We had a slow morning. There were no errands for us to run and one by one the team trickled into Scott and I’s room to watch video clips from the past ten days. We joked about different things we saw, and Scott talked to us about memories from his time in Mexico as he sorted through old pictures. One thing led to another and we were packed into the van on the way to Dairy Queen. It was John who really wanted to go, but he kept making it seem like Scott wanted to go, who in turn was trying to pinpoint the urge to go to Dairy Queen on Amber. Gary and I stayed as passive as we could during the entire exchange and left Buck to try and sort it all out. We were driving to Dairy Queen. But, we all decided that we shouldn’t eat Dairy Queen until we put something else in our stomach, something healthier; the first thing you’d think of - Kentucky Fried Chicken.

Now, let me stop here and say, there are times you will be driving down the road and you’ll see Colonel Sanders and think, man that sounds like a good idea right now. Just keep driving. Every time I have thought that and stopped at KFC, I’ve always been disappointed. In fact, every time I’ve eaten at KFC, I’ve been disappointed. Now, I’m not trying to be too hard on the restaurant, and I have no hard feelings for the people who enjoy the establishment, but there just isn’t anything going for Kentucky Fried Chicken. I actually enjoyed it today. Not the biscuits or the chicken, of course; I enjoyed the french fries. I should stop there, but I also have to say, eating at American fast food chains in a third world country generally nets you a inferior imitation - here in Mexico, the food from KFC looked, tasted, felt and smelled the same. What does that tell you?

After KFC we walked across the street to Dairy Queen. Everyone ordered a small blizzard for health reasons, Gary probably made the best decision and ordered a small cone; I ordered a waffle sundae. Yea, it was pretty good.

We got back to the hotel and I spent a good amount of time talking to Gary and Amber, they are some of the sweetest, most down to earth people I know; I fully intend to visit them in Mississippi. Eventually, everyone returned to their rooms and spent time in R&R and packing bags for tomorrow. That is when we leave for Tuxla Gutierrez after dropping Gary and Amber off at the airport here in Coatzacoalcos.

The last meeting got off to a raging start. A wheelchair bound lady who was unable to stand was standing, the man from last night who had been dear was beaming from ear to ear as he told us how he could hear, devils were cast out, the crippled walked, the blind saw, the deaf heard and the poor had the gospel preached to them. Sound familiar? And that is no exaggeration. From all of the meetings combined there were well over a hundred first-time salvations. Not rededications. First-time salvations. Tonight was about the baptism of the Holy Spirit and it was windy. There were several times I thought the steel frame for the stage covering was going to tear off the ground. The wind was blowing.

Goodnight.

jeremy

I watched a deaf man as he began to hear. John spat in both of his ears, stuck his fingers in them, commanded them to be opened and then stood back and began talking to the man. He repeated what John said, and as the realization of what that meant hit him, he broke out into an excited grin; just the sort of grin I imagine I’d have on my face if I heard something for the first time. That was, of course, at the meeting tonight, where again, the fire of God fell upon the people and great signs and wonders were seen.

The first thing on the docket this morning when I woke up was burning a DVD of clips from last night for the television station. It was not until after I went to put the DVD-R in my computer that I realized I had removed my disc drive because it was broken. Scott helped me burn it on his. We ate breakfast at the hotel and my order was simple: two scrambled eggs and wheat toast; they brought me two scrambled eggs and white toast. In english, I could almost understand, because wheat and white are so similar; but, in spanish, wheat and white aren’t really that similar. Not that I know what either of them are, I just know they are as similar as wheat and white.

The team picked up the chairs we found yesterday from Sam’s Club for the mercy seat and then went to the field to help set them up. I stayed behind to catch up on rest; I had been up late into the night preparing the video for the television station. They came back in the early afternoon and we went to lunch at the hotel. Now, I know it seems like not a lot happened between breakfast and lunch, but let me guarantee you that it did. I ate a fish fillet, cooked in garlic butter with parsley and lime. I’m ordering it at lunch again tomorrow.

