March/April '07 Update

These have been months filled with highs and lows, and now the hottest months of the year (April & May) are upon us! Together with you, our Partners in Missions, we’ve been busy!

General Mission Update:

• Helped coordinate & provide hospitality for a Perspectives training event at the Bible School here in Ocosingo, sponsored by the Presbyterian Frontier Fellowship. Over 60 participants from Mexico and Latin America came together to experience this renowned missions training course (http://www.perspectives.org/)
  
• Facilitated a mission group of 14 from Westover Hills Presbyterian in Arkansas who helped with construction projects in San Geronimo.
• Provided hospitality and meals for bible school students and workers who stayed on campus during the 2-week Easter Break
  
• Joined Pablo & members of the Maya Synod to present our organization's model for cross-cultural missions at the Mexico Missions Network Conference, sponsored by Presbyterian Church USA. The model of bringing Americans, Spanish Mexicans and Indigenous Mexicans together was extremely well-received and may be adopted by other programs in Mexico.
  
• Received an important acknowledgment of our work here from PCUSA and offers of assistance with visas, insurance coverage, and other practical matters. Truly a case of "build it and they will come!"
• Conducted site visits and meetings with churches that will receive mission teams this summer, helping them to maximize the benefit of having a mission team, prepare sleeping, eating and bathroom facilities to for the teams, etc. And coordinating with the leaders of teams from Hot Metal Bridge Faith Community (PA), Alpha Sigma Phi (NC), and Salem Presbytery (NC) who will be here in May.
• Organized prayer chains & financial support for Santiago Feliciano Cruz, as he was treated for a ruptured appendix. Although tragic, the experience helped many of us better understand the medical care often provided to indigenous people here and how important it is to complete the medical clinic (see details in other blog entries).
• Regrettably, our grant proposal for the prison chapel construction and prison ministry was not funded. But Rotary International has notified clubs in Asheville, NCand San Cristobal,, Chiapas that their grant application for well-drilling equipment is complete and in the pipeline for review within the next few weeks. Special thanks to Glenn Pierce (http://www.starfishfund.org/) for sharing his grant writing and relationship building skills to benefit small villages and communities in Chiapas.

Manos de Cristo Update (Medical Clinic):

• As is often the case, architects, visionaries and builders don’t always see eye-to-eye! We're working hard to get past some differences of opinion related to roof construction. With God’s help and lots of cooperation, we should be moving forward soon and getting the trusses in place!
• The basement area has been completed now, along with the foundation. All the structural beams have been completed as well, hence the need to move forward with getting the roof trusses up.
• Relationships are being established with Mexican pharmaceutical distributors to provide medications for the upcoming medical mission teams and for the pharmacy on-site at the clinic when it’s completed.

Family Update:

• We finally got our house rented! Last weekend a family from Colorado moved into our house in Winston-Salem, thus removing a huge burden from our hearts and our bank account! Special thanks to Kristi Rolison, Leslie Watts, Pam Hylton, Glenda Shelton and Jason Baisden for helping make it all come together!
• We enjoyed the classic Mexican hospitality of our long-time friend, Francisco “Pancho” Jimenez, and his family in Comoalcalco, Tabasco for a few days last week. They introduced us to the undeveloped Gulf Coast beaches of Tabasco, a wide range of citrus fruits and chilés grown on their ranch, and a slew of children and teens! It was a nice break from the routine and a chance to reconnect with one of our favorite brothers in Christ.
• We are grateful for the internet since it helps us stay connected to happenings in the US. So it has been with heavy hearts that we have followed the tragic story of the Virginia Tech shootings. We can only fall back on our faith that God is at work in all things and that God will find ways to bless many people despite the suffering.

Special News for Former Mission Travelers:

• We know that you join us in celebrating the birth on Sunday, April 22^nd of Sofia Machelle, daughter #2 to proud parents, Amalia and Albert, and proud grandparents, Pablo & Jan. Big sister, Priscila, and all those living in the Feliciano household will welcome mom and baby home tomorrow!! Watch the blog for updates & pics soon!
• Special Opportunity!!! All mission travelers have heard the stories of “Jungle Camp,” the site of the Wycliffe missionary training camp and home to Pablo and his family for many years. Well, Nancy & Tom Samples group from Washington has openings in their group that is coming to work at “Yax” (Yaxaquintela) June 15-23^rd. Experienced adult mission travelers (and/or experienced youth mission travelers with an experienced parent) are invited to join them if you make your own travel arrangements. Interested parties should email ASAP to express your interest and discuss planning! (email to http://www2.blogger.com/jgmills@att.net).

Prayers

• For God to continue opening doors of opportunity for us to serve
• Of gratitude for the continued recovery of Santiago Feliciano Cruz and for all those around the US and Mexico who offered up prayers and financial support during his medical emergency. For those who did not receive daily updates, we recommend you read about the Santiago saga in the blog entries from the past few weeks.
• For the continued work of Hermana Luisa, Hermana Antonia and Jan in the prison ministry
  
• Of support and encouragement for those coping with illness, including Tenney Dean, Nancy Lingenfelser, Jim Scott, Peggy Skrynski, Mary Wynne Perryman, Bonnie Bode, Tom Edwards, Katie Yarbrough, Hal Newell, Dick Dye, Marshall Hollingsworth, Louise Holshouser, and all of those affected by the Virginia Tech tragedy. As always, please let us know of your prayer needs and whether it's ok to share them with others.
• Of support and encouragement for fellow missionaries and their families around the world, including Pablo & Jan Feliciano, all the Dye Family Missionaries around the world, David Meacham, John and Sandra Wimbish, future missionaries Julie Alexander and her husband, John, and Jim & Sharon Heneveld.

Opportunities

• Coordinate collections of Vacation Bible School materials for mission groups that will be coming down this summer. Let us know by email (to jgmills@att.net) and we’ll put you in touch with the VBS coordinator for a group in need.
• Donate to Hebron USA for Phase II of the Manos de Cristo Medical Clinic in Ocosingo (details on the HUSA website at www.hebronusa.org/8.html)
• Donate to First Presbyterian Church in Mt. Airy, NC for our family’s missionary support (details on our website at www.millsfamilymission.org/5.html)
• Mission Tip of the Month: Many people question the choice to participate in mission trips to foreign countries when we have so much need in our own communities and our own country. There’s no question that there are lots of needs. If you have a chance, ask someone who’s been on a foreign mission trip how their level of involvement in local and regional missions has changed since their first foreign mission trip. For many, once the “mission bug” has bitten, the call to serve close to home can be heard (and answered) loud & clear.

Su hermanas y hermano en Cristo,

Ginny, John, Holly & Maggie Mills

Learning about Feeding Mexicans!

As I've mentioned, Holy Week and the week after are vacations for Mexican students, hence the Bible School where we live is officially closed. There are, however, a few students and a couple of staff who are working this week and thus needing to be fed since the school kitchen is closed. John and Pablo have been in and out, so much of this has been a solo adventure for me and the girls. For the first time, I am charged with preparing 3 meals a day for Mexicans who are eating in our home for 2 weeks, and I thought I'd share some observations.

• Mealtimes traditionally follow the work cycle, which is driven by the weather. Folks go to work early in the morning, break for breakfast about 9AM as the sun is starting to get hot. After breakfast, they return to work until 2PM when they stop for their biggest meal of the day and get a break from the sun. By 4PM, they are back at work and usually work until dark, just in time to get washed up and to dinner by 8PM.
• The need for hot, fresh corn tortillas, black beans, rice and chilés at every lunch and dinner is far more important than variety.
• Rice must be started at least an hour before and is to be fried with oil before adding water and salt.
  
• Fruit is okay, an occasional vegetable is fine too, but if all you have is rice, beans, tortillas and chilés, that's great.
• Flavored water is expected at lunch, and coffee is expected at both breakfast and dinner - coffee with lots and lots of sugar!
  
• For many Mexicans, meat may only be served on Sundays, and even for those who have more funds, meat is rarely served at both lunch and dinner. Eggs are a fine substitute and may be served for any meal.
  
• Corn tortillas must be served hot and fresh. Most Mexicans who can afford to buy them (instead of making them from scratch every day) buy at least 1-2 kilos (2.2 - 4.4 lbs.) per day every day. I was delighted to learn that I could buy fresh tortillas from a guy on a motorcycle with a cooler strapped on the back, if I happen to look up when he drives by. (which I did today....yeah!)
  
