Valued Prayer partners and supporters!
Thanks so much for your continued faithfulness this last year! We are grateful to call each one of you partners in the ministry.
As
we enter into our busy Christmas season I just wanted to take a few
minutes to say thank you and encourage you with all God has done this
last year- as well as give some the opportunity to plan their giving for
2013 or deal with their year end gifts for 2012.
Our personal monthly account is ending up in the "black" this year
(Praise God!!). This means that we have been fully supported at 100% for
2012! All of this happens with your generous monthly donations coupled
with "spontaneous gifts"! Thank you for that and we pray that God will
continue to guide and direct you all in this way for 2013!
National Workers Fund
--- YUGO has a National
workers fund that helps to support local pastors and leaders in times of
financial distress. With this fund we were able to help the family of
one of our recent graduates pay for his unexpected and sudden funeral
expenses. Would you consider giving towards this fund? It is almost
depleted for 2012.
Pastors and local missionaries
--- We have
several pastors and local missionaries we work with that some of you
have supported over the years- as well as some new ones that would love
to be able to help.
--- Ivan Martinez
------- Ivan works with me with our
pastors and leaders ministry as well as in YUGO's Men's Prison ministry.
Each week Ivan preaches and disciples up to 45 men in the Ensenada
prison. Over the last 2 years he has baptized about 50 new believers.
This is a fruitful ministry that you would be blessed to be apart of.
would you please consider supporting Ivan monthly?
--- Abelino Jacome------Abelino is a local pastor of a church
plant in Tijuana's poor colonies. He is the dad of the "miracle babies"
and th husband of the miracle lady Mirelya that we have spoken so much
about. Abelino serves full time a church of about 50 adults. Most of his
people are unemployed- and those that have jobs are amongst the working
poor. Supporters currently support Abelino at about $100/ month-- he
needs $300 / month more ($4000 /year) to be able to care for his family
and continue to serve full time.
--- Gustavo
-----Gustavo is a graduate of our Bible
training Center for pastors and leaders. He co-taught a class last
session with his pastor. Gustavo's pastor is full time and is very busy
in ministry with 3 feeding kitchens feeding 150+ kids each day, several
services each week, being president of his denomination, teaching in a
Bible Institute. We are confident that Gustavo is ready to be an
assistant pastor, but needs to support his young family. This church of
about 60 adults is along the railway tracks on squatters land and most
of the people in the church are unemployed and unable to support the
church ministry financially. Would you consider supporting an assistant
pastor at $400/ month ( $4800?)
Ministry Funds
Pastors and Leaders Training
---
This winter we are providing a school of ministry in the colonias to
help teach and train the people in leadership and teaching / preaching.
We will be concentrating on grads of our Bible Institute, but will also
have an aspect that new, untrained people can participate and learn.
Next September, we are hoping to have several Bible Institute Classes in
our area. We are praying for 200 students.
Training those students costs us about $150 for each one-- a cost of
$30,000 over 2 years. We ask the students to pay for half of their
schooling (again- most are very poor---) so we need to raise about
$15,000 over the next two years to cover the costs of this valuable
training.
This ministry is bearing fruit. We hear all the time from pastors whose
people feel like they are growing spiritually under the teaching, we see
churches being planted in difficult places sacrificially, we hear of
families being reastored, Sunday school teachers equipped, Feeding
kitchen ministries reaching new kids with the Good news-- it is a very
fruitful and valuable ministry investment.
Would you please pray about partnering with us financially in this ministry?
Feeding kitchens
----
we have the privilege of working with a ministry that helps us to feed
kids at an incredibly reasonable price. for 2 pesos (about 18 cents) we
can feed a kid a good, hot nutritious meal. We partner with local
churches to do this. Would you consider giving towards the East Tijuana
Feeding Ministry? Any amount will go to feed hungry kids physically and spiritually!
Thanks so much for your continued, faithful partnership with us!
Your investment in time, finances and prayer are paying eternal
dividends! May God continue to bless you as you are a blessing to so
many!!
Merry Christmas!
Mike, Shar, Elijah, Caleb and Jacob
Wednesday, December 05, 2012
Wednesday, November 21, 2012
December Prayer letter
Romans 8:28
And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.
What an incredible privilege it is to be called according to God's purpose-- to be in His plans and following His leading. There has been ample evidence this last month or two that God works out all things according to His purpose for His children...
Girls Retreat
Fellow YUGO Missionary Cindy Pesina and I helped our churches we work with to put on a 1 day retreat for teen girls. Life in Tijuana's barrios can be very difficult for a teen. We have seen over the past couple years young church girls being drawn away by the world around them an in trouble far too early in life. A church had asked us to please help them serve their girls in helping to restore wayward ones and prevent their girls from being enamoured by the world.
The result was 44 girls from 4 churches and a children's home from 12-18 years old coming for a full day of teaching about inner and outer beauty, purity and real love. They had their nails and hair done, made crafts and heard God's Word clearly. In the end several gave their lives to Christ, others came to some older ladies we had on hand for counseling and prayer and 34 of them committed themselves to purity until God brings them their husbands that He is preparing them for! In the end, those girls were surprised with a committment ring to wear to remind them! God used the teaching and testimonies of Christian women from the US and Mexico to draw these teens to Himself. Some of the teachers had difficult life stories of what happens when we don't follow Jesus in this area. And God used those things for His good this day! Thank you to those who prayed and those who gave and allowed this to happen.
