Evangelism work

CPTLN is very excited to participate in supporting the creation of a new Bible Institute for the training of pastor and missional workers in Tijuana and along the border.  We visited an excellent Bible Institute and ministry operating in Tijuana.  We spoke to some key ministry leaders including the director of the Institute.  I was especially appreciative of their bold and expansive vision, their connectedness to their community, their creative recruiting process and their commitment to excellence!

Later we had lunch together and they surprised me with a birthday cake !  What fun.

We are excited to continue working on a ministry plan to reach an entire community.  We continue to pack up boxes in our move to the community center. There are many new opportunities that will open up to us as we move closer to the community where we serve!

Pray for these dreams to expand ministry along the border!

A day of planning, serving and fellowship…..

It was a great opportunity to spend some time with people who love the work of Lutheran Hour. They were from the Sunshine Zone, the Southern California District and the Orphan Grain Train. Because we are from Lancaster (about an hour north of Los Angeles) all the way down to San Diego, we try to have meetings in midpoint areas. Oceanside certainly favored those of us from the south so we were grateful.  We stacked the three meetings one after the other….!  It was a long day but a good one.

It is great to see people who are serious about the mission and filled with joy at the opportunity to serve God through these ministries.  New officers were elected. We are grateful for the leadership of those officer who have finished their terms.  Those serving in the Sunshine Zone have done a great job and a challenge shepherding the Sunshine Zone through the sale of Camp Caroline.  What a blessing that we have a fund that will bless ministries.

I was invited to give an update of ministry in Tijuana…..the challenges, the opportunities….the blessings!

President Tom Clarke took be aside to present me with six sets of communion ware for the churches in Tijuana.  I am so excited to present it to them!  What a cool thing to have matching communion ware for the churches that are in fellowship and work together!  What a blessing.

Then we finished out the day with a celebration of my mom’s 77th birthday!  What a wonderful day of blessing!

The Community Celebrates God and celebrates each other!

We celebrated two birthdays on Sunday and I loved this practice of having those celebrate birthdays go up front for a special birthday blessing  and sing with them BUT THEN……the rest of us were invited to go and give them a hug and a birthday blessing too!  Very much reminds everyone we are on family in faith!

Tere celebrated her birthday on this trip and so did young Priscila who turned 8.  She is a niece of the Jimenez family we were visiting.

Worship celebration…..

We enjoyed the lovely hospitality of Job’s sister and her family.  Not only was her hospitality lovely but she has air conditioning in her house!  We were treated to wonderful ham and egg burritos and then headed off to Bible class before church.  The morning was probably already over 100 degrees.

Job led a bible class using Good News as his resource on the work of the Holy Spirit.  It was a good introduction to the worship and message of the day.

Enjoyed the worship of the day.  Pastor Jesus Jimenez was also on hand to help that day when Holy Communion was served.  This was the music after the communion liturgy.  This really reflected a joyous response at what God has done and continues to do in our lives when He shows up and is present!  I very much enjoyed it!

Excited to see what God is doing…..

Our CPTLN traveled with Rev. Ramon Contreras of Lutheran Border Concerns Ministry to San Luis Rio Colorado, Sonora to visit a ministry team led by a young lay pastor there and see where we can support and encourage this work.  It was great to make the trip across the impressive Rumorosa mountains…… and getting to talk about some of the ministry dreams that we are seeing take shape along the border expanding God’s Kingdom in a radical way!

We got to see some of the missions there and see what is on the horizon for young lay pastor, Job Jimenez who at 22 is both leading ministry and finishing up his university studies.  He was so gracious to take us to see some of the missions.

Santo Tomas has an impressive property.  I wonder where God is going to take plans for this mission!

This ministry follows a rhythm of life in this area….where many residents seek seasonal work and leave for a season and then return and fill this chapel! Fascinating.

Please pray for these missions and Job and his team and what God wants to do in this region!

Participate in the reaching……

Thanks for your prayers and support and encouraging words.  They mean so much to us!  We truly remember that there are people praying for us, for the mission field and for the people that we have the privilege to serve and get to know.