• With the rising prices of corn, the cost of 1 kilo of freshly-made corn tortillas has risen to an all-time high of 8 pesos per kilo here in Ocosingo (about 73 cents). This amount is beyond the reach of many Mexicans, and there is much concern about the 14% increase in tortilla prices over this past year. See http://www.azstarnet.com/allheadlines/164391
• The men are very cordial and respectful but are accustomed to being waited on, even the teenagers. They expect to be able to sit down and have everything brought to them. If you want something, you must ask for it to be passed to you, because the family style model of "have some and pass it," really must not be practiced here at all. I've fought the temptation to follow Jan's model (just not eating until later so she can be available to walk around to hand things to people instead of expecting them to pass things to each other around the table). When they are done, the guys rise from the table, express their gratitude and leave.
  
• Women are accustomed to doing the waiting on the guys. Even with their peers, young Mexican women will attend to the need for a coffee cup to be refilled or some other request. When the meal is over, they very willingly (and without a hint of resentment as the guys walk away) begin cleaning and washing until every pots, plate, cup and spoon is washed, dried and put away, the floor swept, and every morsel of food that can be served tomorrow, wrapped up and in the fridge.
  

The experience has been both challenging and enriching. We've loved the assortment of language lessons around the table (how to say this or that in Spanish, English or Tzeltal), the sincerity of their appreciation and the satisfaction of knowing that I'm slowly learning how to do this. On the other hand, it requires far more planning that I'm accustomed to, far more time spent cooking, serving and cleaning than you can believe, and requires us all to be friendly and hospitable despite the mood swings of 2 teenage girls and their mom who's trying her best to be a good sport about it all! So I've gotten through Tuesday of the second week....surely I can make it until Monday when school kitchen reopens! :-}

All for the sake of potable water!

With the school kitchen closed and a few students and workers hanging around this week, we have extra guests at our table each day -- thus an increased need for food and water. After bemoaning the discovery that our precious water heater had burned itself out, John had broken down to take a cold shower on Monday afternoon. Dressed only in his boxers, he recognized the distinctive sound of the Miramar water truck speakers outside. Since we were almost out of water and the truck was driving away, John rushed to the door in hopes of calling the water truck back and having time to run back inside to grab a pair of jeans. And of course, the door closed behind him! So with much chagrin, John ran up the outside stairs to the girls' rooms, passing the 20 y/o female student on the front porch, in hopes of getting Holly or Maggie to run down and unlock the door for him (which they did, of course, snickering all the while). On the way back down, he had to walk past the lady waiting patiently in the Miramar truck before retrieving his jeans and his money. Just one example of how much we take for granted the potable water that comes out fresh and clean from our faucets in the US (and why you should NEVER run outside in your underwear!).

Easter Disappointment in Mexico

Over the years, Easter has slowly assumed its permanent place in my hierarchy of holidays as my very favorite. As my dad said, "It should be the happiest day of the year!" I couldn't agree more. Over the last several years, our church in Mt. Airy, NC has established some important rituals that have made Easter even more special to our family, but since we're currently living in Mexico, we were obviously not able to participate this year.

We've come to appreciate the Holy Week activities that include a powerful Maundy Thursday service, sometimes a Good Friday service, but always a Easter-eve all night vigil and a grand celebration on Easter Morning.

The all night vigil offers a time for individuals to be in the sanctuary alone to pray, meditate, cry, sing and reflect on the significance of the sacrifice on the cross and the amazing promise of the resurrection. Some of my most meaningful spiritual experiences have occurred during the all-night vigils between Good Friday and Easter Sunday.

As the Easter morning services begin, the lights are down, there is silence in the air, the sanctuary is bare, and the cross, with its crown of thorns, captivates every eye. As the service begins, slowly "new life" emerges. The lights slowly rise. The vestments are brought forth and the altar area is dressed and adorned for the day. Music progresses from peaceful to joyful, and soon members of the congregation come forward to "flower the cross" with beautiful fresh flowers! Sometimes there has been extra-special music, and of course, everyone has dressed their best in cheerful outfits that complement the beauty of the flowers. By mid-service, the mood is jubilant, the celebration is in full force as we celebrate "He is Risen Indeed!"

But not for Presbyterians in Mexico. Holy Week is a week of vacations for virtually all people in Mexico. Schools are out for 2 weeks. Adults are often granted the whole week off. The streets are FULL of families shopping for fish (the only acceptable meat to be consumed during Holy Week), children enjoying the time off from school, and vendors GALORE! Until Good Friday when everything shuts down --- for the day. I've heard that in some cities, on Good Friday night, all night long (literally) there are speakers that amplify a recording of "Mary, mother of Jesus," as she sobs and wails in response to the crucifixion of Jesus. All night long, Mary cries. Fiestas are everywhere, and for some, it is an occasion to be celebrated with much drink, fireworks, and song...again, all night long. By Saturday, and ironically Easter Sunday, except for seeing more kids out, it's back to business as usual. Stores are open. Gas and water trucks with their loud speakers and clanging chains are back out on the road.

Our Easter morning Presbyterian worship service did begin at 7AM instead of 10, but there weren't many people there because many were vacationing in their home villages with extended family. There was no extra effort to dress extra nice or to collect our fresh flowers for flowering the cross because the cross is conspicuously absent. There was no special music and no celebration. It seemed sad to me that the need for Presbyterians here to distinguish themselves from the Catholics couldn't translate into seeing the opportunity to shift the focus from obsessing about death and the mourning, to proclaiming loud and joyfully, "He is Risen. He is Risen Indeed!"

I love being here, and I love our brothers and sisters in Christ here. Part of the "new" model of missions is to be partners in missions, not patriarchs. We are hear to partners with our brothers & sisters in Christ and to respect the culture here - not try to change it. It never occurred to me that the joy of Easter would be lost here. Pray with me that we can find some way that does respect the culture to share of our experiences of celebrating the resurrection and invite our Presbyterian brothers & sisters to join in that celebration so that they too may revel in the promise of new life, hope and love that Easter symbolizes for so many.

He is Risen! He is Risen Indeed!
Amen.

Santiago & Mexican Healthcare (Part V)

Saturday PM Update

It appears that Santiago has been cleared for discharge! Alleluia! There was a little concern about his glucose level, but I think they must have gotten that under control. The only question at this point is whether or not they can cover the bill since it has to be paid in full at the time of discharge.

Santiago's story will continue to represent a strong illustration of the need for a good medical clinic in Ocosingo, particularly one that is dedicated to serving indigenous people conscientiously and respectfully. It has also reminded us as mission planners about the importance of having clearly defined medical emergency plans. We have been blessed to have no major episodes in our 10+ years of travel here. We've had a few cases of viruses and such, and only one medical emergency that was handled professionally and successfully. Nevertheless, part of our mission is to be sure that every person who comes down on a mission trip has a successful and positively memorable experience, and this experience causes us to take much more seriously the need to be planful for medical emergencies.

For all your prayers, love, kind words and financial support, we thank you. Probably no more periodic updates will be needed, but feel free to email me if you just want to know for sure that he's doing well.

Santiago & Mexican Healthcare (Part IV)

Thursday PM Update

You can always tell someone is feeling better and getting well when they start acting like themselves again. Such is the case with our dear friend, Santiago! He started eating a little bit today and started saying that he wants to go home. Talk about music to our ears!!! Overall, San is doing much better today and will be discharged from the hospital within the next few days. We still don't know what the final bill will be. It appears, for now at least, that "San - The Man" is on the mend and getting back to his usual self! I have and will continue to share with him your kind words, prayers and love. With the various prayer chains and prayer groups that have joined in this effort, there have probably been literally thousands of people praying for Santiago, his family and his doctors. God is indeed good and amazing in how God brings us together to rally around and to lift up one of God's children. Gloria de Dios!

Santiago & Mexican Healthcare (Part III)

Wednesday PM Update

Well, I suppose there's good news and bad news, but let's start with the bad. This morning, Pablo called to say that Santiago endured another very lengthy surgery (9PM - 2AM) last night. You recall that they were trying to determine if some areas had not been sutured well, etc. WELL...(you're not gonna BELIEVE this.) when they got in there, they learned that the first surgeon had not removed his appendix! He only sewed it up, but left it in there! I was so outraged this morning that I could hardly see straight! Anyway, we waited to see how things progressed through the day, which brings me to the good news. Overall, San seems to be doing much better, and they may allow him to begin taking fluids by mouth tomorrow. We take that as a good sign that he's on the road to recovery and that all will be well.

Ironically, we spoke with someone else today who knew of a man who had an identical situation! His appendix had not been removed on the first surgery but was removed on the second. He was hospitalized for 15 days, but after that he went home and has recovered well since his own experience in December or January.

