Howdy y’all!
Praise the Lord, who is faithful in all things! I specifically want to praise God and thank each of my donors, who gave in huge ways throughout the months of April and May. To the best of my knowledge, I am only about $850 away from being fully funded for the remainder of my time here! God is so good!
Summer is just around the corner, which means that I am yet again in the midst of big changes, but I know God is behind this one and I am excited about where God is taking me!
My last update detailed my trav
els within Mexico and my visit home to renew my tourist card. I returned to Mexico on May 3rd and jumped straight back into ministry, meeting with Abril, whom I’ve been tutoring in English this spring, and my Derecho (day-ray-ch; law) students the following day. This was followed by a party to celebrate my teammate Jonathan’s birthday and say goodbye, as he has since returned to the States. Other than that, my first two weeks back were relatively uneventful, with the exception of getting the chance to lead a Bible study in Spanish with my Derecho students! We talked about evangelism and the first evangelist with a story – Philip, in John 1. I enjoyed spending that time with my students and literally drawing in the dirt to illustrate a few of my points! Needless to say, I felt a little bit like Jesus!
The week before last, however, was time to say goodbye to ordinary, because my spring ministry came to an end and I had to say goodbye, first to my Compa students and staff team, then to my church, as I venture out to begin my new ministry this weekend. Both were sweet times of reminiscing about the work that God has done and the lives He’s allowed me to impact, often without realizing it. I think, of all the comments, thanks and praises I heard during the course of that week, the one that spoke most directly to my heart was a comment from Mario, full-time staff with Compa in Mexico City, who told me “The students love you” – rough translation – then proceeded to explain that the general rule for work with Compa is to spend the first year or two just getting to know the students. By their expectations, I not only succeeded, I soared. It was a sweet message from God to close out such a challenging spring.
Praise the Lord, who is faithful in all things! I specifically want to praise God and thank each of my donors, who gave in huge ways throughout the months of April and May. To the best of my knowledge, I am only about $850 away from being fully funded for the remainder of my time here! God is so good!
Summer is just around the corner, which means that I am yet again in the midst of big changes, but I know God is behind this one and I am excited about where God is taking me!
My last update detailed my trav
els within Mexico and my visit home to renew my tourist card. I returned to Mexico on May 3rd and jumped straight back into ministry, meeting with Abril, whom I’ve been tutoring in English this spring, and my Derecho (day-ray-ch; law) students the following day. This was followed by a party to celebrate my teammate Jonathan’s birthday and say goodbye, as he has since returned to the States. Other than that, my first two weeks back were relatively uneventful, with the exception of getting the chance to lead a Bible study in Spanish with my Derecho students! We talked about evangelism and the first evangelist with a story – Philip, in John 1. I enjoyed spending that time with my students and literally drawing in the dirt to illustrate a few of my points! Needless to say, I felt a little bit like Jesus!The week before last, however, was time to say goodbye to ordinary, because my spring ministry came to an end and I had to say goodbye, first to my Compa students and staff team, then to my church, as I venture out to begin my new ministry this weekend. Both were sweet times of reminiscing about the work that God has done and the lives He’s allowed me to impact, often without realizing it. I think, of all the comments, thanks and praises I heard during the course of that week, the one that spoke most directly to my heart was a comment from Mario, full-time staff with Compa in Mexico City, who told me “The students love you” – rough translation – then proceeded to explain that the general rule for work with Compa is to spend the first year or two just getting to know the students. By their expectations, I not only succeeded, I soared. It was a sweet message from God to close out such a challenging spring.