We need your financial support too.  Times are tough but your regular gift, even if a modest one, will make a difference.

We know how to make things stretch and count!  Once again, we are making some changes that will help us use our funds where they can reach people!  We are giving up our office space and this gives us an opportunity to devote those $450 a month to expand our reach!  This weekend we go to San Luis Rio Colorado, Sonora to meet with a ministry team there and see how we can help support them and share with them things that are working here.

Pray for us.  Consider supporting us.  We would really appreciate it!  If you feel the tug to do so, there are a few ways to do this:

1.  Click on  the “DONATE NOW” link found on the right hand bar of the blog, and then click on “Transitory-Mexico Locally Raised”  This is found on the bottom of the list.  There you can give a one time gift, a monthly gift or quarterly gift. Please consider a monthly gift of whatever amount.  This will provide us the stability we need to continue growing the ministry work here in Tijuana.

2.  Contact Melissa Salomon at mgsalomon@gmail.com on how to mail in a check to Lutheran Hour Ministries with a special coding that will benefit the support of our local office.

3.  Pray and request that your local congregation might make a donation to this ministry as part of your mission budget.  We have a few churches that give regular gifts or a percentage of their total offerings!

4.  Pray and request that your local LWML might consider a gift to support the work of this ministry.

Melissa Salomon can give you details, information, photographs that you might need to make these requests.  Thank you for being our active supporter and representative.  Let your friends know about us and how they can get involved too.

5.  Perhaps you wish to make a regular gift toward the support of a particular ministry?  Maybe you want to support a staff member and have your ministry/congregation have a “deployed” missionary here in Tijuana!  Contact Melissa Salomon about these opportunities.

What is unique about our ministry?

We bring Christ to the nations and the nations to the church.

We do this by investing in building relationships because real relationships provide the context for serving and teaching.

That means that we strive for progamming that is self supporting. This helps that program multiply and people take ownership of this outreach.  We invest in staff because they are out….burning alot of shoe leather….serving and building relationships and providing (in a strategic and intentional way) space for the Holy Spirit to do what only He can do!

We do not target people who are already in the church but THOSE who do not have a personal relationship with Him.

These are the things we VALUE:

1. Activities that teach people that God has a purpose for their lives and how much He values them.

2. Leaders and volunteers who live a life of service and commitment to God.

3. Genuine relationship with continuous and direct contact, is our way of serving and teaching the Word of God.

4. Activities that are self supporting, develop leaders and multiply.

5.  Activites and materials of high quality.

6.  Activities that meet a current, individual need and strengthen communities.

7. The whole family context must be kept in focus which serving/teaching one of its members.

8. Activities that have a clear and concrete strategy to teach the Word of God.

PRAY FOR US.   PRAY FOR THOSE WHOM GOD INTENDS TO REACH.  PRAY HOW YOU CAN PARTICIPATE AND SUPPORT.

WE LOOK FORWARD TO YOUR COLLABORATION!

Any questions?  Please don’t hesitate to contact me at mgsalomon@gmail.com

Blessings!

 

 

Admiring God’s World and Beauty

What a special gift to be able to organize an outing for two Elder groups to travel a half hour to the beach.  Thirty eight elders took a trip they will not likely forget to behold the beauty of God’s world.  The daughter of one of the senior citizens was born in Tijuana but had NEVER visited the beach.  She was born with some mental challenges but what a joy to bring her to see what God has created!  They had a time to sing and talk and share a meal.  What a beautiful opportunity to develop relationship!

VBS

Well, the three week VBS camp is over and all staff and volunteers are still alive!

Here are some scenes from the packed week.

Thank you for praying for the building of relationship with our staff and these new families and children!

First tests…….yudu

Our partners from All Saints Lutheran Church in the Seattle Washington area bought us a YUDU machine which helps you silkscreen t=shirts.  Legna has been working on  the first samples!  Pretty cool I would say.

Day 10 of VBS…….there are more days to go!

Day ten of a three week VBS.  Lots of activities going on!