Mission News
August 13, 2008
Lily Morales sends us a
special link to see photos of the church progress.
August 8, 2008
Dear friends:
[Attached] please find some pictures of the advances of the
construction.
Unfortunately we have not been able to close completely the
building by the lack of materials.
The supplier left the city and will return in 2 more weeks.
We are happy and grateful to you, for your support in
prayers and contributions.
As soon as we have the building completely finished, I will
send [the] photographs.
Yours in Christ,
Mary Carmen Padilla
--------
Queridos amigos:
Adjunto encontrarán fotografías del avance de la
construcción.
Desafortunadamente no hemos podido cerrar completamente el
edificio por la falta de materiales.
El proveedor salió de la ciudad y regresará en dos semanas.
Estamos contentos y agradecidos con ustedes, por su apoyo
en oración y donativos.
Tan pronto tengamos el edificio totalmente terminado, les
enviaré fotografías.
Les amo en Cristo,
Mary Carmen Padilla
There is still more work to do. Sunday morning church services. Praying the sinner's prayer! Winning souls for the Lord! Look at those beautiful, smiling faces!
Note: Those not familiar with the date format
03/08/2008 be informed that this is the international date
format for our typical usage of 08/03/2008. They use
day-month-year where we use month-day-year.
July 23, 2008
Dear Friends:
As you know, about six years ago we started to plant a
new church in Guadalupe, N.L., México, a county in the
Monterrey area. We rented places to have our services for a
period of five years and a half, this year on March; God
gave us a property to build our Methodist Church “Refuge of
Peace”.
Attach please find four power point documents, that
includes pictures from our land from the very beginning,
when we installed a tent, the first team from Kentucky, &
the second team from Dallas, TX.
For those who have helped with your prayers and
donations, thank you very much, may God bless you so much,
in every area of your lives including in your economy and
finances.
For those who are interested in making a donation, below
there is the bank account for a deposit or wire transfer:
Name: Iglesia Metodista de México Refugio de Paz
Account: 4041883174
Clabe: 0215800 4041 8831744
Bank: HSBC
We are so excited because we have seen how God has been
providing for the purchase of the land, and also for the
construction, thank you so much for your help, work,
prayers, and donations, may God continue to bless you so
much.
Love in Christ.
Mary Carmen Padilla
Public-Relations
Refuge of Peace Methodist Church
Mission Team from the Dallas Area
This is the July Mission team that included our group of volunteers that worked July 10 through July 18, 2008 To build the church, the land hand to be cleared and cleaned up first. All that hard work builds up a hardy and hearty appetite. It seemed everything needed a coat of paint, including each of us. There was plenty of heavy labor. Lifting and moving steel bars and posts then welding them together. The tent had to come done so the church could go up. It was hard work getting the truss parts and roof beams up, but now it looks like a church! On Sunday July 13, we had a rousing church service with lots of music and a large group of joyous and happy people. We were all astonished seeing the fruits of our labors. Had we really done all this in 5 short days?
Mission Team from the Dallas Area
This is the July Mission team that included our group of volunteers that worked July 10 through July 18, 2008
July 19, 2008
See a full Album of Photos from Monterrey, Courtesy of Gayle
Baggett
Go to this on-line
Picasa Album
July 13, 2008
FUMC Mission Team at Work
Most of our group on the steps of the house of
the sister of Pastor Jose Padilla where we are lodging in the
foothills
of Cerra de la Silla (or in English Saddle Mountain) which
overlooks Monterrey.
