Tenth Dot

My youth Pastor, Joe Castaneda, and a close friend of his, Danny Ray, have started a new website called http://www.tenthdotministries.com/. They post short devotions each day that they write themselves for their friends, family, youth group, and anyone else who wants to read them. This month they are doing a 28 day challenge. I have been doing it, and some friends and I have been keeping each other accountable and talking about what we have been learning. We are currently on day 15, and it has been an amazing two weeks. I have learned so much! The first week we talked about our past, and how we need to surrender everything to God and let God use our past to help us make the future glorify Him. Week two was about Joseph, and that was really cool. I learned a lot from that. This week, week three, we are talking about Nehemiah. I never had really studied the life of Nehemiah and what he did with his life. It is so inspiring! God is amazing. One quote that I really liked from this week is "always be in a place where we allow God to move us, and when He does, to act."
Some of my favorite verses have been:

"Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything." James 1:2-4

"Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God."
2 Corinthians 1:3-4



I am really thankful for this ministry that PJ and his friend, Danny Ray, have started. I am growing closer to God, discovering the things in my life that I need to work harder at fixing, learning about what God has done in other peoples lives, and how my life can impact others. Also, how big of an impact and how great of things I can do for God, more than I could ever dream of, if I trust in Him to make them happen; if I surrender my life to Him.

Furlough 2009

On Saturday, our family arrived back in Autlan from our first furlough after going on the mission field. We spent three months in Salem, Oregon; our home in the United States.
As always, our time in Salem went by all too fast. But we had SO much fun while we were there! We got to catch up and spend time with friends and family that we hadn't seen very much at all in the past two years, and it was great! We had so many good times and memories from the past three months. I was able to spend lots of time with my friends, and do lots of my favorite things in Salem, which was amazing! I missed our church tremendously, and going to youth group was so refreshing. I hadn't had a good, strong, Christian group of peers that I was able to grow in my walk with God in over two years. My youth Pastor, Joe Castaneda, is an amazing man of God that continually challenges me to be the person God wants me to be, and to tell others about God's love. Thank you PJ for all the encouragement you gave me these past three months, it means so much.
Some of my favorite things that I did in the time that we were in Salem were: New Moon Premiere with friends, going to the cabin, youth group, Skillet Concert, Corban Experience, Movie Premiere night, TLC, Meeting Brett from Survivor! Shawn McDonald Concert, going to "the secret place", playing Settlers of Catan, visiting Jack at George Fox, sleepovers with friends, hanging out at Jack's house with friends, TobyMac concert, Eating at Adam's ribs, sleepovers at Corban with Hannah, hanging out with my family over Christmas...I have so many good memories from furlough!
It was crazy because we were back in the States for three months. We were back in the town where I grew up and called home for over 15 years. I quickly fell back into my way of life in Salem, and so it is hard for me to return to Mexico once again. I don't have the same friendships, youth group, or way of living in any sort in the US, as I do in Mexico.
However, I know that I am only going to be in Mexico eight short months before I return back to Salem to begin college. I want to fufill the purpose that God has for me in Mexico these next few months. I know that when I come back to Salem next fall I will miss Mexico a lot, and the thought of being away from my family already makes me sad.

On our way back to Autan, we stopped in Thousand Oaks, California to visit some friends for a few days. And boy did we have a blast!! We went to youth group at their awesome Church, went to Hollywood, Hung out at the beach in Malibu one afternoon, and went to Disneyland! Spending time with the Wise family, the Gallardo's, the De La Rosa's and the Judges was so much fun. I can't wait for the group from their church to come to Autlan again this summer. :)

TLC 2009

Each year our youth group goes to a Teen Leadership Conference in Antelope, Oregon. I was able to go my Freshman year, but my Sophomore and Junior year I was in Mexico. This year I was able to go again, and it was so amazing!

The theme was "Here am I, Send Me", from Isaiah 6:8 which says: "And I heard the voice of the Lord saying, Whom shall I send. And Who will go for us. Then I said here am I, send me."

I was really impacted by what the speaker talked about. I thought about missions in a different way than I had before. He talked about the different phases that people go in based on where they are at in life, and how it effects their readiness to serve. I could go on and on about all the cool things he taught and the way he presented things. I was challenged and impacted in many ways by this conference, and I am very thankful that I was able to go.

Outside from the general sessions and the workshops, there is free time where everyone can just hang out and play in the gym, go on the giant swing, play cards in the coffee shop, play in the snow etc. etc.

I really had a great time at TLC. I didn't have a whole lot of free time, because I was on the kitchen crew, along with Megan, Sarah, Hannah and Brent. But we had a fun time working in the kitchen, especially when we got to talk to this one old guy that served the food. He was very encouraging and gave Sarah and I some dating advice. :)

One afternoon when we had a bit of free time, Jack, Justin and I went on the swing together. It was the awesomest but yet the scariest thing I have ever done in my life. You are harnessed to a metal bar and a small swing-set chair is under you. the metal bar is attached to a big wire that carries you a couple hundred feet up in the air. Your feet are dangling and the only thing you have to hold is the bar in front of you. I was screaming before we even go to the top! When we did get to the top, Jack pulled the rope that released us and we went FLYING through the air, over a big canyon. I am pretty sure my stomach was at the top when I was at the other end, over the canyon. I don't know if I have ever screamed that loug before, it was so crazy!! I loved it though, it was so much fun!

It was a great week growing and being challenged in my relationship with God, hanging out and having a good time with my friends, working in the kitchen, and worshiping the Lord.