January/February 2016 Newsletter

   Another year has come and gone. It is always good to do a reflection over the victories, losses, advances and hindrances of the last year. The year that has gone will not return but we have another 12 months to plan, work and achieve the goals that are before us. I like so much the Lord´s words to Moses in front of the burning bush. He told Moses that he would know that God had sent him because he would return to that same mountain but in completely different circumstances. Sometimes we have to complete the circle but the circumstances will have changed.

Christmas is a big event in the churches. Each church has to have it´s own Christmas party. A side from that, the youth have theirs, the leaders have another and each family programs something special for the 24^th in the evening. I think in one week we attended 8 different Christmas parties. We really enjoy this time, not for the parties but as an opportunity to share Christ. While the world wants to take CHRIST out of CHRISTMAS and give us only Happy Holidays, in the church we have the privilege of making CHRIST the center of our holidays. We get to share His birth at each party. The Bible and the plan of salvation is the center of it all. 

In one of the Christmas plays that they did in one of the churches, they had ¨Santa¨ and ¨Christ¨ come on stage. Santa Claus spoke out that he was just as important as Jesus. But wait… Santa didn´t die for our sins, he doesn´t heal our infirmities, he doesn´t live in us nor does he give us his spirit. Christmas without Christ is just nothing.

The dream of most young ladies is their wedding day but that doesn’t always happen. One of the reasons is the custom of just living together without a marriage covenant. Once a couple gets saved there is the job of making their lives line up with the Word of God. This was the case with Raymundo and Edelmira. Their lives together had not been easy. This was one of the reasons that they started to seek God. On the 9^th of January we had the honor of marrying them in a simple church ceremony. The blessing is twofold. In first place they now have a covenant that will help make their marriage strong. Secondly they have brought God into their marriage. We all know that a threefold cord does not break easily.

Aside from our weekly routine of services, school and visitation, we are starting to gear up for our annual youth camp. We always have it on Easter week because of the school holidays at that time. This year Easter comes early so we will be starting camp on the 21^st of March. There are a lot of young people already asking us where camp will be this year (we change location almost every year) and how much it will cost. The work is not only the logistics of setting up a camp in the middle of nowhere but also being sure that the Spirit is God is present before we arrive and continues there until camp ends. Camp without a special move of the Holy Spirit would not be camp.

This year we are getting funds together to build new classrooms at our Christian school. With our 45 students we are almost at our limit. We need new classrooms to be able to make our primary school grow. We are planning to build in two stages, the first being 3 classrooms and two bathrooms on the first floor. Our next stage will be another 4 classroom on the second floor. Our goal is to raise $78,000 dollars for this first stage by July of this year. We invite you to invest in this project and as you do, you will be investing in children´s lives.

My dad (David Tolman) continues with us. We learn that often life is a struggle until the end. Dad continues firm in his faith and in his sound mind.

 Thank you for your offerings and prayers. 

Philip, Lucy, & Vanessa Tolman

November-December 2015 Newsletter

And ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars: see that ye be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet ……All these are the beginning of sorrows.

Our world is shocked as religion takes the front pages of our news through the disturbing events that have happened recently in Paris, France. We see the cold-hearted way of looking at a human life and we understand the Bible even better. The enemy has only come to steal, to kill and to destroy. He can do it through violent death, addictions, humanism, work, or many other ways. We have the message of LIFE. We will never understand the mind of DEATH but we have authority over it. This is the time of the church where we can raise up in the authority that has been given us. We can´t stop the violence, the hate or the destruction but we can SAVE SOULS.

The main focus of Seedtime and Harvest Ministries through these years of ministry has been this. Getting people saved, establishing them in church and working to maintain their walk with Christ until the end. If it is one, 10 or 100, each individual is equally important in the eyes of God. If it is travelling across the Sea of Galilee to set free one that was demon possessed, or teach 5,000 on the mount, both were equally important.

Here in Mexico we try to follow this example to reach the few and the many.

In the town of Santa Maria del Oro we have been ministering for the last 17 years. The area of ministry that we have done has been to children between the ages of 3 to 14 years of age. Even though we have touched the lives of families and seen converts, we have not been able to establish a church. We continue ministering to children. As you can imagine, we are now teaching children that their parents were in our classes. (about half of the girls in this area of town where we minister are ¨married` between 13 and 16 years of age). I enjoy teaching the children because I know that what is planted into their lives will last. In most of them the Word will sprout and bring forth fruit in it´s time. What a blessing it is to invest in children, knowing that what is planted will be with them forever.

For the last 3 years we have been part of a prayer and praise event in the city of Tepic. The second weekend of December (this year it will be Saturday the 12^th) we join together with other churches in the city for a night of prayer and praise. Taking advantage that we live in the tropics, we hold the meeting outdoors. This year it will be in the town square. In doing so we have a triple purpose: first of all, we will be lifting up the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. Secondly we have the opportunity of sharing our faith with the people that are in the downtown area. Even though we don´t get snow and cold weather, Christmas is still a very important part of Mexican culture and the plaza will be streaming with people. In third place we have the privlage of joining together with brothers and sisters from other churches and working to become one body and one church (even though we meet under different roofs). Unity creates power.

