Baja Missions Weekly Update

Detalles

2011-08-10T08:37:00.000-07:00

As we announced a few weeks ago, our annual Baja Missions Fall Leaders Conference will be November 18-21 in Ensenada, Baja California, Mexico. We hope that you are making plans to be with us during this very special weekend. We will be joined, as always, by our Mexican brothers and sisters that are leading and serving daily in the Baja. Anyone who has a special interest or desire to know more about working with Baja Missions to serve the congregations and people of Baja is invited! We would love to have you join us for this time of fellowship, prayer, and planning for the year of 2012.

It is important to remember that our summer schedule for 2012 will be finalized at the meeting in Ensenada.

How do I arrive?

Baja Missions will be chartering a bus from San Diego to Ensenada. Please book your plane tickets so that you will arrive in San Diego no later than 12pm on Friday the 18th.

How do I get back?

The same bus that brought you from San Diego will be taking you back. The bus will leave at 1pm from the City of Children on Monday, November 21st in Ensenada and will arrive back in San Diego no later than 6pm. Please make considerations based on this schedule for return flights. Our recommendation is to schedule return flights for some time during the day on Tuesday, November 22nd.

As has become custom, Friday evening and Saturday morning will be spent at the City of Children together with our Mexican brothers and sisters. We will use this time to worship, plan, and fellowship together.

Saturday afternoon through Monday morning will give each group a chance to visit the congregation they support and spend time building relationships and making plans.

Cost:

The cost for the weekend will be:

$75 - Meals and registration

$25 - Lodging at the Villa Marina hotel on Friday night

$50 - Bus trip to and from Mexico

$75 - Lodging at the Hampton Inn in San Diego on Monday night

---------------------------------------

$225

If you will only be needing some of the listed accommodations please subtract that cost from the total of $225 when you make your payment.

*Each individual is responsible for making and paying for hotel reservations while visiting with a congregation on Saturday and Sunday night.

If you are planning to come please contact Matt (mattbajamissions@gmail.com) or Rex (rex@bajamissions.us) as soon as possible to confirm your attendance. When you register please let us know the following information:

*Name

*Where you're from

*A phone number or email address for each person you are registering

*If you plan to use all of accommodations provided

Your payment can be made by check and sent to Baja Missions at:

Baja Missions

1095 Carl T. Jones

Huntsville, AL 35802

Please consider joining us for this wonderful event! If you have any questions or concerns feel free to contact us!

Conferencias Baja Missions

2011-07-09T14:25:00.000-07:00

A date has been set for the Baja Missions Fall Leaders Conference to be held at the City of Children in Ensenada, Mexico. We encourage all trip leaders and anyone who may be interested in becoming more involved with the work in Baja to join us for this weekend of sharing and learning together as we seek to become better servants. More information will follow, but please consider the following and let us know if you plan to be in attendance! We hope to see you in Ensenada.

What: Baja Missions Fall Leaders Conference

Where: The City of Children, Ensenada, Baja California, Mexico

When: November 18th-22nd

How do I arrive? Easy. We are chartering a bus that will be leaving from the San Diego Airport at noon on Friday, November the 18th. Just make sure your plane gets you to San Diego before the bus leaves at 12pm.

How do I get back to San Diego? A bus will be leaving from the City of Children at 12pm Monday (November 21) afternoon headed back to San Diego. Please make your return flights accordingly. We can't accurately predict a time of arrival in San Diego due to not knowing the border conditions ahead of time. If you must fly out on Monday we plan to arrive no later than 5pm to San Diego. Most will fly home sometime during the day on Tuesday.

If you have any questions please feel free to contact Matt Moore (Matt@bajamissions.us) or Rex Watson (Rex@bajamissions.us).

Ya ha vuelto el verano

2011-05-04T07:47:00.000-07:00

Greetings!

This is the first update that has been done of this blog in several months. A lot has been going on in the course of the last few months. As summer approaches and things are ramping up again for the busiest time of the year with Baja Missions, I wanted to sit down and reflect over what all has been going on in Baja and the wonderful job that the preachers and our staff have been doing.

Of course, as I write this blog from Huntsville I can't help but think about the events of the last week. As Huntsville, and the rest of Alabama begin to rebuild it has been a blessing to see how the people of God respond to help put their communities back together. The relationships that have been forged from work together in the Baja are having an impact here at home in the relief efforts that are taking place. A true blessing has been seeing how churches from other parts of the country that have formed relationships with churches here in Alabama through work together in the Baja are seeking to aid their friends during these difficult times here in the south. I know that I, as well as many of you, have received calls, emails, and facebook messages from our brothers and sisters in Baja checking on us and lettings us know that they are praying for us just as we prayed for them during the floods of last year. Our prayers are with those who were affected in Huntsville, Tuscaloosa, and everywhere else due to the storms of last week. It is a great blessing to be part of the international family of God.

Over the course of the last few months several important and exciting events have transpired in Baja. Here is a list of a few:

*Baja Missions, A.C. (A Mexican non-profit organization) was successfully formed last November giving the preachers and Baja Missions employees access to health insurance. A special thanks here to Pilar, Alejandro, Misael, and Liberato Ovalle for all of their hard work. It took a lot of effort, dedication, and sacrifice as well as many trips to the government offices in Ensenada to accomplish this. Thank you all very, very much!

*Groups from all over the country from places such as Lipscomb University, Indiana, Ohio, Tennessee, Alabama, California, and many others came to support and encourage the churches of Christ in Baja.

*I was able to spend a week in Mexicali working with the students of IBLAM (Instituto Biblico Latino Americano de Mexicali) on a conflict management seminar. It was a great blessing for me to be able to work and learn together with the students in Mexicali. Sharing with them a part of what I am learning in my masters degree program was a great experience.

*A group from Mayfair was able to work closely with elementary schools in San Quintin to help meet some of their needs. This is a great example of how the churches and groups that visit and support them are really starting to impact the community in a positive way. Through educational programs that have been started at many of the churches, the Church in Baja is really starting to have a very positive impact on their larger community. We encourage you, in your trips this summer, to find ways to do something to impact the community in a positive way!

I hope this list gives you an idea of the wonderful things that have been happening in Baja. Please continue to pray and work along side of us as we seek to serve the people of Baja!

Summer is upon us once again! As we prepare for groups again I would encourage all group leaders and team members that will be coming to review the Baja Missions handbook and other resources that can be found at www.bajamissions.us under the resources tab. There are necessary documents there that need to be signed and submitted to group leaders before the trip!

It is a great blessing and opportunity to be able to be visitors in a culture that is not our own as we seek to serve God by forming relationships and serving His people. May we always remember that our goal is work side by side with our brothers and sisters in Baja to bring glory to His name. We invite you drink deeply from the opportunity to visit another culture and share with them this opportunity to serve. The most important events that will take place during your trip will not be a house that you helped construct but a relationship that you were able to build, it won't be a class that you taught but instead a lesson that learned from a special person in Baja.

We're glad you're coming to Baja this summer. We're thankful for your support from home if you are unable to come. Your support means everything!

que bello es convivir

2010-11-16T07:57:00.000-08:00

God is good!

What a great weekend we had together in Ensenada. Thank you to everyone who came or made it possible for someone to come to Ensenada this past weekend. We had a great time getting together with Mexican and American leaders and talking about the work in Baja and dreaming about what God holds in store for our future.

This has always been one of my favorite trips to be a part of. It looks so different from many of our trips to Baja. If you have never been on this trip I would encourage you to go ahead and make plans to come next fall. It is a great time to just sit down and learn about one another; to hear what we have done well and what we could do even better. I heard from several people this year that the time spent in the ministers' homes learning about them and their families is priceless and adds a profound depth to the already close relationships that have been forming over the years.

For those that were unable to make it here are some highlights and noteworthy details from our conference:

*The theme this year was a year of revival - after a very difficult 2010 due to extreme flooding and loss of work a monthly revival in each town was proposed. The preachers in Baja are striving to make their churches centerpieces of help in their communities.

*Baja Missions, A.C. (Our Mexican non-profit status) has been approved by the Mexican government. This is a huge step that was necessary for Baja Missions to be able to grow and to continue impacting the communities in Baja. We always want to be responsible and respectful visitors in a country and culture that is not our own, and this is a crucial step. The chief motivating factor to undertake what became a 2 year endeavor was to be able to provide health insurance to the preachers and their families. There are also many ways in which our non-profit status will aid our mission teams that come year round. More information on specific benefits to teams is forthcoming. Thank you to Alejandro, Liberato, Pilar, and Misael for their tireless efforts to make the formation of the A.C. happen. Gracias mis amigos! Muy bien hecho!

*We talked about culture and the importance it plays in our interactions as people from many different places. We would like to ask you to consider reading this book: Serving with Eyes Wide Open by David Livermore before you partake in your next short-term mission experience. I would also love to have the opportunity to come and talk to your mission team (whether they are coming to Baja or not) about the importance of understanding the ways cultural differences show up in a mission experience.

*Much time was spent in prayer for Mexico and the U.S. that God would continue allowing us to be a part of his plan in Baja. Please be in prayer for our countries!

*Our dream of one day opening a school in Ensenada where preachers can be trained and community members can learn valuable skills was shared. We ask that you join with us in prayer about this.

Here are several pictures from the weekend. I will let them speak for themselves. Thank you for your continued support and for working side by side with us to encourage and support our brothers and sisters in Baja California.

Rex introduces the Baja Missions Staff (From L to R - Matt, Alejandro, Misael, Caroline, Pilar)

Xavier and Yolanda Franco prepared breakfast for the group as they headed back to Ensenada

Jim Craig, Virginia, challenged us in his Saturday morning devotional to serve with our hearts

Paul Kelly, Mayfair, talked to us Friday night about what we must do to get others involved in spreading the story of Jesus

Rex kicks off the conference welcoming everyone to Ensenada

Over 100 people were present as Alejandro lead us in worship

Crecencio and Reyes at dinner on Friday night. I think Crecencio wants the bistec ranchero

Dinner Thursday night with Liberato and the Mayfair leadership

Jim Craig, from Virginia, and the rest of the mechanics came early to work on the Baja Missions vehicles before the conference. Thanks for all you do guys!

Detalles...

2010-10-25T08:29:00.001-07:00

I hope this email finds everyone well. Our fall conference is rapidly approaching! We have a great number signed up all ready and are looking forward to an incredible weekend to share with each other as well as with our brothers and sisters in Baja.

As the date of November 5-8 draws nearer, we wanted to let everyone know that we still have a few spots on left on the bus down so its not too late to sign up and be a part of this incredible weekend. If you want to sign up or if you haven't confirmed your attendance with us, please reply to this email!

*If you would like to purchase blankets to take to a specific congregation we are happy to offer to have those waiting on you when you arrive. Please respond to this email with the quantity you will want. The price is around $9/blanket. We will have those waiting on you on Saturday and you can grab them as you head out to visit the churches. Please come prepared to pay for the blankets on Saturday.

*We are asking that everyone pay $175 dollars for the conference. This money will go towards the following items:

*1 night at the Villa Marina hotel in Ensenada on Friday night, November 5th

*Bus transportation from San Diego to Ensenada on 11/5 on Saturday and back on Monday 11/8

*Dinner on Friday night

*Breakfast on Saturday morning

*Lunch on Saturday

*1 night at the Hampton Inn in San Diego on Monday night, November 8th

If you will NOT be needing any of those accommodations please let me know and we will adjust the price. If it's NOT on the list you will need to be prepared to cover those costs on your own.

Looking forward to seeing you in Ensenada!

Anuncios

2010-09-29T13:01:00.000-07:00

Greetings everyone. I hope you are having a enjoyable start to the fall. This is the first time I've seen the leaves change in three years. I am amazed at God's grace and the things that he allows us to see. I was always impressed with the giant mountains and stark beauty of Baja, and it is comforting to know that His hand that made those beautiful mountain scenes is the same hand that is painting the trees a thousand different colors between Huntsville and Nashville.

I have completed my first two courses in my graduate program in Conflict Management at Lipscomb and am so blessed to have the opportunity to learn at the feet of some incredible people. The program is everything I hoped it would be and more.

In other news Caroline Bumpus is now on the ground full time in Baja. Please be praying for Caroline. She is closing in on being in Baja now for one month and is doing a great job. She has started a blog and we will be posting excerpts from her blog onto this one. We are also looking at the possibility of linking her blog to the website as well. Alejandro has also started a blog and we will be placing his reports on here as well. Our goal is to keep you all informed as to what is happening in Baja. The response was so positive for this blog that I kept while living in Baja that we want to continue to be able to expose you all relatively rapidly to what God is doing in Baja.

We are making exciting preparations daily for our fall conference. I am very excited for the conference. I think we have some extremely useful and practical information to present this year. We always look forward to a time of fellowship and learning together with our brothers and sisters from Baja. If you've never come on a trip like this, I urge you to. The conference is always informative and helpful as we seek to do better, but the downtime and relationship building that happens when we are with leaders of the local congregations is fantastic. Our numbers are rapidly approaching 40 for the bus ride down. We still have some spots but they are going quickly. Please don't hesitate to sign up. If you are planning on going but have not communicated that please do so as soon as possible. You can let me know at matt@bajamissions.us.

Here are the details one more time about the logistics of the conference!! Please consider joining us.

What: Baja Missions Fall Leadership Conference

Where: The City of Children, Ensenada, Baja California, Mexico

When: November 5th-8th

How do I arrive? Easy. We are chartering a bus that will be leaving from the San Diego Airport at noon on Friday November the 5th. Just make sure your plane gets you to San Diego before the bus leaves at 12pm.

How do I get back to San Diego? A bus will be leaving from the City of Children at 12pm Monday afternoon headed back to San Diego. Please make your return flights accordingly. We can't accurately predict a time of arrival in San Diego due to not knowing the border conditions ahead of time.

May God bless you this week. Thank you for your support!

Cambios...

2010-08-16T12:26:00.001-07:00

What a summer! God has done amazing things in Baja. I am continually amazed at how he answers our prayers in ways bigger and better than we could have ever imagined. I am so blessed to have seen God work through and in His people this summer. I believe a special thank-you is in order for the many group leaders who take time and sacrifice to plan trips that give us all an opportunity to serve in Baja. A special thank-you as well to all the church leaders and ministers who strive to make our visit a special one. Thank you as well to our incredible team of translators. Through long hours and only a handful of free moments you all played a vital roll in what was a truly remarkable summer. Thanks to Peyton, Jamie, Sara, Misael, Alejandro, Pilar and Chelsea. Finally, thanks to you for your continued support and love for the people of Baja California. For your dedication to relief in the name of Jesus.

As I have already said, I am continually amazed by the way God works. In the past two years that I have been in Mexico I have seen first hand how He has moved and put things in place for Baja Missions to grow and have an impact on more lives. About a year ago I started to feel the need to grow just as God was helping the work in Baja grow. I started looking at graduate school programs and trying to find one that would help me to better help both the Mexican churches and the groups that come to spend time and serve in Baja. This past Friday I had my first class in the Conflict Management program at Lipscomb University in Nashville, TN. I am very thankful to the elders of Mayfair church of Christ as well as the board of directors of Baja Missions for this wonderful opportunity that they have extended to me. I am very eager to be able to begin to use what I am learning to help in Baja.

May God bless you this week!

While I am in school I will be living in Hunstville, AL. I wanted to take time and talk about how this all will look now that I am no longer living in Baja. Pilar, Alejandro, and Misael will continue working on site in Baja. Feel free to contact Alejandro and Pilar regarding questions and issues that you need addressed by someone who is physically in Ensenada. Alejandro’s email is Alejandro-guzman@hotmail.com while Pilar’s is still ralip25@aol.com. The office number that you can reach them at in Mexico is 513.783.7340 (office hours are from 9-4 pacific standard time). I will continue my work with Baja Missions while I am pursuing my graduate degree at Lipscomb. I plan to be in Baja several times throughout the year including the summer missions season. I will be available by phone or email just as I was in Mexico and my desire is still to help you communicate with our brothers and sisters in Baja. One of the many opportunities that this new arrangement offers is that I will be able to work more directly with you, your church, and your mission team. I would love the opportunity to work with your church or group in any way that I can to help you in your effort to serve in Baja. If I can be of any assistance or help you raise awareness of Baja to your church or community please do not hesitate to contact me. I hope to be able to visit with you soon!

This is an exciting time for Baja Missions. We are in the process of taking several large steps towards many goals that we have established - I believe that we are poised to move into an even greater ability to serve the people in Baja.

In an effort to communicate more efficiently I would like to ask you for a few favors. We have built a pretty large email distribution list. We normally use it to send out this update as well as other correspondence. A great example of how this list was used to get the word out fast about things happening in Baja was during the flood of this past January. We were able to be some of the first on the scene with relief and aid due to our ability to get the word out and your awesome response. We want to be even more effective, so if you are receiving these updates or other information as forwards we would love to put your email address into our distribution list. Please email me and I will get your name on our list!

I want to take time to also remind you of our annual fall conference that will be held in Ensenada, November 5-8. We are headed towards a very exciting and encouraging time with our brothers and sisters in Baja. Again, this conference is for anyone that would like to come. Please let Rex or I know if you are planning to be there. It is of vital importance that we can get together and share our experiences in Baja with one another so that we can all move forward together on the same page. Our goal is for every American church that is involved in the work in Baja to be well represented. More information can be found if you scroll down to the next post on the blog.

Baja Missions Fall Leadership Conference

2010-07-19T17:23:00.001-07:00

We are excited to announce the dates for our annual Baja Missions Fall Leadership Conference. The conference is for Baja Missions preacher's and church leaders as well as team leaders and anyone else who would like to learn more about what's happening in Baja. Our goal is to have every American church that is involved with Baja Missions strongly represented. This is also a great time to get to know more about what goes into bringing a group and leading a trip if you're church is not currently involved in a week long mission effort in Baja! If you're not a "team leader" please feel welcome, we want you to come. This is a great time to be encouraged and hear great news about what is happening in Baja. We will also be establishing our summer schedule for 2011 so please make every effort to attend. Below are the details in an easier to read format!

What: Baja Missions Fall Leadership Conference

Where: The City of Children, Ensenada, Baja California, Mexico

When: November 5th-8th

Who can I contact for more information or to make reservations: Please send an email to Matt Moore (Mattbajamissions@gmail.com) and Rex Watson (Rexwatson10@hotmail.com) indicating the names of those in your party that are planning on attending the conference.

