from the people around us. We’ve received 4 hours a day of lessons, we’ve stopped people along the street, in shopping malls, and in church in order to have conversations, and we’ve received advice and insight into the latin culture, but we’ve not often had the opportunity to give back. That’s why, when we have the opportunity to contribute, we feel that it is blogworthy.

This month Kelly headed up a program at CINCEL to help seniors in high school (colegio in Spanish) prepare for their math exit exams. She did interviews at the colegio in order to asses their areas of need and then was available for the past 4 weeks in order to give them the help that they needed. I also got a chance to contribute to the English program that fellow missionary Ron Marcotte has been offering to the community, I translated from English into Spanish for the beginning students during the teaching sessions and then helped as a conversation partner as each student worked on their alphabet, their numbers and various simple phrases.

I think that the most special opportunity that we had this past month was the birthday that we celebrated with our friend Mayra (pictured with the cake above). She was celebrating her 60th birthday, but with her children in Florida she was looking to spend her day completly alone. Kelly planned a small celebration with several students who knew Mayra, and Mayra was touched deeply.

It’s interesting. We’ve grown up in a consumer culture and have been bombarded with commercials about the things that we need to acquire, but the older I get (32 years and counting), the more I realize that we have been created to give. Nothing creates a better feeling of satisfaction, and nothing more positively reflects the image of Christ that so many others in our society need to see.

Preach Brother, Preach!

In order to keep a license to preach with the Assemblies of God, a minister needs to preach at least 10 times within a year’s time. Now while that wasn’t a challenge in the states where we preached over 150 times in the course of our itineration, we’ve had a more difficult time fulfilling that requirement here in Costa Rica, especially since we had to learn to preach in Spanish in order to secure a preaching date.

We’ll I’m happy to report that I got back on track in fulfilling my licensing requirements as I preached my first sermon in Spanish today before the professors and students of CINCEL. The sermon was on John 15, the passage in which Jesus talks about abiding in the vine. It is available here, for those of you who would like to read it in Spanish.

It’s hard to describe the significance that this event has for our lives. During our commissioning service, we were given a Spanish Bible with the admonishment to preach the Word in the language of the people to whom we have been called. I remember opening that Bible in the days after and finding it difficult to even understand a few words. Now to be able to not only read, but share the Word of God in Spanish is something of a dream come true. We are amazed at how far God has taken us, and reflecting on His faithfulness has increased our faith in God’s plan to use us to reach the people of Mexico.

A thing for talking. A thing for taming. A thing for tasting?

It’s funny how things seem to tie together in one’s life, but I recently came upon an interesting convergence of sorts. I was planning for my first Spanish Bible Study, and I was reading in James 3:1-12 where James talks about the tongue as an uncontrollable fire that can burn up our very lives. As I wondering how we could control such a savage beast, Myra, one of our Costa Rican friends, was introducing us to a new dish, tongue! Aha! I said to myself, pull it out and serve it for dinner! Of course, the idea quickly left the table of viable options.

However, As cataloged in one of our classmate’s blog, the tongue of a cow (pictured in Kelly’s hand) is indeed an edible, and actually quite tasty item. It is slow cooked overnight and then simmered in tomato sauce. (Myra used Prego.) The outer covering is removed during the process produce a very soft, pleasant meat.

Of course it may come to mind that what you are tasting may have at one time been able to taste you, but really, how many of us really know what goes into some of the things that we eat…like hot dogs? I highly recommend cow tongue, but if you buy it for the family, be sure to buy a big one, or get two because they shrink when you cook them.

But back to the convergence, the taming of the tongue is a daily process, is it not? We have now been in this stage of language-learning for about 8 months, and one of the more difficult things I have dealt with has been the phonetics involved in producing what I want to say. In Spanish a word with the same letters and different accent can have a completely different meaning. Also, words like “aeropuerto”, or “inmediatamente” were just a challenge for this Gringo to master. At times I’ve wanted to ask where I could buy a Spanish tongue so that I could trade it out with my American one before heading into class, but I have realized that there is no shortcut to pronunciation. It takes time and patience in order to speak correctly a foreign language.