Please let me know if you'd like to help contribute towards San's medical bills. Thanks so much for your prayers and for sharing Santiago's story with your own prayer circles. For those of you who are just now reading all these updates at one time, please try to take time to read them all. The insight into the Mexican medical system is shocking and insightful. It also reminds us of the little things that we often take for granted. I have and will continue to share your kind wishes with Santiago and his family.

Santiago & Mexican Healthcare (Part II)

Tuesday PM Update

Our family visited Santiago at the hospital in San Cristobal this afternoon. He is in intensive care but conscious and able to talk with visitors. Ultrasound results earlier today suggested that he has fluid in his abdominal cavity, and as of about 8PM, they had decided to do another surgery. They don't know if all the internal wounds from the ruptured appendix were sutured, if the internal incisions from the surgery were not completely sutured, or what. They elected to proceed with the 2nd surgery immediately. As of this writing, we do not know the outcome of the surgery or have a more current update.

The visit to the hospital gave us further insight into the Mexican medical system. He shares a semi-private room with 3 other intensive care patients, separated by a curtain. His area has about 2 feet on either side of the bed and at the end. Pablo & San's wife, Maria, were there along with the other brothers and brothers-in-law. They will take turns...1 stays awake and in his room from 6PM until morning and another stays in the hallway to be ready to respond to an order for more medicine, bandages, etc. and must go shopping and return ASAP. Then tomorrow, 2 more will relieve those 2 for another 12 hour shift. The one in the room is expected to perform all functions of a nurse's aide and cannot sleep, eat or leave, even to go to the bathroom during his/her shift! Pablo took a turn doing the "in-room duty" today, and trust me, it was NOT a pretty sight! He was pretty overwhelmed by the experience and must have used a full bottle of anti-bacterial gel (AKA 1 Dollar!). Questions about the bill for surgery and the hospital stay cannot be answered by the hospital staff, yet when it comes time for him to be discharged, payment in full will be expected.

I have shared with Santiago, Maria and the family about your love and prayers, and all your kind words. He laughed when I told him how many people I'd ask to pray for him, saying that he didn't know how I could even KNOW that many people! It was great to see him smile a bit and joke, but it was very clear that he continues to be in pain and in medical danger. Please continue to pray for Santiago, his family and his doctors, and we will continue to keep you informed.

Santiago & Mexican Healthcare (Part I)

Monday PM Update
Well, Santiago is hanging in there but has some fairly seriously complications from his appendix having ruptured. He endured a lengthy surgery last night and is expected to be in the hospital in San Cristobal for up to 1 week. There are several holes in his stomach and other damage that resulted from the ruptured appendix, and he has some fluid in his lungs. I am encouraged by my knowledge of Santiago as a person....strong, determined and courageous. I also know that he is surrounded by lots of family who love him.

Which brings me to other discoveries about the Mexican medical system. It's a good thing Santiago has family and some resources! We have learned these fascinating but discouraging tidbits about how hospitals work in this area. In a US hospital, hospital staff decides what a patient needs (from bedpans and bandages to IV fluids and other medications), provides it for the patient, then expects them to pay for it. On one hand, the patient/consumer is not in control of what is ordered for them but is responsible for the bill. On the other hand, in a time of need/crisis, the patient and the family don't have to worry about those things because they know the hospital has everything that could be needed and will provide it (even if they have to pay for it later). In the hospitals in Chiapas, the hospital staff decides what a patient needs (again, from bedpans and bandages to food and water), gives the family a list of those items, and then the family goes out to buy them (or not). The patient's family has much more control but the mammoth responsibility for finding and paying for all these items. They DO have to worry about those things AND they have to pay for it NOW! Furthermore, nurses only provide true nursing care, not those things that are typically done by nurse's aides in the US (changing bedpans, giving baths, helping patients regain mobility, etc.). Instead, the family is responsible for having someone there 24/7 to help with those (theoretically) unskilled but incredibly important tasks. This is why Pablo says "if you're in the hospital in Mexico and you're all alone, you will die."

So, just stop and consider this for a moment. Your loved one has experienced a major medical crisis and has endured 4 hours of emergency surgery. You're exhausted with worry, lack of sleep, and trying to keep others informed about how he/she is doing. You may or may not be surrounded by others who are just as distressed. As if that isn' t enough, you're given a list of dozens of items to find and pay for in order to be sure that your loved one gets the best care. And you have to make sure that there's someone with him/her 24/7 to help with basic care (while you're out looking for all these things). You have to make sure that he/she has enough of the right kinds of food, plenty of water, and other basic provisions. Got the picture?! Ugh!!!

Our family will be traveling to San Cristobal tomorrow to visit Santiago, and we'll be sure to send out an update again tomorrow night. Thanks for your prayers and your kind words for him. Several folks have asked about ways that they can help financially (knowing that he'll go without income for several weeks and will have large medical bills). We'll keep you posted on his condition, his needs, and how you can help. For now, though, just keep him, his family and his doctors in your prayers. I'll know more tomorrow!

Our Friend Santiago

More details later, but for now, suffice it to say that our friend, Santiago Feliciano, needs our prayers. He had emergency surgery for a ruptured appendix, something that NEVER should have happened.

Anyway, I wanted to share some pictures to help remind folks who may not have been to Mexico for a while. He's truly one of a kind, and his need for medical assistance just reminds us all that we're vulnerable to all the same things and all need each other. His story is one that is common among the Tzeltal people....waiting until the pain is extreme before accessing institutional medical care, given a brief exam, then to be sent home with a prescription. Santiago is on the left in the picture. Even though he often jokes and smiles, catching a smile on camera is rare, so I had to post this one! That's Ezras, the caretaker of the Hebron Foundation House in Villahermosa on the right.

More details to follow, but for now, please keep Santiago, his family and his doctors in your prayers.

Paz,
Ginny

Religious persecution in N. America?

Matthew 5:10 Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of Heaven.

It isn’t often in our daily lives that we encounter those persecuted because they are a Christian, much less have the opportunity to offer them assistance. Sometimes we think, "well, that kind of thing USED to happen a lot ....or.....that kind of thing still happens in places like Nepal or Iraq, but not in this part of the world." Well, think again....

Last July we met Rodolfo Lopez Velazco from a small village in the Chiapas mountains. He and his family recently accepted Christ and began holding Christian services in their home. They soon had three other families worshipping with them. Openly witnessing in their community upset the village elders who twice forced the Christian families to leave the village. In July, Rodolfo’s house was dismantled - board by board - and taken away to prevent him from conducting church services.

Attorneys for the Maya Synod and the Central Tzeltal Presbytery have tried to intervene with local officials on their behalf. Last month Roldolfo went to Tuxtla Gutierrez, the state capital, to meet with cabinet level government officials in an attempt to resolve the issue with his community. Instead of meeting with the officials, he was put in jail for four days on trumped up charges. Today Rodolfo is in Pablo’s office pleading for financial assistance for a trip to Mexico City. He has an appointment with the Department of Religious Affairs but lacked the $100 for bus fare to the city, which we gladly offered.

Rodolfo’s home has been destroyed; he has been ostracized and thrown in jail because he refuses to stop spreading the Good News! I am humbled by his inner strength and faith as he prays for his fellow villagers to understand the message of love and grace offered by Jesus. In him, we witness the living Gospel!

Matthew 5:43-44 You have heard that it was said, “love your neighbor and hate your enemy.” But I tell you, love your enemy and pray for those who persecute you.

Please pray for Rodolfo to remain strong in his faith, that he receive justice in the legal system, and that those who persecute him may come to see.

Blessing the water

Pablo and I leave Ocosingo at 6 am for a special worship service at his church in Tenejapa, a two hour drive into the mountains of Chiapas. Each year at this time the whole community gathers at each of the three springs that provide water for the village to ask God’s blessing for their continued availability. This year Iglesia Elem is responsible for the blessing services so Pablo has prepared three sermons for the day. Two hundred plus people walk, ride horses or in the back of trucks ¾ of a mile up a mountain outside the village to the first spring. We are joined by a Tzeltal Mariachi band. The spring bubbles out of the side of the mountain then flows into an underground cistern or holding tank where it collects and then flows down the mountain to the village in a 2 inch pipe.

Most of the people attending this service are not members of the Presbyterian Church so Pablo uses the opportunity to evangelize the community. He speaks of the Living Water available to us through Jesus and how much we need that water to live. An Elder of the church gives an emotional talk about how much the community has changed since it was founded in 1994 and thanks God for the many blessing of the community. The services are repeated at each of the springs that support the community.