The tentative schedule at this point is the same as at has been in the past. Friday evening and Saturday will be spent in sessions with the preachers and our brothers and sisters from Baja. On Saturday evening each group will have a chance to head out to the congregations that they individually support. We will reconvene Monday at noon to head back to the San Diego.

Please join us for this encouraging and informative time of fellowship in Baja! We look forward to seeing you here!

Una maravillosa aventura

2010-06-21T10:49:00.000-07:00

I've been looking at my computer screen for the past half an hour without any idea about how to write this report. So much has happened in the last 2 weeks that I'm tempted to not write anything because I know that I won't be able to include 1/100th of what has happened. I love the nightly time that most groups take to share what happened during their day. There are so many incredible things that God is doing during the day that it takes a dedicated time at night for everyone who is in the group to get to tell each other about their day. For that reason it would be impossible for me to try to summarize in a few words all the wonderful things that have happened while groups from Owen's Crossroads, Goodlettsville, North Alabama, Jasper, Arlington, and Vaughn Park were serving in communities here in Baja.

What I can do is thank you all for your prayers and support of what is happening here in Baja. In the last several updates I have asked you all to be in prayer about our Summer and what God would do in the lives of the people of Baja and in the lives of the groups that would come. I am seeing those prayers answered every day.

I also have to thank you all for your patience and understanding of how things work in Mexico some times. All the groups that have come so far have been extremely flexible and willing to roll with things that happen when we seek to do this kind of work.

We have also been extremely blessed with an exceptional team of translators for this summer. Peyton, Sara, Jamie, Misael, and Alejandro have been doing a fantastic job. If you've had the chance to work with them already this summer, I know you were blessed by that opportunity. Even though they most likely won't read this for a while, I want to thank them for their hard work and dedication.

I had the great opportunity to go to Mexico City a few weeks ago to finally finish up my visa application. After spending six hours in the Mexican Immigration office, I was finally given my FM3 visa. This process has been a long one, but I finally have my visa that will be of great aid to many things that we are trying to do with Baja Missions! Thanks to Nelly and Israel for their help and guidance during this long process. Israel is the preacher at the Tlalpan Church of Christ in Mexico City. While were were in Mexico we stayed at their house and had a great time getting to know them and their 3 awesome children. They showed us around Mexico City; which is unbelievably huge (27 million people live there) and unbelievably beautiful. Also, while we were there they had a Bible class at their home. Misael and I got to talk to them about Baja Missions and the City of Children. It was an awesome night and very encouraging to hear their words of support and excitement for what is happening in Baja. I also wanted to take this opportunity to ask you to remember the work that is going on in Tlalpan (which means firm ground in one of the native languages of Mexico). Thanks to Nelly and Isreal for an amazing time in Mexico City.

Thank you all for your support and prayers. There is still a lot of summer left and many more groups are still making preparations for their trips to Baja. Please continue praying for them and what God will do through them and in them!

Ya llegó lo bueno

2010-06-01T22:20:00.000-07:00

The summer is officially upon us. This weekend our first group arrives for our summer season of mission groups. We are excited to welcome the group from Owen's Cross Roads church of Chirst as the group that will kick off an extremely busy summer. They will be spending a week starting this Saturday in Erendira.

While we're just starting with our full time Baja groups, Pilar has spent the last two weeks working with groups that have been at the City of Children. The group from Granny White in Nashville as well as the group that is currently here from Campbell Street have been spending their mornings while at the City of Children serving the churches and communities around Ensenada. I think it is a great thing for the groups that come serve at the City of Children to be able to get out into the communities that the kids come from so they can see what a great mission of rescue the City of Children really is!

I arrived back in Baja this past Thursday. While I was away I got to see my sister graduate from college (Congratulations Morgan ;) and got to be with my great grandmother on her 93rd birthday. I also was able to visit with several friends and family in Nashville and Huntsville before heading back to Baja for the summer.

On Saturday I was invited to go to Mexicali by brother Liberato who is the director of the IBLAM school there (Instituto Biblico Latino American de Mexicali) for the end of their first year celebration. It was a really neat ceremony and its very exciting that this new school for preachers and missionaries has opened and had an incredibly successful first year, and its even more exciting that its right here in Baja!

On Sunday morning I had the distinct privilege to translate the service and to see elders and deacons appointed in the church in Mexicali. It was an honor to be a part of such a great day and to be there as the church in Mexicali became one of the first churches in Baja, and as far as I know, in all of Mexico to appoint elders and deacons. Please be praying for the church in Mexicali and their leadership!

I know that many of you may not be familiar with the church or school in Mexicali, but I wanted to let you all know about the great things that are happening there. It is really encouraging to see the church growing and interacting in Baja! I had the chance to talk to a lot of people in the church in Mexicali about Baja Missions and what is happening in Ensenada and to the south and they were very encouraged.

Brother Liberato welcomes everyone to the celebration of IBLAM's first year

The new elders in Mexicali: Esteben Lopez, Guadalupe Galaviz, Liberato Ovalle

Newly appointed deacons in Mexicali

Brother Reyes and his family from Colonia 89 were also invited to the ceremony where Reyes was the keynote speaker. While we were there we learned that it was his wife, Chanita's, birthday. We celebrated with cake!

Today I went to San Diego to pick up Peyton Pratt who will be working alongside Jamie Pendergrass and Sara Robb as interpreters this summer. We are very excited to have them here and I know they will be a blessing to many of your groups. Last fall we also added Alejandro Guzman to our full time staff. Many of you already know Alejandro from past trips, but he will be with us as a translator this summer as well!

Please be praying for our summer groups. I am so excited for what God has planned for this summer and I am so grateful that He allows me and you to be a part of His plan in Baja. We look forward to seeing you all here very soon! Thank you for your love for and support of the people of Baja!

Viajes multiples

2010-04-27T11:17:00.000-07:00

I hope that everyone has had a good start to the week and that things are well with each and every one of you. I have had several people here ask me to pass on to you that they are praying for you and are aware of the storms and bad weather that some of you have been experiencing. They are grateful for your prayers during the floods and earthquakes of the past few months, and want you to know they are praying for you now with the reports of tornados and bad storms.

It's a busy time as we prepare for summer groups. The arrival of our first summer group is just about one month away. Please be praying for those who will come this summer and for the plans that God has for each group. I love being able to visit churches this time of year because there is a palpable excitement for the summer and what it holds with each one of your visits! We're all very excited and I hope that you are as well.

Last weekend the church in Camalú hosted a three day series of conferences on the early church. They invited brother Alejandro Peralta from La Pesca, Tamaulipas. It was great to meet Alejandro and hear some very meaningful lessons. On Saturday over 400 people from all of the Baja churches as well as many visitors were in attendance. It was a great few days of fellowship. In a great example of team work, on Saturday the church in Camalú fed everyone who came breakfast and lunch.

All of the Baja churches were represented at the conferences in Camalú

Juan Jose addresses a packed house

Kids class at Camalú during the conferences

There were two baptisms on Friday night

This past Sunday Alejandro and I were invited to San Quintin. I was invited to preach and Alejandro was asked to do the class for the teens. I got a little nervous when I got up to speak and realized that there was a full house, but I was extremely blessed by the opportunity. I had a great time being with everyone in San Quintin. Alejandro also said that the teen class went great and was really fun with all the teens' participation.

Alejandro has been working very closely with the teens from Colonia 89 over the past few months, and on Friday he invited them over to our apartment for a devotional. Reyes and his wife, Chanita, brought the teens over and we watched a movie and then had a devtional. After the devo, Alejandro taught them two new songs that they are trying to learn at Colonia 89. We had a chance to spend some time talking and I was so impressed with their desire to learn new songs be together as a group. We had a great time and Alejandro did a great job with the devo.

The teens from Colonia 89 (with Reyes in the background!)

The movie: Enfrentando a los Gigantes (Facing the Giants) was a big hit!

A group from Murietta, CA. came down this past weekend to the City of Children and spent Sunday at the church in Maneadero where they help support Alfredo and Carmen. Misael went with them and said that they had a great visit and enjoyed some good food and fellowship with their friends at the church in Maneadero.

Gracias for you interest in what God is doing in Baja. Please be praying for our summer groups and for the churches in Baja. Thank God that he allows us to be part of what He is doing!

Reuniones

2010-04-16T11:11:00.000-07:00

I hope everyone has had a great week and is looking forward to a relaxing weekend. We are ready for an exciting weekend here in Baja. I had mentioned that last weekend was the date of the conferences in Camalu. In reality, those conferences started last night and will go through tomorrow. I am headed to Camalu as soon as I finish this update. Juan Jose has invited a brother from Tamaulipas to do the conferences. Churches from all of Baja, including Tijuana, will be attending. Look for more information and pictures from this meeting in next week's update.

This past week was a busy one as well. We are currently working on getting things ready for the summer groups. Our first group arrives in less than 2 months. Please be praying for our summer trips and this busy and exciting time.

Thinking that the conferences in Camalu were last weekend we headed down to Camalu along several members of the Colonia 89 church. Arriving in Camalu, we quickly realized that we had the wrong date! God works in amazing ways, and the church at Camalu received us warmly and quickly prepared lunch for everyone. After that, we were invited to Raul's ranch where we spent the afternoon playing soccer and hanging out at the beach. Reyes and Juan Jose joked that this was the first annual Camalu/Colonia 89 get-together. The teens and kids that came with Colonia 89 had a blast with the soccer games and also at the ranch because many of them had never been outside of Ensenada and have never seen a horse, pig, sheep, or chicken up close. It was almost like a field trip for them! Reyes and Juan Jose bought two fresh flounder straight off the boat for us to have fish tacos for dinner. It was a fun Saturday in Camalu.

At Raul's ranch

Teens from Colonia 89 at the beach

Fresh flounder for lunch

Headed down to the beach

After the festivities died down in Camalu, Alejandro, Arturo, and I headed down to Vicente Guerrero where we had been invited to stay with Gerardo and Betty. Shannon Townley and Mark Collins were also making a visit to Vicente Guerrero to plan their summer trip. We got to spend some time with them as they were just arriving and then we headed down to San Quintin with Gerardo and Betty. We had been invited to eat pozole at the home of one of the members who lives in San Quintin. We spent about three hours eating, talking, and telling stories. It's an incredible blessing to sit down and learn about people. I love being able to answer questions about my culture and hear about theirs. I would encourage you, on your next trip to Baja, to really try to sit down and learn someone's story. On Sunday morning we went to church at Vicente Guerrero and then went out for pizza afterwards with Mark and Shannon and the Figueroa family.

Pozole is a traditional Mexican dish.

Thank you all for your love and support of the people of Baja! Please be praying for our summer groups. We'll see you soon in Baja! I leave you with a picture of our newest vehicle in the Baja Missions fleet!

I remembered my grandma's horses being bigger...

Have a blessed week!

Desastre en Mexicali

2010-04-07T12:11:00.000-07:00

To say that Baja California has had a rough year when it comes to natural disasters may be a bit of an understatement. It started with the rains and floods of January and February and now we can add an earthquake to that list. As I said on Sunday, Ensenada was minimally affected by the earthquake and only experienced minor gas leaks and a few cracks in some buildings. The same can be said for all the towns south of Ensenada. We felt it but apart from the scare we were really lucky. The same cannot be said for Mexicali. There are reports of heavy damage. The president of Mexico, Felipe Calderón, came to assess the damage and promised federal funds for the relief effort. I heard yesterday that the roof fell in at the Church of Christ where brother Esteban preaches and Liberato and Elodia are members. Here are some pictures from the local newspaper, El Vigia, that were published yesterday. As you can see Mexicali needs our prayers!

Here is a good picture showing where the earthquake happened in relationship to Ensenada and the rest of the Baja churches. All of the Baja Missions supported churches are found between Ensenada and El Rosario.

Buildings fell in Mexicali

Mexican president, Felipe Calderón, visited Mexicali and promised government assistance

Many couldn't get in or out of Mexicali due to severe damage to roads

We have had a good start to the week with the group from Greater Atlanta Christian School being here at the City of Children. Pilar has been going out with them to Colonia 89 where they are following up the work the Lipscomb group did by pouring more concrete on the patio area of the church. Brother Reyes and the church have been requesting this for a while because of a large retaining wall they have around the church. The concrete will help to keep the water from soaking into the ground and will relieve pressure on the enormous wall that that surrounds the property. They have done a great job. Yesterday I got to go out to Colonia 89 to deliver some paint and was amazed at what they had been able to do! Thanks to GACS!

On Sunday I had the great privilege of speaking at Colonia 89. I was pretty nervous at the beginning, especially when I got to the podium and realized that there were probably over 60 adults present! It was a great time to be with the church at Colonia 89 and see their desire and dedication to serve their Lord. I left service on Sunday more energized and excited about what is happening in Baja and what can happen when we let God lead us to where he wants us to serve!

What a great blessing to be able to be at Colonia 89 this past Sunday

We received a special prayer request from Gerardo and Betty in Vicente Guerrero this week. The ask you to join them in praying for Alejandro Carboney, Freddy Marcelino, and Austercia Marcelino. They are members of the church in Vicente Guerrero that moved back to Oaxaca, about a 4 day trip from Ensenada, three years ago. They are currently going through a very difficult situation as a family and we ask that you remember them in your prayers. Also, please remember Alejandro's daughter Florisela and her husband Octavio as well as there children Octavio Jr., Lizeth, and Angel as they try to help their family from so far away. Gerardo closed his prayer request with this statement: "We know that our God is a god of love and that He is all-powerful. We have seen the great things he has done for us in other occasions and we trust that he will move his hands and act according to his justice and mercy in this situation as well. To Him be the honor and glory forever!"

Thank you for your love and support of the people of Baja!

Temblor en Baja

2010-04-04T16:52:00.000-07:00

I've gotten several calls asking about the earthquake that happened just after 3:40 local time this afternoon. Apparently, the US news is reporting about it as it was felt throughout southern California and Arizona. I thought I'd send out this update so that you all would have some first hand information. The earthquake was a 6.9 centered just to the south of Mexicali. As of right now I have been able to communicate with people at several of the Baja churches and everyone is alright. We did feel it pretty powerfully here in Ensenada. I was at home when I happened and everyone went out into the street, but luckily no large scale damage has been reported here in Ensenada. Alejandro was at the City of Children when it happened and everyone is ok there as well. At this point I'm not sure how things are in Mexicali. I've heard that there was some damage to structures and that some people were injured but again, that is just what I've heard and can't confirm any of that. Once again, everyone on the Ensenada side of the Baja seems to be ok and safe! Thank you all so much for your concern! God Bless, and please keep praying for those in Mexicali and the rest of Baja!

Vacaciones de primavera

2010-04-01T11:06:00.000-07:00

It's been another good week here in Baja. Although we didn't have a group working exclusively with Baja Missions, several groups have been visiting the City of Children and going out into the community to help support the local churches. This week we have been able to work with the Columbia Academy group from Columbia, TN. Pilar has been taking them to El Zorrillo ever day this week to work with Franco and Yolanda to pass out food sets and repair roofs. They visited many homes and were able to repair three roofs during their week here. Thanks to the group from CA and to the Francos! Also, a special thanks to Pilar for all the hard work she does in allowing groups that come to the City of Children to experience the communities where the children come from.

I have been translating for the group during their nightly classes. Thanks to Patty and Ricardo for inviting me and allowing me to be a part of the classes.

Also, this last weekend Misael and Alejandro took food to San Vicente, Erendira, and Colonet to help the church and communities that are still suffering from a lack of work. We have seen things getting better little by little, but there is still a need in many of the communities in Northern Baja. We divided up the large 100lb bags of rice, beans, and flour in the office on Thursday and it was delivered to the churches on Friday. Alejandro and Misael stayed in Colonet to help Antonio and Dulce visit and personally deliver food sets to over 60 families. They also stayed for Sunday morning service in Colonet. Gerardo from Vicente Guerrero was invited to preach, and two women responded to be baptized. How awesome is it to know that they were baptized in the same river that, less than two months ago, devastated their town. God does amazing things!

Dividing the beans into 2kg bags

Same with the flour and rice

Visiting with the families of Colonet

Two great decisions

Its hard to believe that this is the River that flooded the church two months ago

On Monday I headed up to San Diego with Jeff and Natasha to bring back a van that had been driven out to San Diego from Alabama.

This week is spring break for the schools and government here in Mexico. Many of the teens from the Baja churches headed over to San Felipe for a week long camp out and youth event that the church there puts on every year. It ends tomorrow. Please pray for safety for the teens as they travel back from their event in San Felipe.

Reyes from Colonia 89 has asked me to preach this Sunday morning because he is out of town visiting his family.

Camalú will be hosting this months teen get together on the 10th of April. I know Juan Jose and Flor have been making a lot of plans for this event. They are bringing in a speaker from Tamaulipas to do a series of conferences starting on Thursday the 8th. The event will conclude with the area wide meeting on Saturday.

Thank you all for your support and love for Baja!

Ya llegó la primavera

2010-03-23T10:20:00.000-07:00

We brought in the spring here in Baja in a great way with three groups in the last week. It's a busy time here in Baja. Work is slowly but surely getting steadier after the floods of January and February. The strawberries are bigger and sweeter than ever, and people are slowly getting back on there feet. God is good! Last Thursday a group of trip leaders from Cincinnati, OH and Rockvale, TN came to be with Juan Jose and Flor and plan their summer trip to Camalú. We had a great time spending Friday and Saturday with the Medinas and the rest of the brothers and sisters in Camalú. The group consisted of Clint and Scheryl Moore and Jay Priestly. It was good to be with my parents and good friend Jay, and we're all excited about some pretty great plans for the summer.

Also, on Thursdy, the group from Lipscomb University arrived for their week in San Quintin. There were around 35 students from Lipscomb who took their spring break and dedicated it serving the people of Baja, it was a fantastic group. I'm always very proud to welcome the Lipscomb group, and they did a great job of representing themselves, their school, and most importantly, their Savior. While they were here they visited church members and visitors in their homes every day. I got a chance to visit with the group for two days. There were many people who spoke Spanish in their group so I got a chance to sit and take many things in that I normally don't get to see, it was a fantastic opportunity! The timing of the visits was great since so many people are still trying to get back on their feet, and a visit of encouragement was just want many needed. We spent an average of about an hour in each home just talking and asking questions. It was a truly awesome to watch the students ask questions and get to know their Mexican brothers and sisters. The group also did several work projects while they were here including building a house, painting the church ceiling, and painting several members' homes. In the evenings everyone divided up into classes and the students led classes for men, women, teens, and children. The theme for the week was "Jesus: the master healer." A special thanks to the hospitality of the church in San Quintin as well as to Phil Kinzer who organized the trip from Lipscomb. It was a great week.

