What if There Were a True Cost of Discipleship?

Back in 2011, we drove to the village of Tabaa with our three youngest kids and our (then) new recording technicians, Diego and Luz.  Diego and Luz had dubbed the Jesus Film in this variant of Zapotec, and we accompanied them to show the movie and also to deliver some audio Bibles to the folks out there.

That trip was memorable in several ways, not the least of which was the fact that our Suburban chose that day to develop a fuel leak.  We smelled gasoline all the way out to the village, but once we arrived, the remaining fluids drained themselves from the vehicle, displaying an undeniable problem.  We spent the night on sleeping bags on the church floor, eventually returning to Mitla on a chicken bus.

The believers in Tabaa impressed me with their devotion to Jesus and their willingness to sacrifice in order to follow the Lord.  Back then the town officials were levying a fine equivalent to a year’s salary (for some of the folks) just for joining the evangelical church.  What amazed me was the fact that people were actually paying it.  Somehow I can’t imagine American Christians putting up with such a thing.  Many would forsake the Lord if it cost that much.

This past week we revisited Tabaa in order to get the current phone number of the pastor.  That is a whole other story in itself how we ended up essentially touring the entire Villa Alta region of Oaxaca taking a “short cut” from one village to the next along unpaved unmarked roads.  In all, we drove over eight hours covering very few miles, but in the end, we succeeded in getting the pastor’s phone number.  It turns out that the pastor’s father is close to heaven’s gates, and many family members were gathered to say their final farewell.  With that little situation, we departed and returned to Mitla the same day, having gleaned a bit of new information.

Sadly the church members in Tabaa are still under the town rule that requires them to pay the huge fee for joining the church.  Already fifteen families have paid the $30,000 pesos in the past seven years, bringing the church membership up to 40 families.  Soon we will return with audio Bibles for the new families, but in the meantime, we have taught the pastor to use the Bible app on his phone to read and listen to the scriptures in his own language.  Others can download the audio Bible onto their phones, too.  That is the good news.

Then again maybe all of our towns should grow "richer" when Christ's church grows stronger?  I would take comfort in this if it weren't for my skepticism that town leaders are not often known for their integrity.  

• Pray against corruption at every level of government in Mexico.  
• Pray that townspeople would notice a true heart change in the new believers.  
• Pray that many more would risk losing their financial gain in order to walk openly with Jesus.  
• Pray that new disciples would find great joy and peace in their sacrifice. 

Pray for the believers in Tabaa

So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed him, “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”  

 John 8:31-32 ESV

-->

"Let Me Get This Straight...."

My mom's infamous quote from last fall:  "So, let me get this straight.  You have one daughter with TB and one with either malaria or zika?"  We both chuckled even though it isn't exactly funny (or entirely accurate in hindsight).  Her motherly advice was for us all to stay safely in the U.S. from now on! Yeah, well, that's not going to happen.  In fact, Jim is in Central Africa even as I am writing this.  He dutifully received all recommended vaccinations and took malaria meds beforehand.  Our son, Mike, and his family are leaving for Indonesia in a few months, and on it goes. (Sorry, Mom.)

What I have noticed through the years is that certain things strike a chord with people "back home" and trigger not only prayers, but actual responses to our email updates and Facebook notifications.  Exotic-sounding diseases always send people to their knees on our behalf, but what we'd prefer are preventative prayers of protection. 

The infamous missionary ladies retreat when we all got e-coli

To date, our prayer buddies have carried us through...

• hepatitis
• esophageal reflux and failure to thrive
• miscarriages (including one at five months)
• botched surgeries
• rabies
• typhoid
• ITP (Immune Thrombocytopenic Purpura)
• whooping cough
• head lice and broken ribs
• bed bugs
• dengue
• swine flu (which our children were actually at "ground zero" - giving added distinction for that)
• life-threatening heat exhaustion
• multiple concussions 
• a bug bite infection we feared was a bot fly
• e-coli
• cyclical vomiting syndrome, which is an ongoing prayer need for our daughter, Debbie

 For the record, the doctors never did decide what to call the sickness Bekah got after her mission trip to Guatemala last August, but it wasn't zika or malaria.  Also, Debbie does not have an active case of TB, but a latent case, in the blood but completely asymptomatic.  She is almost finished with her six months of medication for that.  We are not concerned.  The doctors had to treat it since she is taking phlebotomy at the vocational school, and otherwise she would not be permitted to draw blood.

So, with all this said, could you please just pray that we would have no health issues to write about over these next two months of travel for Jim?  Thanks.  Monday he flies to Nairobi, Kenya from the Congo.  When he returns, he is only home a few days before he travels for Mexico for a few weeks.

Prayers for Mike, Amy, Titus, and Silas are appreciated, too, as they embark on their own kingdom adventures overseas in April of this year.

Click on the highlighted words to read the related stories on my other blog, which I am currently revising and updating.  If you are not receiving our prayer updates by email, please let me know, and I'd be happy to add you to the list.  You can email me at jamiejofrommexico (at) gmail. 

Thanks!
Jamie