Water, just another example of something I took for granted in North Carolina that I now appreciate so much more. Access to clean water is real problem for the people of Chiapas. Once the rains begin in May, surface water containing who know what micro biotic life will run into the cisterns and mix with the spring water that flows into the village.

My friend Glenn Pierce witnessed this problem in January ‘06 when he accompanied me on my drive from NC to Ocosingo. He went back to Asheville and convinced his Rotary club to involved Rotary International in a grant request to purchase well-drilling equipment so we can provide a reliable source of clean drinking water to villages like Tenejapa. We are currently waiting on Rotary International Foundation’s response to our grant request.

Feb/March, 2007 Update

And group season begins! February brought with it 2 US mission groups seeking warmer weather and new experiences here in Ocosingo. A group of 12 from Orchard Lake Presbyterian Church near Detroit included 4 teens – a great treat for Holly & Maggie! And on their heels was a small group of public health/free clinic folks led by our friend, Glenn Pierce.

General Mission Update:

• Hosted and organized the work of mission work groups from Orchard Lake, MI and NC. Group members worked, worshipped and played with Bible School students, elders from neighboring Presbyterian churches and toured barefoot doctor medical clinics. Insights from free clinic and a WHO public health official were shared, and medical supplies were donated.
• Arranged and led a meeting with the Rotary Club of San Cristobal de Las Casas and a representative from an Asheville, NC Rotary Club. They agreed to submit a joint grant proposal to Rotary Intl. for well-drilling in Chiapas villages.
• Joined Board of Directors for a synod-sponsored prison ministry to serve 4 area prisons and wrote funding proposals for US and Mexican funding sources. Invited to present Self-Esteem workshops at area prisons (translated by Jan, of course!).
• Helped host a presbytery meeting attended by 110+ from nearby churches
• Completed Glasses in Missions training and began producing eyeglasses.

Medical Clinic Update

• We have a name! “Manos de Cristo” (“Hands of Christ”) is the name chosen for the medical clinic. It is our collective vision that patients will receive medical care inspired by Jesus’ ministry – compassionate, supportive and open to all for quality medical care.
• Together with the Orchard Lake group, the foundation and floor for Phase I of the medical clinic was completed ! This was a huge milestone and one that helped Orchard Lake travelers feel a strong sense of accomplishment & personal investment in the clinic!
• Barefoot doctors continue to be engaged and encouraged by mission group travelers and plan to have an active role in the clinic operation.

Family Update:

• Overall, we’re all healthy, happy and focused. Mostly we’re just glad to be together!
• We celebrated Holly’s 15^th birthday last week. Read the blog entry, “To quinceaños or not to quinceaños?” if you’re interesting in knowing more!
• Holly & Maggie are enjoying activities with our budding youth group and outings with bible school students from time to time, including guitar lessons!
• Prayers for the gift of language are still needed, but we’re definitely improving!
• As she tries to finish up geometry, Holly was blessed by the angel “Patrice,” a math teacher from Orchard Lake, who was able to supplement Keystone instruction with qualified hands-on instruction! She was truly a gift from God!
• Ginny’s dad seems to be doing pretty well and is grateful for NCAA basketball, a busy schedule and great friends. And John’s sister, Ellen, is recuperating well from her double knee-replacement surgery last month but she’s got a ways to go before she’ll be running any marathons!
• We still need a tenant for our house in Winston-Salem, NC. The tenants moved out last Wednesday, so we need your referrals and your prayers!

Prayers

• For God to continue to open doors of opportunity for us to be of service;
• For travelers from Orchard Lake, MI, New Bern, NC, Asheville, NC and Chicago, IL – that their experiences here have blessed their lives, inspired them in their walks of faith, and will lead them to continue in service at home and abroad;
• For the prison ministry and well-drilling proposals to be funded so these projects to grow;
• For the Director of the Ocosingo prison as he tries to maintain a safe environment and receive outreach efforts from our prison ministry and others;
• For continued success during the medical clinic construction progresses;
• For continued comfort and healing for the family of Hermano Cristobal, a former foundation helper who was killed last December;
• Of gratitude for the new director at the Bible School and his family;
• Of gratitude for the safety of our friend, Ramiro, who had been lost in the desert in February but is now safe;
• For continued comfort and healing for Ginny’s dad, Jim;
• For a tenant family to come forward to rent our house in Winston-Salem;
• Of support for those coping with illness (including Bonnie Bode, Mary Wynne Perryman, Tom Edwards, Peggy Skrynksi, Katie Yarbrough, Hal Newell, Dick Dye, Marshall Hollingsworth, Louise Holshouser, and the families of Cecelia Belk and Sandra O’Brien) and for those coping with losses (including the families of Ann Atkins and Dennis Moody). Again, please let us know of your prayer needs and whether you’re comfortable with us sharing them.
• For Pablo & Jan’s daughter, Amalia, as she progresses in her pregnancy
• For fellow missionaries Pablo & Jan Feliciano, Dick & Ann Dye, Merle & June Dye, for future missionaries Julie Alexander and her husband, John, and for newly retired missionaries, Jim & Sharon Heneveld.

Opportunities

• If you know anyone who might be interested in renting our house, send them to www.rentalhouses.com and have them search for Property ID NC97034.
• Propose to your church’s Mission Committee that they adopt our family as missionaries representing your church until August, 2007.
• Donate to First Presbyterian Church in Mt. Airy, NC for our family’s missionary support (details on our website at www.millsfamilymission.org/7.html)
• Donate to Hebron USA for Phase II of the Manos de Cristo Medical Clinic in Ocosingo (details on the HUSA website at www.hebronusa.org/8.html)
• “Missions Tip of the Month”- A senior at the Presbyterian college, Lake Forest College, (not Wake), teamed up with Google to run a donation-generating search engine called SearchKindly.org. Whenever you use www.searchkindly.org, you generate $ for the charity of the month. This month all proceeds go to support Smile Train, a medical ministry for children with cleft lip and palate problems. Giving has never been so easy!

Paz en Cristo,

John, Ginny, Holly & Maggie

Coffee anyone?!

One of the primary goals of our mission has been to provide a ministry of hospitality on the campus of the Alfa y Omega Escuela Biblica here in Ocosingo. As people arrive to meet with Pablo, visit the campus or attend various functions here at the school, I try to greet them, offer them coffee, and assist them in any way I can.

So, Pablo had mentioned yesterday that he “had a meeting at 10 on Saturday morning.” No suggestion that it would be any different that his usual gatherings of 4-10 people who routinely meet with him at his office on the campus. Well, about 8:30, a small group of men had gathered on our front porch, and by 9:00, I thought I should probably brew some coffee and extend the ministry of hospitality until the meeting began at 10:00. So I started brewing, and the crowd grew. I brewed some more, then retrieved a larger coffee urn from foundation kitchen, and I kept brewing. John hurried out for cookies….by the kilo! By 10:30, we had prepared cookies and sweetened coffee for the 120 men who arrived for the “meeting” that has lasted most of the day. All in all, it went fine, but I must confess, I think I need a bigger coffee pot!!!!

To quinceaños or not to quinceaños?

That is the question that we faced this week as we prepared for Holly's 15th birthday. The 15th birthday, or quinceaños, is a major birthday in the lives of Latin American girls. It is typically celebrated with a GRAND party not unlike a "wedding without a groom" or a debutante ball. It is an official coming-out for girls and symbolizes their availability for both dating and marriage. Some wealthy families who are trendy and less devoted to tradition may offer their daughters a chance to forego the big party in lieu of a trip to Europe with other 15 y/o girls and chaperones, but that's the rare exemption.

So here we are, having encouraged Holly & Maggie to embrace this new culture and its joys, and suddenly quite wary of the whole quinceaños thing! Our minds were filled with "yes, but..." retorts to the whole subject! Yes, we want them to embrace the culture and appreciate the cultural traditions here. No, we don't want to suggest that she's eligible for marriage --- but then again, neither does SHE! Yes, we want them to be able to have some once-in-a-lifetime kinds of experiences here...experiences they could never have in NC or the USA. No, we can't afford to buy the equivalent of a wedding dress, wedding cake, mariachi band and reception hall! Yes, we want them to enjoy all the same joys that their Mexican peers have/will experience! No, we don't want one daughter to experience such a memorable event but not the other (Maggie will be living in NC when she turns 15 y/o in 2009). Yes, no, yes, no, yes, no.....UGH!!!

