Today is the day of salvation!

This morning started with an anointed prayer time as the Word was shared (1 John 2:18-27 and 2 Chronicles 7:14) and prayer for the strongholds over this city persisted. The Lord even directed several of the team members during that time to pray specifically for various strongholds and spirits as they are very similar to those present in Plano. At the end of prayer time the missionary, Tiffany, shared her heart with us regarding her burden for this city and things her father told her about the strongholds that he experienced when God first called him as a missionary to Queretaro.

We headed back out to the church in San Pedro Martyr for more ministry with the children. After getting in some more play time with the kids we had service. With 39 kids present from the neighborhood we had a sing along to worship songs with the puppets, motions, and lots of dancing, and smiling faces. Brianna preached on Paul and Silas (Acts 16:25) and how they were in jail yet continued to sing hymns and praise God. She focused in on how God gives us joy. Jerry and Pastor Brian did a great job acting out Paul and Silas' time in jail. At the end of the message there was an invitation for salvation and 10 kids raised their hands to receive Christ. Praise God!
The church here also has some physical needs that will help enable them to meet the needs of those in the neighborhood. Before and after the service the guys (Pastor Brian, Jerry, Danny, and Tiffany's husband John) worked on installing a brand new toilet and fixed some of the plumbing. The other thing done today to address those needs was cleaning up the street in front of the church. There was a lot of stray trash and a lot of glass on the ground making it dangerous for the kids to play. Many of the kids were excited to help us and walked around picking things up. One of the younger kids just wanted to be part of what the older kids were doing so he kept picking up dirt and putting it into the trash bag.

At the evening service we were excited to see several new faces - both children and adults totaling 79 people. More adults joined us for the evening service than in the morning or yesterday. For the service we had a puppet skit that talked about the greatest gift given by Jesus in salvation followed by Pastor Amy preaching. Pastor Amy preached a salvation message taking the listeners down the Romans Road to Salvation. She related salvation to being given the ultimate gift and gave out small bouncy balls as an illustration of the necessity of receiving the gift. At the end the altars were filled and many accepted Christ; including adults.

God is working here. There is still much work to be done. As I looked around into the eyes of those from NorthPointe and those we've partnered with I saw a deep desire and passion. There was a greater urgency and fire to share the love of Christ and give the people here a relationship that exceeds all others. A relationship that meets all of their needs and leads to a victorious life that only comes from the cross. Today is the day of salvation. Today is the day for breakthrough and a piercing of the darkness that has long covered this city...

Let the little children come to me...

This morning we had breakfast and then met for Bible study. As we met for Bible study Pastor Amy began by explaining that this city has at least 1 million people, yet these Assembly of God churches are poorly attended. There is a stronghold in the city keeping these people from getting saved and joining a church and the way to come against it is in unity and prayer. At that point we stopped to pray. The Holy Spirit began to move and there was prayer for those in this city and salvation, a declaration of us as warriors, for boldness over us as believers, and for God to draw people into the church. We left for the church, San Pedro Martyr, this morning excited and expecting.

We arrived at the church and Danny, a Pastor's son, hooked up a sound system and started calling all the kids in the neighborhood. There were praise songs in Spanish playing as well and before we knew it all these kids descended upon the church. We blew up inflatable balls and started hitting them around with the kids. There was also a rousing game of red light green light (verde, rojo) where Pastor Brian took a spill when he got caught up with one of the kids' feet.



After playing with them for awhile we invited them into the church for puppets and a Spanish sing-a-long. Pastor Amy preached about Noah and the Ark and each kid got a plastic animal and "paired up" to be involved in the message. The kids heard about being obedient to God and that by following God they won't be left out. We played with them some more before leaving.



For the evening service we headed back out to San Pedro Martyr. We had the children ready and waiting for us and we started by playing with them again before inviting them into church. We expected to have mostly adults in the evening, but it was mostly children. Danny led us in worship and then we had puppets that were part of a sing-a-long where Brianna and I (Jessalea) tried to coordinate the hand motions of "Waves of Mercy" to music. It is much more challenging to match movements with words when the song is in Spanish. We laughed a lot while the kids looked at us very confused. Pastor Brian then preached a salvation message on 1 John 1:5-1 John 2:2 where a couple of kids came to know the Lord. We played with them again before leaving. Several of us joined the kids in a Spanish version of 'hot potato' were we passed the ball around and then had an "it" person. Most of us couldn't keep up with the words of the song, but enjoyed the game and the kids laughed as we attempted to keep up.

