2018 In Full Swing

The past two months have been busy! December flew by. We had "vacation" time to catch up on schoolwork, prepare for the new semester, and visit with family in between. My siblings were here to visit, and we had a blast. January has been full of new things: we have a couple of new students at school, my church has changed the youth group organization and program, and the women's project has begun to take more of our time.

Being a new Missionary Kid in Oaxaca may be a bit daunting. Many of the students at OCS have been here for most of their lives. They have formed bonds and friendships over the many years they have spent together. I was actually just reminiscing with one of my former teachers about the good times I had in his class. He brought up the many shenanigans my friends and I used to be a part of in 5th grade, and we laughed. He said "And they still let you kids hang out together, after all that?" Well, those particular friends went to school with me for all 12 years! Having to jump into that kind of community while adjusting to a new country is a lot to handle. As a teacher, I have to take that into account as I try to welcome new students to my class. It has taken a chunk of our class time, but I'm hoping that time has been helpful. Please pray for wisdom as we begin this semester, as I prepare the JR/SR class to graduate and return to their passport countries, and as we lead the MK Youth Group through their highs and lows this semester.

Meanwhile at Lluvias De Gracia church, our youth group has grown to the point where we have decided to split it. When I say "youth" I mean anyone age 15 and up who is single. Yup, that means we have Youth members over the age of 30. Most Oaxacan churches follow this format. At the beginning of the month we had a meeting with the older youth members (including me) and decided that the best way for us to encourage growth and fellowship would actually be to divide the group. Starting this month we will have a High School group (15-18), a College group (18-25) and an Adult group (25+). Each group has a set of expectations and goals, and I am very excited to see the growth and change! Our first challenge will be at a conference mid-February. We invited other youth groups and churches to join us for a conference on Purity. Most Hispanic churches do not have official youth leaders, and the tough topics often are overlooked or avoided. Mexico has an incredibly high rate of teen pregnancy and it is very common for couples to marry before they are 18; even in the church. We would like to take a frank look at the cultural reasons behind this, but also approach marriage and dating from a Biblical perspective. The idea originated from our Purity Camp we had for the MK youth group last semester. As we discussed purity with our English-speaking teens, we realized that these topics were not often discussed in Spanish. So, we wrote up the program in Spanish and will be presenting it! The Adult group will be helping with small group discussion. Pray for discernment and grace as we take this on. Also, pray specifically for my friend Isaac and I. Neither of us is fully comfortable presenting in front of crowds, on difficult topics, in Spanish!

The Women's Project has really taken off! After training in December in Mexico City, the team decided to take our once-a-month program to a once-a-week program. We are also working with teams from other cities, and we have definitely noticed the difference, even just this month. And it has been a tough month. We have faced huge obstacles and had really difficult days. Due to the sensitive nature of the project, I cannot share specific details, but we would really appreciate you praying with us as we face these giants. We know God is leading our project, we trust He has it under control, and we will continue to share His love always.

Lastly, OCS is always looking for more teachers! Our goal is to provide a complete education to MKs so their parents are able to focus on the ministry they moved here to do. Unfortunately, we still often call on parents to teach some classes because we are understaffed. Each teacher is teaching multiple classes, and we are all involved in outside ministry as well. We all love our crazy jobs, and would love to have more people join us. This video is a promo the school made, so please share it with anyone who might be interested in missions. Plus, it's a sneak peek at what I do!

Thank you and God Bless!

-Ruth