{"id":1153,"date":"2013-12-04T22:06:50","date_gmt":"2013-12-05T04:06:50","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.vitwministries.com\/wordpress\/?p=1153"},"modified":"2013-12-04T22:22:55","modified_gmt":"2013-12-05T04:22:55","slug":"surfacing-from-the-mud-in-cd-valles","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.vitwministries.com\/wordpress\/2013\/12\/surfacing-from-the-mud-in-cd-valles\/","title":{"rendered":"Surfacing from the mud in Cd. Valles"},"content":{"rendered":"

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\"Some<\/a>

Some of Theresa’s students showing off their latest sewing creations<\/p><\/div>\n

How is it possible that we are head-long into December already? Twenty days, 6 hours, 30 minutes, 21 seconds (according to the computer countdown) until Christmas. How did this happen?<\/p>\n

Let me bring you up to date on the goings-on here in Cd. Valles since my last blog entry almost a month ago.<\/p>\n

We are blessed to have been able to begin on the Training Center farm site again on Monday of this week. I will say what I never thought that I would have to say here in Valles, but we are blessed that the rains have finally stopped, and that at long last we are getting some drying weather. As I wrote in my last entry, this has been an extremely soggy and very unusual year here in our area of Mexico. Usually we are praying for any moisture that we can possibly receive. This year we have been deluged with storm after storm to the point where there seemed to be no end to the rain. It is almost unheard of for the wet season to continue into November. But this year our rains just did not end. At the point where we would think that there might be hope for drying conditions, it would begin to pour again. This week we finally can get to the farm without sinking into several feet of slimy mud on the main road, and even onto the actual farm site itself. We are very thankful for this, and know that we will also be very grateful for the soil moisture in April and May when the extended dry season hits us as it always does.<\/p>\n

On Monday Javier and I began to dig post holes in order to put up fencing around the<\/p>\n

\"Sushi<\/a>

Sushi at the Frey’s house – thanks to Theresa’s expert touch<\/p><\/div>\n

approximately two acre area where the buildings and orchards will be at the Missionary Training School. Despite the still, somewhat water laden conditions of the soil, we managed to put in the last of the fence posts yesterday. Today I was able to begin cultivating the dryer areas around the building and orchard site with the tractor and subsoiler while Javier took machete in hand and began the backbreaking process of weeding the newly planted sugarcane which finally looks like it might be able to catch its breath long enough to grow. We are blessed to be able to begin this work again.<\/p>\n

As you know, we were beginning to feel like we were behind the eight ball with time breathing down our necks. The work team from Ontario is scheduled to arrive to finish the staff house on the Training Center farm on the last week of January. Javier and my part in this whole thing is to have the entire outside of the building up and ready for the Canadian team to finish out the interior when they arrive. On the 26th<\/sup> of October we had everything ready to pour the floors, but at that point the work on the building ended due to the muddy conditions and inaccessibility to the site. In the mean while we had the windows and doors built (here one buys metal doors and windows made by a local welding shop), and busied ourselves with the myriad of other work that always needs to be attended to as well.<\/p>\n

\"Steven<\/a>

Steven setting up for film ministry in a little church in Pujal<\/p><\/div>\n

Now, primeramente Dios (the Lord willing), if we do not get any more rain over the next weeks we can actually get back on schedule and get the building up before the team arrives at the end of January. We are praying that this will be so because their tickets are now purchased, and they are committed to come at that time.<\/p>\n

Tomorrow morning we have a Directors meeting which will see a large changeover on the OUpC Board. As you will recall, Obreros Unidos para Cosechar (Laborers United for the Harvest) is the Mexican nonprofit which covers the three-fold ministry of the work that Theresa and I are involved with here in Mexico \u2013 that of the Bible Institute (Luz de las Naciones<\/i>), Project LAMBS, and the Missionary Training farm (Casa del Obrero<\/i>). Two of the three Board members will be stepping down due to other commitments in their lives and ministries. Please pray with us as we seek to replace them with the people that God desires for this vital work.<\/p>\n

The Bible Institute and Project LAMBS have wrapped up for the 2013 year and everyone is<\/p>\n

\"Salsa<\/a>

Salsa – life just ain’t life without it!<\/p><\/div>\n

grateful for a break over Christmas and New Years. Fred Erb (from Listowel Community Church, who has been covering the work of Voice in the Wilderness Ministries since its inception), will be here for the joint Bible Institute \/ Project LAMBS graduation on the 7th<\/sup> of February. What an amazing blessing to see men and women trained and prepared for ministry through these Bible training schools.<\/p>\n

