Rest in Peace Ventura Delgado 1940-2010

Jose Buenaventura Delgado was the caretaker of Rancho Agua Viva and his wife, Isabel, (in front of casket) was the cook when I arrived in Mexico 24 years ago this past June. They promptly "adopted" me along with my co-workers Shaun, Diana, Darice and JoJo. We became their "gringo" children and they have loved us and cared for us ever since, asking about and always sending their greetings to those who now live far away.

One of my favorite memories of Ventura is that every morning during the summer months when he would go to town to buy groceries for his wife to make the food for the visiting groups, he would buy me a big, ripe, juicy mango. He knew I loved them and also that often times I didn't have time to sit down for a big meal , but I always had time to eat a mango. It was his way of showing me his love and affection. From the beginning I called them "mama' y papa' " as they have been my mexican parents.

This past Sunday Ventura and Isabel were doing what they did every week, driving around the neighborhood to pick up members of their congregation to take them to church. But this time the brakes went out on the car and to avoid a more tragic situation, Ventura crashed the car into a wall. Their injuries were not life threatening, but required hospitalization. However, as they were being treated Ventura had a heart attack and was gone almost instantly.

All of their children and many of their grandchildren and great grandchildren attended the services for Ventura. (In the picture the children appear from L-R: Rommel, Ruben, Juan, Maria, Rufino and Dalia.) It was truly a family reunion--but likely nothing compared to the one Ventura had when he arrived at his heavenly home almost one week ago.

We miss you, Papa'. You are gone, but not forgotten.

Two Friends...Two Funerals

One had just turned 70 in July and the other was 47. Both were family men. Both loved Jesus and served Him in their lives and work. One on Sunday and the other on Thursday, both men passed from this life to the next in a matter of minutes.

Both of their funerals were packed with family, friends, neighbors, co-workers, church members, and members of the larger faith community. In both of the services it was mentioned that these men had always hoped to see their churches full, and for their funerals--they were.

For us it was a time to remember these men, support their families and to communicate the news to others who know them but are far away. On these two occasions we also saw many people whom we had not spent time with for many years, in some cases for decades.

These experiences have reminded us: that life is very short, especially compared to eternity; that "man knows not his time"; and the time to prepare for eternity is now. Likewise, it's better to reconnect with friends and family in any way you can outside of a funeral. So reconnect with someone today who is in your heart and has been on your mind.

Reflections from February in Ensenada

This year has ushered in a season in the ministry that can be likened to tending a field. For many years we have planted seeds, watered, waited and watched expectantly and joyfully. But lately as we observe the soil we are seeing sprouts and plants springing up everywhere! Here is a quick look:

For several months we have been collaborating with friends from another ministry to organize and host monthly breakfast gatherings for local leaders. The purpose is to provide a setting to build relationships, introduce the person of Jesus, promote love for our neighbor and unite in a spirit of prayer for and service to the community. David and I have been praying for the vision of a city wide prayer breakfast for over 15 years. Now we are working with others who share our passion. There are buds on the branches of that dream! Please pray for the next one on April 8.

Likewise, each Friday a small group from our Reflejo community has been uniting in prayer for our city, for the needs we encounter and the channels through which we desire to see God meet those needs. This has become a way to support one another both in the challenges of our daily lives and our respective areas of service. Each one plants, we all water, and God gives the growth.

One example is a couple that went with us to Mt. Hermon for the first time this past December and returned home inspired to respond to the need they observed among the homeless. This month they began an outreach each Wednesday afternoon that provides a hot meal for approximately 80 men and women. Leaders impacted by Jesus serving among “the least of these”—fruit that fulfills one aspect of the vision we shared when we began investing in leaders almost 20 years ago.

Another was our fourth Ensenada women’s retreat where twenty four women attended, nine for the first time. We studied the book The Battlefield of the Mind and the impact in the women’s lives was astounding. We were privileged to see God’s spirit work in their hearts and lives before our eyes! Growth, change, fruit!

At the end of last year we felt that maybe our time for having a home church had reached its conclusion. However, God has brought three new families in the last couple of months—and for one of the families it is their first church experience. How exciting to see them learn, discover and grow!

Now spring is in the air. We expect there is a lot more to come!!

