In the Eye of the Beholder

I've always heard it said that things can be seen as a blessing or a curse. Some people are always able to see the light in the darkness; I’m usually not one of those people. I am very aware that there are a lot of our family, friends and a multitude of people impacted by this terrible virus. While there are many hardships resulting from it, the Lord has gifted my family abundantly through the quarantine experience. I feel blessed to see the light in the darkness of this experience. In the darkness, we have made a strong effort to sing praises and focus on our dominion.

Last year, when we discerned the Lord’s plan and were asking for clarity for our mission for 2020, God revealed the need to focus on the domestic church and our individual roles as priest, prophet, and king. The Knights of Columbus published a very simple meditation and guidebook called " The Family Fully Alive" that helped format our 2020 mission. The Lord had given me the 80/20 rule: 80% of my time was to focus on my family and forming each other first as disciples, then the other 20% could be used for other outside ministries like the men’s group, cowboy ministry, etc. So this was a clear precise mission for 2020. As we returned from our Christmas break in the states and settled back into General Cepeda, I became very occupied with good holy projects to glorify the Lord and help serve HIS people. The problem, however, was that it was my will and what seemed to be holy work was really just distractions from the actual mission the Lord gave me and my family for this year. As we approached March, I felt we were really doing well… our bible studies had grown in number, we were working with a local family (Cesar Rodriguez Family) to provide a rodeo kids ministry, and another house ministry formed with one of our disciples Ivan Salinas had started up-all felt great! Then we were advised to close all ministries and all group meetings due to the coronavirus. As our ministries were gaining momentum everything came to a sudden halt in one quick conversation with the local priest and simple letter from the Bishop. Mass was cancelled, prayer groups, bible studies, the kids’ school… everything stopped. I felt slightly frustrated and lamented with the Lord in the chapel. HE gently reminded me that my mission was 80% family FIRST. The Almighty, All Knowing GOD, our Lord Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit removed every possible distraction so I could focus 110% on my wife and my children. Geesh, I am so hard headed and so vain yet the Lord does everything possible to correct my wrongs and set me straight. Thank YOU Jesus. So maybe the world shut down and we were contained to our homes solely so the Lord could bless me and get my priorities straight. However, with all HIS merciful love, I believe God is doing more good than just blessing my family during this quarantine. I can't help but wonder if HE isn't asking all of us to focus more on our own domestic church. Quien sabe? Solo Dios. I do know we have been greatly blessed, and I hope our experience can bless another.

All Glory To God!

Blessings of love,
Jmn

Getting ready for the egg hunt on Easter

May 2020 Update

Since my last update, our situation has changed here in General Cepeda, Mexico. The first case of COVID 19 was diagnosed in our town this week; however, cases began to appear in the larger cities in Mexico in March. Our mission trip that had been planned in March was cancelled at the last minute. During the trip, we had planned to help three families living in one of the villages we visit, La Noria de la Sabina, to repair their roofs. Glory to God, some local men from General Cepeda volunteered their time to go with Jeremy to the ejido and help the families to complete the roof repairs needed. It was an especially blessed time because Jeremy had the opportunity to meet, to talk, to pray, and to work with several men from the village who he had not previously been able to visit. He hopes to develop more of a relationship with these men in the future. 

Beginning the roof repair for a family in La Noria de la Sabina

The completed roof repair for one of the families in La Noria de la Sabina

 By the end of March, Churches and schools were closed and no gatherings of people were allowed. Our scheduled prayer groups were also cancelled. The government gave out money for many people to buy food initially. Factories were closed; travel restrictions and the banning of gatherings meant the people of General Cepeda who usually make money from selling food and other goods to people visiting during festivals had little to no income. This means the people here who normally are able to provide for their own basic needs are now struggling or unable to pay their rent and electric bills. A woman from one of the little villages an hour away from our town rode a bus into town to turn in paperwork for her and her husband who were just able to get a new job. Their applications were missing copies of their birth certificates which she didn’t have so she came to ask if we could help her pay for copies of her and her husband’s birth certificates to be printed. Before I walked with her to have the certificates printed, our family prayed with her. After praying, she had silent tears running down her cheeks. Jeremy asked her what she was feeling and she said the coronavirus and quarantine has made life a lot harder in her village. At times there is no food to give her four kids. As in the U.S., this crisis hits the poor the hardest. We are so grateful to our supporters who give us the opportunity to help the people here by sharing resources and also by praying for them. It is so important to help all people to have their basic needs met, but truly only God can give us the hope of Heaven: an eternal reason to live, a purpose for our suffering, and the grace to keep striving for holiness.  

