Signs, Space, and Time

Hi friends,

We hope this Fall update finds you well! Thank you for journeying with us as we serve with COBAMI in Southern Mexico. As we drive around the city, go to school, visit people, attend retreats, worship in Spanish, and eat delicous Oaxacan food we often think of you because we are able to do ministry here because of you.

We praise God that Luis is in his final phase for former language learning at the language institute. While Luis is getting a hang of grammar, listening, speaking, and reading Spanish, it is still overwhelming at times outside of the classroom where people might speak faster and speak less clear. It is even at times hard for me even though I speak Spanish because it’s different than Bolivian or Costa Rican Spanish where I originally learned the language. However, there has definitely been a huge improvement for both of us in understanding and responding that we know it will just continue to get better! We are thankful for the many prayers said on our behalf in regard to language learning. We want to both be able to communicate well in order to share the the gospel and our lives. With any culture there is so much more to learn than just language! Learning the culture, customs, and values keeps us curious and asking questions. We’d like to share a part of Oaxacan culture through the themes of signs, space, and time.

The hang loose sign or shaka sign means there is no passage (which means roads are blocked because of protests or events). This is mainly done during traffic, and I felt very proud of myself doing it to a taxi driver who was honking at me. To thank some one allowing you to cross the street or drive pass, you put the back of the hand facing forward. When I first noticed it I was at an intersection and thought surely I have offended the driver because he gave me the back of his hand, however it is a polite way of saying thank you.

The cultural value of closeness is beautiful and also stressful depending on the context. Watching both young and adult children hold on to their parent’s hand while walking down the street is just one example of the beautiful part of the culture. We hope that our daughter will always hold our hands. This idea of closeness is seen between cars on the roads and can be stressful when in traffic or navigating very tight narrow streets. There have been a handful of times where we needed to fold in our side view mirror to in order to pass trucks delivering water or other vehicles.

We are learning the rhythm of Oaxacan time (and let’s be honest we were already familiar with Latin time). La comida is the main meal of the day which is anywhere between 1-3pm. This has been a bit tricky for us with a toddler who still naps in the afternoons but we flex and make it work when we need to. Another instance that can give you a good picture of what we mean about Oaxacan time was when we were invited to one of the COBAMI church’s anniversary celebrations. It was a beautiful worship service celebrating God’s faithfulness and how this particular church is making a difference in their community for God’s Kingdom. This celebration took place on a Sunday morning and continued for about five-six hours! There was a fancy lunch prepared after service. During our lunch we were sitting around waiting for the various courses to be served to us, we took a look around and mentioned to one another that no one seemed to be in a hurry. Everyone was enjoying talking around the table. It was a cultural moment for us because we couldn’t imagine that people back home would be okay with just sitting around chatting and eating after church for five hours. The term is called sobremesa where people engage in meaningful conversation and relax around the table after a meal and enjoy eachothers company. What a beautiful part of the Mexican culture that we get to experience and be a part of.

We are trying our best to learn the cultural norms so we can build lasting relationships and share the Gospel in context. We thank you for praying for us and carrying us through these new cultural learnings of signs, space, and time. We want to really learn these things well as it will help us understand our ministry partners, build trust, and sustainable ministry! In Fall during September and October American Baptist Churches take the World Mission Offering, we want to just say thank you, thank you from the bottom of our hearts for remembering us and the ministry here in Southern Mexico and all around the world where International Ministries serve. God’s love and light are shining bright around the world because of your generous ongoing gifts and annual gifts during the WMO.

Partner with us in the ministry

Talita Cumi Clubs are growing!

As many of you know, Talita Cumi Girls Club (TCGC) arrived in Oaxaca before we physically arrived because I worked with Barbara Bolick to provide mentor training through online platforms. Since our family has arrived to the city, I (Sarah) have been working in building strong relationships with Julia and Noemí who coordinate the clubs and the women who serve as mentors for the girls. I’m excited to share with you that we have three new clubs in the State of Puebla and two in the State of Oaxaca. For the past three years TCGC has served around 50 girls! Praise God for this ministry and the ministry of the amazing women who volunteer their time to share the love of Jesus to these girls and their families. I am so honored to serve with these amazing women who love Jesus and love serving girls.

The program coordinators have asked me to provide pastoral and spiritual care for the mentors. To meet this need, I am working with the program coordinators to offer monthly check in meetings sometimes in person but more regularly through video calls as we are geographically spread out. The spiritual and emotional support need is very vital to create sustainability for the clubs and spiritual vitality for the women. They carry the stories of the girls and their realities of loss, trauma, abuse, etc. and need a space to process it all. We are blessed to have two psychologist on our Talita Cumi team who provide their expertise in mental health.

In our last mentor meeting, in midst of hearing heartbreaking stories of the girls lived realities, there was a common thread of hope and transformation. Parents or guardians have shared with the mentors that they have seen a difference in how the girls carry themselves in only a couple months of participating in TCGC. What an amazing work of the Spirit of God! We pray that these girls will continue to grow in their faith and grow in their friendships with others in their club. Over the school year, Sarah hopes to visit the clubs and provide training and further support for the mentors.  Stay tuned….more to come!

Prayer requests

For wisdom and clear instructions on getting the necessary paperwork to apply for temporary residency.

For friendships for all three of us.

The ministry of the Talita Cumi girls clubs, the mentors, and the girls attending the clubs that started this school year.

For the mission team from our Oaxacan church headed to Spain to work with Mexican missionaries who graduated from COBAMI Cross-Cultural School of Mission.

For Sarah’s mom as she continues to fight cancer and go through chemo.