So it is with God’s process in taming the words that we say, be it in out native language or a foreign one. We must admit that we need His intervention to pull out some of our cynicism, sarcasm, and complaining. It is a decision to allow Him to do his work, but it is also a process that takes time and a continual dependence upon the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives. I have more to say on this in my Bible Study (in Spanish).

So there you have it: The tongue: a thing for talking (in languages foreign or domestic), for taming (through time and the work of the Spirit), and, as long as it is tongue of cow, a thing for tasting!

They say, all good things in life must come to and end, and life in language school is no different. There were a several things that came to an end in the past week that we’d like to fill you in on.

First of all, the trimester of school finished this Friday when we said goodbye to 13 graduates and 1 instructor. Fellow Mexico Missionaries David and Carolyn Huneycutt, Ryan and Christie Thomas and Terisa and Fredy Vasquez were among those who said goodbye to Costa Rica to head to their appointed destinations in order to begin their ministries. We wish them well. Also leaving the school was 13 year veteran grammar teacher, Iris Chavarria (pictured in this post from last year). She was our teacher for our two trimesters, and we owe all of our knowledge of the functioning of irregular verbs and the uses of the subjunctive to her. Gracias por todo Iris, será extrañada.

Second, the end of the trimester also means that we received our evaluations from our Oral Proficiency exams that I mentioned in this previous post. Both Kelly and I finished well, scoring above normal for our group. Not that language school is a competition, but the ability to advance more quickly here will mean that we will have an easier time adapting to the language in Mexico when we arrive. We want to take a moment to say thank you to our teachers (pictured above),thanks to you for your prayers on our behalf. Without those, we are certain that we would not have made it this far.

Finally, yesterday meant the end of my 31st year, and what a year it was! We finished our itineration by speaking in over 55 services, travelling by car to each one, participated in the first ever commissioning of new candidate missionaries at the 51st General Council in Denver, CO, moved twice, arrived in Costa Rica in August, and survived a couple interesting trimesters which saw us through sicknesses, and accidents, but also has brought us closer to ministry in Mexico. Through it all, we have to marvel at the faithfulness of God and His people as we have received the help of so many that they would prove too numerous to mention. My 31st year is over, and, if it served as any indication, 32 should prove to be wonderful!

Wrapping this post up, we realize that good things do come to an end, but as we finish one thing, we find that God continues to offer us new beginnings, which bring rewarding challenges and opportunities to view his faithfulness.

That’s right friends! You’ve read correctly. We have received the final clearance necessary for us to leave for the field. This means that we will be leaving for Costa Rica on August 3oth in order to study Spanish. We will be living in San Jose and studying at CINCEL, the Assemblies of God language institute for all Missionaries headed to Latin America.

Thank you to you who have helped us with your support, and especially your prayers. Without you none of this would have happened!

It’s been a bit since I have added to the blog, but that does not mean that there hasn’t been activity in the Godzwa household. In fact, we’ve been busier than ever, and we have seen God do some wonderful things. Since our last budget update, we’ve moved to 90% in our monthly support. Adding in the commitments that have yet to be recorded, we have received 97% of what we will need in order to minister in Mexico. We need only $170 to complete our budget. On top of that, our cash is nearly raised!

Although we’ve not received official clearance, we are getting things ready to leave the states by August 28th. We have our house up to rent, and we are beginning to weed out the stuff that we have accumulated through our 13 years here in Missouri. It’s amazing to see how many T-shirts one can collect in that time!

We want to thank everyone who has been instrumental in making this happen. Thank you to all who have prayed for, supported and continue to stand together with our ministry. You are deeply appreciated!

When running my last marathon, I ran great until the last few miles. I was running along with a full head of steam just a mile previously, but after mile 21, I felt as though my energy had been completely drained. It was a struggle just to keep my feet going.

