AN UNFORGETABLE LESSON

          We all remember the events of September 11, 2001.  The world witnessed the destruction of the Twin Towers, or The World Trade Center, in New York City.  I not only saw the Twin Towers crumble down, but having been raised in New York City, I saw them go up, and up, and up over a span of a few years.  (There was even a time when I was sitting on the 110th floor looking at the horizon and seeing the curvature of our planet.)  We all remember the images of thousands of heroes who put their lives on the line immediately for the sake of people whose name they did not even know.  For those heroes there was no time for tears when lives were on the line.  There was only time for immediate action.  Strong emotional releases would have to wait. 

I'm not an expert on emotions but I have learned that they can be put on hold.  But the time comes when the emotional floodgates just have to be allowed to burst.   The time came when those brave men and women in New York City would have to find time to weep.  We all need those times.  We can't keep our emotions bottled up.  It's not healthy.  There's no shame in tears.  Jesus wept.   

The month of October has been another roller coaster month of emotions in Juarez, Mexico.  Today was the day when, in the peace and safety of my place, the emotional dam broke.  Today was my turn, and it was overdue.  The sufferings I have witnessed, the victories, the dissappointment, the wonderful God-moments, the pains, the eyes of hungry children, and the joy of the work that I do all converged on me in one moment. Those emotions have to be released. And the month is not over, there is still plenty to do, I am behind on some things, but I feel better.  

In this blog entry I just want to briefly cover one event. 

Many people had put in a lot of work into the 2nd crusade for the City of Juarez. The planning for the crusade started a few months ago.  This year the event was bigger and better than last year.  The purpose was to reach as many people as possible for Jesus and bring the message of hope and unity to the masses who have suffered for so long in a City with the reputation of being the most dangerous in the world.  

Benito Juarez Stadium, with approximately 23,000 seats, was the location of the 3-day crusade.  It seems that on every turn of the planning that the Lord was meeting every need.  The event was going to be a huge success.  Possibly over 1,000 volunteers were needed for this mass undertaking.  I was part of the Deliverance Committee.  We had about 60 people in this committee.  This committee was created to handle those people who would come to the crusade manifesting a demonic presence.  And, yes, those situations arose and the committee was prepared.  

We had people who came to the crusade from many parts of the U.S., Mexico and other countries to witness the event.  I met folk from Nicaragua, Venezuela, Peru, and Honduras. 

The dates for the crusade were October 19th through the 21st.  The first and second night of the crusade were unbelievable.  The stadium was far from full on those nights but the Holy Spirit's power moved so strong that many people wept uncontrollably over their sins. Hundreds of people were healed by God's power and we saw several walk out of wheelchairs.  The miracles could not be numbered. Very few times in my 36 years as a Christian had I seen such magnitude of signs and wonders.

Then the third night of the crusade arrived. It was to be the biggest night of the crusade. It was youth night and a very popular Spanish gospel singing group by the name of Tres Cielos would be performing. Young and old alike came by the bus loads. The lines waiting for the stadium to open were very long. I was at the stadium an hour early and thousands were already lined up. Then came the BIG mistake. And the night was ended in similar fashion to that of the Hindenburg or the Titanic. It was a lesson that I hope that no one will forget. Ever!!! 

It all started when the Mayor of the City of Juarez arrived.  Just prior to that we had some rain and there was concern for the tens of thousands of dollars of equipment that was sitting out. Most of us in the field ended up getting soaked but we prayed that the Lord would stop the rain for the sake of the many thousands that came to be ministered to.  The rain stopped but then the head Pastors on the field decided to pay homage to the Mayor.  They took time to parade him through the quarter-mile track, stopped to have pictures taken with him, took time to present him with a Bible before the masses, let him have the microphone so he could speak, and a few other things that many disapproved of.  After honoring the Mayor the hard rains continued and the equipment had to be saved. The event had to be cancelled due to the rain. 

Why did this happen?  I had witnessed situations before where we prayed for the rains to stop so that we may continue ministering and the Lord allowed us to continue as the rains did stop. But here we had 17,000 people (maybe more) waiting to be ministered to and yet the crusade had to be cancelled.  Besides that, Juarez is in desert land and it hardly rains here. Why would the Lord allow thousands of people to be returned home after months of preparation for this crusade? 

The answer is found in part in Isaiah 42:8, 48:11, and Galatians 6:7.  These readings speak about our God who will not share His glory with anyone, and a God who will not be mocked.  I think that the message was clear. The Mayor was receiving the glory and God had been put aside.  It was God's event, not the Mayor's or anyone else.  May God forgive us and have mercy on us. It was a very valuable lesson and we all need to learn from it.  Never allow anyone, including yourself, to glorify you and never give anyone the Glory that is due to God. God will not share His Glory.





