Mission "El Rincon de la Victoria"

See you soon!

2011-09-13T12:44:00.000-07:00

Jesus said once: "Let the little children come to Me, and do not forbid them; for of such is the kingdom of God" (Mark 10:16). Last week we had our first Vacation Bible School for children up to 12 years old. What a blessed time we had! Twenty men and women from our church prepared for these days with enthusiasm and excitement and served the Lord and the kids with joy. Thirty-four children were taught the love of Jesus through songs, studies, games, crafts and Christian fellowship. Last Sunday we invited all the children and their families to our Sunday Service and four new families showed up. Three people gave their lives to Jesus after the teaching of the Word and the whole church was greatly edified. The Lord has truly blessed us in so many ways through this ministry. Thank you Jesus!!

This is very good news, but there's more we want to share with you. We are happy to say God opened the doors for our family to go visit our dear church in Upland, California. We'll be leaving Spain September on the 26th and returning October the 14th. We believe this is a very important and necessary visit, so we would like to ask you all for your prayers in this regard. We will be happy to visit any church or individual who is interested in knowing more about the ministry God is doing in El Rincon de la Victoria. If this is your case, please contact our church, CC Upland, or talk to our pastor, Randy Walls.

The day before our flight, our church will celebrate our first baptisms. How exciting! Three persons are going to obey Jesus by being baptized and the whole church will be there to rejoice with them. Please, pray for these people that their lives may always glorify our Father in Heaven.

Thank you, brothers and sisters for your support. We hope to see as many of you as possible these coming weeks. We love you and miss you all. Que Dios os bendiga!

"To Him who is able..."

2011-07-13T02:32:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone! We can most surely say there is no one else in this world who could be worse than us when it comes to updating a blog. We're so sorry!! The truth of the matter is that we desire to be better in communicating to you all what our Lord is doing because He has been so faithful to us and everyone should know it. As Acts 4:20 says: "For we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard".

By the end of April, we received the visit from a missionary from Montreal, Canada. Her name is Bernadette and she came with her mom, dad and grandma. They were all such a blessing to us, as a family, and also to the church. Bernadette shared the Word with the ladies from church and the whole family passed flyers through out the town and were a great encouragement to everyone. Thank you so much for your loving service!

The men's discipleship concluded by the beginning of May with a "Men's dinner". It was a lot of fun! The ladies, on the other hand, met during the month of June to go through a study called "Dwelling in the Holy of Holiest" by kay Smith. God is teaching us and breaking us all so much through His Word.

The last weekend of May, our whole family got to fly to Switzerland again to teach the youth at their annual church retreat. What a blessing from God! We always enjoy so much our time with our brothers and sisters from the Spanish Church in Winthertur. Thank you, pastor Alfredo, for inviting us and making us feel so loved and respected. We love you all!

One of the most exciting things we have to report is the Gospel Choir Alicia and Eunice are leading at the local school. God opened the door for the choir to sing at a local music hall called "Sala Las Musas". With the concert, we raised money for an organization who works with handicapped people from our town called "Amirax". Over one hundred people attended and heard the message of the gospel as the children sang. But this is not all... A few days after that concert, a person from the city hall called us to ask if the choir could participate at another concert. This time, the choir sang on a stage by the beach while a lot of people listened. OUR GOD IS ALMIGHTY AND THERE IS NOTHING IMPOSSIBLE FOR HIM!

More good news... We have a new class at Sunday School. Alicia (Eunice's sister) started to teach the Bible to 3 pre-teens and now 5 to 6 kids meet every week. What a blessing! Besides this, we're planning on having our first Baptisms by the end of the summer. At least 3 people have expressed their desire to obey Jesus getting baptized and this brings so much joy to us! Also, God has given us the desire to have a Vacation Bible School the second week of September. Please, pray for all these things because our only desire is to honor Jesus and bring glory to His name.

And with all this being said, we want to thank God for His goodness, mercy, faithfulness and mighty hand. None of this would have ever taken place without the Spirit of God moving and working in such ways. "Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen". Ephesians 3:20.

2011-04-28T14:21:00.001-07:00

Happy Birthday!

2011-04-28T13:09:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday! A phrase most everybody is familiar with. However, what does make a “birthday” so happy? Well, it is a celebration and rejoicing of life, beginnings, origins, and newness. We celebrate that person's life and very existence. During the months of February and March, three birthday´s took place. There was the birthday of the pastor, the church, and the new believers being born again…

It wasn't a typical Sunday on February 13th, as fellowship was a bit different this time. After the teaching everybody was very loving, but seemed to be in a hurry to leave. This was a very unusual occurrence, being that Spanish people love to talk. Mysteriously, I was driven to a place where I thought just my family and I would be having lunch. The next thing I know, “Surprise!” was shouted out. The people from church had prepared a birthday party for me! It was the best birthday party ever! This comprised of food, fellowship, presents, and yet another surprise. Due to the fact that my computer broke, the church chipped in and bought me a new one. Thanks everybody!

The weekend of February 19th-20th, we celebrated the birthday of the church. It had now turned three years old! On Saturday the 19th we decided to go to the countryside, a place called El Torcal. We all pondered the past three years, while enjoying God's creation. Then on Sunday the 20th, we met at the church for a service that would be unique from the others. Our children sang a special song, one of our youth presented the gospel message through a beautiful dance, a few adults gave their testimonies and shared how the ministry has helped them, and a slide show presentation took place. The big idea of the service was to point out the majesty of our Lord. Specifically, God put His hands on an empty space and created the world. In the same token, Jesus put His hands on the cross to save empty hearts. Now, He put His hands on El Rincon and our church was created. He truly created something from nothing, and now after three years we can say as it does in Psalm 126:3: “The Lord has done great things for us, and we are glad.”

