Helping College Kids Who Make Our Country Better.

A girl from the Dominican Republic, Genesis Robles, is attending our Bible College here in Puerto Rico and hopes to help us in our church. She got some good news that will allow her to stay and help us. 

Her good news is our good news.

Another of our Sunday school teachers, Adaia from Barcelona, Spain, is working also on getting her papers and permits.

With all the illegal activity and questionable immigration practices today, it is a blessing to help quality people who actually improve the places they go though their good hard work and Godly character.

Here is a video I made on my Ipod of Adaia singing for a Women's Retreat our ladies organised:

"Acaso Ignoras Aquel Momento?" means " Will you perhaps miss that moment?" 

This is a Christian song about he danger of neglecting to respond to God's calling when you can and not miss out.

Earthquake Wakeup Call

I had heard there were earthquakes in Puerto Rico, but never felt a big one until last night.

Tina told a friend, "At first I thought Sarah was kicking the couch. Then Steve ran in and we all went running for doorways when the house really started shaking. The Christmas tree was really swaying"

We checked online and read that it was a 6.5 magnitude quake. Even though it was 50 some miles NW of us, it was scary enough. To me, it did not so much feel like a shaking or a rattling temblor, but more like the ground underneath me was sliding from side to side and moving up and down, as if a shallow wave passed underneath.

They tell me there was a big one in 1918 that destroyed much of a large town on the west coast and killed 114 people, 40 of them from a 20 foot tsunami wave. Such stories seem so far a way they have little impact. But it was only 4 years ago that the big quake levelled Haiti, one of our neighbouring islands here in the Caribbean.

So...

Another reason to pray for your missionaries has been found! Please do so. There is no feeling so helpless as when you find yourself in an earthquake. They come without warning and you can't tell how bad it will be or when it will end.  Your prayer make a difference and knowing that you pray for us is a great comfort and encouragement.

PS. I have a Ham radio license (WP4NVR) and am trying to acquire some equipment that will give us emergency communication capabilities. We have a generator and an old (a 1989 Kenwood TS-680S) Ham radio, but no hand held radios for local communications. I would like to get a 2 meter hand held or a dual bander for local emergency work. I am looking at some low end radios: The Alinco DJ V57T and the Wouxun KG-UV3D. If you could help us acquire some emergency equipment like this, I would appreciate it.

"Pastor, We have a special bag, just for you."

I hear a lot of winter angst from my Stateside friends, so experiences like this put a smile on my face and help me feel good about being on the mission field.

A church member approached me outside the church and said, "Pastor, We have a special bag, just for you."

I saw Miguel Nieves ("Mike Snow" in English) pull two big bags out of the back of his big pickup truck.

He said, "The smaller one is for you, they are the best ones."

I looked inside and they were full of huge grapefruits.

I slipped the "special offering" into the hatch back of our Honda Fit and then helped carry the larger bag into the church. It was so heavy that it took both of us to haul it in.

Mike announced to everyone that he had finished his late December grapefruit harvest and wanted to share it with everyone in the church.

Sometimes we talk about contributing to the church in the form of "spiritual fruit," but Miguel showed us that sometimes just plain fruit can be a real blessing too.

Especially after eating all of those Christmas cookies.