Little Hands in Mexico

"I want to help," said six year old Nasya Myers as I prepared the
Communion elements. So together we filled the tiny cups and arranged
them on a tray to be used at our COAPA church plant. Will this
little girl, whose hands are so eager to help, grow up to be a
missionary like her parents?

"STRAWBERRIES AND CREAM," the beckoning signs read as we traveled
home from a mission retreat with another missionary family. We
pulled over at a roadside stand and ordered the treat. A little girl
was busy helping her mother in any way she could as the dessert was
prepared for us. In most family businesses here in Mexico, the
children begin taking on responsibility and learning the trade as
soon as they are able to handle the small tasks with their little
hands.

Little hands reached out for the gifts brought by a mission service
organization. These children (pictured above) live on the edge of the city dumps.
Their life revolves around their small community. Our mission
personnel was invited to go along as translators. Medical, dental,
and vision clinics had been offered, as well as a beauty salon for
these residents. Now it was the last day for the mission
organization to be there, and they gave a Christmas party for the
children.

While we were in Campeche over the Christmas holidays to teach
leadership classes, we were invited to attend a kindergarten school
program. Little hands carried the symbols of Christmas as the
youngsters joyfully sang about the birth of Jesus.

Little hands presented various items to the bride and groom at the
altar. Each item represents a commitment the couple makes to each
other as they repeat their wedding vows. Gary officiated at the
wedding of the young people that we have known since their early
teens. What a joy it was to see them beginning a new family unit,
centered around Christ.

The day after Christmas, a new grandson was born into our family.
Julian Maddox Allen joined big brother Adrian and big sister Jade, in
the wee hours of December 26. Our son and daughter-in-law, Eric and
Summer are the parents of this new addition. We are eager to touch
his little hands when we take our summer vacation in Michigan.

Hands for the Harvest (Matthew 9: 37-38) is the mission theme for
2008. Little hands, big hands, hands around the world, are all
working towards this goal.

We personally thank you for the way you have supported us with
prayers, notes of encouragement, and financial giving over the past
year. We want to remain partners with you as we join hands to enter
a new year.

Your partners in the harvest,

Gary and Jann Allen

News from Leon and the Housels

Friends, here is a report from VISA missionaries Kevin and Nicole Housel. They are serving in Leon alongside Pastor Jorge and Teresa. Please be in prayer for them as they adjust to the culture and as they look for ways to plug in to this young congregation. You can email them at knhousel@gmail.com or visit their blog by clicking on their names over in the right column of this blog.

English Classes Beginning

We are now offering English classes at the church. We have 2 classes for adults and 1 for kids. Please pray for this ministry opportunity. We are praying that through these classes we will be able to build relationships with the people in the classes and that more importantly we will be able to share the love of Jesus with them. Many people in other countries are so excited for the opportunity to learn English. We are thankful that we are able to reach out to the city of Leon through teaching English classes free of charge to the students.

Christmas Outreach to Hospital a Success!


A few days before Christmas, we went to the hospital to bring joy to the children. Usually when we go to the hospital, we take food for the relatives of patients in the hospital. For Christmas, we wanted to do something special. We made sacks and filled them with presents for all
of the babies and children that where in the hospital. It was so wonderful to see their faces brighten up when we handed them gifts. Along with bringing gifts for each of the children, we sang them Christian Christmas carols. We were able to bless 49 children and their families!
If you are interested in helping us give gifts to the children in the hospital for Kid’s Day, please contact us. Kid’s Day is a national holiday here in Mexico, so we hope to use it as an opportunity to reach out to the children in the hospital. It is an opportunity to bring joy to the kids who have to spend the holiday in the hospital.

New Ministry?

A new ministry God has placed it on our hearts to start ministering to a neighborhood very close to where we live. This past week we have been praying and talking to the Pastor about options for ministry. We feel that God is leading us towards a children’s ministry. We will write more in our next newsletter! (If you would like to receive the Housels' newsletters by email, simply drop them a note at their email: knhousel@gmail.com)

New Life at Casa de Paz

By God's grace, we are seeing new spiritual life at the Casa de Paz local FM church. We believe that God is answering prayers (yours and ours) that His presence might be revealed here in Mexico City- in and through us. As God opens the doors, we are learning to walk through them. Pastor Juan and Eva are leading in this area by example. What a privilege to watch them share their testimonies and lives with all who will listen.

We are also learning that we all have a part to play in this effort. The following excerpt from a report I wrote on Friday illustrates how the church and social ministries are working together to give people opportunities to meet the Lord...

We are taking a prayer walk this a.m. in the neighborhood with Pastor Juan and Eva. God is at work here- there is a sense of excitement and anticipation in the air. A 50-ish couple (Andres and Bertha) made a decision for Christ this week. Their story is an example of what we hope/hoped would happen with the work here. They have a son in AA and had attended some of those meetings where they were introduced to the Bible and started reading on their own. Our first contact with them was through the clinic- they both had various physical complaints. Even in the clinic, however, their language betrayed the fact that the greater need was spiritual. "I have this emptiness inside that I don't know how to fill." "Something is lacking." As they came to the clinic almost weekly, we pointed them to Jesus and this Monday they made the step of coming to the Bible study.

Since the other Bible study attenders are in a leadership curriculum, Pastor Juan took them into the parsonage and they decided to start the Timoteos (basic discipleship) series. They had their Bibles and started the first lesson- "How to start living a Christian life". By the second verse of the study, Bertha was weeping and Andres was visibly broken. Juan stopped the study and asked them if they would like to have this kind of life. They gave their lives to Jesus and are now continuing their walk alongside the rest of us. Last night they came to the prayer meeting and are planning to invite one of their friends to the Monday night study next week. You read and know about the Spirit working in this way but when it happens in your life and with your friends, it is still amazing and refreshing. God wants to use us and we want to be available for the Spirit to work through us, transforming lives.

We praise the Lord for this fruit that he is giving. Andres and Bertha were in church yesterday, praising the Lord for their new life in Christ. They are still learning what it means to be a Christian and we are glad for the opportunity to come alongside them. Would you be in prayer for them too? Would you also pray that God would continue to give the spiritual fruit as we obey Him?

-from Joel Miller
(Sorry there are no pictures in this blog. We'll try to get some new ones on here soon.)

Gift-Giving in Mexico

In Mexico this year, many families did not have the extra money to buy gifts for their children. That money rather went toward food and shelter and clothing. We praise God for the ways that he provides for those basic necessities. At the same time, we thank many friends and churches across the United States who sent Christmas bags and allowed these children to have something special. While the gifts are not extravagant, each child who opens one of the Christmas Joy bags is reminded that they are loved and that they are valued.

This year's gift-givers ranged from entire church participation to individual families that wanted to teach their children the joy of giving in a season that tends to become me-focused. Each gift had an impact on a child in the Mexico Mission District- an area of Mexico that stretches from Leon all the way down to the Yucatan peninsula. In addition to using the gifts for the churches' Christmas celebrations, some of the gifts were given to hospitalized children in the government hospital in Leon, Guanajuato.

On behalf of the Mission District children, thank you for your generosity and your willingness to show love to some of your younger brothers and sisters in Christ. May the Lord bless you in this new year and reveal himself to you in new ways as you seek him.

To see a video of the Christmas time in Ticul, go to the post below this one and click on the play button.

Operation Christmas Joy 2007: Ticul