Our little ones on Easter

Dressed up for Jesus on Easter

Along with the closing of gatherings and non-essential public places, the government issued a stay at home order and also closed the roads for non-essential traffic to Saltillo, the big city where I normally prefer to buy groceries. This has provided a great opportunity for me to learn more about the stores here in our town. In the past, I have frequently found the produce in the local stores to be rotten. However, in visiting the stores more frequently and also asking questions, I have discovered that the produce in the stores is great here on the day it is delivered and the next day. It is common here for people to visit the stores every day or two for groceries, and I have adapted to doing the same to find the produce when it is freshest. We are so grateful to have access to the farm where our horses are kept during this time to allow our kids space to run around. We share the farm with a couple of boys who graze their family’s sheep there. Over this period of time, we have developed a relationship with them and several of their friends who come to visit. They seem especially interested in learning from Jeremy about horses and exercise. As they have become more comfortable around us, they have begun asking questions about God. These youth have a curiousity and a yearning (as all of us do) for the Truth and for the love of God to become real in their lives. 

The main grocery store in our town.

Simon holding a stray puppy found at the farm

Jeremy, with his little helper Zane, studying Spanish

Zane (& Simon in the back) with their "store" they created from scrap found at the farm

We have gotten in the habit of cooking our dinners over a fire at the farm. This is Jeremy’s favorite way to cook and to eat. And I am all for him cooking and the lack of a mess in the kitchen. We always offer food to the boys who are present when we cook. One of the boys doesn’t eat “carne” which means meat in Spanish. We had chicken one day, and he liked that. I questioned him about his preferences and was so confused. Then I remembered that on Fridays during Lent, Catholics here fast from carne (meaning beef and pork) but eat chicken and fish. At first I was so surprised by this-why would they eat chicken on Fridays-don’t they know they shouldn’t do that? (In the US, Catholics fast from meat which includes chicken on Fridays during Lent). Ha! In fact, chicken is much cheaper than fish and in Jesus’ time, fish was cheap, simple and common. Wouldn’t it make more sense to eat the simple and cheap food of the place you are? It’s so hard sometimes to remember that our American way is not the only way. 

Lincoln with his thoughtful teacher who delivered goodies to her students at home for "Dia del Niño" (Day of the Child)

Lisa and our crew

We have another American missionary family here this year, and it is a blessing to be able to journey together. Their presence and participation in our ministry to the boys that the Lord has put in our path has been such a gift. 

Gabriella is so proud of her new skill: climbing the stairs

Jaylyn being goofy at the farm

Something the Lord has really laid on our hearts during this time is the importance of intentional intercessory prayer. We have made a habit of praying for our benefactors and we pray with the people here when we are with them, but we haven’t consistently been intentionally praying for them when we are not with them. After reading about the power of intercessory prayer and hearing this message from a mentor, we have been re-convicted: Conversion only happens by the power of the Holy Spirit. The change in our schedule has allowed us to devote more time intentionally praying for the men, women, and youth we have been journeying with here, and we recognize the need for that prayer time to continue even after this quarantine is lifted.

We are so grateful for those of you who are praying for us and the people here. I was sitting in the chapel in the mission house one evening feeling the love of Jesus in my heart and just feeling so amazed that with all of my past sins and poor social choices, He would have chosen to bring me here and to make Himself so real to me. What a merciful God we have! Then it hit me: Who prayed for me? Who prayed for my soul? No doubt my mom, my grandmas, my godmother. How many others have I crossed paths with or never even known that have chosen to pray for me? Who prayed for my husband? Prayer is so powerful! Thank you to each of you who have prayed for us and who continue to pray for us and our family! And most especially thank you God for your mercy and your overwhelming real love. I pray for every one of you, every one of the people here in General Cepeda, and every one in the whole world: may each person feel the shower of His mercy and the real, tangible love of our God.

With love in Christ,
Lisa

Have no anxiety at all, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, make your requests known to God. Then the peace of God that surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:6-7.

Being Missionary Where God Has Us

We visited Doña E., a sweet 96 year-old woman, during a recent mission trip. She is full of life and loves to praise our Lord. After singing a couple of songs together at her request, the girls with the group continued singing songs and Doña just soaked it up. 