So in the end, we elected to celebrate with tradition over 2 nights, but without the grand party. One night we enjoyed an incredible dinner out at the Brazilian steakhouse and then on Friday night, we enjoyed a brief, informal worship service with prayers and blessings for Holly and lots of coffee, cake and crepes with church members at the coffee house of one of the church leaders. Both events, of course, included the traditional "face in the cake" experience, and we THINK Holly's finally gotten all the cake out of her nostils!!! Then John presented her with our gift, a beautiful Mexican guitar with encouragement for her to learn to play and follow in her dad's footsteps.

We hope it was a wonderful 15th birthday for Holly, albeit without the luxurious dress and all the extras. It makes me wonder, though, about what cultural forks-in-the-road will may face during our time here. What will be next?

My Education about Mexican Prisons

Our friend and fellow missionary, Sharon Heneveld, began a powerful prison ministry several years ago. What had began as an outreach by 2 women who overheard a conversation between prison guards about collecting food waste for prisoners to eat, has grown into an important ministry. Sharon retired in January, 2007 and entrusted those who had worked with her to continue the ministry.

But let's go back to that conversation the ladies overheard! "Food waste?" I asked. As I listened and learned more, I came to understand some of the important differences between the US and Mexico and how they treat their prisoners. Imagine this...

If a person is sentenced to prison in Chiapas, whether he/she will serve 4 months or 40 years, the State only pays for food for the first 90 days. After that, his family is responsible for providing food for him. The family is not only forced to survive without their primary wage-earner, but they are now responsible for having extra money to buy his food and get it to him regularly. Prisoners are provided with one set of clothing (not even 2 so they'll have something to wear while the other set is being washed!) and a mattress (not even a blanket).

Sharon and her partners in prison ministries had established a strong ministry since 1992. They visited 4 prisons in all, bringing basic food rations for those who had requested it and providing a monthly prepared meal for all prisoners who chose to participate. On their regular visits, they did not reach out to speak with any particular prisoner....just let it be known that they were available to anyone who wanted to talk. They never asked the nature of anyone's crime or tried to shove the Gospel down their throats. They simply lived the Gospel --- showing the love of Christ through their attention to the physical, emotional, spiritual and family needs of those prisoners who sought their care.

Many prisoners who had been involved with the church have returned, while others have come to know Christ for the first time. Others may be wary but are grateful for the "no questions asked," judgment-free concern by Sharon, Luisa and Antonia. Prison guards and the director have requested assistance with getting materials for prisoners to build a new chapel at their new prison and are consistently supportive of this ministry.

So as a person who's always touted the party line of personal responsibility, how do I feel about this "provide for yourself" model of corrections? After all, it's not the state's fault the person committed a crime. Many in the US bemoan that prisoners get better care than many law abiding citizens, all at taxpayers expense. And yet who suffers in this system? Perhaps family members suffer most of all, and they committed no crime. They are responsible for caring for their own, even if they struggle to meet their own needs. Perhaps that is the price for loving the criminal, I don't know.

What I do know is this....Jesus set the example for everything that we as Christians are supposed to believe. And what, pray tell, was Jesus' example of how to respond to the criminal? It was, as always, to reach out with compassion, forgiveness, love and encouragement for them to live a life that would be pleasing to God. No questions asked. Period.

So it is that I find myself the "counselor" member of a newly formed Board of Directors for the prison ministry of the Maya Synod. As my Spanish is limited, I'll begin by helping sell handmade goods for prisoners, writing grant proposals, dyeing orange t-shirts for those who need an extra change of clothes, and leading translated discussions about self-esteem, forgiveness and recovery from addiction. With God's blessing, we will secure the funds to help these devoted Christian prisoners build their house of prayer, help feed & clothe them, and help their families in the spirit and tradition of Jesus. No questions asked. Period.

Yes, God even provides geometry teachers!

Okay, so extraverted Holly has struggled with geometry this year. Without the benefit of a live teacher, she has struggled to be able to get all of her gazillion questions answers and to complete her geometry course through Keystone High School, an online accredited private school. So we've known all along that God has provided for us exactly where and how we needed it, but we really never expected God to send us a geometry teacher. But lo and behold, enter Patrice Steele, a member of the Orchard Lake mission work group.

Together, Holly & Patrice poured over several weeks worth of geometry problems, questions and proofs, and by the end of the week, Holly felt confident and capable of proceeding with her 5th of 6 geometry tests. In the end, she got a much needed 97 on that big test! Pray that the newfound understanding helps carry her through 1 more test and a final, but for now, let' s just say that we're grateful to God for all the amazing ways God provides for our needs! And that's to you, Patrice, for your patience, kindness and expertise!

VBS anyone?!

Vacation Bible School, or VBS, is a common outreach effort by mission groups who come to Mexico. Bible stories, fun songs and arts-n-crafts abound, but there's often one or two memories that stay with the kids. For the Orchard Lake group, there were 2.....

• The Hokey Pokey, a novel song and dance routine most American children know, and


• Individual Polaroid camera shots of each child and the frames they made to display them.

Now I must confess about the Polaroid thing.... I wasn't so sure how it would work out. Having learned the hard way years ago just how many kids can squeeze into the frame of a Polaroid camera (at least 25!) and how many of those kids can get the picture that magically appears (just 1!), I wasn't so sure this would work out the way the group envisioned. But let me tell you, it was priceless! There are few expressions quite as priceless as watching a young child examine a photograph of themselves and smile so openly and unashamedly. For the members of the Orchard Lake group, they have pictures of them doing the Hokey Pokey to savor, but for the kids with the Polaroid shots in their brightly decorated magnet frames, you can bet they'll savor and save their picture for years and years to come!

The longing to be a part of something bigger

No matter what my official "job title" is, I will always look at the world through the lens of a counselor. One of my favorite counseling theorists argues that all people must satisfy 4 primary needs:
1. For love & belonging
2. For power over one's own life
3. For a sense of productivity and contribution to something bigger than one's self
4. For fun

Every day I watch people in Mexico go to work to satisfy #3 ... striving to fulfill the longing to be productive and to contribute to something bigger than themselves. The irony is that, in almost every case, they do so with the knowledge that they will not be paid for their labors. They do so as volunteers. Sari, Jaime and Julian come to the bible school to teach. Jose Luis and Arimedia come to work with Pablo at the foundation, and Arimedia also works as the primary "staff" for our little tri-cultural mission. For years Bani worked as chief architect, secretary and group coordinator with the foundation, and only recently did she get a job as a paid architect working with the Mexican government. Even Pablo is not paid by the Mayan Synod for all the work he does here.

Paid employment is very hard to come by here, and the pay is so low it's amazing (minimum wage is the equivalent of $5 USD per DAY, not per hour, but per DAY). If life were just about having enough cash, it would be hard to imagine anyone surviving here.

On the other hand, according to Glasser, survival is not about cash. Notice that having $ is not one of the Big 4 listed above. But in fact, if satisfying the Big 4 is what's necessary for survival, then Sari, Jaime, Julian, Bani, Jose Luis, Arimedia and Pablo are in great shape for survival. In their various volunteer roles, they know that they are surrounded by people who love them and accept them (#1); they are choosing to spend their time (#2) by contributing to missions, church and responding to human need (#3), and they enjoy working together, participating in groups and life with the foundation, church and the bible school (#4). Survival, by Glasser's definition, is covered. So, compared to those who are NOT attending to all those survival needs, each of these people is surviving quite well.

Here and there all of those other needs (for money, food, housing, etc.) are somehow taken care of. I am thrilled that each of these people have found ways to survive that not only benefit others but that bring genuine satisfaction to their own lives. Now....don't get me wrong. They'd prefer to get paid! They know they should get paid! They want to get paid someday. But for now, they are willing to work with the knowledge that it's a good thing to work and to be a part of something bigger than themselves. I am proud and humbled to be around them each and every day.

2006 Annual Report

Greetings to you as we begin 2007 and consider all the ways God blessed us in 2006. As the 2nd year of our mission in Mexico begins, our sense of calling is still very clear. Certainly losing Ginny’s mother last month was very hard, yet God’s peace and love from friends and family surrounded us. We know that our Mexican friends feared that we might elect to stay in the US after that experience. Yet as we reflected on 2006 and looked ahead to 2007, it became very clear that God still has work for us here. God had opened so many doors for John, Pablo and Jan last year that really yielded great opportunities for more missions.