USA vs. México soccer match

Lipscomb students visit homes

LU students built a family a new home

Alejandro teaches kids in San Quintin about Jesus the master healer

The Lipscomb group headed back to Nashville on Thursday, and we headed back to San Quintin with the young married class from Mayfair. The group did classes on families while they were in San Quintin, more specifically on how to raise children in a Christian home. The group also re-roofed a home and put drywall, insulation, and wiring in the house that Lipscomb had completed the previous week. On Friday we visited a local elementary school and spent time playing with the kids during their recess. After recess was over the group served lunch to over 320 kids. The group was received wonderfully by the school, and as we were about the leave the Assistant Principal came out to thank the group and to congratulate them on everything that they had done for the school. Each teacher was also given a bag of school supplies and teaching materials. On Saturday morning the group put on a Children's' day at the church in memory of Tim Nash. Tim was the organizer of the first Children's' day that was put on last year in San Quintin and the group dedicated their trip, and more specifically, this day to honor Tim, his family, and his love for the people of Baja. We attended church in Colonet on Sunday where the group prepared lunch for everyone who was in attendence, over 60 folks, as well as passed out clothes to the children of the congregation. Please keep praying for Colonet as they try to recover from the devastating floods.

The Mayfair "hombuilder" class helped pour a floor for a family who said, "Without that floor we would have never been able to have a home"

Roberto gave the group strawberries after a visit to his home

Tim Nash children's day was a huge success, over 250 kids in attendance

Miguel mixes up brea caliente (hot tar) to put on the new roof

There are rumors that the original sandlot is actually in Colonet

I'm always amazed by the lessons that God teaches us through our brothers and sisters of Baja. It was made abundantly clear to me yet again that they most precious gift we can bring to our brothers and sisters here in baja is investing ourselves in their lives, and letting them invest themselves in ours. May you have a blessed week and thank you for your love and support of the people of Baja!

Grupos

2010-03-09T12:18:00.000-08:00

Last week I got to make a visit to the congregations and spend some time with the preachers in San Vicente, Colonet, Vicente Guerrero, and San Quitin. They are all extremely grateful for your prayers and support during these past few months. The food that has been delivered is making a huge difference in the communities and work is coming back slowly but surely. Things are finally sort of returning to normal here after the floods. Please keep praying. The weather has been cool and it has been raining a lot recently, making things difficult still for those with dirt floors and leaky roofs.

We have a very busy week coming up with several visits and projects happening at the same time. The group from Lipscomb University will be arriving on Thursday to Ensenada. They will be spending time in San Quintin with plans of building a house as well as passing out food sets and visiting members in their homes. They also have prepared classes and will be having nightly meetings at the church during their time here. I got a chance to sit down with Pino and Gloria and talk about the details of their trip. The church in San Quitin is very excited to spend time with them and I know that the Lipscomb students have worked hard in preparing for this trip.

Also, arriving on Thursday is a planning group from Cincinnati and Rockvale, TN that will be spending the weekend in Camalu making plans for their summer trip. These trips are extremely valuable because they allow for dialogue between the local congregation and the leaders of the group that will be coming in the summer. It is a great opportunity to make sure that the group from the states is truly meeting the needs of the local congregation and really helps in organization and planning. I am especially excited about this group because my mom and dad will be coming. It is always a great blessing for our family to be together in Baja. You should try it with your family!

Rex Watson will also be bringing a team from Mayfair next week. They arrive next Thursday, the 18th and will be staying until the 22nd. They will also be spending time at San Quintin as well as in Colonet. The group that is coming is mainly the young married class from Mayfair. They have a childrens' day planned for all the kids at the church in San Quintin. They did this last year and it was a huge success. The kids love the singing as well as the games. It is a very fun day.

Thank you all for your support. A special thanks to all those who have helped support the flood relief effort that has been going on, and will continue, here in Baja. Thanks to all those who are planning summer trips and who will be praying for these spring break trips. Have a blessed week!

I leave you with a pair of pictures of Ensenada after a storm.

Despues...

2010-02-25T09:59:00.000-08:00

I don't really know where to begin this blog. So much has happened in the past few weeks that it would be almost impossible to sit down and put it together chronologically. Over the course of the last three weeks I have seen the churches here in Baja come together in a powerful way, and have also seen the churches in America really sacrifice to help their brothers and sisters in need. It has been a great privilege for me to be able to see this first hand. At the end of the blog I will post a bunch of pictures of things that have happened over the course of the cleanup so that maybe, that way, it will be easier to see just how much has been done.

Cleanup has just about been finished in all the towns south of Ensenada. Of course there are those that lost everything and will never been able to just clean up and move on. The larger issue that we are seeing now is a lack of work. The flooding happened about a month ago now and since that time there has been little work in the fields. This lack of work will continue for at least another month, maybe more, as we wait for the tomatoes to be ready for picking. A two month period without work for people who live week to week on what they make in the fields is devastating. We've heard many stories of people who have had to run up huge bills in the stores just to buy food on credit. Not to mention those who have lost everything trying to replace beds or clothes or furniture with little to no income. The floods seems to be over but the damage that they left goes far beyond wet houses and muddy roads.

Baja Missions, thanks to your donations, has been buying food in 100 lb. bags and distributing that food to the preachers in the congregations that were most affected by the floods. Immediately after the flooding the churches became places where those in the community could come to get a warm mean. Now that the majority of people are back in their homes, the preachers have been dividing up the food into food sets and taking those sets to members of the church as well as members of the community that are in need. Currently, Baja Missions is sending bags of rice, beans, flour, boxes of oil, and cartons of milk weekly to the congregations.

The relief trip that was here from Feb 6th-13th did an amazing job to help get the cleanup process started in many of the towns from San Vicente south. We had groups in San Vicente, Colonet, Camalu, Vicente Guerrero, and San Quintin. Each group's tasks for the week looked very different according to the needs that they encountered in each place. Over the course of the week over forty homes had repairs to their roofs or completely new roofs put on due to the damage from the storm. Repairs were done to classrooms in San Quintin where water had gotten in and destroyed the drywall. In Camalu, awnings were installed over the doors of the church to prevent rain from entering. Many houses in Colonet were cleaned out for the first time two weeks after the flood. The church in Colonet was restored to it's preflood conditions. Countless food sets were made up and passed out in every church. Blankets were handed out as well as mattresses and other furniture items for families who lost everything. The groups did a great job of working together where ever help was needed. All of the groups made trips to Colonet, where flooding was the worst, at some point during the week to help re-roof homes or to muck out houses that hadn't been touched in over two weeks. Everyone was busy from the time they arrived to Ensenada on Saturday night until they got on the bus to head home at 5am on Saturday morning.

After sitting down and looking at everything that was accomplished I can say, without a doubt, that the most important and thing that was done during the week that the relief team was here is not included in that list. Roofs will start to leak again at some point, paint will fade, the blankets will get holes in them, and the food will run out, but the support and love that the group was able to show to our brothers and sisters, as well as members of the community, will not soon be forgotten. I wish I could tell all of the stories and put on here every person that said thank you for coming or thanks for your support. Thank you to everyone who sacrificed to come on the the relief trip, you really made a difference! Thank you to everyone who has helped with prayers or donations I hope one day you will be able to see fully how much you have helped and are continuing to help in this recovery process.

My goal in doing this review of the past few weeks was not to include everything that was done. It would be impossible. I urge you to talk to people who came on the relief trip to hear first hand about what they saw and experienced. Thanks to everyone who has been so supportive of the people of Baja during these tough times. Your help has made a huge difference. I have been overwhelmed with the amount of calls and emails and messages I have gotten just wanting to know how everyone is doing and what people can do to help. Thanks!

Here are some pictures from the relief efforts. If you have a picture you'd like me to put up here, please feel free to email it to me and I'll see what I can do to get them up for everyone to see!

Picture of the bridge out in San Vicente, since then the government has filled this in with dirt to make the road passable

We crossed the river in San Vicente with food in our backpacks to get it to Antonio and Dulce in Colonet. This was on Saturday after the bridge collapsed on Thursday night.

Juan Jose battling the flood waters in Camalu

Church in Colonet after the flood

Church in Colonet again before cleanup

First cleanup efforts in Colonet with brothers from Camalu, Maneadero, Colonet, and Colonia 89

In Camalu over three feet of dirt from the strawberry fields was washed into one of the communities. The level of the road before the flood is where the truck is.

A house in Camalu over two weeks after the flood. It hadn't been touched.

Church in Colonet after the relief team

Wood paneling was installed 4ft. up the wall in case of future flooding.

The podium was saved and a new platform built

The building was repainted

Misael and Alejandro took food sets to Colonet yesterday and helped Antonio and Dulce pass them out.

The food sets are very valuable to families who haven't worked in almost a month

The rains were devastating for many in Baja, but these new chile plants will thrive with all the water that the region has received and people are cautiously optimistic that there will be more work this summer than in previous years due to the rain. Let's pray for this!

Have a blessed week, and thank you for everything!

-Matt

Bendiciones

2010-02-03T14:19:00.001-08:00

I feel like it has been months since I've been able to sit down and update this blog. This update will be a short one due to that fact that we in the midst of trying to get everything in order for the team that will be coming at the end of this week to help start the clean up process for many families here in Baja that hasn't begun yet close to two weeks after the floods.

As a quick status update, the church and preacher's home in Colonet have been cleaned and are ready for repair work to be done inside. Yesterday, I took a group down that included Jeff and Natasha Fincher from the City of Children as well as Natasha's sister Chara and her husband Rob. We power washed the floors and walls of the church building with a power washer that was bought by the Mayfair elders when they came down this past weekend. That being said there is still a ton of work to be done inside the building as well as all around the property. We have focused on getting the house and building cleaned up so that the church can begin to serve meals and provide refuge to those in the community.

Colonet church building before

Colonet church building after serveral days of cleaning by many different people

While there are a lot of roofs to repair and many houses to be cleaned out, the major difficulty for the people now, two weeks after the water dried up, is a lack of work that seems to be here to stay for a while. Right now in Baja strawberries are in season. Strawberries are a huge export for this part of Mexico, but many of the fields were damaged or ruined by the rains and flooding. As of right now it is looking like field workers won't have work until the tomatoes come in which will be towards the end of March or beginning of April. We have been sending down 100 lb bags of beans and rice to the churches in Baja and they in turn have been passing it out the people of their towns or preparing lunches for members of the community who have no work. It has been a huge blessing to watch these churches that were damaged turn into outreach centers in their communities. There will be much need of financial assistance for the foreseeable future as the churches in Baja seek to serve Jesus by giving people a cup of cold water in his name!

Thank you all for your prayers that the flood waters would recede; they have, but they have left the people of Baja with a much tougher plight. People who live week to week have now had to build up debt in the local stores to be able to eat. Living paycheck to paycheck makes it hard to pay off the debt of what could be a month or even two months without work. Please be in prayer for the wonderful people of Baja.

I wish I could do more to share with you all the overwhelming since of love and support that has been felt here among the churches of Baja. You would be so proud to see how the churches of Baja have been serving! Please continue to check out www.bajamissions.us to keep up to date with the clean up efforts that are taking place as well as the group that will be coming the 6th.

Inundaciones

2010-01-25T12:17:00.000-08:00

At the end of last week very serious flash flooding occurred here in Baja. If you haven't heard several bridges are down, cutting off the towns from the main city of Ensenada. A trip is being organized for those of you who wish to come and lend a hand here in the relief effort. Please see the Baja Missions website for more information on ways to sign up. Also, see the website for ways to contribute monetarily to this effort as well as see video and pictures from our early relief efforts. Please keep this opportunity to serve in your prayers!

Una semana maravillosamente ocupada

2010-01-21T10:35:00.000-08:00

A lot has been happening this last week here in Baja. Thanks for your time in reading this report. It's weeks like this past one that really help me to see the need for what we are doing here as well as the help that people are receiving from God through people who are willing to come and serve.

Normally, the spring and summer is the busy season as far as groups go here in Baja. This past week, however, we had the blessing of having two groups here at the same time. I had mentioned last week that groups from both North Carolina/Tuscaloosa, AL and Montgomery, AL would be here. Both groups have come and gone, and left a huge footprint on the hearts of the people that they served and worked with in their respective missions points. Here goes a brief rundown of both groups and what they did during their time with us here in Baja.

A group comprised of people from North Carolina, Indiana, California and Tuscaloosa, arrived to Baja last Thursday and immediately headed for Vicente Guerrero. When we arrived we were treated to a delicious meal of fish tacos hosted by the brothers and sisters in V.G. The next day work began on painting, both inside and out, the new building that was constructed last summer on the church property. While this was going on, groups went out to visit homes and pass out food sets. Food sets are always a great blessing to families, but especially now at this time of the year when work is very scarce. Friday evening saw classes for all ages. On Saturday, the group continued working on painting the building as well as passing out food sets and making plans for their summer trip. At lunch time the group prepared soup for the community. Over 450 people came and were fed. It was an amazing site to see! Classes were held again for everyone on Saturday night. Again on Sunday morning the group had classes prepared for the church and then afterwards had a meal for everyone. The theme of the classes was leadership, and the brothers and sisters in V.G. said that they got a lot out of the class time. The group also provided a seminar for those who teach Sunday school at the church and left them a wonderful amount of materials. Thanks to everyone who came to work in Vicente Guerrero.

Feeding soup to the community

Painting the new classrooms

New classroom/kitchen building painted

Serving the community lunch

Visiting and delivering a food set to Carmelita

When we finished in Vicente Guerrero on Monday morning, the group dropped me off in Maneadero to work with the group from Montgomery, AL that had been working there since Saturday. It was great to be with everyone from Montgomery again. During their time in Maneadero they built a new classroom for a poor rural school in the community. They school had two other classrooms, one of which was a building that was about 12x12 and another that was an old single wide trailer. The teachers were very grateful for the new building! The group also hosted a medical clinic for four days while they were there. They had a nurse from the group working along side a local doctor. It was great to see how they could work together with the common goal of helping the people in the community. The group also fed the people who live in the huts beside the church every day as well as, at the end of the week, passed out large food sets to over 75 families from the community. Others in the group built furniture for the classrooms and painted benches and tables for the kids to use during their bible classes. This group has developed a pretty special relationship with the local grade school and work really hard to get children that haven't been in school enrolled and paid for so that they can either start off on the right foot by going to school or get back on track if they had to start school at a later age. I believe that they are really changing lives by helping these children get into school.

Lunch is served

Men from the group working on the new classroom at the local rural school

Dark clouds loom as lunch is being passed out

The result of just the first day of rains for a local family. This woman was cleaning the mud out her house with an old tuna can.

The weather this past week has been absolutely unbelievable. At they beginning of the week they were predicting 8 inches of rain for San Diego. I don't know how much rain we have received here in Baja, but if it was less than 5 inches I would be shocked. I can't even begin to describe how things have looked here with that much rain, so I will try to put up some pictures that hopefully will do it justice. When you see these pictures try to put yourself in the place of those living in houses made of cardboard and tarps. God forgive us when we complain! On the way into the office this morning there was no power in downtown Ensenada and several signs were blown over in the road. There is more rain forecasted for the rest of this week! Please be praying.

The rains make it hard on those with dirt floors

Rain floods the street in Maneadero

Rains flooding the streets in Ensenada

This was after only the first day of a week of hard rains

High winds have accompanied the rains. This was taken on my way to the office this morning.

Brother Gerardo, the preacher in Vicente Guerrero, is undergoing surgery as we speak for a chronic ear infection here in Ensenada at the Hospital Velmar. Please keep him in your prayers as he undergoes this procedure. They say that he we be in the hospital for 2 or 3 days recovering and then it will be about a 3 week recovery process at home. (As of 12:08 pm Gerardo has come out of surgery and the first reports are that all went according to plan.)

This coming weekend is the monthly get-together in El Zorrillo with brother Franco. Please be praying for everyone as they travel to this meeting. I have also been invited to speak at church on Sunday morning at Colonia 89. I am excited about the opportunity, but always a little nervous as well.

Thank you all for your love and support of the people of Baja!

De regreso a Mexico

2010-01-13T10:58:00.000-08:00

Greetings from Ensenada. I hope everyone had a great holiday season with their families. I am just now getting back to Ensenada from some time in Cincinnati with my family. It was great to be with them and to see many of you as I travelled from Ohio down to Tennessee and Alabama. I am always amazed by how the work that we are involved in here in Baja translates back to blessed relationships back in the states. While I was in the U.S. I had the opportunity to visit and speak with many congregations about the work here in Baja. I want to thank the Northeast church of Christ, Mayfair church of Christ, Owen's Crossroads Church of Christ, and the Woodland Trace church of Christ for the opportunities they gave me to speak about Baja and all the really great things that are happening here!

This week is going to be a busy one. We have three groups that will be here serving the people of Baja. The groups are from North Carolina, Alabama, and Virginia. We are excited to have them coming. This is a great time of the year for groups to come and spend time in the communities of Baja. Work is very scarce here right now and will be that way for the next few months. With work in the fields almost non-existent and the cold and rain just beginning, the blessings a group can bring can make all the difference in the world. Those blessings go much farther than food sets and maybe a house. People have the opportunity to see Christ through the actions of the groups that come. It is an incredible opportunity, and responsibility, that your group has to be Christ to people who have never known him. Praise God for the opportunities he gives us to serve him!

The group from Vaughn Park will be working in Maneadero while the North Carolina group will be in Vicente Guerrero. Please keep them in your prayers as they seek to serve the people of Baja. The mechanics, as they've come to be known in Baja, will be working at all the congregations in Baja as well as servicing the vehicles at the City of Children and the Baja Missions fleet. What an amazing example these men are of how to use your gifts in service to God. The churches appreciate so much they work that they do to allow them to use their vans and cars to bring people to church. This ministry meets an incredible need, one that is more than obvious to you if you've ever driven in Baja!

