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On Thursday, the local newspaper reported that three cases of swine flu were detected in Arizona. The government of Sonora still strongly denies  any cases in our state, but I have my doubts. With tourism as the #1 industry in the state, it would certainly seem to be a “strategic” move to deny any problems. Yesterday, it was announced that cruise ships planning stopovers in Mexico were being rerouted. That’s quite a blow to the economy. The federal government stated that this epidemic would have economic repercussions for at least three months.

The U.S. consulate in Mexico issued a statement recommending the stockpiling of at least two weeks worth of food staples, drinking water, and medicines. Since much of Mexico’s distribution system originates in Mexico City, widespread outages are expected. We were told today that supplies of antiviral medicines have been given to the local Red Cross. We assume that means Tamiflu or Relenza, but we don’t have confirmation of that. A local doctor said that the Red Cross is the only place to get the meds, if needed.

The catholic diocese of Hermosillo issued a statement that the catholic churches would be open and the masses would be held at their regular schedules. However, measures are in place to minimize the risk. First, parishioners will not be greeting or kissing one another (on the cheek!). Second, the priest will wear a face mask. Third, the doors will be left open for ventilation. Finally, for communion, the host will be given in the hand rather than the mouth.

The IMB, in response to WHO and CDC guidelines is restricting missionary travel to and from Mexico for official meetings and trainings. Missionaries on stateside assignment, set to return to Mexico are on hold right now. We don’t have any meetings in the U.S. planned for the short term, but I am hoping an upcoming meeting in Mexico City will be cancelled.

On another note, yesterday afternoon two groups of political volunteers were out marching in support of their gubernatorial candidates. The PRI and the PAN groups converged at the busiest intersection in the city, presumably by coincidence. As the story goes, the PRI group started taunting the PAN group. Pretty soon, the tension escalated to rock throwing and fighting. The participants spilled into the streets, in between the cars at an intersection where an 8 lane street crosses another 8 lane street. Traffic was snarled and several people were injured. After the melee, the news media interviewed some of the rioters. As expected they pointed fingers at one another saying “They started it!” The sad thing is that one adult said something like, “They threw rocks at us, so what could we do but throw rocks back at them.” The website showed a number of young people holding up political posters and offering the one-finger salute to their opponents. It would be funny if it wasn’t so sad….

Pray for us!

As if life in Mexico isn’t interesting enough, what with the drug wars and the unstable economy and all, we get the swine flu thing. Actually, we don’t have it. But it’s affecting us to some degree.

Earlier this week, the news story broke that a large number of people were sick and some were dying from a new strain of flu. But I guess you would have been hiding under a rock somewhere if you didn’t already know that. Anyway, Mexico City has been hit the hardest. The government shut down schools, businesses, and almost all public gatherings. The catholic church closed their doors. Sporting events, night clubs, restaurants–not happening either. Later in the week, the school closing spread to the entire country. In Sonora, they closed everything from daycares all the way to universities. (The professors at the University of Sonora were doing their annual strike anyway, griping about low wages.) A day later, the governor reluctantly closed down the livestock festival and Hermosillo’s equivalent of the State Fair.

We’ve noticed a considerable number of people wearing masks around town. Traffic is lighter than usual. Yesterday, state officials held a press conference stating that there were not any confirmed cases of swine flu in Sonora. Most of that is happening 1000 miles south of us. However, in solidarity with the federal government, Sonora is complying with the closings.

We decided that it would be wise to postpone our Thursday kids event. I just couldn’t see the justification for gathering together dozens of children, when the local government is taking precautions to keep them at home. Unless the situation persists, we’ll be back on a regular schedule next week.

We’ve been thankful for many of our friends who have called to check on us. Most are kind and concerned. Some give us the “don’t you think it’s time to get out of Mexico” speech. And,…..the answer is no. God is doing some great things here and we are humbled to be able to see that. We wouldn’t trade this experience for all the tea in China, no pun intended!

On top of the swine flu, there was a 5.7 earthquake in Mexico City this week. The peso took another hit and fell a few points. (That’s not bad for us in the short run, but not so good for Mexicans in the long run.) But those tremors were 1000 miles or more from us. Not even a slight movement here. Just hot and dry!

Thanks for reading. Keep us in your prayers!

We are rejoicing over a great weekend of ministry here in Hermosillo. We were glad to have a volunteer team of 9 wonderful Southern Baptist partners from the 22nd Street Baptist Church of Tucson, Arizona with us on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. The group truly expressed the love of Christ in their actions and attitudes. They blessed us as well as the folks that we work with in three different ministry areas. We prayerwalked, worked with children, and taught Bible studies. In between events, we toured Hermosillo and tasted typical Sonoran cuisine. We are thankful for the time that 22nd Street invested in our work, and we expect to see them again!

Our weekly activities were a blessing this week. Momentum continues to build in Villas del Sur. Almost every week there are some new adults in the Bible study. Donna’s children’s ministry is holding strong at 30-40 kids. The work in Las Lomas is growing also. Alan’s Sunday School class at Casa de Dios is also stable at about 12-16 adults.

All in all, we’re pumped!