New Mexico Outreach 2010

Hello All! We are sorry for the delay in a update, we have just been so busy!!
We arrived in Albuquerque on Saturday Night, and had a wonderful surprise. Larisa Wagner and her mother drove from Colorado to pay us a visit! "It was one of the top 10 moments of my life" quotes Rachel Howden. We were all so excited to be able to spend some time with her. After we collected all our baggage, the group went to a Delicious restaurant to have a late night snack. There we met some local pastors and enjoyed getting to know them. We also got to catch up with Luanne. Our sleeping arrangements are split up between 3 different locations. The men are at Delano's [one of the members of the church]. Jill, Stephanie and Rachel are at Floria's Apartment [another member of the church]. Last, but not least Olivia, Whitney, and Kelsey are staying with the wonderful Luanne Henderson!
Sunday was Easter, as you all know, and we had a packed day! We woke up before the sun and headed to the church to cook pancakes for the congregation. We probably made around 200 chocolate chip, blueberry, and plain pancakes; we also prepared mounds of bacon and sausage. Then the team helped out with the childcare during the church service. It was so fun to play around with the kids! After church we had some down time, so we headed to Starbucks to have a "meeting". There we got our wonderful Easter bags and letters. THANK YOU, for all who contributed--they were lovely. :) After that we headed to Jim and Pat's home for Easter dinner. They live out in the country of New Mexico and own about 10 acres. While dinner was being prepared we spent our time gazing into the coy pond, exploring the property, playing horseshoes, being serenaded by Dan, and having photo shoots. Dinner consisted of, Ice Tea, Mashed Potatoes, Potato Salad, Ham, Turkey, Meatloaf, Cold Slaw, Easter Cookies, Cake, Fudge Brownies and much more! Post dinner we had a time to prepare our testimonies and object lessons that we will be sharing throughout the week.
Yesterday [Monday] we started the day off with a wonderful cereal and bagel breakfast. From there we went to have a tour of the ECM [Eastern Central Ministries]. A little bit of information about ECM; it is a ministry in the most run down part of town, also known as the "war zone".The area is righ along Route 66, and used to be triving. Once the interstate was created The area is 1 square mile and it is mostly run down apartment buildings. ECM is a place for after school tutoring, Bible studies, and job provision. They manufacture their own pottery where they make Ollas [pots buried to help with irrigation for plants], have dental and health clinics, gardens, and much more. It was so amazing to hear what this ministry has done throughout the past few years! We visited Casa Shalom, the housing complex that ECM has re-done and provided inexpensive condo living for 14 families. We were all blown away by the way God is working through this ministry. [They have internships and Rachel is super interested..] After that we went to lunch at the famous Frontier Restaurant, and then had a lovely walk through the University of New Mexico campus. Then we headed to Juntos, which is a children's program every Monday Night. We got to lead the children in songs, play with them, and share with them. Tim, Dan, Michael Chew, Stephanie, Kelsey, Whitney, Olivia, and Jamie all shared their object lessons and did a great job. After Juntos we ate some dinner and went to bed.
All of that brings us to today. We woke up early and came to a prayer meeting at the church, ate breakfast, and are preparing to paint the church sanctuary. Tonight we will be leading the mid-week meeting where Jill, Michael Marvive and Rachel will be sharing their testimonies. We are eating well and the food here is so delicious! Thank you for all your prayers--they are appreciated tons! We love you! :)

P.S. Ferrets are legal to have as pets here and Olivia and Rachel want to bring one home.

Psalm 5:3 In the morning O Lord, you hear my voice. In the morning I lay my requests before you and wait in expectation.