A Gift for Three Kings' Day

In Mexico, January 6 marks the official end of the Advent/Christmas season. Today is the day to commemorate the arrival of the Wise Men to worship Jesus and present Him with their gifts. Children receive toys they have dreamed of all year and families and friends gather to eat together the "Rosca de Reyes" a delicious bread adorned with figs and dried fruit.

For the second year, our family has accepted the invitation to serve the noon meal and the "Rosca" to residents of our local "Asilo de Ancianos" (Home for the Elderly). The four of us greeted the "abuelitos" (grandparents), helped set up for the meal and served plates of roasted chicken, beans, rice and tortillas to the appreciative recipients, followed by the bread and a cup of hot chocolate.

Many of these precious abuelitos have no family in the area. The majority are sick and weak. Some need to be spoon fed, while others eat slowly with trembling hands. They especially loved seeing our girls and the children of the other volunteers.

We were there a couple of hours. We helped out where we could, shook hands, wished them well, and smiled a lot. It wasn't much and it didn't take long, but it reminded me of a song that became one of my favorites this past December.

Light your world let the love of God shine through;
In the little things you do, light your world.
And though your light may be reaching only two or three;
Light your world.
It only takes a little time to show someone how much you care.
It only takes a little time to answer someone’s biggest prayer.
Light your world….

By Eddie Caswell, Marc Aramain, Oliver Wells and Niles Borop
Sung by NewSong on the album "The Christmas Shoes"

It wasn't gold, frankincense or even myrrh, but hopefully our humble efforts to bring a ray of light to a few dozen older folks can be a gift worthy of our King.

Papers and "Paletas"

She sells newspapers at a busy intersection that we pass by as we drive the girls to school. At first we didn’t really notice her in the distraction of the morning rush. Then we would refer to her as the older woman who sells the papers. Then there was the tentative, but mutual recognition that comes from seeing a familiar face every day over a period of time.

As the weeks went by our passing acquaintance led us to smile, then to wave and finally I began to lower my window and greet the newspaper woman every day. She tells me that I bring her blessings each day for her sales. One day I noticed she had company at her appointed spot and she told me she had recruited her daughter to help sell papers too. She introduced me to her and also told me the day she celebrated her one year anniversary of selling newspapers.

Since I don’t buy the paper, some days as I drove away from our morning greetings, I would ask God if there was anything I could do for this sweet woman who always has a smile and a kind word despite the early hour or the harsh weather. God put in on my heart to invite them to a workshop I organized at our family crisis center (CAME) for needy women to learn a craft that they can sell to generate income. Maria Luisa López, a friend from Agua Viva days, designs and produces edible marshmallow figures on a stick (paletas) to sell as a way to generate additional income for her family. She shares my passion to see opportunities for women who are un- or under employed to have opportunities and tools to begin their own businesses and support their families.

Yesterday we had six women in our first workshop and among them were the “newspaper women”, where we learned their names are Salomé and her daughter, Yeimy. They along with the other four made their two marshmallow creations and left the Center with a new skill and a new and exciting vision.

This morning when we drove by their spot, we greeted our friends (and future businesswomen), and Salomé gave us some great news: “I sold my first paleta!”

Thank you for supporting us with your gifts and your prayers so that we can support others. It is an incredible privilege to love and serve God and our neighbors in this city.

A Small House with a Huge Purpose

After being in Bakersfield we were able to spend a night with another family that have been faithful friends and supporters for over 20 years ever since we were all single and their church would come down and serve with us at Rancho Agua Viva.

Now they live in Orange County and have a very innovative and quality remodeling business called Black Diamond Builders. http://www.blackdiamondbuilders.com/

This year for the first time they built a home to be donated to an organization that benefits the homeless. http://www.projectplayhouse.org/ Not only that, along with the architect, the interior designer and the rest of the team, they built a house that honors those who were devastated by the tsunami in Sri Lanka just a few years ago. So this is a small house in size, but a huge house in purpose.

So here are J. Steele and David in front of this work of art and labor of love. And any of you who can get to the Irvine Spectrum in Orange County before September 12 can see this playhouse, along with the other eight creations Saturdays and Sundays from 12pm to 6 pm.

Here's to good friends, and good home and Kingdom builders!!
Thanks J. and Cheri

Good Food and Good Friends

In our busy lives it seems like there is never enough time to connect with all the people who are important to us. A little pocket of time and a few hours of driving allowed us the gift of visiting with friends who are also faithful supporters and very significant parts of our lives and ministry. In being together we had the opportunity to give them an update about what God is teaching us and doing in our lives and the work here, as well as share in some of the trials, challenges and victories these friends are experiencing as well.

