Tuesday, November 26, 2013

26 November 2013 Update!

Saludos from Oaxaca!

We have had a great and busy few weeks.  We are very thankful for your prayers!  Your prayers make a difference in our lives every day.

Here's some highlights of the past few weeks...
  • Haylee and Jackson are doing great.  This has been a challenging semester at school but both are doing great with their schoolwork and social activities.  Jackson continues to grow taller and perfect the art of doing homework and playing video games at the same time.  Haylee received her ACT (American College Test) scores and she did great!  Her current scores will bring scholarships and she has an opportunity to go to any college she wants.
  • We were able to visit a new area of southern Mexico to investigate a people group that we had never visited before.  We found a lot of need for church-planting but we also found some believers who are making a huge impact for the Kingdom where they are living.  We came home so encouraged by what the Father is doing through His people.
  • Liesa continues her ministry at the children's home, working with our Hands On girls, working on financial stuff for our Connecting Cluster, and a multitude of other tasks.  She's looking forward to a holiday break soon.
  • Jeff has been busy conducting research in some areas of Mexico and also trying to serve some of our other missionaries in the Americas.  We're seeing open doors among several unreached people groups in southern Mexico.  We are praying for good Mexican church partners and some great USA church partners to work together to plant churches.
These next few weeks will be a mix of fun and work...
  • Our Fall Team Retreat will be on the beach during Thanksgiving Week.  We are blessed with a great team of folks to work with and we'll spend a few days celebrating and relaxing.  
  • Jeff will be traveling to another country in Central America to attend a meeting of missionaries working to reach the unreached people groups in our part of the world.
  • Liesa will be taking care of home base and being 'Super Mom' to our super kids.
  • We'll be headed to Mississippi on Dec 21 to spend a few days with our families and friends.  We are ready for some time with the folks we miss so much.
  • We'll say good-bye to several of our team mates who will be returning to the USA after serving for this semester.  We'll miss Jim, Jasmine, Sarah, Shelley, Hannah, Kat, and Hannah #2 so much.  They have been a huge blessing to so many and have worked extremely hard.
You can join us in praying for these things:
  • Pray for a  HUGE Lottie Moon Christmas Offering this year.  We are at a critical moment in the life of Southern Baptist Missions and to reach our $175 million goal would certainly solve a lot of problems.
  • Pray for some new Hands On team mates who will be arriving in February.
  • Pray for new USA church partners who understand the importance of training, learning culture, and engaging in healthy ministry practices.
  • Pray for Mexican Baptists to have a vision for southern Mexico that will motivate them to give and go to their own people.
You all are a blessing to us.  Happy Thanksgiving!

Jeff, Liesa, Haylee, and Jackson


Monday, November 4, 2013

4 November 2013 Update!

Hola from Oaxaca!

We're going to share an update through photos...

 This is an open door among the CS people group.  This village has a few believers but they have not gathered as a church body.  Would you pray for a church in this village?

Liesa's birthday was this week and these folks showed up for some cake, ice cream, and to love on Liesa.  She deserves it!
Happy!
Happy!
Happy!

Nando and Mili came all the way from Argentina to serve as missionaries on our team for two weeks!  They are a HUGE blessing and we already miss having them here.  Pray for them as they follow Jesus wherever He leads them.

The Fall Festival at Oaxaca Christian School was a lot of fun this year.  Here's Jackson and couple of his buddies.

If there's an opportunity to dress up in some weird way then Haylee is usually the first in line.  She definitely gets the school spirit award!

Hands On is a missions program for young adults to serve with missionaries on the field and get 'Hands On' training.  Hannah and Kat are leading our team meeting in this photo.  Pray for Hannah A, Hannah B, Kat, Jasmine, Shelley, and Sarah as they finish up their semester with us.

Hands On is also a program for young adults to see how many ice cream cones they can eat at once.  Here are Hannah and Jasmine giving it their best shot.
World's Best Team of Missionaries.

We are so grateful for your prayers.  You are an important part of our team.  Keep up the great work!

Jeff, Liesa, Haylee, and Jackson