Also, in the works for the 23rd of January is the monthly area wide worship service that will be held in El Zorrillo with brother Franco. These monthly meetings give the congregations a great opportunity to build a sense of unity and community, as well as allowing the preachers to get together and plan events. At the last preachers' meeting they drafted their yearly schedule for 2010. Along with the monthly get togethers their are two state wide worship services planned as well as several conferences and meetings for men, women, couples, teens. It seems like 2010 will be another great year of spiritual growth for the churches of Baja. Let's pray that it is so.

I leave you all with a beautiful picture of a Baja sunset for those of you who may be missing Baja just a little bit this winter!

Thanks to all of your for your continued support of Baja Missions and the people of Baja. May we seek God's will in our desire to serve his people here in Baja in 2010.

Muchas bendiciones

2009-12-09T12:12:00.000-08:00

I hope everyone is enjoying this holiday season with family and friends. It has been very cold here in Ensenada over the course of the last week. On Monday we had a very heavy rain with very high winds. Several signs and billboards were knocked over by the wind. The winds were so high that a crane here in the port was knocked off its foundation and into the ocean. More rain and cold is in the forecast for Thursday and Saturday of this week. Please be praying for the people here. Things get tougher with the rain and cold especially for those who live outside of the city.

This past Sunday the group from Murietta led by Tom Begin handed out food sets, bags with gifts for the children, and a sack lunch to the members of the church in Maneadero as well as many from the community. It was incredible to see the smiles on the children's faces when they received their gifts and the relief on many of the adults faces when they received their food sets. Things are especially tough economically here in Baja right now with the work being slim in the fields along with the current economic situation. A big thanks from all the people in Maneadero to the group from Murietta that came as well as to all those who made the gifts and food set possible with their donations. I can't tell you how many people in Maneadero say thank you for what you did for them.

Members of the church and community in Maneadero receiving lunch

A look at the sacked lunches

The group preparing the lunches, over 500 hotdogs were prepared

The bags of gifts for the children of Maneadero

Members of the Murietta group preparing the food sets

This past Saturday night Alejandro organized a teen event for the churches from the Ensenada area in El Zorrillo. Teens from Colonia 89, El Zorrillo, Maneadero, Chapultepec, and Camalu all came to the event. There were several activities for the teens as well and dinner and a bonfire devo. It was neat to see the teens from the different congregations get together and get to know each other better. The preachers were very impressed with the activity and are eager to plan more events of this type for the teenagers of their congregations. Thanks to Alejandro for all the effort he put into this event and to Brother Franco and the the church in El Zorrillo for hosting it!

Sister Irma (Chapultapec) helps Yolanda fix hot dogs

Misael showing off his cooking skills with Yolando

The night was full of activities for the teens

The teens involved in an icebreaker activity before the bonfire

Teens from Colonia 89, Chapultepec, Maneadero, El Zorrillo, and Camalu came to the event hosted by Alejandro and the church in El Zorrillo

Thank you all for your support and love!

Futbol, pavo, y un gran siervo de Dios

2009-12-03T09:31:00.000-08:00

I hope everyone had a fantastic Thanksgiving and enjoyed time spent with family; I know that I did. I got to spend Thanksgiving in Cincinnati with my family. Great things were happening here in Baja during the Thanksgiving holiday and I am more and more in awe every day of how God is moving and working here in Baja. Let me tell you a little bit about what has been happening recently.

Last Saturday at the City of Children there was a soccer tournament for all of the teens in from the Baja churches. The City of Children and the La Cortez church from here in Ensenada organized the event and teens came from all over Baja to play. Basically all of the churches from Ensenada, south were represented as well as two from Tijuana. The City of Children also had a team in the tournament. From what I heard when I arrived back on Tuesday from many of the preachers and kids here at the City of Children is that the tournament was a huge success. In a heated final match the team from La Cortez beat San Quintin in penalty shots to claim the crown of the first annual Soccer tournament at the City of Children. The teen girls also challenged the all the preachers to a match. Special recognition for putting on a fantastic event should go to Patty and Ricardo and the City of Children, the La Cortez church, as well as to Stan Stout and brother Franco for preparing delicious hamburgers. It was a great day of fellowship and fun for the teens of Baja! Thanks to Leah Phillips for the following pictures.

In spite of the rain the games went on as planned!

The team from El Zorrillo with coach Franco

The teen girls from the City of Children as well as from the other churches challenged the minister to a futbol match.

During the Thanksgiving holiday two students from Lipscomb University also came to visit the Francos and the families of El Zorrillo. Leah Phillips and Siobhan Hickerson came and spent several days with the Francos visiting families and enjoying each other's company. They were able to purchase food sets and blankets for the members of the church in El Zorrillo. I saw Franco on Tuesday and he said that the members of the church in El Zorrillo send their deepest thanks to these two young ladies and to everyone who donated so that they could provide the church with these great blessings! Thanks to Siobhan, Leah, the Goodlettsville church, and to everyone who helps take care of the needs of the people in Baja!

This coming weekend a group from the Murietta congregation will be coming to do their annual visit to Maneadero. During this visit they plan to spend time with the church membrs in Maneadero, give gifts to more than 70 children, and also pass out food sets to need families. It is truly a very difficult time during these winter months here in Baja, and food sets can really lighten a families burden during these times of little work. I am very excited to get to spend time with Tom Begin and the rest of the group and see the smiles that they put on the children of Maneadero's faces! More to come next week on how God moves in this event!

Also, on Saturday evening Alejandro has planned an event for the teens from around Ensenada. We will be going to El Zorrillo where the teens with get a chance to eat together, play some games, and have a devotional around a bonfire. Brother Franco has volunteered to cook hotdogs for all the teens and I am trying to convince Alejandro that a bonfire isn't a bonfire if there aren't any s'mores. I'm not sure if s'mores are a common bonfire treat here or not, but hopefully I'll get a chance to share something from the States with the teens here in Baja! Please be praying for Alejandro and the work that he is doing with the teens.

I love being able to write this update because I know that you all love the people and the work that is being done here in Baja. I know that many of you can't wait to get word of things that are happening here in Baja. I also know that those who come to work here form strong bonds within their groups and with those who serve side by side with them. I want to take time in this weekly report to mention a man that meant a lot to many not only here in Baja, but to everyone he came in contact with. Bill King passed away early in the morning on November 14th. He will be missed by many, but has left a legacy of faith in his family and friends, as well as the people that he came in contact with here in the Baja. Please be praying for his wife Phyllis and the rest of their family!

Bill King administering a test for reading glasses in San Quintin

Thanks again for your love, support, and prayers!

En la 89

2009-11-11T10:10:00.000-08:00

This past Saturday the monthly youth event was in Colonia 89. It started at 10:00 with singing and a welcome. At 10:30 we broke out into our different classes. I had the chance to talk to the teens after we sang sang together. I had a blast getting to talk to them about 1st Timothy 4:16. As usual, I'm sure that I learned more than they did, but I am very thankful for the opportunity that I had to get to spend some time talking with them. After the class, the teens went out into the community to pass out flyers about the church and get to to know the people that live in Colonia 89. While the teens were out in the community, the preachers had their monthly meeting. After the meeting we were served pozole and had a great lunch together. Thanks to Reyes and Chanita and everyone who worked to pull off a great event this past weekend.

Today we are waiting on the arrival of the Jent family from Lewisburg, TN. They will be coming in this afternoon and are planning to have a pizza party with the teens tonight at the City of Children and then tomorrow are planning to take blankets and food sets to the people in Colonet. I am looking forward to spending time with them and seeing how the people of Colonet react to these much needed items. It is getting cool here during the day and downright cold at night. This is also the start of the part of the year were work becomes very scarce. Please remember your friends in Baja, especially during these next three of four very difficult months!

We have several visits planned for the beginning of December as well as my trip to Raleigh, NC coming up at the end of next week. I would ask that you please be praying for all the groups that will be coming in December and the preparations they have made. Thanks for your support!

Reuniones

2009-11-05T10:17:00.000-08:00

This past weekend was the teen retreat in San Felipe. I took Arturo, Jesus, and Alejandro and we went along with a group from the City of Children. There were several churches represented at the retreat from Tijuana, Mexicali, Ensenada, and Tecate. On Friday night they had a devotional and then games and a bonfire. On Saturday morning they had worship and a class, followed by lunch and time at the beach. The group from Ensenada was one of the larger groups. In total there were around 65 or 70 teens from this area. It was a lot of fun and a great chance for everyone to spend time together and get to know more people from the local churches.

The group from City of Children and La Cortez in Ensenada

Baja teens around the bonfire

Devo on Friday night at the campground in San Felipe

Church building in San Felipe

This weekend the church in Colonia 89 will be hosting the monthly Baja Missions teen meeting. I have been asked by Reyes to do the class for the teens. I am really excited to get to talk. The theme for the meeting is from 1st Timothy 4:16. Many of the Baja churches will be in attendance this weekend. The monthly teen meetings are something that have really taken off here in Baja and are some of my favorite times. There will be food and games after the classes in the morning and everyone really seems to look forward to the time that they get to spend with friends and family from the other churches.

I am very excited to let you know that this week Alejandro Guzman started working full time with Baja Missions. He has spent this last week visiting churches. His plans are to work with the teens and to encourage them to be leaders and take and active role in their respective churches. This is something that the local preachers have been suggesting and really think would benefit their churches. He will also be helping us with the groups. We are very excited to have him here and to watch how his work impacts the teens in the churches here in Baja! Alejandro grew up at the City of Children and worked in Tijuana as an architect before coming to work with us at Baja Missions.

Alejandro leading singing in San Felipe

Thank you all for everything you do for the work here in Baja. Please pray for us as we pray for you!

Lunada en San Felipe

2009-10-28T12:00:00.000-07:00

I hope everyone is doing well this week, I know I am really enjoying the onset of "fall" here in Mexico. There is a lot going on in Baja right now and I'm excited to be able to tell you all a little bit about it.

This coming weekend there will be a teen retreat in the town of San Felipe. San Felipe is located on the Sea of Cortez side of Baja about two hours from Ensenada. Many of the Baja Churches will be sending teens and adults to this retreat. I will be leaving from the City of Children on Friday with a group of the college aged guys and girls. The plans for the retreat are classes and activities on Friday afternoon as well as time at the beach and then a sort of "lock-in" on Friday night. On Saturday there will be more activities and everyone will head home on Saturday afternoon. The event will be taking place at a campground the church in San Felipe owns.

San Felipe is located on the cost of the Sea of Cortez here in Baja

This is where I will be spending the last weekend in October

Also, coming up, is the Baja teen meeting on November the 7th in Colonia 89. These meetings are done monthly throughout the year (they take a break from doing them in the summer because of the groups). They have asked me to give the teen class for the meeting. I am very excited; I love being able to talk to the teens of the Baja churches. Also, during these classes the preachers normally have a monthly meeting to get things planned and work out the details for coming activities. That same day, the 7th, there will be a meeting in Tijuana to plan, among other things, the state wide meetings that will be held in Tijuana and in Baja. If you remember, the Baja churches just held their meeting this past September. Please keep these plans in your prayers.

I am also excited about the opportunity I will have to visit the North Raleigh church and talk with them about Baja Missions. Shannon Townley has been leading a trip from North Raleigh and Providence Road for several years now to Vicente Guerrero. I am looking forward to being with them and seeing familiar faces from Baja. I will be there on the 22nd of November.

Thank you all for your support for the work here in Baja. It would be impossible for me to name every person and every time that people here send you greetings. Know that the people here think about you and pray for you just as you do for them. God is good!

Conferencias y predicaciones

2009-10-20T10:27:00.000-07:00

These past few weeks have been great here in Baja. In the last update I published we were making plans for our annual Baja Missions conference here in Ensenada. What a great weekend it was. We had representatives from over 15 churches here in Baja present. That number was only exceeded by the number of American congregations represented at the meeting which we figured to be somewhere around 20. In total there were around 100 people at the conference, what we believe to be our largest number ever!

The conference got kicked off on Friday with some sessions for the Mexican preachers done by Liberato. He did a great job talking about his God's plan for developing leaders as well as his work in Chiapas. The theme of the weekend was leadership. The American leaders arrived on Friday afternoon. It was great to see the love and support that everyone involved in the work here in Baja shares for one another. We continued with sessions Friday night until heading to bed at about 10:00. On Saturday morning the conference began again at 8:00. On Saturday we heard from Stan Stout, Jeff Fincher, Phillip Bradley, and Paul Kelly. We finished up with a panel discussion about elders in the church. At 1:00pm we were dismissed to the local congregations where all the leaders who came had an opportunity to spend Saturday evening and Sunday with the people of the congregations that they sponsor. We hope that everyone who came found the weekend valuable for preparing and planning for your future trips. It was an honor to have you all here!

At the conference we have developed the custom of buying blankets and taking them to the churches on Sunday. It is getting cooler here during this time of the year and a blanket is a great help. We were very excited to be able to have the blankets here and waiting for the groups this year. We'd like to thank all the churches who helped out with this cause, and especially Mr. Ron Brown and

This past Sunday I went to San Vicente to worship with the the church there. When I arrived they asked me if would do the sermon. Luckily, someone much wiser than myself suggested that whenever visiting a church in Mexico be ready to give a class. I know many of you have experienced this same invitation. I was glad to be able to do it and had a great time on Sunday morning in San Vicente. After service, Lola and Guillermo invited Misael and I to eat at their home. Being with people like Guillermo and Lola is something that, to me, is priceless and I know its what brings many of you back time and time again!

This week there is a group at the City of Children from Boyd Buchanaan School in Chattanooga. Pilar has been going out with them to El Zorrillo everyday to pass out food and spend time encouraging the members of that church in their homes. It has been a really neat experience to spend time with this group again after having been here last year when they came. It's amazing to see how we can form such strong friendships and relationships when we serve the Lord together.

I thank you all for your interest in and love for the people of Baja and for those of us who are here. Your prayers and words of encouragement are much appreciated! Have a great week!

Conferencia

2009-09-23T10:15:00.000-07:00

This week's update will be shorter than normal. We have spent most of the week getting ready for our fall leaders' conference that will take place October 9th-12th. We have many exciting sessions planned with a lot of great speakers. We are very excited about this weekend.

If you are coming to the conference and would like to buy blankets and take them with you to the church that your group works with, please let us know. The cost will be $9 per blanket and you can order the quantity you would like. Please let us know ASAP how many your group will want so we can place the order and have them waiting for you here. Please be ready to pay for them when you arrive on Friday.

This past weekend, while in Tijuana, Brother Franco had his van stolen. Many of you may have already read about this in his report. It was parked outside his son's house and when they came out after about an hour of being inside, it was gone. Please pray for Franco and his family, a van is an indispensable tool here in Baja. Franco wants to thank all of you who have sent and encouraging word about the van, he really appreciates it!

Next weekend, a group from Yorba Linda, CA will be hosting a weekend meeting at El Zorrillo. They have been making plans now for a while and the weekend is looking like it's going to be a great one. They are bringing in a speaker, Orlando Cruz, and have a lot of great plans for the weekend. Please be praying for this weekend in El Zorrillo. All the Baja churches plan to attend.

That is all for this week. Please keep praying for our conference and the Yorba Linda group's trip to El Zorrillo. Looking forward to seeing you all here in Ensenada in a couple of weeks!

That is all for this week. Please continue to pray for our meeting

Planes y reuniones

2009-09-14T10:55:00.000-07:00

I am writing this update from the Baja Missions office here in Ensenada. I got back this Friday from a three week trip to the US. It was great to be with my family and friends and to also be able to visit many of your churches and talk about Baja Missions. I want to take time to thank everyone who welcomed me into their homes and invited me to eat with them. I am very thankful for the support and friendship that you all showed me; it really served to refill my batteries and return to Mexico with a greater desire to serve the people here. Also, I would like to wish my grandma who is with out a doubt reading this a very happy birthday! Love you grandma!

This past Saturday several brothers from Yorba Linda came down to El Zorrillo and brought with them two motor homes to be used as homes for members of the church in El Zorrillo. Steve Hall was telling me that with these two it makes at least twelve motor homes they have brought to Mexico, what an incredible blessing of a home for those who don't have one! While here we had a wonderful meal with the Francos and made some final plans for Yorba Linda's scheduled meeting for the weekend of October 2nd-4th. They have some great plans for the weekend and we are very excited to see what God will do. Please be praying for a good weekend for the folks from Yorba Linda and for all of the churches in Baja that will benefit from the classes and fellowship.

There were many things that were happening in Baja during my three weeks stateside. One of them that we had been talking about a lot was the state wide reunion held in El Zorrillo this last weekend. I, unfortunately, wasn't there but thanks to Misael we do have some pictures of the event. In talking with some of the preachers here, I think it is safe to say that the weekend was more than successful and that everyone benefited from the time together. I encourage you all to read the preachers' reports about the weekend. And thank you all for your support and prayers. Here are some pictures from the event.

The above pictures are just of the adults meeting outside, at the same time there were also classes for the kids and teens going on inside the buildings. The sign in log showed about 500 people in attendance, we are guessing there were over 600.

The Baja Missions conference is scheduled for the weekend of October 9th. If you are planning to attend and haven't confirmed with us please do so ASAP so that we can make the proper room reservations and food preparations for your group. You can let me know at Mattbajamissions@gmail.com

Thanks for your continued support of Baja Missions. God Bless!

Huracan Jimena

2009-09-01T09:20:00.001-07:00

Many of you have asked me about the hurricane that is roaring towards Baja. I talked to several people in Mexico yesterday and this morning and a lot of them didn't know anything about the impending hurricane. I got this map off of weather.com. It looks like from San Quintin north they will be experiencing winds of 35 mph on Saturday morning. There is a video on weather.com that shows how the people of southern Baja are going to have to stay in their homes and ride out the storm; many afraid that if they leave their few possessions may be stolen. Please check out weather.com for more information.

De visita

2009-08-31T08:21:00.001-07:00

I hope everyone is doing well. I wanted to make a quick update and let everyone know what is happening right now in and out of Baja. There are some very exciting things going on that I, and the ministers of the churches in Baja, would like to ask you to pray for.

I currently am not in Baja. Actually, I haven't been there for a little over a week now. With the groups finishing up I got a chance to go home and visit my family. As part of this visit I also have had the opportunity and will have the opportunity to visit with many of the churches that support Baja churches or leaders of many of our trips to Baja. So far I have had the opportunity to speak at Northeast church of Christ in Cincinnati and to meet with the leader's of the group from Cincinnati. I also made my way down to Nashville this weekend and got a chance to see several of the college students that come down with Lipscomb in the spring. While in Nashville I got to spend some time with Lipscomb freshman Andres Gonzalez, who is Patty and Ricardo's son. Patty and Ricardo are the directors of the City of Children. I want to ask you all to pray for Andres, I remember what those first days in college were like and I can't imagine doing it in a foreign country and that far from my family. He said that he is loving it and really enjoying the challenge.

