10 years ago today, a team of people met at our house – one of several meetings – to discuss planting a church in a new area. We didn’t know what area that would be at this point, but in the next few months it became clear that it would be the community of Jesús MarÃa.
“Team Ixtapaluca” June 2009
June 2009 was really an amazing month. The church in Santa Bárbara had newly recognized leadership, and their building was undergoing some major construction. There was a baptism service, in which many people were baptized who would eventually serve the Lord in the new church in Jesús MarÃa. Hannah and Nathanael were hard at work at school. And by the end of the month we would be crossing the border on our way to Canada for the summer.
Yes, it’s pretty much become a legend around here – just “the wedding” (or the way Spanglish works in our casa, more often “the boda”). We’re very excited about tomorrow (Saturday, the 1st of June) – the wedding of our friends Oscar and Viri!
Weddings are great – a wonderful opportunity to celebrate love and see a small glimpse of the love that God has for us. But this couple wants to take a step further – really making their wedding a testimony to what God has done and is doing in their lives.
So we’re EXTRA excited about that.
Anyway, Shari and I do have a small part in the wedding. We’ll be leading a time of worship music, and also singing a duet. So we would very much appreciate your prayers – for our part, and for the bride and groom, and for Rod who is giving the “charge to the couple” and marrying them, and for all others involved.
May God’s Spirit truly work on this special day for the new couple!
This past weekend was Nathanael’s 15th birthday party. No, no fancy clothes and massive parties for the boys, as there are for the girls. However, we did want to do something special.
So – the detective theme was born. As the invitation said, “A criminal genius and an absent master detective . . . Can you solve the mystery and celebrate a birthday at the same time?”
And so, after some hot dogs and burgers, Nathanael and his friends went into the “mystery room” – a kind of home-made escape room (though no one was actually locked in), where the group had to figure out the name of the criminal, where he had hid the bomb, and how to diffuse it. In 60 minutes.
They did quite well, unlocking and unscrewing, reading invisible ink, solving puzzles and even working something called a “cassette player”, to discover the truth. Hannah even got to help with a clue via telephone! Here you can see the first few minutes (in a few seconds!) of their search for clues…
And here they are, with the photo of the criminal genius after solving the mystery:
Of course, after all that hard work, a cake was needed. And thanks to Shari, it did not disappoint…
We also enjoyed the company (and help!) of the group that was visiting from Still Water Community Church, along with Rod (and his BBQ – thanks, Rod!). I admit we were a bit distracted, but it seems like they enjoyed their visit, and we did have a bit of conversation in the midst of the chaos!
As we did with Hannah, we also made Nathanael a “Heritage Book”, with stories and pictures from the men in the family back many generations, and personal letters from many of the men in the family who he has known growing up. Thanks to all those who helped!
And now, the house is more or less back in order, and all the 15th birthday parties are over. The mystery is – where in the world did all those years go?!
I can probably count on one hand the number of times I’ve had a “normal” shower over the past month or two. The water pressure has been low-to-nonexistent in the house quite often.
But don’t worry – I’ve gotten sort of clean somehow most days – it’s all about systems of buckets and bins! Filling them, carrying them, saving them. And, of course, everything takes longer.
A bin for dishes…
It can sometimes take hours to do dishes when there is a mere trickle of water coming out of the tap – or perhaps, only out of a tap outside.
And a little cleaning can certainly stretch out when you are trying to clean a toilet you can’t flush.
The other day Shari and Mayra went to the ODAPAS office. ODAPAS is the water company. By the way, ODAPAS stands for the Organismo Descentralizado de Agua Potable, Alcantarillado y Saneamiento – that is, the Decentralized Agency for Drinking Water, Sewage and Sanitation (but DADWSS doesn’t sound quite as cool when you say it out loud).
Well, our sewage is working, sort of. Then again, actually, the shower is a little bit plugged, but that’s our problem, not theirs. And I go to the corner store to get drinking water, so that’s me carrying the 20 litres (5.28 gallons) of water down the street.
Anyway, Shari and Mayra went to the office to express their deepest concerns about the unending challenges of trying to do laundry with hardly any water, heard the obligatory excuses, and went home. Will the complaints accomplish anything lasting? We shall see.
Just another ongoing challenge. Regular readers know that this issue comes and goes but never goes for good.
Yesterday I had to use buckets to shower, and then all the lights went out when I tried to get ready (no windows in the bathroom). Oh well. At least the internet worked for most of the day, once the power went back on.
Anyway, just another glimpse into some of the things we work around each day! 🙂
Usually I check a little more often, but this time I didn’t. So by the time we were ready to leave, we realized that Hannah’s flight was arriving very early, so we were running late.
Meeting at the airport in Mexico City
We had only driven a few feet when I remembered that I had left something in the house. So – quick re-entry, and back in the van, and – it would not start. Not even close. Waited a minute or two – no go.
SO – we ended up picking up Hannah via taxi. And we’ve learned that taxis are VERY EXPENSIVE on Christmas Eve (though, thankfully, a lot cheaper in Mexico than in the rest of North America).
But, after all that, we were at the airport in time to greet Hannah coming out of the gate – about 10 minutes to spare.
There were a lot of unexpected adventures. The van? Well, turns out it was the battery. So that was changed (by me).
The traditional low water pressure was a part of our holidays. Hannah and Nathanael wanted to sleep in – and hence found it very hard to get showers, because the water was generally low to non-existent during the day. Doing dishes takes a looooooong time.
And then on New Year’s Eve, we woke up to cold showers – the water heater was on the fritz. So we found a plumber to come and fix the tank (probably should get a new one, but no money for that). Thankfully, it was fixed without a lot of fuss, the same day.
Hannah enjoying some REAL tacos!
Actually, we’ve had a lot of household/appliance problems in the past few weeks – and many more that we would probably take care of if we had the funds. We’re just hoping we’ll get a few months break – but who knows?
Anyway, aside from these things, we had a good time together. Tomorrow Hannah heads back to Canada (and cold temperatures! – about 33 degrees colder than here on Tuesday, according to the forecast).
We really enjoyed the service on Sunday. People had a lot of time to share, and we sang “requests” for the music. It’s always good to hear what people are learning, and to reflect on our hopes for our church in 2019.
So there you go! Just a little news. On Monday, the whirlwind of work begins again for all of us. It’s going to be a crazy week. But let’s not think about that. 🙂
These are examples of words and phrases that we probably didn’t use after our visit to the dentist yesterday. But hey, these things have to be done!
Yes, various medical appointments continue, maybe not our favourite part of the tour, but still important.
As usual there has been a lot going on as we continue our time here in Canada. We very much enjoyed our time at Penhold Church of Hope, and also at New Hope Gospel Church in Provost. We’ve also had some time to visit with friends and family that we rarely see.
But what’s concerning us now are – the countdowns! As I write, here’s where they’re at…
Hannah starts school at Prairie Christian Academy: 1 week, 3 days
The rest of us return to Mexico: 3 weeks, 4 days
Yeah – so – we have a lot to do to get Hannah ready for school, and a lot to do to get everything done that we need to do before travelling back. We’re already starting to look at upcoming ministry in Mexico.
So, there’s lots to think about and lots to do! So I’d better get back to work. 🙂
