All,
I have made a short video with pictures and a video of a little colonia here in Mexico - I hope you enjoy it and that it catches you up on a little bit of what I have been living in lately. These people need your prayer!
Challenge :) I have seriously been thinking of creative ways to help all of you back at home remember to pray for Leon, Mexico. I have several ideas which I will disclose in later updates as I have decided to give you a new challenge each time. (or as long as I can come up with new ones :) This update's challenge is as follows:
Please write a word or scripture reference on the inside of your wrist. Mine is as follows:
Please pray for Leon each time you see your wrist. Once it washes off you don't have to rewrite it :) unless you want to. Also, please leave comments here on this blog about what God showed you through this challenge and how other people around you responded to seeing you faithfully remember Leon in prayer. This can easily be a way for you guys to share the truth of Christ with those around you as they see your wrists. This will also be a huge encouragement to me!Prayer needs:
- I have contacted an orphanage here in town and am trying to set up a time when the youth at my church can go and teach these little kids about the Bible and generally just love on them. Please pray that this will work out. So far the youth minister is very excited about it and has recruited several of the youth to go. Please pray that all of the details will come together. We are planning on going on friday afternoons!
- Please be in prayer for a neighborhood called M. We are starting to work in this area and are trying to meet families to start Bible studies. We have met one wonderful lady who is a Christian and has opened up her home for us to use to invite people to study the Bible. We had a children's event there on Friday, April 30th to try to meet some of the parents and to just leave a favorable impression on the area. We had prayed for at least 100 kids thinking this to be a number too high but God provided about 200 kids! It was very chaotic and we were all exhausted afterwards but overall it went well. We invited the kids to come to a kids club that we are starting on Saturday mornings. Pray that the right amount of kids will come and that we will be able to prepare well for it. We are having these clubs the last 4 saturdays in May, starting May 8th. Please pray that this will lead to Bible studies in this area and that children and parents will come to salvation. Our ultimate goal is a church! Here are a couple of pictures from the event. Preparing balloon animals for the kids and actually breaking the pinata :)
We are also trying to start work in another area of town called San J. B. We don't really know how to start here so please pray doors will be opened. We have started partnering with a social organization in town and we may have some entry into the schools through them - hopefully we can meet some parents. Obviously God has to prepare their hearts, so pray that God will be working on people's hearts throughout this area.- Also, continue to pray for entry into the Universities. I am still unsure of how to go about starting this work and really my heart hasn't been in it. Please pray for God to change my heart about this. I want to have an open heart to these students and a strong desire to share the truth with them.
- Also, I am currently involved in 4 different Bible studies. I am leading the study in one and leading music in the other 3. Please pray for the people in these Bible studies. Pray that as they read the words for themselves that it would become alive to them as it has become to me and to all of you who believe. Pray for their salvation! :) Pray for wisdom for us who are leading the studies and for me as I lead worship.
Thank you all so much for you prayers and encouragement! I love hearing from you all so keep letting me know you are alive! Let me know how I can be praying for you also - I consider it a privilege.
love,
Rachel
I also have decided that I want to leave you with a bit of God's word. God has been graciously opening up his word to me lately and so I will share with you from what he has been showing me.
"A prudent man sees danger and takes refuge, but the simple keep going and suffer for it." Proverbs 22:3
I find that so often I see something in front of me that looks good or looks smart - and it may be - but sometimes these things are not God's best for us. I have learned this the hard way what seems a million times now. I want to encourage you all to examine the things that are taking place in your lives. Is there danger in them? Not physical danger, but the danger of a separated relationship with Jesus. Is there sin? Are you continuing on a path that will not lead to holiness? If we see danger, the Bible says if we are prudent we will take refuge, and if we are simple in our thinking we will keep going after it. What does that lead to? Suffering. First hand experience with suffering - it stinks! Let us be prudent in our decision making and let us take refuge in the father when we see danger ahead :)