This coming week I will be in Hunstville meeting with the Baja missions leadership as well as with the church in Jasper and the group from North Alabama. Please be praying for these meetings and opportunities that we will all be able to work together to serve those precious people in Baja.

I also want to ask you to keep the upcoming state wide reunion in your prayers. It will be this coming weekend, the 4th and 5th. This is really big deal for the Baja churches and a chance for them for the first time to host the churches from Tijuana, Rosarito, Tecate, San Felipe, and Mexicali. I, unfortunately, will not be there as I will still be making my visits, but I am really excited for the Baja churches and the opportunity this meeting will be for them to form bonds with other churches throughout the state.

I will make sure we get some pictures of the event and post them on here as soon as I get back to Mexico the second week of September. Thank you all for your commitment and love for the people of Baja.

Un choque

2009-08-12T11:50:00.000-07:00

I hope everyone is having a good week. This week there are a few interesting updates for the weekly report. This past week was our first full week without a group here in the past 9 weeks. We spent most of the week reorganizing and regrouping after an incredible summer.

The preachers and churches of Baja continue to prepare themselves for the state wide meeting that will be held on September 4th en El Zorrillo. Each church has decided to contribute $300 out of their contributions and special offerings. Also, each church has volunteered to take on a specific role for the meeting from registration to food preparation to clean up everything is being handled by the Baja churches. It's a very exciting time.

I have also been making plans to go home and visit my family as well as visit as many of you all who are involved with Baja Missions as possible. The response has been great, and I already have several visits to your churches scheduled. It will be great to see many of you again and I am really looking forward to the opportunity.

This past Monday we had quite a scare in El Zorrillo. If you all remember last Monday we had a meeting there to organize the meeting on September 4th. Just before we were all scheduled to arrive, Brother Franco heard a loud crash in front of the building. It turns out that a drunk driver lost control of his truck and plowed through the front fence of the church building in El Zorrillo and took out the large water tank that supplies water to the entire compound before crashing into the wall. I have attached pictures so you all can see. The scariest part of all of this is that Franco was supposed to be meeting with some people in front of the building, but had stopped to make himself a cup of coffee. The people that were waiting on him had to jump out of the way to avoid being hit by the out of control truck. We thank God that no one was hurt. The driver suffered bumps and bruises and was taken away by the police.

As you can see it was a blessing that no one was hurt. We know God takes care of us!

Thank you all for your continued support and love for the people of Baja.

Mil disculpas

2009-08-04T11:40:00.001-07:00

I feel like I need to start this update with an apology to everyone. I haven't updated this blog in over a month, which is significantly more time than my hoped for weekly or biweekly updates. To say that Baja Missions has been a busy place to be this summer would be the understatement of the year, but what a blessing it is to be busy doing good things for people in the name of God. Since I last updated we have had six groups here. I obviously wasn't able to be with all of them but there were from: Rockvale, TN., Mayfair in Huntsville, AL., Indiana/North Carolina/Alabama, Cincinnati, Bentonville, AR., Lewisburg TN. They went to Camalu twice, San Quintin, Colonet, Vicente Guerrero, and Colonia 89.

One of my favorite things to watch happen in Baja are the responses of the first timers. The group from Alabama that came to Vicente Guerrero with the Indiana/N.C. group was just that, a group of first timers her in Baja. They had planned to go to Honduras, but with the civil unrest that is and was going on there they had to make emergency plans and use their plane tickets for something else. Thank God that something else was coming to Baja. They had a great time and I know that it was a blessing for me to be able to be with them.

I wish I could write and tell you all of the wonderful stories and things that happened over the course of the last five weeks, but I'd be here writing all day. I do want to take time to tell you all, however, about one of the most incredible things that I have ever been a part of.

The group from North Caronlina/Indiana/Alabama had the opportunity to visit a ranch and take their medical clinic there. I had never been to this ranch before, as it is about an hour of the highway towards the mountains that run down the middle of the Baja peninsula. When we arrived we were shown to a tarp village where about 90 people from the state of Guerrero were living. Shortly there after we learned that 95% of those people that lived there didn't speak Spanish. It is not uncommon to hear dialects in this part of Mexico, but I had never been with a group of people that simply didn't speak spanish. They speak Mixteco, a beautiful language, but as different from Spanish as English is from Chinese. It was like we had stepped onto another planet. I will, without feeling bad, borrow some pictures from that group and put them up here so you all can see. Thanks to Kevin Henegar for the photos. I can't describe with words the sites and sounds of that day. At the end of the day we ended up seeing most all of the people in the village and giving them all beans and rice and trying our best to share our faith with them. I was reminded of two very important things that day the first is how incredibly huge and powerful our God is, and the second is how much work really lies before us. We have an incredible task and God has given us an incredible opportunity to serve the people of Baja California.

In other news, this week the Baja preachers met to finalize their plans for the state-wide meeting that will be held in El Zorrillo sponsored by the Baja churches. There are expecting over 600 people state-wide to come. This is an incredible opportunity and step that the churches here in Baja are taking. Everyone involved is really excited and looking forward to giving their all in preparation of this great day.

I want to take this opportunity to thank everyone who came this summer or who helped to send someone to Baja this summer. It has been an incredibly busy, but incredibly productive summer. I have been working with Baja missions now for six summers, and this is one of the best that I can remember. Let's all keep striving to work and serve better with our brothersand sisters here in Baja. Thank you!

En memoria...

2009-07-01T10:56:00.000-07:00

The third week of our summer here in Baja was another very successful and blessed week. The groups form Goodlettsville, TN and Southside in Lexington, KY had great weeks.

I was with the group from Southside in Camalu. During the week they had a very successful medical clinic. The hired two local dentists for the week and really saw very good numbers during the clinic. They also bought and distributed food sets to the members and visitors at the church building. During the evenings they had classes for men and women, teens, and kids. Construction wise they installed windows and doors in a new classroom structure for children at Camalu. They also put in a storage shed and did various other little projects around the building. They had a very small group, which made for a very organized and relaxed week.

Goodlettsville also had a great week en El Zorrillo. Coming back from Camalu I noticed that they painted a large sign on the wall of the church lot facing the highway. It is really helpful to be able to see and read information about the church coming from the south. They also finished up classrooms that the group from North Alabama started as well as putting in a car port for the vans. They also gave bible classes for the members of the church in El Zorrillo. I talked to Franco yesterday, and he was thrilled with the work that was done in El Zorrillo, especially the spiritual work.

Sadly, this week we said goodbye to brother Rodolfo Ventura of the San Quintin church. Rodolfo was one of the rocks of the church in San Quintin and we will miss him very, very much. He passed away late Sunday night at the hospital here in Ensenada after complications from surgery for pancreatic cancer. His visitation was held in San Quintin on Monday night and he was laid to rest Tuesday afternoon. The church will miss his leadership and example. Please be in prayer for his family and the church in San Quintin, that God will comfort them in these difficult moments.

Semana 2

2009-06-20T08:24:00.000-07:00

This past week was one of the busiest we have had here in Baja! There were three groups working at three different churches at the same time. The group from Jasper, AL. was at San Vicente while the group from North Alabama Friends of Zorrillo was at el Zorrillo and the group from Vaughn Park in Montgomery was in Maneadero.

I was with the group from Woodland Trace in San Vicente. They built two homes and put a roof on the addition that was made to the preacher's home. They also did classes every night for the church as well as invited Liberato Ovalle to preach after the classes. On the last night they had a dinner for the church and community. The bought a huge pinata and everyone had a great time just being together and getting to know one another. It's always great when the groups allow time to really form and cement relationships with the church and community members. After the pinata, the group passed out about 200 food sets.

The group in Maneadero built two homes. They also put on a medical clinic with American nurses working together with a Mexican doctor. The group also passed out around 150 food sets to members of the church and community. During the day they would provide meals to many in the community.

The North Alabama Friends of Zorrillo spent their week evangelizing and working in El Zorrillo. They also put up two classrooms on the side of the building at El Zorrillo. These classrooms were very much needed and I know that the Franco Family is eager to be able to use them in their work at El Zorrillo. The group also spent a lot of time door knocking and talking to members of the community as well as visiting and encouraging members.

I wanted this report to be just a quick update to let you all know what is going on here. I would recommend that you talk to each group leader or members of that group to hear about all the wonderful things God did during their trips.

I got into Ensenada yesterday at about 10:00 am and am headed to Camalu with the group from Lexington, KY today at 2:30. Also here this week is the group from Goodlettsville, TN. We are very excited to see what God will do in this third week of the Baja summer. Thank you all so much for your interest and love for the people and work here in Baja. God Bless!

Semana 1

2009-06-13T09:53:00.000-07:00

This past week we had two great groups here working in the Baja. The group from Pleasant Ridge in Texas came to Colonia 89 and the group from Owen's Crossroads in Alabama spent the week working in Erendira.

The group from Pleasant Ridge stayed here in Ensenada and made the trip out to Colonia 89 every day. I got a chance to talk to some over their team members yesterday and they reported having over 500 people seen in the medical clinic that they put on; a new group record. They brought an optometrist with the group that was in great demand; eye care is simply a luxury many can't afford here. They also constructed a house on the church property above the bathrooms out back for someone to live as a guard on the property. I wasn't with them this week, but it sounds like they had an incredibly successful week!

In Erendira two homes were built, wired, and dry-walled for two families that were previously living in old campers. Also, the group knocked every door in the town of Erendira (almost 2,000 people live there) and passed out food sets for members and visitors. The group focused a lot on building relationships with the members of the church in Erendira and also getting the word out about the work because it is a fairly new church. In the evening the group did classes for men, women, and children. After the classes Alfredo Chavero from Maneadero preached on the topic of "Why Jesus is important for our lives." During the week the group also went to a school and put on a show for the kids as clowns. It was hilarious and the kids seemed to love it! (On a side note, the schools in Mexico won't be letting out until July due to the days they missed for the flu, so school visits are a good option for groups coming in the month of June).

This next week is our busiest of the summer. The group from Vaughn Park is already here and working this morning in Maneadero. Also, two more groups arrive later today in the afternoon; the group from North Alabama will be working in El Zorrillo with Franco and the group from Woodland Trace in Jasper, Alabama will be in San Vicente. I will be with the Jasper group in San Vicente but have asked the other translators that will be with us this summer to take pictures in their locations to be able to put them up on this site so everyone can see a picture or two from all the groups.

There is nothing like the summer here in Baja. I can't think of a better way to have started the summer, and I'm confident that each week will add a beautiful picture to the mosaic that is the Baja summer 2009! Looking forward to seeing you here!

Group devo at the edge of the Pacific Ocean with the church members from Erendira

Class meeting in the evening

Finishing out the house

The clowns were a big hit at the school!

El verano

2009-06-03T10:21:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone! I hope that you all are well and enjoying the start to your summer. The reason why I haven't sent out a report in a while is because I had the chance to go home and be with my family before the summer started. It was great to be back in Cincinnati and be with my family and friends. While in Cincinnati I also had the opportunity to go to a team meeting with the group that will be coming to Camalu in July. It's always amazing to me to see what kind of effort goes into planning these trips and to know that same effort is being put into action all over the country for the benefit of the people of Baja is awesome!

I also had a chance to go to Huntsville and do some other Baja related things while in Alabama. It is always awesome to me to see how many people are involved and active in Baja Missions; thank you!

I arrived back to Ensenada this last Thursday and we've been preparing for groups ever since. Our first groups arrive this weekend for the first week of the Baja Missions summer teams. They are groups from Pleaseant Ridge/Western Hills in Texas and from Owen's Crossroads in Alabama. They will be arriving to Colonia 89 and Erendira respectively. Please be praying for them, as well as our entire summer, that God's will be done through us.

On Monday all of the Baja preachers had a meeting in San Vicente to talk about plans for a state wide meeting to be held here in Ensenada put on by the Baja churches. We spent the entire day working out details and planning an event for more than 500 people. It is a tremendous task but a very, very exciting one. The dates are September 4th and 5th of this year and the preachers all asked me to request your prayers for this event as it is a lot of work and could be a stepping stone to more great things here in Baja!

During the summer I will do my best to post a report about the week and let you all know how God worked in each place each week. I am really excited about this summer, and to see how all your teams will be used to make a defining impact on peoples' lives here in Baja, and how they will make a defining impact on your life!

See you soon here in Baja.

Ya llega el verano...

2009-05-04T11:06:00.000-07:00

I would like to apologize to everyone for not getting a blog update done last week. It has been crazy around here making plans for the summer and getting to all the events being hosted by the churches here in Baja. Let me give you all a quick run down of what has been happening here!

Last weekend brother Liberato Ovalle came from Mexicali to put on a conference for the ILEB program. These conferences go hand in hand with the ILEB curriculum that is being studied in many of the churches here in Baja. The title of this conference was "Friendly Evangelism" and was incredibly useful for everyone who attended the conference, myself included. Liberato has a true gift for teaching and all the students were blessed to have the opportunity to sit in a learn more about this topic. The seminar was given in 4 different churches in Baja (San Quintin, Camalu, Maneadero, and El Hongo close to Tecate). We did it this was so that the members would have more access and less distance to travel to get to one of the four classes.

This coming weekend, the church in Maneadero is putting on a three day campaign in which people from all the Baja churches are scheduled to come as well as many from congregations in Tijuana and other parts of the Baja. Arturo from Chapultapec and Reyes from Colonia 89 will be two of the guest speakers at these conferences.

Yesterday, Misael and I went to church in Maneadero and really enjoyed the service and getting to spend time with everyone there. The had very good attendance and everything seems to be really good in Maneadero. After church, I came back to the City of Children where the church from here in Enseanda brought out their young adult group and had a devo with the teens. After the devo, everyone played soccer, volleyball, and had a great time enjoying each other's company. It was a really neat afternoon.

I wanted to take and the opportunity and post on here an interview Jeff Fincher from the City of Children had with on of the more prominent doctors here in Ensenada about the swine flu outbreak and its effects on our summer groups. Obviously the interview was done specifically for groups coming to the City of Children, but I think it applies very much to what you will be doing here in Baja as well. I hope it eases your concerns as you make plans to come and serve the people of Baja.

Today Ricardo and I had a chance to meet with Dr. Ernesto Martinez about the swine flu (photo attached). Dr. Martinez works as the Chief of Medical Operations at the Ensenada General Hospital which is the largest hospital in our city of 500,000+. He also has served as our personal physician here at the City of Children for the last 16 years, making house calls to check on our kids every week. His wife just happens to be our dentist as well.

Yesterday, Dr. Martinez and several other prominent physicians representing every county in Baja had the opportunity to meet with the Mexican Secretariat of Health and the Mexican Secretary of Education in our state's capital (Mexicali) to discuss the swine flu and how it has affected the Baja peninsula. He reports that there are no known cases of the swine flu in all of Baja. "Every hospital in our state is prepared for the worst, especially mine," Dr. Martinez said. Here are some of the other questions I had an opportunity to discuss with him:

Jeff

Are you concerned or worried about influenza entering the peninsula and affecting people here?

Dr. Martinez

"Not at all - influenza is a common and treatable illness before it reaches the advanced stages of pneumonia. We have an ample supply of antiviral drugs including Tamiflu should it need to be distributed. We are prepared to give free medical attention to anyone who has flu-like symptoms."

Jeff

What can we do to be cautious and proactive during this time?

Dr. Martinez

"As always, the best things you can do to keep from getting sick with this illness or any other is to cover your nose and your mouth with a Kleenex when you sneeze, keep from touching your eyes - nose - and mouth, and wash your hands often."

Jeff

What would you tell people regarding whether or not it is safe to visit Baja?

Dr. Martinez

"Again, I would say that there are no known cases of swine flu in Baja, California - north or south. I think you are just as likely to get sick in your home town as you are here in Ensenada. I was in Mexico City last week at a medical seminar. I could not say the same for visiting there."

Jeff

Are the staff and the kids at the City of Children safe?

Dr. Martinez

"Absolutely. You are all in good hands. In fact, you are much safer than many of the children and adults throughout the city because you are in a relatively contained environment."

I am really greatful to Jeff and Ricardo for their work in getting this interview. We are excited about this summer and are looking forward very much to seeing each and every one of you here to serve the people of Baja.

In other news, brother Milo from the Ensenada congregation will begin, this week, to fix up the ceiling in the Baja Missions office as well as putting in a window to get more light and warmth into the office.

Again, I apologize for not getting this update out sooner, but I hope that you are uplifted and encouraged by what is happing here in the Baja and what will be happening, shortly, once the summer begins. I'm excited to see how God will work here this summer.

Vamos a Tijuana

2009-04-21T10:17:00.000-07:00

This past weekend I went with Stan Stout and Misael to Tijuana for a regional meeting with all the churches of Christ in Tijuana, Mexicali, Rosarito, San Felipe, and Ensenada. In those churches from Ensenada all but two of the Baja congregations were represented. The meeting came about after the Baja preachers and Tijuana preachers had talked about building more unity between all of the churches in the state of Baja California. This fellowship took place in Tijuana at the Anexa Morelos congregation, also the home of one of the two bible institutes in Tijuana, and the next will be held in September at one of the Baja churches.

We arrived at 9am on Saturday and where there until about 2pm. Brother Franco from El Zorrillo taught the class from about 9:30 til 11:00, and afterwards a brother from Tijuana had a combined class for teens and adults. It was a great morning of classes.

The total attendance for the meeting was in between 600-700 people. Everyone that I talked to was very impressed with the large numbers and those from Tijuana were especially impressed with how man people from Baja came. I would say that at least 350-400 were from the Baja churches. Brother Franco alone brought 130 from El Zorrillo. It was one of the more uplifting things I have seen here in Baja, so many people as evidence that the church here in Baja is thriving. It was also a real blessing to be able to go with Stan and learn more about the history of the church here in Baja and hear so many stories about the people and ministers from Tijuana that I was meeting for the first time.

