Indiana Brad and Pepita...

I know what it feels like to be a cartoon now (see the picture).

Samuel and Luis are amazing. Two incredibly humble and fun men from Mexico.

They do art and they do it well. The only thing is that Lindsey says my biceps are too small in the picture (well, I just wish she said that).

How about that Olive Oil? Awesome huh. If you have never tried it, try toasting a piece of bread and pouring olive oil over it for breakfast. YUM!

Thank you Samuel. Thank you Luis. Thanks Frys. Thanks Anna. Thanks Miguel and Isaias and everyone else. Thank you for the memories of Spain.

My only question though: When will we see Pepita? (Lindsey's Spanish nickname).

We Hit the Ground Sprinting

It would be safe to say that we hit the ground sprinting in Spain. Things have gone very well our first few days in Spain with lots of visits with missionaries in Madrid, some unique opportunities to serve, and lots of great times of mutual encouragement as each of us learn more not only about the Spaniards but about one another and ourselves.

We are now in Ubeda, Spain where we were warmly received today with a HUGE dinner full of Tortilla Espanola, Ensalada Mixta, and lots of other typical Spanish food. Two members of our team who flew in from Mexico did an artistic presentation in Baeza (a nearby town) where they had a crowd of kids watching them. We'll post some pictures soon but lets just say that they did an amazing job.

We are all quite tired so please pray for our energy levels, unity, and also that we would be a blessing to those that we serve and interact with.

For those of you that pray and/or support, thanks for partnering with us in ministry.

New CAM Mexico Internship Video

Below is the new CAM Mexico internship video for this summer. The animators of this clip are two very talented artists that will be going on our trip to Spain with us these next couple weeks. The voice over is of Rod Fry, who is the coordinator of the Mexico Internship along with his wife Mayra. We are excited to have an innovative way to share what goes on through the internship program in Mexico each summer. Kudos to Rod, Samuel, and Luis for a job well done!

Did you know? (lessons learned in travel planning)

Today I learned something that may seem like common sense to some and something very surprising to others. While planning a trip for a team going to Spain that Lindsey and I are facilitating in March, we of course purchased the plane tickets for our team composed of Americans and Mexicans. However we ran into a snag. When a Mexican citizen flies to Spain and has an hour long layover in an American airport, they must have previously gotten a transit visa or else the airline will not let them on the plane. We should have thought of this but for some reason it came as a surprise.

Lesson learned: be careful to always investigate the visa requirements even for quick connections in not only any US airport but also in any other airport especially when you are making plans for someone who is not an American citizen.

As I think through all this, I find myself wondering how beneficial this is for the US economy to not be able to somehow allow foreigners to sit in a secure area of the airport while awaiting connections. The reason the US government requires the visas is that the foreign national could theoretically (and some probably have) leave the airport and enter the US even while holding a plane ticket. This would pose a security threat. However I'm sure in many cases like the one I just experienced, it would benefit the US economy to find a way to make this type of situation work without visas being required. After all, today $2500 worth of flights was taken out of the American economy and put into the British economy because the UK will allow a Mexican to get a transit visa on the spot to enter the country after a flight with British Airways.

If you find this confusing, you are not alone. We sure do live in a confusing world.

Halloween Alternative -- Please Pray

www.ixtapalucafryed.blogspot.com

At CAM International I have the privilege of seeing some exciting, creative, interactive, and just downright cool ministries. Read the email below about a Halloween Alternative that started last night and continues on Saturday night. Please pray for all involved.

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Tonight and tomorrow night we are presenting a Halloween alternative (for lack of a better term) evangelistic event that we have been working on for weeks now. It is called the "Maze of Life and Death." Some key concepts that we want to teach through this...life is short, we are all going to die, and we better had made the right decisions (Jesus) in life to be prepared for death.

In the maze are 5 scenes. The first scene is the bedroom of a typical young person, with a Bible and different spiritually edifying things on one side, and worldly tempations on the other. In this first room, each participant picks a card (their choice) that says "Jesus" or that says "money", "pleasure", "family," etc...

The second scene is this exact same bedroom (different room), but as seen through spiritual eyes, with angels and demons influencing in subtle and not-so-subtle ways. After this, participants descend into the bottom part of the church, which is death. The third scene is a series of causes of death...heart problems (I am picking up a pig's heart today for a young person to hold), violence, car accidents and liver problems. The last scene is a rocking chair...the largest cause of death is old age, but the total is 100%.

The fourth scene is a graveyard that participants pass, and finally a casket. Someone just died tonight. Each person looks in and sees a reflection of themselves in a mirror inside the casket.

The fifth scene is their eternal destiny. The are asked to present the card that they picked up in the first room. If it is Jesus, they enter heaven, if not, hell. This is probably the most challenging of all the scenes.

If you're wondering about small children, in the case of kids under 8 we will be taking out several elements of the presentation.

Afterwards everyone receives a tract and is invited to drink coffee. People enter in groups of 4 due to reduced spaces. I have a feeling that we'll be doing this into after midnight!

We have announced the event in a local newspaper, and I had the opportunity to appear live twice (5:30 p.m., 8:30 p.m. ) on a local cable tv station on Wednesday to promote the event. I was also given, in the second interview, a great opportunity to share why we exist as a church and the importance of faith in Christ.

Please pray for this event! We expect to see a real impact in the community through this effort. It has been so encouraging to see the whole church, particularly the men, work together in making this happen!

Thanks much for your prayers,

Rod

www.ixtapalucafryed.blogspot.com for pictures and updates