Bits from the Baja E-mail Update: April 2, 1012

The worship leader walking with one of the youth.

Our coworker, Pete, with his group preparing their horse for riding.

One of the groups waiting to ride their horse.

One of the youth taking her turn riding.

"G" taking a turn riding.

Greetings this Semana Santa (Holy Week),

Today starts the annual Semana Santa youth retreat out at Rancho el Camino. The theme for the week is True Repentance. The messages will all surround this theme of calling the youth to what it means to truly follow Christ. Please pray for safety during the many activities that will be going on throughout the week and especially for the Lord to move in the lives of the youth who attend. There will be youth attending from many different churches in Southern Baja including our youth group from our church in San Jose del Cabo. As you can imagine, we are very excited about the opportunity to see them again. Josh will also be attending this year as he is now officially a youth here. That seems so strange to us but we are excited for this new phase of life for him as well.

Phil began a bible study last week with a young man from the MDL neighborhood. Our coworker, Pete, and Phil have had the opportunity to share the gospel with "M.A." before but he wanted to wait until his whole family could hear as well. M.A. seems very open to spiritual things. Please pray with us that he and his family will embrace the Truth and find freedom in the Lord this Easter season.

After a short delay, we will be starting up the Spring cycle of the horse ministry Saturday, April 14th. Please pray for those who attend and for the leaders as we share Jesus with them. One of the reasons for the delay was that we had a request to host a group of "At risk" youth at the ranch a couple weeks ago. Several of them are from MDL and its surrounding neighborhoods. Our worship leader at the church here is also a police officer and part of a program they have working with these youth. He asked to bring the group out to the ranch to do some work projects as well as work with and ride the horses. (See photos of their visit above.) Two of the adult chaperones in attendance were a psychologist who works with the police department and his wife. The wife, "G", spent some time sharing a little of her heart with us: "I am so excited that you are doing this for the children and youth of MDL. Many people here don't value helping them. It is a neighborhood with so much need. My husband and I want to help out as much as we are able with what you are doing here. It is so very important." It is exciting to see all of the ways the Lord continues to open doors to minister to the community using the ranch and the horses. Please pray as we continue to develop this relationship with the local police department.

As always, we are so grateful for you and your ministry to us through prayer, support and encouragement. We pray you have a wonderful week of remembering the wonderful gift and sacrifice of Christ for us.

By His grace,
The Eager family

Bits from the Baja E-mail Update: February 18, 2012

Greetings from Southern Baja!

Much has happened since our last update and we hope to get our winter edition of our prayer letter out to you soon so that you can be filled in on more of the details. We want to share some quick highlights from the past few months and items to pray for in the coming weeks.

Highlights:

• We closed out the fall/winter cycle of the horse club ministry with a living nativity. Many of the participants were from the Marquez de Leon (MDL) neighborhood where we hope to start the new church. It was a blessing to share with this children, youth and their families about the real meaning of Christmas-Emanuel, God with us. So many still do not grasp this amazing truth that Love came down, lived among us and sacrificed Himself for us. Please continue to pray for open hearts to this message and opportunities to share it.
• We made a quick trip to the states in order to renew our visas. Lord willing, we will be able to get our more permanent visas renewed soon so we do not have to leave the country every 6 months with temporary visas. Please pray for the paperwork to proceed quickly and for favor with the officials. We praise God for another safe drive up and down the Baja peninsula. We were able to spend Christmas with family which is highly unusual but a HUGE blessing.
• A team from the states helped with some work projects at the ranch in the mornings and held a VBS program during the afternoons in MDL earlier this month. Some more great contact were made and Lord willing, Phil and our co-worker, Pete, will be starting a Bible study there soon.

Prayer Items:

• Our team has prayerfully put together a vision and strategy for the new church plant in MDL. Our prayer is that this will be a joint work with our Mexican brothers and sisters from the La Paz de Cristo church. Please pray for the Lord to bring together His people for the church plant team. We are excited to move forward.
• Next month, we will be starting the Spring cycle of the horse club minstry at the ranch. Please pray as we seek to make it even more effective in reaching the families of MDL and pouring into the lives of those who attend.
• As summer quickly approaches, there will be more teams coming and the summer internship program will be starting up. Please pray that in the midst of a very busy summer, that He will always receive the glory and many hearts will be touched for His kingdom. If you are or know a high schooler or young adult who would be interested in a life changing summer internship, please let us know and we will get you more information.

