Time to Reminisce

It's been awhile since I've written a blog. Sometimes I just don't know what to share. Sometimes I just don't have time...or internet. But this week I have both time and internet!

So what's on my mind?

Four years ago we were saying our last goodbyes in Idaho. We had sold all of our worldly goods and we were beginning the biggest adventure of our lives...a move to the mission field in southern Mexico.

Look at those babies!
Ryan was 5, Ellie 3, Levi 1, and Matthew only a few months!
Saying goodbye to Grammy, Grandpa and Jimmy was hard! 

Our next adventure was the trip across the country from Idaho to Virginia, with stops along the way to visit friends and family. When we arrived in Virginia, it was time to learn all about being a missionary! Or, at least all they could teach us before our feet hit the ground.

We learned about Lottie Moon,
and the kids enjoyed this life-sized photo.

Matthew was ready to move to Mexico!

After our training, we got to spend a month in Ohio with my family. Precious memories!

Quality time with Uncle Charles!

Ellie had fun with Uncle Charles too!

Cousin Charis read to Ellie

Then it was time to get used to a whole new world! A new way to shop for groceries...new smells...new sights...a different language...but all an adventure.

Meat market

Fresh meat

Fresh produce

Norma

Norma...I still remember those first few months that we lived in Pine Hill. Norma and her friend, Dulce would knock on the door and ask if they could play. After a few months, it was just Norma. During those first few months it was just for a few hours, a couple days a week.

Then one evening, Norma told me that she didn't always have money to buy her snack during recess at school. And sometimes her brother isn't very nice to her when her mom is working.

I told her she could come over and "work" for us. Basically, she could do chores like my kids...washing dishes, sweeping and mopping, etc. And I'd pay her. I was thinking an hour or two a day. She showed up the next day and announced that she had talked it over with her mom. She could come over from 11am to 7pm. (It was still summer.) And so it began.

She didn't work 8 hours a day for us. Unless you consider playing with 4 kids to be work. She would wash the dishes and do any other chore that was asked of her. And then she would play Legos or a game on the Wii. It was great for the kids to have someone to play with everyday. And they had to speak Spanish a lot more too. What we didn't plan was how much English this girl would learn just through play.

Before long, Norma was part of the family. Like a big sister for Ellie.

She finished the sixth grade this year and that means she moves from the elementary school to the secondary school. In our village, the nuns run a private elementary school with the best education, if you don't mind the doctrinal differences. After sixth grade, most kids go to the public secondary school. Sadly, it's where many start using drugs and alcohol. Dating isn't an issue really, because the culture is to "get married" at age 14 or 15.

Norma's parents didn't want her to go to public school so they sought the best option for her. Through the Catholic school, they arranged for her to move to Tuxtla, three hours away. She now lives in an orphanage run by the nuns and attends a private Catholic school.

Our heart aches for Norma. At 12 years old, she's one of the youngest girls in the orphanage. And although her parents desire to protect her from the ways of the world, she is quickly losing her innocence as the girls around her talk about worldly things. Aside from that, we pray for her eternal salvation.

Will you pray for Norma?

For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.

Jeremiah 29:11

St. Paul

Some of the faces from the church at St. Paul...

Baby Karen

Ani...

Baby Yosmar

I love the dog sleeping at the back of the church!

Lisbeth

Soraida, carrying her baby sister.

Sunday School!

Mexico City

We had the opportunity to travel to Mexico City! We are waiting on our visas to be renewed, so in the meantime, we are resting and sightseeing!

Some of our highlights include...

Teotihuacan--The Pyramids of the Sun and Moon

Xochimilco

The ancient canals...dating back to the Aztec times.

We visited old friends...priceless moments!

Enrique and Clay...

Silliness with Enrique and Deby

Enrique and Ryan

Tammy and Deby
We've only known Deby for four years, when she married Enrique.
What a blessing!

My host family from 17 years ago!
(Is that even possible?!?)

Some of the sweetest host parents...love them!

My host dad from 16 years ago...another great family!

Serena got to experience the love of my Mexican mama, Juanita.

A walk around Chapultepec park!

It’s Not Fair!

Our North American culture is full of churches. Every town in the US (and I imagine Canada) has at least one church, if not one per every 200 people or so. There is a plethora of variety available among differing denominations, or even a variety among the same denomination. (I remember laughing at the First Baptist, Second Baptist, and even Third Baptist Church in some towns that I drove through when I was a teenager.)

Recently, I was asking Serena what God has been showing her during her time in Mexico. I am a strong believer in God using short-term mission trips more for changing the missionary than for the missionary affecting great changes in the mission field. So, although the question, “What’s God teaching you this week, Serena?” usually elicits a chuckle…followed by, “Um…let me think about that,” there’s no doubt God has great and mighty things to teach Serena.