Doña’s niece was with her and caring for her. She told us Doña fell recently and cut her shin, and she showed us her leg with the small piece of gauze covering the place that was sore. We asked if we could pray for her and of course she was glad for prayer. During our prayer, we asked Jesus to heal her leg. Following the prayer, Cassie, one of the women with the mission trip group, said she was a nurse and asked if she could look under the gauze at her sore. Doña said yes and when Cassie looked at the sore, she said it was mildly infected. Doña’s niece said that they had topical medicine for it but only had one piece of gauze left. She appeared to be changing the gauze infrequently so that she would not run out. We were able to bring her more gauze so she would have plenty and Cassie re-dressed the wound and guided Doña’s niece to change it and treat it daily. Praise the Lord! He chose to use Cassie to help answer the prayer we had just prayed for Doña’s leg to be healed. Had Cassie not felt and responded to the urge from the Holy Spirit to look at her sore, we would have never known that Doña’s niece was unable to care for her appropriately because she was almost out of gauze.

This interaction and movement of God caused me to stop and think about how amazing it is that our all-powerful God chooses to use our gifts, talents and desires in His plans. He creates us with our unique abilities to participate in His plans. Wow!

It also caused me to stop and think about who God is putting in front of me that He wants me to care for and share His love with whether in big ways like caring for my children or in small ways like smiling and greeting the people I meet on the sidewalk and everything in between. I pray “Holy Spirit, come and nudge me to the people you want me to love and give me the grace to hear and respond to you."

The call to be missionaries isn’t just for those of us He has called into foreign lands. Sometimes the more difficult call is to be missionary in our hometowns. Saint Pope John Paul II says in his encyclical Mission of the Redeemer, "Missionary activity is a matter for all Christians." If we are Christians, the question isn’t if we are called to be a missionary, it is where and to whom are we called to be missionary. It may be right where we are. Who is God putting in front of us that He’s calling us to love? Who in our communities, parishes and neighborhoods is God inviting us to bring His love to by using our unique abilities and gifts?

May we all continue to be transformed, encouraged, and motivated by the overwhelming love of the Holy Spirit.

With love in Christ,
Lisa

Settling Back In

Blessings of Christ Jesus be with you!

It’s been a month and half since we returned to Mexico so I am overdue for sharing an update. I also received some feedback and requests for more pictures and information about how our family is doing here so I’ll be attempting to share more about us in my posts this year, too. We returned to General Cepeda at the beginning of February. We spent the first couple of weeks primarily settling back in. The first day back, our kids spent the day with Jeremy at the farm where we are keeping the horses (in exchange for Jeremy training their mare). They came back at the end of the day and Jaylyn stated they spent all day exploring and it was the best day ever! I realize this may not be the norm, but our kids were very used to having acres of pasture and woods to “explore” independently on our farm before we went into missions so having access to this farm beside a desert mountain here in rural Mexico is a huge blessing to our family.

Our four oldest kids exploring and climbing the mountain by the farm

Simon counting for Hide & Seek

Jaylyn and Lincoln started back to school. We were really praying for Lincoln to become more comfortable in his class and make some friends that he likes to play with. Sometime during the first week back, Lincoln chose to eat lunch and play with his own classmates instead of with Jaylyn and hers. Most days, he now enjoys playing with his friends during his free time at school and is much more comfortable in his classroom. Thank you, Jesus!

Jaylyn and Lincoln pausing to pose for a picture

Our family

Jaylyn (and the boys) love to hold Gabriella.

We resumed our Wednesday morning prayer group (open to the whole community), and Jeremy resumed the Friday night men’s group. One of the men Jeremy discipled with last year, Ivan, began another men’s group in his father-in-law’s house a couple of weeks ago with his father-in-law and several of his brothers-in-law. Jeremy and Ivan go from the men’s group at the mission house on Friday evenings from 7-8:30 or 9 and then to Ivan’s father-in-law’s house beginning at 9 or so. Ivan has reported that his father-in-law has begun going to Mass with the rest of the family on Sundays and the men are really enjoying the prayer group. Glory to God! 

Gabriella is one happy girl in spite of her pants never being clean.

She is pulling up and crawling everywhere now.

Jeremy and the kids began working with the horses again. Our friend, Cesar, and his daughter, Mariana, are teaching our kids rodeo events including barrel racing and goat tying. Our kids are beyond excited to have this opportunity. We hope to share our common love for horses and Jesus with the youth in this community through the kids cowboy ministry soon. At this point though, Jeremy continues to meet other cowboys here and share his faith and witness.

Lincoln learning the goat tying event

Looks like we have another little cowgirl

Zane's blonde hair gets lots of attention here

We hosted a mission trip the last week of February. Mission trips are such a blessing to the local people here and to the people who come on them; we are grateful to be a part of them!

Simon (with no lack of style) helping on the work project.