With my Spring ministry and church involvement wrapped up, I prepared for the annual Leadership Training Retreat at Campomento Kikoten (Camp Kikoten), about an hour outside of Mexico City. Tuesday morning, we packed up and made the hour drive (I got to do some of the driving!), for four crazy days filled with laughter, learning, skits, and g
eneral chaos, amidst a beautiful, tree-filled camp, guarded by five or six beautiful dogs. My personal favorite was a giant, solid black mutt named Goliat (Goliath), who just loved to sit at my feet and let me scratch his ears. He was the perfect companion for exploring several acres of trees, meadows, ropes course elements and camp buildings, and he did a great job assuaging my longing for my own, beautiful Siberian Husky, Libby, who is currently living with my parents, back in Michigan. Unfortunately, hanging out with Goliat wasn’t the focus of our retreat, although he did hang around for most of it.
Actually, the retreat was meant for my teammates, Carolyn, Stephanie, Patrick and I to learn about how to be team facilitators for the summer Spearheaders, who will arrive in less than 3 weeks! We diligently attempted to absorb all the information our directors, Paul & Nydia Johnson and Wendy Der, tried to share with us, and prepare a collection of skits and workshops to give our Spearheaders; while building trust and doing fun games and activities, lead by LAM missionary Cliff McCalister, to teach us more about working together, communication, and trust. It was a fabulous week!
We also found out who our co-leaders will be for the summer! I will be working with Carolyn Deemer, of Pittsburgh, PA, who served with me while I was here in 2009. She and I are looking forward to meeting our Spearheaders and working with three churches around Mexico City. We will be working with my “Church on the Mountain” – Monte Sion, in Magdelena Contrera, in the south of the city. I can’t wait to go back and visit all my beloved brothers and sisters in Christ there, like Lupita, Sergio and Diana! We will also be working with two churches I’m less familiar with, El Renuevo, near Tultitlan, in the north, and Dios es Amor, near Tacubaya, to the west of the city. We can’t wait to see how God will use our jovenés to glorify His name and be a Light in the Darkness to the people they meet!
This summer, we will receive 13 participants from all over the United States. Strangely, with all the violence and bad publicity that certain parts of Mexico have received in recent months, we are expecting a slightly older team than is normal, and several of the participants will be older than Carolyn and I! Even so, we are excited to meet them! I am particularly looking forward to receiving the 3 STiM team (Student Training in Missions) participants from Texas! I can’t wait to meet them, learn their stories, and walk with them through this next piece in their journey with God and missions!
I would truly appreciate it if you would continue to pray for me in the following ways:
- Clarity and order in the transition out of a standard church and ministry role, to the more fluid and dynamic role of a Team Facilitator, for me and my entire YearOut team.
- Funding -Praise for the $2,660 that came in during the month of April, with more expected in May!
- For the summer Spearheaders, that they would be prepared spiritually, emotionally, physically, and financially for their summer experiences, and that they would all arrive safely, on June 15th. - At least 3 are still in financial need for the summer.
- For the entire YearOut Team:
As we bond with our Team Facilitator partners (co-leaders): Patrick & Stephanie and Carolyn & I.
As we visit churches and prepare for our leadership roles.
As we consider the future, and “What’s next?” – At least one of us is still considering a second ear, and the rest of us need to find jobs when we return to the States.
Thank you for your faithful prayers and support! I love you all very dearly!
God bless!
Nicole
After our retreat, we headed back to the city and I set myself to reading a book in Spanish about discovering the will of God. I finished it! My understanding… Well, let’s just say that it was augmented by having read several books on this topic in English… But hey, I did it! And I finished it in the midst of packing for my 6th move since January! Unfortunately, Hermana Nereyda’s son, Carlos, got transferred back to Mexico City and is living with her until his wife and son can follow in July. Since Hermana Nereyda’s home only has two bedrooms, I was out of a house. Thankfully, my community here in Mexico is wonderful and I have moved back to the home of Fernando and Elvia De Alba, where I have lived in transition times all year long. I am so thankful for their willingness to open their home yet again!
After camp, I returned, exhausted, to Mexico City to celebrate Easter Sunday, before flying to Michigan. I arrived Monday afternoon and will return to Mexico City on Tuesday. While here, I have visited my home church and spent time with family and friends. I have also enjoyed some rest and shopping.