The Generosity of Mexico, Flesh to the Vision

So an amazing thing transpired. We got an invitation to come to Mexico to share our vision at a pastor’s and leader’s conference and then at several different church services in Puebla and Veracruz. We just got back.

Puebla, Mexico is a city of over 1.5 million people situated in a large valley surrounded by mountains and volcanoes. The city is located 67 miles east of Mexico City. The photo on top is a picture of the most active volcano Popocatepetl. The photo on the bottom is looking back at the neighborhood I (Chad) lived in when I came to minister in Puebla 7 years ago.

We were blessed beyond our imagination by the great reception we received. Fabiola’s home church in Puebla invited us to share with the congregation what we’ll be doing and they have agreed to support us $500 a month as a church and many individuals have also made a pledge to support us with what they can 50 pesos or 100 pesos a month (about $3.50 - $7.50 USD). They have put us in on their weekly prayer agenda and are excited about reaching the world through missions in Los Angeles, California.

We were taken care of very well – much of our trip was paid for and extra offerings that we received helped out as well. It is amazing how many people in Mexico know of somebody in LA. We now have some possible contacts (family members, friends, business partners, etc.) to start with once we get there. During our three weeks there we met with about 90 different pastors and leaders and spoke in front of and were prayed for by about 2,400 people in various churches.

Veracruz, Mexico

(located 3 hrs. east of Puebla (driving) and 250 miles east of Mexico City on the coast of the Gulf of Mexico).

While in Veracruz during a Saturday evening service after we had shared with the people and invited them to join us in prayer they took time out of their service to pray intensely for this mission. While they were praying, Fabiola received a picture from God of gang members coming off the street throwing down their weapons and money and coming to embrace the cross.

Veracruz, Mexico – March 21-22, 2009

Top: Church Service on Sunday Morning Bottom: Men’s Encounter Retreat

We also participated in a powerful Encounter Retreat for the men of Veracruz on our last weekend. It was there after sharing our vision to plant churches in urban America amongst the poor, the gangs and drug addicts that a man came up to us and shared his story with us. His name is Alberto.

Alberto came to the United States like many looking for opportunity, a better life and more income. Instead, upon arriving to Los Angeles he found drugs, violence and a life of crime. He joined with the mostly Hispanic gang called 18th Street (also seen as XV3, XVIII, 666, dieciocho, etc.) and sold and used drugs in and around MacArthur Park.

MacArthur Park in Los Angeles, California is known for its addicts, gangsters and homeless.
World Impact currently has a church plant meeting at this park every Sunday.

He got a job at Burger King and continued selling drugs even from the drive-through window. He lost his wife to a heroin and crack overdose and then was arrested with major charges while hiding out at a hotel for the possession of drugs and 2 firearms. He was originally sentenced to 15 hard years, but then had the sentence lowered to 7.5 years. Eventually Alberto ended up only serving 3.5 years bouncing around to 3 different, but hard - he emphasized - prisons. He met Christ through another inmate in jail and was deported after serving his shortened sentence. He moved to Veracruz, Mexico and began to work and has been doing well—he is remarried and has two kids. He is active in his church and continuing to pass on the good news of Jesus Christ to others.

The 18th Street gang has grown to be California's most fragmental and largest street gang, with membership in the tens of thousands, with many satellite gangs. Out of this, it is estimated that about 60% of its members are illegal immigrants, according to a confidential report by the state's Department of Justice.*

The story of this man of God, Alberto, and his journey to become a Christ follower filled us with so much more hope and even more urgency as it put flesh to the vision we have to see men and women brought to Christ and restored and then raised up to serve God in the capacity they were made to serve Him. We desire to plant a church that will reach the Nations—we believe that in Los Angeles we can see that vision realized. Please join us. The Mexican people we spent these last 3 weeks with were praying so sincerely and so intensely. Let’s join their prayers and believe God to transform one our largest cities so that within this “city of Angels” we, the growing body of Christ, might be a fountain of life and hope to the world.

Please pray with us about the following:

·A continued increase in monthly support…that God would unite our hearts with others that desire to see God’s kingdom advance and have the means to give – even sacrificially to the cause.

·Wisdom on a move date to Los Angeles—God’s timing.

·Key future leaders would be touched and set apart by God for His glory…and that we’d be able to connect with them and help them effectively become productive and powerful members of the body of Christ by God’s power once we get to LA.