We have known Steve and Linda Boyle and Doug and Dena Carter for the past seven years. God brought them into our lives and they have been the conduits through which individuals and families from both sides of the border (and literally around the world) have become united in faith, friendship and fellowship. In addition they have become like family as we have shared life, ministry and lots of time together.

So here we are after a delicious dinner at a favorite Bakersfield eatery enjoying the gift of good food and good friends and looking forward to the next time we can all be together.

Service Project is a Dream come True

As we reflected on the completion of our project after 14 hours of work, we were amazed on all that was accomplished, on the wonderful group of friends that had come alongside us to share the load, and on the realization that this was truly a dream come true.

The name CAME is likely familiar to most of you. It is the initials for the family crisis center where we volunteer doing counseling and helping with the fund raising. It means Center for the Support of Ensenada Women, but truly everyone, men, women, children and teenagers, receive help for their problems and needs there.

Giving the Center a face lift through cleaning, painting, pulling weeds and planting flowers, was definitely part of the satisfaction we felt. But it was the community that came alongside that caused us to reflect on everything God has been doing to answer our prayers and accomplish His purposes.

One of the desires that we shared as we began working with leaders in the Ensenada community years ago was that as they give their lives to follow Jesus, He would give them a heart for the things that touch the heart of God—namely the poor and needy--and that they would commit to investing their time, talents and resources to loving those neighbors. We saw this in action that day.

Another joy was to see the body of Christ join together to serve in a practical way in His name. Whole families worked together side by side. The ages of the volunteers spanned from seven to 72! Representatives from seven Reflejo families were present and two even came from north of the border. One of Karen’s patients at the center took her grandkids and worked alongside the rest of us all day as well.

The same group of people met together the following day in a local picnic spot for our monthly gathering with Reflejo for a time of fellowship and fun as families. One family came for the first time. We are so grateful to God for our family here.

photos by Daniel Meza

God's Networking

Together with our ministry partners we have been praying for God’s direction regarding how to more effectively offer help and healing to the needy in our city and beyond. During the first few weeks of this year there have been some great connections both with others who serve here and with like-minded friends from the U.S.

A group of seven came recently and spent a day with us considering some options for serving in Ensenada. Two of the guys are long time friends from our Agua Viva days who are part of our Reflejo community and attend Mount Hermon with us. They were shown a project that touched their hearts and they shared it with friends, who shared it with friends who decided to accompany them on a recognisance trip.

God did some incredible networking that day and we all marveled at how He is moving to accomplish His purposes here and in the world. Following this post we will add an article that we were sent from 0ne of the guys on the trip. It is one of the best pieces we have ever read about helping the needy.

At this point there are plans to start coordinating efforts between these state side friends and some Reflejo friends and their church to provide food, friendship and encouragement to a Women's Shelter south of Ensenada called Casa Esperanza.

The most exciting part about all of this is that Jesus told us that the world will know that we are His disciples if we have love for one another. This endeavor is the result of being united in our love for Jesus and the desire to love our neighbor. Our prayer is that in the process others will come to know this Jesus we seek to follow. Please pray with us for that.

"Think About Such Things"

“Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.”
Philippians 4:8

The last Sunday of December we gathered with the families of Reflejo, our faith community, reflecting on the year gone by. The room was filled with thanksgiving as each one shared something they were grateful for—life, health, another year, the support of friends and family, God’s provision, growing in faith.

David then challenged us based on the verse above to choose to think positively in a world that tends to be negative and pessimistic, to set our minds on what is excellent and praiseworthy. And then in the following verse, he urged us to go beyond thinking to doing, with its promised result.

“Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.” (Verse 9)

These are inspiring thoughts for a time when the words crisis, recession, violence, war, disease, poverty, corruption and others fill the air waves as well as casual conversations. We need to remember that these verses were written by a man who was imprisoned, shipwrecked, beaten, stoned and run out of many towns for telling others about Jesus, the Messiah, the Son of God—the One who transformed him and the One whose birth we celebrate during this season. Surely his admonitions for right thinking and applied action can bring that same peace to all of us in our lives.

