Originalist
06-29-2013, 12:16 PM
MEXICO UPDATE/// Greetings to all. We have been here for 11 days now. We're just starting to get our feet wet.
About 6 hours after crossing the border, we came across a roadblock set up by the ¨Federales¨. They claimed our two young daughters´entry papers were not correct. We explained that those were the papers issued to us at the border by Mexican customs. They replied that it was our responsibility to know whether or not Mexican officials had made a mistake. They then said that they suspected that our girls were not really ours , but that we had abducted them, and that they could be taken away from us for as long as 8 months. My 7 year old , who is fluent in Spanish ,began to cry, which is what they wanted. We showed them the girls´birth certificates and passports. They said those would not be considered as evidence that our claims were true. Thankfully, my wife´s nephew had met us on the road and negotiated a ¨settlement¨, if you catch my drift.
Thank God for the ministry opportunities we have had. Last week we ministered in a home cell group of about 30 people. Tonight we've been invited to minister at a married couples fellowship. We have all had bouts of sickness, starting with the kids, then my wife, and now me. I still feel pretty weak and lost 5 pounds in 3 days. Our "tent making" is also underway. I worked this week with my brother in law in his fruit distributorship. What an operation!! I work from 6 am til 10 am, and then again from 3 pm til 8 pm. He has a rented work space and loading dock in a huge, wholesale farmers market. Literally hundreds of loading bays bustling with activity. Hundreds of semis in and out 24 hrs a day. The quality of the produce is unreal. Tito deals mainly in mangos, strawberries, and guavas. He employs around 20 people.
We do have some obstacles, but nothing too great for our God. My car needs a repair, and much of the money we brought is being held in deposit by the Mexican government. A new law was recently instituted that we knew nothing about. It seems people were bringing in cars from the USA and selling them under the table, thus robbing the government here of tariff revenue. Making people leave a deposit is a way to make sure the government gets a cut in case someone decides to sell their car while here. Please help us pray that God would supply necessary funds to make the car road worthy for the trip home. Your prayers are greatly appreciated.
About 6 hours after crossing the border, we came across a roadblock set up by the ¨Federales¨. They claimed our two young daughters´entry papers were not correct. We explained that those were the papers issued to us at the border by Mexican customs. They replied that it was our responsibility to know whether or not Mexican officials had made a mistake. They then said that they suspected that our girls were not really ours , but that we had abducted them, and that they could be taken away from us for as long as 8 months. My 7 year old , who is fluent in Spanish ,began to cry, which is what they wanted. We showed them the girls´birth certificates and passports. They said those would not be considered as evidence that our claims were true. Thankfully, my wife´s nephew had met us on the road and negotiated a ¨settlement¨, if you catch my drift.
Thank God for the ministry opportunities we have had. Last week we ministered in a home cell group of about 30 people. Tonight we've been invited to minister at a married couples fellowship. We have all had bouts of sickness, starting with the kids, then my wife, and now me. I still feel pretty weak and lost 5 pounds in 3 days. Our "tent making" is also underway. I worked this week with my brother in law in his fruit distributorship. What an operation!! I work from 6 am til 10 am, and then again from 3 pm til 8 pm. He has a rented work space and loading dock in a huge, wholesale farmers market. Literally hundreds of loading bays bustling with activity. Hundreds of semis in and out 24 hrs a day. The quality of the produce is unreal. Tito deals mainly in mangos, strawberries, and guavas. He employs around 20 people.
We do have some obstacles, but nothing too great for our God. My car needs a repair, and much of the money we brought is being held in deposit by the Mexican government. A new law was recently instituted that we knew nothing about. It seems people were bringing in cars from the USA and selling them under the table, thus robbing the government here of tariff revenue. Making people leave a deposit is a way to make sure the government gets a cut in case someone decides to sell their car while here. Please help us pray that God would supply necessary funds to make the car road worthy for the trip home. Your prayers are greatly appreciated.