During the month of March, we celebrated yet another birthday. One of the spiritual nature. A Dutchmen named Bert, was accompanying his wife every Sunday. In the midst of one of those Sunday mornings, Jesus saved him. He is currently coming faithfully and all about Christ. The fact that he was invited by a new believer, makes this salvation experience even greater. Hallelujah! God has also added more families to the congregation. As I read the book of Acts, numbers are recorded when they are worth mentioning. In that same spirit, I rejoice that in three years we have grown from two to forty!

The movie of the month took place on March 27th. Facing the Giants was our movie of choice. As always, it was an encouragement to the people to remember that for our God, nothing is impossible.

Once again, we want to thank everybody for support…in every sense of the word. Que Dios os bendiga.

2011-01-25T13:29:00.001-08:00

As iron sharpens iron...

2011-01-25T01:38:00.000-08:00

Jesus said in Matthew 24:11-13 "Then many false prophets will rise up and deceive many. And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold. But he who endures to the end shall be saved". Nowadays, our society is a picture of this truth and our church desires to stand firm and shine in the midst of darkness. In our last blog we shared with you about the desire of some of our women to study the Bible through a weekly discipleship and now we are glad to say the same desire was birthed in a group of men. From next week on, eight men will meet every week to sharpen one another as Proverbs say in chapter 27 verse 17. We don't want to be ignorant of our time, but endure to the end to be saved.

Christmas was an exciting time. Our special service was a blessing as we celebrated the coming of our Lord Jesus. Visitors came and joined us in celebration and heard the true message of Christmas. The Gospel Choir from the local school gave a concert for family, friends and teachers and about a hundred people listened to songs with the message of the Gospel. What a miracle! We also had the priviledge of participating in the first Christmas service ever hosted in one of the public Hospitals of Malaga. God is moving in miraculous ways and we are blessed to be a part of His work.

Sunday December the 28th we had a "movie night" at the hotel. We showed Fury to Freedom. Everyone was blessed by the wonderful testimony of Pr. Raul Ries and the encouraging words Pr. Eric shared after the movie. This coming Sunday the 30th, we will be watching "Fireproof". Pray for the church and for those who were invited to come.

Alona and Timoteo Karpenkova are a Christian family we have known for several years. Last month they decided to move to El Rincon de la Victoria to be a part of our fellowship. We are so happy to have them and desire to be a blessing for their lives.

Lastly, we want to ask you to pray for a need our church has. We are very thankful to God for the provision of the hotel as a place for us to meet. But we are starting to find difficulties to minister to everyone in an appropriate way. We have only one room to teach 10 kids of different ages with two different teachers and curriculums every Sunday. Besides, four different study groups meet weekly at homes for discipleship and prayer. Special events during the week can't happen because of the lack of a place to host people. Renting a local appropiate for all these needs is something our church cannot afford. So we decided to present our need to the City Hall asking the Government to provide a place for our church. Please pray for this because we really need God's intervention to see it happen. However we are confident there is nothing impossible for our God.

We would like to thank CC Upland, CC Adoradores, The Refuge Bible Study and all those families who support us so faithfully. You all always remind us of the love of God and how blessed we are to be a part of His Church. To Him be the glory!

2010-11-19T07:52:00.001-08:00

Extra... Extra!! Read all about it!!!

2010-11-18T08:05:00.000-08:00

In the early days of newspapers, when newspapers were the primary method of delivering the news, when something big happened, the publisher would not only publish the normal daily paper, but would also publish an Extra. The newspapers were sold on the street, often by newsboys, who had a stack of papers and would sell them to walkers-by. When an Extra came out, they would chant "Extra! Extra! read all about it" to call attention to the fact that something big has happened, and an Extra paper has been published. The Bible says in Proverbs 25:25: "As cold water to a weary soul, so is good news from a far country." Since our last entry two months ago, extra things have happened here...

For decades, the word "Chaplain" here in Spain was connected to the Catholic Church. The truth of the matter is, that only priests could operate in that position when it came to hospital ministry. Extra! Extra!... by the grace of God, the door was opened two months ago for the Evangelical pastors of Spain. Ivan has the great privilege of being one of them, serving as a Chaplain in the Axarquia's Hospital once a week. This hospital is in Velez Malaga, which is the next town over. This gives him the opportunity to visit not only those believers who are in the hospital, but also those who request his services. Pastor Pepe, also is among other pastors serving in this capacity.

Recently, in the past two years, our government has decided to make classrooms at public schools look more secular. In fact, they have removed all religious symbols. Everything from crosses to pictures of the saints. Traditional Christmas decorations like the Nativity Scene, as well as Christmas Carols, are now forbidden. Symbolizing, the door now being shut on Christianity. However...Extra! Extra! Miraculously, Eunice and Alicia are leading a Children´s Gospel Choir at one of the local schools here at El Rincon. They presented the idea, this past summer before the new school year got underway. Although, we saw it challenging because of what was mentioned previously, once again we were reminded that nothing is impossible for Dios. Now, every Monday and Wednesday between 4-5 pm, the gospel message is being sung by the voices of 18 children!

"Now I want to get serious with the Lord." The comment was made after our special weekend at the Retreat. From Friday October 29th to Monday November 1st, we had the opportunity to escape the daily routine of our lives, and be with Jesus. Being our second annual Church Retreat, opposed to twenty five last year, we were thirty five strong this year. With the clear idea that Jesus has full knowledge of our works, we wanted to be challenged as to what our true condition was spiritually. So, as we studied the seven letters to the seven churches, the Lord was faithful to show us just that. You knew it was coming...Extra! Extra! Church members bonded and fellowshiped like never before. Walls were beginning to fall down, as the body reached out to one another. A desire was also birthed in some of our women, to come back and really study the Bible. As a result, Eunice and her mom are currently meeting every Thursday with four ladies to study the Scriptures. Last but not least, one person rededicated her life to the Lord, while three others made decisions for the first time. To God be the glory!!

We want to thank you for all your prayers and support. By the way, we are doing very well. One last final Extra! Extra!... One of the first words that Samuel has vocalized in English, has been BIBLE!

Que Dios os Bendiga,
Martos Family

2010-09-01T12:54:00.001-07:00

God is at Work

2010-09-01T01:31:00.000-07:00

Through history, many lives have been transformed by the book of Romans. After reading Romans 1:17, Martin Luther concluded: "All Scriptures have a new meaning for me". Calvin said: "Romans is an open door to the deepest treasures of the Scriptures". As we study the book of Romans we are experiencing grouth in our spiritual walks and the greatness of God's grace. Chapter 8 has touched our lives in a special way reminding us that in Christ there is no condemnation; in Christ we're free from the slavery of sin and death; in Christ God sees us as just; in Christ we have life and peace; in Christ we can please God; in Christ we have the promise of resurrection.

Last blog we shared with you how David Leyva promoted our church with small fliers he deposited all over town. A few days after he left, a lady called us wanting to attend our services. Her name is Fani and she has been a believer for some time. She came to El Rincon for the summer and was so blessed to find out about us. Fani has been a part of our church the last two months and was a blessing to meet her. She will go back to Sevilla next week. God bless you, sister!

Eric is finally here, praise the Lord! He arrived July the 1st after a long trip and spent with us the whole month. Our time together was a huge blessing in many ways. His presence always brings joy to everyone around; his love for Jesus and the spaniards is so real! The Lord was faithful providing an apartment for him and giving him the opportunity to study at the language school. He went to CA for his sister's wedding but will come back next week. We can't wait to see how the Lord will use him among us in the future!

An other Samuel was born last August the 12th. Jose and Beatriz had their precious baby boy and they're all doing well. In one way or another, God is adding to our church... Thank you, Lord, for baby Samuel!

Let us share with you all a couple of prayer requests before we finish. God is definitely opening doors for the Gospel in our city. One of the schools in our town is willing to give us the opportunity to start a Gospel Choir with the children this school year. The only requirement is that the number of children interested must be over 10. If this is so, Alicia and Eunice will teach songs with the message of the gospel to a group of children twice a week. We could organize concerts for the rest of the school and the parents in special occasions. Please pray for the Lord to answer according to His will.

The Spanish Government has opened the door for the evangelical church to minister at the hospitals in the region of Andalucia. Pr. Pepe and Pr. Ivan will be part of the group of pastors who will serve as chaplains at different hospitals in Malaga. Praise God for this opportunity.

We want to thank you again for your prayers and support. We're excited and encouraged to obey God's calling and to see the fruit of His work.

2010-06-23T02:04:00.001-07:00

2010-06-17T06:20:00.000-07:00

But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.
(Philippians 4:19)

Much to our surprise, owner of the hotel where we meet offered us a larger room for our weekly Sunday fellowship. This was given at a price much less than it should be. With that, which includes a smaller room we have nearby for our children, we consider this a great answer to our prayer for more space to worship together. Our spiritual family is continuing to be encouraged by each other and we are blessed each week as Ivan is presently teaching through Romans.

Also, we were able to encourage our church family of El Rincón with news of our trip to Switzerland! Since we were invited to lead the youth at the church retreat in Zurich, we were able to see brothers and sisters we hadn’t seen in a long time. It was such a great time. Not only did we fellowship with many familiar and new faces, but we were able to introduce Samuel to them. The body there has grown tremendously in numbers and in spiritual maturity. And though we were sad to go, we left with our hearts being truly blessed and strengthened by them.

Finally, the arrival of David Leyva as guest and missionary in our home for this month has brought a swell of welcomed changes. He has been able to serve us in any way we need, great or small, in tasks that serve both our church and our home: editing our video presentations, promoting our church with small fliers he deposits all over town, and even writing this very blog. Also, he has been able to fellowship with us in prayer and edifying conversation, which has been a joy. We’re expecting Eric Flores to join us soon in the beginning of July – pray that his arrival will be protected and that the Lord will prepare him for his stay.

2010-05-13T00:51:00.001-07:00

2010-05-13T00:24:00.000-07:00

What a wonderful day we had last Sunday at church! Our children finished a 6 month-program and wanted to share with the church some of the things they had learned. They sang a song and recited Bible verses by heart. After the service, we all shared some food and gave gifts to the children as recognition of their hard work. We were all blessed by them, specially the moms and dads whose eyes shined with joy listening to their kids.

Let us share some good news with you… Pr. Pepe, Eunice’s dad, was chosen to lead the Pastors’ Union of Malaga. Please pray for him that he may be a blessing as he ministers to these men with the love of God and the power of His Holy Spirit.

The first weekend of June, the three of us will fly to Switzerland. “La Iglesia Hispana de Winterthur” invited us to teach to the youth at their church retreat. We are very excited and we pray we may be used by the Lord in the lives of these young men and women.

As you already know, we continue to meet at Hotel Rinconsol on Sundays. They are always very kind with us providing a place for the children with no additional cost when the room is available. However, we start to see the need of a bigger place so we would like you to start praying about this.

Continue to pray, dear supporters, because God is doing mighty things. We are very aware of our Enemy and we already see His attacks. But our Lord is greater than Him and He is faithful to continue the work He started. Amen!

2010-04-14T09:58:00.001-07:00

2010-04-13T12:07:00.000-07:00

Two months have gone by since we went to California to visit our dear church and friends and we can’t wait to share with you the things that have occurred in our lives and ministry during this time.

Job, going through the most difficult time of his life, was able to say: You (Lord) have granted me life and favor, and Your care has preserved my spirit (Job 10:12). This is our testimony. And though we are not going through such a tough time, we can also say that the Lord has taken care of every single area of our lives and ministry.

A couple of days after our arrival from the States, our cousins Seth, Lucas and Denver came to Spain to spend three weeks with us. They were here for our church’s second anniversary! Besides having a lot of fun, the Lord really blessed us as a family and the church through their lives and service. They met the people we are ministering to and they served in the area of worship. They supported all the activities during the week and were a great testimony to everyone who met them. Thank you, guys, we love you!

In case any of us still doubts about the effectiveness of your prayers and the unlimited power of the God we serve, let us share with you that these two families we told you about in our last blog, are now a part of our church. Jose, Beatriz and their kids, Álvaro and Lucía, and Eloy, Joan and their girls, Genesis and Nicole are faithfully attending the studies on Sundays and other activities we are doing. One of these activities took place on Good Friday, what we call here “Viernes Santo” (Holy Friday). The church went to the country side, to a small town called “El Burgo” where Mª Luisa was born, and spent the day there. We had a wonderful time together eating, fellowshipping and worshiping our Lord for His perfect sacrifice. Then, early on Easter Sunday we celebrated His glorious victory over death and had breakfast at the hotel where we meet. The Lord is working in our midst!

Pilar is a Christian lady who decided to join our fellowship a few months ago. She loves studing the Word and we see the joy and peace of God in her life. Please pray fo her husband, Manuel, who is in rebellion against God. There are 6 children and two babies in our church now. Please pray for more room to be able to minister to them appropriately. With this being said, we are happy to share with you that we have had no less than 17 people attending the service every Sunday. In fact, this last Sunday we were 26 people at the Bible study. To God be the glory!

David Leyva is a young man who loves the Lord and desires to serve Him coming to our church this summer for about a month. We thank God for him and can’t wait to meet him. Continue to pray for God’s will to be done with Eric Flores and André.

Concerning us personally we can’t say any less. Eunice is still working part time at the pediatrics hospital in Málaga. She is very excited with her ministry. Now Alicia, her sister, plays other instruments, such as the cajón or the guitar, with her for worship every Sunday. And she enjoys teaching the children the Word of God. After a few weeks jobless, Iván finally found a new job. He still works at the airport but now in a different company called Easy Jet. Thank you for your prayers. Samuel is healthy and growing fast. We keep thanking God for him.

So, what then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? (Romans 8:31). Thank you all for your support and care for us and our country. Que el Señor os bendiga a todos ricamente.

2009-11-09T01:13:00.000-08:00

Two weeks ago, Israel, Eunice's brother who lives in Jamaica, came to visit us. What a surprise!!! He met Samuel for the first time and we got to spend a whole week with him. Thank you for coming, brother! We love you and miss you so much.

Lola is already at home, praise the Lord! We talked to her mom, Mª Luisa, yesterday and she asked us to thank you all again for your prayers. She is still very weak but happy to be back home after a whole month in hospital. The church is preparing a big welcome party for her!

Last month we told you about two families who were invited to the Bible studies by Alicia and Pr. Pepe. For some reason none of them have attended any of the studies yet and we don't know them well enough to go to visit them. Lucia's dad (Lucia is Mateo's classmate) is called Jose and the guy who works at the grocery store is Eloy. Please continue to pray for them and their families.

As some of you know, we desire to visit our home church in California next year. We are having some difficulties with our laboral situation so we ask you to pray for this that the Lord might make it happen.

Andre is the brazilian guy from Jerez who is praying about moving to Málaga to be a part of our fellowship. God already provided financially for him but he is waiting for the University of Sevilla to transfer his registration documents to the University of Málaga. Pray for this.

Luz is a Christian girl from California who is studing in Sevilla and has heard about us through Andre. She expressed her desire to serve our church somehow so she will be coming next week to give away some pamphlets and invite people from our town to the Bible studies. Eunice is going to invite some of her friends home for coffee that week so that she can meet them and maybe share her testimony if the Spirit guides that way.

And lastly, we want you to pray for one more thing. This coming Saturday we will be traveling to Granada to give a workshop on teaching at the Baptist church. They already invited us last year and we enjoyed the experience very much. We pray the Lord might use us for the edification of His church.

"But you, beloved, building yourselves up on your most holy faith,

praying in the Holy Spirit, keep yourselves in the love of God,

looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life."

(Jude 20-21)

Lola and other news

2009-10-22T09:20:00.000-07:00

Thank you everybody for your prayers. Lola had surgery two days ago and everything went well. Now the doctors are waiting for the results of the biopsy to prescribe the appropriate treatment. She hasn't had feber for the last two days but now she is dealing with an allergic reaction to one of the medicaments she's been given. Please continue to pray for a complete healing of Lola and for her mom, Mª Luisa. They both want to let you all know how much they apreciate your prayers. The family of Christ is a wonderful blessing we find in our Lord Jesus.

We also have other good news to share with you. Last week Alicia had the opportunity to meet one of Mateo's classmates's dad. He and his family used to attend an evangelical church in Madrid where they used to live. Last August they stayed at the Hotel where we meet on Sundays while they were looking for housing and they saw us worshiping the Lord. Now Alicia has invited them to study the Word with us. Yesterday, my dad gave a card of the church to a guy from the grocery store and he happened to be a Christian too. The Lord is working among and around us, dear friends. Please continue to pray fervently for all these things because we know the Enemy wants to destroy the wonderful work our God is doing. To Him be the glory!

Pray for Lola

2009-10-20T02:19:00.000-07:00

These wonderful kids are Timoteo, Mateo, Dámaris and Lola. Lola's had a high temperature for the last three weeks. Two weeks ago she was admitted to hospital to study her case and they found she had an infection in her right leg. She's had antibiotics but the infection is not improving so they decided to do surgery. The doctors want to take a biopsy today to find out what is causing the infection. We want to share this with you so that you can join us in prayer. Mª Luisa, her mom, is very worried and physically and emotionally exhausted. We don't know why this is hapennig but we do know our God is Sovereign and Almighty. We will keep you updated.

2009-10-09T01:52:00.001-07:00

2009-10-05T12:47:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone! This summer will definitely be an unforgetable one. Samuel was born last August the 3th and everything went really well. Thank you for your prayers and thank God for being so Good. It's wonderful having him in our lives, we love our boy so much!!

We are doing well. Ivan is still working at the airport and he is also studing English at the Language School this year. Eunice is already fully recovered from delivery and she is at home with maternity leave. We are enjoying our new apartment. It's beautiful and very comfortable, we love it.

The mission "El Rincón de la Victoria" is going forward although the work is hard and seems to go slow. The church still meets at Hotel Rinconsol and we are now studing the book of Acts. Not many unbelievers are visiting but the members of the fellowship are growing spiritually and continue to be excited with the work of God. Pepe and Alicia Carmet are now living here in town. They are a blessing for the church, we thank the Lord for answering our prayers.

There are a few ideas the Lord has given us that you can pray for. Ivan is going to start a men's discipleship soon in which they will read through the book "The Man God uses" by Pr. Chuck Smith. Eunice is praying about bringing children from our neighbourhood home once a week to sing Christian songs. And lastly, we would like to organize a couples' special night to have dinner and watch the movie "Fireproof". Please pray that the Lord may guide us and bless these events.

We continue to be very excited with the ministry the Lord has given us. It's wonderful to serve Him and to know the family of Christ is always supporting us by their many prayers and their support. Thank you!

"Is my hand shortened at all that it can not redeem? Or have I no power to deliver?" (Isaiah 50:2). Our hope is in Him! God bless you.

2009-05-19T13:28:00.001-07:00

2009-05-19T12:34:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone! It’s hard to believe two months have gone by since the last time we wrote on this blog. Many things have happened and we are looking forward to telling you all about them.

When the group from our church in Upland left, we received the visit of Marlon and Becca’s parents. They wanted to know more about Spain and serve alongside us during their time here. Easter week started and the church planned to show the Jesus movie at Hotel Elimar to invite family, friends and neighbors. We had a great time where we could fall in love more with our Savior Jesus Christ but, unfortunately, none of the unbelievers we invited came. God knows… Easter Sunday, the church met at our home early in the morning to celebrate Jesus’ resurrection and have breakfast together. It was a very special day for our fellowship.

At the beginning of May, the church celebrated our first retreat. We spent three days at a beautiful country house where we could enjoy God’s creation, a great fellowship and wonderful Bible studies. We invited Pr. Rafael Manzanares and Loretta from CC Mallorca to share the Word with us; we thank God for blessing us so much through their lives and ministry. Abi, Chema, Begoña, Pisco and their kids, Irene and Marco, all of them from our prayer list, came that weekend. Praise the Lord!

Last Saturday, we had the Gospel Choir “Buenas Noticias” from a Baptist Church in Granada, coming to visit and support our church through their love and ministry. The concert had place at a church that lent us their facilities for this evangelistic event. We gave away about 300 invitations and we also informed other believers from other churches in Málaga. The worship songs and the teaching of the Word by Ivan were a huge blessing. Quite a few unbelievers attended; please pray for them that the Word might change their hearts forever.

The church has been meeting at a hotel on Sundays for the last two weeks. The Lord provided this place and so far the experience is being really exciting. Everybody seems to enjoy the new stage and it’s our prayer that we might be able to be light and salt for our dear town Rincón de la Victoria.

Our first year in ministry

2009-03-04T09:31:00.001-08:00

2009-03-03T09:56:00.001-08:00

The past February the 17th, our church in El Rincón de la Victoria became one year old. As we look back, we rejoice greatly in so many things our God has done for us. We can only say: "For of Him and through Him and to Him are all things, to whom be glory forever. Amen" (Romans 11:36).

As many of you already know, something very important happened in our lives. The Lord has blessed us answering our prayers and, if He wills, this summer we will have our first baby! Eunice is doing well and the doctor already told us he's a boy. We're so excited! It's too hard to express our joy for this wonderful gift.

Last month we had the priviledge of having our pastors form CC Upland, Pr. Randy and Pr. Justin, as well as our cousins from California. We could talk, pray, laugh and enjoy one and other as we spent time together. The Lord really used them to encourage us and the rest of the church. The first weekend they were here, we had the parenting conference we asked you to pray for in our last update. Pr. Pepe and Alicia, Eunice's parents, led the teachings and all the attendants were very blessed. We saw a huge interest and a true desire of seeking the Word in this matter.

