Nice and Simple

Sometimes I just love Mexico!  Yesterday I woke up with an ear infection.  These are not uncommon for me here in Mexico.  I get 3 or 4 a year.  Back in Canada this would mean a doctors appointment - a month down the road!  Or it would mean waiting at the drop in clinic......................in the cold!  Unless you want to wait all morning, you need to be there in line outside a half hour before they open the door.  Even in a little town like ours!
Anyway I went a few blocks down the street to a Pharmacy where they have a doctor.  I had to pay $2.50 to see the doctor (which was refunded after I bought medication there).  I had to wait inside which meant air conditioning for about 5 minutes.  She said I had a fungal ear infection alright.  Right next door I bought the 2 medicines she prescribed for me which totaled about $20 and then she refunded my $2.50 for seeing the doctor.............................................

All said and done in 20 minutes or so!  And I am on the road to recovery!  Sometimes I just love Mexico!

Fruit is Coming!

            Some of the girls who come to the Drop-In-Center and some of the leaders making cupcakes
                                                   
Each Friday night is a time of satisfaction and joy for me.  It didn't always used to be that way however.

Every Friday night I go to the church to mostly observe (although the leaders have asked me to do some teaching for a few weeks) the Drop-In-Center we call “The Seed” or “La Semilla” in Spanish.  This is a ministry that we founded a few years ago.  Its purpose was to reach out to the teens of a nearby shanty town who wouldn't otherwise come to church.  My vision in this ministry was (and still is) to pour into the more mature youth in our church and train them to lead this ministry, which they are now doing.  Those first months after we started, really that first year, had its share of bumps along the road.  The youth who were running it weren’t very faithful in showing up and taking much leadership and the kids who came from the shanty town absolutely bounced off the walls!  Well times have changed!

We have mostly new leaders who are being much more faithful and responsible and the kids who come actually listen to what we have to say!  I have encouraged the leaders to focus on building relationships with these kids and that has been happening.  The female leaders will sometimes take the girls out for something to eat after the drop in centre or they plan an outing on another night of the week.  The male leaders just recently planned a night out at a local night-time soccer field for the boys.  They absolutely loved it!  Just this past Friday a mom of two of the female leaders came and began to train the girls in how to cut hair.  Her hope is to train them so that they might be able to earn some money in a respectable way and not end up on the streets selling themselves as so many in their circumstances do. 

I shared a short message from the word with the boys this past Friday and they were all attentive!  It was quite a shock for me!  This never used to be the case.  These boys are changing!  God is working in their hearts!  I have also seen a lot of maturity among the leaders of this ministry as they see that God is using them in the lives of these kids.  What a blessing for me to be a part of this and see how God is changing lives through this vision He gave me a few years ago. 

Thank-you for enabling us to be here to make a difference!

News From Haiti on our Adoption!

Introducing Jackson and Judeson!  We were overjoyed and overwhelmed to find out this past week that these 2 precious twin baby boys have been matched with our family for adoption!  Aren't they adorable?  These 2 little fellers are 4 months old.  As you can imagine our family is going crazy with excitement!  Unfortunately we aren't on the brink of bringing them home into our family just yet.  There is much paper work in Haiti and some immigration work in Canada to be done still.  So please pray with us that it will be done quickly!  We don't really know how long it will take but we do know that things are moving much quicker than they used to in Haiti since the earthquake.  Pray them home!  We appreciate your prayers so much!  Thanks for journeying with us!
On another note we are off to Mexico on Oct. 1st and will be returning at the beginning of December.  There is much ministry planned for this 2 month trip and we appreicate your prayers for that as well!  We will be in touch from Mexico!  Thank you for being in our corner!
Lane and Sheri
Alexis Jemma and Noah Elliott

September prayer letter

Check out our September Prayer letter by clicking here!

Crazy Amazing Missions Trip Comes to an End

It has been a week and a half or so since many of the young people I work with in Mexico were here in Western Canada on a missions trip!  It was such a blessing and a dream come true to have them here to see where I grew up etc and to get to know the people who sent us out to them.
We spent a week in Buffalo Narrows Saskatchewan doing a kids club there and in another smaller town called Dillon about 45 mins away.  We partnered with an E-Free church in Buffalo Narrows and it was a privilege to be able to plant seeds in that spiritually need community as well as encourage the pastor.  Working in an area with hard soil can be discouraging I am sure, so it was a blessing that the pastoral family was encouraged!  We also did ministry with teens and with moms.  I translated many testimonies from Spanish to English and many hearts were touched.
Then we spent the better part of a week doing another kids club at our home church in Sundre.  What a blessing it was to have our Mexican team billet out with friends from our home church!  The interaction between them was priceless and I know that our church was so encouraged and challenged with what they saw and heard.
We mixed in a bunch of other church presentations each evening as well as a presentation at the E-Free National Conference held in Okotoks.  Thankfully there was one break when we took the team to Banff National Park.  They were amazed as were we (even though we had been there before) at  God's nature and the work of His hands!
Often we a team goes on a missions trip the goal is to accomplish something at the destination, whether it be discipleship, evangelism or some other goal.  However often times I think the greatest work happens in the hearts of those who go to serve.  God is so amazing that way.  I saw many of the people from our Mexican church break out of their shell and share what God was doing in their life with strangers.  Some of them had never done that before and once they did and saw the reaction of the listeners (some of whom asked questions and related to their stories - I translated for them back and forth) they were hooked!  They were so thankful that God used them to touch someone's life!  Hopefully they will continue sharing and being used by Him back home in Mexico as well!
So thank you so much for your prayers for this trip.  It was amazing and it was about the busiest 2 and a half weeks of my life!

Pictured is the group at Lake Morraine in Banff National Park.  We sang a song of praise to God at that location above the lake, in Spanish!  Some onlookers cheered afterward!

One Last Push Before the End of the Season

Monday night we were out at a local vineyard again.  The number of people from the church was larger than ever!  We must have had about 15 people there!  Once we arrived we walked around the area in groups of 2 where the people sleep etc with bibles in hand.  We started up conversations about spiritual matters, matters of the heart.  Almost all the Migrant Workers listened to what we had to say and most wanted a bible.  I think we gave away about 400 in an hour!  Then we invited them to come an listen to a few praise songs that some of the youth played live for the people.  After that it was time for a few short videos which explained the true gospel message and then I wrapped it up, again with the gospel message from John 15 "I am the vine you are the branches".  I figured the Migrant Harvest Workers who harvest grapes should be able to relate to that part of scripture!  Then one of the men from the church prayed for the people who were there listening.  He invited anyone who had been convicted, or who wanted to know Christ to come forward.  About 30 or so people came forward, most of them young men!  Some of them were crying, even sobbing.  I believe the tears were because of a repentant heart.  These young men really wanted to know Christ!  You could just feel the Spirit of the Lord present as my friend prayed and prayed for these people!

It was a great night, a great way to finish what has been a wonderful season of harvesters coming to hear about and some of them coming to know Jesus!  I know He has been glorified in our effort out there.  Hopefully we will be able to continue in discipleship with those few who do remain at the vineyards year round.  We are so thankful to the Lord for this opportunity and thankful to the Lord for people who gave financially for the bibles to be purchased!

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