Last month, we as a family had a blast one weekend making this "trailer". This is the first time the internet has been reliable enough to upload it. We hope you enjoy "The Fantastic Four" starring Caleb, Luke, Elijah and Hope. I finally got it to post in time for today, Luke's 6th birthday! Happy Birthday, Scooter!
The Kids with "Uncle Monkey"08/13/2011 Last week's meetings allowed us the opportunity to visit with our good friend from Peru, Arnold. The kids loved seeing him (and enjoying the peruvian treats he brought us)!  Luke's preschool graduation07/07/2011 Luke has graduated from preschool! :). And, to be honest, it is celebrated pretty heavily here. The kids get presents and flowers (we came up with a toy car for Luke- much less than his buddies). And they had a big program (nearly 3 hours long!) with it ending with Luke's class dance (see video below). It was adorable. We are proud of his dancing and, especially, how much Spanish he as learned since we've arrived in Mexico. written by John. "Once upon a time, a man from our town was offered a gift- sheep's wool. The man held the strings of wool in his hands but could not figure out how to use it. The gift was taken from him. Some time later, a virgin appeared to a neighboring town with the same gift- strings of sheep's wool. That man studied the materials and discovered he could weave beautiful things from the strings of wool. Because this man had used the gift well, his town prospers. And because our town failed to use the gift, it is a town destined to poverty." -told by our neighbor "We are a forgotten people." "Most people in our town rarely use the word 'happiness'. They really don't know what it means." -a believer in our town "Last year, he got drunk and beat his wife- her nose was real flat and she had to leave" "She always chooses brutal men. Her husband beats her and is a brutal man, but not as brutal as her previous husband." "We are destined to poverty. We believe it cannot change." These are our neighbors. This is their life. From the lady across the street with the bloody nose and the distant gaze to the men who work but make no money, they are a people without hope. Many have lived and worked in the United States- they have tasted a different life. But, in the end, this is their village. This is their people. And this is there lot in life. They feel without hope. When I speak to people in the USA, they usually ask me, do you like it where you live. While in Costa Rica, I would respond by saying how amazing it is to live so close to a tropical paradise and reference the volcanos, rain forest, etc that I got to visit. While in Peru, I'd tell of the food- some of the best in the world. I'd share about my Peruvian friends, amazing people whom I'd love to work alongside again. But here, I've come to a realization. I'm living in a darker place. Oh, don't get me wrong, there are plenty of dark places in Costa Rica, Peru and the USA for that matter. But now, I'm living in the middle of it. This is my harshest encounter with the hopelessness that comes from a place with very little gospel witness. We don't stay because we "like it here". We don't stay simply because "we love the people". (After about the 1000th lie I'm told directly to my face, my "love for the people" wanes). No, we stay because CHRIST LOVES THEM! God is calling on people right here to be saved. There are already a few believers here. God wants people from this "tribe and tongue" to worship Him around the throne. We stay because HIS love constrains us. The people say they are without hope. The land is rocky and dry. There are many without a well, and water is very limited. The community politics are confusing at best, and chaotic at worst. The people work but don't make money. Life is futile... and then there is Christ! He is calling to them. They feel forgotten but HE sent my family to them. They feel without hope, but HE offers them hope, peace, life. In HIM, Mezcal (liquor) quits ruling men and fists quit governing women. In HIM, they can stop fearing "the evil eye" and "losing their soul" and they can know "that greater is he that is within them and he that is in the world". HE does, in fact, offer HOPE. They are not forgotten by Him. And, HE already speaks their language. Oops, I fell behind!05/08/2011 Man, I can't believe how fast you can fall off a good habit! Ugh! Well, I have lots to tell. I guess I'll just say a few highlights and I'm also going to put up some pictures on Dropshots (click on Photos and Videos) and on facebook if you're on there. Pictures always do good at telling stories, too! Some highlights:
Thanks for loving us and praying for us! Love A Little Something.04/28/2011 written by John. This is... a little something. It is a little something I wanted to write about each member of my family. I am, indeed, a very blessed man. Hope. My little girl continues to grow up before my very eyes. She seems to have a new word everyday (I promise she said "Doggie" today but no one else seems to have heard it). Her big blue eyes melt my heart and she may be the best "missionary" of the family as she has started more meaningful conversations. Her sweet smile disarms all pretenses and allows us to talk with people that are pretty skeptical of our presence. Elijah. My littlest man is a great kid. He smiles all the time and brings much joy to our home. Just this morning after breakfast, he came and sat in my lap and pretended to be my puppy. He still has so much "toddler lovin" in him... for which I'm grateful. Luke. Luke is one caring little boy. Just yesterday he stopped playing and came to Hope's side so she wouldn't be left alone in her highchair (she managed to tip it over a few weeks ago). When we came into the room a moment later and praised him, he simply told me that he was about to run out of the room when God told him to protect Hope. He stood by her so that she couldn't tip the chair. This is one of tons of compassionate examples that I could share. Caleb. What can I say about my oldest. Ever the extrovert, he has made friends with many people since we've moved to our village. Evidence of this could be the kids that seem to constantly stop by or the way his school lights up when he arrives. But he isn't open to other little boys, you should have seen him play/care/love on the little girl who recently visited her grandma. She didn't have too many playmates because she lost the ability to use her tongue (she can't talk and has a hard time eating) when she was sick as a baby. Others may have neglected her, but Caleb played with her as hard as he could. They were precious together. He'll even visit with our elderly neighbor... by himself. Jenny. My greatest earthly treasure and the love of my life, Jenny is such a