As always, our hearts are overflowing with grattitude for you, our team, who upholds us in your prayers, sends us encouraging notes and supports us so that we can be here to help extend His kingdom. We pray you had a wonderful finish to your year celebrating His birth and that in this year, you draw closer and closer to Him.

By His Grace,
The Eager Family

Bits from the Baja: E-mail Update 11/14/2011

Dear Friends,
Please forgive the delay in communication. We are working on our combined summer/fall newsletter which will be full of pictures and information on our new home and ministry. Lord willing, it will be in your inbox and on its way to the post office by the end of the week. Thank you so much for your patience and for your prayers during this time of transition.

As you may recall, we had a team come from Fresno, CA last month to help with building bunk beds for the dormitory at the ranch and to hold health workshops (see photos above and descriptions below). We are so grateful for all that the team was able to accomplish in the short time they were here. The workshops in the Marquéz de Leon (MDL) neighborhood where we are planning the new church plant went really well. We are praising God for the new contacts that were made and the relationships developed with the director of the DIF center. (DIF is the agency responsible for the development of the family in Mexico.) DIF is thrilled to have the support and assistance in helping this very needy community.

This past weekend, there was an evangelistic festival held in La Paz. The theme was Saving the Family. As you are aware, the family is under attack everywhere and especially in Mexico. There is a 70% divorce rate and a high abuse rate here. Only Christ can transform lives and families. The event was a combined effort by the evangelical churches in La Paz. It was beautiful to see so many brothers and sisters working together. We look forward to seeing how the Lord brings fruit from this special outreach.

Next weekend, we will be kicking off the Saturday horse ministry at the ranch for this fall/winter. Please pray for us as we help out our coworkers, Pete and Cher Gatto and for the Lord to use this in the lives of all the children, youth and families who participate. There are some pressing needs at the ranch including the need for more corrals to be built. Please pray with us for the Lord’s provision for this urgent need.

Phil has been developing a relationship with our neighbor “S”. He walks every morning and has invited Phil to join him whenever he is able. Phil has had the opportunity to get to know him better through their walks. Please pray that “S” will see his need for a personal relationship with Jesus and find freedom from the lie that he needs to do things to earn his salvation.

As Thanksgiving draws near, we cannot help but be reminded once again of all the blessings the Lord has poured out upon us. You are among His greatest blessings to our family as you pray, support and encourage us in His work here. We pray you have a very blessed time celebrating all He has done for you and your families.

By His Grace,

The Eager Family

Photo Descriptions:

First photo: during the workshop
Remaning photos: We were responsible for the children’s program. These are from that portion of our time with them-playing games and getting to know them.

Bits from the Baja: E-mail Update 10/14/2011

Saludos! (Greetings!)

We trust you are enjoying the change of seasons in the states. We are grateful to feel some change in the weather here. The tempuratures have lowered below the 100's. It is amazing what a 10 degree difference can do!
We are also grateful for a short term missions team from Fresno, CA that arrived yesterday. They will be helping to build some much needed bunk beds for the dormitory at the ranch. Please pray for safety and energy for those who are part of the construction team. If you are on Facebook, be sure to check out the ranch's page-Rancho El Camino in La Paz, BCS. It has a lot of great pictures from a recent baptism service, a group of at risk kids who visited the ranch with several members of the local police and much more. The team will also be holding some health related workshops in Marquez de Leon (MDL), the neighborhood we hope to start the new church plant. There will be a total of four workshops held tomorrow-two in the morning and two in the afternoon. Personal testimonies and the Gospel will be shared along with the workshops. Phil will helping head up the children's activities while adults and youth attend the workshops. Please pray for a great turnout and that the Lord will use this opportunity mightily in the lives of all who attend to build His Kingdom in MDL.