This weekend the ILEB seminar starts on Friday. Please be praying for these conferences and for Liberato and Francisco who will be planning and presenting the material. These courses have done a lot to help the members who participate in them learn more about the bible and the stories, that many of us have known since children, for the first time. It really is amazing, for me, to see the power that the Word has one people who are exposed to it for the first time. This seminar on Friendly Evangelism should be a true blessing to all those who take part in it.

If you're a trip leader reading this, please remember that we need your group's information before May 1st. We need to know how many are coming and your arrival/depature dates. This is to help us assign vehicles and translators.

Please pray this week for Dulce and Antonio and their family. The work in Colonet, and are doing a great job. Pray for Dulce as she battles with asthma. It is especially difficult for her because of the strong winds and extreme dust in Colonet, but their dedication to the work in Colonet is impressive. Also, Antonio was one of the major factors in making this event in Tijuana last week happen.

Thanks for your love for the work in Baja!

Te toca predicar...

2009-04-14T10:58:00.000-07:00

We are in full swing making preparations for the summer groups. It's hard to believe that I've been here for almost a year already. It has gone by very fast. With our first group of the summer less than two months away we are getting very excited that you all will be with us here very soon.

This past Sunday I was invited to preach at Colonia 89 on Sunday morning. I am always very nervous to be in front of a group of people. Everything went great and I talked about what we as human beings are looking for. In all of our lives we are searching for something, it is important that we are searching for God and his will in our lives above all other things. Jeremiah 13:29 tells us that we will find God when we seek him with all our hearts. It is important that we don't let the things of this world distract us or take us of course in our search for Him.

While we are busy making preparations, there aren't many visits during this time of the year. Next weekend there is a regional meeting in Tijuana. The churches in Tijuana have invited the churches here in Baja to come up and spend Friday and Saturday with them. I will go, with Stan Stout, on Saturday morning. Next week I will let you all know how it is; all the Baja churches seem very excited about the prospect of spending time with the Tijuana churches and building unity.

In a couple of weekends the ILEB program will be having its second seminar for the first year of study. Liberato Ovalle will be coming from Mexicali to give the seminar in various congregations here in Baja. The last seminar was on personal relationship and this one will be called "Friendly Evangelism." It promises to be a very good and informative class for all.

This week I want to ask you to pray for Francisco and Lucia en San Vicente. Francisco is very active in his community and is always doing something for the people of San Vicente. He has had some issues with an ulcer recently and also a hernia. Please pray for both him and his wife as they really do give everything they have to serve the people of San Vicente.

Que Dios los bendiga mucho!

Visita relampago

2009-04-07T09:53:00.001-07:00

This week there is a group here at the City of Children from Greater Atlanta Christian School. Part of their group has been painting the local kindergarten here in El Sauzal and another part has been going with Pilar to El Zorrillo where they have been pouring concrete and visiting homes. There are over 60 high school students here on their spring break. I am continually impressed by their willingness to take their spring break and serve others. I am also continually amazed by your willingness to take family vacations and time off to come here to serve the people of Baja. Thank you.

This past weekend Brad Sullivan came with Terry and Carole to make some plans for their summer group trip to Maneadero. They were here Friday and Saturday and we had a great time being together and spending time with Alfredo and Carmen. While they were here they got Celeste enrolled in her next semester of college here at Universidad Xochicalco.

This coming 18th of April they churches in Tijuana have invited the churches in Baja to a meeting to be held at Anexa Morelos in Tijuana. This meeting came about after some of the Baja preachers got together with the Tijauna congregations and decided that they needed to to more together. It is really exciting to see the desire that the Baja churches have to be united with those churches from other areas. Everyone seems to be really excited about the trip.

We are busy getting prepared for your visits this summer. I was just looking at the calender and realized that we have over 15 groups coming in less than 9 weeks this summer. It will a very busy, but very exciting summer.

We know that there have been lots of ugly news stories published about Baja in recent news outlets in the United States. I have had conversations with many of you talking about these reports, but wanted to make a general statement about the state of things. Since I have been here (almost a year now) I have never once felt threatened or in danger at any moment. Jeff Fincher, director of the City of Children, and I have had several talks about this and are constantly reading and keeping up to date on what is happening in Mexico. We feel, and I think that the the groups that came this spring break feel, that things are as they have pretty much always been here in Ensenada, with the only difference being a heightened sense of police presence. I would encourage everyone to read this article that Jeff wrote about safety at the City of Children as I think it has much to say about safety in all of Baja. Safety in Baja.

This week please pray for Reyes and Chanita Medina. Reyes is the preacher in Colonia 89. It is a suburb on the northern most edge of Ensenada.

Thank you all for your support. God Bless

Grupos de primavera

2009-03-31T15:10:00.001-07:00

This past week was a very special on for me. I got to spend time with my family because my mom and dad and sister came to make some plans for their summer trip to Camalu with the group from Cincinnati. I got to thinking after they left about what a blessing it is to be able to serve with members of your family. I think back to the first time I came to Baja with my mom, dad, sister, aunt, and uncle and thinking about how God has blessed my family through the work here since that first trip to Baja is incredible. This summer my fourteen year old cousin will also be coming Baja for the first time with a mission group, and I can't wait to experience that with him. In total, eleven of my family members have been to Baja. God has blessed us incredibly through serving as individuals here, but he has also blessed us as a family. I would strongly encourage you to find a way to bring members of your family with you; it is truly a blessing to serve the people of Baja and our God with those who you are closest to.

This week there is a group from Columbia Academy in Columbia, TN at the City of Children. Pilar has been taking them to Maneadero to pass out food sets and visit members homes. In the homes they are singing and praying and getting to know both members and visitors of the church in Maneadero. I am constantly amazed at how God works. Two of my best friends' from college brothers and father are here with the group, so it has neat to be able to spend time getting to know them and spend time serving with them in Meaneadero. Our God truly is big!

On a sadder note, I got word late Sunday evening that Cristobal, from San Quintin, had passed away on Saturday. He had been in bad health for a while. Cristobal will be missed in San Quintin, but what a powerful story he leaves behind for all those who knew him and loved him.

As requested by my mother during her visit this past weekend, I am going to start putting up a picture of a family associated with Baja Missions again. I had plans to do this, but things got crazy and I forgot. This week lets all pray for Franco and Yolando from El Zorrillo as well as Arleth, Sandra, and the rest of their family. They are tireless workers here in Baja and brother Franco is very well respected within the churches of Baja.

Thank you for your interest and love for the people of Baja. God Bless you this week!

Hace mucho que no nos vemos

2009-03-24T09:44:00.000-07:00

God is doing great things here in Baja! I just got back from about two solid weeks with groups in San Quintin. The first group that arrived last Wednesday was from Lipscomb University. I was very excited to be with them and to see many old friends. The second group that arrived this last Thursday and stayed until Sunday was a group from the young married class at Mayfair church of Christ in Huntsville, Al.

The group from Lipscomb consisted of about 45 college students and was led by Phil Kinzer. They had a very productive week. Things that that did while they were here are: Feed over 300 hotdog lunches on Sunday, build two homes, visit the house of every member in the church and pray/sing/talk with them, leave food sets with every family after their visit, and much more. It is hard to capture, in words, all the good that the group did in their short time here with us. They really made it a point to, during the home visits, sit down and try to get to know the people whose homes they were in. They spent four days visiting people and really just letting them get to know the group and vice versa. There were some very powerful moments and some very strong relationships formed between people in the group and members of the San Quintin church because they sat down and asked someone really, honestly how they were. God worked in very powerful ways.

During the week the group also had classes for the women, men, teens, kids 3-7, and kids 8-11. Their theme was when God calls. During the course of the week three people were baptized. I told the group, and I want to say it here as well, that I was very, very proud to be able to say that they were from Lipscomb.

The group from Mayfair was led by Phyllis and Rex Watson and came for a short weekend trip. While they were here they: put a room on the preacher's home in San Quintin, fed over 300 hotdog lunches, visited and passed out clothes to the most needy visitors and members at the San Quintin church, and had a children's day carnival at the church building on Saturday.

The carnival on Saturday was a huge success, more than 250 kids from the church and the community came at 10:00 on Satuday morning and were fed breakfast. Afterwards, everyone went into the church were Pino led them all in songs and welcomed them to children's day. Then, they were given tickets and a t-shirt and allowed to go out and enjoy the over 15 carnival games with prizes that the group had set up outside. It was a total success. The kids were great and well behaved, I think we were all shocked at how great a day it was. Many children in San Quintin, through this childrens' day carnival, now know where the church is and that there is a place where they can go and have fun and be loved.

In the evenings the group put on a class for married couples. They started out on Friday night playing the newly wed game, which Rodolfo and Genoveva won. Then they showed sequences from the movie Fire Proof. It was a great idea for a class and everyone really seemed to enjoy the movie and the lessons that it taught. On Saturday, they finished showing the movie and recapped the importance of having God in our relationships and in their marriages. The movie seemed like a great way to teach, and the building was completely full on Saturday night.

I leave out again tomorrow for Camalu, with a group who is coming to make plans for their summer trip. This group also happens to be my family and I am really looking forward to getting to spend some time with my mom, dad, and sister.

Also, the two boys from Vicente Guerrero that were hit by the bus, Efrain and Juan Carlos, are both resting at home. They still have a long way to go recovery wise and will be receiving therapy from the DIF in Vicente Guerrero. Please keep them in your prayers. The bus driver was finally arrested, but is out on bail. We will have to wait and see if the bus company will be required to pay for the medical bills of both boys.

I apologize for the lack of pictures in this update, hopefully I will be able to get some up of the work that Lipscomb and Mayfair did while they were here very soon. Please keep praying for the work here in Baja, pray that all who come to Baja to serve will truly listen to God's call and direction for their work here.

Ocupados

2009-03-05T10:28:00.000-08:00

I am very happy to be able to write this update with some great news. It seems that the boys have both made it out of danger and are recovering in the hospital. As if this wasn't hard enough on the family, Aurelia, the boys' mother, went into labor this past weekend and had a beautiful baby girl. It seems like this family will be going home with both their sons, and a daughter. Thank you for all your prayers and I hope the updates kept you all informed. I'll let you all know anything new in their recovery as I find out about it.

This past weekend we had three different groups represented here in Baja. Andrew Sowards and Kent Johnson from the Antioch church in Nashville were here to check out the work here in Baja. They have done work in Tijuana and Ciudad Juarez, as well as here at the City of Children in the past. Pilar took them to several of the Baja Churches and they got a chance to see the group from California in action. We thank them very much for their interest in the work here in Baja.

Also, the group from Newburgh, IN and Charlotte, NC was here in Vicente Guerrero. It was awesome to see the support that they gave to Chencho and his family during this hard time for them. Several members of the group went back to visit Juan Carlos and spend time at his bedside. It was a privilege for me to be able to see the love and bond that exists between this group and the people that they serve here in Baja. It truly does demonstrate how much our work in this place unites us and builds a sense of family between two different cultures. I have been amazed at how God unites us in his work.

While they were in VG, the group repaired some homes and passed out food, as well as putting on classes for the men, women, and children of the church. Julio and Misael, along with Denis, worked with the group, and said it was a very successful weekend. I'll get some pictures up of their work as soon as Misael sends me them.

The group from El Cajon made their second trip down in the last three months this past weekend. They were able to work on the building in Colonet with the assistance of the churches in Troy, TN and Lewisburg, TN. They finished the two classrooms at the rear of the church building as well as the two bathrooms/storage areas in the front of the building. They also sealed off the eaves so that dust won't get in, as well as building a stage and bringing with them a beautiful oak pulpit. It is awesome to see the willingness demonstrated by these churches in working together. It really is amazing the way that work here in Baja unites

churches at home. It really seems obvious, in examples like these, the importance of working together and of unity.

The group from El Cajon working in Colonet

Preparing for the class on Saturday night

Drywalling the front of the building

The group resting after a hard days work (the completed front part of the building with pulpit and stage)

The completed classrooms and foyer at the back of the building

Also, on Saturday night the group made a spaghetti dinner for members of the church and community. Several members from the church in Camalu came; we had a great time just being together and getting to know one another as we ate. On Sunday brother Benjamin from Tijuana preached and several members from El Cajon lead songs and prayers as we had a very nice bilingual service in Colonet.

We are currently preparing for the spring break group from Lipscomb University in Nashville and also a young married group from Mayfair in Alabama. Please be praying for these two groups as well as the church in San Quintin as both groups will be visiting that particular church!

Noticias

2009-02-26T12:51:00.001-08:00

Both boys made it through the night. This morning we found out that Juan Carlos' surgery was to stop internal bleeding and fix the internal injuries he received to his lungs, liver, and intestines. Both are still in medically induced comas for the time being. Efrain also has a broken left leg. The doctors said they were going to leave them in this state for three days, and then evaluate them and see if they could be woken up or still need to be sedated. I got to go back and see them today, and they are really beat up. Please keep praying for them, I have heard various doctors make the comment that over the next three days they simply are in God's hands.

The story is still unclear as to what happened regarding the accident, but what I have heard is as follows: The boys were on their bike crossing the highway in Vicente Guerrero after having went to sell some aluminum cans at the recycling plant. As they were crossing the highway they were hit by a Tierra del Sol 50-passenger bus. The driver fled the scene. Their father left the hospital last night to file charges, in Vicente Guerrero, against the bus driver. Since he fled the scene, charges can be brought against him, but the government requires the father of the boys to be present to file the charges. This process was also just started this morning so I don't have many details as to how it is progressing. If the bus company is charged, they will be liable for the injuries to the boys and be required to pay the hospital bills of each. So far, the hospital has been very gracious with the family and told them not to worry about paying, that they would figure that out after the boys received the care that they required. Please keep praying; the family wants you to know that they appreciate your prayers and believe that they will make all the difference. As you can imagine, they are quite distraught. Please pray for them and the group that is here currently in Vicente Guerrero, that they may be a source of strength and support for the family and the church in these very difficult moments.

Peticion

2009-02-26T12:47:00.000-08:00

Last night at about 10:00 I received a phone call from Gerardo, who preaches in Vicente Guerrero, informing me about two young boys in their congregation who were hit by a car while crossing the street on a bike last night in Vicente Guerrero. Their names are Juan Carlos and Efrain. They are both currently in the hospital here in Ensenada in critical condition. Efrain is stable but sedated. Juan Carlos, the older of the two, was rushed into surgery to try and stop some internal bleeding. I went to this hospital this morning to be with the family, and while I was there Juan Carlos came out of surgery. He is also being sedated. The reason that both were put into induced comas is that they both suffered head injuries and the doctors believe its best to allow them to rest and allow for the swelling to go down. As you can see, it is a very touch and go situation. We are requesting that you pray for both of these young men and for their family as they have many trying days of waiting ahead. The doctors said that the next 72 hours are critical and that we really wouldn't know anything for a few days. For those of you who have been to Vicente Guerrero these two young boys are Chencho's sons. He was working in Tijuana when he got the news and rushed to Ensenada. I will try to keep you all updated as best I can, but please be praying for Juan Carlos, Efrain, and their family.

En la 89

2009-02-24T09:55:00.000-08:00

This past week I got to work with a group of men from the church in Bentonville, Arkansas. I already knew a majority of the guys from past trips that they had made here to Baja. One incredible blessing of working here in Baja is getting to know so many people and being able to be part of each other's lives. The group came with the goals of building a house for a family from Colonia 89, getting a kitchen (cabinets included) ready for use, and also building a stage in the church for the podium. I am glad to say that there were able to accomplish that, and much more during their time here.

The house they built is two stories, with a barn-like roof to maximize space. It is a really nice concept and a house that will provide more space for the family of eight than the single wide trailer they were living in next door. Most of the guys who came with this group work in construction so their experience and knowledge really played a huge part in the ability to build a house of this quality.

The house that the group built. Beside it you can see the trailer that housed the family of eight. The windows will be put in the house this week.

At the same time, Bill and Arcadio, were working on building some kitchen cabinets in the new building behind the church. I got to work very closely with them as they worked together to create some truly beautiful cabinets that will serve the church in Colonia 89 in a very positive way. They cabinets took a lot of time and effort but are very, very nice.

The beautiful new cabinets in the kitchen. The group also purchased the stove.

Among other things that were done was the construction and carpeting of a stage at the front of the building. It looks great and really makes a difference. On Sunday morning the difference that the stage made for those trying to listen was more than obvious. It really allows everyone to see and hear the speaker.

John Dyas giving the class on Sunday morning, standing on the new, carpeted stage built by the group.

Yesterday the group invited Misael, Reyes, Ashley, and I to go fishing with them. This trip has become, for this group, a tradition. It was a great day! We caught a lot of fish and had a blast. I think the most impressive part of the trip was the unity of the group of men that came together to get a lot done in a short period of time. I was reminded yesterday how working together in a foreign place can really be a blessing to your church and to the group that comes. Together you experience something that will never be forgotten. I believe that God forms a bond that can't be equaled in the group that experiences mission work together.

This weekend will be an extremely busy one for us again. Groups from Indiana, Tennessee, and California will be here. Check in next week for an update on all that God did with these teams that are coming. Thank you so much for your interest in the work here in Baja. God bless!

Lunada en la Cortez

2009-02-16T11:05:00.000-08:00

This Saturday Stan asked me to take Ron Brown, a board member at the City of Children, and his long time friend brother Wilson to see some of the Baja churches. They fixed hamburgers for all the kids at the City and then we were off to Maneadero and El Zorrillo. As always, we were welcomed very warmly by Alfredo and his family as well as Franco and his family. We had some great conversations during the ride out and back to the City of Children. It was great to be able to hear stories of the City of Children and the work in Baja from the past and see how it has all worked together to get us to where we are now. It is truly a legacy of faith that we are working in and building up here in Baja. It is a great honor to be able to work in furthering that legacy! I think its good that all of us who are involved here realize what a blessing it is to be able to take part in something that is so much bigger than ourselves, something that I believe God has his hands in on a daily basis.

Also, on Friday night the church here in Ensenada had a "lunada" which I found out is basically a Mexican style lock in. I arrived at about 9pm to find Julio preaching and teh auditorium packed with teens from San Quintin, Camalu, Maneadero, as well as from San Diego and Tijuana. Julio talked until about 11pm and then we ate. Afterwards we participated in organized activities put on by our hosts. The activities included: eating and apple suspended from a string, the three legged race to the Oxxo to buy a coke and then return it to a team mate, as well as many others equally as fun and creative.