Inspired by God’s sacrifice and love-His goodness and grace,

The Wolyns

Chad and Rebecca with an old Kid Links disciple, Miguel, and his sister much grown up since our days together in Mexico in 2002.

*"Southern California's Largest Gang Aims for Dominance", The Los Angeles Times November 17, 1996

A Dusty Trail & Wagon Wheels

We have so much to share about what God is doing presently, but that will have to wait another week…here is a bit about our journey and part of the reason and strategy of what we´ll be doing.

A DUSTY TRAIL, WAGON WHEELS

Several times on this adventure we have felt a bit like the pioneers of the 1800s, at great risk of loosing the comforts of home, leaving everything and going west or in our case south. Making preparations to leave our home, friends and church to go to a new place is an odd feeling. We´ve counted the cost. The way I see it is if you are going to leave everything behind you either have to be chased out by the poor conditions or situation (poverty, persecution, need a new start, etc.) or the belief that there is something much greater ahead that warrants the hardships and risks. We by no means fit in that first category—so what is this greater thing laying ahead? In our case it isn´t gold or land, but the desire to follow our God wherever He leads us. We know that as we march onward we will see many crowned with beauty, gladness and praise instead of crowns of ashes, mourning and despair (Is. 61:3). We know the trail is dusty, that special or important things will have to be tossed out of the wagon, and there are real dangers ahead. We cling to Jesus as He is the hope and reason we move forward.

Keeping with the theme, let us share a bit of our strategy and reason for going to Los Angeles. With the movement of people around the world due to people seeking economic opportunity or fleeing war or persecution, the opportunities for us to reach the world for Christ has changed some. Imagine with me a wagon wheel, which for this illustration we´ll call an ethnic wheel1. This illustration will help explain how using the natural relationship connections (the spokes) between immigrants and their homeland we can see new Christians and churches rise up in new locations throughout the world. The hub of an ethnic wheel is the home location (country) of an ethnic group. The rim is the city where people from this ethnic group or nation have relocated, in our case Los Angeles, which allows us to have connections with many people from many nations by first generational contacts (family members, friends, past employers, etc.) to the hub nation. We anticipate reaching many people groups and being able to train up leaders and send people out to influence the entire world for Christ by positioning ourselves in this strategic city of immigrants and bicultural people. As we do what we´ve been called to do—raise up leaders and plant a strong local church—we believe many of the people we come in contact with will bear much fruit through relationships within their ethnic groups, a task that would be much more difficult for us (traveling around the world, learning language and cultural norms, buildling trust, etc.)


STATISTICS SPECIFIC TO LOS ANGELES

· There are 130 different languages spoken in Los Angeles Unified School District representing 190 people groups. These 190 people groups represent 99% of the earth. If we could plant a church in each people group there would be first generational contacts with most of the world—allowing nations to be touched by God.

·In Los Angeles there are more American Indians and Samoans then anywhere else in the world. There is also the largest population of Mexicans, Guatemalans, Salvadorians, Thai, Pilipino and Korean outside of their country (in this one city!)

·Los Angeles has more Mexicans then every city in the world except for Mexico City.

·Los Angeles has more Africans and African-Americans then all the nations in Africa except for one.

·3.5 million of about 9.5-10 million people in Los Angeles County are foreign born (not counting undocumented illegals). That is 36% of the population...and of that 3.5 million 2.1 million are not citizens. By a reasonable estimate if we add in the illegals it takes it up to 66% of the population of the county is foreign born.

·1% of every Latin American city claims to be Evangelical. Less than ½ of 1% of Latinos in Los Angeles claim to be Evangelical making LA the most unevangelized Hispanic city in the Latin world.

Please pray with us about the following:

·A continued increase in monthly support. We´ve set a goal to be at 70% by April.

·Key, strategic contacts with ´people of peace´ (Luke 10:5) in Los Angeles.

·We know how important it is to lay a foundation of prayer over the church we are going to plant. Marinate it with us with God´s blessings, His will, etc.!)

That the whole world may know Jesus,
Chad & Fabiola Wolyn
and Rebecca (3) & Justice (1)

(1The wheel concept was initially developed by David Boyd in You Don´t Have to Cross the Ocean to Reach The Wolrd).
(Sources of statistics: US Census Bureau; US Dept. of Homeland Security; Out of Ashes by Keith Philips)