Updates
The Move
We are now living in our new
house. We’re working at setting up our
home again and for the first time since we moved to Los Angeles we have to
drive to church. It feels quite
different than just walking out of your bedroom into the family room. Our church members are having a good time
reorganizing the spaces for each classroom and figuring out how to maximize our
corporate meeting space.
During this transition we have
had a couple setbacks. On the day of our
move two big wheel type bikes and a scooter were stolen, along with some really
nice potted plants and a jacket. We have
always known that we are being watched by people, sometimes it is just amazing
at how much we are being watched. As we
drove off with the majority of our stuff they moved in…when we returned an hour
and a half later it was gone. All these
things were just out of plain sight on our porch. There has also been some new graffiti…we feel
that these things just confirm why we are here…people are in need. Yes, it feels horrible when things are stolen
or vandalized, but more reason to keep sharing the Good News.
Then our first shower at the new
house caused a rainstorm downstairs….meaning our first shower was our last for
a while. Things are now fixed, but even
as walls were being ripped out and fixed we found tons of black mold and other
issues that had to be dealt with. The
crazy thing is all these setbacks, in a roundabout way, have been answers to
prayers. Not the way we would do it, but
all that matters is that God is control.
While we are living in the city
amongst the people that God has burdened our hearts to spend 24/7 serving we
know that our experience, while similar in some ways, is not anything as
difficult as what is ‘normal’. Knowing
that our ‘normal’ sized bedroom might be a ‘house’ for a family of 6 or that
the black mold and a leaking bathroom may never get fixed helps put things in
perspective and appreciate the grace and favor we have – as well as the
financial support to be able to focus on ministry and not on survival. It is also crazy to think how Jesus came into
our filthy world and really did
experience all the pain and temptations, shame and heartache that we feel. Jesus is our hero. He saved us.
He continues to save us! He is
the One we desire to follow every day.
We are so blessed to have Him in our lives! We are also blessed to be celebrating this
Christmas with the many individuals Jesus has allowed us to know and love here
in Los Angeles. We are also blessed to
have you in our lives and want to wish you a very merry Christmas.
Thanksgiving: Giving thanks to God as a church
Food boxes were delivered to 20
families…
Our church then went out and fed
the homeless and community a delicious feast.
We did this the Sunday before Thanksgiving and nearly everyone from our
church came back a few hours after our morning worship service to serve. It was great how they served as entire
families and how they spent time sharing the Good News along with sharing the
good food.
We then had a special
Thanksgiving service and meal the day before Thanksgiving.
A homeless couple came an enjoyed
the evening with us as did other friends and family. We all shared testimonies and gave thanks to
God. We sang songs – English and
Spanish, men and women, young and old.
The youth were in charge of creating and running some games and crafts
for the younger kids. We see so much
growth from the previous year – we will be able to do more and more as the
church continues to catch the vision and take responsibility for this
ministry.
Christmas at the OAKS
Over 50 of us boarded the bus and headed to the OAKS camp
for a day of Christmas fun. Most of the
men and boys took off to play soccer, while the women and girls worked on
making special Christmas crafts to decorate their homes or give as gifts. We all came together again for a full
Christmas dinner, some games, a hay ride and family pictures.
Journey to Bethlehem
What a great way to see, smell,
hear, taste and touch your way through that special night that Jesus was
born.
We were able to see Mary on the donkey looking for a room, but there was no space at the inn.
We had to pay taxes to the Roman soldiers and then with the coin money we had left over were able to buy wares from the various shops and even taste yummy foods.
During the night, we looked up and saw the angels giving glory to God and proclaiming the arrival of Jesus. 
We got to go to the stable along with the shepherds and hear everyone’s experience and excitement.
We almost forgot we were in Los Angeles for a moment…the kids loved it as did the parents and youth.
We continually are looking for opportunities to bring families together around Christ honoring and Christ-focused events.This is one we will be talking about and remembering for a long time.
Please
Pray with Us…
ü Youth - San
Diego Missions Trip
ü Christmas
Program: “The Gift” an original drama
our children and some adults will be putting on for friends and family. Some of the ladies from the church have been
going door to door around our neighborhood inviting people to participate with
us.
ü Christmas Service:
We will be celebrating Christmas on
Sunday, December 23 with another special service and a Christmas dinner.
ü Our new
space: After meeting in the rain and cold weather last week
(under our canopies), we have all agreed to come together this week and do some
work to prepare the recently emptied house and make meeting indoors
possible. Our Christmas service will be
our first service in the ‘new’ space.
ü New Year’s
Outreach: (Saturday, January 5) We will be having a large fair at the park in
front of the church with food, prizes and most importantly our church members
sharing the gospel to the many still without direction or purpose.
Christmas Gifts
We were blessed to receive new
student Bibles for all our youth, a new microwave and we have some Sunday
school curriculum on the way…thank you so much for your gifts!
If you didn’t have a chance to
give a special Christmas gift to this ministry there still is time! Here are some more ways you can help this
ministry (used items in good condition, or money donated towards these items
would also be greatly appreciated):
·
DVDs (appropriate for children or
toddlers)
·
Video games (for
XBOX 360 or Wii; appropriate family or kid games)
·
DVD player
·
Craft Supplies
for our children’s ministry
·
Coffee Maker
·
Toilet Seat
·
Patio Bench
·
Large Screen (for
projector)
We pray that you holiday season
is bright with the light of our Hero, Lord and Savior, Jesus.
Merry Christmas from all of us!
Chad, Fabiola,
Rebecca and Justice
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