When Monday rolled around, Alan and Lynnea headed over to Mexico early, to get the Power Team set up building the house. As they continued building Fernando and Viviannas house, Ray and the other part of the Power Team continued on the community center. Drywallers, roofers, and electricians worked feverishly to get as much done as they could, because that was their last day here.
Paula and I stayed at home and waited for the Power Ministrys delivery of about 20 thousand pounds of rice. They arrived at 9 and we had them on their way by 10. They also donated hundreds of Spanish bibles that we and several other ministries desperatly need. Now the ware house is full again between the 20 thousand pounds of rice this week and the 36 thousand pounds of beans we got in two weeks ago.
Paula and I headed over to Mexico and I spent the rest of the day helping the Power Team put the roof on. We finished the roof on the main building and the porch by the time they had to leave. The drywall crew got about 80% of the drywall done and Eliazar, Arturo and our new brother in Christ Carlos said they would do the rest. Praise God because I hate doing drywall!!!! It will be well worth the money I will pay them. With rain coming on Tuesday, I was sure happy to have the roof on, and it poured Tuesday night.
Tuesday the four of us went over to finish the house that the Power Guys started. Carmelo, Arturo and Carlos had the roof on the porch by the time we got there. Alan built the shelves and finished the rails on the loft and then most everyone started painting the inside. Today we dedicated the house with a small but powerful ceremony. Fernando made me a promise that he would quit drinking when we built him and his family a house. We shared the gospel with Him and I also shared the Power teams favorite verse out of the book of Acts, chapter one verse 8 " THAT YOU WILL RECEIVE POWER WHEN THE HOLY SPIRIT COMES UPON YOU, TO BE MY WITNESSES TO ALL THE WORLD". We told Fernando that he needed the Power of the Holy Spirit to come upon him, and that would come through a relationship with Jesus Christ. I believe He will be coming to faith in the very near future, as we could all see his eyes welling up in tears as we prayed over his family and new house. And as is the tradition, he carried his bride over the threshold into their new, dry , home.
IT'S AN AMAZING LIFE GOD HAS GIVEN US
Every day of every week, God just continues to pour out His goodness and favor on the people He has assigned us to. The Carpenters Crew arrived last Sunday and started to build a house for Pedro and Tirsa. Within two days, all the walls were up and the finishing touches were all done by mid-day Wed. The team of twenty ( more mature) people had been an answer to a families prayers that had lived in sqaller for 11 years. A leaky roof, wind compromised walls, and a dirt floor kitchen had been transformed into a beautiful home. Dedication day was scheduled for Thursday morning and that gave the team time to purchase some basic furnishings and food to fill the shelves. While the team put the finishing touches on the house and decorated the inside, Eliazar grilled up thirty pounds of chicken for the dedication.
While all that was going on, some of us continued building Alfredos house down the road. We had to build the new house inside the old house on the existing concrete floor. It was a bit of a challenge, but we got it all done before the wind and cold came on Friday. The dedication on Pedro and Tirsas house was awesome. While we sang songs and celebrated this gift from God, the Holy Spirit was working in a man named Carlos heart. He had been helping the Crew build the house and was a greater help when it came time to put the roof on. Carmelo gave his powerful testimony and then Paula started to share from her heart and when she gave the invitation to accept Christ as the only way to heaven, Carlos came forward and prayed for God to forgive him of all of his sins and give him new life. AWESOME!!
Saturday the Power team came back with a fresh group of men willing to serve. They accomplished a lot and all the insulation is in the walls and we're ready for drywall. They also got a start on the roof. Alan was just down the road with another team from Power that was building a house for Fernando and Vivianna. There has been so much going on, our heads are spinning. I had to take a short break as I was nailing the last few facia boards on. I was holding a 2x6 up an the gable end and reaching over it to nail it in place, and once I pulled the trigger I felt the nail go through my finger. YEA THAT'S RIGHT, I NAILED MYSELF TO THE FACIA. In one side of my index finger and out the other. No bone, Praise the Lord but lots of blood.
I don't think I mentioned that our daughter Kelly is here for a few weeks, on her way home to CO. She can only come to MX on weekends because she has to work on the computer all day. A few of the remaining Carpenters Crew people came over with us yesterday to help hand out the food, coats and hats we had for the people in the colonia. Pastor Antonio gave the message and Praise the Lord, that was the last time we have to squeeze 300 people into a 40 x 20 foot space between our house and Carmelo and Ruthies. The Community Center will be open for blessing.