Dr. Phil Thornton, Pastor Jose Padilla, Pastor Dave Dr. Phil Thornton, Pastor Jose Padilla, Pastor Dave Pastor Dave mixing Rustoleum Cynthia and Cathy painting Walking to work at La Carpa Cathy Ballard working
Cathy Ballard working
Cathy Ballard working
Cathy Ballard working
Cathy Ballard working Heather and Kids
Heather and kids Pastor David Preaching Sunday morning on A Jesus with Skin
Pastor David Preaching
Dr. Phil Thornton of Go International, Pastor Jose Padilla of Refugio de Paz which means Refuge of Peace and Pastor Dave at by Cerro de Silla which means Saddle Mountain. The church is in the foothills of the mountain. Dr. Phil Thornton, Pastor Jose Padilla of Refugio de Paz and Pastor Dave at the work site Pastor Dave mixing Rustoleum Cynthia Stone and Cathy Ballard painting ceiling supports Rick Gaines painting ceiling supports Heather Quinn painting ceiling supports David Anderson painting ceiling supports
Todd Gifford at Refugio de Paz Walking to work at La Carpa or in English The Tent where the congregation is meeting. You can see the foundation has been poured. We are helping with the erection of the steel, the painting of the supports and with general cleaning of the property.
Dr. Phil Thornton, Pastor Jose Padilla, Pastor Dave
Dr. Phil Thornton of Go International, Pastor Jose Padilla of Refugio de Paz which means Refuge of Peace and Pastor Dave at by Cerro de Silla which means Saddle Mountain. The church is in the foothills of the mountain.
July 6, 2008
FUMC Mission Team to Mexico, "I Will Go; Send Me!"
Thursday July 10th is the day! It will be a high spot in the life of our
church when ten of our own church family pack their
toothbrushes and passports, say goodbye to their closest kin
and head off to Mexico to build a church. None of them
really hardy construction workers but all definitely hardy
in spirit and in purpose. Prayerfully they considered God's
call and then responded with a resounding, "I will go! Send
me!"
The Team (L to R): David Anderson; Rick Gaines; Gayle
Baggett; David Turner; Cathy Ballard; Pete McNabb; Cynthia
Stone; Heather Quinn; Todd Gifford; (Christine Anderson not
in photo)
They will be gone nine days spreading God's love across the border.
Please pray for the team, their project and for each
individual member for strength, perseverance of spirit and
an overwhelming knowledge of God's grace and guiding hand as
the go on their journey. May they be blessing to all they
meet, to each other and to God.
May 26, 2008
Photographs from Trujillo,
Honduras
On May 14th, Larry Cochran promised photographs depicting
their progress in the Honduras. These are the photos. You
may wish to refer to his previous letter below with the
heading May 14.
Pastor Herman and some of the Flock Larry, Francisco, Maria, and Hermando Maldanado (right to left) Maria, Francisco and Herman New church building under construction Last shot before leaving for home Bibles for the church; Cheryl Walker, Shirley Lamb and Lara West A typical house for people living in poverty. VBS under a tool shed roof for the children. Children at the first VBS! Beautiful faces of the children at VBS Candy distribution is always chaos! Youth Evangelism Conference at Trujillo, Honduras
Two years ago we found her, her mother and two siblings living under a tree! Her father had abandoned the family. We built them a new home and left food for two months. Today she is growing up and happy in Jesus at nine years old.
Pastor Herman and some of the Flock
May 14, 2008
Letter from Larry Cochran
Dear Marni,
I am sending photos in mail to you on Thursday. Such
precious memories, and we are so thankful for you and the
folks from FUMC in Irving. Let me share some highlights:
First night we attended evangelism campaign in San Pedro
Zula with over 45,000 people standing in open field, very
impressionable for all us. We counted over 300 school buses
filled with people coming to the event. People are so hungry
here.
Youth conference in Trujillo we had over 200 youth
participate. The church we are working with his has growing
numbers of young people coming every Wednesday for Bible
study and fellowship.
New church you have helped start is pastored by Herman
Maldonado and his wife Maria. They are surrounded by over
300 families in the nearby community. There is one other
church in the area. It was 97 degrees where we were working.
God was good to help us get a good foundation and columns in
place, They should be putting the roof on the next few
weeks. Herman is a contractor and loves his people. We held
the first ever VBS there and helped dispense glasses to
needy people. The sewing classes were a big hit, and
everyone really enjoys making clothes! We also distributed
hundreds of tracts and left over 65 Bibles for the pastor.
The Transformation dinner was attended by 33 pastors and
their wives. We presented them all a packet of five Bibles
and discipleship materials to assist their churches. We hope
to hold a retreat for them next April.
