I just got an email from Darwin, one of our graduates and the Director for the Center for Youth Ministry in Santa Clara, Cuba. He is a good friend with a great passion for youth ministry and a great leader. Darwin is at the forefront of youth ministry on the island and is constantly pushing other leaders to become better at what they do.
This week he and his team hosted a national youth leaders' summit for over 120 leaders from 40 churches all over the country. Here are two pictures from the event. It's so fun to see what God is doing there!
A panoramic view of the city.
I haven't really posted much about this because I have been really busy, but the reason we are in the USA for these six weeks is because I took a trip to China for 10 days. It was a 14-15 hour flight, the longest one I have ever been on. The trip was great, and I had a blast.
I stayed in a city called Wenzhou, which is on the southern coast. I had fun experiencing a new culture and making new friends. Here are some pictures from my trip.
A Buddhist Temple
We just got back from vacation. It was much needed, but now I feel like I need a vacation to rest! For a while now, my little princess has been asking us to go to Disney World so she can see the princesses. Thanks to our friends at Kissimmee Guest Services, we got some tickets to go to Disney World for one day during the first week of vacation.
We took lots of pictures (you can see them here), but this one is one of my favorite of all times.
My little girl was speechless when she walked into that castle room. Her interaction with each princess was so cute, and her timidness was evident. She slowly warmed up to them, but you could just tell that this was a special moment.
I wonder if one day that is how we will feel when we finally meet Jesus face to face. It’s like that old song, “I can only imagine.”
I wonder if we will be in such awe that we won’t know what to say. I wonder how we’ll act. One thing is for sure, that is going to be a great hug from our Savior.
What a wonderful day that will be!
Last weekend I was invited to Tuxtla, Gutierrez, in Chiapas, a state in the Southern part of Mexico. I went to teach a class at a Missions School and also to speak at a youth camp. It was a fun experience. I had never been to Chiapas before, so I enjoyed learning a lot about this region of Mexico.
I had a chance to meet Julio, a youth pastor who writes about youth ministry on his blog “Monologos de Julito.” I have been following his blog for a while now since I started ministeriojuvenil.com, and he is one of the few who publishes regularly on youth ministry in Spanish.
I had a great time speaking to his youth group about how they need to be God’s representatives in their local school. I shared about Esther and her decision to do what she was supposed to do even though it wasn’t easy, and the result was important for all of history.
(more…)
I preached in chapel last week, and I used the guys in the picture as my illustrations. Do you know them? The guys in the picture are Wario and Winnie the Pooh. You probably know Pooh. He has an insatiable love for honey. He regularly gets stuck in Rabbit’s window because he goes after honey with his whole heart.
Wario, on the other hand, is a villain from Mario Brothers. If you know our family, you know we love Super Mario Brothers. Wario has a great desire to get as many gold coins as he can. He runs around with a bag of gold coins and collects more and more. Keep reading to find out what they have to do with my sermon…
(more…)