I was glad when my friend Eric met me at the water stop just after that crucial mile. He was energetic and smooth, offering words of encouragement as he ran. I found that I as I looked at him I began to feel better. I began to feed on his energy and fall into step with his stride. That mile that he ran with me gave me the energy that I needed to be able to finish the race in my best time ever.

I was talking with our itineration manager on Friday He told me that, in order to be able to buy our plane tickets for language school in Costa Rica, we would need to finish our support raising by July 31st. That means that our last $1600 of monthly support would have to be in by the end of this month. Hearing this news gives me that feeling that I had at mile 21 of the marathon. We are working so hard and we have gained so much ground, but the goal still seems so far out of reach.

That’s when I can take comfort in the words of the writer of Hebrews: “Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith..” So often, I think of Jesus as standing before me, almost as a loved one would stand at the finish line of a race, but now I realize that Jesus has not only gone before me, but He is also running with me, and as I focus on Him, falling into his pace, and hearing His words of encouragement, the race becomes runnable again.

Does the task before you seem to be too big to handle? Know that Jesus is working with you to complete, and with the two of you working together, there is nothing that you cannot accomplish!

A quarter of our budget that is! Yesterday, following our service @ Highway Assembly in Brighton, MO we reached the 75% milestone. Thank you to Highway Assembly and to our the latest supporters who joined them in helping us make it to this point in our fundraising:

Leaman & Angie Geosling of Springfield, MO
and
First A/G of Tipton, MO

We are now at 73%! We are thankful to these latest supporters who have helped us reach this goal:

First A/G of Park Hills
First A/G of Camdenton
First A/G of Mountain View
and
Charles and Faith Berges of Brooklyn, NY

We’ve moved that much closer to Mexico. We are at 71% thanks to these supporters:

Russellville A/G
Solid Rock Fellowship A/G of Lexington
Licking A/G

We appreciate all of you that are standing with us!

Folks, we’ve just reached 70%! Take a look at our map of Mexico. We have 40 more squares to fill in order to reach our support goal.

Thank you to our latest supporters:

1st Assembly of God of Fisk, MO
Grace Assembly of God of Florissant, MO
and
Rev Roger and Faith Perkin of Rocky Mount, MO

We are now officially at 68% with the help of these new members of our support team:

Mark Johnson of Saint Louis, MO
Blue Ridge A/G of Kansas City, MO
Life Community Church of Peculiar, MO

Thank you!

Thanks to our new supporters, we’ve reached 67%

Thank you to:

Glad Tidings A/G of Middletown, PA
First Assembly of Desoto, MO
High Praise A/G of Bolivar, MO
and
Carol Ann Anderson of Springfield, MO

“Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.” -Heb 12:1

The image above is a map of Mexico that Kelly created to depict what it will take in monthly commitments in order for us to make it to the field. Currently, we require 46 monthly commitments at $50 a piece in order to leave.

We completed the bottom part of the map today, listing those who had committed to us throughout our year-long itineration process. As we did this, we were reminded of the “Great Cloud of Witnesses” who are surrounding us with prayer and the financial support that it will take for us to be successful as missionaries to Mexico.

Last night at our service at First A/G in Carthage MO, Pastor Dan asked the congregation to come forward to pray for us at the close of the service. During the prayer time, it was impressed upon me that we are not going to the field on our own. We will be going equipped with the power of your prayers, and I am sure that as you agree in prayer with the Holy Spirit on our behalf, we cannot fail!

Thank you to all of you who make up our “Great Cloud of Witnesses”, and to those of you who will join with them in our support.

We have made it over the 64% mark thanks to these latest supporters:

First Assembly of God of Herculaneum
Robert and Valo Jones of Nevada
Paul and Judy Miller of Windsor

Thank you for joining the team!

We have new members on our support team!

Thank you to:

Grace Church in Rogersville
Joel and Amy Maxwell
and
Eldon First Assembly and Buffalo Assembly for their monthly support increases

Thank you to our most recent supporters:

Souls Harbour Memorial Church of Independence
Westside Assembly of God of Sedalia
Adam Wallace of Springfield
First Assembly of God of Des Arc