The next day we had our Sunday morning service at Hotel Elimar. Pr. Randy shared the Word with the church. It was a very special time where we felt the Lord moving among us in many ways. This Sunday a new family was added to our church. Maria Luisa and her daughter Lola are sisters in the Lord who decided to start attending our church which makes us very happy.

This whole weekend Eric Flores came to visit us from Mallorca. It's always great to be with him and enjoy his friendship. We are all praying for him that the Lord might bring Eric to serve Him along side us in His timing.

The church is doing very well. We have started studing Matthew chapter 24 and the Lord is truly blessing and growing all of us as we study His Word. Mateo has now a new friend at Sunday School, Lola. They are studing the Old Testament and learning about God's goodness.

Thank you all one more time for your prayers and support. God bless you!

2008-12-18T08:33:00.001-08:00

Enlarge my territory

2008-12-18T01:40:00.000-08:00

This prayer has been in our hearts and minds for the last few months. As the Lord has continued to bless our lives and ministry, our hearts has become more and more sensitive to the lost. For this reason we pray as Jabez prayed:

"Oh, that You would bless me indeed, and enlarge my territory, that Your hand would be with me, and that You would keep me from evil, that I may not cause pain!" So God granted him what he requested (1 Chronicles 4:10).

Last time we gave you an update, we shared with you the wonderful news about Carlos' conversion. This miracle was a great incentive for all of us, including his wife Talia who started acting diferent. A couple of weeks later she shared with Eunice she was ready to do what her husband had done, but she was waiting for Ivan to do the invitation at church. That very moment, she gave her life to Jesus through prayer and the following Sunday she made her commitment public at church. Praise the Lord!! Now we are discipling both of them every week and it's exciting to see how the Lord is growing them in His Word.

Eric Flores and Pastor Rafael Manzanares came from Mallorca to visit us. We had a wonderful time together and we experienced the love of Christ through their care and disposition to help us. It was good to spend time with our dear friend Eric and to hear more of how the Lord is using him in Mallorca. It was a lot of fun and we hope to be able to meet with them more often.

Last October the 27th one more life was added to our ministry, his name is Tomás. Tomás is Alicia and Antonio's new baby, that is, our nephew. He is so little and cute, we thank God for this wonderful gift.

To celebrate this time of Christmas, our church invited relatives and friends to a dinner at Hotel Elimar. This was last Friday the 12th. The invitation was given to about 80 people and a lot of prayer was lifted to God for this event. Unfortunately, many couldn't come but praise the Lord for those who did. We were 20 adults and 4 children and 9 of the adults were not believers. After dinner, Alicia and Eunice sang a song and Ivan shared the true message of Christmas with the guests: "... that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners" (1 Timothy 1:15). Everybody felt very comfortable and expressed great interest.

With this information, we want you all to be witnesses of God's Sovereignty and Power. When we look back, we see how the Lord has done many wonderful things and His hand has always been building His church. We know He is faithful to continue this work and enlarge our territory.

Before we go we want to thank you all again for your love, support and prayers. Only God knows how important all of you are for us and our ministry. May the Lord bless you as you celebrate Christmas with your loved ones and have a wonderful New Year. We love you...

2008-09-18T10:38:00.000-07:00

Those who sow in tears shall reap in joy.

He who continually goes forth weeping, bearing seed for sowing,

shall doubtless come again with rejoicing,

bringing his sheaves with him (Psalm 126:6).

Time seems to pass by faster in summer time, don’t you think? It’s hard to believe September is almost gone and winter is just around the corner. As you can imagine, many things have taken place since the last time we wrote on this blog. But no doubt, one of them is the most important and precious for us.

Our neighbor Carlos, Yago’s dad and Talia’s husband, received Jesus as Lord and Savior three weeks ago during our Sunday Bible Study. It’s too hard to express with words the joy and excitement we felt as we heard the words: “I want to receive Jesus in my heart”. Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, our Lord is the same yesterday, today and forever and He continues to transform lives. Talia hasn’t confessed Jesus with her mouth yet but she has been experiencing many changes in her life that are truly a work of the Spirit. Now they read the Bible and pray as a family and come to church every week. We see a wonderful change, even their faces are different! Praise the Lord!!

Abi and Chema are our neighbors as well. They consider themselves Catholic but they have been coming to the Bible studies because they want to learn more and they understand the Bible better now that Ivan is teaching them. They often come to us asking for prayer and we are becoming very close friends. We love them dearly and can’t wait to see them at the feet of Jesus.

Last August the 29th, we invited children from our neighborhood to our home to watch a movie. When we gave the invitations, we shared with the parents our faith in Jesus and what we wanted to teach to their children. Some of them did not look very interested but, for our surprise, nine children attended. It was a beautiful time because they and their moms heard for the first time the Good News of salvation.

Let us give you an update now in regards to other prayer requests we shared with you last time. After much prayer Ivan and I decided not to go to California next month. It was a hard decision but we trust the Lord will give us other opportunities to visit you all. Our church, CC Upland, will come next year to serve the Lord alongside us and be a part of this wonderful work of the Spirit. Continue to pray for all the preparations that need to be done beforehand.

Our work situation is something that needs to be prayed for too. Spain is going through a huge financial crisis and it’s very hard to get a good stable job. Eunice has been working in several places these last few weeks. Now she is working as a nurse at the Airport but this is not a definitive position. Ivan’s contract will end soon and he is already searching for something else. God has always been faithful in this matter and we are confident He will continue to be so. We are praying for jobs that would be more compatible with the ministry because we are struggling now with crazy schedules. Please, keep this in prayer.

We desire this wonderful news might feel your hearts with joy as the Lord is answering your prayers. We are grateful and humbled before God for His powerful works. To Him be the glory!

