Summer Ministry in Pictures

Here are Lydia and Anna, two of our fabulous summer interns, pictured with Saddleback mountain in the background. I think these girls like Matthew a little bit! :-)

We had an awesome vacation up in Northern Michigan this summer! Steve and I hadn't been up there to see my mom's side of the family in 8 years (I know-- it's deplorable!). Here's a picture of part of us, anyway, at our reunion. Tammy and Todd, the couple on the front left, were so gracious to host all of us at their house on numerous occasions throughout the week. We had a blast!

The family. I think this was taken at the beginning of August.

Here's a group of kids with whom Steve and several guys from a team from Michigan did a soccer ministry in July!

Here's the Michigan Group (WE LOVE YOU!) , as well as Aubre and Sharee (two fabulous interns that spent two weeks with us), and our boys and a few nationals on top of the church. We had a WONDERFUL group from Lakewood UMC in Michigan here in August. What a blessing it was to have them here working alongside us. They came with such sweet, humble servant hearts. One of the things they worked on was laying the tile and doing plumbing work in this bathroom that will be pastor Hector's (read on).

Steve's mom was able to spend a week with us this summer! Here she is with our boys in the top picture and then with Steve inside the apartment that you'll read more about below. Here's Hector's 2nd-floor apartment in process (read more below). Here's Hector (pictured holding his "nephew"- Matthew) the pastor at Cristo Manantial de Amor (Christ the Wellspring of Love) church. We've been investing in this young man and we're seeing God transform his life. Please keep him in your prayers. The community of Nueva Almaguer is a rough place in which to live since there are many spiritual strongholds. As you probably already read in your newsletter, we're working to put in a new 2nd floor apartment for him at the church so that the current "apartment," which really doubles as the kitchen for the children's feeding program, can be opened up for more ministry space (including a much needed sunday school room that can double as possibly a computer lab and triple as a sewing room). Hector needs a place of his own, so we're thrilled about the little apartment that's going in upstairs. Would you pray about partnering with us to get that finished? Would you also pray about providing scholarship money for Hector to complete a seminary degree at Juan Wesley seminary?

We started sewing classes with ladies in the community back in June, and they are going GREAT! Just last week, in fact, all six ladies who attended that day accepted Christ! Praise God! Pictured above are: 1. Lydia at the baby shower we threw for her (We're still waiting on her news, but she's due any day now!), and 2. A group pic with some of our sewing students. :-)