We hope that as you read this you will be reminded to pray for us, to pray for our city, for our faith community and home church, for the small groups and those we are discipling to continue growing in their faith and commitment to Jesus.

We thank you too for being a part of our lives, our family and our work. It is a privilege to serve knowing that we are supported by such faithful friends and partners. May the God of peace invade your lives in new and astounding ways as you “think about such things.”

A Small Bone Turns Into a Big Break

It all started with a distracted misstep and a fall. It ended up with a broken bone, a cast and three weeks of bed rest.

Small things can make a big difference.

It was just a one inch step I did not navigate well. It is just a little bone under the smallest toe. It took just a second or two to happen. But the results are significant. A purple and swollen foot…Pain… Immobilization…Cancelled plans…Tasks undone…Reliance on others.

As I have had more time on my hands lately, I have been reading a lot more than I usually do. It seems that everything I read and even the DVDs that I have watched have served to communicate the same message—have faith, trust in God. A small portion of faith, as small as a mustard seed, can cause big things to happen.

We, like many of you have been confronting some major obstacles and challenges (more long- term than a three-week convalescence.) The economic crisis in the U.S. has hit us and many of our friends hard. There has been unprecedented violence in our two neighboring cities of Tijuana and Rosarito that has made this last month the bloodiest ever. We know many people who are facing serious health issues, family crises, death in their families, marital problems, depression and even thoughts of suicide. People are scared, worried, hopeless and tired.

Honestly, there have been times lately as our energy and resources have run low that we have been prone to worry, fear and even despair. But God has faithfully been reminding us that we need to trust in Him and not in what we have or what the prognosis is for the future. He has used the book of Nehemiah to show us what leadership submitted to and dependent on God looks like and what He can accomplish through those who look to Him and trust in Him. He has used friends to give us other books that carry the same message--believe in God’s Word and His promises, not in our feelings or our circumstances.

We know many of you are facing overwhelming obstacles in these days as well. We want you to know that we are praying for you and asking God to bless you and your families, your households and your businesses. Just as in our community, you have the opportunity to be a voice of faith, to declare that “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me” and “My God will supply all your needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 4: 13; 19)

Let’s take God at His Word. Let’s be a voice of hope and healing for our communities, our cities, our nations and our world.

Twenty Years and Counting...

Over 20 years ago we met a young girl. She was the daughter of a local pastor with whom who worked during our years serving with Agua Viva.

Fast forward several years….The pastor’s daughter is now married to a bright, successful, athletic man—who does not share her depth of faith. At the time they have a baby daughter just five months younger than our oldest girl and we reconnect. We begin to reach out to them, we spend some time together and a few years later our daughters begin attending the same school.

Soon after that we invited them to attend one of our study groups and they accepted. The husband began attending church with his wife and growing in his faith as he learned more about God’s Word and His plan for his life. They began to work on issues in their lives and marriage as well as beginning to train up their children in God’s principles.

Having a burden for members of his family, and other friends, they began a study in their home and asked us to be the leaders. They have participated in all the seminars and retreats that we have organized for people in the community and are active with the faith community here, Reflejo. They also attend the Mount Hermon retreats each year with our contingency. The growth in each of them, as well as in their marriage and family has been dramatic, and although there are many areas where they still struggle, God’s work is evident in their lives.

As part of God’s plan, seven months ago our change of residence brought us to a home right around the corner from this family. (In fact, the wife was our contact with the owner of our house and our friend’s reputation was the only insurance that the owner needed to rent to us on the spot with no contract and no co-signer--an incredible testimony to our friend’s integrity!) Now every Thursday evening we walk to the study. This couple recently shared with us their continued desire for family members, friends and neighbors to receive the teachings that have helped them in their lives. After attending our last retreat, one of his sisters has joined us every week and is being taught from the Bible for the first time! We have encouraged them to pray and wait for God’s timing to invite others. They have introduced us to several people they are praying for and the seeds of relationship are being planted. Please join both of our families in praying that these seeds would find fertile ground and that soon more of our mutual neighbors would come to know our God.

Please pray for us as we are off to Bakersfield for some gatherings with friends and partners as well as the 3rd Annual B&B Women’s Retreat (Bakersfield and Baja) up there.

Move Over Santa...Here Come the Three Kings!

