Growth!

The only advantage to infrequent ministry blog updates is that there is much more to tell you all about! Please excuse the silence - there's really nothing to blame but that we have let it slide.

Last February our church of EBC held another bilingual worship service, where the music and the teaching were in both Spanish and English. This was once again such a blast, as we loved being all together, and completely soaked in a glimpse of what part of heaven may be like - worshipping with a large family of believers from all different tongues and cultures. I hope all of you get to experience that at least once here on earth! Click HERE for the audio of the teaching, this time our pastor taught us from Revelation, while Ruth translated.

The most exciting news that we could possibly have to share with you is that since we wrote you last, several more - a quick count brings five individuals to mind - have accepted Christ as Savior. Will you take a second to praise the Lord with us for that? When this ministry began three and a half years ago, we hoped and prayed that it would bring an evangelistic movement to the Spanish speakers of this area, and what an honor to be a witness to it! Ten people were baptized early March of this year in a special baptism service that was held.

Jose and Juan with a precious lady from Chile.

We now have official elders! Three wonderful leaders were officially chosen and prayed for as they were commissioned to a leadership team. Please pray for them and their families!

All the men of the church were invited for the first men's breakfast at the home of one of the elders. They enjoyed a great time of fellowship and meeting some new men who might be interested in joining the group. This is the group that attended the breakfast:

Recently we had to say "hasta la vista" to a dear friend and his family - they were crucial in the foundation of this ministry and will be greatly missed! Now that seminary has been completed, the Lancaster family will be continuing a ministry in another area of Portland. God bless them!

The first almost-six months of this year has seen us growing strong in our regular weekly and monthly activities. Jose now leads two of the three Life Groups that meet weekly, and most often joins the worship practice on Saturday nights. Ruth is on rotation to teach the preschool Sunday School class, and also coordinates teacher schedules and curriculum. As a family, we have been warmly blessed by having many other couples and families into our home for meals and fellowship. Just last night there were a total of 17 here for dinner - and that was just us plus one other family! A new baby was born, Mother's Day was celebrated with flowers and poems, monthly potluck dinners were held, and much, much coffee was consumed.

Some of the children reciting a poem for Mother's Day

With a heavy heart we share with you that the private high school where Jose has taught these past five years now has to close due to economic struggles. All staff, including Jose, now must seek other employment. When you spend time in prayer today, would you please include this in your prayers? The teaching job provided about 50% of our monthly income and was also a wonderful opportunity for Jose to minister in the lives of the teenagers that came through his class. We know that God will provide for us - we don't know how! - but we trust that He will bring a new job to Jose that will work well as he dedicates time to ministry as well. (And we sure hope He does it before next month's bills come due!)

Great peace have those who love your law,
    and nothing can make them stumble. Ps.119:165

 Now here's something that just makes you shake your head in wonder...the very day we received the official word of the high school closing, the title for the children's bedtime devotional was "Trust God." It sure gave me a smile! And the next morning as I listened to a teaching, the points "just happened" to be that in a crisis you can either 1)panic 2)be paralyzed or 3)pray! So we have been praying!

We look forward to sharing with you again, and please drop us a line to let us know how we can pray for you!

Points for Prayer:

• growth and discipleship for those who just received Christ and those who were recently baptized
• stamina and wisdom for Jose as he leads
• protection from attacks from the enemy, as he surely cannot be happy about this growth! In fact, the very Sunday that two received Christ, the enemy found a way in to attack - we pray that Christ will continue to rule in the hearts of each of His children!
• growth and unity as a family
• new employment for Jose
• upcoming summer outreach events

DRIVERS, START YOUR ENGINES!!

Acts 20:24. My only aim is to finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me—the task of testifying to the good news of God’s grace.

The giddy tension of the participants. The roar of the crowd. The excitement in the air so strong you can almost touch it…. Here at the starting line of 2012, we invite you to join us for a lap or two while we share with you some of God’s tremendous new blessings in our lives and ministry.