Daniel Torres
11985 Pellicano
Ste. G, Box 169
El Paso, Texas 79936
1-501-827-7679




























   

FEEDING THE HUNGRY...

Have you ever seen or heard of a grown woman break down in tears because you handed her a loaf of bread? I have. As she prayed to God for food the bread was being carried to her door. Knock, knock..., Yes???, We want to give you this bread in Jesus' name. She weeps...she can't speak...finally is able to speak and mentions about her prayer for food. Her and her boys had been hungry for some time but there was no food. And there was nowhere to get any food. In no time the boys break into the bag and begin filling their bellies with bread. We had more bread to offer her. Back at the local church I had rice and beans for a new lunchroom that we were planning on opening in a week. We shared some of that food with her. We shared Jesus with her. She cried again. Heaven was moved. 

 

It's hard to believe that in the year 2012 there are people who go bed hungry, but many still do.  In the United States, in Mexico, and all over the world.

Kids here in Juarez, Mexico do not get lunch at school. If they don't bring something to eat they just go without.  Parents are struggling to feed their children and themselves.  Prices at the stores are the same or higher than in the United States, yet people are making less than $100US per week at work.  And that's only if they are fortunate enough to have a job.

I have been buying rice, beans, and potatoes and distributing them between to the two lunchrooms that I have opened up and a few other ministries.  Spanish American Evangelistic Ministries, on the El Paso, Texas side has been giving me bread which is donated to them for distribution.  The bread is outdated but still very good.  It's not just regular white bread, but good whole wheat bread with nuts. The bread is excellent and very nutritional.  I ask for continued prayer as I take this bread across the border.  I have not been stopped thus far but if they stop me they can take the food from me or they can be really nice and just make me go back to El Paso with it. 

At the two lunchrooms we feed kids and their parents.  The idea is to try to feed them one good meal a week.  It is amazing how much these kids can eat.  After a very full plate, most still want seconds.  And we let them eat until they are content.  Prior to the meal they have Bible study, songs, and games.  Many kids and some parents have accepted the Lord as Savior.  Hopefully in the future we can do this more than once a week.  But there are still tens of thousands going hungry everyday in Juarez.  I have been trying to encourage churches to open up a lunchroom in a similar way but many have a hard time taking that initial step of faith. 



                                                               TRIP TO EAST MEXICO



I recently went on a long trip to the East side of the U.S./Mexico border.  The invitation was made and I made a decision to go.  I know that the Lord will eventually take me all over the Nation of Mexico and it seems that doors are opening for me to do so.  I keep getting invitations almost weekly to go outside of Juarez.  Last week I visited Reynosa and Matamoros, Mexico.  Both are troubled border Cities.  They are located close to the Southernmost point of Texas.  Probably what caught my attention the most was that after an 800 mile trip to that side of Mexico things are the same, if not worse, than in Juarez, Mexico.  The violence, the dangers, the murders, the poverty, and the suffering still met me head on like a freight train. 

In Reynosa we visited a ministry just at the edge of a City dump.  The Pastor's wife greeted us and invited us in.  The dump was right behind their house.  From there you can see shacks built right in the middle of the dump with whatever material people can find.  Yes, families live there.  When the garbage truck comes they can sift through the trash and find things to recycle or eat.  I left there with a headache due to the smell.  

I got to meet some wonderful and dedicated servants of God.  One Pastor was walking on crutches.  Recently he was caught in the middle of a shoot-out and his knee cap was blown away by a bullet.  Initially they informed him that his leg would have to be amputated but God worked a miracle and he can almost walk without the aid of his crutches.  I heard stories like these over and over again. 

I could say more about what I heard and what I witnessed.  Maybe at some other point I'll do that.  But even now, days later, my heart is heavy as I think about that experience.  Mexico is a nation that is hurting, suffering, dying.  But God is moving and stretching out His ams to lift it out of the quicksand.  In prayer I ask God how He is going to change all this.  And I know that this WILL all change.  I just don't know how.  In the history of the world Juarez is 2nd as the City that is most prayed for.  Jerusalem is number one.  God is going to change all this but it will take miracles comparable to the ones in the Scriptures as God took Israel out of Egypt and brought them through the desert for 40 years.  Is God's hand too short that He can't do that any longer?  Of course not!!!  God will do it!!!  And when He does the entire world will know that there is a God in Mexico.  Yes, Mexico is going to be transformed.


Mexico needs your prayers, it needs your help, it needs men and women of faith who will step out and believe God for such miracles.  I know God is sending out the Macedonian call for believers to get involved.  If not in Mexico, then in other parts of the world.  Are you one them?  Do you hear His voice?  Take a leap of faith!!!





Daniel Torres
11985 Pellicano
Ste. G, Box 169
El Paso, Texas 79936









 
















 

TO LOVE AND TO CHERISH...

