The Miller Family in Mexico City

Camping

 Oh, man!  This U.S.-based blogging is going to be a struggle.  We find that our days are full and there isn't as much time to spend communicating via blog.  We've just spent the majority of the last 2 weeks either in a tent or with our whole family in one bedroom.  Joel's family gathered in South Haven, MI (pictured) and then Janette's family had a big reunion in Ludington, MI.  After a few days in Spring Arbor with her two sisters and families in the house, we headed out to the Southern Michigan Conf. Family Camp at Somerset Beach Campground.  We had an opportunity to share a couple of missions moments and connect with people we've known for many years since Janette grew up going to this camp.  It was fun but is just the beginning of a whirlwind Free Methodist camp tour we are making this month.  Tonight we are sleeping in our beds (Yes!) and then leaving in the morning to spend the next 4 days in 2 different Pittsburgh conference camps.  We'll then drive from Pittsburgh to beautiful Clay City, IN for the Wabash Family Camp.  We'll be staying with Joel's parents at the Clay City camp.

We're looking forward to seeing many of our friends who have supported us over the last 4+ years as we served in Mexico City.  We'll also be making new friends and look forward to that.

The kids are making some new friends and we are thankful for that.  When we tell them we are getting ready to go on a trip they still ask every time if we are going back to Mexico City.  These are emotional times for them and we are praying that God gives them peace and a sense of security as we face more days of transition ahead.  Pictured is Leah blowing out 5 candles for her June 26 birthday.

Thanks for your patience as we continue settling in and finding our routine.  We'll let you know how things went when we get back from this Camp trip.

Stop the Roller Coaster, I Want to Get Off!

We've been in the United States (Michigan to be exact) for almost a week now.  We had some delays on the flight home but all of that was forgotten when we finally came "home" to Spring Arbor and had Grandma and Grandpa Thompson to help with the kids.

The kids are settling in to the new routine and the new location.  We are so thankful for those of you who have been praying for their adjustment.  Grandpa made new bunkbeds for the three older kids so they are enjoying their new beds.  There is also lots of grass and wide open spaces in which they can run and play.  On Sunday, they all went to their new Sunday School classes and really seemed to fit right in.

But today our routine changed again.  Janette flies to Santiago, Chile to attend fellow missionary Kay Stotts' wedding this weekend.  When she returns on Monday, we'll have a day before driving down to Indianapolis for our debriefing time with the World Missions staff.

There are also lots of "re-entry" issues to tackle like bank accounts, dentist and doctor visits, and preparations for the kids' schooling.  Despite all of this running around, we feel God's peace and his presence and thank you for the ways you are praying and for the ways you have welcomed us back.

We're looking forward to seeing many of you in the next few weeks as we travel to several different summer camps.

A Beautiful Day for a Baptism...or 7!

It was a long and joy filled day yesterday as 37 people witnessed the baptism of 7 of our church family.  Four of the women are from our new church plant in Xochimilco and how EXCITING it is to see their growth and eagerness to undertake this next step of their new faith.  We sang, prayed and played together as we thanked God for his goodness and for the changed lives we witness each year.  What a way to end our term here.  God is so good.  Pictures speak better than words...(by the way the water was straight from the mountains and COLD!) so be sure to check out our photo album of the baptism located in the right hand column.

Dia de la Madre

In Mexico, Mother's Day is always celebrated on May 10...and wow, is it ever celebrated.  One of our Mexican friends said that Mother's Day is probably the most celebrated day on the Mexican calendar (besides the special day for the Virgin of Guadalupe).  Much of this focus on mothers stems from the Roman Catholic emphasis on the mother of Jesus.

On May 9, one of the traditions is for a group of people to go to mothers' houses to sing a traditional song in a post-midnight serenade.  Julianne participated with the singers this year and they came to our house around 3 a.m.  We never heard a sound! :)  The other tradition is not so easily ignored- loud fireworks.  From midnight on Friday through midnight on Saturday we were treated to the sporadic launching of large amounts of gun powder.

As many of you celebrate your mothers today (or are celebrated yourselves), we trust that you will be reminded of the blessing it is to be a mother.  Janette and I are so thankful for our mothers and the Godly influence they have had in our lives.

So what do you do when you are living in two cultures?  Janette thinks it is obvious that we would celebrate Mother's Day on both the Mexican and U.S. dates.  We are giving her some special attention this weekend and this evening the men and youth of the church are having a cookout for the women of the church.

Stay tuned in the coming days for more blogs on the recent children's workers' workshop and other church events for May.  The picture in this post is of Janette at some ruins near Campeche.

Central Africa HealthCare Organization Conference

How did another two weeks go by without a blog post?!  Perhaps we could blame our schedule of late and a mild case of "senioritis" as our first missionary term comes to an end.

I did have an opportunity last week to attend and participate in the annual CAHO conference in Spring Arbor, Michigan.  We also took advantage of Josiah's free passage which allowed him to spend the weekend with Grandma and Grandpa Thompson in Spring Arbor.

