News from Mexico

Here is the latest news from our mission partners in Mexico.

June 2008

A newsletter of the ministry of Rick Barnes and Mercy Gonzalez-Barnes

IM missionaries to Baja California , Mexico

“I will go before you and will level the mountains; I will break down gates of bronze and cut through bars of iron.”

Isaiah 45:2 NIV

As I write this morning, I want to share two “refranes” with you. A “refran” is a commonly used saying that the hearers can immediately relate to. If I were to say “birds of a feather flock together,” most of you would have a general sense of what that means. The Spanish spoken in Mexico is loaded with “refranes”, some related to throughout the Spanish speaking world, some very regional. Two I have seen the value of are two, “ni modo” and “adelante” that I taught to a Short Term Mission group from Church in the Acres Baptist, Springfield , MA . These exemplify a good deal of the mindset of the people we work with.

Ni Modo means, basically, “oh well,” as in “oh well, what are you going to do about it.” For the people in the Dios con Nosotros convention, it is not an excuse to stop, but rather just another obstacle to overcome. Adelante means basically “proceed on”, or as one of the STM group said, yeah, it’s like that fish from the movie, saying “Just keep swimming, Just keep swimming.” I know it is a temptation for us to want to give up when the numbers don’t add up, or when we feel the obstacles are too large. But one of the things that I have learned from the churches and people with whom we work is that they have never had the luxury of having enough money or materials. For those who have always had to live and work with basically a hand to mouth existence, struggle has made them face adversity with amazing resiliency, because they are forced to live out their faith on even their basic level. They realize that they may not have the resources, but God is able to bless far more abundantly that they could ever hope for. So they continue to commit themselves to doing God’s work, and pray that God will bless what they are doing.

One remarkable example of that is the couple Eleazar and Rosita Romo. They have been in ministry more than fifty years, sometimes with Eleazar pastoring, and sometimes with both of them as a “missionary” couple (what we would term “New Church Planters). They were missionaries for Primera Iglesia Bautista ( First Baptist Church ) in Mexicali and he later pastored the church during a time of great missionary emphasis. More than ten churches are direct descendants of the ministry of this church, and Eleazar and Rosita were involved in some way with getting most of them off the ground. One example of Ni Modo and Adelante that he shared is when they were sent out to form a mission in the town of Veracruz I. They had nothing, but were told to get a Vacation Bible School going. He told me, “we got really good at using cardboard and cans that we found to help as craft supplies”. The mission church that was formed there is now called Iglesia Bautista Lirio del Valle (Lilly of the Valley Baptist Church ), a strong, growing and vibrant church. Last year, We celebrated Eleazar’s 50 years in ministry, thinking he was toward the end of a long and distinguished career. We celebrated his service, and the thanked God and Rosita profusely. He retired from the First Baptist Church of Calexico, CA, and they started living in La Rumorosa, a town in the mountains of northern Baja. But it wasn’t long before he started sensing that something wasn’t complete. “What are we doing here?” was asked, and before long, they started offering Bible studies in their home. Soon they were convinced of the need to start a mission. In January of this year, Primera Iglesia Bautista of Mexicali formally adopted the work as a mission, and things have been going steadily since then. The building is tiny and “well ventilated,” but it is a starting place. Thanks to the Short Term Mission team from Church in the Acres from Springfield , MA they now have a stone retaining wall, so they can level out the ground in preparation for a building. There has not been the promise of a building, just the dream and conviction that there needs to be one there. And in this small community, we also had 35 children at an afternoon Bible School . Again, they are simply convinced of need to do God’s work, and are convinced that God will bless them.

During the month of April we had the blessing of having the short term mission group from Church in the Acres come down to help build a retaining wall and assist with a Vacation Bible School . We always say that the best thing that happens with these short term mission experiences is that there is also the building of a relationship and the fact that we are all witnesses to what God is doing in different parts of the world through his church. Below are pictures of the group led by Jane Beckland and the happy faces of the children from the community of La Rumorosa. Please keep them in your prayers.
In Christ’s Love, Rick

Family Update “Commencement” Well, we’ve come to the end of the school year and our kids are excited about finally being done with finals and starting their summer vacation. Both Aida and Richie have done very well this year even though at times it has been challenging. Parents of High School kids will know what I mean. They challenge us but they make us proud. Joshua has done very well in his third grade class and we also look forward to a good experience next year with fourth grade.

We are all looking forward to visiting with my family in Puerto Rico in a few days. We will spend two weeks with them and return to visit some colleges and have an idea of what life will be like when Aida graduates next year.

It’s the last week of school at the seminary too and the students are just like our kids, counting the days in which they will be done with papers and off to their vacation.

You know, life is full of endings and new beginnings. That’s why I love commencement time. It always brings tears to my eyes as you say good-bye to one part of life and start another. You also get another opportunity to do things better and to make things better. It’s like New Years Day all over again.

We wish you a renewing summer and continue to thank you for your commitment to the Lord’s service and to our ministry. Please continue to keep us in your prayers and in your budgets.

Thanks again,
Mercy and Rick

P.S. from Cal - We are looking for mission partners to give a gift of $50 to the work of Mercy and Rick. You can pick a month and we can cover the whole year. You can also make a donation to the ministry of either of the two churches we have worked with by designating your gift to Buen Samaritano or to Sion.