Since the Christmas outreach, a new family has joined us in Spanish ministry. Last Sunday we reached the highest number of attenders yet at 92! Praise God, the Sunday School rooms are bursting with children (13 in preschool alone!) and more ladies have stepped up to help in teaching. The youth group is also becoming stronger, and this month they will hold their first big activity at church. The women just finished a weekly study of “Becoming a Woman of Excellence” and will continue to meet weekly for fellowship, prayer, and learning more of God’s Word. The three Life Groups continue to meet faithfully every week as well. What a joy to work alongside these people as we encourage each other to live like Christ!

For the past three and a half years Jose has been serving as pastor to Spanish ministry as a volunteer, working two, often three additional jobs to help make ends meet. This year, however, brings a big change to our family - probably the biggest change since moving to the US from Honduras. Our home church of Evergreen Bible Church voted to bring Jose on as a part-time paid pastor! Jose will keep his daytime job teaching Spanish at Vancouver Christian High School but has quit his night job, meaning he now has evenings available to dedicate much-needed time to ministry and family. “Relief” does not even come close to describing how we feel at this blessed change. We praise God for this blessing, and are praying that He would help us as we work on organizing our time – figuring out how to be a more “normal” family. The children have been extra excited to see their daddy at breakfast and dinner – a novelty they have not been able to enjoy for five years.

Sunrise from our breakfast table

So what does this change mean for us financially? The transfer from night job to “part-time” at church enabled us to make a straight step across in our budget without extra strain – a great blessing we are so thankful for. We are only $800 from reaching our monthly budget needs. Serving the Lord here on the mission field of Vancouver has evolved from launching a ministry where Spanish speakers would have a place to learn and worship to becoming a church-planting operation as we have seen many come to the Lord and as the group has grown in strength and number. We are humbled that God would allow us to be involved in His work to spread the gospel and help grow believers here in this vibrant but needy community.

Is God asking you to be involved in this work too? In order to reach our monthly budget—which includes both ministry and family expenses—, we only need 20 people to commit to giving just $40 a month. Or ten people to give just $80 per month…you get the idea! As you consider where to send this year’s offerings and gifts, would you please prayerfully ask God if He is leading you to support this church-planting ministry here in Vancouver? On the right side of this page is a link to N.I.C.E., the mission we are members of, and you may follow the steps there to send in support (or click HERE - select "Missionary Support" and then type in "Jose Alvarez" on the next page); or funds may be mailed to 909 Main St. Suite #5, PO Box 2225, Sumner, WA 98390.

A day trip up to Mt Hood to enjoy the snow

We didn't stay long as the pretty snow kind of turned into a blizzard!

Thank you in advance for considering supporting this ministry, and many, many thanks to those who already do. You are the sponsors, the capable pit crew, our fellow racecar drivers, AND the cheering crowd, all wrapped up in one. We could not serve in this capacity without you!

How to pray for us:

• Learning how to manage this new schedule in a way that best blesses ministry and family
• Wisdom as we lift up those who are struggling, and encouraging growth for those who are already walking with the Lord
• Provision of the funds that are still lacking

We would love to hear from you! Feel free to comment here, email, or even send old-fashioned letters! God bless you as you serve Him where you are. And the next time you smell engine exhaust in the air, may it serve as a reminder to pray for us.

Felíz Navidad 2011!

Thank you so much to all who were praying for the annual outreach event that was held a couple of weeks ago! We could feel your prayers and the presence of God among us that day!

Preparations for the event began a few days before as the kitchen crew met in a home to chop, slice and stir.  Another volunteer put together 200 gift bags for children that included a tract and the Gospel of John (provided by a generous offering from one of our own members!), among other goodies. The youth got together many times to practice the black-light mime (see video below), and everyone was involved in some way or another. To keep the budget low, we asked for donations from the church attenders. Their response was so generous that at one point we had to tell them - thank you, but we don't need any more!