We left the hotel at 7:20p for the crusade. John preached by the Holy Ghost concerning the mercy seat and the way that had been made through Jesus Christ our Lord. It was a battle. He said he felt like he had gone through “twelve rounds of a boxing match.” The good news is, through Jesus Christ our Lord, we always win. The altar once again flooded with people. There were over a thousand people in the stadium, and several hundred of them had not been there last night. It was these people who flooded the altar. Our whole team was into it tonight: Gary and I were documenting the event on our Canon EOS cameras, but both of us were frequently taking breaks to lay our hands on people and watch God touch them; it seemed like every time I turned around Scott was ministering to one family or another, always speaking to them with sincere compassion and then laying his hands on them with authority; Buck was right in the midst of it all with John, praying and catching and directing the ushers. Let me quickly point something out, I don’t know if I’ve mentioned this before, but Buck is sixty-five - he looks and exercises himself as if he were no older than forty. Amber was on the keyboard singing under the anointing. I hate the phrase, but she sang the glory down. It was like a breath of fresh air after all the showmanship we have been put through the last few weeks.

Whew, that is a long paragraph. Here is a short one so you can take a break.

It would be thoughtless of me not to mention my recent victory. The arrival of Gary and Amber, both also rife with southern drawls and midwestern slang, has actually given me a weapon to combat both of those language mishaps. Through their curiosity I have the entire team saying things like: “stoked,” “radical,” and “sweet.”

We ate at Italianni’s again tonight and I had Ravioli al Pomandoro; at first they undercooked it, and I was a little embarrassed because I had talked the dish up so much that Buck, Amber and Gary all ordered it as well. We had to send it back for reheating. It wasn’t as good as it was last night. I’ve been eating so much more on this trip than I do in the United States that I don’t know what I’m going to do when I get back. When I left, thirteen days seemed like a really long time, but now there are only three days left on the trip - and only one more meeting.

Tomorrow night is going to be historic. You want to participate in prayer.

jeremy

It was a long day today. The ritualistic mindset of so many of the meeting’s organizers really frustrated our entire team. For example, the meeting tonight took place on a baseball field: John had directed the stage to be built behind second base, but when we arrived on the field the stage was set up on the pitcher’s mound. We later found out that the person in charge of setting up the meeting had made a conscious decision to go against what John the Evangelist said because the professional, secular sound man he had hired said it would be better to have the stage closer to the stands. In other words, the person in charge of setting up the meeting had ignored what the Holy Ghost said because he though what the demon spirit said made more sense.

The worship service was set up as, in the evangelist’s words, “A disco.” There were spinning lights, bright clothing and loud music. John was supposed to take the stage when we arrived at 7:30, but the “disco” continued until 8:35. They spend over two hours entertaining the crowds with music and got absolutely no results, the people still looked burdened down, oppressed and depressed.

But, when the John began to preach, it took about an hour for that mind-blinding spirit to broken off of the people. Tonight we had a meeting that was filled with predominately churchgoers, and John ministered by the Holy Ghost on the importance of forgiveness; both of being forgiven and forgiving. The vast majority of the people attending the meeting flooded the altar. Once again, we saw many healed, delivered and set free. Once again, I saw almost every demon manifestation that I’ve ever heard of, and the people in charge of setting up the meeting got a wake up call, because John let them know exactly how he felt.

After the meeting we went to Italianni’s. The big joke is that the reason we came to Coatzacoalcos was because John wanted to eat at Italianni’s. Everyone ordered something different, and that was an adventure in itself, but I branched out and tried a mozzarella ravioli. It was delicious. Before I tell you more about the ravioli, let me back up to before the meeting. For lunch, I had chicken enchiladas. They asked me what type of sauce I wanted, and I gave them the benefit of the doubt, so I tried every sauce. Red sauce, green sauce and white sauce; also known as the tri-color sauce. Not mixed, but separated so I could know exactly how they tasted. Why does this matter? I just wanted to point out that my mother makes the best chicken enchiladas in the world. Anyways, that aside, the ravioli was delicious. It did not look like anything I’d ever seen before. If you told me you were going to give me ravioli, no matter who you were, I would never picture what I was served. It looked like a bowl of cheese sauce. But, the mozzarella stuffed shells were submerged in it. I might order it again tonight.

While we were running errands today we stopped by a Sam’s Club. Many of you might not make the connection to Costco, but it was very much the same type of store. I was surprised to find out that they had a Sam’s Club in Mexico, and also surprised to find out that there was nothing “club” about it. You didn’t need a card to go inside. We were looking for a “mercy seat” prop for the stage at the meeting on Friday night. There were two chairs, that when stuck together, were an almost perfect representation of what John was looking for, so we put them on hold and are considering purchasing them tomorrow.

Keep us in prayer.

jeremy

At three o’clock today we went to an airport near Coatzacoalcos and picked up two more members of our team who flew in from Mississippi. Gary, a wiry, but gentle, reservist who wants nothing more than to see the display of the power of God. Amber, his wife, is a pastor’s daughter with a heart for the Lord and a joyful, exuberant demeanor. Now we are six. John was ecstatic about Gary and Amber flying in, I should have mentioned it earlier. He has talked about them multiple times every day leading up to their arrival.

Before we left for the airport we stopped at the hotel restaurant to drink some lemonade. I missed breakfast this morning so I ate a cliff bar. Now, understand, when I was preparing for this trip - having gone to Africa for thirty-four days a year ago - I was not expecting to have such an abundance of food. I packed twenty-eight cliff bars in my bag; two for each day. I have eaten five or six of them and the trip is more than halfway over. It felt good to eat a cliff bar instead of a big breakfast this morning. I guarantee you that it did not taste as good, but it made me feel like packing that many cliff bars was justified. I might eat another one tomorrow morning just to get that same feeling. But, maybe not; we’ll find out tomorrow.

After the airport we returned to the hotel for about an hour and then went to the venue where the crusade will be held tomorrow, friday and saturday. Our purpose was to pray for the ushers and leaders. The venue was a baseball field and when we arrived there were amateur teams playing baseball on it. Buck, who I believe is an avid baseball fan, was wincing at every play because of how bad the short-stop was; apparently he didn’t even move and let three balls fly right past him. But, all of that is beside the point, I snapped a couple pictures of the baseball game, and then we had our meeting in the entrance to the field. There were about a hundred ushers for the meeting. Ultimately, I think every usher brought his entire family, but maybe I’m wrong, maybe they were all ushers.

This meeting was at 7:00p and by the time we started it was 7:30; this doesn’t mean much to you unless I inform you that we were supposed to be at the television station for another live broadcast interview at 8:00. John was not going to leave until he was released by the Holy Ghost. So he preached, and then he prayed for a hundred people in four-and-a-half minutes flat. I timed it on my camera.

We left the baseball field at 8:00 and arrived at the TV station at 8:25 - there was no time for preparations or rehearsals. They clipped a mike on John and he jumped in front of the cameras while they ushered Scott into the broadcast room where he would translate everything John said. I could not mention this without stating how impressed I was by Scott Ingram today. John was shooting out five sentences at a time, and Scott had to translate them after he was done - he did not miss a beat. Certainly, he probably paraphrased a bit of what John said, but in my broken spanish it sounded like he was right on key.

Another thing that I found admirable was the way Gary, who was taking still photos at the usher’s meeting, was able to catch a dear usher, set them down, and then spring to his feet and snap a photo all in one motion. He did a good job. Taking pictures and catching people while holding on to a camera is no easy feat.

After the television interview was finished. Wait. I didn’t tell you how it went. The questions were much more open-ended this time, they asked about the difference between the carnal world and the spiritual world - a question with a depth that shocked me; they asked whether or not their would be any miracles during the crusade - to which John answered with a simple yes; and they asked what the vision for the city of Coatzacoalcos was - and John declared to them that we came to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ and invite the Holy Spirit back into a city that was once called the “village of the Holy Spirit.” Overall, it went really well. It was a lot longer than this paragraph.

