OPEN DOOR POLICY

Once again I have to apologize for my silence. If anything can excuse me is the small amount of time I spend behind a computer. But I wanted to share with you a recent mishap on my part.
Sunday the 18th, after we finished the service we went home as we usually do with the young adults following us. I was almost home when I recieved a call from Victor the brother that was baptized last month. He had stayed at the buiolding with his wife to clean up, but did not have a key to lock it up when he was through. One of the elders, or Andy Garcia one of the deacons, or I always stay to close the building. This time none of us did. I told Victor I would go back and lock up a little later, and told him to pull the door shut. He had called brother Allan one of our elders and he told him the same thing. That evening at seven I remember the door had been unlocked all this time, but english service was at six and it was too late for me to go back and lock it.
That day we recieved a phone call from John. He left us a message, because somehow we missed his call. Yesterday I found his message on my phone and the message said "Hello, my name is John and I wanted to know more about the church. Please call me back." I called him back right then. We went to see him at night. He lives about 20 minutes north of the church building. During our conversation I asked him how he got our number. He told me: "Last Sunday the 18th I was driving by the Church building and I pulled in. The parking lot was empty just a limo was parked outside. I tried coming in the front door but it was locked, but then I went to the other side and found that the other door was open. I walked in all the way hoping to find someone inside, but noone was there. So I took one of your cards and called and you know the rest of the story.
It turns out John was looking for a spanish service. We are the first building of three other churches along the same road, but our building had the door open that day. He found the church, or was it God leading him to us. I want to bilieve that it was all part of His plan. He always has an open door policy, whoever comes to Him and draws near him He in turn daws nearer.
We love you and will tell you more about John. For now pray for Him and for us as we continue to ask for guiadance and be alert to what God is doing and meet Him right there.

THE LORD CONTINUES CALLING

Last Sunday after service Victor Torrico came up by himself and confessed Christ as the Son Of God. He was immersed in water for the forgiveness of his sins and was sealed with the Holy Spirit. The word of the Lord says in John 10 "My sheep hear my voice". Jesus is the good Shepard and he keeps calling his sheep. His word is powerfull and convicts even the hardest of hearts.

Four days later Yolanda Carrillo took on Christ in baptism. She called her closest friends and co-workers, many of which don't know Christ yet to presence and be witnesses of her public confession about her belief in Christ as Lord. Yolanda came to the Church building for the first time last January 21st of the year 2006, when invited by a good friend Noemi who was baptized in September as you may recall. Since then they have been attending regular services and we have been going to their house tuesday nights for personal Bible studies. Roberto was agnostic, but the word has worked in his heart as well. And Martha their neighbor has been attending the Bible studies for about two months now. The Lord keeps calling, and he is patient with all because he wants all to be saved.

Let's keep on praying for Victor and Yolanda as they start their walk with Christ, and for Roberto, Martha, Maria and others around them that the Lord may continue using her and us as His instruments to bring more souls to Him, and glory to His precious name.

We Love you

Preciados'

LOVE YOUR ENEMIES

After a long absence we are back to share with you what the Lord is teaching us while working for him in this area. The other day when we were picking up the kids from school, we saw Giancarlo and two other boys with one of the teachers. She was apparently correcting one of the boys for something he had done. When Isabella and Giancarlo we asked them about that boy. He said he is my friend and she said that the boy constantly bothered her calling her names. We got upset and said to Giancarlo "why are you hanging around a boy that is obviously a bad example, and on top of that bothers your sister?". He immediatly put his head down and said, "sorry, I was trying to be his friend and this way teach him about the love of Jesus hoping this way he would stop bothering my sister and change the way he behaves".

The Lord teaches us to love our enemies and pray for those who persecute us, but sometimes we have to be reminded of that by a ten year old boy. We share this with you because we know you might be able to identify with us as parents trying to protect our children of bad influences, but at the same time doing exactly the oppossite by neglecting to apply God's word and his commandment to love one another. So the next time we know of someone not behaving the way God would like him too, we first have to ask ourselves our we?. They have the excuse that they don't know of the Lord's love yet, but we are called to show them that love so we better think twice before we say anything other than what God would want, because our kids, the world and God himself are watching.

We love you
Preciado's