August, 2010

Our teammates, the Smith’s, are currently in the U.S. on a mini furlough. They will be returning to Mexico in November.

Church attendance shrinks a bit in the summer as people go away and get out of the routine that the school year provides. Now that school has started back up, we hope that things will pick up again. This week, we will be restarting a small group Bible study that we stopped for the summer.

In June, we had the privilege of baptizing 5 people, one of whom was Caleb. It’s always exciting to see your children make decisions for the Lord! We are also thankful that the other 4 people made the decision to follow the Lord in baptism as well.

Susan’s cousin and her 2 sons were here for 2 weeks.  They helped paint the church, clean debris so the area could be used for a kid’s club, taught English and craft classes, and helped prepare for the VBS.  They were a blessing!

In the end of July, we had our annual vacation Bible school. We had over 100 kids once again this year in attendance with several decisions that were made. We also used the club to invite kids and parents to English classes that a lady in our church gives, as well as a ladies’ weekly craft and Bible study.
Please continue to pray for marriages in the church. Marriages are under attack here. There’s another family that appears to be separating. This seems to be the biggest problem that we face here, and people don’t want to take the energy to work on it.

On a positive note, we want the people to start taking on more responsibilities as the church progresses, and we have two very faithful men. Lino is preaching once or twice a month, and Salvador is going to start preaching once a month starting in September. He has taught Bible studies before, and we are currently teaching him how to prepare and deliver sermons.

Susan is also working on getting the women more involved in helping to teach a women’s Bible study. She is also helping on Thursdays by teaching crafts or baking to the women’s group. This is a group of mostly unbelievers, and Carmen, a lady from our church teaches a Bible study at the end of each class.

Mexico News
Next month, Mexico celebrates it’s 200th birthday. Independence day is big here in Mexico. Mexicans are very proud of their heritage. Everything is green and red this time of year. The favorite food for this time of year is chiles en nogada which is also red, green, and white. We will be having an evangelistic Independence day party at church on September 12th.

As you all have heard, the war on drugs is very bad here in Mexico. Fortunately for us, here in Texcoco, it hasn’t been bad. The majority of the problems are closer to the U.S. border.

Family News
Joshua has started 5th grade, Caleb has started 2nd grade, and Abby has started pre-school. Aaron is learning to walk. Josh, Caleb, and Abby are proud owners of 3 pet bunnies named Gasoline, Shy Guy, and Cookie. (We were passing a gas station when Josh was trying to think of a name. That’s where he got the name Gasoline!)

Thank you so much for your support of the ministry in Mexico! You are an important part of our team!
Thanks, Bryan, Susan, Josh, Caleb, Abby, and Aaron

A printable version can be downloaded here.

Caleb being baptized

Praises

1. Involvement of the church people in ministry
2. New contacts
3. Baptisms
4. God’s protection

Prayer Requests

1. Marriages in the church and community that we are working with
2. Commitment of church family
3. Church Growth
4. Leadership development
5. Commitment of the SS teachers
6. Hearts to be open to the gospel
7. Independence Day Evangelistic Outreach
8. Our future plans