Calvary Chapel: Modesto

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We sent out a team of 24 servants to participate in the Festival of Life 2007 outreach. The team left Modesto in the evening of March 19, traveled to the town of Tuxtla Gutierrez, in the state of Chiapas, Mexico. They flew out of San Francisco Airport just after midnight Monday night, changed planes in Mexico City and then arrived in Tuxtla on Tuesday. There they spent the next week ministering to the people of the area in a variety of ways, including medical clinics, performance ministry, street evangelism, and construction projects. During the evenings and on Sunday, the participants and community members gathered for large, crusade style evangelism events. Our Team Members:
Pastor Garth Aderholt Beverly Aderholt Ronald Aderholt Summer Aderholt Taylor Aderholt Kaylan Bollea Margery Fox Alana Lella Aleda Lella Maureen Lemings Deborah Love Doloris O'Donnell	Hayley Robison Jennifer Robison Kim Robison Art Silva Leslie Smith Louis Sweet, Jr. Ashley Vernon Cynthia Vieira Ariel Villasol Emma Villasol Sandra Walter Thomas Wendt
Journal
March 20 - 7:30pm
We are here! Well...here at the airport anyway. It is Tuesday on the first of two planes to arrive Mexico city at 5:45 AM. We have to then wait four hours to board our second plane that will take us to Guitterrez, Mexico. We should arrive there at 11:30 AM. Then we will have a 45 minute bus ride to Tuxla. Then we really will be there!!! Yes, we are excited to see what the Lord has in store for the people of Chiapas as well as for us! That’s enough exclamation points for now. I will fill you in with the rest of the news later.

March 21 - 5:57pm
Team members went all over the city. One of the areas was Jardines del Pedregal, a neighborhood way up on the hillside of Tuxtla Gutirrez, with many makeshift cement homes on narrow bedrock streets. Two team members were asked to sing on stage in front of the 300 plus neighborhood residents, who enjoyed their Spanish songs under the canopy. The team members said they didn't know enough Spanish to say "no". Team members helped distribute water and refresh the nursing team who worked all day at the medical clinic around the corner. Mothers came with their children all day. One woman who was witnessed to by the doctor put her trust in Christ. Local pastors will visit her home. There were opportunities for team members to witness to parents and children individually. Two Bible stories were translated for the children. Two local Mexican evangelism school students were a blessing to us, along with the unity found in working with the local churches. We distributed Gospel tracts, invitations to the main evening events (which are said to be attended by over 27,000 people), and also gave out soccer balls to the chidren. The Mexican people truly are a genuine and humble people who received us gladly.

March 22 - 5:35pm
3500 Christians came to the stadium for prayer. Many local churches were represented. Over 175 local churches are involved in the outreach. After prayer and worship we marched around the entire stadium. Everywhere we go, from the medical clinics to cab drivers, the people on the street they are open to the Gospel. We are extremely expectant for the miraculous to happen at the stadium. They are expecting 50,000 people. At the mini-festival at Linda Vista, Shanka workers went up into the hillside neighborhoods inviting people to the Gospel outreach. Clowns going by the local schoolgrounds brought a wave of excited children coming down the hill after school. People even listened from their homes to the amplifeid message going up the hill. Amazingly, as the Gospel was being preached and the call for a decision was made, a strong wind came in whipping people’s faces with dirt. Christians prayed and the wind stopped just as quickly as it came. When the call for trusting in Christ was made and people were asked to stand, about 30 people stood up. When the speaker asked them to come forward to publicly confess Jesus as their Savior, more and more people came forward. It was a large response. A worker described coming home from a training with two others in a taxi. They led the taxi driver to Christ. When they stopped at a small taco restaurant to eat and hand out festival invitations, one man came out to them and asked what this event was all about. They asked him if he would like to put his trust in Christ and he said he would. They presented the Gospel to him and he got saved. There is a lot of unity among the visiting Christians and local Christians. Even workers as far away as Mexico City are invaluable in helping us communicate the Gospel.

March 23 - 6:14am
An account of sharing of the Gospel at the medical clinic: A middle-aged woman came in for problems with high blood pressure and "stress" in her life. The doctor and interpreter/nurse appropriately treated the physical symptoms, and then quickly moved on in prayer and discussion about the Savior who helps and loves those living with stress. After the Gospel was presented in her language, she said, "I am ready." She prayed the sinner’s prayer, smiled widely, and said, "I am a Christian." Joy flooded the simple surroundings of this corner of the clinic. The staff gave her name to a local pastor for follow up. By divine help the Dental Clininc goes on: Our dental clinic was missing an important supply to proceed with the work. This was something that was in our supplies, but somehow the box was lost or misplaced. Even through valiant searching, it was not found. The decision to purchase another one was made so that the clinic could go on. But where does one start looking for specific dental supplies in this unfamiliar city? God's hand was upon this crisis. The local pastor visiting our clinic had transportation (a truck). His own daughter was a dentist and actually working at one of the other clinics that morning. He contacted her a by phone explained our needs. She instantly told us specifically what to get and where to get it (with full directions). Pastor Thomas zig-zagged through the traffic and got us to the dental supply house. His daughter on our cell phone spoke directly to the supply house clerk and we got exactly what she said we would need (which was extremely helpful, as there were many variations of the same product). When we returned to the clinic at approximately 1 pm, the dentists were thrilled at the supplies and said it was all they needed to open up and deliver care. Their clinic immediately re-opened, and they worked rapidly to see as many patients as possible. The work and workers continued by the providence and protection of the Lord.