One more of these two

Because of your generosity, we continue to have the opportunity to share resources with those in need here through meeting alms requests for medicine and medical equipment, doctor and dental visits to those who are un-insured or who cannot afford their co-pays, laboratory and other medical tests, diapers and formula, and a funeral service for a young man whose family could not afford it. I've also had the opportunity to help a mother give her ill daughters medication. She is unable to read and understandably reluctant to tell professionals this. Therefore, she is unable to understand the directions the doctor and pharmacy give her. My eyes continue to be opened to the challenges of being illiterate. The Lord put on my heart again recently that the most important thing we can give people is prayer. This mother is frequently stoic and likely somewhat hardened by life. During the recent mission trip, a group of us visited her in her home and prayed with her. She was visibly touched by the love of God as she began sobbing while we prayed over her. God's love is the one true remedy for every need.

We are super blessed to have two other American missionary families who will be serving with us here this year! The Sokolowski family spent a couple weeks here in February before leaving for language school; we are looking forward to their return next month. The Oakes family will be coming here this summer.

Zane and one of the Sokolowski's sweet girls "leading" the music.

We are praying for all of you who continue to support us in prayer and with finances. Please continue to pray for our mission here as your prayers no doubt sustain us.

God bless you!
Lisa

True Generosity

At the end of June, Jeremy was able to provide work for a number of men and women here through repairing and repainting the mission house. One of the women who came in need of work was M. She is a personality around town. She is very forward and friendly. When she came to participate in the work project, I was in the kitchen (a separate area) helping Lincoln with school (finishing up homeschooling kindergarten) and nursing Gabriella. Several mornings she came in to ask me for something and to touch Gabriella’s head while she was nursing. I redirected her to Jeremy in the other area and, to be honest, was becoming annoyed with her. Then one morning as I was going out to get groceries, she gave me money to buy coke for her. When I got back and gave her the coke, she asked me for some cups and immediately started pouring everyone working there a cup of coke. Whoa, I was floored. The amount of money to buy coke was almost half of what she made working that morning. And immediately she shared what she had with everyone. Here I was becoming annoyed with this woman and in one moment she put my generosity to shame. She showed me what it means to be truly generous.  Joseph Summers (former director of Family Missions Company) paraphrases teachings from the Catechism of the Catholic Church saying “Generosity is giving from your need. Giving from your excess is not generosity, it is justice.” I have never been truly generous. I have never sacrificed meeting the needs of myself or my family in order to help others.

M. has shown me true generosity. My respect for her continues to grow as God reveals layer after layer of her beauty to me. Recently during a prayer and convivio (potluck) gathering we hosted at the mission house, M. was twirling with joy while we sang and danced to praise songs. Her free and authentic joy and adoration of the Lord was palpable. I am grateful to know M. and for her Christian example.

Our sweet Gabriella loves to smile and coo.

What if You Can’t Read

At the beginning of July, a woman, F., came by the mission house asking for help filling out the form to register her oldest daughter for classes this school year. F. is a frequent visitor to the mission house; she usually comes to ask for food and other basic necessities. We have begun giving her work and paying her for her work instead of only giving her handouts. She appears to have grown in confidence and dignity and is grateful for the opportunity to work. She has five children. The oldest one is in sixth grade this year and has been attending school the past several years (thanks to the help of previous missionaries here); she seems to be doing well. The next two girls are ages nine and six and have not attended school more than a day here and there. The nine year old especially has been bullied in the past at school and has been terrified to go to school. Elementary school is compulsory here but there is no enforcement. F. is (culturally) married and her husband, C., has work off and on, but it is not always sufficient to pay for food and other basic needs. We have been able to provide her husband with work also at times through different construction projects. They have started attending Sunday Mass as a family, and C. sometimes participates in the men’s bible study Jeremy started at the mission house on Friday evenings.

The reason F. needed help filling out the form for her daughter is that she does not know how to read and write. When I asked her for her daughter’s birthday so that I could fill it in, F. didn’t know the date or year. I must admit I was initially appalled; how does a mother not know her child’s birthday? Then it hit me. When you can’t read or write and have no print/number awareness, its not just books that have no meaning to you. You can’t use calendars or record important dates and names. You don’t attend meetings or come back when asked because you don’t have any way of helping you remember when you are supposed to be somewhere. 

When we visit villages and neighborhoods, we have been trying to let people know in advance so they can plan ahead to attend prayer in the chapel. But this does not seem beneficial. We still need to walk door to door inviting people and then many of them will drop everything (whether laundry or whatever else) to come pray together. When you can’t read/write, you can’t plan ahead. Even if all I’m planning is to put away laundry and go to bed, its annoying to me to have to change plans for a last minute invitation. Yet those unable to read/write are more than willing to drop everything (whether laundry or whatever else) to come when invited.