After the television interview we drove to the italian restaurant where we ate last night. I once again ordered parmesan chicken and it was just as delicious as it was last time. This time I did not eat as much of the spaghetti and made sure I downed the garlic bread first. It needed a bit of olive oil to cut down on the potency. I ate my meal with lemonade and generally listened to the conversation that was happening around the table. There were a couple of times that I was absentminded and caught at thinking about something else, but it was a very enjoyable evening.

Parking at the italian restaurant cost ten pesos. That is less than $1.00. Parking at a mall with a parking problem is rarely that cheap.

Now we are back at the hotel and about to turn off the lights and roll into bed. Keep us in prayer;

jeremy

We ate breakfast this morning in the restaurant at the Hotel Terranova. I had pancakes. Generally speaking they tasted like pancakes, even if they were a bit on the spongy side, and I was quite satisfied with my choice. We packed up after breakfast and drove to the TV station where John Ward was going to be interviewed on live television in the state of Vera Cruz.

The shoot was ridiculous. They began immediately without telling John it was a rehearsal, and despite repeated requests that they refer to him as John the Evangelist, they continued to call him John Ward. But, when the live interview started, he did not miss a beat and by the end of it the news anchor was shaking in her seat. I caught the whole interview process on film; it was a powerful demonstration of how the Holy Ghost takes control of a godless atmosphere and uses it for His purposes.

After the shoot we went to an italian restaurant. I forget the name, but I’ll have plenty of opportunities to figure it out because apparently we are eating there every night. Buck informed me that the reason they came back to Coatzacoalcos to preach again was because of this italian restaurant. I ordered Parmesan Chicken. Excuse me, Polla de Parmegiana. It was a generous portion, and by that I mean two gigantic pieces of Parmesan Chicken sitting on top of a heaping pile of spaghetti and served with a piece of garlic bread so big that I couldn’t even finish it. I’ve never left garlic bread on the table before. And this was cheesy garlic bread. Yea, enough said.

After this we returned to our hotel. I was just reminded that the first thing I did in the morning was send a report to my Pastor about how my trip to Mexico was going. Here is a transcript of that report:

It has been wonderful - I have captured almost everything on video; John prayed for one wheelchair bound man who could barely move his hand and he walked of his own accord from the back of the church all the way to the front. We had one service with almost every demon manifestation I’ve ever heard of - in a meeting filled with predominately churchgoers. The fire of God has fallen in every service and we’ve seen many pastors dedicate themselves to returning to a place of passion for the lost and of ministering the gospel of our lord Jesus to everyone in their city.

But, that was before the Italian Restaurant, and the television station. Oh, another thing, before we returned to the hotel after eating some of the best italian food I’ve ever tasted, we went shoe shopping again. I still can’t tell you who was shopping for shoes, but let’s just say, it was another arduous process, and the only difference between this attempt and the one in Chiapas was that we successfully acquired a pair of replacement dress blacks.

After that, we returned to the hotel and engaged in some R&R before we departed for a pastor’s meeting at the Fiesta Inn; the same hotel we were going to stay in along the coast before they lost our reservation. Abel, my good friend the bell-boy I told you about in the last post, proved valuable, successfully getting us to the conference room without bringing us near the management that had scorned us so royally the day before. I shook his hand one last time before the doors of the elevator closed.

The conference room was filled with pastor’s and leaders all waiting for us to begin dinner. It was one of those eating-meetings, as John Ward calls them. There was a drink they poured into my glass, it was red and slightly bubbly, but not carbonated; I stared at it for a while before I finally took a sip. Have you ever thought about how a flower would taste? If not, imagine right now putting the petal of your favorite flower in your mouth, that is exactly how this drink tasted. Its called Jamaica, and its made from a flower. I took one sip and let out a loud, shocked “whoa.” All the mexicans laughed at me and I did not try that drink again. Scott told me it was good for my kidneys, I was glad my kidneys weren’t causing me any problems.