Please continue to pray with us that God will bring the right couple to work with us on the Missionary Training Center. As soon as we have the staff house completed on the farm at the end of January we need someone to live on campus; maintaining the farm and being available to mentor and disciple the trainees. This is not the job for just any run-of-the-mill couple, and we desperately need God to show us who this couple should be. To date we still do not have anyone in mind, and no one has come forward.<\/p>\n

\"Zacahuil<\/a>

Zacahuil – a well-loved food only made in the Huasteca of Mexico (No, they are not body bags)<\/p><\/div>\n

Theresa\u2019s classes are also beginning to wind down somewhat in anticipation of taking a break over the year-end. The first group of women \u2013 the class that began in our living room almost two years ago – is now at the point of finding their own wings. Several of the women from this group are actively taking on work-for-pay sewing jobs with which they are helping to support their families. A couple of these women are planning to develop a \u201ctaller\u201d (pronounced tie-air), or a little cottage industry, where they will be able to dedicate time specifically to taking on sewing work for a source of income for their families. Theresa and I are planning on helping them in this endeavor by giving them some of the donated sewing machines for their business start-up.<\/p>\n

The other class is not that far along, but according to Theresa they are also doing extremely well in their training. Besides all of this, they are having a good time learning. I would say that this is all a pretty good track record, and \u201cmission well accomplished\u201d on Theresa\u2019s part.<\/p>\n

Theresa\u2019s hope is to launch another beginner\u2019s class in the new year. She is hoping that this<\/p>\n

\"Rendering<\/a>

Rendering down the chicharon and other delectable parts<\/p><\/div>\n

new group will also contain some women who are not yet Christians so that it can also be an evangelistic opportunity to show them the Lord \u201cwith skin\u201d in a real-life setting.<\/p>\n

We are not exactly shoveling snow around here \u2013 today it was a nice, pleasant 84.3 \u00b0 F in the shade. Still, this is sure a lot nicer than having the usual 30 \u00b0 F or more tacked on top of the 84 \u00b0. The really pleasant thing at this time of the year is that it drops down at night so that (most of the time) it is very comfortable sleeping with the windows open. But then, as some of our friends who came down in the winter thinking that they would find lovely, hot weather can contest, when it does get cold in Valles, it gets cold. The problem at those times is not the actual temperature per se, although it does get to just a whisker above freezing at rare intervals, and for short periods of time. But the trouble is that there is no way to warm up when it does get cold. None of the houses are built with any way to heat them, and most of the time that is the absolute farthest thing from one\u2019s mind, as trying to find some way to keep a little cooler is usually<\/p>\n

\"Chicharon<\/a>

Chicharon may not exactly be on the heart wise menu, but, man is it good!<\/p><\/div>\n

the main focus. But cement block walls, concrete roofs, and several inches of gap under outside doors and having single-paned windows that may or may not actually close do not make for a good combination in either extreme \u2013 hot or cold. Whoever invented concrete block houses sure didn\u2019t do it for comfort. Actually the old mud and stick houses with thatched roofs that one still finds in the villages are by far the best way to go (as long as you don\u2019t mind spiders, bugs, scorpions, snakes, etc. as housemates). Forget cement which has the worst properties for both heat and cold. But, it is fast and easily utilized.<\/p>\n

I fear that I may be beginning to ramble and I think that I should close. We are both fine. The Christmas tree is up, bringing a bit of seasonal cheer to the Frey household in Mexico. We thank each of you for your generous financial support, your love, and warm friendship. We love you and are honored to have you as our fellow laborers.<\/p>\n

Your friends,<\/p>\n

Steven and Theresa<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

How is it possible that we are head-long into December already? Twenty days, 6 hours, 30 minutes, 21 seconds (according to the computer countdown) until Christmas. How did this happen? Let me bring you up to date on the goings-on here in Cd. Valles since my last blog entry almost a month ago. We are […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vitwministries.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1153"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vitwministries.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vitwministries.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vitwministries.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vitwministries.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1153"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.vitwministries.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1153\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1166,"href":"https:\/\/www.vitwministries.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1153\/revisions\/1166"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vitwministries.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1153"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vitwministries.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1153"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vitwministries.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1153"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}