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earthquake relief

Wheelchair and Earthquake Outreach – Please Pray

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Yesterday Shari and Hannah joined Rod and Mayra and others related to our community centre for a special wheelchair presentation here in the neighbourhood of Santa Barbara. Several people in need of a wheelchair received one through our community centre and the Free Wheelchair Mission. There was a program with family and friends, in which the gospel was clearly presented.Tracts and Gospels

Please pray for everyone who heard God’s Word. Even with a “clear presentation”, there is so much confusion from false teaching here that it takes a miracle for people to understand and accept the gospel. Then again, it is always a miracle, in the truest sense of the word, when someone understands and accepts the gospel!

It’s amazing how many people are involved in a simple event like this. Obviously those who support the missionaries here are involved. But people were also given the earthquake tract provided through Camino Global, and also a Gospel of John. The Gospels were provided to us by the Pocket New Testament League.

Wheelchair outreach - December 2017

Please pray for the earthquake outreach that’s taking place today and tomorrow. We’re not going ourselves, but through our community centre and gifts donated through Camino Global (thank you!), we have a part in what’s happening.

We have a friend who is involved in building houses for earthquake victims. It’s an amazing process – I’ll have to tell you more about it sometime. Actually, for those of you who donated, we will try to send out more information in the new year.

A group from one of our related churches is going again to share the gospel and provide help in a community very much affected by the quakes. We’re able to provide four tents for four families. There are some who not only have no home, they don’t even have access to an outhouse.

The community centre is also very much involved in providing help in the state of Oaxaca, where we have contacts. We’re focusing especially on providing comizcales, which are special ovens that people use to provide food and income for their families. Many of these were destroyed in the quakes. As one woman in the region said,”I would rather have my comizcal than a pantry full of food”.

The words of one of our contacts in Oaxaca could be in the mouths of anyone trying to serve the people of Mexico in this difficult time. “Please beg God to keep in the hearts of the Christian Church their brothers and sisters in this region of the country… because this way, at least someone cares about us and remembers to pray for us.”

So please pray for all those travelling today and tomorrow to share God’s word and help those who are still so much in need after the quakes. And pray for those who are receiving, that they will understand the greatest Gift that God is offering them.

Earthquake Aftermath Update

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This week, for the first time after the recent quakes, many students finally returned to school. It took a long time before many schools were either repaired or declared safe. (Our church was finally able to meet at our normal location on the 8th, after scrambling for two Sundays to find other options.)

As you might guess, the kids are being slammed with make-up homework now, so everyone will be very busy for a while!

Meanwhile, many people are having their homes demolished, because the buildings are structurally unsafe. Aftershocks continue in Oaxaca. And some buildings still haven’t been inspected.

As a part of the ministry of our community centre and church, Rod will be going to Oaxaca today (along with another man from our Camino Global team – Chalo Sandoval). They will be making the 11 hour each-way trip to deliver tarps, hearing aids, tracts, and other items. They will be returning tomorrow, Lord willing. I know they would appreciate your prayers.

I heard that some from the church in Jesús María may also be planning a trip to Oaxaca, but I’m waiting for details.

Another friend is going with a group from his church on the 21st, Lord willing, to Ecatzingo, where I’ve been a couple of times. I would like to get back there maybe later in the month, but we’ll see how things progress.

On Sunday, we challenged our church to continue to reach out using the new tracts that have been printed. Please pray that God would use us as a church to bring hope to people around us in this difficult time.

Mexico Earthquakes: Tarps and Tomatillos

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Mexico continues with recovery efforts after the three earthquakes in September (or two and a major aftershock, depending on how you count them. But of course there have been many aftershocks – which continue even today). It’s about time for another quick update.

What’s Been Happening?

We personally have not been able to go out to do specific earthquake relief again. We hope to go again, but for the time being will be focusing more on support and administration for those who are going.

Since I last wrote, we’ve been able to get earthquake related tracts out to several churches, to help with their local ministry and relief efforts further afield. I was also able to meet with Camino Global missionaries last week to discuss next steps, and longer term help.

Many of the immediate needs have been met, at least in Mexico City and other parts of central Mexico. I’m not sure what people are going to do with the mountains of clothes they’ve received! But in harder to reach areas, and in southern Mexico, there seem to be many urgent needs.

shovelling earthquake relief mexico
Some of “Rod’s Group” out serving last week
Rod had been hoping to get to Oaxaca last week, but reports of significant violence on the way down led to a change of plans. They went closer to home again, delivering blankets and tarps to those who are struggling with a lack of proper shelter. (See more here)

One of our coworkers was able to get to Oaxaca to help there. A typical story he told was of a woman and her four children. She lost her husband to cancer a few years ago, and makes memelas (a kind of baked tortilla) for a living. The family house was seriously damaged, and the oven destroyed.

As you might imagine, it is very difficult for a family like that to recover.

What Next?

Another trip is being planned from the 9th-15th of this month.