They served us a salad, but John, Buck and I didn’t accept it because we are very wary of strange lettuce; choosing, usually, not to eat any lettuce at restaurants. Then they served us a flattened, pan-fried chicken. It was unusual. My reaction was to lean over to Scott and say, “I’m hesitatingly liking it…. a lot.” There was also a rice pilaf and a pile of vegetables; you can decide whether or not I touched those.

Once the eating was done, Buck shared a slew of great testimonies with me, and then John the Evangelist was finally asked to speak. It was intense. The fire of God fell and one Pastor, when John Ward touched him, collapsed so suddenly that he smacked his forehead against the table and began to manifest under it. He was seizing something fierce - I have it on video. Ultimately, he stood up in his right mind completely delivered. There were several other pastors and leaders who were touched by the fire of God, in fact everyone in the room was touched by the fire of God. One prominent pastor left as soon as John began praying for people, and when he came back at the end he sat in a corner with a scowl on his face. I found out later he was the supervisor of Compassion Ministries in Mexico.

The manager of the TV Station was at the meeting and he will never be the same again.

We returned to the hotel after that, John, Buck and Scott went to get ice cream; I slipped into my room and went to sleep.

Keep us in prayer;

jeremy

When I first started this trip, I was under the impression that Coatzacoalcos was our only destination; it was a pleasant surprise to find out that we were holding meetings in Chiapas first. It is hard to even fathom what I know is going to take place here in this city. From all the testimonies that Buck and John have shared about the meetings they held here last year, I am certain that there are going to be mighty signs, wonders and miracles like I have never seen before.

Right now I am sitting on a couch in Scott and I’s hotel room at the Hotel Terranova. This is a five-star hotel. We were originally going to stay at a hotel near the coast, but when we went in they had lost our reservations and increased the price. John Ward did not skip a beat, we just scooted out of there and drove to this hotel; its a nicer hotel - a much nicer hotel - at a cheaper price. While we were waiting at the first hotel, I chatted with the bellboy; a young man named Abel. He could not speak much english, and I could not speak much spanish, but we had a very interesting conversation. He asked me if we were there for work (in spanish). I answered that we were there in the name of Jesus Christ (in spanish), because that was pretty much all I knew how to say. We became fast friends. He has never left the city of Coatza, and is thirty years old.

Wait, I’ve jumped pretty far ahead of myself, let me back up to the beginning of the day. We woke up late - at about the time we had planned on leaving Chiapas. Then we ate breakfast. I had two scrambled eggs with toast, only I didn’t eat the toast because it was at least a week old; hard as a cracker. The eggs were fair-to-middling. Once again, Scott, the only person on the team who can actually read the menu, ordered a dish that we didn’t even know we could have: hot-cakes. You’d know them as pancakes, and they looked like the real deal.

After breakfast we packed up the car and drove out towards Tuxla Gutierrez. We were stopped at a checkpoint by the military who proceeded to search our van. Compared to the police in Mocambique, these guys were small-town. They didn’t even know the proper pat-down procedures. I believe the checkpoint was more for show than anything else; their guns were cool.

We ate lunch in Tuxla at an upscale McDonalds. Between the children’s playground area and the general cleanliness of the establishment, I was reminded of the United States. But, I think there are orphans who live in the playground structure (I know I’d live in there if I was a young orphan) and beg at the gas station next door. The number of street kids in Mexico is appalling. Not that I know what the number is, I just heard it was appalling.

I slept most of the van ride. It was about a five-hour drive from Chiapas to Coatza, and after we finally got settled into this five-star establishment, we proceeded to have dinner at their five-star restaurant. I ordered a cut of sirloin, medium-well; I got what I asked for.

Once again I’m going to ask you to commit to at least ten minutes of solid prayer that the fire of God will fall at the crusade meetings in Coatzacoalcos Thursday, Friday and Saturday.

jeremy

We spent Sunday morning at a church that Scott had planted here in Chiapas many years ago. All of us were deeply impressed by the obedience of the children in the church; Scott, John and Buck had never seen anything like it - because the children were not immediately carted off to a back room somewhere. It was not as foreign to me because I was raised in the Abiding Place and required by my parents to participate in every meeting at a young age.

