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29 January 2016

A “Praise” from Tina!

Praise the Lord! Tina finally got her visa!

As you may remember, Tina started her visa process in October. Which would make you think she would get her visa in October, or maybe November.

But in mid-December she was preparing to leave the country, and still had no visa. Which meant she needed a special permit to leave. And she barely got that (thanks for your prayers!). (See Prayer Request: Visa Adventures (but not ours) and Permit Received! (Thanks for Your Prayers))

With time running out before her next trip out of the country, we were wondering what was going to happen next. Still no visa … still no visa …

And during this time, trip after trip (these trips take hours) to the office to ask – so, is it done yet?

Tina: Visa Granted But about five hours ago we got the news – visa received! And a permanent resident visa, no less, which (at this point… until the law changes… disclaimer disclaimer…) does not run out or have to be renewed.

Paperwork challenges are common with missionaries around the world. And just for the record, it’s not just missionaries. It’s not unusual for a Mexican friend in our church to have a prayer request related to bureaucracy and navigating the world of official documents and the expenses that go with them. Sometimes things actually get worse for believers because they try to do things with honesty and integrity.

So in a few months we look forward to going through the same process Tina just went through – although with some different twists and turns. But we’re confident that she has straightened out the system, and that we won’t have any trouble. 🙂

25 January 2016

Nathanael: Mexico

Jim Family, Just for fun 0

Somehow I missed this picture from last Independence Day, but it made me smile! It’s Nathanael’s creation from bits and pieces around the church’s property. Notice the face with the moustache…

Nathanael: Mexico

22 January 2016

Thanks for Your Prayers for Sunday School

Jim Ministry glimpses, Prayer and Praise, ST Highlight 0

Thanks to much to all of you who prayed specifically for my adult Sunday school class last year. As many of you know, I was teaching a series from October to December (actually, I finished it up in January because one week was cancelled).

Ten Words The series was on the 10 Commandments. It was a great opportunity for us to wrestle with what they mean for us today, and also to look at so many of the related laws, especially in Leviticus and Deuteronomy. There is just so much there that can transform our lives and communities if we just listen.

I don’t think that we as a Church in general (I mean as the worldwide Church) spend enough time in the Old Testament. And one of the greatest reasons to study it would be the reason that Jesus Himself gave – that it bears witness about Him (John 5:39-40). And so each week we looked at the New Testament as well, and saw the 10 Commandments in the light of Christ.

As I warned my class, we don’t want to assume that we are to ignore the New Testament and the reality of Christ’s coming as we study. We also don’t want to assume that the New Testament is really the only thing that’s important. And finally, we don’t want to “pick and choose” which laws to obey, but instead let God through the Scripture tell us.

And it’s amazing what comes clear when you actually take the time to see what the Scripture says!

The series is going to have new life as I share it on my Spanish blog, where I’ll post the handouts so that others can use the study as well.

Thanks again for your prayers! Now I’m headed to teach another Bible study…

* Note on the graphic: The logo from the class says “Ten Words”. The word “commandments” can be translated “words” or “declarations”, as in “a word from the king”. The first class was entitled “He spoke to you out of the midst of the fire” from Deuteronomy 4:12. “Did any people ever hear the voice of a god speaking out of the midst of the fire, as you have heard, and still live?” Wow – Deuteronomy 4:32-35.

16 January 2016

Tweets 4-15 January 2016

Jim Twitter 0

Where there are no oxen, the manger is clean, but abundant crops come by the strength of the ox. ~Proverbs 14:4~ (4 January 2016)
Â¡Los Reyes Magos casi han llegado! (rosca) ðŸ‘‘ðŸ‘‘ðŸ‘‘ The Three Kings are almost here! (traditional 6Jan sweet bread) [image] (5 January 2016
Tomorrow we finish our study of the Ten Commandments during Sunday School! [image] (9 January 2016)
Â¡Feliz CumpleaÃ±os, AarÃ³n! ðŸŽˆ Happy Birthday, Aaron! [image]
There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way to death. ~Proverbs 14:12~ (11 January 2016)
How many places do you have to physically go to in order to pay a regular bill (like rent, electricity, etc)? [image] 11 January 2016
Beautiful Fetal Development Wall Chart to download – free this week with coupon code LIFE16 : ow.ly/WYACL (12 January 2016)
Of the world’s big cities, Mexico City has the second-worst traffic, according to TomTom’s Traffic Index. Details>>> ow.ly/Vuf0N (13 January 2016)
An English class from this week… [image] (13 January 2016)
Today, Nathanael assembled a skeleton. [image] (15 January 2016)
Please pray for our Friday night Bible studies and kid-s club! [15 January 2016)

11 January 2016

A New Semester Begins (and it sounds delicious)!

Jim Prayer and Praise, ST Highlight 1

Kaycee teaching numbers A new semester of classes began today at the community centre! Kaycee, teaching English, had a packed class – I think there were over 15 people there this evening.

Tomorrow the fun continues with three more English classes, and a special addition for this month – Asian Cooking with Kaycee! Shari also has a baking class this week – I think doughnut muffins may be on the menu. 😛

Praise the Lord for the many new friends we have made, and great conversations we’ve had. We’re looking forward to some great classes this semester, which runs from now until St. Patrick’s Day.

English students — Some of the students at Kaycee’s class

9 January 2016

Shari Made Ponche. Here’s How.

Jim Food, Just for fun, Mexico 2

Ah, ponche. A Mexican Christmas season tradition. Shari made some today – her second batch, just to use up what we hadn’t used over the holidays.

Kindly enough, she took some pictures so that you could see, step by step, how she did it. Shari may not have the years of experience some Mexican women have, and everyone makes it differently, but this is a good representative recipe. And I can attest that it turned out great!

Ponche, or Christmas Fruit Ponche (say pone-chay) is something often served at a special event or a community Christmas party. It’s a hot drink.

Tejocote

First, she boiled some tejocote for 5 minutes, to make them easy to peel. Tejocote is a type of hawthorn fruit, that look a little like crab-apples. The tejocotes were peeled and then added to the other fruit.

Other Ingredients

other ponche ingredients Here you can see the other ingredients that were used in the ponche. On the bottom right is sugar cane, which is cut up so that a few people can have a stick in their mug of ponche. On the left you can see cinnamon sticks and dried tamarind pods. The red at the bottom is dried hibiscus flowers. The sliced yellow fruit is guava. The big brown cone is unrefined cane sugar, known in Mexico as piloncillo. You could get a similar effect using brown sugar.
Hot Ponche in the Pot
Shari put everything except the apples in to boil, leaving it for about half an hour to forty minutes. The apples were added in the last ten or fifteen minutes. Add a little sugar if it’s still too tart.

The Finished Ponche

Keep it hot on the stove as you serve! Here is the finished product. You serve the liquid, and if preferred some fruit and a bit of sugar cane (usually it is preferred!).

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