Serena shared with me last week that she has had a few “God moments,” those moments where she knows God is changing her way of thinking. She told me that as we were driving to San Pablo for worship, she was observing the people who were walking along the road. (Sunday is the day that many walk “to town” to shop or catch up on the latest news.) Her great epiphany of the day was that everyone she passed was destined for hell! She discreetly brushed back the tears, thinking about how the people don’t know Jesus, and they don’t even have anyway of learning about him. There is no church.

As we talked about it, she shared more about the impact of this realization. In the US, we are told to invite our friends to church. It’s almost like we’re pushing the idea that only the professionals can tell our friends and loved ones about Christ. Here, that’s not an option. “It’s just not fair!” she declared. “They have no hope of salvation.”

So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ.

Romans 10:17

Perfectly Precise Petri

Awhile back we met Petri, a young ZK lady from another village. She has a heart to serve the Lord and a wonderfully brilliant mind. I must admit, it’s been nice to have someone to challenge me to speak Spanish well. Petri loves words and contemplates word meanings. And she loves “play on words.” (We get along wonderfully!)

Petri has been diligently working on translating Bible stories into ZK. As I said, she has a gift for using words and she is determined to choose precise wording to tell the Story. We are blessed to have such a dedicated young lady working on this project!

Currently, Petri is staying with us while she works on the Bible stories. She and Serena (our college student from the US) are sharing a room. Pray for them to be able to bond. Petri does not speak English and Serena is working hard to acquire Spanish.

Pray for Petri. She is a third generation believer, which means that her grandfather was the first person in her village to accept Christ. Although the Word has been preached for about 45 years, there are still many within her family who struggle to fully accept Christianity. While they claim Christ, some still cling to other beliefs as well. To some degree, Petri has had her own struggles as well. Pray for her to be able to understand and apply Biblical Truth in every part of her life.

Pray for the translation project. We know that the enemy does not want her to finish translating and recording the stories. (We have chosen 30 stories from both the Old and New Testaments which we can use to tell the Gospel, from creation to Christ.) Pray that Petri will find the right words to convey the message in ZK. (We are excited to have someone working on this project with us. The down-side is that Petri speaks a different dialect of ZK. We still need someone who will be willing and able to translate and record stories in ZK of Pine Hill. Pray that we find someone!)

Simply Sweet Serena

Checking out the jungle leaves!

We first met Serena about 9 years ago. She was a 6^th grader at the time and came to the AWANA program at our church in Idaho. Clay had just been called as youth pastor, and I was learning the ropes with my first baby…and as a youth pastor’s wife.

Over the years, we grew to love Serena. She has always had a sweet personality and was eager to help out and serve. As a youth, she helped in the Cubbies room during AWANA (that’s the 3-5 year olds…and we all know it takes a special kind of person to work there!), she taught in Vacation Bible School, she raked leaves on ARK (Acts of Random Kindness) days, she participated in the mission trips our youth group took, and so much more.

Checking out the smelly fish department of WalMart

For the last three years I have been trying to convince her to come to Mexico to help us. She was studying elementary education…and I already knew she was qualified to work with little ones. It made perfect sense to me that she would one day come down and homeschool my kids! I just had to convince Serena. (And her Mom)

I finally convinced her!! (And her Mom too!)

Last summer, Serena wrote me a letter saying God was doing “something” but she didn’t know what it was yet. And soon after that, I received a Facebook message telling me that she thought God was calling her to come to Mexico! (I think I let out a squeal when I read those words! And then I cried tears of joy!) I called Serena that evening and we talked it over. The hardest part was waiting seven months until we could pick her up from the airport!

Matthew, Tammy, Petrona, and Serena

It had been over three years since we had seen each other. The best part was seeing how God has changed and transformed her from a quiet, timid youth to a confident, brave, godly young woman. Can you imagine your first trip away from home...and you go to a foreign country where you don’t speak the language? But you don’t go to a city with lots of modern comforts. You go to a remote village in the middle of the jungle with few modern conveniences and two new languages. That takes courage, obedience, and trust. (We question her often about what she was thinking putting her life in our hands!)

Serena has jumped right in to this great adventure of jungle life. She spends her mornings in the classroom with four energetic young scholars, and she juggles the circus wonderfully! In the afternoons, she adapts to the spontaneity of our life, offering to play hostess to a surprise visitors, or holding the crying baby so that Felicity can spend 15 minutes listening to a Bible story. A few afternoons a week, she holds “Serena Surprise Time” where she entertains the kids (and sometimes some of their friends) with arts & crafts or games. And in her spare time, she studies Spanish and bakes cookies! (One of my favorites was watching her play Go Fish in a combination of Spanish, English, and ZK.)

We are thankful to have Serena with us and we are excited to see what God has planned for her future. I have no doubt that after living in the jungle for 6 months, her life will never be the same!