Update 2.18.2007

Hello, friends. The Internet has been down for quite a while. It is now repaired, and I have three weeks of updates to give you!

Josh and I have been very busy. We attended a wedding of two missionaries, with our friends the Wilkes, two weeks ago on Sunday. The wedding was near Los Mochis, where Petra and I were to dropped off for a week at the Christian school that she works at. The wedding was 3 hours long, followed by a two-hour reception. While there, Josh and I met and received invitations to visit two other missionary families. We plan to visit an orphanage and school, and also a ministry on the beaches of the ocean to the incredibly poor, before we leave Mexico. After the wedding, Petra and I were dropped off at the school for a week.

(PHOTOS: Eunice, a student, in a treehouse; Petra with two girls from her school; ACE students at work)
I had a great time at the school. During the day, I helped Petra and the other teacher, and learned a lot of sign. In the evenings, I practiced my signs and Spanish, mended many of the student’s clothes, made suppers and prepared for breakfasts, and spent time making friends and practicing my new languages. The school runs on the ACE curriculum, which I am familiar with because I studied for two years under this program. There are 30 students, ranging from 7-28 years old; ½ are deaf, and ½ are hearing. There is a great age gap because many teenagers come to the school with a second-grade education. Imagine, living your whole life in Public School, and reading a book, but not understanding what it means and not understanding what the teacher is saying! When the deaf students first began attending the school, it was solely a deaf school; now it is integrated, and all the students are bilingual in Spanish and Sign Language; some are trilingual and more with English and American Sign! ACE is a great curriculum for these children, because they learn at their own level and work at their own pace. Mexico is very ignorant about disabilities, and rather than giving parents knowledge about how to help their blind, lame, deaf, or mute child, the doctors tell the parents to encourage the children to be “normal.” The blind are shoved into the streets; the deaf are yelled at, to no avail; the lame are laid on the floor to use their arms for legs. Many deaf students have families who do not know sign; for this reason, David and Michelle Bonsell, two of the teachers, have opened their home to be a school-week dormitory. For students who live far away, they live with the Bonsell’s all year and visit their families on major holidays. Mexico carries a sad ignorance of the disabled. Please pray that advocates are raised in this nation to be the voice for those who cannot speak for themselves, and to encourage the Public to have better accessibility and help for the physically and mentally impaired.

I am teaching sign language now to the grandmother of one of the deaf students at the school in Mochis. Her name is Luz. Luz and her husband are caring for her son’s daughters, and the oldest, Pati, is deaf. Their mother died in childbirth with Pati’s younger sister. Both girls look, act, and laugh alike, but until a year ago, Pati lived in a quiet world where no one could speak to her. She has learned many signs in Los Mochis, and is a very bright 7-year old with the attitude of a teenager! Now I am teaching her grandmother how to talk with her. It has helped me practice my Spanish as I say the words, and then explain the signs. Luz wants to learn, and I’m very excited about this opportunity. Luz is very patient and is very excited, also. (Picture Right: Pati)

(photobelow: Clothing Sale in Siribampo)

The following Sunday, we visited a nearby village where we know of only two Christians. We sang Worship songs, had two brothers testify, and sold all the clothes we brought down. Each outfit was 10 cents each (1 peso); in the past, the missionaries have experienced jealousy and fights from the villagers because someone received more free things than someone else. By asking a small fee, we eliminated this battle and the people were very blessed. We’ve been asked to return in March to visit the High School dormitory to share testimonies and sing more songs.

(Photo Below: Judiel Jr.; Photo Right: Current Outhouse at Judiel Sr.'s home))
The money that was collected from the sale of 800 pieces of clothing in Siribampo has purchased enough bricks, cement, and rebars to build a bathroom for a brother in need. He has a three-wall outhouse with a hole in the ground to squat over, and the sticks are old and falling apart. Josh is heading up the construction of the bathroom. He will post more about this work later.

(photo below left: Two Christian children from the mountain village; Photo below Right: Shrine to the Holy Mother in the Indian Village)
We visited the mountain villages this week. The people live very secluded lives there. They have strong Indian heritages. They lack churches because of their unwillingness to mingle with outsiders, and the Christians are few amongst the pagan witchcraft and ancient Indian religions. It was good to meet Christians there and share encouragement and scriptures with them. I have learned that Christians enjoy encouragement from one another much more than I have ever experienced. There is a great divide between “Catholics” and “Christians,” and it has caused families to split. Many only have family within the Body of Christ now because they left the Catholic faith and are now shunned. Christians are also persecuted for their faith when they work with others who do not share their faith in Jesus Christ. Idolatry is very prevalent here: mountains are dedicated to memorials of Mary and other saints, with benches to worship her and tables decorated with candles to be lit in remembrance. The highways are decorated with carvings of the Holy Mother’s face and cemeteries are turned into cities for the dead, where many believe those who have passed can live until they have passed through purgatory. Catholicism has gripped this nation so tightly that their hearts are closed to the truth that Jesus Christ is the only way to a righteous life and a heavenly inheritance. The Bible has much to say about the worship of the images of anything, even if it is intended to be an image of God, for He says, “I am God, I do not dwell in wood, or stone, or precious metals…I am a jealous God, worship me, alone.” Please pray that the Christians will be strong in their faith, commitment, and love for their neighbors in the midst of persecutions and shunnings.

As my Spanish gets better and better, I am making more friends. My very good friend, Carmen, operates the community store here in the village. She invites me into her home every day for coffee and conversation. I also have made a friendwith Judiel's wife, Pati. Judiel is a good friend with Joshua now, and they are together a lot, working and talking “Spanglish” (Judiel knows a little English, and Josh knows a little Spanish, so together they have a language of their own!) Our friends have become very comfortable talking with us about everything, from the scriptures, to spiritual battles, to daily life. It is honor that I am considered a “friend,” because this culture is very strict about this difference of “acquaintance” and “friend.” My friends are sad that I will be leaving this summer. They want Josh and I to return, yet when we agree, they respond, “Many of us want to come to the United States, are you sure you want to come back here? There you work little, and are paid much. Here, you work much, and are paid little.” I will write more of this later, but the injustice of poverty here weighs heavy on the hearts of Christians and they struggle to "be content in humility" and not resent their poor state while others live in prosperity. Please pray for them, as resentment is a sin that they fight in their hearts every day. Please pray that they grow in their faith and walk with wisdom and mercy.


Lacynda