After about a month and a half of travels with Cesar and Elba Gonzalez, Bill Burrows and I are welcoming about 100 new friends to our Daybreak International Play. Story. Eat. Update! If you are new to the group, welcome!
As we made the rounds from Kansas to Nebraska to Missouri to Oklahoma and finally to Texas, we shared many of the stories of God at work in Guatemala and beyond. And….we ate… a lot! Occasionally we did a “Taste of Guatemala” event for various groups, but often it was a matter of friends introducing good old fashioned American food to Cesar and Elba while they were here! They got to taste a whole host of scrumptious food like KC ribs, barbecue, chicken fried steak, deer, hamburgers, spaghetti, Tex-Mex, biscuits and gravy, etc, etc!
At a meal at Sam and Judy Anderson’s in Sibley, Missouri, we enjoyed some tasty deer steaks and all the fixin’s! From left to right around the table are Cesar Gonzalez, Elba Gonzalez, Michael Macias, Carla Macias, Sam, Judy, and my wife Nola.
In nearly every place we went, we asked our friends to set their cell phone alarms for 10:02 a.m. or p.m. Why? So that when their alarm goes off, it reminds them to pray Jesus’ prayer of Luke 10:2…”The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Pray therefore that the Lord of the harvest will send forth laborers into His harvest fields…” So many opportunities lie before us that we believe this is the most strategic thing anyone can do for us or any of our Play. Story. Eat friends. The harvest is there. It’s ready. Workers are needed. Pray accordingly!
So to those of you joining us, we want to say thanks for joining in “10:02 prayer.” In each update we list a prayer need. In addition, we mention an action to take as a way that you can ENGAGE in the PSE mission. And then we offer an opportunity to INVEST in what God is doing. Usually, these three headings come at the end of the update. This week we want to flip it and share this information up front. Then you’ll see pictures of some of the places we have been in the last month. Next time we will jump into more of the ongoing mission stories that many of you have come to expect.
10:02 PRAYER
As we pray for laborers for His harvest, we ask you to pray for your church and your friends all over the world engaging in evangelism/discipleship. However you do church, remember that every person in the world needs a friend who loves Jesus! Let’s ask God to empower us with courage and humility to be that kind of friend. Note that next time I will have a list of prayer needs for a whole slate of PSE Training Camp activities scheduled for May in Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador. Stay tuned!
ENGAGE
If you are getting this email for the first time, please reply and let us know that you got it! Everyone else, I’d invite you to write a one or two-sentence note to welcome our newcomers—perhaps saying something about what you enjoy in our updates! I’d like to print some of these next time if you send me something!
INVEST
Words hardly express how appreciative we are for your continued partnership in this ministry. Each week we offer an easy button for you to invest….here it is! Thanks for partnering with us!
On Sunday, April 7th, we gave a short mission report at Top Hand Cowboy Church in Valley Mills, Texas. From left to right are Bill Burrows, me, Greg Moore (pastor of Top Hand), Elba, Cesar, and Frank Milano.
At a Cracker Barrel near Fort Worth, Texas, we reconnected with Frank Milano and Rick Watson (sitting on the same side of the table with Cesar). Both of these men have been to Honduras on mission trips with us. And both have been part of the start-up of several cowboy churches in Texas. In fact, Frank was a member of the first official cowboy church that was started in the 80’s at Billy Bob’s in Fort Worth—known as the world’s largest honky tonk! Great story!
One day in Fort Worth, Cesar and Elba enjoyed a stagecoach ride at the world famous stockyards!
While speaking to folks at LifeQuest Church in Belton, MO, Steve, Nola, Elba, and Cesar shared how team members can share their faith story in cross-cultural settings in Guatemala.
Pastor Chris Pinion greeted Elba as we entered the building of LifeQuest Church in Belton, Missouri.
Elba Gonzalez taught some of the ladies at LifeQuest Church how to make tortillas.
With a group of friends at First Baptist of Avilla, Missouri, Elba shows how to flip the tortillas without a spatula! On the right, Joann Clark tries her hand at it.
Cesar and Michael Wright, of Oak Grove, Missouri, pause for a picture between stories of surviving in the wilds of Alaska and Cesar sharing how he grew up in Guatemala.
Elba hang’n with Colonel Sanders
In Omaha, Nebraska, Dr. Kristin Reed graciously performed a complete eye exam for Cesar and Elba—saving them time and money in getting current prescriptions for eye-wear before returning to Guatemala.
Near Benbrook, Texas, we visited Mark Welch’s farm where he builds working windmills. This particular windmill provides all the water for his house.
Mark Welch (center) explains how his windmills work. Frank Milano (left) and Tim Tucker (right) look on. When Mark was in Guatemala last year, ranchers were intrigued by Mark’s windmill experience and are asking him to help them figure out if windmills would be practical for watering their cattle.
Hope you enjoyed the pictures!
Note that what YOU do for a living or for enjoyment is often a very strategic tool God can use to make new friends and open up an opportunity for people to share faith stories that can change lives.
We had a great time seeing so many of you this past month! Until next time…
Love y’all!
Steve