Yago's first Sunday at church

2008-07-26T11:23:00.000-07:00

Last Sunday was the first one for Yago. Yago is Carlos and Talia's new baby who was born two weeks ago. Carlos and Talia are our neighbors who we have been ministering to since we moved to our home. We're sure most of you know of them and have been praying for them. They have not committed their lives to the Lord yet but they are very thankful to God for the gift they have received in Yago and they wanted Ivan to pray for him. So last Sunday the whole family came to church and listened to the Bible study. Alicia and Eunice sang a song to Yago and Ivan prayed for him and his parents, thanking God for this new life. Our neighbors were thrilled and very thankful for everything.

The other family you see in the picture are Alicia and Antonio's friends, Santiago and Abigail with their babies Keira and Christian. They wanted to visit us and worshipped the Lord with us.

Two weeks ago, the Lord blessed us with a few days off and we went to visit Eunice's parents in Huelva. We enjoyed a great time of rest, good conversations and a beautiful beach. Thank you, Lord!!

One of the things we have been praying for is the possibility of letting the town know about us by some kind of track we can leave in people's letter boxes. Well, the other day a brother from another church offered us his help. He said he had done this many times for church plants before and was willing to help us as well. So this is something you can pray for as we are going to start moving towards making this happen.

More prayer requests... Our dear home church, CC Upland wants us to visit them in October. This would be a dream for us because we love them all dearly and miss them. But the Lord truly has to make this happen if it's His will. So please pray for direction and guidance as we make the necessary arrangements. Pastor Randy also wants a group from the church to come to Malaga next February. Keep this in your prayers also.

There is two more things we have been praying for with Antonio and Alicia. One is the possibility of doing a Bible study during the week with unbelievers who would be willing. Sunday studies can be hard for some people to attend so we thought this would be something important to do. But we are waiting for God's guidance in this matter. The second one is an idea Alicia and Eunice had a few months ago. We would like to invite relatives, friends and neighbors who have kids and show a Christian movie for children. This movie talks about sin, God's love and salvation in Jesus. There's lots of children in this area and we have seen the Lord do wonderful things through Christian children. So please pray for this too.

As you see, your prayers are being heard and God is moving all around us. The sipiritual need is so big that sometimes we get overwhelmed by it. But God keeps reminding us He is the Lord of the church and the Almighty God.

Daniel 9:18

2008-07-01T08:40:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone! We can't wait to share with you all some of the things the Lord has been doing in our lives and other people's lives. But before we do so, let us remind you how much we love you and miss you all. As we say "all" we think of you: friends, relatives, classmates, teachers, pastors, prayer warriors and supporters. And of course, we think of you, dear church, CC Upland; we love you dearly and can't wait to be among you again.

Eila is the name of a lady who was begging at the door of the doctor’s office. We stopped to talk to her and had the opportunity to pray for her. Two weeks later we looked for her again to give her a Bible and she looked very happy to see us because she had something to tell us. A few days after our first meeting she had met other Christians who invited her to go to church and she accepted. She has been going to church and now she has a Bible to read.

Francisco is Puri’s husband. For a year he has been fighting cancer and he is now in a terminal phase. One night we both felt the Lord was moving us to go visit him. When we got there we told our friend Puri we wanted to talk to Francisco because we had something urgent to tell him. That night Ivan shared the gospel of salvation with Francisco and he received Jesus as Lord and Savior.

June the 16th Eunice invited a few neighbors for breakfast. Manoli, Estrella, Beatriz, Talia, Maite and Andrea are the names of the ladies who attended. Eunice’s mom and sister were present as well. Most of them had never give thanks before a meal, so Eunice explained the reason we do. After breakfast we also celebrated Eunice’s sister’s birthday and we read Romans 8:28-38. They all listened very attentively and were surprised by the beauty of the Word. Towards the end of the morning, two ladies were left, Talia and Beatriz. They seemed very comfortable and started asking questions about our faith. We ended sharing the whole gospel with them and we gave them Bibles to read. The Spirit of God moved among us, it was awesome.

Antonio Cordoba is one of Ivan’s coworkers. Some of his relatives are evangelical Christians but he has never wanted to know Jesus personally. Since he found out Ivan was a pastor, he has been asking questions and opening his heart to Ivan. He feels a great emptiness in his heart and he knows only Jesus can satisfy his need. But he fears commitment. Pray for his salvation.

Because of the “Soccer Europe Cup” we have been meeting with Talia and her husband, Carlos, and with other neighbors, Abigail and Chema. Besides having a great time celebrating Spain’s triumph, the Lord has opened the door for us to share our faith and pray with them in several ocassions. They all seem very interested and open to spiritual matters.

Antonio and Alicia, Eunice’s sister and her husband, are experiencing God working in their lives and all around them. They have also had numerous opportunities to preach the Good news and their faith is being strengthened.

As you can see, our God is a great big God. Nothing is impossible for Him. We are confident that He is working and in His timing He’ll add to the church those who are His Own. Keep praying fervently, as Daniel the prophet prayed:

"O my God, incline Your ear and hear; open Your eyes and see our desolations, and the city which is called by Your name; for we do not present our supplications before You because of our righteous deeds, but because of Your great mercies".

In Him we trust and rest. To God be the glory!

Ephesians 3:20

2008-04-24T13:20:00.000-07:00

These first weeks of our ministry in Rincón de la Victoria have not been exactly what we expected but we’re still very excited to see God’s faithfulness and provision for His children. He is the Lord of the Church and He continues to bless us daily.