March 24 - 9:49pm
Today was another blessed day. The mini festivals are amazing! One of todays mini festival was in San Crisobal-Paraiso which is 45 minutes out of Tuxtula Gutierrez. The bus ride was beauitful, traveling up the hill we seen canyons and rivers and the sky was a beauitful blue with white fluffy clouds. They dressed in traditional Mayan Indian attire. Some woman wore goat skin with the fur in tac skirts, we were told the men wore tunics with the same goat skin. The Bmx team was also there doing amazing stunts and sharing the gospel. The local church where the festival took place provided food for everyone, we were able to come along side and help prepare and distibute. A team member said it was like fishes and loaves there were so many people flowing through and the food kept being handed out! It was another busy day at the medical clinic. A little boy had a skin diease and the medical staff had the exact meds he needed (praise the Lord)and a couple of team members paid for his prescription for a years worth of meds he needed. God is so good!! We were also able to walk through the neighborhoods during the festival and hand out soccerballs, candy, baby clothes, and share the love of Jesus. We had clothing for baby girls that had been donated along with some blankets. During our search for babies small enough for the sizes we had, Pastor Garth put a soccerball in his t-shirt to try and communicate to the neighborhood if there was anyone pregnant. :) The mini festivals during the day are incrediable! It's really beauitful looking around seeing Gods children sharing the love of Jesus with servant hearts. We all feel very blessed to be able to love and serve them. Its amazing you can be filling balloons or helping with the childrens crafts and look up and see someone praying to receive Christ as their Lord and Savior, your heart is just filled with so much joy. This goes on all day at these mini festivals. We emeidately fill a bond with everyone its hard to say goodbye at the end of a festival i have heard a number of times, "I'll see you in heaven!" The main events have started and Friday nights attendance was apx 15,ooo! Many came foward and excepted Christ! Please continue to pray for these main events in the evenings, the last one is on Sunday night. Thank you for all your prayers and support!

March 25 - 7:03pm
Garret said there were about 26,000 people attending the final Sunday night evening festival with about 2600 people receiving Christ. Many teenagers were in attendance and many responded to the Gospel. Mike MacIntosh spoke very pointedly about the peoples need to turn from the new age, occult books and alcoholism to Jesus Christ. Seeing so many peole come forward just showed a lot of us the fruit of the work during the week. Local pastors will be contacting these people and it was great to work alongside them. The chief of the fire department personally gave some of the team members who were counting decision cards afterwards a ride back to the hotel. A lot of the women on the team would hold women's babies or little children. The Mexican women were so open and the love of Christ was evident to them. A Catholic taxi driver told us he had attended Saturday and Sunday's Festival of Life meetings. We attended many local churches and were blessed by the local Christians who would come up to us and want to welcome us. People walked across the sanctuary during greeting time to reach out to others. Worship was a blessing with some of the worship songs we know in Spanish. We did not sit down after the second song!

March 26 - 10:21pm
Today was a day to unwind and some of us still ended up meeting people who remembered us from the festival in San Cristobal. We had a sharing time this morning and team members said this week was life changing. A lot of the children were really touched by how little possessions the Mexican families had , and yet they were content and had each other as a family. We look forward to sharing with others and already some are seeing the ways the Lord is guiding them in ministry and giftings when they return back to Calvary Chapel Modesto. some insights from our Monday morning share time: We had to get used to children thronging us when we gave out something. One of the team members shared how a throng of kids pressed against them pushing them into a wall wanting to receive a gift. We were reminded of when Pastor Damien described how people pressed against Jesus, and yet he didn't shrink back. We are now His hands and feet. Another team member taking care of the children of the Mexican Christian women who came to one of the three sold out women's prayer breakfasts was told by one of the children that the important people had cars. Lots of people don't have cars and use "Collectivos" (mini-vans that are like buses) or taxis. The team member told the child that having Jesus is what is important. It was pointed out later that team member currently doesn't have a car and didn't realize until later the irony. We saw children excitedly opening "Christmas Child" gifts from Samaritan's Purse ministry. They were so appreciative. Some of these "colonies" like Jardines del Pedregal had no dirt and no gardens or lawns. The wind that whips through the valley and hills kicks up dirt and gave us sore throats. Team members went throughout the neighborhoods playing guitar and witnessing to those who came to their doors. A group of team members in San Cristobal on their way in a taxi to pick up supplies for the nurses saw a group of homeless boys playing on an island at an intersection. They stopped the taxi and started throwing soccer balls with the words "Jesus te ama" (Jesus loves you) to them. The excited boys started doing victory dances on the island with their new gifts.