The following is a copy of our most recent email update.
WE'VE GOT OUR VISAS!!!
Thank you so much for praying for us as we traveled to Mexico City for our visa appointment. We were really blessed that a friend from Moody and her husband (Aubrey and Marco Murillo) were able to help us during our time there. They not only picked us up at the airport, they hosted us and drove us to the appointment. Considering the traffic there and trying to maneuver in an unfamiliar and HUGE city with 4 children, we are so grateful for their help. We will now be able to be more public than before without fear of problems with the immigration office here which tends to be a little more antagonistic than in other areas. We will also no longer need to leave the country every 6 months which was disruptive to our ministry as well as family. We will miss the extra opportunities we had to connect with our supporters and family in CA and AZ but welcome anyone who would like to come down and see first hand what the Lord is doing here.
SEMANA SANTA (HOLY/EASTER WEEK) YOUTH RETREAT
Phil had the privilege to take a group of 15 youth to a retreat organized by our friend in La Paz, Alejandra, who attended the seminary part of our language school in TX. It is wonderful to see the Lord using her in ministry and we look forward to watching her continue to grow and possibly one day be a missionary in a difficult access country somewhere in Asia or the Middle East. The theme for the retreat was Transformers and the youth were encouraged to "be transformed" (Romans 12:1-2). We are praising the Lord for 10 who made professions of faith (two of which were visitors with our group) as well as other commitments made to follow Christ more closely. Phil and our youth came back home tired but excited. We are also happy to report that one of the young men who came with our group as a visitor who accepted Christ (Luis) came to our Wed. evening Bible Study this past week and plans to start attending our youth group regularly.
IGLESIA EMANUEL to START CELL GROUPS
After much prayer, our missionary team as well as the church leadership feel that this is the direction God would have us take and will be starting this new ministry the week of April 14th. Our church plant has a problem many churches do, it has become ingrown with a few who are maturing and serving but many who are only attending. In an effort to encourage evangelism, involve more people in serving and see people put their faith into action, we are implementing a new cell group ministry. The model we will implementing is based on a model used in Korea that has proved very effective in other parts of Mexico. A main component of the group is evangelism and accountability as every member is asked to invite one new person every week and will be held accountable by the group. There will be 4 groups strategically located in different neighborhoods. Phil will be leading our group along with an assistant leader in whose home we will be meeting. I will be helping as well in the leadership of the group, possibly helping lead the worship time. We would appreciate your prayers as this new ministry begins, that the Lord would use it for His glory and to grow His kingdom.
SPECIAL REQUEST
A critical need on our hearts a lot right now involves one of our youth and her family. Please pray for this family as she is 14 and going through a period of rebellion against her parents and the Lord. There has been some indication that there may even be some involvement with the occult. We are reminded that this is not a physical but a very spiritual battle and are enlisting as many as possible to join in the battle through their prayers on her behalf as well as for her parents-that they would have wisdom to know what boundaries to put into place.
FAMILY NEWS
Several have asked us about our housing situation. Unfortunately, not much has changed. We have set up several meetings to discuss building on with our landlords but our landlord has yet to show up. In the meantime, we have decided to keep looking into other options but have not had much success. We try not to let it discourage us, but really feel the need for more space, especially with Luke sleeping in our living room and Abby really needing a separate room from her brothers. Thank you so much for your continued prayers for this need. It is not a dire situation by any stretch, but having a bit more space would eliminate some frustrations.
Luke is doing really well. He has been gaining weight and growing long. The other kids continue to be excited about their new baby brother and are great little helpers too which has been a blessing.
In order to be better connected with you and to keep you more informed, we have started a blog online we hope to update on a weekly basis with news and pictures of both our ministry and family. If you are interested, you can visit it at www.eagersteps.blogspot.com. It currently has more basic information, but as time goes on, we plan to add more.
Thank you for being a part of our team and what the Lord is doing in Mexico. If you are interested or a group in your church is interested in coming down to see the ministry and take part in a missions trip here, we would love to have you!