F.’s nine year old and six year old daughters have begun going to school this year. Jeremy has been able to walk with them to and from school in order to help encourage them. The nine year old has been placed in the same class as Jaylyn. Jaylyn noted the way several of the girls whispered about F.’s daughter the first day. Jaylyn had the opportunity to tell the other girls that F.’s daughter is her friend (and to also get laughed at). This experience has increased my awareness of the challenge it is to go to school when you don’t come from a literate family and when you are an outcast of society; it has also increased my awareness of the powerful impact a father figure can have on the life of a child. As the school year is now underway, let us all be more cognizant of those who may have a more difficult home life and provide extra encouragement and support. The value of a simple smile and saying hello to someone should never be underrated. Lincoln comes home from school everyday right now and is excited to share that he had a good day because a new friend smiled at him or asked him what his name is. Let us be Jesus to our fellow humans through our simple acts of kindness.

I’m humbled by so many things: by the greater realization of what a huge blessing and privilege it is to have an education, to know how to read and write, and to have the ability to plan ahead; by my temptation to judge another and the realization of the grace needed to have empathy; and by the realization of the grace required to be flexible enough to accept a last minute holy invitation.

Waiting for the assembly to begin before Jaylyn and Lincoln's first day of school 

Making Friends and Sharing God's Love

April was a full and blessed month with hosting two mission trips and celebrating Easter. We had the opportunity to pray with the people of La Colonia (a poor neighborhood in town), celebrate Mass, and host a convivio (potluck); these gatherings have led to ongoing ministry in La Colonia. Additionally, we visited and prayed with the people in several of the ranchos (villages) surrounding General Cepeda. We participated in home visits to some of the elderly people in the community. The main work project that was targeted during these trips was putting in the concrete floor for the San Juan Bosco Gym here in General Cepeda; we will share a future post about the gym.

Our family on Easter

Home visit during a mission trip

The boys getting their feet washed during the Holy Thursday celebration

Simon taking a turn swinging at the piñata during the celebration night at the end of a mission trip

Jaylyn serving at Mass in the chapel at La Colonia

Lisa visiting during the convivio

At the end of April, a lady named G.H. came to us in need of roof repairs. She said her roof leaks and she was hoping for it to be repaired before the rainiest month of June (May is also a rainy month here). Jeremy contacted Pancho, a local handyman here and brother of one of the local missionaries, and together they were able to repair her roof in May. While on G.H.'s roof, they looked out at her neighbor's roofs and noted many appearing to need repair. Additionally, we visited La Noria the beginning of May just following a rain and found a woman trying to sweep a significant amount of water out of her house. Jeremy was able to help her complete the task this time, but we plan to repair her roof in the future. Repairing leaky mud roofs with a thin layer of concrete appears to be a need of many in General Cepeda and the surrounding areas, and we plan to continue to address this need. The process in repairing these roofs is replacing murillos (rafters), then placing wood platforms across, covering with a sheet of plastic, then a layer of dirt, and finally sealing with a thin layer of concrete. The concrete is mixed by hand on the ground and then manually carried up a ladder to the top of the roof in buckets.

A partially completed roof with two areas of dirt left to be sealed with concrete

A layer of concrete was added to seal leaks in the roof of G.H.'s house

Looking out at the neighborhood from G.H.'s house

The boys helping make concrete in front of G.H.'s house

Lincoln working on a roof

Jeremy and Jaylyn working on a roof; the murillos are being covered with a wood platform

A woman sweeping water out of her house

The interior of a typical roof; made of twigs and mud

Buckets to catch the leaks when it rains

Prayer and Bible Study at La Noria de la Sabina

Raul, one of the local missionaries here, suggested modifying the Friday night men's group to include a convivio (potluck) with families one time per month. We hosted the first convivio this past Friday; it was also a great opportunity to invite other women and families from the community to participate in prayer and fellowship with us.

Gathering for prayer and reflections before the convivio

We have been blessed by great friendships with two other families here. The dads and older kids had the opportunity to open air camp on their family's ranch. This was a first experience for our kids (Jaylyn, Lincoln and Zane), and they are looking forward to doing it again.

Most still asleep around the campfire after a night of open air camping

Getting to ride our friends' animals has been a highlight for our kids

We've also been blessed to meet another group of local ranch and rodeo cowboys and hope to journey more closely with them in the future.

Zane and Simon saying hi to a horse

Lisa at 39+ weeks pregnant

Thank you for your support, both prayer and financial, that makes this ministry possible. If there are questions you have or other information you would like to see, please let us know.

God bless you!