Looking back on the events of the day I smile. The children heard the Word and joined us in singing praise and worship. As we spent time with the children it was evident by looking around that they have won our hearts. Compassion spilled over as the kids would run up and hug us and smile and laugh. They would ask over and over when we would be here again. I could see the team working feverishly to find out how to say things in Spanish in an effort to communicate with them even more. I was most amazed by the fact that the exchange of God's love, compassion, and grace knows no language barriers. The extension of mercy was present through actions with the children and ultimately reminds me of how Christ communicated His greatest act of love on the cross.

Tomorrow we will be back at San Pedro Martyr for more work with the children. Let's see what God will do...

Travel to Queretaro

Here we are before getting on the shuttle for the airport. We look pretty good for the early hour! Judy isn't in this picture because she met us at the airport. Sorry Judy! I wonder if we will look this rested and excited at the end of the trip...

Speaking of, 4:40 this morning came early. Most of the team had slept no more than 3 hours last night as the last minute preparations were completed and the early start made sure that we arrived at the airport on time. Those that rode the shuttle were chipper, talkative, and at times telling jokes. The picture here of Pastor Amy and Brianna says it all. Pastor Amy was awake enough to make funny faces for the camera. I'm guessing that she won't be that thrilled that I've posted the picture, but it's a great one! ;) We flew to Houston, arrived on time and made our connecting flight that was headed for Mexico City. After arriving in Mexico City we cleared customs without a hitch, everyone had their luggage and we headed to exchange money and then lunch. Lunch was interesting because we ate in the airport, but there was a collision of the familiar and different all at the same time. The familiar included places like Starbucks, Carl's Jr., and 7 Eleven. The different was the language, the environment and the money. Most of the team gravitated to food they knew - burgers and fries. Later in the day the team became much more adventurous when it came to food...

After lunch we boarded a bus that would take us straight to Queretaro - our destination. After a brief debate that the ride was only an hour, we settled in for the 3 hour trip. Some of the team utilized this time to catch up on sleep while others read or at least rested their eyes if they weren't able to fall asleep as easily. The picture below is the view of the countryside that seemed to stretch on forever once we were out of Mexico City.

Another one of the sights from the bus was the expected Mexican landscape. Many of the buildings are concrete and dipict the reality of Mexico's poverty. For those on the trip that are experiencing a mission trip for the first time the scene ushered in silence and culture shock. The disparity between our lifestyle and theirs is vast and has generated conversation about priorities. This is the housing we saw for miles throughout Mexico City.

We arrived to Queretaro in a rainstorm along with a cool brisk wind. It was a relief from the Texas heat. We left from the bus station and then settled into a hotel. The hotel has been out of the comfort zone and experience of some, but the adjustment process has already taken place. This is one of the hotel rooms with its colorful decor...

After settling into the room we headed to dinner. We went to a popular taco chain and our missionary and the Pastor's Son (of the main church we are working with - Filadelfia) ordered for us. Family style eating ensued with multiple types of meat, a variety of sauces (some hot and some mild) with fresh flour and corn tortillas and an eat-your-heart-out meal as you built your own tacos. EVERYONE on the team was in agreement - that was an amazing meal. The adventurous spirit of the team began to take shape.

No evening would be complete without a trip to Wal-Mart. Queretaro is historic and has a rich past, but much of the modern world collides with the churches and classic architecture. We headed to Wal-Mart to pick up bottled water before returning to the hotel. Tomorrow we will be doing some Children's Ministry and then an evening service for the adults. Only by tomorrow night will we know exactly how God worked and how the ministry unfolded...

The eve of departure

A team of 8 members of NorthPointe Church in Plano will be departing to Queretaro, Mexico to partner with a church and one of their missions to assist in various types of ministry for a week. The departure day is tomorrow.

It's the night before the mission trip and I can't think about sleeping. There is too much to think about, wonder, and imagine about what tomorrow will bring. I do know it will bring one thing - an early start. Our flight out of DFW leaves at 7am and in an effort to get us all to the airport at the same time a shuttle will be leaving from Pastor Brian and Pastor Amy's house at 4:40. Yes, you read that right. The shuttle will depart for the airport that early in the morning. Even though I know the morning will come early, I still have such anticipation of how this adventure will start...

As I write this, I know that there is still a flutter of activity going on. There are the last minute preparations occuring. Last minute trips to Wal-Mart, final loads of laundry, and a mad dash to get every possible item in the suitcase without causing it to weigh more than 50 pounds (which result in hefty extra fees at the airport). I wonder about the anticipation of those in Mexico. I think about the churches we will work with (San Pedro Martyr and Filadelfia) and what they are thinking and feeling about our arrival. Are they buzzing with excitement? Are they wondering about what we will be like and what will happen during our time there? I can't wait...

Preparing for Queretaro

With a week until our departure we are all very excited. The final preparations are being made and we are all working on learning to speak and sing in Spanish.
Our plans are to work wherever needed. The church in Quererato is excited about us doing our picture outreach.