Many churches in Mexico City are hoping to go out again in the weeks ahead.

So, Lord willing, various types of ministry will be going on over the next couple of months:

  • Ministry at home: Not only does normal ministry need to continue, there are many who are struggling with fear after the quakes. Also, many are growing in their faith as they reach out in new ways.
  • Continuing to meet immediate needs: Making sure that there is proper shelter, medical supplies, and food in affected areas. Sharing the gospel of hope with those who are angry, confused, and discouraged.
  • Longer-term needs: Supporting churches, rebuilding homes and businesses.

tomatillo plant
Tomatillo plant
We continue to be thankful for those of you who have prayed and donated to the effort. At Camino Global Canada, the director’s wife Ruth Ann was inspired to make salsa verde – 40 pint-sized jars, made from her fresh garden harvest of tomatillos! She was able to share about the need in Mexico and sell the salsa, resulting in a generous donation for the work. Thanks, Ruth Ann!

Please continue to pray that people would find their hope in the Lord, and that needs would be met in His Name. Many, many people have a long road to travel before they can have a normal home and normal work day again.

Earthquake Relief: Friday Update

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We’re very thankful for those of you who have been praying for us, and for so many believers who are trying to reach out during this time. We are thankful that things aren’t a lot worse for us.

Of course, we are directly affected in some ways. We won’t be getting our visas this week, probably not for a couple of weeks. We’re not sure where we’ll be meeting on Sunday – we’re waiting for the building to be inspected for possible structural damage. I was happy to be able to buy clean drinking water – it was a little hard to come by for a while there.

You may have been seeing on the news some of what I’ve been hearing – I’m not sure. From what I’ve heard yesterday and today, there are some towns that have been destroyed for the most part, with very little help up until now. So we continue to try to focus our efforts on areas with the most need.

Powerline down
Landslide pulls down power lines.

Through a contact with Operation Blessing, Rod and some people from our church went this morning to a municipality in the state of Puebla (just outside of our state). I haven’t heard a report from them yet, but from what our contact said the situation is pretty bad there.

Tomorrow I will likely be going with a group to the state of Morelos, where we will be giving out supplies and fresh food, as well as sharing the hope of Christ.

We’re taking it day by day here – or maybe hour by hour. We’ll have a better idea by the end of the day tomorrow what needs there are in these areas. We’re also trying to look ahead at the long term needs.

I’ve been in communication with other groups from the city. Some are trying to organize to go out next week. Some have been active in clearing rubble and getting supplies out on a daily basis.

It is difficult to enter some of these areas, so you can pray that we will be able to get in and will know how to do it. That’s one reason why there hasn’t been more aid to these areas.

One pastor from the city who went to Morelos reported today (translated and edited for brevity):

We are in a place 70km from the epicentre. We arrived yesterday with the idea of providing some food provisions and a nursing station, and in our inexperience to help remove debris. We are in a small town where food has come but not the manpower.

There are many damaged homes, people homeless and in poverty. The communication towers are down. We are overwhelmed, but God is with us.

Many families slept on the street last night outside their adobe houses because they are damaged – and then there was a rain storm. We were going last night to help a man who had broken his arm, and whose home had collapsed – but it was impossible. The roads were rivers…

He went on to say that they have seen almost no other help coming to this area.

We’re trying to get supplies – food, medicine, etc. to these areas. We’re also thinking about tents or something similar to help provide shelter. Any help you can provide is appreciated.

Again, pray for peace and strength and health for those who are helping with the relief effort. Check back here at the blog – I will try to post when I can but as you may imagine we have a lot to do and think about at the moment.

Relief Effort Today in Mexico State (video)

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I just got back from a small town in the State of Mexico. Quite a few of us went from the churches here with supplies, including medications, clothes, water, food, diapers, toilet paper, and so on. I took some video for you.

Earthquake Relief - Mexico StateIt was hard to get many pictures to really show you the damage. You could see some walls that had crumbled a bit, but the real damage was inside the houses. Quite a few people in this town had homes that were more or less destroyed on the inside.

The first family I spoke to were sleeping in their car. Their home, which was also their business, was more or less unlivable. You’ll see the outside of one wall at the beginning of the video below, but I didn’t take any pictures of the inside to respect their privacy.

Even parts of the road as we drove in were collapsed, or badly cracked.

We were able to give out the supplies in a fairly organized way. The nice thing was that the people of the town were already gathered, and we actually had time to talk to many of them.

So we tried to give some encouragement, pray with people, share the gospel, give out some tracts and Bibles, along with the other items. People were very open to talking – which is a bit unusual when a bunch of strangers show up in a small town around here.

Pray for these people, and so many like them, who have lost so much. Towns like this are far from the resources that we have closer to us. It will take them a long time to rebuild.

If you would like to help, you can give through this link to help us directly. You can also keep praying. Thanks so much to those of have contacted us with your encouragement.

And now, here’s the video from this evening:

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