Chalco Service (a little more information!)

Let me give you a few more details about the service in Chalco on Sunday.  I haven’t had much time to sit down to tell you about it until now.  🙂

So, as I said, there were about 160 people there.  That includes people from our church (Iglesia Bíblica Sendero de Vida here in Santa Barbara).  Our church may have accounted for 60 people, but that’s just a wild guess.

The music team from Sendero did some music, including a song based on Habakkuk 3:17-18, another based on Philippians 2:5-11, and a song you may be familiar with – Henry Smith’s "Give Thanks".

Service in Chalco.  I’m waaaay at the front, waaaay up high on the stage
playing keyboard with our music team.

There was a time for testimonies from the people of Chalco – I think 4 or 5 people shared with us and their neighbours, both about the hardships and the blessings in the midst of the flood.

There were also two dramas from the youth … I ended up adding some sound effects which was fun.

Samuel gave a short evangelistic message toward the end which was well done.  He asked people to open their Bibles, and of course most people didn’t have any.  So our pastor Martín jumped up and said that we had Bibles that they could have as gifts.

Now, even though I realize a lot of people just want something free — it was amazing to see people jump up and take a Bible.  Then, not just glance at it and set it aside, but open it, read it.  I noticed one person who wasn’t listening to the message because she was too busy reading the Bible!  People from our church were all over the hall helping people find the passage that we were going to be talking about in Matthew 28.

Seeing all those people learning for the first time where Matthew was, what the Old and New Testaments are, and actually reading what God has said in His Word…. WOW.  Thanks to many of you who helped provide not only provisions (we also had a table of clothes at the back to help people out), but Bibles.

People listened to what Samuel said (except a few who were distracted by young children… or their Bibles).  Many expressed interest, and about 9 or 10 people came forward afterwards wanting to learn more – willing to give us their names and addresses.  That’s no minor thing.

Those are the bare facts, but I should add that most people from our church that I talked to really felt that God was doing something special here.  Everything fit together so well, people were so receptive, everything seemed so appropriate.  It really seems that the Spirit did something special.

Thanks so much to those of you who have given toward and prayed for this ministry in Chalco.