We are safe, blessed and amazed at how God has responded to your prayers. Thank you for praying.
Our Sunday church service and BBQ was a huge success. We never saw Stranger or any of the Playboys. (Part of me has to admit I did really want him to come and sit down and eat a taco with me as we talked about him getting right with God, but maybe that time will come later.) Several people had recommended we call the police and gang unit and so we heeded that wisdom and the LAPD ended up sending some extra patrols during our event and even some plain clothes officers walking around. LAPD knows Stranger and said they would give him a visit. South Park is actually under 24/7 video surveillance. The night prior to the event I was able to talk to the officer on duty in the monitor room and as I walked out my front door she said, “Oh, is that you?” She went on to tell us how she always sees our kids in the park and knows when we do our outreach events on Sundays and our longer outreaches during the summer. She also knows that we minister to the homeless. She even knew what color car we have parked in our driveway. Guess we’re being watched. We’ve never met, but she knows us by watching our actions – our coming and going. Later, talking to the girlfriend of one of the Playboys we found out how much they have been watching us as well.
Our Sunday church service and BBQ was a huge success. We never saw Stranger or any of the Playboys. (Part of me has to admit I did really want him to come and sit down and eat a taco with me as we talked about him getting right with God, but maybe that time will come later.) Several people had recommended we call the police and gang unit and so we heeded that wisdom and the LAPD ended up sending some extra patrols during our event and even some plain clothes officers walking around. LAPD knows Stranger and said they would give him a visit. South Park is actually under 24/7 video surveillance. The night prior to the event I was able to talk to the officer on duty in the monitor room and as I walked out my front door she said, “Oh, is that you?” She went on to tell us how she always sees our kids in the park and knows when we do our outreach events on Sundays and our longer outreaches during the summer. She also knows that we minister to the homeless. She even knew what color car we have parked in our driveway. Guess we’re being watched. We’ve never met, but she knows us by watching our actions – our coming and going. Later, talking to the girlfriend of one of the Playboys we found out how much they have been watching us as well.
To take the ‘you’re being watched’ a little further as we walked up and down the streets surrounding our house and the park inviting people out to our Sunday service we were surprised to hear of how many people knew about us, the church and what we’re doing in the community already. It seems that while we didn’t know them, they have been watching and know us. We know that God is always watching, but sometimes we forget that everyone else in the community is also watching. Sunday Service & Carne Asada
We had 80 people at our service (40 adults and 40 children). 20 of these people were invited first time guests. We did a lot of inviting, visiting and calling as a team, but all the new visitors that came were invited by people in the church. It is wonderful to see growth through these relationships – people taking ownership of their church. 15 more people from Fuente showed up late – so we ended up having 95 total – almost double what we had last month! We were able to invite other people that were at the park to join us and hear about what we’re all about and have their kid’s join us at the jumper and in other games. All in all we (with the generous help of a team of volunteers from Simi Valley Community Church) were able to serve over 150 people at our BBQ. Each family from our church brought out food in mass – it was a great day!
We are sorry there are no pictures in this update. We had some great ones ready to share, but our camera was stolen at the park on Sunday afternoon. Not only did we lose all the pictures from this great day Sunday, but a previous event and Rebecca’s birthday celebration shots. Bummer!
Other Updates
We had asked you to pray with us about using Main Street Elementary School as a meeting place, but found out it is way out of reach for our church at this time because the price to rent it for one Sunday service is $727.08. Some men in our church and I worked all day Saturday to put up a large tent structure in our driveway – so we had a ‘building’ for our service and will continue until doing this until we can find a better option.
Let’s Pray for these Upcoming Events
·Thanksgiving Dinner (with Fuente church family and guests)
Tuesday, November 23
·Thanksgiving Dinner 2 (at the park for children’s ministry outreach & homeless)
Sunday, November 28
·Christmas at The Oaks (all day family excursion to the camp – taking 85 of us)
Saturday, December 4
·Our 3rd Sunday Morning Church Service
Sunday, December 12
With the wave of prayer that went up due to our urgent prayer need we felt such an amazing love and protection – thank you for supporting us and playing a real vital part of this ministry!
From the fish bowl,
Chad & Fabiola
We had asked you to pray with us about using Main Street Elementary School as a meeting place, but found out it is way out of reach for our church at this time because the price to rent it for one Sunday service is $727.08. Some men in our church and I worked all day Saturday to put up a large tent structure in our driveway – so we had a ‘building’ for our service and will continue until doing this until we can find a better option.
Let’s Pray for these Upcoming Events
·Thanksgiving Dinner (with Fuente church family and guests)
Tuesday, November 23
·Thanksgiving Dinner 2 (at the park for children’s ministry outreach & homeless) Sunday, November 28
·Christmas at The Oaks (all day family excursion to the camp – taking 85 of us)
Saturday, December 4
·Our 3rd Sunday Morning Church Service
Sunday, December 12
With the wave of prayer that went up due to our urgent prayer need we felt such an amazing love and protection – thank you for supporting us and playing a real vital part of this ministry!
From the fish bowl,
Chad & Fabiola
Our hearts are filled with gratitude and frankly we do not express it enough. We are serving a God beyond comprehension or description in an organization that supports and guides us and is an amazing community of believers and on top of that we have friends and family praying and supporting us financially which is literally impacting hundreds of people. We often ask, “why us?” Why do we have the privilege to be in front row seats for such an amazing work God is doing in the hearts and lives of so many people in South Central Los Angeles and soon spreading throughout the world? He has called us for such a time and place as this and all we can do is thank God for using us and connecting us to World Impact and give you a big “thank you” for partnering and helping make this all possible. 
Colossians 2:6-7 reminds us that we shouldn’t just receive Christ Jesus into our lives as Lord, but be rooted in Him and continue to be built up – getting stronger in Him…and as we do that we should overflow with thankfulness. We are overflowing with thankfulness as we look upon our Lord and as we reflect on what He is accomplishing here in this hardened city through our people in this very new church, Fuente para las Naciones. We are seeing Bere and Blanca and Abraham and others step-up and serve in various capacities according to their abilities and interests to serve the church as a whole.
Recently we taught on how to share our faith, helping us all get deeper roots of understanding and grow stronger in our faith. What excitement to hear about how Maricela took this commission and went to see her mother that same week to share the Gospel. Her mother, because of the change she has seen in her daughter, is very open to hearing more and coming out to church. Jos̩ shared with a co-worker about what he has been learning about himself and his Maker by studying the Bible and not just following some religion. Juanita shared with her neighbors about our church and has invited them to come and meet us to continue some deeper conversation. Dora invited Erika and now Erika wants to get more involved. Maricela, Jos̩, Juanita and Dora are all people who have come to know the Lord just recently (within the last couple of months) and we overflow with thankfulness that they are growing, getting rooted deeper in the community of believers, serving one another in very loving and practical ways and now seeking to expand this great fellowship by sharing this amazing news of a God that loves us so much that He sent His only son to live and die for us Рthat we might have ever lasting life!
We are also so thankful for Alicia, Evelia and Ruby all women that we have gotten to know through three different outreaches over the last year that have recently begun to come to the women’s Bible study every week. There are so many needs represented in all of these people in whom we have spoken. Deep, dark pasts that are still being unraveled and healed by God’s grace and love – they need our prayers, but we must include not only prayers of petition and intersession, but prayers of gratitude for what God has already accomplished.