Summer has come and gone, and it has been full of visits and traveling.
June:
Most people know I broke my foot at the end of May and had to wear to wear a boot for 4 weeks. Often times we have no idea why God allows “bad” things to happen to us but during this trial he showed us exactly why I broke my foot. Rocio is the lady from our church who cleans our house every friday who as quickly turned into so much more than the lady who cleans our house! Rocio lost her husband three years ago. She works 6 days a week cleaning, doing laundry and ironing, caring for children to make ends meet. She has two children 13 and 10. While I was in the boot we had Rocio come twice a week to help. One day in tears she told me that my accident had allowed her to have extra money for her son to go to youth camp! This was his first time away from home. I told her I would do it again! Psalm 146:9 says “The Lord protects foreigners and helps the fatherless and the widow…” I love seeing the Word come to life!
We had a wonderful visit with Lisa Butler. During her visit we learned 2 songs in Spanish to start teaching the Domingo family worship through song. They have loved this addition to our every other Saturday bible study. They have asked questions about what a church is and what it looks like, so we have started a bible study to see what the bible says about church. Marisol has had her baby. It’s a precious baby girl with tons of hair! And before you scroll down to look at the picture of her there isn’t one… I know I failed! Lisa also had a great time playing with the kids in Ojitlan on Wednesday night, and watched the Hope and Gideon for us one night so Garrett and I could go on a date. It was a fun encouraging week with her!
July:
We traveled to Oaxaca for paperwork stuff… I know you are surprised! We were able to get Gideon’s Mexican passport and start the process for Hope’s permanent residency. We are still in the midst of paperwork process for Hope and will be traveling back to Oaxaca to submit more paperwork in September. It is always fun to spend time with the Wells family in Oaxaca! Praise the Lord for them… otherwise going to Oaxaca would not be any fun.
Garrett took a trip up to Mexico City to look for a truck. Short recap we have to sell the White Knight because we cannot afford the import fees. The Lord provided us with a truck that is the same make and model of the White Knight, but 3 years newer with less miles. We are hoping to sell the White Knight for the same price we purchased “The Dark Knight” (it's black). We are very thankful for the Lord’s provision in this area. Thank you all for your prayers during this process. The White Knight is on its way back to Jacksonville, and once it is sold we will be able to look back and give God all the Glory through this entire process.
August:
We had a great ministry week with Chris, Stephanie, and Tyler Stubbs. We prayer walked the city. During our pray walking we met a lady briefly that invited us back into her home anytime we are in Ojitlan. We continue to build our relationship with Ernesto and his family. Ernesto was able to take us to a village to meet with a family that Garrett, Buddy, and Jose met with in May. The family is open to talking with us, and even prepared a meal for us. Please pray for us as we continue to build a relationship in this village that is only accessible by boat. During their week we practiced Luke 10. The Bible says in Luke 10: 5-8 “Whatever house you enter, first say, ‘Peace to this household.’ If a son of peace is there, your peace will rest on him; but if not, it will return to you. Remain in the same house, eating and drinking what they offer, for the worker is worthy of his wages. Don’t be moving from house to house. When you enter any town, and they welcome you, eat the things set before you.” Ojitlan is very closed off to outsiders, but every time we spend time praying in village the Lord sends us a person of peace, a reminder that He has gone before us and that He wants these people to have a chance to hear the truth, the Gospel. We also did our normal Wednesday sports night in Ojitlan. This is going very well. People in the city our starting to notice our presence! We also picked up trash around the park. Thank you to the Stubbs who share our passion for reaching the Chinantec Ojitlan people.
We have found a fantastic school for Hope. She starts school in just under a week. This was a huge prayer request that once again God answered and then some. The school checked off all of my boxes off requirements and requests. I am excited for Hope to start this new season of life!
Thank you all for praying for us.
Click on the pictures for description: