Friday (yes, I'm now a week behind)

Well, it is now Thursday the 12th, and I am just now getting a chance to write about Friday the 6th. Of course I had various lesson materials prepared or in mind, but some of that changes once I get on the ground, plus some powerpoint presentations needed to be redone . . . but especially laborious and slow is transforming my powerpoint presentations into Spanish - of course with Elver's help, moving back and forth between my laptop and his, for proper Spanish markings an punctuation. I found out this process tends to upset animations (mine btw are subtle, not loud).

Friday morning began with breakfast at . . . a concrete slab under the cover of a simple roof, with a couple tables and a grille. It’s the establishment of a sister in the church here, operated along a wall to the rear of the building which includes Elver’s apartment. Delfino, Obed (from near Mexico City), Jorge (from somewhere else), and I think Isai and Alex (hey it’s been a week) joined us.

Lunch was with with Nehemias and Elvira (pictured), a couple that live almost right next to the church building. Really good chicken breasts. And if I haven’t mentioned it already, a great number of the folks here live within a half mile of the building, quite a few within a 2 minute walk.


For the assembly Friday evening, I continued on the theme of elders. I presented a remake of a lesson I’ve done previously, “To Be a Shepherd.” I’m convinced that elders in a number of places don’t really understand the shepherding role they should be fulfilling, even though most of the passages about the work of elders dwell precisely on this aspect of the work. A story from my sister-in-law Libby’s experience with sheep and sheparding makes the best modern illustration of a biblical point that I’ve ever come across, and it really helps this lesson. If you know her, ask her about it. With the time remaining, I covered more of the characteristics listed by Paul in 1 Timothy 3.

The brethren here have been very expressive about their appreciation for these lessons, and very warm toward me. It’s good to be here.

Again, after the assembly, there was a dinner invitation, this time at the home of a young couple, Leo (Leovardo) and Rosalia (Leo is the younger brother of Darinel, our principle driver when we need one). Elver tells me it was the first time they had invited a visiting speaker into their home. She needn’t have been intimidated, the tacos she served were so, so good. And not Americanized. Fried pork, fresh onions as well as grilled onions, cilantro, another thing or two I don’t remember (but not typical American ingredients), and green sauce. I need to ask her what else she used.