Don't be afraid. Don't be the least bit afraid.

Playful esqueletos (skeletons), colorful calaveras (skulls), and bright cempasúchitl (marigolds) adorn neighborhood yards and local parks in preparation for el Día de los Muertos (the Day of the Dead) this weekend (Nov 1 & 2).  

Contrary to the intentions of many in the US during this holiday season, our Mexican counterparts don't decorate in order to scare us to death, but to mock and make fun of death. My Mexican friends explain it this way: Death is inevitable. Therefore let's not fear what we can't avoid - death - rather let's choose to celebrate life. Let's laugh in the face of fear, let's remember with fondness those who have died, let's rejoice in the life once lived!

See this cutie patootie – not the least bit afraid :)

Many Mexicans also place photos of loved ones, their favorite food and drink, and other remembrances upon these ornate tables. Around these tables, families recall and entice loved ones who have died to visit and enjoy life's pleasures on this one day of the year it is thought they are allowed to roam the earth. 

Although these tables are often referred to as altars, don't mistakenly assume these families worship the dead. According to my Mexican friends, these tables/altars are not places of worship, but simply a gathering of familiar tokens to remember a cherished loved one.

However you choose to celebrate this weekend, may it be filled with laughter and joy at the remembrances of loved ones and the hope of life eternal with Christ.

I almost forgot. Look who I found wondering the streets of Mexico City – MiKo the chameleon ready to join the festivities!

(All my kids and MK friends know who MiKo is. You can too by following this link.)

One more thing. At the request of a friend and missionary colleague, I shared a story of transformation on her blog this past week. Enjoy! The Shape of My Faith

The story of a cloak of flowers and a miraculous image

During language class last week, I read about the Virgin of Guadalupe whose appearance to an indigenous man in 1531, will be commemorated here on the 12th of December. Our language tutor suggested a field trip to the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe for our next class to round out our language studies and learn a little about Mexican culture.

As the legend goes, the Virgin appeared to Juan Diego numerous times, commissioning him to go the Bishop in Mexico City in order to build a shrine. Reluctant to believe his story, the Bishop wanted proof.

On his way to visit his dying uncle, the Virgin appears again to Juan. She declares that his uncle is well and to gather the flowers from the place of her first appearance to bring to the Bishop. Juan fills his cloak with the flowers and travels to him. When Juan lets down his cloak, the flowers cascade to the ground and miraculously an image of the Virgin, as Juan previously described, remains etched on his cloak.

The faithful recognize this as the original cloak and image displayed in the great Basilica today.  

Thousands of faithful pilgrims trekked to the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe on the day we visited, yet the crowds will only grow larger as her day of commemoration nears.

Will you pray with us for the beautiful people of Mexico? 

May our hearts and lives be always drawn to God's one and only Son, Jesus; that we all may know the power of his forgiveness, the hope of his resurrection, and be ever guided by the light of his truth.

The grand adventure of speeding the light

Through the ministry of Speed the Light, Assemblies of God youth provide essential transportation for missionary service.

I imagine this is what Speed the Light thinks we look like as we travel the crazy busy streets of Mexico City.

via GIPHY

However, this is what we usually feel like :)

via GIPHY

Whatever your view, Speed the Light makes sharing the gospel a grand adventure.

Thank you, Assemblies of God youth for helping us Speed the Light of the gospel in Mexico City!

What a character!

Like many mornings here recently, Sunday began as cool and overcast, but by the time we got to Reto a la Juventud (Teen Challenge) we were warmed up sufficiently to regret wearing our choice of attire. Regardless, we enjoyed our time yesterday, including the testimony shared by this hermana prior to the sermon. 

The series, 40 Days of Purpose, continued with Hermano Mario (who usually leads worship) preaching on Fuiste Creado Para Ser Como Cristo (You were created to be like Christ). Mario reminded us that God uses a variety of sources and circumstances to shape our character throughout our lives. 

Haven't we all experienced the consequences of poor choices? Although painful, God can redeem our choices and grow our character. Such truth is quite liberating and provides hope for a better life, especially to the young men of Teen Challenge. 

Yet sometimes we suffer through no fault of our own. Nevertheless, God can (and does) develop our Christlikeness as he comforts us in our misery, loves us through our frustration, and strengthens us in our weakness.

Your partnership in the gospel allows us to be partners in the ministry with so many wonderful people. Thank you for your prayers and support.

God bless the misfits and the outcasts

In recent weeks, a new friend asked us to pray for him. Of course we said we would. And we did. Then in a conversation a few days later he asked again, but with more urgency. This subsequent conversation proved more revealing as he shared his feelings of rejection and loneliness.

My heart really went out to him. No one wants to feel like a misfit or an outcast; these feelings conflict with our created purpose. God created us for relationships and when we feel like we don't fit in (misfit) or we've been rejected (outcast) it cuts to the heart of who we are and our deep need to belong.

So what's a body to do? How can we the convince the misfit or outcast they can belong - they do belong within the family of God? Certainly Jesus invited the misfit and the outcast to his family. But how did he make them feel welcomed?

Well, I recall that he healed the lepers (and commended the foreigner who returned to give thanks); he shared a lively and deeply theological conversation with the Samaritan woman at the well (who then evangelized her neighbors and brought them to him); he publicly defended the woman who anointed his feet with oil (whose tale would be told whenever the gospel is preached); he rebuked the disciples in order to bless the children (and certainly gladdened the hearts of all their parents); and he endeared himself to a tax collector (who repented of his cheating ways and promised to make restitution).

How did Jesus make the misfit and the outcast feel like they belonged? By embracing the foreigner, respecting the rejected one, defending the courageous, showing compassion to the tiny ones, and befriending the despised. 

In other words, he loved them as his own. 

Because they were. 

Even if they didn't know it yet.

Because our encounter with our new friend had me thinking a lot this week about how we could best pray for him and cultivate this friendship, I wrote this prayer:

Lord Jesus, we pray for all the misfits and outcasts in the world to find refuge in the family of God. Draw them by your Spirit so that they may recognize and embrace your merciful love. And because so many of us have felt like misfits and outcasts, may we treat everyone we meet with kindness and respect so that they may discover their self-worth through the knowledge of being created in your image. Amen. (WMB 2015)

*****

As you can see, because of you, we have the privilege of meeting and befriending some truly beautiful people. Thank you again for your faithful prayers and support. Your partnership in the gospel makes this all possible.

Fall Newsletter 2015 Printable PDF