Dear Praying Friends,
We trust that you had a good Christmas and are enjoying serving the Lord in this new year. The opportunities ahead are exciting and we look forward to all that God has in store. We are constantly reminded of the tremendous privilege that we enjoy, being missionaries on the foreign field. Thank you for joining and working with us to make this ministry possible. The lives that you are affecting for Christ are a great testimony of your love for the Lord and the ministry of the Gospel. As we begin this new year together with you, we look to the Lord for wisdom and pray that our lives will make a difference for eternity.
Our family is well and enjoying being together again. Deb and Bethany have been busy baking and preparing special crafts and activities for our holiday services. We have also been working at the mission property to make the building livable. Jessica and Isaac returned to Mexico from college to spend the Christmas break with us, and it has been great to have them. Jessica, is well adjusted, now in the middle of her third year, and just celebrated her 21st Birthday. Unbelievable! Isaac faced quite an adjustment during his first semester of college life. During the first half of the semester, he said that he had so much work that he didn’t have time to eat or sleep and lost twenty pounds. He survived and thinks the second semester will be easier. All things considered, it is a good environment for them and we are very thankful for your part in helping them receive a Christian education. Being raised on the mission field, with a different culture, language and values presents unique challenges for missionary kids. Christian college is a very important part of returning to a “normal life” in their own culture. Having a good church and spiritual environment gives them a chance to make the transition from living in Mexico to beginning their own lives. The problem is that it is very difficult on us, the parents. Unlike many families, we are not within driving distance of the college. When they leave for college, we don’t get to see them again until school ends. With our communication challenges, and the cost of international long distance, we only get to speak with them occasionally and the mail takes thirty days between countries. Pray for us and for them as they are preparing to leave again. We will miss them and their help in the work, but we are also excited for them. The special love gifts that you share to help with transportation and tuition are a tremendous blessing and encouragement. We appreciate you for helping us through this emotionally and financially draining experience called college.
Our services are going well and we had several visitors during Christmas. We have been studying worship and the Lord opened the door to present the idea of receiving an offering. We have been prayerfully considering an offering, but we wanted to present it to the people in the proper way. In our rural area of Mexico, everyone seems to be trying to take advantage of someone else. We had to be careful to explain the purpose of the offering and how the offering might be used. We didn’t want the people to think that we were trying to get their money. Giving in an offering is such a logical part of our expression of love for the Lord and public worship that when we presented the concept along with other principles of worship, the people readily accepted it. God was good to lead us as He did, and a few weeks ago we received our first offering. The amount was small as one might expect, but the spiritual impact was fantastic. People came prepared to give and it was a joyful experience. We are reminded of the widow who gave only two mites, but of whom the Lord said gave more than the rest, because she gave her all. Our people are poor and struggling for the most part and will probably never be able to give large offerings. If by God’s grace, we can help lead them to give themselves completely to God, it will be a life changing experience for them and a crowning example of God’s work in their lives.
Our Christmas service was a big event and filled with great expectation. Many special activities were planned and God blessed us with a good attendance of around seventy-five including visitors. We have been working hard to finish the mission building and were able to use it for the service. The larger space was a real blessing and greatly needed. We even had a flush toilet and a door on the restroom. PTL! There was no water pressure for flushing, but a bucket of water served the purpose. Smile. One of the many special things that Deb and Bethany prepared was a “candy cane” for each person with the story of the history of the “candy cane.” Did you know that the “candy cane” was invented by a candy maker who loved God? The “cane” is actually a “J” for Jesus and the colors white and red represent Christ’s purity and His blood shed for our sins. What a wonderful little testimony to remind us of our Savior. We praise the Lord for the visitors that attended and hope to be able to follow up with them in this new year. We are also very thankful for the mission building and pray that it will soon be ready for us to occupy.
Recently, it has also been a blessing to have our neighbor, Jesús, in our services again. He is a friendly unassuming man who is always ready with a smile and a warm greeting. Jesús had been attending our services somewhat regularly but stopped abruptly. He had to have surgery and we were praying with him and trying to be an encouragement. His daughter who is involved with the Catholic Church was going to be helping him with transportation to the hospital. She also took him to the church to be blessed by the priest and we believe that they were discouraging him from being involved with us. After that, he stopped attending even after the surgery. The Catholic Church has a lot of power and although people don’t understand the church or its system, they live in fear of what the priest may be able to do with their soul.
