Another thing that has changed is our understanding of the Word of God. The Word is alive and must continue to reveal itself to us as long as we live. We know in part and as our knowledge grows so should our love for the brethren. On the 1st of July, we held a pastor´s council, as was held in Jerusalem in Acts 15. We had 21 pastors from the city participate (we invited over 100) and we talked about doctrine and points of conflict. Our purpose was not to convince each other of what we believe but to put aside our differences and work together in the kingdom work. I have found out that neither doctrine nor church standards save us. We are saved by the Grace of God and who God chooses to use is my brother and sister in the Lord. As we love each other and work together we see the power of God manifested in our churches.
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Going back to the 4th of June, the women pastors and pastor´s wives, along with Lucy, joined together to hold an afternoon café for evangelism. It was held in one of the major hotels in the city of Tepic and over 150 women from different churches in the city attended along with their guests. Once again, we must take the gospel message to where the people are. Our goal is to start as many people as we can on the path to Salvation and then help them stay focused as they walk the walk. In November this same team of pastors and pastor´s wives will be hosting their annual women´s conference. The purpose is to strengthen the ministries of the women in the different churches.
July marks the end of the 23rd school year of our Christian schools. The words out of Proverbs ring clearly: “Raise up a child in the way…” As we teach the children, we are changing culture and habits. Lucy made the statement a couple of days ago after coming back from teaching: “The students in the middle school nowadays have a very derogatory way of talking”. We now struggle more with their attitudes and vulgarities than ever before. In this last school year, we invested over $12,000 in our school students over and above their tuition. We are looking at raising even more for this next school year which starts in August. Our vision is to continue to train and implant in these lives the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.
As we talk about culture, one of the most important moments in a new convert's walk with God here in Mexico is their baptism. Almost all Mexican babies are baptized into the Catholic church shortly after birth. This is more cultural than religious. For an adult or a young person to decide to be “rebaptized” is a major step. We know that infant baptism has nothing to do with salvation but to break with that tradition is very difficult. We emphasize baptism very much as we realize that this is the breaking point of renouncing the old traditions and turning to serve God. This year we have been blessed to have had baptisms every month so far this year.
There is so much more that we could share with you as we continue working on our long-term projects such as the new church that is being built, our social plan SAMAO 2040 that has brought in over 15 new converts in the last 2 years, our bible program and much more.
Please keep us in your prayers as the Lord continues to help our faith grow in the area of finances and the monies that we need for the different projects that we are doing. We appreciate your monthly support.
Philip & Lucy Tolman
Going back to the 4th of June, the women pastors and pastor´s wives, along with Lucy, joined together to hold an afternoon café for evangelism. It was held in one of the major hotels in the city of Tepic and over 150 women from different churches in the city attended along with their guests. Once again, we must take the gospel message to where the people are. Our goal is to start as many people as we can on the path to Salvation and then help them stay focused as they walk the walk. In November this same team of pastors and pastor´s wives will be hosting their annual women´s conference. The purpose is to strengthen the ministries of the women in the different churches.July marks the end of the 23rd school year of our Christian schools. The words out of Proverbs ring clearly: “Raise up a child in the way…” As we teach the children, we are changing culture and habits. Lucy made the statement a couple of days ago after coming back from teaching: “The students in the middle school nowadays have a very derogatory way of talking”. We now struggle more with their attitudes and vulgarities than ever before. In this last school year, we invested over $12,000 in our school students over and above their tuition. We are looking at raising even more for this next school year which starts in August. Our vision is to continue to train and implant in these lives the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.
As we talk about culture, one of the most important moments in a new convert's walk with God here in Mexico is their baptism. Almost all Mexican babies are baptized into the Catholic church shortly after birth. This is more cultural than religious. For an adult or a young person to decide to be “rebaptized” is a major step. We know that infant baptism has nothing to do with salvation but to break with that tradition is very difficult. We emphasize baptism very much as we realize that this is the breaking point of renouncing the old traditions and turning to serve God. This year we have been blessed to have had baptisms every month so far this year.
There is so much more that we could share with you as we continue working on our long-term projects such as the new church that is being built, our social plan SAMAO 2040 that has brought in over 15 new converts in the last 2 years, our bible program and much more.
Please keep us in your prayers as the Lord continues to help our faith grow in the area of finances and the monies that we need for the different projects that we are doing. We appreciate your monthly support.
Philip & Lucy Tolman
