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Someone was having some problems with one of our contact forms, so they have now been updated – hopefully all functioning!

Mailbox in Canada

Here are the forms I updated, in case you want to try one:

  • Contact the Cottrills: Pretty simply – this is how you can contact us via email. Also remember that our email address can be found on the newsletters we send you, if you’re on our Support Team.
  • Join our Support Team!: If you would like to receive our newsletter and be a part of our team, this is where to go! There are a lot of things that we don’t post online, so if you’d like to be a part of the ministry here, be sure to sign up.
  • Change Newsletter / Update Options: Change of address? New email? Want to receive our email update as well as our quarterly newsletter? Here’s where you can change your options.
  • Other Contact Information: Other ways to contact us.
  • Donation information: Up-to-date information about how to donate to the ministry.

If you have problems with any of the above, please contact us (obviously, you may need to contact us a different way!) so that we can fix it.

And Then Came The Gas Shortage.

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Something else for the “life is never dull” file – the current gas shortage in central Mexico.

Ok, technically “they” say that Mexico has plenty of gas. But measures to fight theft of gasoline (closing pipelines and increasing security measures) has slowed the system – leading to some panic buying, perhaps making the situation worse.

I drove by this Pemex gas station in Ixtapaluca today. The line of cars was so long I couldn’t see the end – down the highway, into a parking lot – and who knows where. I’m sure they will be waiting for hours…

But the gas station itself appeared mostly closed – the entrance blocked off, no cars at the pumps that I could see (if you look closely in the picture, you can see a gas station attendant apparently snoozing). The cars in the line weren’t actually moving. Are they waiting for a single pump – or for more gas to be delivered — sometime?

The gas stations that are open are rationing and sometimes charging surprising amounts. I just heard of a friend who paid about CA$5.55/litre (I believe that’s about US$15.82/gallon). That’s 78% of a day’s wages – for 1 litre, if you make minimum wage here. (You may remember the big deal from a couple of years ago when gas prices really began to rise – but they were rising just to CA$1.16.)

Americans area already beginning to panic that they may not have guacamole in time for the Super Bowl due to a lack of imported avocados – some already warning of a coming “guacpocalypse”.

But in some parts of Mexico (such as Ixtapaluca), the problem has gone from entertaining memes such as the one on the left (“things that make them fall in love” – as the man offers the woman a can of gas) to concerns about getting food on the table. As you can imagine, not being able to get to work, or not getting food delivered to the local grocery, can lead to major problems quite quickly.

With a trip planned for some meetings this weekend, we’re planning and timing so that we hopefully have enough gas to get somewhere where there’s more gas.

The powers that be are assuring us that things will “normalize” soon, and I’m sure it’s in their best interest to get things moving (even if the gasoline-theft problem – a serious and ongoing issue – isn’t immediately solved). So we’ll see what happens in the next few days.

Meanwhile, people have one thing to celebrate. Lack of gasoline means lack of vehicles on the road. Less traffic if you still have gas left. And cleaner air for everyone.

Camino Global, Avant – What has changed, what has not…

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This is an important post, so please take a few moments to read carefully.

Avant and Camino GlobalYou may or may not have received communication from Camino Global, or Avant – but here’s the news. The two mission agencies are uniting to become one mission.

First, the practical information. Regarding our ministry, our relationship with Camino, and donations, nothing has changed (and may not be changing over the next few weeks or even months). So you don’t need to worry about changing where/how you donate – donation information is always up to date here.

Second, what actually is happening? As I mentioned before, Avant and Camino Global will be joining together. The name of the mission will be Avant Ministries. However, “Camino Global” will retain its “brand” for the time being as a Spanish focused ministry within the mission. So you will continue to see both names.

Camino’s three offices will be affected in different ways. The Guatemala office will remain where it is. Eventually, both the US office and the Canadian office will move to where Avant’s current offices are (Kansas City and Winnipeg).

There are a number of reasons for the change, and there’s no reason to get into all the details here. However, the leadership of both missions hope that we will be “better together”.

If all goes as planned, the “new” mission will have over 500 missionaries in 50 countries. Camino of course has a strong presence in Spanish speaking countries.

The missions have put up a website to answer some of your basic questions (click the graphic to go there):

Avant - Camino Global website
How will this affect our ministry? This news is very fresh, and it will take months – in some cases, years – before everything is worked out. We have no immediate plans for major changes. Both Camino Global and Avant are committed to making disciples for Jesus Christ, and in many ways they are very similar organizations. However, every missionary with Camino will need to make their own decision whether or not they will continue under Avant.

Our desire is to serve the Lord in this corner of Mexico City, where so few understand the gospel. Please pray that God will guide us, and especially the other missionaries in Mexico, as we work through these changes in the weeks to come.

We will continue to communicate with you (especially those who receive our newsletter and email update), but we all need to be patient.

If you have questions, you can contact us at any time here.

So sorry – it appears I misplaced the church. Can’t find it anywhere….