Our team fell in love with the people and the Hondurans
were so appreciative of your support. They felt like angels
had dropped out of the sky to come see and help them. I am
waiting on update photos of the church and will keep you
informed as progress is made. We are praying for your Mexico
trip. Bishop Raul Garcia is a good friend and he feels so
positive about your coming in July.
I hope you enjoy the photos, and perhaps next year we
could plan a trip to Honduras to visit these wonderful
folks. We are also helping send in cattle embryos this
coming year to increase cattle production. A donor from
Alabama called to tell us he would pay for containers and
shipping for everything! Isn't God good!
God Bless,
Larry Cochran
What a blessing to receive this email today. We are the
ones that are grateful for all that you are doing. We are
blessed to be a part of it. I would love for us to plan a
trip to visit next year. Let us know what else we could be
gathering to send to Honduras and Mexico.
Marni
April 28, 2008
Partnership in Action
Partnership in Action, GO International, First United
Methodist and Refuge of Peace Methodist Church, building churches in Mexico and Honduras,
bringing the gospel of Jesus Christ to what we would call -
the ends of the earth or the middle of no where! Gathering
together God's lost sheep from the remote mountains and
plateaus telling them the good news. We are sharing this
free gift of salvation with these hard to reach folks
because that is what God commanded us to do - it's what he
expected from us - so here we are.
This process began about five years ago under the
leadership of pastor Jose Padilla in a remote village in
Mexico. There worship experience began with six members and
the pastor’s family meeting in a rented facility. Nearly all
of there finances went to rent. Collecting money to build
their dream church seemed so far off. but they did
eventually began the purchase process for some property
recently where they are now meeting in a tent.
The property lies at the foot of the mountain “el Cerro de la Silla” or in English Saddle Mountain because it is shaped like a
saddle. (See photo below)
The pastor, his family the congregation of six worked
very hard clearing the property. See the following slide
show to see the pictures sent by Pastor Padilla of what was
happening just a few weeks ago in March.
Report from Honduras
This report is from our Partners in Action, GO
International, a message from the field by Larry Cochran. he
and group of volunteers were at the Guadalupe, Colon,
Honduras site. (They have just returned in the last few
days. We hope to have more in depth report very soon.) The
area is inhabited by poor farm workers. The church they are
building has access to about 300 families now, but area is
growing. Pastor Herman Maldonado and his wife, Maria have
been working in the area for about one year. Larger work
remains under the supervision of Francisco Pavon.
The following photographs were taken at the Honduras
site.
Frame and Brick Structure, the beginnings
of a church
Pastor Herman Maldonado, his wife, Maria,
and a parishioner pray over the church site.
Come - Matt 11:28; Come to
me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you
rest.
Tarry - Luke 10:38-42; As
Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a
village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him.
39 She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord's feet
listening to what he said. 40 But Martha was distracted by
all the preparations that had to be made.
Go - Matt 28:19-20;
Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing
them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the
Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have
commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very
end of the age.
April 14, 2008
Special Mission Letter
Special Letter from Marilyn Wykes, Missionary to
Indonesia
Thank you for your part in the ministry here in
Indonesia. You are a blessing to me through you prayers and
financial support.
Latest News on the Summer 2008 Mission Trip to Mexico
Mission Team to Monterrey, Mexico
July 10 -19, 2008
Irving First and Go international are teaming up with our
ministry partner Rev. Jose Padilla to assist with the
planting of a new church near Monterrey, Mexico. We are
looking for 10 people to join the Go International team to
help raise the walls of the new church and participate with
an evangelistic outreach and prayer ministry to the
Monterrey neighborhood.
Requirements:
-
Passport
with expiration no later than Dec. 19, 2008
-
Good
health and willingness to serve
-
Cost:
$900 plus airfare to Monterrey. This includes ground
transportation, food, lodging, insurance, project and
miscellaneous costs.
Eight scholarships of $1,000 each are available to the
first 8 that sign up. Additional funds are also available.
If you want to go, we will find a way. If you want to
register for the trip and a scholarship, please contact
Pastor Dave. Dr. Phil Thornton from Go International will be
here during the Missions Conference to answer any questions
you might have regarding the trip.
