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Today we visited some Mayan ruins and spent some time with our El Salvadorian hosts. It was a good day of reflections and "thank you." It has been a nice way to relax and praise God for the work he did this week. A lot of great things happened:

• A house was built for a family.


• The gospel was preached.


• Friends were made with brothers and sisters in Christ.


• A young man was able to recieve needed surgery.


• Another boy was given much needed new crutches.


• Scores of people were able to recieve medical assistance.


• I miraculously avoided migraines, despite the heat.


• Many grew in Christlikeness.


• God was glorified.

We are getting ready for a party to celebrate the week with the people from Iglesia Gran Comision (the church). Right now, I´m just ready to get on the plane and fly back into the arms of my wife. Call me what you want, but I don´t do well away from my wife. This week, the hardest thing for me hasn´t been whether or not God would provide, but how I would make it without my wife and son. The truth is, it was very difficult for me. I missed my family all week. However, God sustained me in unique ways. My brothers and sisters in Christ lifted me up on more than one occasion, little notes my wife had left in my suitcase for me lifted my spirits. Even an old voice mail from Christy on my phone helped me feel close to her.

In this strange place, far from the person who makes me feel safe and at home I was forced to cling to my Savior. He reminded me that He is the one who sustains me, that He is the one who keeps me safe and at home, that He is God no matter where I am. Tomorrow I´m going home, and I can´t wait. However, I´m going home different. I´m going home more dependant on my King. I put myself in a position where I had to rely more deeply on the Spirit, and He came through. I can´t wait to see what He will do when I depend on Him more at home.

When was the last time you put yourself in a position where you couldn´t make it without the Holy Spirit?

Like Bringing a Knife to a Gunfight

So, while we were unloading 100 lb. bags of concrete, two Jehovah´s Witnesses walked by us. They were white Americans with white shirts, black ties, dress pants, and name tags. Keep in mind, this is in one of the poorest neighborhoods around.

We were covered in mud, laboring alongside our El Salvadorian brothers in Christ as well as some pre-Christian El Salvadorians. For a moment, I became very angry with the Jehovah´s Witnesses. I was thinking, "You are showing up in a tie, telling the poorest people in the world that they need to do good works to know God. Are you kidding me?!"

What I wanted to do: Say, ¨"Jesus Christ is God and He came to this earth as a servant. What the heck are you doing?" (Since this is a Christian blog, I have edited out some of the words in my thoughts.)

What I did do: I didn´t know what to say, so we watched them walk by and heard them say "How´s it going?"

I was upset about the whole thing. I was so excited to be taking the gospel to another country. It upset me that someone else was there teaching a corrupted version. Later I asked out translator (Claudia) if they were effective. She said that the Jehovah´s Witnesses and Mormons target poverty-stricken areas, becasue the people are excited to see North Americans. They let them in quickly and then visit their churches to see if they are recieved with love. Claudia says, they visit all kinds of churches until they see the real love of Christ. She teared up a bit as she told us how this happens in their churches.

The Jehovah´s Witnesses have nothing on a God who steps down into our existence and humbles himself as a servant. I don´t think they get that. Maybe that´s why they were in ties and we wore work gloves. Its "like bringing a knife to a gun fight."

I think I like a Jesus who gets Hands dirty a lot better than one who shows up to a home-building in a tie. The love of Christ prevails!

Universal Language

The love of Christ is universally understood. Today we visited one of the neighborhoods near Church of the Great Commission. Being a group of gingos (americans) we turned a lot of heads. People were eager to hear anything we had to say, so we told thelm why we were there (the love of Christ) and intived them to a fiesta at the church. We were able to pray with a woman who´s family was shovelling silt out of her house. When we drove in last night, we were met with torrential rain. The homes near the church that had just been flooded earlier this year were flooded again. Love is translating very well here.

At the fiesta, I was able to hit a ballon around with a small child here. Balloons and gringos were everywhere. Apearantly, that´s all you need around here for a serious party. This place was rockin.

Today is my first Fathers Day, and I´m away from my son. I had a little bit of a hard time today, but was able to wake up to a card with my son´s voice recorded on it. On this Father´s Day away from my family, I am comforted by the fact that the people of El Salvador and I share the same heavenly Father. Language remains a barrier, but some things are understood very well. Praise God for greatness that goes beyond our human borders.

Pray for me. I´m giving my first sermon through a translator in about an hour and 45 minutes. I can´t tell jokes or talk fast becasue of the translation, which means all the things that if this sermon is going to be good, it will have to be totally becasue of the Holy Spirit. Pray He shows up as I preach about preparing for Him to show up in Acts 1.

Leavin' on a Jet Plane

It is 11:13pm, and I just finished packing for my first international mission trip. I am torn between two very distinct emotions. I am excited about this trip, the experiences I will have and the ministry I will get to be a part of. However, I hate being away from my family, not just dislike...hate. I miss my wife and son during regular work days. I can't imagine what it is going to be like when I am half a continent away. Right now, the missing my family emotion is stronger than my excitement about going.

Tomorrow, my wife will drop me off and I will get on a plane with a team of people from Open Door to fly to El Salvador. She doesn't know this, but I'm planning on hugging her and singing "Leavin' on a Jet Plane." The truth is we will probably both cry.

I know I'm only going to be gone for a week, and I'm not headed into persecution or any great danger. Leaving my family for a few days is, compared to the first century apostles, a small price to pay in order to help further the gospel. However, it still hurts. God is made strong in our weakness, and we depend on Him in our trials. I'm going to need Him this week.

By the way I appreciate your prayers in these areas:

• Gospel preached, heard and lived.
• Safety for the team and our families.
• Dependence on God.
• Details we don't even know about that He has under control.
• Preaching--I'm giving my first international Sermon Sunday night.

Note: Pray wildly, expecting God to do more than we imagine.

What are you believing God to do while we are in El Salvador?

Work Glove Sermon

(Upper: This is a picture we took of one of the streets near us that has been washed out. Many of the streets have some degree of erosion. Lower:This is not a picture we took. We haven´t uploaded all the pictures yet. However, this looks a lot like the homes we are working near.)


So, the sermon Sunday night went well. There is something about speaking to a group of people through a translator that forces you to remove jokes and fancy words (they don´t translate). The only thing that is left to make something interesting in the sermon is the Holy Spirit. Praise God! He showed up Sunday night. I spoke from Acts 1 about the need for the Holy Spirit to empower us to fulfill the Great Commission. Our El Salvadorian brothers and sisters in Christ understoond well. My translator, Ricky became a fellow teacher, not just a translator. It was a great experience! God is advancing His Kingdom in El Salvador!


Continuing the theme of Holy Spirit ministry, we have been working very hard. We helped dig out a hillside for a house we are building. Many of the people here live in homes with dirt floors. We hope to provide a home for this family through some good old fashioned hard work. The work isn´t easy. We are in mud. It sticks to the shovels and makes for very hard work. I am experiencing the strenghtening of the Holy Spirit in new ways. The temeprature is hot, which usually causes me to have migraines. Not this week. I haven´t had any problems! In fact, we have all been feeling very well. God has His hands on us. Keep praying that he keeps protecting and using us!



I´m starting to think that the reason He brought me here was to show me that He is as faithful and powerful in El Salvador as He is in Elyria, OH. Praise God!

I have a few things for you to pray for.

• Continued strengthening as we work and minister.


• Continued sustenance of our families at home.


• Protection and health


• Continued advancement of the Gospel


• God would be glorified as much as possible.

Thank you for your support! What questions do you have about El Salvador (can´t find question mark on this spanish computer).