For some reason, yesterday at Popeyes, they asked me for my name. Actually, I know why they asked. It was because they took 20 minutes to fill my order even though we were some of the only ones in the restaurant.
Anyway, they asked me my name, and I told them Dennis, with the best pronunciation I could. Dennis isn’t a very popular name in Mexico. Denise is a girl’s name, so they always look at me funny when I tell them my name.
As you can see from the picture, the girl didn’t understand me and put “Tenes.” I guess that’s close. I think I’m going to change my name to to Juan Gonzalez.
This week we’re celebrating the Seminary’s anniversary. So, I went to “La Iglesia Bautista Koinonia” today with two of the youth ministry students.
I was sick, and I told Juan to be prepared to preach for me this morning. But, I was able to preach, and I felt the message that I had was one that needed to be preached.
I preached on the need to proclaim the message and to be an example as the messengers. It was out of 2 Timothy 4:1-8. The Seminary’s motto is: “Preach the Word,” and comes from the same passage.
In a city of 25 million people, where less than 2% are evangelical Christian, the church needs to be ready to preach the Word, “in season and out of season” (a lot of it came from this experience) I believe that if we are to make a dent in this city, it’s going to take every Christian sharing with everyone they know.
It was a long but fruitful day. After the service we stayed for lunch and ate “mole,” which, surprisingly, is growing on me (a little). The church was super friendly, and we felt very welcome there. It was a good day.
(Photo by: Vilhelm Sjostrom)
Here are two things that happened today in Mexico City that you might find interesting.
In case you haven’t noticed, we’ve got a new header on our blog that has 15 Mexico City icons on it (Click here to view the image). They are images of important things that define Mexico City. If you ever visit Mexico City, you have to see these monuments, people, and other things that represent Mexico City.
15 Things You Must See in Mexico City
- Mexican Flag (La Bandera Mexicana) – especially the giant flag in the zocalo, Mexico City’s main square.
- Fine Arts Palace (Palacio de Bellas Artes) – if you get a chance, watch the folkloric ballet in the auditorium.
- Mariachi Band (Los Mariachis) – you can find them in different places, but the most famous plaza for mariachis is Garibaldi Square.
- The Angel of Independence (El Angel de la Independencia) – this monument has been a symbol of Mexico City for a long time. You can find it on Reforma Blvd, one of the main roads that goes through the city.
- Metropolitan Cathedral (Catedral Metropolitana) – the main cathedral in the country is located in the zocalo, too.
- Organ Grinder – these guys can usually be found in front of the Fine Arts Palace and in the zocalo in front of the cathedral. (click to view a video of an organ grinder)
- Torre Mayor – the tallest building in Mexico City, offering great views from the lookout high above the city.
- The Little Horse (El Caballito) – a landmark on Reforma, this sculpture looks like a yellow horse head.
- Latin American Tower – located across the street from the Fine Arts Palace, this tower has a lookout on top offering you great views of the city. (click to see video from the Latin American tower)
- World Trade Center – a popular place for expos and conferences.
- Monument to the Revolution – this monument is to honor the Mexican Revolution. It is a huge monument situated in a fairly large square.
- Basilica of Guadalupe – the second most visited Catholic site in the world (second only to the Vatican) is considered the most sacred place in all of Mexico. (click here for video of the Basilica)
- Monument to Benito Juarez – this monument sits right out in front of Alameda, Mexico City’s central park, and serves as a monument to one of the most important figures in Mexican history.
- Green Taxis – you’ll see these little green Volkswagen beetles everywhere (vochos).
- Airplanes – planes are constantly flying overhead due to the location and constant traffic flow of the international airport. (click here for video of the landing in Mexico City)
These things define Mexico City and make it what it is.
From left to right: Deborah, Josue, Kareni, Huberto (professor), Gerson, Victoria
As I posted before (click here for earlier post), we have the largest freshman class of youth ministry students in the history of the program.
We worked really hard last year to promote the youth ministry program at the Mexican Baptist Theological Seminary by going to various conferences, camps, and youth events.
While five new students may not seem like many, it is a pretty good sized class considering that our seminary welcomed 13 new freshman this year (only 8 students weren’t youth ministry students).
I’m excited about this year. We now have 14 total students studying youth ministry in Mexico City. Please keep praying for us.