Blessings of 2006:
• Helped facilitate 11 US mission groups who participated in short-term medical and construction mission trips. 101 mission travelers returned to 30 churches transformed by the experience of serving and being served in Mexico. Often mission travelers are so “fired up” that their overall involvement in their churches, communities and local missions increases dramatically.
• Met the $150K fund-raising goal for Phase I to construct and equip an outpatient medical clinic in Ocosingo, Chiapas, Mexico to serve some of the 1 million people in Chiapas without access to medical care facilities. Special thanks to 1st Presbyterian in Boone, NC for their matching gift program that has helped us reach this goal. See other photos of works in progress online at http://www.flickr.com/photos/millsfamilymission/294925635/
• Helped organize the international dedication celebration with believers from across Chiapas and 5 countries to dedicate and share the first complete translation of the Holy Bible in the native Tzeltal language. It was an amazing experience to witness the multitudes line up with joy and anticipation to receive God’s word in their native tongue for the very first time!
• Received donations of school supplies and other materials for children in Plan de Ayutla and other small villages in Chiapas. Special thanks to St. Andrews Presbyterian Church in Lynchburg, VA and 1st Presbyterian of Pilot Mountain, NC for their contributions in 2006.
• Participated in the planning and organization of a 2-week training in acute emergency medical techniques for “barefoot doctors,” led by Dr. Bill Herring. Following the training, Dr. Herring and the barefoot doctors provided a 3-day medical clinic in the highlands of Chiapas.
• Arranged for a donation of over $15K worth of medical equipment from the Helping Hands Ministry in Southern Pines, NC. The equipment is in temporary storage in Asheville, NC thanks to Glenn Pierce (founder of The Starfish Fund) and will be used to equip the medical clinic in Ocosingo.

Prayerful Vision for 2007:
• To recognize and act on opportunities to serve and share the love of Jesus Christ
• Good weather, consistent work crews and government support as construction progresses on the medical clinic.
• Safe travel and meaningful experiences for the participants in the 16 mission work groups who will participate in medical mission trips, village construction and clinic construction in 2007.
• Arrange for additional donations of medical clinic equipment and supplies and successful importation.
• Improvement & expansion of training for “barefoot doctors” as important extenders in the health care delivery system and improved coordination with other medical professionals in Chiapas.
• Raise funds for Phase II of the medical clinic to include surgical services & a small inpatient wing.
• Develop the “Glasses for Missions” program to provide vision screenings and glasses in conjunction with evangelism and Bible distribution.
• Extend the prison ministry begun by Sharon Heneveld and assist with the construction of a prison chapel in Ocosingo


Opportunities for you, our Partners in Missions:
• Contribute monthly to help cover our family’s mission-related expenses*
• Make a special contribution to help cover our family’s mission-related expenses*
• Make a special contribution to help fund Phase II of the medical clinic in Ocosingo**
• Pledge to pray for us regularly and to share the story of God’s work in Mexico with others***
• Facilitate communications between John and medical centers and other organizations that may be able to donate additional medical equipment or send medical volunteers for the clinic in Ocosingo***
• Join in one of the mission trips traveling to Chiapas in 2007. Information is available online at www.millsfamilymission.org/13.html. Deadline for registration for NC-originating trips is March 1. ***

For Our Family:
It was a year of real highs and lows. John began the mission year in January, 2006, leaving Ginny, Holly & Maggie to finish the school year in NC. He lived with Pablo & Jan Feliciano (fellow Presbyterian missionaries in Ocosingo) until Ginny & the girls arrived in June. We learned that, while we could survive being apart from each other, we really, really came to appreciate how much difference it made to be together as a family on a daily basis. Holly & Maggie experienced great joy, serious hard work, and a personal realization of why we are in Mexico. This was important since the transition from their teenaged world in NC had been pretty tough. We began the homeschool year after 2-weeks in Spanish immersion language school and began to settle in to life Ocosingo. John began a multi-state fund-raising tour in the US with Pablo & Jan to help "tell the story," invite mission groups, and raise interest and funds for the medical clinic. Meanwhile, back at the ranch, we learned that Ginny's mom had taken a major turn for the worse in her battle against lung cancer. Ginny and the girls flew to NC to help care for Pat and enjoy several precious weeks with her before she passed into heaven on December 6, 2006. John was able to get to NC to have a few days with Pat before she died. Her life of faithful service and love was celebrated on December 10th and included a reading of Ginny's tribute to her found in this blog under the title: Love Led Her. After some important time with Ginny's dad, we returned as a family Ocosingo, rededicated to our sense of mission and eager to serve God and our Mexican brothers & sisters in any way possible.

Financial Report:
For the year, we were underbudget on overall spending ($47K vs. $50K) and received enough financial support to meet all our needs and mission-related expenses for 2006 (just over $62K, which includes some '06 contributions earmarked for '07). Our spending for the year was unusual due to being divided as a family much of the year and requiring additional international travel. We received substantial donations as memorials for Ginny's mom and hope to be able to apply much of those contributions to the medical clinic. Our $50K budget for 2007 is basically the same with line item revisions only. We hope that our financial supporters will be able to contribute as much or more in 2007 and 2/3rds of 2008 as they did in 2006 so that we will be able to focus on ministry and missions.

Roles of Partners in Missions:
---Contined prayer, encouragement and friendship
---Financial support for mission-related expenses
---Financial support for medical clinic ministry
---Faciliating communications and in-kind contributions with medical organizations, churches and others who share a passion for ministry, missions and helping others
---Participation in mission trips to Mexico

Contributions for our family’s support made by check should be written Payable To The Order of: First Presbyterian Church, with “Mills Family Mission” on the memo line and mailed to: 1st Presbyterian, 326 S. Main St., Mt. Airy, NC 27030. Contributions for Phase II of the Medical Clinic may be made by check and should be written to: Hebron USA, with “Medical Clinic” on the memo line and mailed to: Hebron USA, 6080 Old Brickstore Road, Greensboro, NC 27455. Other forms of support may be communicated via email to us at jgmills@att.net or partners@millsfamilymission.org.

As Partners in Missions, we’re all in this together. Each of us has a role to play in missions in Mexico, in our hometowns and throughout the world. Thank you for your prayers, support and encouragement in 2006. And thank you in advance for any way that you can support us in 2007.

Su hermanas y hermano en Cristo,
Ginny, Holly, Maggie & John Mills

A 4x4 ministry

One of the roles I gladly accept here is servant. If I am asked to do something that I am capable of doing, I always say yes. Frequently that involves the use of our mission vehicle, a 1994 Toyota Land Cruiser affectionately named “The Beast” by my daughters. Early one morning Pablo called and asked for my help. He said the Dodge Durango used by Pablo was broken down somewhere in the mountains and could I drive Santiago and a mechanic to see if we could get it started. He also said I might need to tow it back to the main road if we were not successful in getting it to run.

The Durango had been given to the Maya Synod by the state of Chiapas after it sat in an impound lot for 3 years. We had scrapped together about $3000 USD last October to have the engine rebuilt and new tires, but I wondered if we could get it to run once we got to it.

San, the mechanic,and I turned right off the paved road from Ocosingo to Palenque, onto a dirt road, and started driving into the mountainous rain forest. After 3-4 miles, we came around a curve and saw a crowd of people standing in the road. There was an over-turned Nissan pick-up truck in a culvert to our left. The truck had flipped over after its left wheels ran off the road when making the turn. Luckily, the driver was uninjured and there were no people in the back of the truck when it flipped. These trucks are one of the primary transportation methods here, and it is not unusual to see 12-15 people in the bed on their way to and from town.

We got out to look and help, and I noticed ropes were tied to the axles and frame of the truck. The people helping had placed tree trunks across the culvert beside the road. I realized that these men planned to flip this truck onto the logs using the ropes and human strength. But first they needed me to use the Beast to pull a large tree they had cut down with a machete (which is another story altogether) out of the jungle. So we tied a rope to the Beast, and I used the low range gear for the first since coming to Chiapas and pulled the tree from the jungle. The men cut it into three pieces and added these to the logs over the culvert. Then, before I knew it, everyone was holding onto a rope and preparing to flip the truck. I grabbed hold and like a mad tug-of-war, we began to pull on the ropes. With each pull, the excitement grew, the yelling got louder, and eventually the truck flipped onto its wheels on the tree trunks.

I was elated and surprised that we had been able to do something that no one I know in the states would attempt. As the men held the ropes, I attached a tow rope to the truck and to the Beast and slowly pulled the truck back onto the road. Everyone was yelling and whooping and patting me on the back for helping them, but they did the hard part! I just used the power of the Beast to help them complete the task.

These indigenous Indians are an industrious people who accomplish so much with the limited materials at their disposal. And they are a community of people helping each other. No one knew each other when they arrived at the scene of the accident, but they all worked together to help a fellow man out of a jam. I was happy to have participated and to have been able to help. I left with a renewed sense that if anything happened to us while we were in the middle of nowhere that we would be okay because of the hospitable and generous people of Chiapas.

