March 2009 Update!

This month I want to answer some questions that I have been asked recently!

When do you go to Mexico?
I will be leaving Oregon around August 3rd and driving to El Paso, Texas, but I am not sure of my traveling route yet. Any suggestions?!

Where are you going?
I’ll be moving to Chihuahua, Mexico. Chihuahua is 4 hours south of El Paso, Texas and there are over 1 million people that live there! It’s the red circle in the map!

How long will you be gone?
I will be in Mexico for at least 2 years to study the Spanish language before I come home to Oregon. But after a few months home, I’ll be heading back down to Mexico!

Why?
I’m not going down to Mexico just to study Spanish, but to be involved in sharing the gospel with people that have never heard it before! There are 40 people groups that have no access to God’s Word & there is no GOSPEL witness among them!

What is tribal church planting?
A church planting team is a group of missionaries involved in moving into a remote location, learning the language & culture of the people, translating Bible lessons into their language, then teaching them those lessons, and sharing the gospel. But it’s not over then! We continue teaching them more about God & living the Christian life. And there is also translating the Bible into their language.

How long will this take?
25-40 years! I know, aren’t you amazed?! Language & culture learning takes 2-4 years. Bible lesson preparation takes 6 months or so. Teaching those Bible lessons: 6 months-2 years. Continued Bible teaching & discipleship: 10 years or so. And Bible translation: 15-30 years. The goal is to see a church planted among a people group without access to the gospel, see those believers equipped, and then the missionaries will leave a church that is glorifying God!  As you can see this will take a while, I’m not going down there for a quick trip.

Who pays you?
Church, friends, and individuals! They are sending financial support to me, in order to free me up to daily spend time sharing the gospel with those that have not heard. Did you know that one third of my support goes to paying for the ministry needs? Such as Bible printing, books to teach literacy, & more! The other two-thirds of my monthly support goes to living expenses, insurance, & taxes.

En Route To Mexico
This little map shows the progress of my monthly support! New Tribes – Mexico would like me to have enough support to make it to Cortez, Colorado, which is 60%. But I would like to make it closer to the blue star – which is past Albuquerque, New Mexico, about 80%. But currently “my car” is at 15%, which is near Mountain Home, Idaho. $31 a month equals 1% of my support, $3100 is 100%. So I only need 85 individuals or churches to help me get there! If you have some more questions about this, please ask!