Jon in Mexico

I remember well the first trip I ever took to Mexico with the CEFC team. 18 years old and recently graduated from High School, I had a lot of good excuses not to go: “What would I do?” “I don’t know Spanish, don’t have enough money, don’t want to ask people for money.” “Aren’t there other people who fit the job description better than me?” I had been thinking for a while about going on the trip, but successfully talked myself out of it every time it came to mind using reasoning like this. So what changed my mind? It was a phone call from a brother in the church asking me if I was interested in going to Mexico, and I said… well, “yes.”
God has a very unique way of speaking to each one of us. The way he speaks to me is probably much different than the way he speaks to you. I was already being “called” when the “call” came. I truly believe that some of you are being “called” too but just have not made the decision yet. For those of you who have been considering this trip and can sacrifice two weeks from June 17th to the 29th, please keep this in prayer to the Lord and continuing listening for His guidance.

Work at C.V. this past week- Since the beginning of April, the members of Cristo Victorioso have been preparing for the group by working on the physical building of the church and raising special “work fund” offerings to continue preparing the walls and beams necessary to hold up the concrete roof.

The Mexico trip is open to anyone who has a servant’s heart, and a desire to share the love of Chirst through testimony, work, words and actions. You do NOT need to be an expert in construction. You do NOT need to know how to speak Spanish. You do NOT need a seminary degree or in-depth Bible training.
Some of you have been thinking about going on a short term missions trip this summer. Maybe you’re waiting to make a final decision… maybe you’re making the same excuses that I made 8 years ago... maybe you are wondering how you will be useful… maybe you are waiting until the last minute. Only you know if God is speaking to you. If so, pray about it and seek His guidance over these next few days, and consider making a decision in faith. The deadline for ordering the airline tickets is April 17th, this coming Tuesday, and the team is not full. So if you have been thinking, praying and seeking the Lord’s direction about going to Mexico in June… now is the time to make that commitment.

Dates: June 17th to the 29th
Work to be done:
- Building ministry: Complete the last phase of the building project at the church, working with the Mexican believers
- Food prep / group care: Food shopping, preparing lunches, caring for the general needs of the group
- Encouragement ministry: Maintenance and small construction projects in the homes of widows and single women in the church (Groups of 4-5 daily)

For more information about registration for the trip, contact Len Noble at CEFC. If you don’t know Len, email me (Jonathan Mountz) and I will send you his phone number and get you in contact with him.

Blessings,
Jon

Posted by Jon at 11:08 AM | Permalink

Tradition: The Mexico Team

My home church in Elverson, Community Evangelical Free, is once again preparing a work team to serve in Mexico from June 17th to the 29th. The main work will be at the church Cristo Victorioso, finishing the last phase of the building project that was started over a decade ago. We will be working to complete the exterior walls and roof structure of the second floor of an annex to the sanctuary.
Apart from that, we are planning to send small groups of 4-6 each day from the team to the homes of members of Cristo Victorioso as a service and encouragement ministry. The idea is to send the small groups each day to homes where there is a genuine need for maintenance or construction work so that the group can serve, encourage and fellowship with our fellow Mexican believers. Right now we have 3 projects lined up between three ladies in the church. One is a widow with a leaky roof and a need of a security wall in front of her small property to replace a wire mesh fence that is falling down. Another single lady frequently fills up ten 5 gal. buckets of water to cook, clean and bathe. A small cistern built on her property is a very likely project. Another lady in our church has a block wall that borders her property that thieves have been able to jump over and enter. She is diabetic and almost blind. Her faithful husband works long hours, cooks and cleans and never has time to much more than that. The goal there would be to raise the wall a few more feet. It’s not clear how many projects there will be, but hopefully we will have about 5 homes from the church where we can serve, apart from the work to be done at Cristo Victorioso. Please keep this team in your prayers.

Bridge on the highway to the state of Oaxaca- (This has nothing to do with the Mexico Team... I just like bridges) Don't ask why the wall is broken out right in front of the ravine.

Culture: The “Güero”

Like any culture, Americans have terms we use for people we love and are close to. When they are directed at the proper person in the right situation are entirely appropriate. Spouses call each other: honey, sweety. Friends call each other: buddy, pal and dude. Although all of these terms have a complimentary feeling to them, they still need to be used carefully, and used among those who generally have a longstanding relationship. These are what we might call “terms of endearment.”
My name to all of you has always been “Jon”, sometimes “Jonathan”, and with those who I know well, the creative modifications of Jonboy, Jono, Jonny and Jonny Whitepants are options. In Mexico, one might expect that my name might be Juan or Jonathan (a surprisingly common Spanish name), right?... Wrong. Three out of every four people that greet me don’t call me Juan or Jonathan. They call me “white man” (güero). (Not to be mistaken with “gringo” which does have a derogatory undertone.) What?! White man? Like “whitey? white boy?” You bet. And the funniest thing is, it’s perfectly normal. I hear it from friends, police officers, neighbors, beggars, elders in the church, everyone.
The next logical question might be, “Isn’t that offesive?” Absolutely not, especially when I consider the other “terms of endearment” that are commonly used here. Children call their mothers and fathers “shorty” (chaparrito/a) and “fatty” (gordo/a) depending on their build. And the amazing thing is that it’s not received as disrespectful, but as a heart-felt alternative to "mom" and "dad".

The "Tule" Tree - Mexico boasts of having one of the oldest trees in the world. On a trip to a pastoral conference in the state of Oaxaca, Pastor Juan and I stopped by this 2000+ year old, 40 feet in diameter behemoth.

A Way of Life

Where in the world can you find people who can make up any excuse for a party? You guessed it… Mexico! Where there’s a holiday for everyone and everything. Apart from the normal ones “Father’s Day, Mother’s Day, etc…” there is a “Day of the… Child, The Constitution, Construction Worker, Navy, Mailman, The Dead… the list goes on and on and on. What it seems like is a perpetual string of year round excuses for “fiestas.” This past week we celebrated my favorite of them all, the “Day of the Taco.” Not that I need an excuse to eat a couple of tacos… but it sure was nice to celebrate.

College Age Bible Study

This is a hard group of people to find a name for. “Youth Group” sounds too young, “Singles” sounds a little bleak, and “Young Adults” is a bit restricting. Anyway, our “College Age” group this past Saturday had three newcomers! Apart from Hector, Paola and Lalo we had Paco, Tatiana, and Diana attend as well. I gave a 20 min study on Mark 3:1-6, we had a time of prayer and afterwards a trip to “The Italian Coffee Co.” (It’s like Starbucks, but cheaper). Some who attend are not saved and brand new to the Bible, but very open and willing to learn. My desire is to continue to make the gospel very clear in each study, no matter what the topic is. I would appreciate your prayers.

C.V. Youth and Pastor Juan

The youth at Cristo Victorioso prepared a suprise "serenade" for Pastor Juan on his birthday. Singing, food, and the always embarrassing "mordida" (cake bite), where the birthday person has to take a bite out of the cake before cutting and serving it. It's a Mexican tradition.

Prayer

1. In two months the Mexico team will be here. Pray for the Lord to arrange the group that He intends to come.
2. Friday is our "College Age" Bible study day. Please pray that God would touch the hearts of those whom he is calling.
3. Continued perseverance through these last two months, and guidance as I continue to seek His will regarding returning home and pursuing what's next.

Posted by Jon at 11:43 PM | Permalink