Learning How to be Blind

It's official, as far as the doctors are concerned, that Rigo will be forever blind. We still trust that God has a plan, and trust Him in whatever that may be--blindness or sight.
Until something else occurs, Rigo has accepted his situation and is determined to take advantage of opportunities to continue to conquer life, serving Christ. To do this, as a blind man, he has started attending an Institute for the Blind in Tijuana that we were referred to by one of his ophthalmologists. Little did we know when we sent Rigo and Kent for an orientation, that it happens to be a Christian-run institute (we had previously assumed it would  be government-run). What a blessing for Rigo to be learning his new lifestyle in a Christian facility with an entire Christian staff.
But that's not all! The Institute provides daily devotionals, however, none of the men have been trained in that arena so in their words are just "doing what they can" to provide an encouraging devotional every day; Rigo has been a student of the BI for 3 years now and one of his trainings has, in fact, been bringing devotionals. This would be the perfect opportunity for him to bless others' lives with the tools he has been equipped with here. How cool is our God?

Please continue to pray for Rigo and his family, especially his wife whom is having difficulty accepting his new lifestyle. God knows what's best for them! Amen!

Thanksgiving

We enjoyed a fantastic Thanksgiving here at the BI this past Thursday:  Turkey and all!
Kent, Lila, and several students helped prepare a totally Traditional Thanksgiving meal of 4 turkeys, 4 pans of sweet potatoes, 3 green been casseroles, a giant fruit salad, a big bowl of stuffing, a big owl bowl of mash'o'taters, Chipotle gravy, and hot apple cider. Can you say "YUM"? The students here seemed to enjoy it, as well--a few asked for chili sauce, but can you blame them? They were only bottle-fed jalapeños! :o)

The students hung out and played games (janga, chess, ping-pong, dominoes, air hockey) up until the serving of the Thanksgiving meal. After the delicious meal, we took some time to have open-mic for anyone to come up and say what they're thankful to God for. Not many students went up, but the ones that did share moved the emotions of the room with both laughter and tears. The students were very helpful and considerate by cleaning up the kitchen.

For Thursday night service, after entering into worship for a few songs we showed the movie "Facing the Giants" rather than delivering a sermon--more sensible after a long day like Thanksgiving.
Following the movie, the congregation enjoyed Kent's Apple Cobbler with ice cream.

It was a day to be thankful for, as we are for every day God blesses us with.

a Tradgedy and a Blessing

Gloria lost her baby.
Her and her husband went from jovial to depressed in a matter of days as she was hospitalized to run several tests to make sure. She is on bed rest for at least 40 days--we don't exactly know why, since she only had an emergency D&C--so we are temporarily out of a cook. Luckily we are blessed with many serving hearts here at the BI, and have had several women step up and help in the kitchen. Please be praying with us for Gloria's physical, emotional, and spiritual health as she gets through this tough time.

We've been blessed with an inexpensive, gently used commercial oven! It's so beautiful in the kitchen and we can cook beans, and tortillas, and rice, and the main meal ALL AT ONCE with no problem! :-)
Also, we had a group of from Shadow Mountain Community Church in San Diego come down on Saturday and they cleaned and repainted our whole kitchen; so it looks even that much better!

Blessings!

APEN, Jesus, & pregnant!

APEN (Child Evangelism Fellowship in Spanish) Leadership here at the BI is busy prepping for the APEN conference being held in Tijuana tomorrow. At the conference, we'll will be transitioning to both the next lesson of the curriculum as well as Christmas curriculum--as it is fast approaching! The team will be presenting songs, skits, devotionals, and gifting and selling materials and curriculum. Should be a good time of fellowship and learning of new methods of evangelizing the little ones! After all, they are the most important to be reached!

Mark 9:37
"Anyone who welcomes one of these little children in my name welcomes me. And anyone who welcomes me doesn't welcome only me but also the One who sent me."

Also, this past week we had a former-student, Jesus, visit us here at the BI from his missionary-life where he has been reaching the unreached indigenous tribes in the dangerous mountains of Chihuahua, Mexico. He delivered an encouraging message to our current students at our Wednesday student service--it has been a joy and encouragement having him visit!

Also good news, one of our staff members, Gloria, is several weeks pregnant! This is a blessing and a miracle, for doctors had informed her there was no chance of her ever conceiving. She and her husband feel greatly blessed! Unfortunately, she is already having some minor complications, so is on bedrest until further testing and results. Please pray with us for a smooth pregnancy as well as a healthy baby (or babies, it seems might be the case, after an ultrasound)!