The rest of the story is that we found the Durango, quickly found the problem, corrected it, and San drove it back to Ocosingo. Thanks be to God!

The birth of a mission

On Sunday morning I left the house at 6 am to drive Pastor Pablo to one of the 16 congregations planted by his main church in Tenejapa. We arrived at the Filipi congregation for the morning service. That afternoon we learned that the congregation had begun witnessing to a nearby village and found a Presbyterian elder from another church living in the community. He was pleased to know there were other Presbyterians near-by and asked if Filipi would help him start a church in the village.

On Sunday night, Elder Estephan cleared out his small house to make room for an evangelism service. His house is plain - a 30 X 15 ft wooden hut with a concrete floor spread thickly with pine needles, as is the custom in the highlands of Chiapas. Two bare light bulbs accented with a pulsing string of Christmas lights provide the only illumination in the room. Outside, a black plastic tarp had been draped across the front porch and staked to the earthen bank to protect the small sound system from rain. A praise band from the Filipi congregation had a guitar, bass, drum and accordion set up to play so the neighbors could know that services were being held.

Five Elders from the congregation sat on benches around the walls of the hut as 15 family members and neighbors came in for the service. Pastor Pablo offered a sermon explaining the basics of the Christian faith and our belief that Jesus is our salvation. I realized that I was witnessing the birth of a new mission, a term used here to describe a small gathering of believers. After the service, the Elders from Filipi discussed the creation of the mission and asked what the name should be. Elder Estephan requested the mission be named Mt. Sinai, but that name was already taken by another mission of the congregation. He then asked me to name the mission! I was surprised and honored. After running through several choices everyone agreed upon the name, Mt. Hermon.

The Elders continued discussing details about how they would support this new mission. Then we all sat down for a meal (my fourth of the day with the Filipi Elders.) We returned to Ocosingo in the fog and rain, thankful to God for his provision of safety and for the open hearts that received the Good News on a fog swept mountainside in Chiapas.

Pray for the Maestro

If you have visited with us during the last couple of years to work on the clinic or on a project in a village, then you have met and worked with our friend, Ramiro. I am sure you would recognize him if you saw him….short, black hair, bright smile. We affectionately call him “Maestro” because he is a master mason and expert in construction.

Ramiro has been an important member of our team working on the construction of the medical clinic in Ocosingo. So I was distressed and saddened to learn that he had joined 300 local men on a journey to the border and beyond to find work that pays a wage which would allow them to support their families. As a master mason, Ramiro can make more in one hour at a US construction site than we pay him for a day's labor here. We are paying our workers well above the average for their work on the clinic, but the draw of the dollar was too strong for Ramiro and his brethren.

Ramiro paid a “coyote,” a human smuggler, $18,000 pesos (about $1,650 USD at current exchange rate) to provide him safe passage across the border to the US. We learned from his brother that somewhere in the desert along the US border, Ramiro was abandoned by the coyote and left to find his way to the pick-up point where transportation was waiting for him. He apparently did not make it to the rendezvous.

After wandering around in the desert for several hours, he was found by another coyote who took him to a safe house. However, this coyote demanded another $1,600 USD before he would release Ramiro. Please pray for Ramiro and his family as they negotiate with this coyote for his release. Stay tuned for more news.

Make a Joyful Noise (Rattle the roof)

The Psalmist says “Sing joyfully to the Lord, you righteous.” Psalms 33:1. In Presbyterian services in Chiapas and Tabasco, the people here do that and more. Most services last 3 hours and include choirs, Christian Mariachi bands playing acoustic instruments, and electrified praise bands using powerful sound systems. When a well amplified bass guitar is combined with concrete walls and floors and a tin roof, one has a new kind of sensory experience while listening to praise music. The tin roof vibrates, the bass from the guitar and drums pulsate through the benches, and you can feel it in your chest. Maggie once said she thought her heart was going to explode from the vibrations of a particularly loud praise band.

The Tzeltal language is different, but the hymns are the same. Celebrating communion by intinction with 250 members of a congregation in the highlands of Chiapas is a moving experience. I felt the presence of the Lord in my heart while the roof rattled and the benches shook.

Love Led Her: A Tribute to My Mom

Love led her to be a wife who shared her husband’s vision
- To marry a skinny young lawyer from Boone, despite fears that kidney disease might leave her a young widow;
- to push past her utter terror and attend her first precinct meeting with that skinny young lawyer who wanted to make a difference;
- to be one of the first candidate’s wives to have her own campaign trail, speaking around NC to encourage voters to elect her long-shot husband as their next governor;

Love led her to Dream the Impossible Dream

Love led her to be an impeccable hostess
- To apply her home economics training to her role as First Lady at the ripe old age of 33;
- to oversee the renovation of the Governor’s Mansion,
- making and hanging draperies
- and redesigning architectural plans to help make the Mansion feel more like a home for future Governor’s families;

Love led her to be an incredible nurse
- To return to nursing school while still living in the Governor’s Mansion--- can’t you just IMAGINE the looks on the faces of the Highway Patrol when informed that her next nursing internship would be at Dorothea Dix?
- to learn how to provide dialysis in our home for Daddy in the years before his transplant 20 years ago;
- to pursue a masters degree in nursing so she could know more and help more;
- to lovingly nurse hospice patients and their families through the last days;
- to fight for patients and families as vigorously and as lovingly as she nursed them.

Love led her to bless our family and
- To love Daddy’s family as deeply as she loved her own;
- to host countless family gatherings;
- to host a New Year’s Eve wedding celebration of a lifetime
- to join with sisters, Nancy and Linda, in caring for their father and mother in the last years of their lives;
- to share her values, knowledge and family traditions with Holly & Maggie;
- to support John, Holly, Maggie and me as we answered God’s calling to serve in Mexico
- and to cheer her beloved Demon Deacons almost all the way to the Orange Bowl;

Love led her to care for and support other cancer patients and ailing friends and family while fighting her own battle with cancer

And love led her to apply what she knew about cancer to her own life --- to be her own last patient --- and to teach us how to care for her by sharing how she had cared for countless others.

It’s not that Mom did all these things easily, but that love led her to do them. Love led her to push through her reservations, to look past the immediate concerns, and to see the big picture. Some came as naturally as breathing…especially the nursing part. From the moment when she was 16 years old and saw a baby delivered, she knew that God was calling her to be a nurse. When life created detours, she managed to find a way to get back on track and to stay true to that calling. But other challenges revealed her courage, her toughness, and her determination. No matter where she was along that journey, she honored her God, her family and her beloved North Carolina with grace, dignity, intelligence and beauty.

While Mom could be just as comfortable taking care of a patient in a Scotland County trailer as hosting a State dinner, she had a kind of beauty that I can only equate with a diamond. It would be easy to get captivated with any one facet of her … beloved family member, hospice nurse, First Lady, long-shot candidate’s campaign partner, hostess, or teacher…. but to do so could allow us to miss the many other facets. Together those facets made up a beautiful, brilliant, extraordinary woman. We will miss her, but we know that her love led her and taught us all.

for Memorial Service, December 10, 2006

Tzeltal Bible

Today the Tzeltal Bible arrived…all 35 tons of them! A tractor-trailer packed with 1670 boxes, which contain 20,000 copies of the first Bible available in the local language of the Tzeltal people arrived at the Alpha and Omega Bible School. On a beautiful Chiapas morning, 35 Pastors, students, teachers, missionaries, paramedics, both men and women spent over 4 hours unloading the truck. The truck was not able to enter the bible school campus because of a low power line and there was not a forklift in sight, so we formed a human chain and carried the boxes 100 yards to the storage area.

The Bible will be dedicated on November 25 at a ceremony to be held at the bible school. We are expecting over 3,000 people to attend the celebration. It will be an historic occasion that I feel fortunate to have a small role in.

You can see some pictures of the unloading process at our picture site.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/millsfamilymission

Peace,
John

The Fall US Tour

For the last six week, Pablo, his wife Jan and I have been in the US visiting churches and telling the story of the ministry in Chiapas. Pablo and I drove 1,000 from Ocosingo up to the Texas border in late September, then flew to Chicago where Jan met us. This began our eight state tour of 25 churches.