For several years Juarez, Mexico has been called the most violent City on the planet.  I know that eventually we will lose that unwanted image.  Yet, for now, the fact remains that there is a lot of violence here, even though we are seeing the numbers drop.  

There is another kind of violence that is just as troubling, yet not as recognized.  It is violence in the home.  I am not an expert on the subject, I don't have any statistical figures to share, but I am very well aware of the problem.  I see it almost daily.  The biggest known problem is the physical abuse of women by their husbands or boyfriends.  There are also many reports of women physically abusing their mates.  

I stated that I'm not an expert on the subject, so I write only my observations, opinions, and experiences. 

I cannot understand why this is so prevalent in this culture (and I do know that the problem is huge, even in the United States).  I cannot understand why a man would raised a finger to physically hurt another human being, much less someone that he supposedly loves.

Women's shelters are all over this city.  Women go there to find refuge from the abuse.  Many women just take the abuse for various reasons.  Some may have kids and some may not, but they know that if they report their mate to the authorities they will end up behind bars.  Who then will help put food on the table?  Is there another man who will be willing to take her and a host of kids to provide for them?  Her mate beats her, beats the kids, and may be having an affair that she is well aware of, but she feels trapped and must remain in the situation.  

I know that poverty is often used as an excuse.  In a society where manhood or MACHISMO is taken very seriously a man is said to feel very frustrated with life.  He feels that he is a failure as a man.  His manhood is being threatened.  He has not attained the things in life that make him the man he dreamed of being.  One option is to join some Cartel and have all the money he desires at the expense of someone else's life and health.  He can also use the last few pesos the family has to go out and get drunk and temporarily forget his ego problems.  Then he can go home drunk and beat his wife.  And while he's at it, he can beat his kids, also.  And sometimes he doesn't have to be drunk to do that.  Just the frustrations of not having a job and not providing for himself and family is enough to send a man into a rage that leaves bruises and scars on his loved ones.  They are the easiest targets.  He saw his dad do it, so it's o.k., or acceptable in his mind.  

As Christians we know that the enemy of the soul is behind all this.  But even churches are faced with this problem because it's generational.  The cycle must be broken.  I have spoken on this subject to men and some have gained conscious knowledge that this is totally unacceptable.  Some men have wept, as if a veil had been removed from their eyes and they realize their errors.  Many men have changed their way of thinking, but untold millions have yet to be reached.  

I'll share a typical story dealing with another part of this problem of spousal abuse:

A young woman calls me and wants me to visit her.  She has 3 children and her ex-husband is long gone due to the beatings she was receiving.  He is re-married.  He pays no child support.  She is fortunate in that her parents have the means to help her, along with a job that she is able to do from her house.  I go to see her and visit with her on the street by my car.  Her problem:  Her 7 year old son beats her and she doesn't have it in her to discipline the young boy.  It's something that he saw his dad do and he learned quickly.  In his young mind women are objects of abuse.  The young man is frustrated because he wants to be with his dad.  He wants to live with his dad.  Her daughter does not want to be with her dad.  She fears him.  The mom spoke to her Pastor and he suggested that she place the young boy in a shelter where he will receive guidance and counselling.  But the young boy has to live at the Center.  The young mom drank her tears as she spoke to me about all this.  She loves her son, and can't bring herself to let him go for 5 1/2 days out of the week.  She just wanted my opinion.  I spoke to her about tough love.  For his sake and for the sake of his future family she has to let him go.  I promised to keep them in prayer.  My heart still hurts over this encounter.  How many other families are having these same issues?  I hate to even know.  May God help us. 

I want to make one suggestion to church families.  If you know of a single mom, especially one who has sons, please help her out.  If you have a family with a dad, a mom, and children of similar ages then you can help.  Bring her son(s) over to your place and let them see how you interact with one another.  Don't go out anywhere, just do family things at home.  Make sure both parents are there.  Let these children observe how a wife and a husband treat each other with love, dignity, and respect.  Let the dad help the mom.  Let him show her open love.  Let him treasure her and honor her before the children's eyes.  Set that image in their minds.  SHOW them how to treat a woman.

I came from a broken family and I was about 15 years old before I witness a husband and wife interact with each other in the confines of their home.  It was my sister and her husband.  He loved my sister and he was not afraid to show it.  I studied his moves and actions.  He helped her around the house, kissed her, laughed with her, spoiled her.  He planted an image in my mind that never left me.  Yet, he didn't even know that he was impacting my future life.  It was so simple, yet so powerful.  I will always be thankful to him for those unexpected lessons.  

We need prayer for the peace in Juarez.  But obviously, peace and love start in the home and are carried into the streets.  Please pray for the families here.  If the enemy can destroy the fiber of the family he can destroy a Nation.  This Nation is suffering.



Daniel Torres
11985 Pellicano
Ste. G, Box 169
El Paso, TX 79936
1-501-827-7679

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