Today we went to church, and at Sunday school we met John, a first time visitor to our church. We talked after class and invited him to go over to a carnival that the Power Ministry was putting on at Childrens Haven International orphanage in Reynosa. He said He'd love to go and we spent the afternoon at the orphanage # we had a great time.
While all that was going on, some of us continued building Alfredos house down the road. We had to build the new house inside the old house on the existing concrete floor. It was a bit of a challenge, but we got it all done before the wind and cold came on Friday. The dedication on Pedro and Tirsas house was awesome. While we sang songs and celebrated this gift from God, the Holy Spirit was working in a man named Carlos heart. He had been helping the Crew build the house and was a greater help when it came time to put the roof on. Carmelo gave his powerful testimony and then Paula started to share from her heart and when she gave the invitation to accept Christ as the only way to heaven, Carlos came forward and prayed for God to forgive him of all of his sins and give him new life. AWESOME!!
Saturday the Power team came back with a fresh group of men willing to serve. They accomplished a lot and all the insulation is in the walls and we're ready for drywall. They also got a start on the roof. Alan was just down the road with another team from Power that was building a house for Fernando and Vivianna. There has been so much going on, our heads are spinning. I had to take a short break as I was nailing the last few facia boards on. I was holding a 2x6 up an the gable end and reaching over it to nail it in place, and once I pulled the trigger I felt the nail go through my finger. YEA THAT'S RIGHT, I NAILED MYSELF TO THE FACIA. In one side of my index finger and out the other. No bone, Praise the Lord but lots of blood.
I don't think I mentioned that our daughter Kelly is here for a few weeks, on her way home to CO. She can only come to MX on weekends because she has to work on the computer all day. A few of the remaining Carpenters Crew people came over with us yesterday to help hand out the food, coats and hats we had for the people in the colonia. Pastor Antonio gave the message and Praise the Lord, that was the last time we have to squeeze 300 people into a 40 x 20 foot space between our house and Carmelo and Ruthies. The Community Center will be open for blessing.
Today we went to church, and at Sunday school we met John, a first time visitor to our church. We talked after class and invited him to go over to a carnival that the Power Ministry was putting on at Childrens Haven International orphanage in Reynosa. He said He'd love to go and we spent the afternoon at the orphanage # we had a great time.
P.O.W.E.R. I N M E X I C O
As one team left last Saturday, we started preparing for the men with the POWER MINISTRY representing 12 different states coming to build the community center in the colonia. Power stands for Purposeful Outreach With Eternal Results. Most of them hail from Southern California, but the word has spread to several states that men need to join this team for a week of intense building and ministry along the Mexico/ U.S. border. They bring two groups of about 90 men to do many projects from Acuna, Mx to Matamoras, Mx. They split up into teams and blitz the building sites and get a lot of work done in just a few days. They arrived Thursday as Paula, Alan, Lynnea and I were busy trying to get Arturos and Carlas house that we bought them done so they could move out of the house where the new building will stand. The Power team had all four walls up in just a few hours while another team built the trusses.
The Power team had two different shifts come, one in the morning and a different team in the afternoon. They are all such nice guys and real hard workers. The ages of the men ranged from 18 up to one hard working man that was 95 years old. So I guess that gives me at least another 40 years serving our Lord in the mission field. Can't even imagine that, but Lord willing!!! They came back yesterday and put up all the siding, finished the truss work, and installed all the purlins for the roofing. While they were changing shifts at another build site, we put in all the windows and started getting ready to hoist the 52 foot laminated beam they made up onto the 4x4 posts 10 feet in the air. That was fun, and we gotter done.
Carmelo and Eliazar were busy pouring a foundation for the family the Carpenters Crew will build for starting tomorrow. The wood is there and the family has it all painted and we are ready for another busy week. The couple they are building for lived in a pretty big but nasty house that leaked every time it rained. They are elderly and really needed a better home to live in. They worked real hard dismantling their house and painting all the wood.
