One of the hardest parts of being a missionary is saying goodbye to people; not just family and friends from home, but also the new people who come and go througout your time in the country where you are serving. You become like family with the other missionaries, and it seems like families come and go so quickly. That’s the way we feel with the Horn family. We went to their “despedida” (good-bye party) tonight. We will miss them as they move to Texas to take a position there. Andrew, Gracie, Danielle, and Isaac were a great part of the youth group, and we will miss their friendship. We hate to see them go, but we know that God has great plans for them and will use them in their new place of service. Please pray for them as they leave at the end of October and get settled in to their new home.
Today I went to MCCA to play football with the youth group kids. It was a lot of fun to play with them. I can also get a lot of work done up there, so I took advantage and graded some philosophy papers from my seminary class that I have to get finished by Monday. Tonight, we had a Bible study and ate ice cream sundaes. It was a great time.
Today was the final exam for my first ever youth ministry class at the seminary. I had a great bimester with 12 students. We had some good discussions about youth ministry, and I had a great time getting to know them. The good news is that many of them will be taking Youth Ministry 120, Youth Culture, next bimester with me. I’m looking forward to it.
Yesterday, my seminary classes gave me a birthday party. They sang to me, gave me presents, and we ate birthday cake. After seminary, I went to MCCA (Janell’s school) for a “non-detention.” This is a once a month event where we just have fun and get to know each other better. We played chubby bunny and chocolate marshmallow drop among other games. Then last night, we had some of our friends over for cake and to watch the presidential debate. It was a great birthday.
Last time we went to the doctor, he told us we’d be surprised at how much the baby would grow in 2 weeks. When we saw the ultrasound today, we were definitely surprised at the growth. We’ve got 3 pictures for you to see. If you click one, it will open up bigger in a new window. The doctor said everything is great. There are no problems with the baby or with Janell. The baby is 22 millimeters now, and the brain is forming normally and the skull and spinal cord also. Praise God!!
This is exciting! It’s always exciting to be part of something bigger than yourself, and that is what we are doing here in Mexico as part of a global alliance of youth trainers through Boyce College in Kentucky and Youth Ministry International. Here’s another news article about the Centers for Youth Ministry that are being established all over the world by Youth Ministry International: Boyce College helps form youth ministry centers in 4 countries – (BP)
