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Rivers of Grace Flowing for the Thirsty of México
Carlos and Sandy Ríos - TEAM
Zapopan, Jalisco, México
E-Taco Times, Vol. 6, Issue 2
February 28, 2013
Graduation!!!! Endings and New Beginnings!
Rejoice with us! February 21st I, Sandy,
graduated from Harvest Language Center!
I completed 3 levels of studies that were
very beneficial. Now I understand
grammatically how and why Spanish
works. Since I didn’t go to language
school when we first came to Mexico in
1997 I was hobbling along with my high
school Spanish and what I picked up as I
went along. I am so grateful for this
opportunity to straighten out my
grammar. Now PRAY that I will be able to
transfer the correct information from my brain to my mouth!
One of the joys of my last level was writing short Bible studies every other day and
devotionals every day in Spanish. I love preparing creative, encouraging and
transforming devotionals. I included visual
aids to help the students who were just
starting level one (pictured to the left). The
director of HLC has encouraged me to
publish these devotionals! They certainly
will be useful for our upcoming church
planting ministry.
One of the aspects of Spanish that we don’t
have in English is the subjunctive mood. I
am particularly happy to have studied that since it is used in prayer and in the
context of anticipation, emotions, requests, and more! How did ever I speak without
it? Now I get it! I get it as I read the Bible and see the subjunctive, commands and
so many things that I didn’t really understand before! In fact, when I see the
subjunctive and other things I learned at HLC written in the Bible, it makes me think
that probably the writers of the Scripture attended HLC!
This Ending is a New Beginning as we spend the
next 4-6 weeks praying, investigating and deciding
where to begin a new church in the Guadalajara area.
PRAY with us that we will clearly know the place the
Lord has for us. There are several possible locations
that we will be investigating. Once we determine the
area we will then need to find a new home, a meeting
place and decide on how to go about starting the
church and with whom. We plan to be working
alongside of the Bible Churches of GDL as Carlos has
been working hard to develop relationships with these pastors. It will be very
different starting a church here than in Cabo since we are in a big city and we have
no children to help us make contacts naturally! Transitions bring feelings of
uncertainty and unsettledness as we prepare to say goodbye to our familiar
neighborhood and launch out into something unknown. Yet we know as the pillar of
cloud and fire went before the Israelites to guide them, our God goes before us and is
with us.
Another graduation we all experience in life is death.
It is also an Ending and a New Beginning. Are
you prepared to face your own death or minister to
someone who is dying? The International Christian
Hospice (ICH) team headed up by Ron and Susan
Naish from SC came for 10 days to Guadalajara to
train and equip pastors and believers to bring hope
and comfort to those who are terminally ill.
They did an outstanding job ministering at La Roca
Bible Institute for two days to 70 students and
folks from a nearby Bible Church and then in two
other conferences in churches, training about 100
more people. The first part of the conference was a
Bible study about death and the hope we have in
Christ. We got excited focusing on the wonderful
hope we have in Christ as we face death.
The second part of the conference was VERY practical. We
learned what a dying person experiences physically and
emotionally, what the family members experience and how
to minister to them. We learned about the various stages
of grief and even how to help children grieve. The two
women on the team had been hospice nurses with years of
experience and even demonstrated how to change the
sheets while the sick person is in bed!
We also did three home
visits – one to a couple
that just had their 5th child
born with severe health
issues and may not live
long, one to a woman
dying of AIDS and cancer
who is concerned about her grandchildren that she has been
raising and one with an older man dying of cancer who has
the tremendous peace of Jesus in the midst of the storm.
We are so thankful for the team and the training of believers
that will make them so much more effective in caring for
those facing death. Carlos served translating for all of the
sessions and drove the team everywhere.
We graduated into being empty-nesters a little while back, another Ending that is a
New Beginning. We miss our kids! We were so happy that Raquel could be with us
for her Christmas break. In January we visited Raquel’s roommate from CIU,
Suzanna. Her parents are missionaries with WEC near Cuernavaca at Camp El
Monte. We had a wonderful relaxing and fun visit and made new friends! To see
photos of this trip go to the page after our prayer requests!
Thanks so much for partnering in prayer for us especially in Sandy’s graduation from
language school and the transition to our new church plant, an Ending that is a
New Beginning!
Excited about the New Beginning, Carlos and Sandy Rios
Carlos and Sandy Ríos Raquel Ríos Mark and Ana Kim, Sunny & Alex Lomas del Infante 2130 CIU Box 433 c/o 1205 W. 4th St #716
Lomas de Atemajac 7435 Monticello Rd. Tahlequah, OK 74464-5023 Zapopan, Jalisco Columbia, SC 29203 479.427.0871
CP 45178 Mexico 803.290.0288 [email protected] [email protected] [email protected]
(908) 212-3475 (New Jersey number that reaches us in Mexico!)
Mexican phone number: Dialing from the USA: 011-52-33-3823-1683 TEAM, P.O. Box 969, Wheaton, IL 60187 800.343.3144 www.team.org (NEW WEBSITE)
Carlos and Sandy Ríos – TEAM Heart Joys and Concerns Zapopan, Jalisco, México February 2013
Heart Concerns:
Ask the Lord to make clear His will about the location to start a new church
plant as we now investigate full-time since language school is over for Sandy.
Also ask the Lord for a new home in that area and a meeting place. Ask for a
good team and core group to start with and the Lord’s wisdom in HOW to start
the church in this busy metropolis!
Sandy will take a couple of weeks to review her Spanish course and cement
what she learned. Also she would like to print up her devotionals that she
wrote during language school.
For the believers who attended the conference on ministering to the terminally
ill that they will be able to put into practice the things they learned as they
minister hope and comfort to others.
Salvation of our friends from our Thursday night biking group – Armando,
Eduardo, Suzanna and their families. Plus our neighbor Christi.
Carlos’ FM-3 Religious Visa to arrive. It is approved, but it has not arrived in
Guadalajara yet!
Raquel as she finishes the second semester of her sophomore year at CIU.
That she may learn all the Lord has for her and grow in her love for the Lord.
Also that the Lord may confirm her summer plans to stay at CIU for summer
school and work at the school, if possible.
Ana and Mark, Sunny and Alex! Mark continues in S. Korea in his military
service in the immigration office in Seoul. Ana has to find a new job. The
receptionist job was not a good fit for her – hardly anyone has worked in that
office for more than 3 months! PRAY for a job that she will love and that will
pay well. The Lord has provided housing for her until Mark can return to the
States in 2 years.
Our churches in Cabo and Ciudad Constitución in the Baja need prayer. The
Cabo church just went through a difficult time victoriously and now the CC
church is going through a storm. PRAY for the Lord’s upholding of the
leadership in these churches.
Heart Joys:
Rejoicing over Sandy’s graduation from Harvest Language Center on February
21st!!! This time of language study was very beneficial for her!!
Thankful for the outstanding team from International Christian Hospice,
headed up by Ron and Susan Naish, that came and trained nearly 200
believers at La Roca Bible Institute and 4 churches here in Guadalajara to care
for those who are terminally ill giving hope and comfort to them!
Special Times with Raquel over Christmas Break
Casa Angel Breakfast Tandem Bike Ride with Carlos Making Tamales with Chayo
Visiting Suzanna, Raquel’s CIU roommate, and her family - David and Linda Mitchell -
WEC missionaries in Ticumán, Morelos
Las Huertas Thermal Springs near Ticumán Raquel and Suzanna at Camp El Monte
The Giant Chair in Tlaquepaque - Twentieth Birthday with Mariachis