We have had similar situations where they have tried to influence people against us. Some we know of and undoubtedly others have occurred without our knowledge. Our daughter, Bethany, befriended a girl who attended the Catholic school. After a short time, the girl came to Bethany and told her that the nuns had told her to stay away from the Güera, “white girl.” Certainly, God protects us from attacks, even those that are outside of our control or knowledge. We praise the Lord, that He is the all-powerful one, and that it is He who is working in the lives of our people. Perhaps someday, we will understand better, events like those which took place in Jesús’ life. For now, we are thankful that he has returned. Please pray for him. He listens to a Christian radio station that we can pick up here in the mountains. God knows his heart, perhaps he is saved, but from the conversations we have had, it seems that God is drawing him but he has not yet put his trust and faith completely in Christ.
We want to thank everyone who helped us in collecting used clothing and coats. Upon returning home from picking up our kids in El Paso, we distributed the winter coats and sweaters that were waiting in El Paso. Several families and churches helped and we had a good load. We prayed that we could get through the border without a problem and when we got to the checkpoint, the guard looked in the window at all of our things and allowed us to pass. We don’t know if God blinded him to everything he saw, but we passed through without being checked. Praise the Lord! We knew that many of our family and friends would be praying for us as we crossed the border that morning and God answered our prayers. The van was as full as it has ever been, with the five of us, things packed in every available space and even sheets of plywood on top for the mission house’s kitchen cabinets. God is good! Some of our friends from a church in Arizona sent several boxes of fabric that the Indian people will be trading for through our “Helping Hands” ministry. They are very excited. Our people and our family really appreciate each of you who have joined in this ministry. Our good friend, Travis Calvert, is a great example of someone who has the love for Christ and our people that each of you demonstrate. Travis is a man in his seventies who loves the Lord, prays for us, and has made numerous trips to El Paso, TX to make sure that we have the resources to build this ministry. Thank you all.
The mission building project is in the exciting phase again as we see the time coming when we can finally move to the facility to both live and work. The week before Christmas, we were finally able to sign the contract with the state of Chihuahua for the deed to the property. That alone is a milestone, but we were also able to make the payment necessary for the deed. Praise the Lord. It took every peso we could scrape together, and it couldn’t have come at a more difficult time, just before Christmas, but through your faithful prayers and love gifts it was accomplished. Thank you for your continued prayers and financial support. For a missionary family living by faith, it is nothing short of miraculous to have $3500.00 dollars at one time. It was difficult to hand over such a stack of money, but we are very pleased to have the transaction completed and are thankful to all of you for praying it through. The deed should be being processed now. The Engineer said it would be ready in three weeks, but if that is true, it is the fastest government procedure in Mexico. We just hope it gets issued at all. Smile.
We are holding services in the building and are finishing many of the details. We are very close to being able to use the building full time, but are still lacking a few key ingredients. Our family will move to the property when we have a minimum living standard in place. For us that means a bathroom and hot water. Lord willing, the bathroom will be finished by the time you receive this letter. We are also building kitchen counters and are almost ready to install a sink.
The biggest challenge is hot water. The city line pressure is so poor that we will have to have a high-speed pump and pressure tank as well as a hot water heater. Fortunately, we already have the necessary holding tank. In the city where we take Bethany to the dentist, there is a Mennonite community. They are well known for their honesty and quality workmanship. We located a company that has a very good pump and tank unit. They are going to check with their distributor to see if there is a damaged tank available. That sounds bad, but a dent in the tank won’t affect its operation and it could be discounted twenty to thirty percent. That’s great, because the price of the unit we need is almost five hundred dollars. That is quite an investment, but the unit is top quality, guaranteed, and the water it will deliver is something that is nearly impossible to live without. From that point, we will finish the remaining work while living in the building. That will also free up the money we currently pay in rent. Since the Sept 11, 2001 attack on the United States, the slow economy has greatly affected us financially. Our family is fine, but the money for anything more than minimum living expenses has not been available. To be able to use the rent money for other needs will be a big help. We know that your lives have been affected as well, and as we all look to the Lord for the answers, please keep us in your prayers.
Again, we would like to express what a blessing and encouragement you are to us. We appreciate you and all that you do on our behalf. You are a valuable part of the team and we thank the Lord for your friendship and involvement. As we look forward to the opportunities and challenges that the future holds, would you please pray with us, specifically, about our children being able to stay in college and the completion of the mission building? Also, an important need that we are praying about is a pick-up truck. If the Lord leads you to a good used truck, please let us know. As always, we will be praying for you, and asking for God’s richest blessings in your lives.
Sincerely, For Souls Who Have Not Heard,
The Chambers Family