On a personal note, we have moved in all our furniture and unpacked many of our boxes. Eager Academy (our home school) just completed its 3rd week for this school year. It is nice to be getting into a routine again. We hope to finish unpacking and getting the last pieces settled soon. We continue to be in awe of how the Lord moved and provided this house for us. The Lord has already provided some neat connections with our neighbors. Please be in prayer as we reach out to them, especially for "M" a grandmotherly lady who always stops to greet us when she walks by and for "S" with whom Phil was invited to walk with in the mornings.

We hope to get a summer and fall prayer letter out to you soon. We appreciate your patience during this time of transition to a new city and ministry. As always, we are so thankful for your partnership with us.

By His Grace,
The Eager Family

What's in your cup?

"If a sudden jar can cause me to speak an impatient, unloving word, then I know nothing of Calvary love. For a cup brimful of sweet water cannot spill even one drop of bitter water, however suddenly jolted." Amy Carmichael

I read the above quote several years ago and it had a pretty convicting impact on me at the time. We were undergoing the usual stresses involved with being in a different culture and balancing all the demands of family and ministry. The Lord has continued to bring this quote to mind on numerous occasions and I have often paused to think, "What is spilling out of my cup right now....is it bitter or sweet water?"

The path to becoming more like Christ is a journey....day by day, laying aside our selfishness and pride, allowing sweet water to flow from us even when we are suddenly jolted rather than bitter water, even when we can justify lashing out from a human stanpoint. Here's to the journey....may we all overflow with sweet water no matter what jolts we experience in this earthly life-kids misbehaving, being misunderstood, sickness or death of loved ones...whatever it might be.

Grateful for His grace,
Pattie

Bits from the Baja E-mail Update: September 15, 2011

Greetings from La Paz!

We wanted to thank you all for praying for us as we searched for a house. If you keep up with us on Facebook or our blog then you already know that great news of God's provision of a rental house literally within the first few days of our arrival. If you want the full story with all the details, check out the post below titled "Why Am I Surprised?" Please, continue to pray for us as we unpack and get more settled in. We are anxious to be done with unpacking and begin to focus more on ministry.

We have already met several times as a team with our new co-workers, Pete and Cher Gatto as well as others who are involved with the ministry here. It has been a blessing to be filled in all that God is already doing through the ranch ministry and making connections in the Marquez de Leon (MDL) neighborhood. Please pray with us that relationships already begun with individuals and families in MDL through the ranch's horse ministry and special outreaches will bear much fruit for the Kingdom. A team from California will be coming next month. They will be working with the health center/clinic in MDL and also hope to share some health related workshops in the school. They also plan to construct 16 much needed bunk beds for the ranch's dormitory. It is a blessing to have teams come to serve the Lord and the community. Please pray for safety and more connections to be made for sharing the Gospel and making disciples. An urgent need at the ranch is the completion of a roof for the bunk house. Please pray with us for the Lord's provision for this special need. If you want to get a better picture of what the Lord is doing through the ranch ministry, check out the website (link below) and read the blog postings by the summer interns. It will excite you what the Lord is doing!

Until we are ready to begin a more formal work in MDL, we will be attending TEAM's church plant here called La Paz de Cristo. They are holding an annual outreach tonight for Mexico's Independence Day. Please pray that the Lord will use this event to bring people closer to him. Please also pray for wisdom as there are many opportunities for ministering but we want to be sensitive to exactly what the Lord has for us and want to keep ourselves free to minister with the ranch and church planting in MDL.

Thank you once again for faithfully praying for us. We felt your prayers as we travelled back down the Baja and as we searched for the house the Lord had for us here. We are blessed to have you as our team.

By His grace,
The Eager family

Why am I Surprised?

I had promised on Facebook more details on our house hunt and the house the Lord has provided. I decided I should also share the story here as well for those who are not on Facebook. I think I will just copy from my journal entry last night below to make it easier for me.