The deadline for registering with our church is May 11th,
2008.
Don’t miss this opportunity to invest in kingdom
ministries with our neighbors to the south.
March 30, 2008
Update from the Missions work area.
As we announced on Sunday, through your generous support of
Faith Promise last year, our church is assisting in the building
of two new Methodist churches in Honduras and Mexico through a
partnership with Go International. I’d like to share a portion
of the letter Go International received from the pastor of the
church in Guadalupe, Mexico. These are his own words, translated
with the help of his sister. You can just hear the excitement in
his words and feel the heart he has for his church. Please lift
him and his congregation up in your prayers and prayerfully
consider traveling to Mexico this summer with the Go
International team to help raise the walls of this new church.
Greetings in the name of Jesus.
I am Pastor José Padilla, Pastor
that is establishing a new Methodist church in Guadalupe,
Nuevo Leon, Mexico, which is next to Monterrey.
My bishop, brother Raul Garcia,
informed me about your interest in work together in the
foundation of a new Methodist church.
Our History: About five years ago,
God moved me and my family from Matamoros, Tamaulipas to
Monterrey , with the vision of planting a new church. We
started with 6 member and my family. We started to preach at
open squares and in houses, the gospel of God, during this
time we have been renting a place. Three weeks ago, after a
great search of a land, and a deep praying intercession, God
has blessed us with a property, where we plan to build our
church "Refugio de Paz" (Refuge of Peace).
We are still doing the Sunday's
services at the local we rent, because, we need to build
bathrooms, and to clean up the property to set a tent to
move maybe in two more weeks to the property, and to have
all services over there.
Now we have a congregation of about 70 people in average.
Our vision is to establish a church
dynamic in the evangelism ministry, prayer ministry,
discipled and to build with that purposes a building that
have: the temple, fellowship , Sunday school classrooms, and
a tower for praying.
Also, we have the dream to have
missionary center, where we can have dormitories up to 34
people at a same time, and to recieve and to give support to
missionary teams from all over the world that wants to do
missionary work in our city or Monterrey area, evangelistic
teams, medical groups, dentist groups, praying groups,
construction groups, social aid groups, etc.
We have a project that has been
done by two Methodist architects, that have donated their
professional work to God. So we are ready to start building
the first fase, which is, the foundation of the half of the
first floor.
Yours in Christ.
Jose Padilla
February 18, 2008
The last weekend in April will be a very special time for our
church. There will be guest speakers, and of course, extra
meetings! Some of those will include food! This year there will
be a special effort to involve everyone in the church in this
weekend. The children’s department will be working on a surprise
for the conference!
One of the last things Jesus told his followers to do was to
go and “make disciples of all nations.” This is the “mission” of
the church. Not just our church, but “the” church. Missions
Conference is an opportunity for each one of us to focus on the
lost of the world around us, near and far, and decide what we
are willing to do to spread the gospel of Jesus to the world.
Helping others is a good thing, but telling others about Jesus
and how they can have eternal life through faith in Him is
REALLY helping others!
We will meet some people during our Missions Conference
weekend who are dedicated to Christ and to fulfilling His “great
commission” to make disciples of all nations. We will have the
privilege of coming along side them in prayer and in financial
support. Listen to the leading of God’s Spirit and discover
where you can be in missions, too!
January 6, 2008
At the last meeting of the Missions Work Area we voted to
spend $32,000 to build two churches in South America with the
assistance of GO International. Larry Cochran who spoke at the
Revival and Mission’s Conference leads GO International and has
primary responsibility for building new churches. $8,000 in
assistance will be offered for those that are selected to go and
help build one of the churches. Qualifications for this
assistance will be determined soon by the new Missions Work Area
members. This trip should be very exciting for those that can go
. . . spreading God’s word . . . building a church . . . seeing
the Love of God growing in another country. Get that passport
ready and go with us to build a new church in South America.
More details will be coming soon.
(for more information on missions and
missionaries that FUMCi sponsors, go to the
Missions page.)
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