Survey Trip to Mexico City, July 2016

We had the awesome privilege to visit Mexico City and the team currently serving there.  We hope you enjoy the information shared, and the albums you can view for more pictures of what we were able to do and see.  God is on the move in Mexico!

Ministry:
Kurt and Bethany serve in Queretaro, about 2 hours outside of Mexico City in a city of 2 million people.  They hold a soccer club where they teach children soccer skills and about the love of Jesus, an in-home Bible study, and Bible clubs in local parks.  They are currently having their VBS in two of the parks in the area.  One couple who brings their child every week to hear the Bible stories intently listens as Bethany shares the Gospel.  Even when their son is off playing, they are plugged in to what God is teaching them.  Kurt and Bethany are in the beginning stages of church planting in Queretaro.

Antonio and Diana serve right outside of Mexico City.  They are at the stage of church planting in which the congregation is ready to be led by nationals.  Antonio has discipled the deacons so that each deacon oversees a certain area of ministry in the church and all of them write their own sermons based on the Scripture being taught.  Antonio teaches a Bible school twice a week for the deacons and any church leader in the area.  This church is also starting two church plants in the hometown of some of the members. A former witch doctor came to know Christ after Antonio and Diana continually ministered to his children and wife, even after intense intimidation.  He accepted Christ as his Savior and is now actively involved in the church plant in his hometown, with the help of the Navarettes.

Darlene serves in Mexico City.  Although she is involved in children and youth ministries in area churches, she spends much of her time with one-on-one discipleship of women in her community.  We were able to attend Bible study and youth group with her while visiting. We met the current interim pastor of her church--one of the sweetest men ever!  He desires to one day start a church in his hometown, but it is a town very closed to the Gospel.  We are praying for Darlene's church as they seek their next pastor and for Pastor Chris as he seeks God's next step for him.

You can see pictures of the ministries by visiting the ministry album.  

Religion:
Catholicism in Mexico is much different than in the United States, in many ways.  It is definitely a major part of their life, with Mary being the central focus.  Their cathedrals are extravagant, originally having a separate one for those of the Aztec and Mayan descent.  At the entrance of every neighborhood, there is a small "house" that contains a statue of May protecting their homes and to which they can give alms.  We saw someone who was crawling on her knees from the road to the altar of the Basilica for penance.  Something interesting we learned--the original Basilica is sinking (as in all of Mexico City), so they built a new, more contemporary one...right beside it!

You can see pictures of the cathedrals and a service taking place in the Basilica while we were there by visiting the Religion album.   

Life and Times with the Team:
We loved visiting Mexico City.  The schedule is much different from ours:  late morning breakfast, late afternoon lunch (the main meal of the day), then a light late snack.  Melanie was more conservative in her adventures in food, but David tried just about anything.  He ate all the condiments on the pizza, sesos (cow brains) quesadillas, cow hoof quesadilla, and several fruits.  We enjoyed seeing the local markets, neighborhood squares (where everyone hangs out every Sunday afternoon), and  landmarks.  David graduated from Word of Life, New York, so he was thrilled when we got to visit Word of Life Mexico.  We spent the morning visiting the campus, then we got to enjoy a visit with WOL local church missionaries for lunch. We enjoyed a day with most of the team at the Pyramids right outside of Mexico City as well.  Originally, the only ones allowed to climb the pyramids were the priests and those being sacrificed--it was a somber reminder of the past as we climbed the long, and steep, trek.  And, the kids were a little spoiled by the missionaries, enjoying time with TJ and Alyssa babysitting them, beating Darlene at the games in the arcade, and being challenged in chess by Kurt.

We had a great time with our team. You can see many of the pictures with them and our adventures in the area by visiting our Life album.

Another Week in Mexico

We are over halfway through week two here in Mexico.  We have one more week to go.  We wanted to share more of our experience with you.  Check out some pictures giving you insight into ministry in Mexico.  This week, we are with the Navarrete family (Antonio, Diana, TJ and Alyssa).  We will also be with Darlene throughout the weekend, then end our time back with the Navarretes next week.

Ministry
The park ministry:  Kurt and Bethany Gomez meet every Thursday afternoon in the park to teach the Roots of Faith, a chronological Bible study teaching God's redemptive story of the Bible.

The Bible school: Antonio Navarrete meets with local pastors, deacons, and leaders Tuesday and Thursday nights.

Church in Mexico City:  The pastor and each deacon develops an outline of the sermon series being studied each week. After the service, they get together to discuss the sermon.  Antonio gives insight as they discuss.  At the end of the series, each man has a notebook full of sermons based on that book of the Bible.

We hope you enjoyed seeing a few pics of the ministries God is building here in Mexico City and the surrounding areas.  We were also able to visit the original cathedral here in the city where we are staying; it gave us insight into the Catholic religion here in Mexico.  Tomorrow and Saturday, we will be going to Bible study and youth group with Darlene.  Then Sunday, we will back at the church in Mexico City with the Navarretes.  We will update as we can.  We appreciate your prayers and look forward to seeing what God is doing in the other ministries throughout the weekend.

"Hola" from Mexico!

The past few days, we have spent with the Gomez family: Kurt, Bethany, and their children (Tyler, Olivia, and Ezra).  We have enjoyed some fabulous Mexican food (which happens to be our favorite!) and wonderful time of ministry.  Instead of a long post, we thought we would share our journey with you through pictures.

Thursday Night Bible Study

We both were able to share our testimonies.

Bible Study Group Picture.

 Friday's Ministry Happenings.

Dave and Ethan inviting students to the VBS in the park next month.

Soccer Clinic

Ethan improving his soccer skills.

Emily learning a little soccer.

Sharing the Gospel with the kids at the clinic.

 Saturday, we will visit Word of Life Mexico then serve in the park ministry where Kurt and Bethany share God's Word with the children and their families.  Sunday, we will attend church with the Gomez family. Then, Monday, July 4, we will head back to Mexico City to celebrate Independence Day with other missionaries serving there then minister with the rest of our ABWE team.  We will post updates as we can.  We thank you all for your prayers.