Assembling the craft

The day of the event we gathered early at the church to start setting up and assembling the craft. We were blessed by several volunteers from EBC (our mother church) and many of our own members  - all ready to serve wherever needed.  Noon came, the doors were opened, and Spanish speakers from the community started coming! We started off with directing the kids to game stations where they could win prizes, followed by Christmas songs lead by our worship leader and band. Next the youth performed their mime, the Christmas story was narrated to the children, and Jose got up to share the gospel message. The second half of the event included the craft, a delicious lunch, and two brilliant piñatas with all the bat-swinging, candy-flying madness that a piñata brings! We gave away 102 gift bags to children, and counted around 80 adults. Please pray for each of those homes, as we trust that seeds were planted and we ask God to water those seeds that they might grow!

Making the craft

Piñata Excitement!

Candy madness!

Some of the kitchen crew

Samuelito asks, "Where's the party?!"

Since the event we have had a few visiting families to the Sunday church services. We pray that they find a welcoming, family environment where they might come to know Christ as their Saviour and a place to call their church home.

While this outreach event did take up much of our time and efforts, other ministry activities have continued strong! Three different Life Groups have been meeting consistently in homes, and those groups have seen growth and strength in relationships with Christ. Recently a husband and wife accepted Jesus as their Lord and Saviour in one of those groups and are now a part of our church family. The women have been meeting for Bible study for a couple of months now, with about 12 women coming each week. Sunday School classes have been growing strong. And as always, as the culture thrives on personal relationships and fellowship together, there have been many home gatherings where relationships are strengthened and the family feeling grows strong within the group. We still have an average of around 80 people on Sundays.

On a personal note, we as a family have been so filled to overflowing with blessings from this beloved family of believers. They have been nothing but loving and generous to us as they invite us to their homes and allow us into their lives. At a recent Life Group Christmas party, our children were given a generous Christmas gift on behalf of the whole group - it brought tears to my eyes as it touched my heart beyond expression. Our prayer is that God might use us to bless them in return, and that as a family we might encourage them as we seek the Lord together.

We hope that your Christmas stays centered around the celebration of the birth of Christ, and that each of you are able to soak in precious family time!

Felíz Navidad and Happy New Year from our family to yours!

Merry Christmas from the Alvarez Family!

Thank you for your prayers!! Here's a sneak peek at today's AMAZING event! More to follow!

Performed by our youth - they did such a great job!

Please Pray!

A week from today is our fourth annual children's Christmas party - an outreach event where we give a free meal, children's games and crafts, piñatas, and the gospel. We ask specifically this week for your prayers in the following areas:

• a clear presentation of the gospel and souls won for Christ
• unity and strength for all of our Spanish ministry members as some serve food, others sing, others perform in a special black-light drama, and much more!
• that this week many invitations would be handed out and more publicity given for the event
• final preparations in food, crafts, goodie bags, etc.
• and finally, please pray that the people will COME!

The event will be held at Evergreen Bible Church this next Saturday, December 10 at noon. Thank you so much for holding us up in prayer!

A more detailed ministry update coming soon! We can't wait to share with you what the Lord will do at next week's outreach.

--And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them?...faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ." Romans 10:14b-15a, 17

Summing up Summer!

Thank you so much to everyone who has been praying for the Spanish ministry at Evergreen Bible Church. We have felt your prayers and have sure needed them too!

 

Playing volleyball



Grilling burgers in the park

Summer was so much fun, with multiple park outings and plenty of family gatherings. We love being part of a culture that thrives on personal relationships and time spent together! I think everybody could use a little more of that, don't you think? The potlucks and park days gave many opportunities to get to know one another better and to encourage and lift each other up.