Disclaimer: It is fairly long so if you don't have the time to read all the details, the "Reader's Digest" version is that the Lord led us to just the right people at the right timing to a house that is VERY close to the neighborhood we plan to be working in and the ranch where our coworkers live. The owner also attends TEAM's church plan here in La Paz as well which we did not know until she got out of her car to show the house to us. :)

Now for the LONG version with all the details....

Matthew 7: 9-11 “Which of you, if your son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!

As I reflect over the last few days since our arrival in La Paz, I can't help but be overwhelmed. Overwhelmed in the best possible way at the goodness of God and the way He has ordered each step! So much so that I would love to blast some worship music right now. Seeing as it is almost 11pm though, I better not!

Earlier this evening, the Lord brought the verses to mind from Matthew 7. The Lord has been teaching me so much about prayer this past year and once again, I see I have so much to learn. It should not have surprised me how quickly He moved on our behalf for a house when so many scattered around the world were praying for that very thing!

On Tuesday, when we started our hunt, it was frustrating for so many reasons. Even though we've been here many times for meetings and conferences, we still don't really "know" the city-its streets, its neighborhoods, etc. Just when Phil and I were feeling discouraged about driving around seeming aimlessly, our good friend Alejandra called my cel and asked what we were doing. (She is from La Paz and has been a good friend since we were in language school. She was attending the seminary part of the school while we were there. Our family loves her and she has been a tremendous blessing to us.) She offered to help us. She helped with looking in the paper with us, making calls on our behalf regarding potential houses, narrowing down what parts of the city would be most ideally located for our ministry, etc.

That afternoon, we decided to drop Phil and the kids off back where we were staying so that Alejandra and I could drive around some and go to an appointment to see a house later. While driving around a neighborhood she felt would be a good one for our family, we saw a couple of larger houses that appeared to be empty but with no for rent signs posted. She suggested we stop and ask some of the neighbors. We met a mother and her son who is in his late 20's. They were both very helpful and the son asked us many questions about what we needed, what part of the city, etc. He then told us he had a friend whose family had moved to other parts and had two houses and perhaps we might be able to rent one. He offered to call her for us and arranged for us to meet up the next day to meet his friend and see her house.

Fast forward to the next day...Alejandra and I had seen some pretty dismal houses and my expectations were decreasing rapidly. I had resigned myself to the fact that probably any house we rent will need a lot of work. So, when followed the young man to his friend's house, I was instantly struck by how nice and well-kept it was from the outside. I even loved the color of it-a nice shade of green! When the owner arrived and got out of her car, Alejandra says to me in surprise, "I know her! She attends my church, La Paz de Cristo." At that moment, my spirit felt in awe because it seemed way too much of a "coincidence". It sure seemed as if the Lord was confirming that this was the place. It is a beautiful house-not perfect-but really well cared for and with three large bedrooms and patios outside. Plenty of room for the kids to play and to have people over.

Of course, the more analytical side of me started to take over later and I started to doubt. Maybe this is too quick. Maybe we should look more. Are we rushing God?, etc. So, that night, we had a really good talk with the kids and a time of prayer about the houses we had seen. There were two others that were ok but one of them would need some work before we could move in and the other was farther away from the part of the city we wanted to be in. We all felt that the green house was the best option in spite of the fact that it had only 1 bathroom. :) Phil suggested that we pray very specifically about it and for the Lord's confirmation. We decided to do a Gideon type of thing. We prayed that if this was the right house, that when we got the day's paper again that there would be no new ads that would fit our needs and that a lady who was also trying to find a house for us would not have found any options. Yesterday morning, there were no new ads and the lady did not have any housing options for us. It felt like total confirmation-just like when Gideon put the fleece out.

We went and saw the house one more time last night and ask the owner some of the questions we had thought of since our initial meeting with her. At the end, we had decided to offer the young man who had helped arrange it all some money for his expenses for gas and his cel phone but her refused it. Alejandra pointed out that it was perhaps another confirmation from the Lord because he was sincerely just trying to help out without expectation of monetary reward-truly a gift sent to us from the Lord...just like the house!

One of the best parts for me is that our kids got to be such an integral part in the whole process. I pray this has been a tremendous faith building lesson in each of their lives as well.