This week will be a busy one for us as well. The group led by John Dias will be arriving tomorrow to work in Colonia 89. Please be praying for a great trip for them. They will be here until the 24th. On the 26th the group from Indiana and North Carolina will be in Vicente Guerrero until the 2nd of March. Also, on the 26th a group from Antioch in Nashville, led by Andrew Sowards will be here getting to know the work in Baja. We are excited to have them coming. On the 27th El Cajon from San Diego will be in Colonet working on finishing out the classrooms and also the bathrooms and other needs at the building. They plan on having a spaghetti supper for the community on Saturday night.

As you can see, we have a lot of plans of our own for these next few weeks. As good as they are, let's pray that God gives us a sense of His plan for our groups! It is always exciting to let Him lead and show us what His vision for our work is!

Ocupados...

2009-02-09T12:33:00.000-08:00

I hope this update finds everyone well. Over the past week and a half we have been very busy here in Baja. In the last update I talked about the meeting that was going to take place in El Zorrillo. It was a great morning and all the of the Baja churches had a chance to get together and spend some time building unity. Gerarado from Vicente Guerrero had a great lesson on unity and its importance in the Baja churches. He made a great point about how blessed the Baja churches are to be unified. In other parts of Mexico and the world the church isn't very unified. It is something that is really important to the brothers here in Mexico and somethingI that we are all working towards making stronger and promoting here in Baja. It was a great morning.

Last Sunday, I was asked to talk on Sunday morning at the City of Children. I talked about searching for God. It was a great experience and am very grateful to Patty and Ricardo, Jeff and Natasha, and Stan and Carole for the opportunity that they gave me to talk to the kids and church at the City of Children.

This past weekend was the City of Children meeting for all the leaders of the groups that come throughout the year. It was a great opportunity for me to be able to participate in this meeting. Jeff asked me to make a presentation to the group about Baja Missions and what those groups can do out in the community when they bring their groups to the City of Children. I got to meet a lot of great people who are really on fire for the work here in Baja. Also, on Sunday I got to take a group of the leaders out into the community to actually see the Baja churches and get a feel for what the work is like. It is always a great opportunity to be able to take people out into Baja for the first time. It really helps me to remember what it was like the first time I saw the communities of Baja and really aids me in refocusing and remembering why we all long to serve these beautiful people!

Over the course of the next few weeks we have 4 different groups coming to Baja. There will be groups in Colonia 89, Vicente Guerrero, Colonet, and a group that is coming to visit for the first time! It is great to be busy and about the work we have to do here in Baja! Please pray for these groups and also for the groups that just went home from what was a great weekend at the City of Children. Thank you all for your support!

I have been thinking about putting a picture up of a family or person involved with the work here in Baja and asking you all to pray for them by name. I firmly believe it is a great way to lift their sprits and support their work from a distance! This week...Alfredo, Carmen, Alfredo Jr. and Miguel from Maneadero.

Planes

2009-01-30T10:36:00.000-08:00

Last weekend Steve, Wayne, Sue, Adam, Tanner from El Cajon came down to do a pre-trip planning visit to Colonet. We checked out the church building and they made plans and measurements for their trip for February 27th-March 1st. They are planning to finish out the classrooms and bathrooms/storage areas in the front. As well as sealing off the church from the outside by blocking in the eaves. This will be a big blessing for the church there as it will completely weatherize the building and should make things much more comfortable for the children and members.

After the planning session Dulce and Antonio and some of the sisters from Colonet fixed us Fish tacos and we had a great time eating and talking together. On the way back to Ensenada we stopped to see the house that the group built in El Zorrillo this past December. I think they were very encouraged to see that the homeowners had taken time to paint both the new house and the existing one with the paint that the group left behind. It's always good to get out and work with those from El Cajon.

This coming weekend there will be a get-together in El Zorrillo for teens and adults from all the Baja congregations. Franco and Yolanda will be cooking breakfast for all and then we will have several classes for all age groups. It promises to be a great time. Look for pictures and update about that next week.

Despite it being the "off season" here in Baja, we have been really busy making plans and getting ready for the summer. Please be praying for us that the plans we are making are God's plans! Thank you all for your support!

Trabajando...

2009-01-22T10:09:00.000-08:00

I hope that everyone is doing great and staying warm back in the states. I've heard from several of the members of the groups that have been here that it has been frigid. Since the last update we have had two great groups here in Baja and this weekend we will have two more visiting groups. Things are busy, but couldn't be better here in Baja.

The mechanics, led by Jim Craig, from Virginia arrived here last Tuesday and will be working until tomorrow. Their work here is critical for not only the Baja Missions vehicles that you use on your trips, but also for the church vans and vehicles used by the preachers in the work in the community. They do amazing work and have things down to a science. I was really impressed and honored to get to see them work and be part of their team for a few days.

Repairing the brakes on the 25 passenger bus

Misael and Jim working on the Baja Missions vehicles

On Friday, Brad Sullivan brought a group from the Vaughn Park church in Montgomery, Alabama and spent five days working in Maneadero. They built two homes for families in the church and also ran an incredible clinic with the help of a local doctor. In total, I believe they saw around 209 patients in four days. The group also brought a bunch of backpacks for the children in the church and donated a large quantity to the school where many of the kids go. Among other things that they accomplished while they were here were: food sets for members and the community, enrolled Celeste in her second semester of college, re-roofed Alfredo and

Carmen's house, served lunch to over 500 people every day, and witnessed a young sister give her life to Christ in baptism. It was a great week.

Lunch for the community, over 500 fed

New house, with a great view

Finishing the house, the new owners helped to paint it

This weekend we have some members of the El Cajon congregation coming down to plan some work in Colonet as well as Tom Begin and some men from Muerietta who are coming to paint the classrooms and make some plans in Maneadero.

Thank you all for your support, God is working in this place. We are also making plans for the summer and many new groups are wanting to get involved. Please keep praying for His will to be done here!

One last picture to get you all thinking about coming to visit us here in Baja. Things are beautiful and green here. It's funny to see spring in January

De regreso al trabajo

2009-01-13T10:22:00.000-08:00

I hope everyone had a great holiday season with their families and that this new year has begun in a great way for all. I know that I was extremely blessed to be able to spend the Christmas season with my family in Ohio and also got to make a trip south to Nashville and Huntsville to see friends and spend a little time catching up! There's something about spending time at home eating at my grandma's house and spending time with cousins and siblings that really seems to recharge a person. I am glad to be back in Baja but very thankful for my family and their support of me working here.

I arrived back to Baja on Friday and met up with Joe, Denton, Paul, Rex, as well as Harold from Owen's Cross Roads. We made a weekend trip to all the congregations here in the Baja and the elders spent time encouraging and talking to each preacher and his wife. The purpose was really just to spend time with all of them and encourage them in their work here. Visits really mean a lot to all of us here in Baja as they especially let the preachers know that people are interested in their work and thinking about them and praying for them. It was a great weekend and a great start to a new year here in Baja.

We will be very busy during the next few weeks and months. Today the mechanics led by Jim Craig from Virginia will be arriving and consequently servicing the cars in the Baja Missions fleet and later moving out to different areas in the Baja to work on the cars of the members and preachers. It is a great opportunity for the people here to learn how to do some basic maintenance on their cars as well receive some free mechanic work that normally may be too expensive to have done.

Also, on Friday the group from Vaughn Park in Alabama will be arriving for a week long trip in Maneadero. Brad Sullivan and his group have plans to do a clinic and build a few houses for those in Maneadero. It will be great to be with them as well!

I just thought I should also let you know that things here are as green as I have ever seen them and we have been hovering right about 75 for the last couple of days!

I'll try to get an update up as soon as I can from the mechanics and also the group from Alabama! Thanks for your interest in the people of Baja.

Una nueva casa

2008-12-09T10:22:00.000-08:00

This last week and weeked were busy with the preparations and visits from the group from El Cajon and also from Murietta and Jackson Park. A lot of good things were done this weekend, and a family here in Baja can rest a little easier during this time of rain and cold.

The group from El Cajon did a great job, building a house in a little less than 36 hours. There were about twenty people who came and everyone instantly got to work and took care of the task they were assigned, it was a very impressive effort. The house is of the highest quality and they finished it out complete with electricity, insulation, and drywall. Also, for the first time that I am aware of in Baja Missions, correct me if I'm wrong, they added on to an existing house. For a family of five the house they had was very very small, and the group from El Cajon decided to connect the two houses. It turned out great and Enedina and Carlos and their family now can sleep comfortably in their new home.

Enedina and her kids

Working on the house

Carlos working on his own roof

Putting up the walls

Starting on the walls

On Sunday the group had a great visit at services in El Zorrillo. Franco preached and several of the men from the group led prayers and songs and had a great time worshipping together. Many thanks to the group for all of their hard work.

Also, this weekend, the group from Murietta and several from Tennessee came to the City of Children and also painted and started insulating and drywalling the new classrooms in Maneadero. On Sunday they passed out 120 Christmas gifts and many foodsets to the kids and families of Maneadero. It was a great weekend for all involved in Baja Missions and the City of Children. Unfortunately I have no pictures from the passing out of the gifts as I was in El Zorrillo.

This coming weekend we have a teen retreat in Camalu for all of the Baja churches and teens. It should be a great time. These monthly get-togethers are really uplifting for all involved and does great things for the unity of the Baja churches.

I hope that everyone is getting ready for the Holidays and enjoying time with loved ones. I am very excited to be going home to Cincinnati to spend Chritmas and New Years with my family. For that reason, this may be the last blog update until January, but know that in January we hit the ground running with at least three different visits and many projects and plans for the new year. Thank you all for your support and interest in what is going on here in this place. Thank you for your prayers and donations and love that make all of this possible. God bless you and your families during this special time of the year!

Dando Gracias..

2008-12-01T11:39:00.000-08:00

I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving and is enjoying the holiday season. For me, it is a little strange to see Christmas trees and hear Christmas music while seeing the Pacific Ocean and wearing a t-shirt, but at least it's warm.

I got to spend Thanksgiving week with my family here in Mexico. It was truly a blessing to be able to share with them all that is done here in Baja, and especially with my grandfather and my cousins who had never been to Baja before this trip. We had Thanksgiving dinner with Juan Jose and Flor in Camalu and had a great time sharing some of our culture with them. They seemed to really enjoy it!

That being said, here is what is what has been going on with Baja Missions over the past few weeks.

This weekend there was a teen rally held in here in Ensenada by Colonia 89. Reyes had asked me to give the teen class on the topic of "Self-Esteem" based on 1st Timothy 4:12 It was a great experience for me to be able to talk to the teens of Baja about self-esteem and about how our self-esteem should come from the fact that God loves us and created us, and then redeemed us and not from what society says about us. As always, I think I was the one who most benefited from this lesson!

After the class we loaded everyone up and went down to the pier here in Ensenada and sang some songs and Juan Jose, from Camalu, had a short devotional. We then went to the mirador and ate lunch while overlooking the Pacific Ocean. While at the mirador, the preachers had a meeting and we talked about having one weekend a year where the churches from Baja Missions host the churches from Tijuana and spend some time together. I think it is great step in building unity here in Baja!

The numbers at the youth rally where really, really impressive as the entire building was full of teens from all over Baja. It is really encouraging to see these youth groups continue to grow and grow.

Flor, Carmen, and Lupita enjoy lunch at the Mirador

Reyes addresses the group at the Plaza Civica

Children's class at the youth rally

Auditorium full of teens!

This coming weekend the group from El Cajon in California will be coming to build a house for a family in El Zorillo. This is their first trip of this sort and have about 20 people coming. We are exited to get to work with their group.

Also, the group from Murietta, California will be here to visit the City of Children and also the church in Maneadero. They will be working on finishing out the kitchen/classrooms that have been built there. The building looks great and will really serve the Maneadero congregation.

Look for an update after this weekend to see how God worked in both Maneadero and El Zorrilo.

Thank you all for your interest in the work here and for all your prayers and support. May God continue blessing us all as we seek to serve him.

Que paisaje...

2008-11-10T15:31:00.000-08:00

Here are some pictures of Baja. It's not hard to remember the Creator when you see sites like these every day!

Al sur..

2008-11-10T12:26:00.000-08:00

I got a call on Friday from members of the Johnson St. church in El Cajon, California about making a trip to Colonet and El Zorrillo. They are planning a trip in December to come and build a house for a sister from El Zorrillo. They also were interested in helping out in Colonet. So on Saturday morning we left the City of Children at 7:00am and made our way to Colonet. We arrived at Colonet and spent a couple of hours talking with Antonio and Dulce. We also examined the building and Steve and Wayne checked things out to see what they could do to help. Dulce, of course, insisted on feeding us and we were treated to a great lunch before we headed back up to El Zorrillo. In El Zorrillo we visited with Franco and Yolanda and went and saw the lot where the house is going to be built. The lot is small and there is an existing structure there, so before the house is built they family is going to tear down the other house and have things ready for the group. Franco insisted on taking us out for tacos after the visit and of course we said yes!

Wayne from El Cajon making some plans for future work

Checking out the work at Colonet

It was a great day and was a real blessing to spend the day making plans to serve here in Baja!

Also, this weekend the church here in Ensenada, La Cortez, had a meeting for the ladies here in Baja. All of the churches were invited and many brought a group of ladies. I didn't get to go because I was in Colonet, but I heard it was a great meeting and its always great to see the unity in the churches here in Baja. Also, Baja Missions was able to donate four tables for the meeting. We were given these tables by the City of Children, and passed them on to the church here in Ensenada!

Thank you all for your support and love for the people of Baja! Please be praying for the work here!

-Matt

Fotos prometidas

2008-10-30T10:25:00.000-07:00

Here are the pictures that go with the update from yesterday!

Baja Missions office

Bulletin board and pictures in the new office

Brother Stan Stout addresses the conference

I had the honor of giving part of the welcome on the first night of the conference

John Dyas leads the preachers and their wives in an activity

Session with the preachers and their wives

Conferencias y Amistades

2008-10-29T10:30:00.000-07:00

This weekend was a great weekend for Baja Missions and everyone involved working here in Baja. We finally have the new Baja Missions office decorated and equipped to better serve everyone involved in Baja. We have had a Mexican and American phone line installed in the office as well as a wireless internet and other tools that will help us be more productive in serving here in Baja. I thank everyone for your support that makes these things possible.

More importantly than that, we had a great series of meetings and classes with all the preachers and those who support them here at the City of Children. After the meetings we moved each group to the specific location that they support and they had a chance to have more meetings and planning sessions with their congregations. During the conference we heard from speakers such as John Dyas from Bentonville, Arkansas, Benjamin Colunga from Huntsville, and also from Liberato Ovalle from Chihuahua, Mex.

Some of the topics from the conference that were discussed were: Growth of the churches and their ministers, social security for the preachers of Baja, registration with the religious association, and many others. During the conference we also got most of the groups signed up for their weeks in the spring and summer of 2009. Currently we have 11 groups signed up for summer trips and 6 groups from January to May. We are, also, still waiting to hear from other groups. As you can see it will be another busy summer!

The groups that came to the conference passed out over 350 blankets to the people of Baja California. We are entering a cooler period here in Baja and the blankets are a luxury than many cannot afford. They will be a real blessing on a cold night in January.

In social security news we now have two preachers in the system: Reyes and Francisco. Also, while Liberato was here he got everything set up so that Francisco would be able to register all the rest of the preachers with Seguridad Social. This is a big step for us in this process!

As we plan for next summer please let us know if there is anything that we can do to facilitate your groups needs!

Reunino Juvenil en SQ

2008-10-21T10:25:00.000-07:00

This past weekend we had a Baja Missions teen retreat in San Quintin. It was great to be able to get teens from all the Baja churches and also from La Mesa, and La Obrera in Tijuana. In total it was a great weekend that resulted in three baptisms! There were about 150 teens from the area. This update will be mostly pictures. Also, the church in SQ repainted the entire church facility and it looks better than it ever has! They really are starting to take pride in their facilities!

The crowd before the conference started

Welcome!

The teens doing a team building activity

The church with a new paint job

Joel Campos gives the teen class

This weekend is the Baja Missions conference, be praying that it is time of edification and growth for all of us involved!

Grupo de MA

2008-10-13T10:16:00.000-07:00

This last week was very busy. The group from Madison Academy arrived last Friday and we took off to San Quintin. After a later than expected arrival, we stopped by Costco for some supplies and dinner and headed south. We didn't arrive in San Quintin until about 10:30 pm. It was a marathon trip for the group of high school students, but they were ready to work!

The group from Madison Academy in Huntsville, Alabama

Over the course of the next few days the group of 30 teens built a house for a family of 5 and painted some swing sets at the church. More importantly than the physical things that they were able to accomplish, they were able to buy 50 food sets and pass out a great number of them to the families of this very needy area. Also, during the week the group had several opportunities to socialize and spend time getting to know the members of the San Quintin church. We were invited to a couple of birthday parties and other meals and events hosted by the members of the church in San Quintin. It's amazing what you can learn about people and about how small the differences between us really are when you sit down at the same table as someone else! I think the group was a great lift in the spirits of many people in San Quintin and did a great job!

Building the house for Sarai

Presentation and ribbon cutting at the house

The group also spent a lot of time in three local schools here in Baja. It was fun to be with the kids (although 600 elementary school kids at once is a little bit hectic). We had a great time spending time with the kids and teachers and making a connection between the church and the surrounding community. Personally, I think that helping the schools and spending time with them is a great way to spread the news about the work here in Baja. Also, with very little we can make a big difference in the quality of education of the kids here in Baja. Donations of pencils, paper, books, really anything that is used in schools is a great way to boost the name and reputation of the church in the communities in which they are found! Plus, visiting the kids and signing 300 autographs because they think you are famous isn't a bad self esteem boost either!

Presenation at the elementary school in San Quintin (Grades 1-3)

I had always secretly wanted to be famous!

After an incredible week in San Quintin I was invited to preach on Sunday morning in San Vicente by Francisco. If you know me, you know that this request was a little bit intimidating. I had, up until yesterday, never preached a sermon in my life. I was really nervous but I think that it went very well and I was glad to be able to give Francisco a break! He really needs all the support he can get because he really is involved in about everything that someone here could be involved in.

