Greetings from Mexico,
Summer is here and last week we had our most amazing Vacation Bible School (VBS) ever, and in this update I want to tell you all about it. One of the signs of a healthy church is that it has families that have young children that are raising their kids in the ways of the Lord in the local church. And one of the most fun and effective ways that we do this, is through our summer VBS week.
This summer we had nearly 200 children signed up along with 40 teens, parents, and church staff committing to serve these wonderful little ones throughout the week. The theme of our summer camp this year was “Keepers of the Kingdom” which is a brand new curriculum put out by one of my favorite Christian organizations, “Answers in Genesis”! In this summer curriculum, each child was taught how to stand strong in today’s battle for truth in an age appropriate manner.
Our church was blessed to provide these children with a snack and lunch each day, along with a summer camp themed t-shirt. But to be honest, a major focus of the week was FUN FUN FUN! And there’s not a doubt that this summer’s VBS program set a world record for the most smiles! Every child had a blast, played with their friends, and got tired out with the fun activities and sports that they participated in throughout the day. But most importantly, each one of these precious little ones learned the truth of how they can be part of God’s Kingdom through salvation. They were also taught each day on the importance of the armor of God!
When our children’s pastor Oliver gave me the update on the week, I was so happy to hear that over 20 of these children made first time professions of faith that week. In Matthew 19:14, Jesus said “Let the little children come unto me” and there is nothing more important than giving children the opportunity to come to Him. I am so proud that our children’s ministry staff made the decision to present these precious little ones with the message of salvation. (Our teachers present the message of salvation in their weekly Sunday School classes as well!)
One of the highlights for me as a pastor was to see our Legends ministry in action. Our church has a bible study group we call the Legends which consists of our 55 and over English speaking friends that live here in Mexico and call Calvary Rosarito their church home. These “seasoned” saints served joyfully, and also kicked in financially to make this our most amazing week ever. They were also active in serving the children lunch and their daily snacks.
On another note, thank you for your prayers for my book, “The Sending Hub!” Because of your prayers, the English version of the book arrived here in Mexico just in time to have it at our yearly church planting conference that will be held next weekend. The book looks great, and I am excited to send one to you in the next month or two free to thank you for your faithful partnership over the years.
Finally, I want to thank you once again for your partnership with our family and ministry. God has truly done much more than we could ever ask or think. And all of the spiritual fruit that we have been blessed to witness, is yours! We love you!
Con mucho amor de Mexico, (with much love from Mexico)
Mike, Sarah, Grace, and Daniel
Prayer Requests!
#1- That God would bless our upcoming church planting conference on August 4th and 5th!
#2- That we would be able to print and publish the Spanish version of the book (Un Centro Enviador) soon and get it in the hands of the Spanish speaking world.
Praise Reports!
#1- Praise God for an amazing Vacation Bible School and the children that professed faith in Jesus for the first time!
#2- Praise God for the printing and publishing of the book, “The Sending Hub!”
For our personal support, checks should be made out to Saving Grace World Missions with “Vincent support” in the memo section. For special projects, checks should also be made out to Saving Grace World Missions or SGWM, with the project name in the comments section. Use the enclosed envelope or mail directly to Saving Grace World Missions, 17451 Bastanchury Rd., Suite 203, Yorba Linda, CA 92886-1873