CAHO brings together some of the most experienced and thoughtful medical missionaries (and others interested in the same) in the Free Methodist Church.  In recent years, they have graciously expanded their scope to include Mexico and Haiti in addition to the longstanding works in Central Africa.

This year, we took time to think about the call to ministry.  I'm not sure I came away with a lot of answers but the questions we are asking these days were validated and we were encouraged.

While I was in Michigan, Janette was here in Mexico City helping with the details of a Children's Worker Workshop put on by missionary Kay Stotts from Chile.  We've received great reviews of the sessions and this weekend Kay and Janette are repeating the performance in Campeche.

As you can see, our last couple of weeks have been busy and we look forward to being together again as a family when Janette returns on Sunday night.  Thank you for praying for us as we enter our final month here in Mexico City.  There are many things that need closure and many boxes and suitcases to pack.  We are living in this in-between time and want to be present for our friends and co-workers here but also preparing our minds and hearts for the new experiences ahead.

Pray for Haiti

Have you seen the recent reports out of Haiti?  It isn't frontpage news any longer.  But people are struggling and starving there.  Here is an update from some friends who are standing with the Haitians.  Check it out and allow God to move you to prayer, to tears, to action...

Super soap for sale!

Mexico City women are now selling soap through SEED.  Go to Janette's blog to read all about it and see the different types!  And then you can buy some for your friends, your family, your neighbors, your dog, and your own home !  Just email seed@fmcna.org or call 1-800-342-5531 ext.249 to order today!  The soap sells at $2.50 for a regular size bar or $5.00 for 3 square bars.

The Taste of Dirt

No, this isn't that healthy dirt taste that clings to your fresh vegetables from the garden.  You know, the taste that tells you that the tomato you're about to eat didn't spend 2 weeks in a refrigerated truck.  Rather, this taste of dirt is from the dust that blows off of the piles of Mexico City garbage.  Without buildings or trees to slow the wind, the dirt swirls across deserted soccer fields and into every crack and crevice.  That was the scene and the taste as Janette and I arrived in one of the largest garbage dumps in Mexico City- Neza.  It is situated in a huge open plain in one of the more populated regions of Mexico City.  The full name of the municipality is Nezahuacoyotl.

Missionary Gary Allen and our friend Sergio came along as well.  Gary helped translate in the optical and medical areas.  Janette also helped in the triage and medical areas.  A college team from Miami (of Ohio) University made up the bulk of the OSI group this week.  Many of the patients seen were trying to get refills on their basic medicines since the OSI teams don't return to the Neza dump until mid-June.

Would you pray that the doors would remain open for OSI to continue ministering in Neza?  We are also asking God to show us how the Free Methodist Church might invest longterm in ministries like the outreach to Neza.  Thank you for your faithful prayers and financial support which allow us to continue ministering in places like Neza and to men, women, and children like those you see pictured here.

OSI Spring Break Trips

Our friends with Operation Serve International are working here in Mexico City this month.  They are hosting three different teams.  Last week, I had the opportunity to work an afternoon alongside a team from the Buffalo, NY area in the garbage dump of Neza.  We saw almost 50 medical patients as well as a number of optical, hair care, and children's ministry visits.

This time of year in Mexico City is very dry and often windy.  Our small canopies were not much protection from the stiff wind that whipped across the dry dirt soccer field where we were set up.  Most of the afternoon found me squinting and trying to keep the dirt out of my mouth as I sat on my folding metal chair across from the patient in hers.  All of the children have skin irritations and matted hair.  It is impossible to keep the ever-blowing dust out of the thin-walled shacks.  My heart went out to them and I wondered if maybe the Israelites felt a little like that as they wandered in the desert.

Tomorrow, I'm going back to Neza.  I have the option of picking and choosing my visits to the garbage dump.  Hundreds who live there have no options to leave.  I pray that God continues to soften my heart as I see these friends in Neza with his eyes.

Sowing in Xochimilco

Pastor Juan and Eva have been ministering with one family in Xochimilco (So-she-mil-ko) for a couple of months now.  (We learned of this contact through a family member who is living in the United States.)  They have typically had two adults and 2 children attend a Sunday morning class.  While the numbers weren't large, the mother and daughter were very interested in learning more about God and the Bible.

Now enters the Peterborough, Canada VISA team.  They accompanied Pastor Juan and Eva to Xochimilco where they had a kids program of puppets, music, clowns, and a Biblical drama.  Several neighborhood families came to the outreach.  The team was also able to give some of the basic necessities to these needy families who are often hungry and without adequate clothing.  But would any of these families return without the draw of the Canadian children's ministry?

Praise God, the answer is YES!  Pastor Juan reports that yesterday morning 16 people came to the Sunday School in Xochimilco.  It is a beautiful thing when short-term teams are able to give a jump start to the work.  Thanks, Peterborough friends, for your willingness to serve and for the love you demonstrated to the "least of these" in Xochimilco.

Sorry, we don't have any pictures of this new house church yet.  We'll post them when we do.