Kadalin having fun on the swings

As mentioned last time, the Spanish ministry outgrew the upstairs youth room. We've been having an average of 70 or more in attendance each week, and those last weeks upstairs were literally standing room only! With this came the growing pains of having to move our worship time from the nice and comfortable 11 a.m. in the cozy upstairs room to the challenging hour of 1:30 p.m. in the main sanctuary. We've been meeting at this new time and place for three weeks now, and praise the Lord, so far it's going great! Though sadly we had to say goodbye to some who moved away during the summer, we have yet to lose a family due to the schedule change. Spanish Sunday School has also been going strong with more than 20 children each week. So far we have been able to rotate teachers, but we realize this is only a temporary solution. We would like to be able to have two classes in order to separate the children by age group, and we are praying about how we can achieve that in the near future.

At the end of July, right before our move to a new time, we had the amazing opportunity to share with Evergreen Bible in the first-ever EBC bilingual service. All of the Spanish ministry members mixed with the EBC attenders to enjoy one combined service. Spanish and English worship songs were belted out with tongue-twisting gusto, led by our pastor and by Spanish ministry's worship leader. It was beautiful. Here is a short video clip that slightly captures how fun it was:

Jose was given the opportunity to preach, and I (Ruth) translated. It was quite a stretch for us, believe it or not, as we hadn't experienced a situation like that since before we were married! Jose, a very gifted teacher, shared about the faith of Rahab as mentioned in Hebrews 11, and we trust that others were blessed despite a few glitches in translation and lack of rehearsal. If you'd like to hear it, you can find it here on Evergreen Bible's page.



Little Derek having a blast at Family Camp



In August a few of the Spanish service members attended Evergreen's annual Family Camp. We had hoped for a stronger response, but it was simply too difficult for everyone to get time off work and to find enough funds to go along.  The time we did share with those who went to the camp was a true blessing and completely worth it.



Family Camp

Now we're saddling up and getting ready to ride the oncoming wave of fall and the return to school schedules. I (Ruth) won't be working for a while, as far as we know, so I plan to dedicate more time and efforts to the Spanish ministry in whatever way I am able. Jose will start teaching Spanish at the private Chrisitan high school for a fifth year, and will continue the night job as always. He looks forward to ministering to the many new faces at church in Spanish ministry and will continue preaching, discipling, and everything else that a pastor is so good at doing!

How to pray for us:

* pray that the needs will be met of all the new and dear ones who have joined us this year in Spanish ministry...each of them needs individual time, attention, and encouragement in their walk with the Lord

* pray for Jose, that God might see fit, after five years, to give some relief from a strenuous work schedule, and to allow him to dedicate the time so desperately needed to Spanish ministry

* pray as we all adjust to the new worship service time and location

* please pray for our family, that God would be the center of our marriage and our home.

June 2011 Update

Pardon the delay in an update! It's been a busy few months and we are eager to tell you all that's been going on here in the Pacific Northwest with our ministry and family....

Not long after we sent out our last update in February, Jose received the inevitable news that his mother had passed on to be with her Savior. Jose was able to fly out the very same day that he received the news, and was there in time for the last funeral service and the burial. He spent two more days with his family, including a very meaningful conversation with some of his brothers and his father. Praise the Lord for that opportunity! God also provided every penny of the $2000 or so that was needed to spend on airfare and funeral expenses...we are so humbled and grateful! Thanks so much to those dear brothers and sisters that God used to bless us in that way.Jose with his mother last August, before her health took a turn for the worse...

When it rains it pours...

It just so happened that the same week of this great loss to the family was also moving week for us. The apartment was half-packed, and the new house was in the middle of a few important pre-move projects that were to be completed that week. Our time was up - we had to move that very weekend. All it took was a feeble S.O.S. email to our pastors and suddenly our family was descended upon by many loving hands. Boxes were packed, a moving truck was rented, the new house was painted, cleaned, even some yard work done, and meals provided...all in Jose's absence. My throat still gets choked up and tears still come to my eyes each time I think of it. Indeed, when it rains...it pours...but with showers of blessing! Thank you so much to all those who poured blessings on us that week - wow.

