We have been joined this week by Pastor Larry of Calvary Baptist Church in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania and Jim Crozier of Camp Caroline in Caroline, Alberta. These men have been a great blessing to us. Pastor Larry has the gift of evangelism. He and Marcel spent some time street evangelizing while they were downtown being tourists. As they gave a Bible to one man, another man who had been listening intently but off to the side came over to them and asked, "Do you have another Bible for me?" They did happen to have just one more and it was meant for this second man. Pastor Larry has also given us some timely wisdom and been an encouragement to us and the Ruiz family. Jim Crozier helped us think through some strategic planning regarding the Retreat Center in Acolman. His years of camp ministry experience where beneficial to us as well. Our thanks to their families and ministries for "sharing" their gifted leaders with us for a few days! The photos we share today are: 1) the edge of the garden at the Retreat Center 2) our new windows on the boys' dormitory 3) Pastor Larry visiting with our colleague, Moises and the Retreat Center caretaker, Carolina and 4) a rare, clear morning when we could see the volcanoes Itza and Popo from our house in the NW of Mexico City.

I Have A Headache

Our new English as a Second Language classes have become quite popular. We get about 15 people every Wednesday and Friday night and there is still lots of interest about the class in the community. Another lady drove here tonight and said she is interested in the classes as are some of her friends and neighbours. As with all people who join our English classes, we tell them that it is followed by a Bible study and most of the people stay for that, too. Moises teaches the adults while Brittany teaches a small Bible study to the teens that come. I'm very proud of her for taking this study on. She is a real go getter and is craving to have an active youth ministry to be a part of.
At a recent lesson we were talking about going to the doctor and how to, in the most simple way, say that you are in pain. I said to them "Just say the body part and then say ache. For example, 'I have a stomach ache', 'I have a foot ache', etc." When the English and Bible study class finished, we enjoyed some coffee and cake and watched the last few minutes of the soccer game between Canada and Mexico that was played in Edmonton. In the closing minutes of the game here was a rush of Mexican players toward the Canadian goal, a kick was made, and the Canadian goalie came out, made a great save but elbowed a Canadian defender in the head. The defender went down hard! Just then one of our students, Oscar, said "I have a headache." We all burst out laughing. The pictures above show the teens that Brittany is leading, the second picture is of the hurting player and the third is a closeup of some of the kids. The game was a tie 2-2.

Canadian Thanksgiving with a Mexican Twist

Last night we had 50 people in our home to help us celebrate Canadian Thanksgiving. Some people we had gotten to know through our English lessons, others we know through a ladies' bible study and still others, through the Ruiz boys' soccer club. We met husbands/wives and children of people we had met. We had an explanation of the history of Canadian Thanksgiving and we all sang "Give Thanks" in both Spanish and English. We ate a lot of turkey and also enjoyed poutine.
Poutine originates from Canada's French speaking province, Quebec. It is made with french fries, cheese curds, and hot beef gravy that is poured on top and partially melts the cheese. Yum! There is a new teacher at our girls' school here in Mexico City. She is from Quebec and was delighted to have some poutine. When we asked this francophone to tell us what poutine means, she simply told us to go and eat some. After a little research, we have discovered that it means "Mess." So true when you have melted cheese and gravy dripping from your fries.
Earlier in the day, Marcel gave a presentation about Canada to the elementary students at Mexico City Christian Academy on the occassion of their annual Cultural Day. As always, our potluck meal was delicious with a variety of Mexican, American, Canadian, and Korean food. The Korean girls wore their beautiful traditional dresses.
After such a full day, we were plenty tired but truly grateful for what God is doing here. Around midnight, the Ruizes, another missionary couple - the Williams, and our Christian neighbor gathered with us to pray and thank God at the end of the Thanksgiving party in our home.