Along the way we experienced the warm hospitality of 13 families who opened their homes to us for lodging, prepared our meals and ministered to our needs. One family even bought a used car for us to drive while we were visiting! It was truly a blessing to reconnect with previous travelers and make new friends along the way. It was also a blessing for me to be able to see Ginny, Holly and Maggie when they arrived for their unscheduled visit to help with Ginny’s mom. Since I will be in Chiapas on Thanksgiving, we enjoyed some time with Jim and Pat and my sisters while in NC.

We jokingly called our itinerary the “rock star mission tour” because it seemed like we were on the go all the time visiting churches and eating way too many “pot luck” meals and buffets. More than once I said how good it was to be visiting this church and said the wrong name. But the fellowship was wonderful and we helped people better understand the breadth of Pablo’s ministry in Chiapas. We encouraged new churches to send mission teams and those that have experienced cross-cultural missions to adopt Pablo and Jan as their churches missionaries. We now have 13 groups scheduled to come to Chiapas in 2007 and three new supporters for Pablo’s ministry.

As the weeks went by we were able to share new pictures of the progress made on the construction of the medical clinic. Our 7 member work crew has been putting up the exterior walls and preparing to complete the floor. Each Saturday we downloaded pictures from our email account and huddled around the computer to see what the guys had been able to accomplish back in Ocosingo.

We wrapped up our tour on Nov. 7. Jan and I flew back to Chiapas and Pablo left on another adventure. He will join over 100 others from Mexico and attend the COMIBON Latin American Mission Conference in Granada, Spain.

A Common Missionary Struggle

Early in our discernment process, one of the biggest questions was related to whether or not we could leave my family during my mother's ongoing struggle with cancer. She had been diagnosed a couple of years before, but she was living a full and happy life while getting treatment. Her doctors assured me that I could reasonably gauge her health by her physical appearance, activity level and other observable cues. So, we headed off to Ocosingo. Last week, when we received news that she was declining rapidly. The girls and I hopped a plane bound for NC. We returned with the knowledge that we could end up being here for months as caregivers in NC instead of missionaries in Mexico. This was gut wrenching in so many ways.

Somehow I think I believed that, since God was calling us to Mexico, that must mean that she would be okay. She had to be. She had to be okay so that we could answer the call, serve God in Mexico and be faithful servants. It was as if I believed that God wouldn't simultaneously send us and not save her.

Nearly every missionary we've talked to has their own story about this dilemma. In most cases, their missionary sending organizations restricted travel home until absolute emergency situations. Many did not make it home before their loved one's death, and in some cases, they weren't even able to make it home even for the funeral.

In Luke 9:56-62, a man expressed a desire to follow Jesus but was rebuked by Jesus when he said, "but first, let me go bury my father." There are many interpretations about this story. Some believe the father was already dead. Some believe he was just old and would die someday. Others believe that it wasn't really about the dead/dying/old father, but rather about Jesus being able to know the man's heart and to know that he wasn't fully committed anyway. Another interpretation is that, because the men began their answer with "...but first..." they revealed that they were willing to put something else before Jesus.

I cannot believe that I'm supposed to be anywhere else but here, caring for and loving my mother and father. Yet I wonder what God thinks. By going earlier this year did we show God that we were willing to put Him first? What does God think that we came home to care for her? Does He think that we're no longer willing to put God first? Or is this exactly where God wants me to be too?

Meanwhile, John is continuing in missions with Pablo & Jan Feliciano, and 2007 promises to be filled with glorious blessings. Mission trips are being scheduled almost daily, the clinic construction is well under way, and the completion of the Tzeltal bible will allow for more meaningful evangelism.

One sermon I've read about this scripture says that God is always doing many things at the same time...all towards the fulfillment of his purposes. I guess that just means that we need to be faithful in the knowledge that God doing something in all of these situations. God is definitely at work in John and Pablo's ministry. God is definitely at work here as we care for my mother. Holly and Maggie are learning about caregiving, learning about cancer, and having time with their grandparents that is oh so precious. My parents seem to feel better having us here and seem to really value the help. I am grateful to have a "boss" who will allow me to leave my post and come to be with my parents as long as I need to be. Had we been doing ANYTHING else, I doubt that doing so would have been possible. God must truly be at work in all these situations and others that we don't even know about.

Perhaps the Matthew scripture can be the answer here - that as we comfort the sick it is as if we are comforting Jesus himself. May our love and care for my mother and father in this time be to God's glory and in keeping with his purposes, and may their love and care for us be also. Amen.

A counselor struggles

Even though we moved our family and essentially changed the focus of our "work" from non-profit jobs in NC to full-time volunteer missionary service in Mexico, the part of me that is a licensed professional counselor did not stay in NC. It came with me to Mexico because it is so much a part of who I am as a person. My extraversion is another part of who I am, and that part of me has really struggled while trying to learn the language. And an extraverted counselor, even in a land where she's not fluent in the native language, will always find people in need of a counselor somehow beckoning at her/his door!

The bible school students here come from all over the southeastern part of Mexico. Most are indigenous and come from poor families, many of whom are not Christian. They are here to study Christian theology or music, and sometimes they do so against the wishes of their families. Family members sometimes threaten to undermine their education because they want them home to work and help support their families or because some members of the family are afraid of others because of physical, sexual or emotional abuse within the family. We have a 26 y/o student who was "married off" by his family at 15 y/o and has a wife and 4 daughters to support --- all while trying to be a full-time student. Because family ties are incredibly strong in this culture, these pleas by family members are almost impossible for these young people to tolerate. They feel torn between honoring their earthly parents and/or family responsibilites and living out their sense of call to ministry by their heavenly father. I know that feeling myself!

So there I was, dictionary in hand, trying to have my first counseling session in Spanish with a young woman trying to cope with a severe trauma history, family members' pulling her home, crises of faith issues and feelings of isolation from her fellow students --- believing, of course, that they have it all together and that she's the only one suffering! Together we bumbled along, as I encouraged her to seek out the support and counsel from someone with a better command of the language, and her resisting out of fear of being misunderstood, judged, etc. So what's a counselor to do?! Counsel anyway despite the risk of misunderstanding or being misunderstood because of language barriers? Run the risk of making a cultural faux pas out of ignorance? Turn her away? Betray her confidentiality by telling someone? UGH! Just so you'll know, I've asked her to consider allowing me to share parts of her story with an English/Spanish/Tzeltal speaking teacher who could possibly help, but thus far she has not given me the green light. So until she does, I just pray.

Please pray with me for this young student that she may find comfort, relief, insight and wisdom to help her through this struggle and to help her know God's will for her life and for healing of her wounded heart. And pray for me that I am blessed with the gift of language so that I can be my true counselor self with these students when the need presents itself in the future.

Soy una consejera...siempre...dondequiera que vaya a lo que lo hago...soy una consejera. (I am a counselor...always....wherever I go....whatever I do...I am a counselor.)

A Soccer Ministry?

It’s hard to explain the importance of soccer/futbol in the Latin American world. Everywhere we go, we see kids playing their own variation on the game regardless of their circumstances. You see one child kicking something, trying to get around another child, in pursuit of a perceived “goal.” It may be a plastic bottle or tin can that they are kicking around a 25 square foot plot of dirt, aiming for a chair placed at one end. On the bible school campus, there is little that resembling “social activities,” but the futbol hours on Tuesday and Thursday afternoons are sacred! Pablo tells us that having a futbol field is one absolute necessity on the campus! The field may be full of mud puddles or piles of excrement left by the numerous animals that randomly graze there, and it may be pouring down rain, but the futbol must go on! Allowing young men from the community to use the field from time to time is considered a form of community outreach. In short, soccer is sacred.

So it is that we find ourselves with a futbol field for our front yard. So it is that we find ourselves trying to play soccer with Mexicans who have been playing since they began learning how to walk --- building relationships with them, learning from them, playing with them. It’s great exercise for us all, and for Holly and Maggie, it counts as PE time. But perhaps more importantly, it’s teaching us another key language here .... the language of futbol. We are learning new skills that will help us speak THAT new language too!

My new friend and fellow missionary, Sharon Hennefelt, talks about her first few years as a missionary here. She said that she spent most of her time teaching Tzeltal women about community health. She wasn’t sharing the gospel or saving souls, she was teaching women about outhouses....how to build them, how to use them, and how to clean them. Not exactly what she had in mind when she came to be a missionary! And playing soccer was not exactly what we had in mind either! But you see, the language of futbol is universal, just like smiles and music, and it’s through these universal languages that new relationships begin. And through those relationships, trust can build and more opportunities to learn from each other and to work together can emerge.

So, perhaps this is one of those lessons about being open to recognize opportunities for ministry that are presented in disguise! A soccer ministry, huh? Who would’ve thunk it?!