Community Centre 2011 – Here we GO! (podcast)
It’s just about to begin… listen to this podcast for more! Oh, and here’s the link to the Church & Community Center calendar.
Jesus MarÃa
Today it Begins! (Sports Camp)
Yes, today is the day! The sports camp, run by Uncharted Waters, begins today. And, as you may recall, it’s not just for these kids, it’s a training program for Mexican leaders who want to go and run their own camps!
So Mexican leaders from all over Mexico, representing about 15 churches, are here to take in the training and see the camp in action. And the team from Uncharted Waters arrived last night (2 of them are staying with us – welcome, guys!).
On Monday we handed out flyers all over Jesús María, promoting the event, and I’m sure there will be kids from elsewhere as well. Hannah has invited some kids from our street as well, so we’ll see!
We would appreciate your prayers for this event – that the Gospel would be shared clearly, that ongoing relationships would be built… and also for those doing the training, and those being trained, that this would be a tool that leaders all over Mexico can use to further God’s kingdom.
We’ll let you know how it goes! Excuse me… gotta run….. ! 😉
Community Centre Christmas Event Tonight!
Last night was the dress rehearsal for the closing-of-classes Christmas program at the community centre. And tonight is the big night!
We’re hoping to see many of the people who come regularly to the classes related to the community centre – guitar, English, baking, dance, basketball, tutoring, etc. And, of course, we hope to see their family and friends! And then of course there are people from the church, and quite a few we’ve met other places. For example, we talked to a few people when we were handing out flyers with the First Free Team.
So last night I watched as the drama was practised. This was the English class. They will be performing in English, while the audience reads along in Spanish.
Then I helped with a bit of music with the English class – tonight it will be a medley of Mary’s Boy Child and Hark! The Herald Angels Sing, and then an a capella version of We Wish You A Merry Christmas. We worked hard on tricky words like earth, born, righteousness, and, of course, Hark!
The program is scheduled to start tonight at 6:00pm. It will be outdoors, and considering that the weather report this morning said it was 5 degrees below freezing, it could be interesting doing things like playing guitar!
Tonight will also be a chance to promote all the community centre activities for the new year. We hope to get off to a great start!
We’re praying for a good turnout and a fun time, and of course a clear message of the Gospel which will be in the drama and songs. There are lots of other things going on this time of year, particularly with the holiday for the Virgin of Guadalupe on Sunday (in our claustro there will be a mass to the Virgin of Guadalupe tonight, for example). So please pray that people would come out and hear about the coming of the Messiah.
Uncharted Waters Sports Ministry
We have a big… very big… event coming up in January! On the 5th to the 7th of January, the sports ministry known as Uncharted Waters will be returning to Ixtapaluca.
Uncharted Waters has actually been here more than once, running evangelistic sports camps. And they’re coming to do it again – but this time, with a twist.
The purpose of the camp will not only be to reach out to kids here in Mexico City. It will also be to train Mexican workers from other parts of the country to run their own sports camps. So it will be 15 years of international experience from Uncharted Waters added to the national experience, enthusiasm and people-power of Mexican leaders!
Now regularly doing over 100 camps a year, Uncharted Waters wants to see this ministry grow exponentially.
So we’re hoping to be hosting a lot of people come January! If you know Mexican Christian workers who would be interested in this ministry, point them to the poster below. Our coworker Rod has also posted more information in Spanish here.
This event will be three days long, hosted at our community centre in Jesús María, Ixtapaluca – Tiempo de Vivir. There is no cost.
Ministry videos from the past year…
We had a good visit with the director of CAM Canada, Charlene de Haan, who came down for a few days over the weekend. She sure saw a lot for the short time she was here!
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I just sent her an email with some of the videos we’ve made over the past year, highlighting the ministry here in Ixtapaluca. There’s been a lot! So I thought I would share these with you.
Obviously, videos tend to focus on the more "videoable" things, such as big events. So this is not to say these give a decent overview of real ministry here, which would include private conversations, Bible studies, prayer – lots more! But it does give you a glimpse into at least some aspects. The videos are more or less in chronological order, with the most recent first…
- Unscrewing the Door: A Sunday Ritual (Video)
- Spring/Summer Internship 2010 (video)
- Canada Day Fiesta 2010 (video)
- Baptisms – 20 June 2010! (video)
- Context – Community Centre and Meeting Place (video)
- Women’s Conference Video from the 19th
- Children’s Day Event 2010 (video)
- Closing of Classes Program (video)
- Another Event Starting Now! (video) (Amigas del Alma)
- Video presentation for Chalco service
- How to Serve Breakfast by Boat (video)
- A New View of Ixtapaluca
- Christmas Event in Jesús MarÃa (video included)
From Calgary to Mexico City (exciting news)!
I’ve been very slow in making a very exciting announcement! Here’s the news: We’re looking forward to hosting a team from Calgary’s First Evangelical Free Church this fall!
The team is Walter, LeAnn, Amy and Christine. They come with a lot of talents and skills, many of which I’m sure they’ll put to good use!
Their time here will be divided up half and half. First, they’ll be helping out at our annual CAM Mexico conference. There they will be serving the missionary kids.
This is a huge help to the CAM missionaries here in Mexico. They’ll be teaching God’s Word to the kids, and also giving the adults a chance to attend their own sessions. We’re so thankful that they can serve in this way!
But that will only be half of their time here. The other half will be spent in Jesús María, Ixtapaluca. There they will be serving the church and the community. They’ll be a part of our worship time Sunday morning, and during the first part of the week they will be helping out at the community centre.
It will be a great encouragement to us and to many others here to have them come. It will be another chance to build on current relationships, and maybe make some new ones, and continue to share God’s Word here.
Please pray for the First Free Mexico Team as they prepare for this adventure, and for us as we work to make sure their work will fit well into the big picture here. They’re coming in November – only a few weeks away!
Where the First Free Mexico Team meets to worship together
Photo courtesy of Google