I sum up the last several weeks as nothing short of miraculous. Since Christmas, we have built 5 homes. distributed hundreds of gifts for the families in the colonia, torn down one house, poured another two foundations, unloaded a truck load of beans into the warehouse, gave out 10 thousand pounds of beans and rice, started building the community center, had five dedication ceremonies, had 46 different people stay at our house, been the airport six times, went through 400 bottles of water, witnessed two young men accept Christ as their Savior, crossed the international bridge into Mexico 32 times in 40 days and still found time to get one golf game in!!!! We love this life and the partners that make it all possible THANK YOU!!!
Again problems getting pictures on the blog, stay tuned
The Power team had two different shifts come, one in the morning and a different team in the afternoon. They are all such nice guys and real hard workers. The ages of the men ranged from 18 up to one hard working man that was 95 years old. So I guess that gives me at least another 40 years serving our Lord in the mission field. Can't even imagine that, but Lord willing!!! They came back yesterday and put up all the siding, finished the truss work, and installed all the purlins for the roofing. While they were changing shifts at another build site, we put in all the windows and started getting ready to hoist the 52 foot laminated beam they made up onto the 4x4 posts 10 feet in the air. That was fun, and we gotter done.
Carmelo and Eliazar were busy pouring a foundation for the family the Carpenters Crew will build for starting tomorrow. The wood is there and the family has it all painted and we are ready for another busy week. The couple they are building for lived in a pretty big but nasty house that leaked every time it rained. They are elderly and really needed a better home to live in. They worked real hard dismantling their house and painting all the wood.
I sum up the last several weeks as nothing short of miraculous. Since Christmas, we have built 5 homes. distributed hundreds of gifts for the families in the colonia, torn down one house, poured another two foundations, unloaded a truck load of beans into the warehouse, gave out 10 thousand pounds of beans and rice, started building the community center, had five dedication ceremonies, had 46 different people stay at our house, been the airport six times, went through 400 bottles of water, witnessed two young men accept Christ as their Savior, crossed the international bridge into Mexico 32 times in 40 days and still found time to get one golf game in!!!! We love this life and the partners that make it all possible THANK YOU!!!
Again problems getting pictures on the blog, stay tuned
We were finally able to give out the Christmas Purses to the women and almost all of the toys to the kids before we got any more rain. The team from Western IL or as I call them, The Junkin 4 Jesus crew was able to share in the event as they drove door to door giving out the gifts from the back of our trailer. All in all, over 300 gifts were handed out on their last day in the colonia. They all headed back to the cold in Illinois on Saturday and we headed back to Mexico for a breakfast with the Pastors that Paula and Lynnea had prepared bisquets and gravy for. We had a rich time of praise and testimonies. followed by the delicious breakfast. We stayed home Sunday and Alan and I got a golf game in after Sunday school while the girls attended the Church service.
Today Alan and I started to fix the house that we bought for Arturo, Carla and their little girl Adi. They have been living in the little shack in front of our warehouse and we have to tear it down to make room for the new community center that the Power Ministry is building this Saturday. We removed all the roofing and rafters, and built the walls for the back room. I hope we can finish it tommorow. We were tired by days end and fortunately the line on the bridge was short.
We just received last years donation reports from the directors of Mexico Missions, Phil and Marianne and we need to look over them and make sure they jive with our records. If anyone gets one that does not agree with your records, please let us now right away. Our Christmas letter boasted about how much MORE God did this last year and the numbers confirm it. We received MORE in donations than any other year and were able to buy MORE food and build MORE houses, and bless MORE people than any other year. THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU for all of your support of the work down here. We pray that God gives you MORE, so that you can do MORE with the resources God entrusts you with.
Today Alan and I started to fix the house that we bought for Arturo, Carla and their little girl Adi. They have been living in the little shack in front of our warehouse and we have to tear it down to make room for the new community center that the Power Ministry is building this Saturday. We removed all the roofing and rafters, and built the walls for the back room. I hope we can finish it tommorow. We were tired by days end and fortunately the line on the bridge was short.
We just received last years donation reports from the directors of Mexico Missions, Phil and Marianne and we need to look over them and make sure they jive with our records. If anyone gets one that does not agree with your records, please let us now right away. Our Christmas letter boasted about how much MORE God did this last year and the numbers confirm it. We received MORE in donations than any other year and were able to buy MORE food and build MORE houses, and bless MORE people than any other year. THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU for all of your support of the work down here. We pray that God gives you MORE, so that you can do MORE with the resources God entrusts you with.
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