In Mexico our holiday traditions continue into January. On January 6 families celebrate the coming of the Wise Men as they arrived to honor baby Jesus bestowing Him with gifts. Children here await the “Day of the Kings” with at least as much anticipation as youngsters in the U.S. anticipate the coming of Old Saint Nick. In Mexico, Santa often brings “only” clothing or school supplies while Balthasar, Gaspar and Melchor are the ones who bring games and toys.

An important part of the festivities on this day is the cutting of the “King’s Bread”, a sweet bread decorated with dried fruits and shaped in the form of a crown. Inside there are one or more “Baby Jesus” dolls. Each person cuts a slice and if the doll is in their portion, the tradition says they will provide the tamales for the “Day of Candelaria” on February 2nd when once again the group will gather to eat a traditional meal. February’s date remembers when Jesus was taken to the temple to be dedicated to the Lord. Only then do many families put away the Niño Jesús from their crèche, often dressing it in fancy clothes and taking it to the church to be blessed by the priest before storing it away until next December 24th.

This January 6 we received an invitation from some new neighbors to cut the King’s bread with them. Having only lived here for a month and a half we were honored to be included. David got one of the Jesus dolls, so we will buy the tamales and gather with the group once again on the February date. These neighbors have introduced us to their friends, mainly professors and small business owners, and we have found that we also have many friends in common with these new acquaintances.

Another highlight this month was co-hosting a group from Redding, CA who fixed the bathrooms at a rural school and built them a snack bar where they can sell food. They also did an “extreme makeover” at the home of a woman we are discipling, as well as spent time with our community of faith here. At one point during the week we had 65 people in our back yard for a carne asada barbeque. Many good relationships were formed across the borders, as well as connecting the principal of the local school and his family with our fellowship here.

This next month we have the trip to Washington, D.C. with our partners and disciples, Danny and Lucy as well as the 2nd Annual Ensenada Women’s Retreat Feb. 22-24. Please keep these activities in your prayers.

Out of the Mouth of...

The following are excerpts from a letter written by David to a friend of ours who is waging a valiant and victorious fight with cancer since one year ago.

Dear Don,
I want to begin by saying thank you for sharing your life with all of us that are aware of what is going on with you and for being so vulnerable in telling us how you feel in this battle....

I thought right now that one way to describe what we do full time could be summed up as "we are trying to learn how to take the opportunities that God brings into our lives to introduce our Friend, Jesus, to our friends that don't know Him." Part of our activities is to be in direct contact with the crises of our friends and acquaintances, all the time, including our own as is the case at this time...It occurred to me that perhaps if I shared with you how I feel in my own crisis right now, that it would give you a good laugh. So I decided to give it a try. So here goes...

Some people like me have been labeled as having "rabbit teeth" from a very young age. I remember when I was a child in school that some mean kids teased me by chanting, "you have rabbit teeth, nana nana na na." But I survived and I overcame this "trauma." Then as an adult all this changed when I got braces and I started feeling really good about my teeth. In fact, I thought they looked really good!!

Well, this feeling of pride, comfort and confidence with my teeth began to crumble one Monday a few weeks ago. While I was asleep, one of my precious "rabbit teeth" fell out of my mouth! It was after midnight and I woke up with a strange sensation in my mouth. I felt a hole where the tooth should have been. It was so strange that I felt that I was dreaming...and then that I was having a nightmare! But as the seconds passed, I became aware of the cruel reality and I questioned what was happening. Where is my tooth? It wasn't in my mouth. Did I swallow it? No, it had literally fallen out of my mouth. In the midst of darkness I began to feel around the bed and I found it in between the sheets. At that point I went to the bathroom and put it back in the space and secured it with a retainer that I had been using.

In the morning I called a friend of ours who is a dentist and I told her what had happened. She instructed me to call the periodontal specialist immediately who had treated my gums years ago. That doctor fit me into his schedule and saw me three hours later. As he examined me his comments were that the situation didn't look very good, but that he was going to do some tests and that two days later he would give me the results. In the meantime, he sent me to another dentist who would work with reattaching the tooth that had fallen out.

I left the doctor's office feeling very bad and also beginning to consider and worry about how we were going to cover all the extra expenses this would incur, even without having a clear picture yet. I called the second dentist around 6 p.m. that evening and explained the situation. He also made space for me to see him that same day and told me to go to his office at 7:40.

