The Mission Diaries

Hopefully everyone has had a great Thanksgiving holiday! At MCA Missions we are very thankful for the growth and perseverance of our brothers and sisters in Mexico and Central America. Several churches have had anniversary celebrations in the past few weeks.

Here in The Mission Diaries we have highlighted the 20th anniversary of the Mexico City Church. You can watch a short video of the church’s history at www.icmeca.org (in Spanish) Now, the church there didn’t just spend the time celebrating the past. This past month over 100 people were added to the church via baptisms and restorations!

On the younger side of the spectrum, the young Aguascalientes Church celebrated its 3rd anniversary. Over 130 people came to the service. As special guests, the church invited the mission team that is preparing to plant the church in San Luis Potosi. Ministry Leader Alberto Machuca has posted a video about the Aguascalientes Church.

The Managua (Nicaragua) Church of Christ is having its 10th Anniversary Celebration this Sunday November 25. Their guest speaker will be David Ramirez from Cuernavaca (Mexico), who led the Managua church a few years ago.

Nicaragua is a beautiful country, called Land of Lakes and Volcanoes. The Managua church hosted our 2005 Central American Missions Conference. You can go to the MCA Missions Photo Albums for pictures of that trip. You can also find out more about the church at its web page. Of special note, they have just started a teaching ministry.

That’s all for this week – - have a great weekend!

J De Anda

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As I’ve written on previous posts, the Mexico City mission was an undertaking of faith and hard work. A few weeks ago I had a chance to visit Mexico City and go by some of the places that had and still have a lot of significance for those who participated in the mission. But at the end of the day, the mission is not about places and sights…it is about people. Here is a small photo album… (Read the article)

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Relief efforts are under way to help our church in Villahermosa, Mexico, where recent floods have displaced half of the city’s population. Here is a letter from the Villahermosa church ministry leaders, German and Alicia Gutierrez, who escaped the initial flooding by staying on the roof of their apartment building but later on had to relocate to a shelter due to lack of electricity and drinking water:

 (Photo from Associated Press)

To all our brothers and sisters in the Churches of Christ:

Dear brothers, we are very grateful to God for the way He has taken care of the church here in Villahermosa, capital of the state of Tabasco. Yesterday we were able to locate the last brother that we hadn’t heard from.

It has been a difficult situation. We have survived through a horrible disaster, but we are sure that our Father took care of us at every moment. We have become more unified than ever, and we have been motivated to be on our knees, calling out to God.

Nine disciples’ homes were completely under water. Five are semi-flooded. Twenty disciples lost everything they owned, including clothes. We have ten children under the age of ten, all of whom are disciples’ kids. God has been very merciful, and so in spite of the material losses we didn’t have any loss of life.

We want you to know that we are immensely grateful for your prayers. We have felt your love and solidarity. Each disciple here is rejoicing over the news that churches are raising special offerings to help them rebuild their lives. Once more, we can see that through the church we are part of a great family

Government authorities estimate that in about 40 days the flooding will recede and cleaning and rebuilding efforts will begin. During this time the disciples will have to live in rented apartments, or with relatives or with other disciples.

We have heard about the help that churches in Mexico and in the USA are putting together. This has really increased our thankfulness toward God.

Yesterday (Sunday November 4) we had a worship service with nine disciples who were here [at the shelter]. It was great to share God’s word with 17 visitors who joined us! Other brothers in other parts of the city did the same!

Gratefully yours,

German and Alicia Gutierrez
Ministry Leaders, Villahermosa Church of Christ

A group from the Mexico City Church is planning to travel to Villahermosa this week, as soon as the roads clear. They will bring clothes, blankets, medicines and other help for the Christians there. Please pray for the church and stay tuned for more information about relief efforts.

J De Anda

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 Today’s 20th anniversary celebrations in Mexico City were affected by the news coming from the city of Villahermosa, in Southeastern Mexico, where we have a church of about 36 disciples.

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