Both Lucy and Vanessa continue to improve in their health. We continue to holding fast to the promise we have received for their complete healing. My dad (David Tolman) continues to confront the new challenges of life, not only being a widower, but also with the new limitations that age and infirmity have placed on his body. He continues firm in his faith and in his sound mind.

 Thank you for your offerings and prayers. May you have a Merry and blessed CHRISTMAS as we celebrate the CHRIST that made all of this possible.

Philip, Lucy, & Vanessa Tolman

A New Family

Sept/Oct 2015

Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven.

Our Father which art in heaven, our heavenly Father, Father God…. All of these expressions tell us that we have a new family. Having a new family is not easy. Having a functional new family is even a greater challenge. One of our greatest challenges on the mission field here in Mexico is forming a church family. We believe in a generational God that brings blessings to the parents, the children, the grandchildren and even further on down the line. As we bring people into a salvation relationship with Christ Jesus we bring them into a family that is not formed by flesh and blood but by our father God who is in Heaven.

In our years of ministry we have seen some churches that we have helped plant leave our spiritual covering (even though they are still part of the family of God) and move in a different direction. Some have done very well while others have faltered. As we reach out to our spiritual children it is sometimes hard to see them go and not follow the family traits that they were taught. We have also seen the opposite happen where a pastor or a family loses it's spiritual heritage and comes calling to be part of a local church family. In the month of August we had our annual pastor's business meeting. We were blessed to have 3 new pastors visit us that were trained under my parent's ministry in Guadalajara. As they are looking to grow in the areas of teaching that they received they have once again looked for fellowship among us. As our membership grows we continue to look to create a family atmosphere that gives the church strength.

The 16^th of September is the Mexican holiday celebrating it's independence. We held a special celebration in two of our churches and in our schools to celebrate and to encourage fellowship in our spiritual family. It was a time of remembrance, worship and food. It is a wonderful experience to see the family grow and mold together as a single unit. As in all families there are differences, competition and the occasional problem. As the family of God we have to learn to put on Christ's mind and leave these differences behind. In the coming month we are planning 3 special services that will not only help create unity in the local churches but also bring us together with other fellowships as we see the family grow in number and in maturity.

We thank you for your prayers for Lucy and Vanessa. Both are stable and doing much better. We are still holding fast to the promise we have received for their complete healing. We are thankful for every good day they have and even for the days are not so good health wise. We continue to see God's hand in all that we have been through as well as seeing His promises in the future.

 Thank you for your offerings and prayers. We pray blessings over you in Jesus name.

 Philip, Lucy, & Vanessa Tolman

Tepic at a Glance

 July/Aug 2015

We are living in exciting times. We are privileged to see prophecy being fulfilled faster than any other generation of our day and age. As we see the moral decline of not only our society but also of the whole world, we have two challenges put before us. The first one is to maintain our faith in the midst of an unbelieving world. The second is to be a light in the darkness and a testimony of God´s love for the world. The darker our world is, the brighter my light should shine. As missionaries this is our job; only we work in a culture that is different than ours and reach out to a people that haven´t had the opportunities that we have had to walk in the light of Jesus Christ.

Baptisms are a very important part of our walk with Christ.  The decision to walk in accord with the Word of God can only be sealed with water baptism. In July we had the privilege of baptizing Martha, but her story is one that is very common on this mission field. Her parents started bringing her to church over 25 years ago. Her family were not Christians but they wanted to hear the Word. Off and on for the next 20 years they would come to church for a couple of months and then stop coming as the conviction became great. Martha was a child at that time and as life continued on, she grew up and was married. We did not see her for the next 10 years in church, but as her children started to grow up she would send them to Sunday school. The Word of God is effective and it started to reach out to members of Martha´s family. Her younger sister was baptized, and then her brother. Two years ago, her mother also took the step of faith to walk with the Lord. Martha could no longer

resist or postpone her decision. She had to decide if she was going to serve God or not. On the 12^th of July she made the right decision as she was buried in Christ to rise into a new life. Missions work is not a short-term job. It is a lifelong calling that will transform generations to come.

If we can change children, we can change our destiny. As we get older we are set in our ways, and even if we are living a good life, change is very difficult. Through our Christian schools, we do not only give a high quality education but we also focus on Christian values. Our classes start with prayer and the Bible is one of the books that we use for a textbook. Over 50% of our students do not come from Christian homes. They are sent to our school because of the quality of education that we are giving and also for our strict discipline (well, the students don´t like that part, but the parents do!). This year we celebrated our 14^th year as a school and the ministry continues. We have six weeks off for summer and then we start back at classes on the 24^th of August.

Our challenge this year is to build more classrooms. Our school started as a Bible school, which still continues to operate, but as a secular school we now have 9 different grades of students. With only 5 classrooms, that makes it a challenge! Our plan is to build a two story, 8 room building where our dorms are currently. That way we will have all the primary school students in one building and the existing buildings will be used for our secondary school. As always, the challenge is finance. We have to make our faith grow to believe for an income above what we use to operate on a daily basis in order to make this vision a reality. That is what faith is all about, believing in the unseen until it becomes a reality. We believe because God gives us the vision.