The Holy Ghost moved upon the people. That is really all I need to say about that, but for your sakes… A man who was wheelchair bound and was barely able to move his hand walked of his own accord from the back of the church, to the front of the church (I mean without anyone even holding onto him) and all the way back. Then he continued to stand for a while after that. Several of the children were so touched by the power of God that they began to weep in the altar. Demons manifested and were cast out; even out of people who didn’t want them to leave. The congregation was called out of a place of captivity to sin and death and many of them responded with sincerity.

After the service we went to lunch, and then back to the hotel where we all lounged and they began to tell me stories from Mississippi. All three of them were thrilled at the leaps and bounds they have made in converting me to a southern drawl, and, sadly, they have reason to be; I let a “y’all” slip out without even thinking about it. They celebrated the occasion with ice cream. Then we all were laughing uproariously as Buck, Scott and John took turns telling ‘coon hunting stories. This was, of course, all a part of their indoctrination plan. They fully intend for me to arrive back in San Diego and sound just like them. When you are inundated day and night with a certain way of speaking, you can’t help it, the elocution gets imbedded in your mind. I need to find a way that more people from San Diego can call me.

As an aside, I’m not allowed to tell you about a shopping trip at the request of a distinguished member of our team who does not want his wife to know how much time he spent, and how many stores he went to, looking for another pair of shoes. That is all I can say.

-jeremy

What can wash my sins away?
Nothing but the blood of Jesus.
What can make me whole again?
Nothing but the blood of Jesus.
Oh precious is that flow,
that makes me white as snow;
no other fount I know,
nothing but the blood of Jesus.

This is the day that the LORD has made and I will rejoice and be glad in it. For He has risen upon the inside of me, and I have risen from the dead with Him and am now seated in heavenly places with God in Christ. Behold, we are part of the first resurrection and have escaped the wrath of God that is in the earth. Look up, for your redemption draws nigh - Jesus Christ the living God!

Tonight was our first crusade meeting, but we started preparing for it early this morning. When we woke up, after breakfast, we went and built all the props for the stage. Scott demonstrated his skills as a carpenter; he was a carpenter before he came to Mexico twenty years ago. I’ve never seen anyone who could measure, mark and cut wood as fast as him - I didn’t feel like much of a help while we were building, most of the time I felt like a deer in the headlights. But, everything turned out alright, and then we went to lunch with Pastor Antonio.

Pastor Antonio was the pastor who was so deeply touched by the fire of God at yesterday’s pastor’s conference that he dedicated himself to preaching the gospel with the same intensity that he had when he first gave his life to Jesus. Him and his wife were full of the joy of God, and even though I couldn’t speak their language, I was encouraged by their demeanor.

The rest of the afternoon was uneventful. I prepped my camera and rested until we finally left the hotel for the meeting. It took place in this small arena that seated about 2,500 people. The place was almost completely packed out, but, at first, as John preached a fiery, anointed message the people were hard and unresponsive. Let me back up a bit.

When we arrived the music team was playing. It was loud and theatrical. Several types of percussion and brass instruments, guitars, bass, keyboards, and a variety of different singers. The lead singer was dancing around the stage shouting at the top of his lungs, even leaping into the air. There was no anointing. The whole crowd was joining in, but it was loud and dead. John called it theatrics - I think that is the best description of the program.

Anyways, as John preached, after leaping and dancing to the loud music, no one seemed to crack a smile or even shift in their seats. They sat in statuesque poses reminiscent of ancient Greece. But, then the fire of the Holy Ghost fell across the auditorium as everyone in the audience was demanded to examine themselves and see whether or not they were in the faith. The altar filled up with people who were broken and ready for a touch from heaven.

Things got crazy at that point. The power to that area of the town went out and everyone in the place whipped out their cell phones for light. I couldn’t film anymore because it wasn’t bright enough for my camera to pick up anything that was going on, but as John went through the crowded altar praying for people, demons began to manifest left and right. People were rolling on the floor, puking, I mean there was almost every demonic manifestation I’ve ever heard of happening right there. But, one by one, these churchgoers were being delivered from the spirits that had been tormenting them for years.

