 |
| CHILDREN PREPARE FOR A VACATION BIBLE SCHOOL AT COLONIA GRANJAS UNIDAS |
For a long time my heart has been captivated by a neighborhood in high places. It sits up high on the side of a mountain in Juarez, Mexico. It is called Colonia Granjas Unidas, or Colonia United Farms. But there is very little unity and there are very few farms left. At some point long ago the mountain had many hog farms and a few other animals were raised. But today most of it sits idle. The Colonia, or neighborhood, is very poor. There are a lot of shacks and places of residence that were built with anything and everything. I know a family that used old water heaters to make the outside walls of their house. They took the water heaters apart, took out the outer metal skins, flatten them out, and nailed them up to make the outside walls. Others use cardboard, old store signs, or scraps of plywood. Many of the houses that have been here a long time were made of concrete block. The dirt roads are in terrible condition. As I drive up the mountain I must go 5 miles per hour or less. The poor quality water is delivered by trucks to those who have money to pay for it.
 |
| RENTAL HOUSE WILL BE THE NEW CHURCH |
 |
| NEW CHURCH AT GRANJAS UNIDAS |
I know of senior citizens who live half way up the mountain and a round trip to the supermarket takes them about 5 hours on foot. Their age does not permit them to walk fast, they fight every loose rock along the way, and on the way back up they do the same plus bear the weight of their groceries. I know of a mom who walks one hour to take little Victor to school. Her house is closer to the top and the school is half way up the mountain. Two trips to school a day make up four hours of walking a day.
In many places the Colonia looks like the city dump. And like many places in Juarez the people at Granjas Unidas are barely scratching out a living. After constantly fighting to stay afloat the people of this Colonia and other Colonias seem to have adjusted to this lifestyle and it has become the norm. When everyone suffers no one feels at a disadvantage. So in suffering there IS unity.
 |
| BACK ROOM CREATED FOR OLDER KIDS |
 |
| KIDS ENJOYING VBS |
The beauty of this Colonia, aside from the souls that make this their residence, is the view of the City of Juarez at night. There is a spectacular view of Juarez from the top of the mountain that makes you just want to sit and stare down with a cup of coffee in hand. I visited an elderly couple last winter and did just that. We would sit at their tiny wooden porch and drink the hot cocoa that I brought. Eventually they would have to go back inside and stand by their 55 gallon drum turned into a cook stove and heater, but I would stay outside and stare at the beautiful lights way down below. One evening I came up for my usual fix of "the view" and the porch was completely gone. I was very disappointed. They told me that they ran out of fire wood and had to use part of their house, including my favorite porch, to keep warm. An old metal chair just wasn't the same! Temperatures in Juarez during the winter drop down to the 30's, 20's, and sometimes lower than that. I have seen snow in Juarez on several occasions. Now, imagine living in a house in the winter where the wall is only the shell of an old water heater!
During the last 12 or 13 months I have brought in a lot of help to Granjas Unidas but it seems like a drop in the bucket compared to the need. The Colonia is also in desperate need of a good church. There is only one very small church here and I visited with the Pastor about the possibility of working with him and reaching more people. But his vision is very limited. After 20 years at Granjas Unidas the congregation is made up of about 25 to 30 people. At first when I asked the neighbors about this church they all told me that the building is there but that there were no services. To make sure I arrived one day at the time stated on the wall of the church and, yes, the church was meeting. But the people in the Colonia are not being reached with the Gospel. My visit with the Pastor just left me wanting to start another church.
 |
| TWO HOUSES FROM THE CHURCH |
 |
| HOUSE NEXT DOOR |
There is now another church being started at this Colonia. With the help of a Pastor from El Paso and a few women that come out with her on Tuesdays the Lord has granted our desire for another church. A family at the Colonia has allowed us to use a small rental house to start this project and they are not charging rent. The neighbors next door allow us to tap into their power outlets so that we can have electricity for a few light bulbs and fans. The people that rented the house before left a $500 electric debt, which must be paid in order to get the power turned on. That's how things work in Juarez. The services at the rental house have continued on Tuesday mornings with the Pastor from El Paso and a Pastor from Juarez. Last week we had a VBS there and we averaged 45 to 50 kids during the 5 days. This weekend we will start the first regular services at the rental house. But the house is already too small. The last Tuesday that services were held at the house about 30 people showed up. There is some land around the rental house that I am having someone look into to find out who owner is, if it has one, or if we can talk to the City about having it donated for a ministry.
There is a lot of work for the Lord to be done at Granjas Unidas. Once we get set up with some kind of building I would love to have a team or teams from the U.S. come and help us do outreaches in this community. We can provide food and other necessities for the people along with a presentation of the Gospel. There are many children who live in this Colonia who need to be guided in the ways of the Lord. The youth here walk about aimlessly wondering what their future will be. A lot of them know that dealing drugs and other evil vises are options that will get them out of their current situation. Girls at a very tender age walk around pregnant. I know of little Jordan, who is 7 or 8 years old, and who alone takes care of his grandfather, who is blind. I know of 11 people in one family who live under one roof and not one of them can find a job. You may remember Chuy, who used to eat pig slop before I met him. There are single moms living here and I have no idea what they do to feed their family. I know of kids who go to school hungry. Of parents who introduce their kids to sniffing chemicals because it relieves their hunger pains. And of parents who allow their kids to be used for sex so that they all may eat.
If you read this and shed tears, can you imagine us who actually SEE it? Sometimes I wonder where all these tears keep coming from.
Hope! I just want to help bring the hope of Jesus to these whom Christ died for. They need hope! They need to get to know the love of Jesus and the hope that is in Him!
Please pray for this project at Granjas Unidas. Pray for Pastor Roberto Nuñez and his family, who have worked on this project to get this church off the ground. Pray for Pastor Sylvia Luis, who has initiated this work and still continues to bless the project. There are others who are interested in this work whom the Lord will move in at the perfect time.
And there is not one single thing that we do that can be done without funds. I appreciate and I am very thankful for all who sacrifice to keep me here and allow me to bless some of these precious people in one form or another. I just completed two years of living in Juarez, Mexico and I don't want to be anywhere else, aside from heaven. Thank you from the very bottom of my heart for your support. I know that Jesus thanks you.
 |
| NEW CHURCH AT GRANJAS UNIDAS. TIRES MAKE A NICE BORDER FENCE |
As a side note, we recently had 45 churches in Juarez to attend an INVASION, which is a project completely funded by a ministry called COSECHADORES VICTORIOSOS, or Victorious Harvesters. This ministry comes into a City and trains the local churches to evangelize using several methods. The classes last for 3 solid days and the churches hit the streets for another three days. The harvest for the three days was 6,200 souls. From there those who accepted the Lord are invited to the local church at a time where there are no regular services. The walk in to a celebration including food and free Bibles. It is a wonderful time for the new converts to meet the people of the church and get familiar with the church building. Many churches plan to repeat this as often as possible. Please pray for these new 6,200 Saints.
P.S. Double click on the pictures to enlarge them.
Have a Jesus-filled day!!!
Daniel Torres
650 Linwood Dr.
El Paso, Texas 79928
1 (501) 827-7679
For tax receipt send
contributions to:
Covenant Fellowship
P.O. Box 8126
Searcy, Arkansas 72145
No comments:
Post a Comment