Graduation
We have graduated the 2nd generation of pastors and leaders from 3
different classes in Tijuana and La Mision (town about 45 minutes away)
There were 22 grads altogether and we had a great time celebrating
together.
 |
| All of our grads together |
 | |
| A grad from the class at Valle Redondo |
 |
| The Canadian whos always talking... |
 |
| La Mision Grad |
2 Graduations
Jose Alfredo Cazares Cazares graduated from our Pastors and leaders training course after 2 years of hard work and study. He had been serving in his church as a sunday school teacher and sensed God's call to shepherd His church. By all accounts, Jose was a good man who had allowed Christ to transform his life in the last two years. His wife and kids all give testimony to the changes that God's Word had brought to their family through Jose. At the beginning of the course, Jose's family lived in anger, defeat and disbelief. At the graduation ceremony, we saw testimony to the healing that God had brought as Jose lived out repentance, faith and love in his family. It was a family restored, in love with Jesus. His teacher, Abelino, told me that God had done a good work-- whereas Jose Alfredo thought he should be a pastor to a church, first of all God had caused him to first shepherd his family. Less than one month after graduation, Jose Alfredo died in his sleep at the age of 50. In love with Jesus, the Scriptures, his family and Jesus' church. In Death, Joses life still is bringing fruit. On the day if His wake, Pastor abelino (pictured here in black) shared the hope in Christ that Jose lived with - and Jose's intense desire to see his siblings and parents come to follow Jesus. Jose's brother repented and placed his total trust in Jesus there-- got up and declared that he was filled with a peace- for the first time in his life- and he could not understand... That night he shared from Psalm 23 (the last message Jose had preached the week before as a guest preacher) and witnessed the whole family present receive Jesus Christ, freedom, forgiveness and peace.
Well Done, good and faithful servant...
Thank you so much for being with us here in prayer and financial support. God is doing great things here through us. Please pray that we would continue to seek His face, love His people and enjoy His presence.
Monday, July 30, 2012
July Prayer Letter
Hello Ministry Partners!
Here we are at the end of July-- and I think I'm going to be able to find a couple minutes to update you well on whats been happening here since my last update...
Neighbour...
The Neighbour issue has calmed down somewhat. He has been keeping to himeself the last few weeks. I heard that his landlord is evicting him at the end of this month. This may be a messy affair as we're pretty sure he is not mentally stable and will likely resist eviction (happening this week). Please continue praying for a peaceful resolution to this situation.
Pastors Conference
Ivan ( my co-worker ) and I went to Queretaro in Central Mexico for a Pastors and Leaders conference. We had a good time down there and the highlight was meeting with Jose Luis Rangel- who is a church planter from our church in Rosarito.
Jose Luis and his family left our church almost a year ago to plant a church in his hometown of Irapuato, Guanajuato. It is in an under-reached part of Mexico. They have had a difficult time of things as discouragement had set in. He really had been second guessing his calling to plant a church there and took a break from things just to try to rethink through things and pray. Just a few days before the conference God dealt with him and some issues he was having and re-iterated his call to serve the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords. Jose Luis responded and decided at the last minute to go to the conference which was an hour away from his town.
He was shocked to see Ivan and I there as he hadn't expected anyone from our church to be there! We were able to be an encouragement to him and it confirmed to Jose Luis again God's goodness and calling... I've covenanted with him to keep in contact and help him through the church planting process- espescially in such a difficult, hard hearted area.
The conference was good and the city it was in was beautiful! It was refreshing to be in "real Mexico"! The culture is quite different from the border areas and we enjoyed being there!
Bible College
I have been teaching at Calvary Chapel Rosarito's Bible College this summer in 1 Corinthians. It's been an adventure to explore through this book with these folks at our church.
Pastors Training
We would appreciate your prayers for the pastors and leaders training ministry. We are just finished the 9th book of 10 and a large issue has come up that will keep several of the students from graduating. One of the main requirements to graduate is attendance. And each teacher needs to demonstrate that their students have attended at least 75% of the classes in order to graduate. We verify this every few weeks by checking attendance lists. Invariably some students leave due to the requirements. It is one of the ways that we are sure to keep faithful people in the program because ministry and leadership is difficult. If they have learned to persevere through the class, they are much better equipped to persevere in the midst of ministry difficulties.
To make a long story short, we found out a few days ago that attendance records had been falsified. It was a great disappointment to us, both in regards to the teacher and the students. The reality is we don't know who was ever in classes and so it is impossible for us to graduate the group.
I explained to the class that learning is never in vain and prayed that they would have changed lives as a result of the time they had invested in studying God's Word. For those who want to be pastors and NEED to graduate, we have offered to let them start again when the next generation begins in 2013.
Please pray for this situation. Relationships have been hurt as a result. There are many false accusations happening as well within the churches in that area. Please pray for peace and reconciliation.
Church Planting
We have 3 church planters I will be working with more and more in the next year. I will be team-teaching a course on church planting as well this fall.
I also have 3 churches / pastors/ church planters potentially interested in joining our movement. I love working with these guys and cannot wait to get more into it as summer turns to fall!
Family
We are all doing well. Shar and the boys have had a Spanish class 5 mornings a week this summer. You would think that that wouldn't go over well with the boys (or their homeschool teacher/ mom), but they are enjoying the classes and can see improvements in the Spanish. That has been encouraging for all of us!
Caleb is going to have his best buddy / pseudo-cousin over for a couple weeks for the end of summer. We plan on taking a "staycation" during that time and wind down the summers ministries and get charged up for a busy fall. When I looked at the summer Schedule in May, I thought I was going to be bored looking for things to do this summer! But the Lord knew what the summer would hold and it has been an incredibly busy time for all of us. We're thankful for the strength to serve Him and for the family time we're going to be able to have in a few weeks!
(to the Right a pic of our family with Emanuel- a church planter and ex-student of mine from Calvary Chapel bible College)
Future
None of us know what the future holds, but we make plans trustng that God will direct our paths! There may be some other changes in our ministry responsibilites in the near future. We will be still be involved in the same things, but as we train more people here to do the work of the ministry, our role may change a bit. YUGO has been growing and expanding in our outlook and vision and we're excited to be a part of that "Reaching Mexico- Impacting the World". I'll let you know more about it as it unfolds!
Vehicle
Most of you know about our past vehicle issues.... this spring we had another one with our van. While it has been an incredible blessing, the van now has over 250,000km on it ans it has had the engine almost totally redone twice in the last year. The types of driving and the roads we run it on here in Mexico are brutal on a vehicle! When people are looking to buy a car down here- the value drops considerably depending on how long its been in Tijuana! They call it "Tijuana-ed". In other words they will ask-- "has the car been tijuana-ed"? and, unfortunately, ours has been... This is the vehicle we use for daily running around, trips to the states and long ministry and personal trips. We have been thinking that we are going to need to replace it within the next year or so.
YUGO Canada Board has approved us for a "Vehicle Fund". So if God is so leading you to participate in this, please see the donation information at the end of this letter. Please send a note or a place a note in the "memo" part of the check saying it is for "McDonald Vehicle Fund"
Thanks!
Thanks to all of you who back us up in prayer and financial gifts. Both of those things keep us here serving God and these incredible people He loves so much. I am constantly amazed at how good a "fit" things seem to be for us down here. It seems as though God has been preparing us our whole lives for this season of service! Thank you so much, again, for allowing us to be here! I cannot wait until we get to glory and I can introduce you all to the people, the churches, the children, the pastors, the leaders whose lives you've had a part in!
God bless you and keep you!
DONATION INFORMATION:
YUGO Ministries Canada
PO Box 231
St.Albert, AB T8N 1N3
yugoministries@cruzinternet.com
ph. 780-461-0891
Here we are at the end of July-- and I think I'm going to be able to find a couple minutes to update you well on whats been happening here since my last update...
Neighbour...
The Neighbour issue has calmed down somewhat. He has been keeping to himeself the last few weeks. I heard that his landlord is evicting him at the end of this month. This may be a messy affair as we're pretty sure he is not mentally stable and will likely resist eviction (happening this week). Please continue praying for a peaceful resolution to this situation.
Pastors Conference
Ivan ( my co-worker ) and I went to Queretaro in Central Mexico for a Pastors and Leaders conference. We had a good time down there and the highlight was meeting with Jose Luis Rangel- who is a church planter from our church in Rosarito.
Jose Luis and his family left our church almost a year ago to plant a church in his hometown of Irapuato, Guanajuato. It is in an under-reached part of Mexico. They have had a difficult time of things as discouragement had set in. He really had been second guessing his calling to plant a church there and took a break from things just to try to rethink through things and pray. Just a few days before the conference God dealt with him and some issues he was having and re-iterated his call to serve the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords. Jose Luis responded and decided at the last minute to go to the conference which was an hour away from his town.
He was shocked to see Ivan and I there as he hadn't expected anyone from our church to be there! We were able to be an encouragement to him and it confirmed to Jose Luis again God's goodness and calling... I've covenanted with him to keep in contact and help him through the church planting process- espescially in such a difficult, hard hearted area.The conference was good and the city it was in was beautiful! It was refreshing to be in "real Mexico"! The culture is quite different from the border areas and we enjoyed being there!
Bible College
I have been teaching at Calvary Chapel Rosarito's Bible College this summer in 1 Corinthians. It's been an adventure to explore through this book with these folks at our church.Pastors Training
We would appreciate your prayers for the pastors and leaders training ministry. We are just finished the 9th book of 10 and a large issue has come up that will keep several of the students from graduating. One of the main requirements to graduate is attendance. And each teacher needs to demonstrate that their students have attended at least 75% of the classes in order to graduate. We verify this every few weeks by checking attendance lists. Invariably some students leave due to the requirements. It is one of the ways that we are sure to keep faithful people in the program because ministry and leadership is difficult. If they have learned to persevere through the class, they are much better equipped to persevere in the midst of ministry difficulties.
To make a long story short, we found out a few days ago that attendance records had been falsified. It was a great disappointment to us, both in regards to the teacher and the students. The reality is we don't know who was ever in classes and so it is impossible for us to graduate the group.
I explained to the class that learning is never in vain and prayed that they would have changed lives as a result of the time they had invested in studying God's Word. For those who want to be pastors and NEED to graduate, we have offered to let them start again when the next generation begins in 2013.
Please pray for this situation. Relationships have been hurt as a result. There are many false accusations happening as well within the churches in that area. Please pray for peace and reconciliation.
Church Planting
We have 3 church planters I will be working with more and more in the next year. I will be team-teaching a course on church planting as well this fall.
I also have 3 churches / pastors/ church planters potentially interested in joining our movement. I love working with these guys and cannot wait to get more into it as summer turns to fall!
 |
| (This is a picture of Martin Garcia and youth from our Church-- Martin is planting a church in Tijuana ina new community of about 30,000 people with very little gospel witness in it....) |
Family
We are all doing well. Shar and the boys have had a Spanish class 5 mornings a week this summer. You would think that that wouldn't go over well with the boys (or their homeschool teacher/ mom), but they are enjoying the classes and can see improvements in the Spanish. That has been encouraging for all of us!
Caleb is going to have his best buddy / pseudo-cousin over for a couple weeks for the end of summer. We plan on taking a "staycation" during that time and wind down the summers ministries and get charged up for a busy fall. When I looked at the summer Schedule in May, I thought I was going to be bored looking for things to do this summer! But the Lord knew what the summer would hold and it has been an incredibly busy time for all of us. We're thankful for the strength to serve Him and for the family time we're going to be able to have in a few weeks!(to the Right a pic of our family with Emanuel- a church planter and ex-student of mine from Calvary Chapel bible College)
Future
None of us know what the future holds, but we make plans trustng that God will direct our paths! There may be some other changes in our ministry responsibilites in the near future. We will be still be involved in the same things, but as we train more people here to do the work of the ministry, our role may change a bit. YUGO has been growing and expanding in our outlook and vision and we're excited to be a part of that "Reaching Mexico- Impacting the World". I'll let you know more about it as it unfolds!
Vehicle
Most of you know about our past vehicle issues.... this spring we had another one with our van. While it has been an incredible blessing, the van now has over 250,000km on it ans it has had the engine almost totally redone twice in the last year. The types of driving and the roads we run it on here in Mexico are brutal on a vehicle! When people are looking to buy a car down here- the value drops considerably depending on how long its been in Tijuana! They call it "Tijuana-ed". In other words they will ask-- "has the car been tijuana-ed"? and, unfortunately, ours has been... This is the vehicle we use for daily running around, trips to the states and long ministry and personal trips. We have been thinking that we are going to need to replace it within the next year or so.
YUGO Canada Board has approved us for a "Vehicle Fund". So if God is so leading you to participate in this, please see the donation information at the end of this letter. Please send a note or a place a note in the "memo" part of the check saying it is for "McDonald Vehicle Fund"
Thanks!
Thanks to all of you who back us up in prayer and financial gifts. Both of those things keep us here serving God and these incredible people He loves so much. I am constantly amazed at how good a "fit" things seem to be for us down here. It seems as though God has been preparing us our whole lives for this season of service! Thank you so much, again, for allowing us to be here! I cannot wait until we get to glory and I can introduce you all to the people, the churches, the children, the pastors, the leaders whose lives you've had a part in!
God bless you and keep you!
 |
| Mike translating for Abelino on Thursdays at YUGO's Rosarito Outreach Center |
DONATION INFORMATION:
YUGO Ministries Canada
PO Box 231
St.Albert, AB T8N 1N3
yugoministries@cruzinternet.com
ph. 780-461-0891
Friday, June 22, 2012
guisano con nopales
Here is the nopale "stir fry" that we had for lunch yesterday. Joseph Fruin is teaching Shar and the kids Spanish and for part of the lessons they are cooking good, inexpensive food he learned to prepare at New Tribes Bible Institute in Chihuahua, Mexico!
Guisano Con Nopales (cactus leaves)
Fry up onions until they are sort of clear. add some herbs- basil,
add chopped garlic and fry for a while.
mix all that around.
push onions and garlic to side and out in a couple pads of cut up nopales- add salt
wait for a while till the nopales are fried well.
add 3-5 chopped poblano (Anaheim) peppers- add pepper and granular garlic.
Add a couple arbol peppers here too.
cook this stuff up for a few minutes.
take all this stuff and put it in bowl.
fry a bunch of cut potatoes-- add spices and herbs.- granular garlic, basil, salt and pepper.
When potatoes are fried, mix some beans and all the stuff you put in the bowl.
add 3 cut limes. cover it with lid and let cook for maybe 2-3 minutes
add some cut tomatoes
stir everything around.
take out limes and its ready to eat with tortillas...
ENJOY!
(as dictated by Elijah McDonald)
Guisano Con Nopales (cactus leaves)
Fry up onions until they are sort of clear. add some herbs- basil,
add chopped garlic and fry for a while.
mix all that around.
push onions and garlic to side and out in a couple pads of cut up nopales- add salt
wait for a while till the nopales are fried well.
add 3-5 chopped poblano (Anaheim) peppers- add pepper and granular garlic.
Add a couple arbol peppers here too.
cook this stuff up for a few minutes.
take all this stuff and put it in bowl.
fry a bunch of cut potatoes-- add spices and herbs.- granular garlic, basil, salt and pepper.
When potatoes are fried, mix some beans and all the stuff you put in the bowl.
add 3 cut limes. cover it with lid and let cook for maybe 2-3 minutes
add some cut tomatoes
stir everything around.
take out limes and its ready to eat with tortillas...
ENJOY!
(as dictated by Elijah McDonald)
Sunday, June 03, 2012
Saturday, May 05, 2012
Mirellya update and shower info!!
About 4 years ago Mirellya almost died. She had been diagnosed with a
severe heart problem that incapacitated her. The doctors only gave her a
few months to live.
God had different plans and she survived some serious brushes with death. Her faith, joy and hope in Christ was like a light in the hopeless darkness. Her doctor took notice and after several inquiries, he surrendered his life to Jesus.
Through a variety of circumstances, he was no longer able to practice medicine in Mexico and so moved to the States to doctor there. All through the years he has kept in contact with Mirellya.
Her current obstetrician responded differently to the light he saw in Mirellya. He confused it for obstinant foolishness and so refused to treat her if she did not consent to killing her babies to save her own life. After a series of sleepless nights and crazy dreams he saw Mirellya in a hospital waiting line and declared that he had to treat her, he could not get her out of his mind!
The obstetrician was sure he was treating a dead woman and possibly to dead babies. But as time went on, against all logic, the babies and Mirellya got better, not worse! The doctor declared that if she and the babies survived he too would bow his knee to Jesus and accept him as his Lord and Savior.
When the time came to be ready to do the surgery the obstetrician contacted his banished colleague (Mirellya's old doctor) in California for help. Could he possibly find a Doctor to do the liver and kidney surgeries as well as an anathesiologist? Absolutely! He found some of the best who only charged a minimal amount to help($1500) compared to their normal fees. God provided the funds and they were on their way. The exiled doctor was convinced that this was at least one of the reasons God had sent him back to the US!
The day came for the surgery and Mirellyas heart was too weak to do it. Distraught, the doctors sent her home for 10 days with little or no hope. 20% chance of survival originally. Less now with the new test results.
"20%?" Said Mirellya's husband Pastor Abelino. "The doctors can only do 20%. Good. That leaves 80% for Christ to do His work!!"
He loved those odds!!
10 days later and it's surgery day. Mirellya was in the hospital overnight for observation while Abelino slept in his van outside, unable to be with her.
At 11:00am he was supposed to get some information on how she was doing from the waiting room in a separate building 200 meters away from the hospital.... Nothing. No information until at least 3pm they said.
At 3pm they permitted him to go upstairs where she was and through tears of joy he got to see his wife and twin girls all doing well!
Meanwhile there was more birth going on; Second births, as the three unbelieving doctors listens to the Christian doctor explain to the others what had happened and what their response needed to be. The surgeon exclaimed that this surgery was his best ever. It was like someone else was controlling his hands. The anastheaiologist was dumbfounded that mirellyas heart had no ill response to the anasthetic. And all of them gave glory to God Most High for what He had done. They had witnessed a real miracle!!
All 3 Of them surrendered their lives to Christ, repenting of their sin and unbelief and declaring Him their Lord!!
Praise God that 6 lives were saved that day! Thank you all for your fervent prayer!!
Is anything impossible for God??
May He bless you!
We are having a baby shower for Mirellya!! And You are invited!!!
I have started a partial list of things they need that you can purchase on Amazon.com and it will be delivered to the YUGO office in National City. We are going to "videotape" the shower on May 14th (tentative date, depending on how she is feeling) and post it for you to see.
If you'd like to send a gift, here is the link!
THANK YOU!!
God had different plans and she survived some serious brushes with death. Her faith, joy and hope in Christ was like a light in the hopeless darkness. Her doctor took notice and after several inquiries, he surrendered his life to Jesus.
Through a variety of circumstances, he was no longer able to practice medicine in Mexico and so moved to the States to doctor there. All through the years he has kept in contact with Mirellya.
Her current obstetrician responded differently to the light he saw in Mirellya. He confused it for obstinant foolishness and so refused to treat her if she did not consent to killing her babies to save her own life. After a series of sleepless nights and crazy dreams he saw Mirellya in a hospital waiting line and declared that he had to treat her, he could not get her out of his mind!
The obstetrician was sure he was treating a dead woman and possibly to dead babies. But as time went on, against all logic, the babies and Mirellya got better, not worse! The doctor declared that if she and the babies survived he too would bow his knee to Jesus and accept him as his Lord and Savior.
When the time came to be ready to do the surgery the obstetrician contacted his banished colleague (Mirellya's old doctor) in California for help. Could he possibly find a Doctor to do the liver and kidney surgeries as well as an anathesiologist? Absolutely! He found some of the best who only charged a minimal amount to help($1500) compared to their normal fees. God provided the funds and they were on their way. The exiled doctor was convinced that this was at least one of the reasons God had sent him back to the US!
The day came for the surgery and Mirellyas heart was too weak to do it. Distraught, the doctors sent her home for 10 days with little or no hope. 20% chance of survival originally. Less now with the new test results.
"20%?" Said Mirellya's husband Pastor Abelino. "The doctors can only do 20%. Good. That leaves 80% for Christ to do His work!!"
He loved those odds!!
10 days later and it's surgery day. Mirellya was in the hospital overnight for observation while Abelino slept in his van outside, unable to be with her.
At 11:00am he was supposed to get some information on how she was doing from the waiting room in a separate building 200 meters away from the hospital.... Nothing. No information until at least 3pm they said.
At 3pm they permitted him to go upstairs where she was and through tears of joy he got to see his wife and twin girls all doing well!
Meanwhile there was more birth going on; Second births, as the three unbelieving doctors listens to the Christian doctor explain to the others what had happened and what their response needed to be. The surgeon exclaimed that this surgery was his best ever. It was like someone else was controlling his hands. The anastheaiologist was dumbfounded that mirellyas heart had no ill response to the anasthetic. And all of them gave glory to God Most High for what He had done. They had witnessed a real miracle!!
All 3 Of them surrendered their lives to Christ, repenting of their sin and unbelief and declaring Him their Lord!!
Praise God that 6 lives were saved that day! Thank you all for your fervent prayer!!
Is anything impossible for God??
May He bless you!
We are having a baby shower for Mirellya!! And You are invited!!!
I have started a partial list of things they need that you can purchase on Amazon.com and it will be delivered to the YUGO office in National City. We are going to "videotape" the shower on May 14th (tentative date, depending on how she is feeling) and post it for you to see.
If you'd like to send a gift, here is the link!
THANK YOU!!
Wednesday, April 25, 2012
Mirellya goes to the hospital
Mirellya goes to the hospital Thursday afternoon at about 4pm PDT and will stay in for observation. Friday sometime, she will have the surgeries. I'll be keeping Facebook updated as much as I can with the info I have when I get it.
Thanks for praying.
Thanks for praying.
Thursday, April 19, 2012
The not so much of an update, update...
Hey folks-- thanks for your continued prayers--
Mirellya went into the doctors a week ago to have her heart tested and the Doctors did not liek the results. Her scheduled C-Section / operations were for Sunday April 15 ao swith the bad test results they wanted to Wait until this past monday for a new test.
The took the tests monday including (I think...) administering a small amount of the anesthesia to see how her heart responds. It did not do well at all. The doctors were very dismayed and everything has come to a standstill. The Test results say that she will not survive the anasthesia for sure.
Mirellya is quite distraught at the news and seeing how discouraged and concerned the doctors were has fed her real fears.
We went to visit in the afternoon and Mirellya was sleeping. Her husband Abelino is continuing to trust in God and we are all continuing to pray earnestly and fervently for her and the babies.
Please pray that God would be glorified and that he would save all three lives. Ivan Martinez, my partner in ministry here reminded us all of the persistent widow and the unjust judge. How much more will our lovig Heavenly Father be inclined to listen to our persistent requests! This has encouraged me to continue to pray and plead with our Dad on mirellyas behalf.
Please continue with us!!
As of now the new plan is wait until April 26-- just 1 week before her actual due date- to have another round of tests. Mirellya is at home resting and hoping to strengthen her heart.
Thanks for partnering with us here and standing together with us on Mirellyas behalf!
Mirellya went into the doctors a week ago to have her heart tested and the Doctors did not liek the results. Her scheduled C-Section / operations were for Sunday April 15 ao swith the bad test results they wanted to Wait until this past monday for a new test.
The took the tests monday including (I think...) administering a small amount of the anesthesia to see how her heart responds. It did not do well at all. The doctors were very dismayed and everything has come to a standstill. The Test results say that she will not survive the anasthesia for sure.
Mirellya is quite distraught at the news and seeing how discouraged and concerned the doctors were has fed her real fears.
We went to visit in the afternoon and Mirellya was sleeping. Her husband Abelino is continuing to trust in God and we are all continuing to pray earnestly and fervently for her and the babies.
Please pray that God would be glorified and that he would save all three lives. Ivan Martinez, my partner in ministry here reminded us all of the persistent widow and the unjust judge. How much more will our lovig Heavenly Father be inclined to listen to our persistent requests! This has encouraged me to continue to pray and plead with our Dad on mirellyas behalf.
Please continue with us!!
As of now the new plan is wait until April 26-- just 1 week before her actual due date- to have another round of tests. Mirellya is at home resting and hoping to strengthen her heart.
Thanks for partnering with us here and standing together with us on Mirellyas behalf!
Thursday, March 29, 2012
20% chance of survival...
20% chance of survival...
Those are not good numbers. That's an 80% chance of dieing within the next couple weeks. Those are number that send shivers down spines and make grown men buckle over in tears. Espescially if it has to do with his wife.
Abelino and Mirellya have been a part of our lives for over 4 years. During that time we've walked with them through some unimaginable difficulties and rejoiced with them amid astonishing miracles. But this one is different. This one has both at the same time.
Not only should mirellya not be about to deliver twins, she should not even be alive right now. She has struggled with health issues for as long as we've known her- a 30-something mom with chronic heart troubles that I don't understand, and they cannot explain to me. She wasn't supposed to live out the year- and that was over 4 years ago. I've seen her look like she was at deaths door- and that was after 6 months of improving.
I'm embarrassed and ashamed to say that my lack of Spanish and a real understanding of my ministry here kept me from being much of a help, or even an ear to talk to or a shoulder to lean on for the first 2 years of our relationship. Most of their deepest struggles happened without me. But now I'm all in. They are my brother and sister. I hurt when they hurt, cry when they cry and rejoice when they rejoice.
They are hurting, crying and rejoicing all at the same time. Mirellya is having twins-- the very thing that was impossible for her to do (get pregnant) happened. This is the 4th time after she was never supposed to get pregnant again! Only this time she has a chronic heart disease that was supposed to kill her 4 years ago at the same time.
Her original doctor gave her an ultimatum- abort the babies, or I will have nothing to do with you. This is suicide he said. This pregnancy with kill you and the babies. you must abort the babies.
They refused and went months without a doctor. Waiting in line for hours at the emergency room to be seen for a check up regularly, seeing a different doctor every time, feeling rejected. Finally one day the doctor saw them waiting in the line. He immediately came over to her, took her out of line and brought her into his office. "I cannot stop thinking about you" He said. I dream about you, I think about you all day, I see you everywhere. I will be your doctor, I will help you. Mirellya told him that God was convicting him for not treating on of His children. The doctor, shaken, said this is against my best judgement. If you and the babies survive, I will follow Jesus too. Only He can do this.
And the doctors have been amazed. Mirellya is healthier than she has been for years, the babies all appear to be great during their tests. And all of their needs have been provided for! They are doing 3 surgeries at the same time-- a C-Section for the twins and two other surgeries- one on her liver and the other on her gall bladder (I think- still can't understand that word in Spanish...). They have brought specialists in for the procedure and even the Baby Doctr is paying for some of the other Doctor's services.
Still with doctors donating some time, there were $1500 in bills to be paid. for a family that makes $250/ month and barely gets by, that is an astronimical amount.
I was told about the first deadline for $500 on thursday- it needed to be in by Monday. Someone gave the money to us on Saturday. They had the money waiting to give somewhere and felt this is where it was to go--- and the rest just kept coming in and well before the final deadline, the bills were all paid in full.
"How" asked the doctor " can you manage that on your salary??
"What is impossible with man is possible with God" they replied!! "He did it"!
So here we are, 2 weeks away from the due date and the odds are starting to sink in... 20% chance of living to see my babies... 20% chance of seeing the babies room completely constructed... 20% chance of making supper for my family again...
20% chance...
"But" Abelino says to me "The doctors can only do 20%-- the rest is impossible for them to accomplish! That leaves 80% for Christ to come in and do the rest! What is impossible with man , is possible with God!" "I like those odds!"
I know you folks are busy and your lives are filled with lots of stuff to do. I know how difficult it is to pray for someone you don't know- espescially with the abundance of prayer requests that come across our emails, Twitter and facebook each day...
But for those of you who regularly support us in prayer and lift us before our Fathers throne, can you please ask God to consider Abelino and Mirellyas request- to fill in the 80%. In my eyes and thoughts, it seems like a great time to bring honor and Glory to the King of Kings by watching Him do the impossible again in there lives! The fact that she lived this long and is giving this gift of 2 little babies to her husband and kids is already more than they thought they would get, but they are humbly asking God for more. For the improbable and the Impossible. Would you please plead with God on their behalf? That He would glorify Himself in their family and colonia and amongst the many who know and are praying. Please feel free to share this to whomever you like. I actually ask you to please share it with other brothers and sisters who may be inclined to pray with us! send them to our blog, FWD this email, like this on Facebook-- however you want!!
I'll be gone for a few days and I don't know what my internet connection will be like until after Easter Monday, but I will keep you updated with what I know as things change and as I can.
May God bless you too. I wish you could meet Abelino and Mirellya and their two new "daughters to be" Diane and Sharlene (named after my beautiful bride!- What an honour!!)
Your representatives amongst the long-suffering, humble followers of Jesus in Baja California,
Mike, Sharlene, Elijah Caleb and Jacob
Those are not good numbers. That's an 80% chance of dieing within the next couple weeks. Those are number that send shivers down spines and make grown men buckle over in tears. Espescially if it has to do with his wife.
Abelino and Mirellya have been a part of our lives for over 4 years. During that time we've walked with them through some unimaginable difficulties and rejoiced with them amid astonishing miracles. But this one is different. This one has both at the same time.
Not only should mirellya not be about to deliver twins, she should not even be alive right now. She has struggled with health issues for as long as we've known her- a 30-something mom with chronic heart troubles that I don't understand, and they cannot explain to me. She wasn't supposed to live out the year- and that was over 4 years ago. I've seen her look like she was at deaths door- and that was after 6 months of improving.
I'm embarrassed and ashamed to say that my lack of Spanish and a real understanding of my ministry here kept me from being much of a help, or even an ear to talk to or a shoulder to lean on for the first 2 years of our relationship. Most of their deepest struggles happened without me. But now I'm all in. They are my brother and sister. I hurt when they hurt, cry when they cry and rejoice when they rejoice.
They are hurting, crying and rejoicing all at the same time. Mirellya is having twins-- the very thing that was impossible for her to do (get pregnant) happened. This is the 4th time after she was never supposed to get pregnant again! Only this time she has a chronic heart disease that was supposed to kill her 4 years ago at the same time.
Her original doctor gave her an ultimatum- abort the babies, or I will have nothing to do with you. This is suicide he said. This pregnancy with kill you and the babies. you must abort the babies.
They refused and went months without a doctor. Waiting in line for hours at the emergency room to be seen for a check up regularly, seeing a different doctor every time, feeling rejected. Finally one day the doctor saw them waiting in the line. He immediately came over to her, took her out of line and brought her into his office. "I cannot stop thinking about you" He said. I dream about you, I think about you all day, I see you everywhere. I will be your doctor, I will help you. Mirellya told him that God was convicting him for not treating on of His children. The doctor, shaken, said this is against my best judgement. If you and the babies survive, I will follow Jesus too. Only He can do this.
And the doctors have been amazed. Mirellya is healthier than she has been for years, the babies all appear to be great during their tests. And all of their needs have been provided for! They are doing 3 surgeries at the same time-- a C-Section for the twins and two other surgeries- one on her liver and the other on her gall bladder (I think- still can't understand that word in Spanish...). They have brought specialists in for the procedure and even the Baby Doctr is paying for some of the other Doctor's services.
Still with doctors donating some time, there were $1500 in bills to be paid. for a family that makes $250/ month and barely gets by, that is an astronimical amount.
I was told about the first deadline for $500 on thursday- it needed to be in by Monday. Someone gave the money to us on Saturday. They had the money waiting to give somewhere and felt this is where it was to go--- and the rest just kept coming in and well before the final deadline, the bills were all paid in full.
"How" asked the doctor " can you manage that on your salary??
"What is impossible with man is possible with God" they replied!! "He did it"!
So here we are, 2 weeks away from the due date and the odds are starting to sink in... 20% chance of living to see my babies... 20% chance of seeing the babies room completely constructed... 20% chance of making supper for my family again...
20% chance...
"But" Abelino says to me "The doctors can only do 20%-- the rest is impossible for them to accomplish! That leaves 80% for Christ to come in and do the rest! What is impossible with man , is possible with God!" "I like those odds!"
I know you folks are busy and your lives are filled with lots of stuff to do. I know how difficult it is to pray for someone you don't know- espescially with the abundance of prayer requests that come across our emails, Twitter and facebook each day...
But for those of you who regularly support us in prayer and lift us before our Fathers throne, can you please ask God to consider Abelino and Mirellyas request- to fill in the 80%. In my eyes and thoughts, it seems like a great time to bring honor and Glory to the King of Kings by watching Him do the impossible again in there lives! The fact that she lived this long and is giving this gift of 2 little babies to her husband and kids is already more than they thought they would get, but they are humbly asking God for more. For the improbable and the Impossible. Would you please plead with God on their behalf? That He would glorify Himself in their family and colonia and amongst the many who know and are praying. Please feel free to share this to whomever you like. I actually ask you to please share it with other brothers and sisters who may be inclined to pray with us! send them to our blog, FWD this email, like this on Facebook-- however you want!!
I'll be gone for a few days and I don't know what my internet connection will be like until after Easter Monday, but I will keep you updated with what I know as things change and as I can.
May God bless you too. I wish you could meet Abelino and Mirellya and their two new "daughters to be" Diane and Sharlene (named after my beautiful bride!- What an honour!!)
Your representatives amongst the long-suffering, humble followers of Jesus in Baja California,
Mike, Sharlene, Elijah Caleb and Jacob
Wednesday, March 14, 2012
March Prayer Letter!!
Happy Spring! (almost)
Thanks so much for praying for us regularly! We appreciate it more than we can say. I have to tell you that that is one of th emost encouraging things we heard when we were back in Canada (and continue to hear through the grapevine!!) that people are praying for us regularly, some even daily!
This March prayer letter, actually was written in February, and I'm finally able to get it out!
Mirellya and the twins continue to do well! They finally gave her the actual due date this week- April 15th! So she is almost at 8 months pregnant with the twins! Truthfully, neither she nor the twins are supposed to be alive right now! So we are praising God and are thankful for so many of you who are lifting them up in prayer regularly!
This is a new letter format that YUGO has instituted! I hope you like it, next time I'll get some pictures in it to spice it up a bit!!
Please note at the bottom of this and every regular update / prayer letter is a form that can be printed off and sent into the YUGO office in St. Albert, AB to indicate new one time or regular monthly support for us. Praise God, because of a generous donation we have a "reserve" account that has covered our monthly shortfalls this year so far. But our monthly shortfall as well as our extra ministry expenses are draining this account!
Here is a small breakdown of the last 2 months...
January 2012= 39% of needed support and ministry expenses.
February 2012-= 54% of needed support and ministry expenses.
So if you are willing to join the financial part of our team, this form makes it easy to do so. Thank you in ADVANCE!
May God encourage you in this letter! God bless and thank you again, from the bottom of our hearts for you, our partners in prayer and finances. We could not be here without you and we are a direct extension of your ministry!
Enjoy the letter and feel free to print it and pass it around or post it as you like!
God bless,
Mike, Shar and the boys.
--
Michael McDonald
Pastor and Leader Training/ Bible Institute Teacher
YUGO Canada
1-(619)400-3326 (North America)
661-100-3396 (Mexico)
pastrbuzz@gmail.com
Thanks so much for praying for us regularly! We appreciate it more than we can say. I have to tell you that that is one of th emost encouraging things we heard when we were back in Canada (and continue to hear through the grapevine!!) that people are praying for us regularly, some even daily!
This March prayer letter, actually was written in February, and I'm finally able to get it out!
Mirellya and the twins continue to do well! They finally gave her the actual due date this week- April 15th! So she is almost at 8 months pregnant with the twins! Truthfully, neither she nor the twins are supposed to be alive right now! So we are praising God and are thankful for so many of you who are lifting them up in prayer regularly!
This is a new letter format that YUGO has instituted! I hope you like it, next time I'll get some pictures in it to spice it up a bit!!
Please note at the bottom of this and every regular update / prayer letter is a form that can be printed off and sent into the YUGO office in St. Albert, AB to indicate new one time or regular monthly support for us. Praise God, because of a generous donation we have a "reserve" account that has covered our monthly shortfalls this year so far. But our monthly shortfall as well as our extra ministry expenses are draining this account!
Here is a small breakdown of the last 2 months...
January 2012= 39% of needed support and ministry expenses.
February 2012-= 54% of needed support and ministry expenses.
So if you are willing to join the financial part of our team, this form makes it easy to do so. Thank you in ADVANCE!
May God encourage you in this letter! God bless and thank you again, from the bottom of our hearts for you, our partners in prayer and finances. We could not be here without you and we are a direct extension of your ministry!
Enjoy the letter and feel free to print it and pass it around or post it as you like!
God bless,
Mike, Shar and the boys.
--
Michael McDonald
Pastor and Leader Training/ Bible Institute Teacher
YUGO Canada
1-(619)400-3326 (North America)
661-100-3396 (Mexico)
pastrbuzz@gmail.com
Sunday, January 22, 2012
Sunday, January 15, 2012
Ivan Martinez Prayer Letter
Many of you will remember hearing about Ivan Martinez and his ministry during our travels across the country this past summer / fall.
Some folks from Canada are supporting Ivan and his ministry financially so I thought I'd like to post his prayer letter for your encouragement~
Ivan is a YUGO Mexico missionary - living in Mexico and working in prison ministry as well as assisting me in our minstry to pastors and leaders in Mexico. If you'd like to partner with Ivan and his ministry, you can do so via YUGO Canada at:
YUGO Ministries Canada
PO Box 231
St.Albert, AB
T8N 1N3
yugoministries@cruzinternet.com
ph. 780-461-0891
fx. 780-961-7690
Dear Brothers,
Some folks from Canada are supporting Ivan and his ministry financially so I thought I'd like to post his prayer letter for your encouragement~
Ivan is a YUGO Mexico missionary - living in Mexico and working in prison ministry as well as assisting me in our minstry to pastors and leaders in Mexico. If you'd like to partner with Ivan and his ministry, you can do so via YUGO Canada at:
YUGO Ministries Canada
PO Box 231
St.Albert, AB
T8N 1N3
yugoministries@cruzinternet.com
ph. 780-461-0891
fx. 780-961-7690
Dear Brothers,
I Would Like To Begin By Saying Praise God For A New Year.
Now I Would Like To Thank All Of You That Have Kept My Family And Myself Under Prayer,
Praise Report:
 |
| Ivan Preaching in the Ensenada prison prior to the Baptism |
Prison Ministry Is Still Going Strong,Many New Believers Were
Baptize Last Year,Many Of Them Are Growing In The Lord,Learning To Seek
And Trust The Lord In Their Everyday Walk.
Its Not Easy To Walk With God In A Prison,Specially When You Know The Experience Of The Tough Challenges As I've Had.
But It's Not Impossible At All,As We Take The Word Of God That Is
Living And Powerful,And Sharper Than Any Two Edged Sword To Them.
And You Prayers And Support Has Been Very Helpful.
I Also Want To Thank God For Brother Irvin And His Family,
 | |
| Ivan and Pastor Rich Hay from Sequim Washington Baptising some of the inmates. |
You
See This Past Year,I Have Been Going To The Prison Alone,And It Can Get
Tiring After Awhile,So I Prayed For Sometime, Asking God To Raise Up A
Brother That Would Understand The Commitment That It Takes,Many Raised
Their Hands, But After Saying Lets Pray About It,I Never Heard Anything
Again...Many Are Led By Emotions,But We Know That We Walk By Faith And
Not By Sight.
 |
| Ivan getting into his baptism clothes! |
Anyways,Our Brother Irvin And His Family,Got Here To Mexico From
Canada,After Being Here Only Two Weeks God Open The Door For Him To
Enter Every Wednesday With Me At Ensenada Prison(Usually It Takes Longer
To Get Approve).
My Wife Is Still Helping The Teenage Girls At The Children Home In Tijuana Dibujando Una Sonrisa,Teaching The Sowing And The Word Of God.
Prayer Request:
Pray For Our Brother Irvin And His Family,That God Will Bring Them Back
Soon,As They Are Only Here For Two Or Three Months,There Is So Much Work
To Be Done Here In Mexico,And This Family Have Impacted Many Lives In
Such Little Time.
And Finely For Our Support Level Is No Near To Where
It Needs To Be,Pray That God Will Lead Those Faithful Hearts To Get On
Board.
Again Thank You Very Much For Your Prayers And Support,
May Our God Increase Your Blessings In Every Area Of Need In Your Lives,
YOUR FRIENDS AND FAMILY IN MEXICO,
Ivan,Alma,Aleyda And Gregorio Martinez.
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