Since the move we have been so thankful for every moment in our new home. On those rare sunny days, the children tumble outside, soaking up the pleasures of running barefoot in the grass (albeit soggy) and collecting roly-poly bugs in the dirt. What a joy it is to have the use of a garage, a yard, curbside trash service...the list goes on and on. Not to mention extending the blessing of our home to our beloved family of Spanish speakers. Several times we have experienced the joy of hosting dinners, times of meaningful fellowship, and even a couple late-night conversations with some who are struggling.
Some of the women now attending the group...

Thanks to God's gracious hand at work, the ministry with Spanish speakers has been growing by leaps and bounds. We now have over 40 adults in regular attendance on Sundays, more than 20 children attending EBC Sunday School classes in English, and a consistent group for Friday Bible study. And what a joy, what a blessing - many who have come bring willing hands and a servant's heart. Jose is no longer leading worship on his own with our sweet helper Jenna - they have been joined by a bonafide worship team, complete with a band, singers, and a committed worship leader! Our new worship leader, Abi, is a graduate of a Bible seminary in Guatemala, and we are excited about his participation and assistance in the ministry. Jose and Trevor, the leader of the Spanish Ministry leadership team, have begun a men's discipleship group, which will be meeting once or twice a month to pray together. Please pray for this group, that God would raise up godly leaders in these men, who will in turn bring up more disciples for Christ. We are so enjoying getting to know these precious people that God has brought to this group, and we pray daily for wisdom in pointing them to be more like Christ.
Easter breakfast potluck...

Our gorgeous babies in their Easter Sunday best...

Our new Guatemalan worship leader and his family...Monthly fellowship dinners have been moved to the church due to the size of the group. The last two dinners, almost every member has come - enjoying an evening of food and fun. Friendships are being formed between families as we sit and talk with each other, and as we play silly games that make us laugh so hard our sides hurt. When a new baby was born, many provided meals for the little family. When one new member was hospitalized and subjected to sudden surgery, others in the group rallied around her to take care of her needs. What a beautiful thing to witness and be part of! We praise the Lord for the care and the unity so far in this group...please pray for continued unity and growth.

Now summer is coming (slowly but surely!) and as we anticipate (please, Lord?!) some sunny days, we will be picking back up the Sunday outings to the park. Our purpose is to cultivate and encourage the family of believers, and draw in other Spanish speakers that may be at the park that day. We are facing some big changes as we grow - beginning June 19th, we will be teaching our own Sunday School in Spanish for school-age children! Please pray as we prepare teachers, choose curriculum, and lead these little kiddos to be more like Christ. We are also looking at the probability of moving our Sunday worship meeting time to 1 p.m., as we will soon be outgrowing the upstairs youth room that we have been using and will need to move to the sanctuary. This adjustment may be challenging, and we ask your prayers as we talk and plan!

Rebekah and Isabella on Awana graduation night...Rebekah finished all 3 books in Sparks and Isabella has one more to go!

This month brings with it Jose's final trip to Salem to teach Bible classes, as well as the last soccer games that he will ref (at least for this season!). And of course the last weeks of school for this year (hallelujah!). Please pray for our family as we struggle for lack of time together - pray that we will be able to recuperate from the past few months of added stress and look to Christ to figure out how to balance work, ministry, and family. We haven't figured it out yet, so if you have any ideas, please pass them on!

Our financial situation remains unchanged - Jose still has his two main sources of employment (for which we are truly thankful, especially given this economy) and Ruth continues to work part time. One of Jose's places of employment has even been struggling to pay their employees - we pray that God will build them up and bring in more sources of income for that institution. You may refer to the charts in February's post to see where we are at as a family. Meanwhile, the offerings that are provided through N.I.C.E. enable us the freedom to give to the Spanish ministry in various ways - and what a joy that is! Recently Jose purchased an upgrade to his Logos software program in order to pull from even more resources for studying, teaching, and discipling...thank you so much to those who are giving! Please pray for the remaining amount that would enable Jose to work part-time instead of over-time.
God bless each of you as you serve Him where you are!