As for church yesterday in San Viciente there were about 60 or 70 adults present and about 30 children. Francisco also mentioned that this past weekend they started a joint effort with the government in San Vicente working with a certified psychologist to provide care to the community in San Vicente. They saw 12 people and are going to make it public knowledge by advertising in the paper this coming week. Please be praying for this work as it could be a great boost to the church in San Vicente. It is very rare to see the government and a church cooperating to reach out to the community here in Mexico. One of the government officials actually made the comment to Francisco, "We'll take care of the mind, you take care of the soul." This is a really exciting time for Francisco and Lucy as they are very passionate and care a great deal for those with mental illness and psychological needs.

I am writing this report from the new Baja Misisons office here at the City of Children. We just got telephone and internet installed and I have to admit it is very nice to be able to sit down here and work in an office environment. Thanks so much again to all those at the City of Children for making this space a reality!

We are getting ready for the Baja Missions' conference that will be held here at the City of Children this coming 24th-28th of October. It should be a great time to get everyone together and talk about how to better the work here in Baja!

Ya era hora...

2008-09-29T18:31:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone,

It's been well over a week since I last updated the blog! I hope you all will forgive me but things have been very busy here in Baja. We have a lot on our plate this month and have had several visitors to keep things very busy here! I spent most of last week in San Quintin meeting with the leaders and with some of the elders from Mayfair. Brother Liberato also came and preached several lessons over the course of the week in San Quintin. He is, without a doubt, one of the best speakers I have ever heard! During our time in San Quintin we got a chance to talk about the work and form some plans with the brothers in SQ for the next few months. It was a good to spend time with Denton and Joe and the leaders of the San Quintin church.

Dinner with Rodolfo, Gregorio, Crecencio, Liberato, Pino, Joe, Denton, and Misael

Joe, Denton, Misael, Liberato and I before church on Sunday morning

Liberato preaching.

Also, last week, I had the opportunity to translate some classes in El Zorrillo with Franco and brother Kevin from Huntsville, AL. We got a chance to also talk about some of the work that is going on in El Zorrillo and make some plans for their group next summer.

Sunday morning I worshipped with the congregation in Maneadero. The service was full. Alfredo preached about the need to store up treasures in Heaven and not here on Earth (it seemed extremely appropriate and very reassuring after today's financial happenings!). After service Alfredo and Carmen invited us to stay for lunch. Before eating, we took communion to a sick brother who can't get out of bed. We spent about a half and hour singing and praying with him. His faith is inspiring. Please pray for Panchito!

This weekend the group from Madison Academy in Huntsville, AL. will be arriving and spending a week in San Quintin. Their plans are to build a house for Sarai (a young woman with three children) and put together some swings for the kids at the San Quintin church. Also, they will be spending time in the schools and trying to build a relationship with the surrounding community. I think this is a great way to spread the news about the church and reach out into the surrounding community. All of the Baja churches could be benefited by groups spending time in the community building relationships with the people!

Also, with a lot of thanks to the City of Children, Baja Missions has a place for an office. One of the classrooms in the Gym has been dedicated as the Baja Missions Office. This will serve us well as a headquarters and a fixed location from which to operate! Thanks so much to Stan and Carole, Ricardo and Patty, and Jeff and Natasha for their support!

New Baja Missions office at the City of Children

I had said from the beginning that I would try to update this weekly. That is still the plan, I apologize for the delay, but there aren't a lot of opportunities for internet hot spots in San Quintin. Please check back for the pictures and report after the MA group has a wonderful week! Please keep all involved in this work in your prayers and pray especially for unity in the church in Baja, as well as all around the world! Thanks!

Rock Band in Mexico

2008-09-17T11:35:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone! These last few days have been very interesting here in Mexico.

This weekend I made a trip to San Quintin and spent time visiting on the way down on Friday. Friday afternoon I spent the afternoon with Juan Jose and Flor in Camalu. We ate dinner together, they had menudo...I ordered pizza! (Menudo could also be known as "cow stomach soup"). We talked about their work in Camalu and some of the difficulties of being ministers in Mexico. It was a great time just to be able to sit down with them and learn more about their hopes and plans for the work in Camalu.

On Saturday Misael and I spent the day talking with Gloria and Pino in San Quintin. There was a lot to talk about, considering they are so new to the work in San Quintin. We talked about their plans and brainstormed together about how to best serve the church in San Quintin. We ate together and later in the evening I sat down with Rodolfo, Gregorio, and Crecencio and we talked about the plans for the group from Madison Academy in Huntsville that will be coming down in two weeks. They are very excited for the visit! The group is planning to build a house and work on swings and a playground at the church building. Also, they will be visiting schools in the community and helping to spread the name of the church here in Baja! It should be a very exciting week.

Mexico, to me has always been a place where anything could happen at any moment. For example, if a week ago you would have told me that I wouldn't have been able to get a hotel room in San Quintin because on the biggest bands in "Banda" music would be playing a show I wouldn't have believed it. Well, in Mexico anything can happen!

Apparently this band can sell out San Quintin...

As a result of the "huge" concert in San Quintin Misael and I had to go back to Camalu (45 minutes north) to even find a hotel with rooms available. On Sunday, we went to church in San Quintin in the morning and evening. In the evening they asked me to give the class to the teens. There were about 10 teens in the class and we had a good time discussing what it means to be a Christian and how a Christian should live, basing our discussion on the Fruit of the Spirit. There were about 100 people present for the service on Sunday evening. It was great to be able to greet all the brothers and sisters in San Quintin. Many of them send greetings to everyone back in the States.

I arrived home Monday evening and was invited by Ricardo and Patty to a Mexican Independence day celebration at the City of Children. It was a great time. Ricardo grilled and we ate and celebrated with the teens of the City. We played soccer and volleyball and had a great time celebrating Mexican Independence day!

I apologize for the lack of pictures in this update, but I'm having a few problems with the camera.

Again, I thank everyone for their interest in the work here in Baja. Please keep us in your prayers!

-Matt

Reunion de Jovenes

2008-09-10T11:07:00.000-07:00

I hope everyone is doing great and having a good week up until today! This last weekend we had the teen retreat for the month of September in Vicente Guerrero. I took the group from Colonia 89 again as their van continues to struggle. We left Ensenada at 7am to be able to get there by the 10 o'clock start. Once we got there we ate breakfast and then had a short devotional with everyone together. We then broke off into classes for adults and for teens. The teen topic was a very tough, but very appropriate: Sexuality. Liberato Ovalle, the president of the religious association for the churches of Christ here in Mexico, had the lesson and he did a great job applying it for the teens who were present. It was very well done and I think the teens got a lot out of it. After the class, we played some bible games and the winners were awarded various prizes. I arrived back in Ensenada at about 9pm. Over all it was a very busy, but very fun day.

Alfredo Chavero Jr. gets his prize at the Bible Bowl

The teens of Baja Missions! There were about 25 more that became very camera shy at this exact moment.

Brother Liberato brings the class to a packed house

On Monday morning Misael and I took Liberato and his wife to Tijuana to catch the plane back to Toluca. We had a good time talking and discussing the work here in Baja. While he was here he was able to get things set up so that all the preachers would have access to all the benefits of the social security system here in Mexico. The preachers just need to get their congregations registered with the association so that the government will recognize them as being employed. In Mexico, the government doesn't recognize churches as employers unless they belong to a religious association. We arrived in Tijuana at about 1pm and returned to Ensenada at about 4pm. Liberato and his wife send greetings to everyone who is involved in Baja Missions and thank you all for your support of the work here in Mexico.

On Saturday, Reyes had asked me if I would teach the class on Tuesday night. So, last night I had the opportunity to teach the class for about 35 brothers and sisters in Colonia 89. It was a very special moment for me, as I can't really remember a time when I was more nervous! I talked about the fruit of the spirit and how Christians living with those fruits stand out in a world filled selfishness and anger. I am very grateful for the opportunity that I had to teach the class and really enjoyed it. Here's a picture of me teaching the class. (Misael took about 5 all of them turned out blurry so this is the best one I could get).

Things continue to be busy here in Baja, and I hope these small reports allow you all to get a glimpse of the way the Lord is working here in Baja. It is truly and exciting time for everyone involved in this work!

-Matt

Una semana muy ocupada

2008-09-04T11:34:00.001-07:00

This last week has been full of things to do. It's also been a very rewarding week because I got to spend most of my time with the people of Baja. Rewinding a bit, on Sunday I went to church at the city of Children. It's always uplifting to be with the kids there and really helps to get me focused on what it is that we are here to do; serve the people of Baja.

Tuesday was a very busy day. I had a meeting with Liberato Ovalle and Francisco Avalos from San Vicente. We talked about a lot of things including my plans and goals for my time here. It is incredible to be able to spend time with Liberato. He is the president of the churches of Christ in the Mexican Republic and really helps with a lot of the legal aspects between Baja Missions and the churches and the government here in Mexico. We also talked about what we needed to do to get the churches registered with the association. It is important that the churches are registered because if the are, that gives the preachers rights to things like Social Security and a pension plan that would allow them to retire and have income later on down the road. This is a huge step for Baja Missions and the churches here in Mexico as we seek to make things more stable and legitimate before the Mexican government. Please encourage your ministers to be working on their standing with the association. If you have questions about your churches status and where they are in the process of registering, let me know!

After the lunch meeting at Carl's Jr. I was going to rent Liberato a car to allow him to get down to San Quintin and later to Vicente Guerrero. Vicente Guerrero is hosting the teen reunion this weekend and he will be leading it. While at the rental place, Ricardo, from the City of Children, called and offered Liberato a car from the CoC. It was a very generous offer and saved us a lot of money. Thanks to Ricardo and Patty!

Tuesday night I attended class in Colonia 89. This has become sort of a weekly tradition and I really enjoy it. It is very good for me to take time out and spend time studying with the brothers and sisters in 89.

Wednesday morning Misael and I went out to El Zorrillo in the morning because Franco had asked us to come visit homes with him. This was, without a doubt, the highlight of my week. It was great to be able to go out with Franco and just talk to some of the members of the churces and spend time praying and reading the Bible with them. The most impactful moment, for me, was talking to Isabel. Isabel was baptized last Sunday and when we arrived at her house she wasn't home because she was at a new neighbor's house. This family had just arrived from Tijuana on Tuesday and she had already taken them food and was talking to them about church. After we prayed with her she asked us to go visit this new family and we spent time talking to them about church and welcoming her to the area. It was really neat to see such a young Christian already starting to spread the message that she had so recently believed.

Misael sharing a scripture with Isabel

Franco and I visiting with Isabel and the new family from Tijuana

Franco doing what Franco does best

She is the granddaughter of one of the brothers we visited. Her grandfather is blind and she leads him to church! Plus she's really cute!

After visiting houses Yolanda cooked us and incredible lunch and Liberato and Francisco came and we talked for a couple more hours about the work here in Baja and how to better serve the communities and area in which we find ourselves.

I want to thank you all for your prayers and for your dedication the the people and churches of Baja. I am planning on making this blogsite the sole form of publishing my reports. I think it is good for everyone to be able to see the pictures that go along with the reports. Also, with this website you'll have access to the past reports as well.

Also, if you know me personally you'll be happy to know that I found a basketball court here in town where there are semi-competitive games that are very friendly. This is a very good thing for my well-being!

Thanks again for the support and remember to check back often. I try to update this with pictures and such a couple of times a week!

-Matt

Reunion en San Vicente

2008-09-01T10:04:00.000-07:00

Saturday was a historical day in the Baja Missions Bible School's short existence. It was the first of two seminars that are part of the first level of the three leveled bible school. Liberato Ovalle came from Toluca to give the seminar.

Liberato Ovalle gives the seminar on "Human Relationships"

I left Ensenada at 8am on Saturday to be in San Vicente by 10am. At ten the seminar started with each church being represented and also a church from Tijuana who is also particpating in the school. The minister at the Tijuana church is the brother of Antonio in Colonet. At twelve we broke for an amazing carne asada lunch prepared by the sisters in San Vicente. We resumed at 2pm and finished the meeting at 5pm. As you can see, it was a long day; but one filled with much learning.

The topic was Human Relationships and Liberato talked about how if we're going to be effective Christians we need to be able to understand why people act the way they do and what drives them to certain actions. It was an incredibly rich class. Having just graduated with a degree in Education from Lipscomb, the class was as good as any psychology class that I have been exposed to. It was very full of information and connections between that information and our lives as followers of Christ and the relationships that we are called to have with others.

Manual on "Human Relationships" that each student received

We left San Vicente at about 6pm and I took the church from Colonia 89 home. I took them and brought them home because their van had some problems and wasn't up to the trip. We had a good time talking and listening to George Strait in the car! (George Strait fan or not it's 1000 times better than the acordeon music!)

The students from Colonia 89. (Misael needs some work as the official "Baja Missions Photographer")

To make the drive even more interesting than it already is, it rained the entire way down to San Vicente. For those of you, like me, who have spent a lot of time in Baja California and have never seen it rain...here's the proof!

-Matt

Reporte 8/28

2008-08-28T12:34:00.000-07:00

This is this weeks report. It is the same one that was mailed out. So if you read it in email...don't feel obligated to read it again, unless you just really enjoyed it! But if you're not on the email list and want to be, let me know!

I hope this finds you all well. God is at work here in Baja and spending time with his people continues to be an amazing blessing for me. Last Friday Alfredo Chavero, from Maneadero, had a birthday. I got up early and picked up a cake at Costco for him. I spent the morning with him and his family. We ate and celebrated his birthday. It's a real blessing to be able to spend time with the ministers and get to know them on a more personal level. I would recommend spending as much quality time as you can with the ministers and the people at the churches you sponsor. It is a real blessing to work side by side with them but also to sit down and get to know them!

On Sunday, Misael and I went to to church in Maneadero. I had been wanting to get out there since the summer but this is the first real opportunity I had to actually go worship with the church in Maneadero. There was a large crowd and everyone seemed very happy and things seemed to be going great. Alfredo had asked me to teach the teen class on Sunday so I was happy to do that. I talked about how we as Christians should be recognized by our accent. Peter was recognized by the people the night of Jesus' arrest by his accent says Matthew. I talked about how people should know that we walk with Jesus by our accent, not our spoken accent, but the accent of our lives. Also, on Sunday Misael preached. Alfredo had asked him to do the sermon on Sunday morning. Miseal did a great job and got many compliments after the service. It was really impressive to see him step out like that! After service we had lunch together as a church and then played a little volleyball together. It was a good visit.

On Tuesday night I went to class in Colonia 89. There were about thirty adults present. Reyes has been talking about the Trinity for the past few classes and on Tuesday he talked about how Jesus is God. He gave several versus that say that Jesus is God and was present at the creation. There are a lot of people in Mexico that say that Jesus and the Holy Spirit aren't God; so he is taking the church through this study so that they can go out and evangelize and have evidence that supports what they believe.

This morning I went to breakfast with Jeff and Natasha Fincher, Misael, and Molly Courson (Molly is from Mayfair and is here studying Spanish for a couple of months). It was good to sit down with them and pray about the work here and just spend some time reflecting and planning. After breakfast, I went to see about getting a visa. Since I will be her for a while and traveling a lot, both Jeff and I agreed that it would be good to get a visa and have everything be official and in order. For the time being I got a tourist visa that lasts 90 days. I am working on getting an FM3 which is a more permanent visa and allows you to do more things here in Mexico (like open a bank account and things that could be beneficial to Baja Missions in the long run).

Also, please feel free to email me any questions or inquiries as sometimes information comes up and I'd love to be able to pass it on to you. For example, for all those from Mayfair the young lady who was taken to the hospital with severe diabetes and gangrene had her leg successfully amputated and Pino and Gloria went to visit her. They said she is in high spirits and seemed open to visits and possible study. These are the type of details that I would love to share with everyone when I can. So please, don't hesitate to ask. The worst I can say is that I don't know! But that being said, I'll do my best to find out.

This weekend should be a good one. There is an all day seminar to be held in San Vicente for the Baja bible school. It is the first of three seminars in level one. Check the blog for photos and information early next week.

Please be praying for us here in Baja. Pray that we may have a divine purpose and be useful to the work of our Father here in Baja.

-Matt

Feliz Cumple

2008-08-25T11:49:00.000-07:00

This weekend was a fun one! On Friday morning I headed out to Maneadero for brother Alfredo's birthday. On the way out I picked up a cake from Costco. Alfredo's wife, Carmen, made some incredible sopes and we spent the morning just hanging out, talking and celebrating.

Sopes made by Hna. Carmen

Also, Celeste (the youngest daughter of Maria and Raymundo) is starting college on September 1st. She has to take English classes, so I spent some of the of the morning working with her on some basic English . She is excited to start, and thanks to Brad Sullivan and the church in Montgomery, she has a great opportunity in front of her.

Celeste studying a little English

On Sunday, I went to church in Maneadero. Alfredo had asked me on Saturday to give the teen class Sunday morning. I talked about accents and how our lives should have be lived with a Christian accent. Misael preached the sermon and did a great job!

The plan for now is to update this blog a couple of times a week, and then on Thursday or Friday to send out a report. That's the plan, we'll see how it all works out!

-Matt

Reporte 8/21

2008-08-21T12:29:00.000-07:00

My report for this last week is done. Unfortunately it is too long to post here. If you would like it, feel free to email me at mattbajamissions@gmail.com and I'll send it to you.

Regreso al trabajo

2008-08-19T11:13:00.000-07:00

Hello all,

This is my first attempt in history at blogging. I think it could be fun. I arrived Friday to Ensenada after spending a week or so at home with my family. It was good to relax after a very busy and, in my opinion, productive summer with Baja Missions.

The goal this weekend was to attend the teen retreat in San Vicente and spend some time with the preachers of Baja Missions in their homes to talk about ways to improve the ways we can serve them.

Las hermanas making lunch at the youth retreat

Everyone seemed to have a great time at the teen retreat. It started with a devotional and then the teens went out to pass out literature to the community. While the teens were passing out the flyers, the preachers had an organizational meeting. Afterwards, brother Pino had the lesson. Lunch followed and then a friendly inter-church futbol tournament closed out the day. I'm sad to say that my team of Maneadero and Camalu was put out by San Quintin in the first round. In the finals Erendira took down San Quintin in an exciting match 2-0. I did have the honor to be picked up by the champions to play goalie where I stopped all of the shots that I received (exactly 0).

Team Maneadero/Camalu

After the youth retreat Misael and I spent the rest of the weekend visiting with the preachers and spending time in their homes. A lot of good insights and ideas came out of these meetings and we're working on a way to share them with the groups so that we, as Baja Missions, can be more effective in serving our brothers and sisters here in Baja. Dios les bendiga.

-Matt