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This coming Sunday, Lord willing, we’ll be celebrating the second anniversary of the Path of Life Bible Church in Las Palmas. Which means it’s kind of a busy week. Ok, crazy busy.

On Monday we were leaving the state for an overnight visit with our team of missionaries. It had been an exhausting weekend, and we were ready for a bit of a break. And that’s when I got the news.

The news was that we wouldn’t be able to use the hall on Sunday. That is, the hall where we meet as church each week. That is, where our anniversary service was going to be in a few days. The owner sent his apologies, and suggested maybe we could have it for more time the week after.

Because, you see, we were using it for a longer time on the 28th – special service, invited guests, decorations, activities for the kids, a special meal….

It would be impossible to move it to the next Sunday, because the 4th of November is the annual joint service with churches around the Mexico City area. We’ll all be out of state that Sunday.

Well, I left it in the Lord’s hands (after some initial shock). But God was kind, and sent us a bit of encouragement.

Kids practising verses
Kids practising for their presentation at the anniversary service
An acquaintance came up to Shari in front of our house, and told her that her family had been studying the Bible, and was wondering if they could come to our church. (It was a longer and more encouraging discussion than that – but you’re busy.)

So Shari told her – well, she wasn’t sure what to tell her – sure, you can come … not sure where our church is, exactly. It might be somewhere this Sunday, somewhere else in 3 weeks – and then we will move to some unknown location….

So you’re welcome to come to our church, as soon as we find it.

Anyway, in spite of the church-of-no-fixed-address problem, it was just the encouragement we needed.

You’ll be glad to hear that when we returned home last night, we found out that the owner was going to let us use the hall after all – but only for the regular time. So we’re scrambling now to see if we can find a place for the after service meal and activities.

So — lots to be done in the next few days — lots more than expected! But we’re praying that somehow it would work out, and that we would have a special time together, and learn from the Lord about His great salvation (that’s our theme for the service – “Such a Great Salvation!”).

Lot’s of people are going to be involved on Sunday – special music, special presentations – we’re looking forward to it! Wherever “it” may be!

Where to Worship?

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Of course, you can worship God anywhere, can’t you?

Jesus said to her, “Woman, believe me, the hour is coming when neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem will you worship the Father … the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshippers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship him.
John 4:21-23

Sunday Service October 2018It was our first Sunday back in Ixtapaluca after our summer in Canada. The very first person I spoke to was the owner of the party hall where we meet.

“We’re converting the hall into squash courts”, he said. “We’ll be dividing up the room, so you won’t be able to use it anymore. You’ll have it until the end of November.”

He went on by explaining it was nothing against us – in fact, he has quite a high opinion of us. Well, that’s good.

But it does leave us without a place to meet in about 6 weeks.

So, before taking any action whatsoever, our church decided to have a week of prayer. (If you receive our email update, you might have joined us – thanks!)

Then, last Sunday, we started to discuss some of our options, and start investigating the possibilities.

The reason why it is such an urgent matter of prayer is that the options, from a human standpoint, aren’t great. There are a couple of places in the neighbourhood that might fit our group, but they’re either not really suitable/available, or extremely expensive. There are some other possibilities that we’re looking into, but from a human standpoint it will be a real challenge to find something.

So, you’re welcome to join us in prayer as we look for a place to use as we continue to make disciples. At this point, I don’t think we’ll be on the street (although pitching a tent is a current option!), but we want to pray that God would provide a suitable place – we’re thinking bathrooms, a place where the kids can do their Sunday School, chairs, electricity… and even space to grow.

I agree with Ezra – “The hand of our God is for good on all who seek him” (Ezra 8:22).

Shari also encouraged us on Sunday, by reminding us that God “is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think” (Ephesians 3:20). So – let’s ask!

God likes nomads.

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Earlier this month we had to give up a house we had rented in the community of Las Palmas. Since 2013, our team has rented this place to house visiting teams and interns, to hold Bible studies and kids’ clubs, and to store church supplies (since we have no building).

But the owner contacted us to tell us that they had to leave their other house, and so they needed this one to live in.

So, we moved out of the house, affectionately known as “Kerpis” (after the street name), and temporarily farmed out the furniture and supplies to various people’s houses. We do hope to rent again, but for now, the ministry has no permanent location.

In some ways, we could see the providence of the move. Although it’s obviously inconvenient, we’ve been enjoying doing our Bible study at alternate locations.

Friday kids' study in Las PalmasTwo of the families in the church have locations that are very conducive to our Friday night study. And the bonus is, we’re connecting (and in some cases reconnecting) with some of the kids in another area of Las Palmas.

Cupcake ConesShari is encouraged to see what the kids are learning at the Friday study. They’re really interested and asking great questions. God does some interesting things when you’re nomadic!

Tomorrow I’ll be going alone to preach at a sister church about an hour north of here, while Shari and Hannah help with the Sunday School in Las Palmas. We certainly would appreciate your prayers as we share the gospel at two locations tomorrow!

By the way, we need Bibles! If you would like to help with one or two, check here for details and contact us ASAP.

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