Jon in Mexico

Even though almost nothing goes as intended in Mexico, we still try to be responsible and make plans. I set a tentative goal for the house project to pour the roof before I returned to Pennsylvania for Thanksgiving. For the past two week we have been setting the roof structure (a network of rebar and concrete beams, with lightweight hollow blocks to fill in-between the beams) to get ready to pour the concrete on top. Many of you probably know how a roof structure is laid out in the U.S. But doing it in Mexico was a whole new learning experience!

Two weeks ago I received a call from a Christian doctor who works at a medical clinic in a little Totonac Indian village called San Andres, in the northern mountains of the state of Puebla. He invited me to come to the clinic and help with a handful of projects. I made a commitment, in faith, to going there from Thursday to Sunday of this past week. It was done in faith because my plan was to pour the roof of the house on Wednesday, the day before I was to drive 4 hours up to San Andres. By God’s grace we had the roof structure prepared and ready to pour by Wednesday.

The Pour

40 bags of cement, a dump truck load of sand and gravel and a few hundred gallons of water were waiting in front of the house on Wednesday morning to be mixed, carried in buckets and poured on the roof by a hired crew 7 construction workers who were to bring their own concrete mixer, scaffolding and buckets to do the pour while we would even it out. Here’s a little rundown of how the day went: The workers arrived at 12pm on their bicycles, separate from the boss and the equipment. Around 1pm they became restless and mischievous and started to wrestle and let the air out of each others bike tires. The boss arrived at 2pm (a little late) and they began working right after giving him a hard time for the 2 hours they waited without pay. The concrete mixer broke at 2:15, the boss left and came back at 3pm with a new mixer. At 3:45 we were halfway finished when a huge thunderstorm poured down rain on us. Around 4:30 the roof was finished and all the workers were served chicken with mole sauce(a typical Poblano recipe), underneath the new roof, before they started the process of pushing the boss’s truck out of the muddy field. We wrapped up all the finishing touches on the roof around 7pm, pushed my car out of the field, and went home.

San Andres

The very next day, I left in the morning for a four hour trip to the “Clinica de San Andres” to help with various projects, which included digging a latrine, organizing medicines, teaching an English lesson at the elementary school, giving a Bible study to a youth group and visiting people with the doctor in neighboring villages. Given the unpredictability of the work project, this was truly a gift from the Lord.

Prayer and Praise:

1. I can’t tell you how blessed we were to finish pouring the roof on Jovencio’s house on Wednesday. Thank you for your prayers.

2. Omar has been informed again by his father that he will be going to the United States at the end of December. He is in a tough position and really doesn’t have much say in the matter. Please keep him in your prayers. (For those of you who don’t know Omar, he is a 15 year old who is living alone in Puebla while his parents are working in the United States, and sending money back to him weekly. He is a believer, and quite spiritually mature for his age and the circumstances that surround him.)

3. The church Cristo Victorioso is currently looking for land near the church to build a pastoral home. We would love to have land ready and even a foundation before the next team comes down to work, Lord willing.

I hope you all are doing well. Even though it’s super cold here (for me), it’s really nice to be back.

Blessings,
Jon

Posted by Jon at 12:24 PM | Permalink

The "Famous" Missionary

On Tuesday I was invited to an elementary school to be “interviewed” by a group of 3rd and 4th graders as a part of their English project. They had been anticipating my arrival with great eagerness ever since their teacher, Paula (who comes with her boyfriend Hector to my Bible study on Fridays), told them that she invited me to come talk to them in English. They had a lot of questions which ranged from “What’s your favorite color?” to “Do you have a girlfriend?” They were in awe of the "big white guy" (I'm big down here), behaved very well and were so excited I would have thought it was Christmas! I think I signed about 30 autographs before I left… believe me, not by my own choosing! Oh well, I guess everybody gets their 15 minutes of fame somehow.

Bible Studies

The two Bible studies that I hold in my home have been going well. The men in my Wednesday group have been more and more consistent each month. This past time we had five Mexican brothers come. Our fellowship of believers is growing slowly but surely. “They are devoting themselves to the apostles teaching (daily reading from the Word), fellowship, eating of Hamburger Helper (breaking of bread), and prayer.” Thanks to those H.H. instant box recipes, we have an early church model (Acts 2:42) of a fellowship of believers :) I give thanks to the LORD, who, only by HIS grace, are there any believers growing here in Puebla.
The Friday night fellowship has been going well too. We will have our third meeting this Friday. Paula, Hector and Eduardo, all students, are meeting in my house for a Bible study fellowship on Friday evenings. Paula even asked if she could invite a friend for the upcoming study.

The Project

It won’t be long now. My goal was to have the house “livable” by the time I leave for PA for Thanksgiving. The Lord has blessed MIGHTLY and we have met our goal of $3000 to complete everything from the foundation to the roof. Ever since we started building, the owners of neighboring properties have begun to clear their lots and start building homes of their own. Just the other day a mason from a property a block down from us came over to check out our work and take a brake. He examined our work thoroughly, the electrical system, plumbing and walls, and eventually exclaimed, “Wow… you guys must be working with a plan!” (Meaning a blueprint of some kind) That made me smile. Having a home designed on paper before it’s built is an uncommon luxury for a Mexican mason. I’m certainly not an architect, but I did enjoy designing the house and making it as builder friendly and economical as possible.

I threw my back out the other day. No, not lifting 6 blocks at a time. No, not trying to carry 3 bags of cement on one shoulder. I threw it out on Friday morning tying my shoes. What an embarrassment! Anyway I was laid up for about two days and I am finally starting to feel back to normal. I thank the Lord for an excellent Chiropractor here in Puebla, Dr. Coca. I'm very thankful to be back on my feet and continuing to get better.

_______THIS HOUSE COMES THOROUGHLY EQUIPPED WITH 20TH CENTURY UTILITIES: A CIRCUIT BREAKER BOX (WITH 2 BREAKERS... WHICH IS NORMAL HERE), AND A SEPTIC SYSTEM (NOT QUITE AS MODERN AS THE ONES IN THE STATES)

_______THE ROOFING MATERIALS ARRIVED YESTERDAY. THE REBAR/CONCRETE BEAMS SEEN BELOW WILL BE SET ABOUT 2 FEET APART WITH A SPACE INBETWEEN TO CARRY THE SPECIALLY MADE LIGHTWEIGHT CEMENT BLOCKS THAT THE DELIVERY GUYS ARE UNLOADING IN THE PICTURE. LATER THE ROOF IS POURED, OVER THE BLOCKS AND FILLING IN THE TOP EXPOSED REBAR PART OF THE BEAM TO MAKE A STRONG CONCRETE ROOF THAT CAN SOME DAY BECOME A SECOND FLOOR.

Prayer and Praise:

1. My back is almost back to normal now, but it’s weak so I need to be careful.
2. Neil’s finger has been healing well. He finally had the last stitches taken out. (A few weeks ago he had an accident with his hand in a car motor)
3. Praise God for providing funds to finish the house! I have been so blessed to work there, learning and helping. Jovencio's family are just beside themselves with joy and gratitude.
4. I have been very happy to host the two Bible studies in my house. My prayer is that each person that attends continues to grow in their walk with the Lord.

In Christ,
Jon

________THE PAST FEW WEEKS OF PROGRESS

Posted by Jon at 11:17 AM | Permalink