The lights eventually did come back on, but by that time John had finished praying for everyone. After briefly talking to the pastors, we drove back to the hotel; stopping on the way for a bite to eat at burger king (the Lord has mercy). When we got back to the room, after Scott and I got ready for bed, John and Buck came and joined us to share testimonies. We had a wonderful time of fellowship for about half and hour, and now we are turning in to sleep. Tomorrow is resurrection sunday - its going to be exciting.

Goodnight my friends,

jeremy

Last night, after I wrote that post, we went out dinner at the hotel restaurant and all four of us ordered a filet mignon. The red flag went up when they didn’t ask us how we wanted our meat cooked. What they brought us was a bunch of thin steaks that were pressed together in the shape of a filet mignon, wrapped in some sort of ham and covered in mushrooms. It was interesting.

I slept very well in the hotel and this morning we had our first meeting. The fire of God fell. It was a pastor’s conference as we prepare for a crusade that is taking place tomorrow night. When we walked into the building we could see the burden on the pastors’ countenances; John Ward expressed it as seeing a weight that they were trying to but could not possibly bear. But, there was a moment when the Holy Spirit of the living God rushed into the building and settled upon the entire congregation. When it did, the pastors began to break and all their burdens were lifted. I am going to try to post a video from this conference to show exactly what I’m talking about, but the testimonies that followed were all about how these pastors we going to return to the very beginning of their calling from God and preach the gospel to every single creature they encountered.

When the fire of God touches someone nothing about their life can ever remain the same, and it was the same fire of God that burned within the pages of the Bible that came to reside on the pastors in that meeting. One pastor in particular was so convicted for having drawn back to a place of ministering only within his churches, and he is over twenty churches, that he began to weep and then the joy broke forth as he reconsecrated his life to being just on fire for the Kingdom of God as he was when he first heard the call to the ministry.

It felt like I was at home.

After that meeting we went to pick up the van that was in the shop and then got some food at the local Wal-Mart, and by that I mean Dominos Pizza. Buck and I split a medium, crispy crust, pepperoni pizza. Then we returned to the hotel to prepare for the next meeting.

It was a leader’s meeting for the leaders who served in the church of the pastor who set up the crusade. John Ward preached a heavy message and then prayed for all of them that they might come to a place of greater servitude to their pastor.

After that meeting we drove down to a nice restaurant in the center of Chiapas, Mexico. We ordered a “Cafe Combo:” Fettuccine Regatta and Filet Mignon. Let me stop here and say, I do not know why I keep tormenting myself by ordering Filet Mignon in a third world country. I tell myself that there is no better cut of meat, and that it must be the best thing on the menu, but every time they serve me something other than filet mignon, and they always serve it with mushrooms. Buck and John ordered the same thing, and it came with this big salad, and none of us ate the salad because we knew Pastor Mark wouldn’t have eaten it if he had been there.

When we got back to the hotel Scott showed John and I a video that had us laughing so hard. If you didn’t gather from my last post, Scott is our translator, and John jokes often about not knowing what it is Scott is saying; that he is probably preaching some other message. When all the pastors began to cry in the morning conference, John Ward joked afterward that Scott must have said something about how he is leaving Mexico permanently after being a missionary there, working with all these pastors, for twenty years. Anyways, Scott showed us a video about missionary translators. Here is the link.

One of the most frustrating things is that I am beginning to fall into a southern drawl, even in my thoughts. Its something about being around three men from Mississippi; even their slang is slipping into my vocabulary. The one thing they haven’t gotten me saying yet is, “ya’ll,” but they are trying hard.

The first crusade, tomorrow night, is going to be radical and I would like to ask you to commit to 10 - 20 minutes of solid prayer that the fire of God will fall in a radical way and touch even the hardest hearts.

I look forward to writing about it.

-jeremy