Please continue to hold our family in your prayers. 

 Thank you for your offerings and prayers. We pray blessings over you in Jesus name.

Philip, Lucy, & Vanessa Tolman

Being Blessed by Blessing

May/June 2015 Newsletter

Some months seem to last for ever (it is usually the months where the money has run out) and other months seem to fly by. These last few months have been the fly by ones. The reason has not been that there is an excess of money but there has been a full schedule of work. The day to day routine has been busy but we want to share some of the highlights of these last two months.

Youth Camp was held over Easter Week. This year was our 30^th camp and the results continue to be amazing. A lot of things have changed in these years. Camps have become more comfortable. In years before the young people had to make their own outhouses, which were just holes that they dug in the ground and a covering of grass. Now they have regular toilets that are pre-installed even though they are still outhouses. For the kitchen we now use a power plant when before there was no electricity. Also there have been changes in the types of games that are played and the way we handle the classes. What has not changed is the manifestation of the power of God that moves in every camp producing, tears, laughter, conviction and change. They may still sleep nights on the hard ground but also much time is spent laying on the hard ground before God.

Children´s camp is always a challenge. Now that families are smaller there are fewer children to attend. Also a children´s camp needs a lot more help and attention. This year we had a great team that worked with the children in all the areas of their lives. There were Bible classes, crafts, sports, dramas and fireside services. The most important aspect of the camp is to let the children experiment the moving of the Holy Spirit in their lives. This year was not an exception. God moved and children were filled with the Holy Spirit. What a pleasure it is to see children filled with God´s Holy presence.

Mother´s day at Xecora is a big event. Well, Mother´s day in Mexico is a huge event. It is always on the 10^th of May. Schools and business close to let people go and celebrated with their mothers. This year we celebrated a festival for the mothers on Friday the 8^th of May. The school students put on a complete program for the mothers. There are special songs, dramas, poems and a dinner. The student did a spectacular job this year in this event. These are the types of activities that help us promote the school and get recognition in our area. The parents will talk more about a special school event that about the academic teachings of the school.

Please continue to hold our family in your prayers. Both Lucy and Vanessa continue to struggle with serious health issues and they are both in hospital as out patients two to three times a month. David Tolman is part of our family now and the process of aging has him frustrated as he is very limited in the things that he can do. He would love to be able to do so much more but it is physically impossible. Philip continues to be blessed with health and strength to carry the extra load at this time.

 Thank you for your offerings and prayers. We pray blessings over you in Jesus name.

Philip, Lucy, &Vanessa Tolman

Newsletter- March/April 2015

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Busy or Busyness

January-February 2015 Newsletter

If it is 24 hours, 1440 minutes or 86,400 seconds, a day is a day and we fill it up with things. We have time for God, time for family, to work, for pleasure and to share. The question is are we just busy or are we doing God´s business.

December was a time of much activity as we celebrated Christmas, trying to keep CHRIST as the central focus on all that we did. Each of the churches had their Christmas get together or party, which gave us 10 extra activities in two weeks. The fellowship was great but the extra time needed to be present and active was an added pressure. Family time in the church is very important as it helps us to become the body of Christ that we should be. It also gives us time to fellowship and to know each other better.

Our Christian school, Xecora, had it´s Christmas program for the students and the parents also. What a great time to share with the parents the real meaning of Christmas and the reason that is behind Jesus´ birth. Over half of our students come from unsaved families and they are being touched by the gospel in our classrooms. Our goal for our next school year is to fill our classes to capacity and then construct more classrooms so that we can impact more lives. The Word and the values that we implant in each student will be a part of them all of their lives.

The last week of December we received 250 gift boxes from the Samaritan´s Purse to bless children in our area. When you talk about free gifts, 250 boxes doesn´t go very far but it sure made a lot of happy children. In the Town of  ªEl Ahualamoª we gave way over 100 boxes as we offered a box to each child that came to our Christmas program and free dinner. We were able to do the same in two other churches, blessing not only our own church members but also children that don´t attend church.

As this New Year rolls in we will be moving forward with changes in our ministry. Our son in law, Agustin will be moving on from being youth pastor and music minister in our main church. He and our daughter are taking a full time pastorate in a church plant that we started in October 2013. They feel that it is God´s time to dedicate more time in the new church. As a result we will be installing two new ministers in the church, one in the area of the music ministry and the other in the youth ministry. Also we will be starting a new course at the Bible school the 31st of January to continue to raise up new ministers of the Word.

In our personal lives we are thanking God for a stabilizing of the medical condition that Lucy has been going through. She has now been over 4 months without a blood transfusion, which is a blessing and a great start in the right direction. As we have been working through Lucy´s situation, Vanessa had an aggressive physical attack on her body that put her in hospital for almost two weeks. At the beginning of this year the doctor diagnosed an imbalance in her autoimmune system called Lupus. Her immune system instead of defending her body has attacked her body creating intense pain and basically keeping her confined to her bed. Please pray along with us as we march through this attack knowing that God will bring good from this according to His Word.

 We pray blessings over you in Jesus name,

Philip, Lucy, & Vanessa Tolman