The Eager Family
Thank you so much for praying for us as we traveled to Mexico City for our visa appointment. We were really blessed that a friend from Moody and her husband (Aubrey and Marco Murillo) were able to help us during our time there. They not only picked us up at the airport, they hosted us and drove us to the appointment. Considering the traffic there and trying to maneuver in an unfamiliar and HUGE city with 4 children, we are so grateful for their help. We will now be able to be more public than before without fear of problems with the immigration office here which tends to be a little more antagonistic than in other areas. We will also no longer need to leave the country every 6 months which was disruptive to our ministry as well as family. We will miss the extra opportunities we had to connect with our supporters and family in CA and AZ but welcome anyone who would like to come down and see first hand what the Lord is doing here.
SEMANA SANTA (HOLY/EASTER WEEK) YOUTH RETREAT
Phil had the privilege to take a group of 15 youth to a retreat organized by our friend in La Paz, Alejandra, who attended the seminary part of our language school in TX. It is wonderful to see the Lord using her in ministry and we look forward to watching her continue to grow and possibly one day be a missionary in a difficult access country somewhere in Asia or the Middle East. The theme for the retreat was Transformers and the youth were encouraged to "be transformed" (Romans 12:1-2). We are praising the Lord for 10 who made professions of faith (two of which were visitors with our group) as well as other commitments made to follow Christ more closely. Phil and our youth came back home tired but excited. We are also happy to report that one of the young men who came with our group as a visitor who accepted Christ (Luis) came to our Wed. evening Bible Study this past week and plans to start attending our youth group regularly.
IGLESIA EMANUEL to START CELL GROUPS
After much prayer, our missionary team as well as the church leadership feel that this is the direction God would have us take and will be starting this new ministry the week of April 14th. Our church plant has a problem many churches do, it has become ingrown with a few who are maturing and serving but many who are only attending. In an effort to encourage evangelism, involve more people in serving and see people put their faith into action, we are implementing a new cell group ministry. The model we will implementing is based on a model used in Korea that has proved very effective in other parts of Mexico. A main component of the group is evangelism and accountability as every member is asked to invite one new person every week and will be held accountable by the group. There will be 4 groups strategically located in different neighborhoods. Phil will be leading our group along with an assistant leader in whose home we will be meeting. I will be helping as well in the leadership of the group, possibly helping lead the worship time. We would appreciate your prayers as this new ministry begins, that the Lord would use it for His glory and to grow His kingdom.
SPECIAL REQUEST
A critical need on our hearts a lot right now involves one of our youth and her family. Please pray for this family as she is 14 and going through a period of rebellion against her parents and the Lord. There has been some indication that there may even be some involvement with the occult. We are reminded that this is not a physical but a very spiritual battle and are enlisting as many as possible to join in the battle through their prayers on her behalf as well as for her parents-that they would have wisdom to know what boundaries to put into place.
FAMILY NEWS
Several have asked us about our housing situation. Unfortunately, not much has changed. We have set up several meetings to discuss building on with our landlords but our landlord has yet to show up. In the meantime, we have decided to keep looking into other options but have not had much success. We try not to let it discourage us, but really feel the need for more space, especially with Luke sleeping in our living room and Abby really needing a separate room from her brothers. Thank you so much for your continued prayers for this need. It is not a dire situation by any stretch, but having a bit more space would eliminate some frustrations.
Luke is doing really well. He has been gaining weight and growing long. The other kids continue to be excited about their new baby brother and are great little helpers too which has been a blessing.
In order to be better connected with you and to keep you more informed, we have started a blog online we hope to update on a weekly basis with news and pictures of both our ministry and family. If you are interested, you can visit it at www.eagersteps.blogspot.com. It currently has more basic information, but as time goes on, we plan to add more.
Thank you for being a part of our team and what the Lord is doing in Mexico. If you are interested or a group in your church is interested in coming down to see the ministry and take part in a missions trip here, we would love to have you!
The Eager Family
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