We have been inviting friends, neighbors and relatives to the Bible Study every week. We are studing the book of Matthew through which we are getting to know our Lord Jesus in a more intimate way.

Spaniards are very open to spiritual things and most of them respect and admire what we do. So we have had many opportunities to share our faith and establish new friendships. However, not many have responded to our invitation to attend the studies. We know the Lord is good and nothing is impossible for Him, so we continue to put our trust in “Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us” (Eph 3:20). We are joyful and excited to do the ministry the Lord has commanded us.

In response to all the prayers you made on our behalf, Ivan is now working. We both love what we do and the Lord is already giving us both opportunities to tell our workmates about Jesus. We also have internet at home. Praise the Lord for answering our prayers!

We want to thank you all one more time for your prayers and support. Your comments on the blog, emails and phone calls always encourage us and remind us how much you love us. The Lord uses you greatly!

Taste and see the Lord is good

2008-03-16T16:25:00.001-07:00

In the Beginning...

2008-03-15T14:13:00.000-07:00

February the 8th was the day we moved into our new home. For almost a month, we have been doing lots of things: visiting family and friends, searching for apartments and jobs, and getting hundreds of legal procedures done. But in all things we constantly saw the mighty hand of God leading, moving, and blessing our lives.

Furniture, clothes, books and other things started filling what became our new home. But nothing could truly make it complete; we kept feeling something was missing. The day we had our first bible study (February the 17th) we recognized the purpose of this place: “My house shall be called a house of prayer”. Prayer, the worship of God and the proclamation of the Gospel are the only things that can make our home meaningful. May our house be a place where people who are lost and needful of salvation become followers of Jesus Christ.

Alicia (Eunice’s sister), her husband Antonio and their son Mateo have decided to be a part of this calling to proclaim the Good News in “El Rincón”. This has been a tremendous blessing from the Lord! We are excited to see what He will do in this city. We meet every Sunday to worship and study the Word together and invite family, neighbors and friends to come and join us.

We also want to thank God for His provision. The home fellowships from our church sent us boxes with our books which got here safely, thank you! CC Costa Mesa, through Pastor Brian Nixon, donated many books and study tools in English that will be a blessing for the ministry. Eunice’s parents have given us their car which was a big need and many books and study tools in Spanish. Eunice got a job as a nurse, praise God! The body of Christ is being so generous in their financial support. Thank you everyone for loving us and supporting the ministry so faithfully.

May God be glorified... Amen!

Remembering...

2008-01-16T14:14:00.001-08:00

Back to Spain!

2008-01-16T13:02:00.000-08:00

A beautiful and blessed season of our lives has just finished for us; and a new and very exciting one is awaiting us full of hopes and expectations. But we are "... confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ" (Philippians 1:6).

Many things took place during our last weeks in California. After Christmas and New Year, we had the opportunity to visit CC Redlands one more time before our return to Spain. The whole church shared their love and support with us in a very special way, we were so blessed by all of them.

January the 5th was our farewell at our church. We will never forget that day! We had dinner together and worshiped the Lord. A slide presentation summed up some of the best moments we lived in California. Several families shared beautiful words that touched our hearts forever. At the end of the service Pr. Randy and others laid hands on Ivan, recognizing the calling the Lord has put upon his life to be a pastor. There is no words to express how we felt that night. All glory and praise be to our God!

The following week we were refreshed by the Lord as we attended the Missions Conference in Murrieta. It was very encouraging to see so many brothers and sisters with the only desire of taking the Good News of Jesus Christ to our lost world. We learned many important truths of the Scriptures that filled us with joy and excitement for the future.

But in spite of all the blessings, it was not easy at all for us to leave. We will never forget the people the Lord has allowed us to meet. We have made wonderful friendships; we will miss everyone so much.

And now we are back in Spain and we continue to see the hand of God working in us and guiding us. We have already started searching for a place to live and jobs. Sometimes we get overwhelmed by so many things that need to be done. But we know the Lord is with us and He will continue to do the work He started.

December 2007

2007-12-22T16:26:00.000-08:00

Two years ago at Christmas time, we were in London, packing all of our stuff and praying that the Lord would grant us the visa to come to California. Today, December 2007, our eyes are already looking forward to our return to Spain. These two years have been so wonderful; we will never forget them. And we trust our God will continue to bless our lives as we answer His calling.

But now we want to give you all an update of everything that has happened these last months since our previous newsletter. God has opened doors for us to visit other Calvary Chapels to share our vision with the body of Christ. So far we have been to CC Adoradores (Spanish ministry of CC Redlands), the Brook, Visalia, San Clemente, Chino Valley and Central Santa Ana. In all of them we felt welcomed and loved; it is a blessing to experience the unity of the church in such a tangible way.

Our last semester at Calvary Chapel Bible College has been a tremendous blessing. It’s hard to believe it already happened, but last Saturday the 15th we found ourselves walking to receive our diplomas as graduates. We thank God for this wonderful opportunity He has given us to study His Word and we thank our church CC Upland for supporting us so generously and faithfully all this time.

Our parents, Pepe and Alicia Carmet came all the way from Spain to be with us in this special season of our lives. Our brothers, Israel and Noemí have also come to visit from Jamaica. We are so excited we get to spend Christmas with all of them!

Saturday the 29th will be our last day at our apartment in Murrieta. After that we will stay in Upland until the day of our return to Spain, January the 12th. But before we leave, we will see some of you at the missions conference. We are very sad, in one hand, as we see how so many things are coming to an end. But, on the other hand, we are sure of our calling and we desire to obey and see what the Lord will continue to do.

We wish you all a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. God bless!!