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As the Gulf of Mexico and possibly Louisiana braces for Gustav, we here near the desert southwest have been experiencing Tropical Storm/Depresion Julio. Julio made landfall late last week on the Baja Peninsula dumping a lot of rain, but not that much wind. By about Friday of last week, Hermosillo was covered with overcast and it’s been raining off and on ever since.

On Sunday we had our second consecutive Sunday of near rain-out. Most of our folks walk to church and they just don’t get out when it rains. (Good thing it seldom does!)

Our normal 100-110 degree temps have moderated considerably. At noon on Saturday, it was 78 on our patio. That’s a January temperature, in August! Praise the Lord! We are thankful for whatever respite we can get.

Today we heard the weather report from Tucson, and the Chief Meterologist said that the center of the remnant of Julio was centered right over Hermosillo. Tucson and southern Arizona were being pounded by rain. We were experienced occasional showers, but really pleasant conditions.

Our summer rainy season is just about over, however. We expect to return to hot weather for September, before it begins to moderate in October. Our prayers are with the Lousiana folks, especially those in New Orleans. We’ll be watching CNN on Monday to see what happens.

Donna and I had followup visits with our cardiologist this week and we are happy to report that all is well with the hearts. My cholesterol dropped 50 or so points in 6 weeks to 156. Donna’s is still a bit high, but the doctor adjusted her medication. We are optimistic.

On another note, I have continued to experience some discomfort with the acid. The next day I went to a gastroenterlogist and now have an endoscopy scheduled for Tuesday, September 2. Hopefully, we can find out what’s causing the discomfort and get some relief.

Pray for us in that regard, that nothing will be seriously wrong and that the solution will be at hand.

This past week was certainly interesting. Thank you for praying for us.

In regard to our friends the G. family, it was a difficult week. We spent some time with them on Monday, literally weeping and praying. They were obviously devastated by the events and were trying to grasp all the implications of the situation. We were deeply saddened by the situation and felt helpless in our ability to help them. We have tried to express our friendship and love for them during these days and God is already providing for them. We will all learn some lessons through this situation.

On Tuesday and Wednesday, I headed out to Mexico City for an urban leadership meeting. Mexico City is not my favorite place on the planet, but I am beginning to learn a bit about it. It’s really hard to wrap one’s brain about the size of the city. It just seems to go on for days. I admire my colleagues who live and work there. Our meeting was productive, but grueling. Six a.m. flight (with 2 hour time zone change) arriving at 10:30 a.m. Almost an hour taxi ride to the meeting site. Meeting from 12 noon to 7 p.m. Dinner. Crash. Next day, breakfast at 9 and meetings until 4 p.m. Taxi back to airport and 4 hour wait for delayed flight. 9:45 p.m. departure (2 hour time change again), eventually arriving at home at about 11 p.m. Whew!

On Thursday, we held our second English class. One of our teachers quit before he ever really started. But we had about a dozen students, four of whom are solid prospects for the church. The classes went well and everyone is excited.

On Friday we met again with the G. family in our home. Through the week, Dad had found work. It’s a very low-paying job (even by Mexican standards), but his schedule will allow him time to keep looking for something better. They also found a house, so they should be able to move soon. Our hearts are still heavy for them and we are seeking God’s wisdom to know exactly how to minister to them during these days.

On Saturday, we held our third men’s breakfast. We had 6 in attendance, and 2 of them were prospects. One was the husband of our English student. We are encouraged that these men will come and fellowship with us and dialogue about spiritual matters. Pray for this men’s group. We will meet again in two weeks.

On Saturday afternoon, we went to San Javier, Sonora to support the kick-off of a church planting project in this small town. SJ is a classic, Mexican pueblo. It’s a mining town primarily, with a small number of ranchers. There is a school, a park, a couple of small stores, and the obiligatory catholic church. The population is about 1,300. The town is so small it doesn’t have a red light (as we say in the south) and not even a gas station.

A large group from Hermosillo went for the event. They played music in the plaza and held a brief kid’s event. Some of us went door-to-door. Later there was some preaching and testimonies. There are already a few believers in the village, and they are going to begin Saturday afternoon worship services in a home on August 30. Pray for this group. We won’t be participating regularly in this project, but we affirm what they are doing and will support them as best we can.

One of the highlights of my week, was taking our disciple P. to San Javier. P. is a member of our Hermosillo church and received Christ about two years ago. He is about as excited about his faith as anybody I have ever seen. Every week he tells me how he has shared Christ with his co-workers. On Saturday, I was excited to see him step up to the microphone and share how Christ had changed his life. Pray for P.  and his family as he continues to grow in Christ and be made in Christ’s image.

On Sunday  we attended services at 2 different churches. In the afternoon, a strong thunderstorm hit just as we were trying to begin our 6 p.m. service (outdoors). We moved everything inside and got a late start. Obviously our attendance was down, since most of our folks walk to church and there was a monsoon going on outside. Nevertheless. about 20 of us packed into the house and had a sweet time of worship.

Thanks again for your prayers! We appreciate you!

On Thursday we began offering Conversational English classes at our church. We are trying this strategy out on a trial basis to see how effective it will be as a relationship building tool in the community. Our ultimate goal is to make some new friends and lead them to Christ. In the meantime, we will help them with their English skills. It’s a form of indirect evangelism that should allow us to reach people that a more direct method might not reach.

Just before the class on Thursday night, a strong thunderstorm passed nearby our location. The skies were very dark, there was thunder and lightening, and a few drops of rain. However, nine students braved the weather and seemed sincerely excited about the classes. One young couple arrived 45 minutes early and were extremely eager to get started.

Would you pray for A, G, J, and A? These four people are prospects and will be participating in the classes.

During the fall, we’ll be asking our incoming U.S. volunteer teams to hold an English workshop to allow our students to practice even more.