We just completed our first week in Mexico and we’re excited to share our first update from the field. Before we share about our first week in Mexico, I wanted to share about our final week in the USA.
One of the last things we needed to do before leaving the USA was to sell my truck. With just a week left, Amy listed my truck in a neighborhood group on Facebook. Fortunately, we were contacted by someone who was interested in the truck.
This is a picture of me saying “goodbye” to my truck. I praise God we found a buyer right in time.
He was a Christian man and had apparently been looking for a truck for 2 years. But for one reason or another, he was always a day late and a dollar short on getting the truck he wanted. Someone in our neighborhood told him about my truck and he arranged to see it. The next day he made me an offer.
Later, I realized he was a brother in Christ. When he found out our family was going on the mission field he prayed for us. He said getting to buy my truck was an answer to his prayer, but I felt the same way. In God’s perfect timing, I had a buyer for my truck with just 2 days left in the USA.
With my truck out of the way, we still had to manage getting 20+ bags to the airport by 3:30 AM. Again, the Lord graciously provided. Over the past few months, our family has attended Grace Community Church in Dawsonville, GA. When the associate pastor (Kevin Gerrard) found out I was going to be serving overseas with the IMB, he graciously offered to help us transport our luggage.
The fact that it required him, his wife, his daughter and his son-in-law to be at our house at 2 AM didn’t deter him the least bit. He and his “crew” were ready to go with two SUVs. They helped us transport our luggage to the airport, unload it from the SUVs and get it moved to the baggage check-in area. What a blessing!
As we checked our bags in at the airport, to our surprise we were able to check 5 extra bags (another unexpected blessing). This allowed us to check my guitar, a car seat, and 3 carry-on bags. Just enough for the kids to be able to travel without their carry-ons. That made the trip a lot easier for the kids (and us as well).
We did hit one unexpected snag when we arrived in Houston for a brief layover. Our flight to Mexico ended up getting canceled due to weather. We ended up spending the night in the airport hotel, getting our meals covered by United Airlines, and getting a good night of rest before completing the second leg of our trip.
Despite the change in plans, we arrived in Mexico the next day, where our team on the field greeted us. In less than 30 minutes, we made it through customs and had our bags loaded on a van headed towards Puebla.
The Lord truly made our paths straight as we headed to the field. We are extremely grateful to everyone who helped us get here by purchasing our stuff, giving us a place to live, and helping us get to the airport.
I also want to personally say a word of thanks to Amy’s mom Melody for opening her home to us for the past several months. The kids enjoyed spending time with “Grammy” and I think she enjoyed the time as well.
More importantly, I think we converted her to become a Tennessee Volunteer fan. If she denies it, we have picture proof below!
Once we arrived in Puebla, Mexico, we were greeted by our mentors, Joel and Melissa Williams. They welcomed us to our temporary home which was arranged by another team member named Chad. The house was nice and clean thanks to other team members who helped paint the walls and made sure the house had a nice cleaning. They also took us out to eat on Sunday after church.
Our first week was spent getting settled in and purchasing everyday items for the house such as cooking supplies, toiletries, and groceries. The kids have enjoyed meeting some other kids in our neighborhood and playing soccer with them. Joshua was extra motivated to learn some Spanish so he could tell the kids to “paseme la pelota” (pass me the ball) and tell them “buen tiro” (good shot).
We got the kids registered for their new school which starts on Monday, January 9. This happens to be the same day that Amy and I will start language school. This is a big point of prayer as it will be a day of many firsts for the kids. Their first time at a normal school (not being homeschooled) and their first time spending a long time listening to Spanish all day.
I imagine we will all come home on Monday with headaches! So please keep us in your prayers on Monday.
Another wonderful blessing so far has been getting to know another missionary family with 3 kids that are a little younger than our kids. The wife went to college with Amy and the husband is a fellow Tennessee Volunteer fan and a Southern Seminary graduate. So naturally we’ve all hit it off quite well.
We are all getting lots of chances to practice our Spanish. Most of the time this happens with Uber drivers and with our neighbors. But we also had a visit from the pastor of our local Mexican church on Thursday. He and his wife came for a visit and told us all about their church. We look forward to serving with them more in the future as our language grows.
We are currently getting around using Uber. Once we get our resident visas we will be able to get our driver’s license.
Thank you so much for your prayers and support. We’ve got a busy week ahead of us and we appreciate your prayers for us to continue learning language, abide in Christ and develop a deeper heart to glorify God by sharing the gospel with those He places in our lives.
Needless to say it’s been an exhausting and busy week. We all feel like Caleb in this picture by the end of the day. Thank you again for your prayers and your support on this journey.
Did you know that for just $30, you can help us reach up to 18,000 individuals in Lima? Your generous contribution will fund targeted digital ads that spread the message of hope and transformation.
Give Now