This doctor examined me as well and likewise told me that the situation didn't look very good. The good news was that he could use the tooth that had fallen out to cover the space temporarily by using what they call a splint, therefore giving the other doctor a chance to analize the situation, work on my gums and come up with a permanent solution.

Two days later I went back to the periodontal specialist and he explained his diagnosis to me. He told me that unfortunately my front four teeth cannot be saved. They no longer have roots and the bone in my jaw in that area has deteriorated 100%. There are also problems in other parts of my upper jaw where there is 50% and 30% bone loss respectively. Gratefully, my lower jaw is unaffected. He prescribed antibiotics and other medication for inflammation and said that to begin I would need eight sessions to restore my gums and see if any of the bone can be regenerated. The other part of Phase I will be extracting the dead nerves from those four teeth and grafting in new ones leaving my gums ready for Phase II. The second phase will entail doing "titanium"(?) implants along with bone grafts to prepare for putting in permanent replacements for my teeth.

I am explaining all this to you from what I remember and in the most simple form. To be honest, as I listened to this fascinating explanation of the options and alternatives including the implants, in my mind I was trying to add up how much all this was going to cost. Besides it was just overwhelming! But I dared to ask the doctor how much this would all cost, more or less. The doctor told me that Phase I would cost $1,200.00 dollars...The second phase would start at a cost of $4,000.00 - $5,000.00 dollars...On top of that would be the cost of the four teeth that need to be replaced permanently....

So, I left the doctor's office worried about how we are going to pay for all of this and feeling guilty that I hadn't prevented it...I also felt bad that financially we were already tight, and now all these additional expenses are being added without having the money to pay for it....

I'm feeling much better now, although nothing has really changed. I am now seeing God's influence and presence in my life (in our lives.) He is reminding us that this is a perfect situation to trust in Him and to put into practice what we preach. Through our current circumstances I am experiencing something powerful and supernatural, something that only He can do through His Spirit. Only in Him can I feel love, joy, peace, patience and trust, perhaps not all the time...but most of the time....

God bless you and your family!!

David

The Family in the Green House

They moved in a year ago...the family in the green house. What was once a calm, peaceful street transformed into a continuous celebration. Loud music, laughter, animated conversations, kids playing in the streets in electric cars and clanking wagons until the wee hours. Furthermore, since the weather was hot and not having air conditioning, the only way to sleep was with all the windows open. But given the new arrivals it was either put up with the heat or the noise.

Neighbors began to make comments to each other in passing about the new family. The atmosphere became tense. Some began to complain and yell when they could not take it anymore. Threats of calling the police were voiced, but it did not seem to deter the family in the green house in the least.

We simply exchanged pleasantries with the family in the green house. A wave or a "hello neighbor" as we would leave the house or return from an errand or outing in the car. However, at night when the noise would begin, our attitudes were often less than "neighborly". Since we moved into this area four years ago, we have prayed to be a light, to have opportunities to share Jesus with those who live around us. We asked God specifically what our reaction should be to these people who obviously were determined to have a good time no matter how it affected the rest of us. We began to pray for them.

This summer there have been no parties. The atmosphere in the green house has been far from festive. There was a death in the family. The husband and wife were separated for awhile. The teenage son and his mother are often engaged in a battle of the wills. Now instead of music there is screaming, yelling and obscenities. Instead of laughter, doors being slammed. Instead of children playing, there is crying. And now we missed the parties they once had. We prayed even more.

Last week God opened the door to the family in the green house. One night a friendly wave across the street turned into a two-hour conversation with the husband. He shared excitedly about his latest business venture and then the conversation turned more personal. That led to details about his life, his marriage, his family and finally his concern for his wife who was depressed and on the verge of a nervous breakdown. David shared that he does counseling and would be willing to help in any way he could. With that we shook hands and said goodnight.

Two days later, on a warm Saturday afternoon, our neighbor from the green house called across the street to David. "Neighbor, I want to take you up on your offer to talk to my wife. I'm really worried about her this time." So David went over and visited the family in the green house. The wife poured out her feelings of pain, frustration, hurt and helplessness. David shared about God and offered to give her a Bible. She was receptive and grateful and wants to continue meeting with David.

This week there we have heard laughter again from the family in the green house. And this week there has been no yelling. Please pray for the family in the green house.

"An anxious heart weighs a man down, but a kind word cheers him up." Proverbs 12:25