blessing to me. Were it not for her, I wouldn't have 4 wonderful kids. And were it not for her, my life would be much less colorful. She has a way of brightening my day (her smile still captivates me!) and is constantly making me laugh. As mother and missionary, I see her growing more effective almost daily. And as a wife, I believe I could do no better. She better resembles Proverbs 31 day by day. I thank God for my family. Today: Hell and the Word of God04/21/2011 written by John. Today has been a BIG day. We put together our new basketball goal (I'm excited to have this since we have a concreted backyard.) After that, Jen whipped up a delicious lunch for our guests. Rodolfo and Mariana are two super sweet people who have helped us with so much and are also helping us learn their language. We had a wonderful day visiting, hearing about the old days of our village (when they operated strictly on a barter system rather than on Mexican currency). We laughed and learned from this sweet couple who are in their sixties. Then I heard something that has haunted me the rest of the day. Today a man in our village died. Today he was buried. Today, he is in Hell. As I reflected upon this man whom I've never met, I couldn't help but consider if his fate would have been different if the Bible existed in his language? What if someone was sharing God's story in his language and he had heard the words of life? What if? Where would he be? I thought about this as I walked down the hill this afternoon to meet with 9 believers in a neighbor's house. Once the worship service started, we sang and clapped and prayed. But the Pastor then did something unexpected, instead of preaching, he told a story. I mean, I had taught him about storying the last two weeks (this is his "payment" for teaching me the language- I have to teach him how to tell Bible stories in a way that will help his people learn them and share them). I don't know, I just didn't expect him to implement anything this quickly. So, he told the story of Solomon, his gaining wisdom and exercising said wisdom. He did it in Spanish and no fireworks sparked as he recounted the story. Together, the group pieced the story together. He then asked who could share the story. Some did okay, others not so much. When he got to the sweet elderly woman on the front row, I was ready for him to call it off. She was so sad- she said she couldn't remember any of it. Then, in the indigenous language, he addressed her for about 3 minutes. All of a sudden, in a strong voice, she boldly retold the entire story in her OWN language! The next lady to speak then told the same story and, again, it was told in the people's mother tongue! The meeting ended with everyone in the room telling the story- some in Spanish, some in their language. The pastor then, as if on cue, expressed to them why it was important for them to learn God's word and to share it with others. He then encouraged them to share this story with others and told them they will be learning more stories. After the service, I took the opportunity to clarify what had happened in the other language and rejoiced to hear just how well they could recount the story. The pastor's wife then showed me a beautiful sight, it was the Bible story told tonight that she had written out in their language, so that all can understand the story. As she said, and as was testified tonight- "many of these people speak Spanish, but they understand in their language". While probably not the first time, tonight was one of the rare times when God's word was shared in this rare language. Tonight, there is one more man in hell. I pray that, through the Word of God powerfully spoken in this ancient language, there will be many who do not share his fate. Thanks for praying for Elijah!04/12/2011 written by Jenny Thank you for all who are praying for our Elijah- today went ok- however, they were short a teacher and so Elijah's class was merged with another. So, after they formed and sang to the Mexican flag and Elijah was heading to "his class," another teacher (not his) came to tell him that he would be in a different class today with a different teacher! Oh, my heart just sank! Just as he was getting a little used to something, more change! Bless his heart! He did ok, though! And I found out they only have 3 days this week and then we are on break until May 2!! Yeah! I am thankful for the little break! They have been troopers, for sure!! Thanks for continuing to pray for Elijah and all of our kids (and us) as we are adjusting!! A Little Picture of Culture Shock!04/11/2011 written by Jenny  I remember when we first got to Costa Rica (almost 4 years ago now- woah!!), I was sawing through these Nicholas Sparks novels like crazy!! And it was just so odd- I love to read, but I was really knocking a bunch of books out! We quickly realized that this was my response to the culture shock! Since then, we've heard plenty of other stories of other people's "coping mechanisms" to culture shock! Well, our kids have been so little for so many of the big changes that have been made in their lives that we have rarely noticed big reactions in them! Well, they are getting bigger and these changes are definitely hard on their little bodies who like routine and structure and security (as does their Mama, too, by the way :) )! So, Elijah has clearly struggled the most this time with the changes!! Also, poor guy has had the "culture shock" of going to pre-school 5 days a week on top of living in a new place with a new language, people literally petting his cheeks as he walks down the street, etc. So, Elijah's "out" has been the Wii!! He has been playing it way too much, but honestly, we are pretty much allowing him to, certainly saying no at times, but also realizing how difficult this is on them!! So, would you please pray for our Elijah specifically this week that he would be able to adjust so well to pre-school and to our town and to Spanish?? Thank you! I would love for him to make strides in his Spanish and in making a buddy at school this week!! Thank you so much!! 3 prayer requests04/05/2011 Written by John. I realize many of our supporters keep up with us more now through facebook than through the website. If you want to be our friends on facebook, simply click here and then choose either Jenny and/or John to be your friend. Additionally, you'll find a link to me on twitter on that same page. In addition to this info, here are three things I'd ask you to pray about on our behalf.
|  John & JennyFollowers of Jesus, missionaries in Mexico and parents of 4 great kids. CategoriesOur Old BlogsYou can read hundreds of past blog entries over at our old blog sites: ArchivesApril 2012 |
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