In this previous article, I spoke of the inconvenience of power outages. I related the frustrations that I felt because I could not trust that I would have the energy that I needed to power the modern devices that I’ve come to depend upon in order to complete my projects.

More recently, however, I’ve grown aware of an even more alarming power outage, evidenced by the diminishing number of believers being baptized in the Holy Spirit. At a recent meeting, certain pastors lamented that only 20% of their congregations had experienced the Baptism, while a census submitted by the regional presbyter in the southern portion of the district reported that perhaps only tithe of the church members polled had received the infilling of the Holy Spirirt.

Acts 1:8 states, “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” Could it be that the reason for the stagnated growth of the Assemblies of God in Yucatán has been because we’ve lacked the power that such growth requires?

One church, Eben-Ezer, has recognized their need for the power that only the Holy Spirit can bring, and has asked that I speak in a two day event titled, “Reconciling Ourselves with the Holy Spirit” on February 4th and 5th. In this event, it is my desire to show the congregation the biblical foundation the Baptism of the Holy Spirit so that they might be open to receive it and learn to cooperate with the third person of the Trinity to make an impact in their daily life.

Would you pray with us for these services?

• Pray for a genuine recognition of the need among the congregation.
• Pray that many will be open to learn about and receive the Baptism of the Holy Spirit.
• Pray that the experience would lead to a renewed witness to the community of the love of Jesus Christ.
• Pray that the effects of this event would motivate other churches in the Yucatán to emphasize the Baptism of the Holy Spirit.

Picture courtesy of ali_pk (Opens a new window.)

There is just something about harmony that makes things special. In music, it fills the spaces; it adds depth and color. What might be impressive as a solo piece becomes something positively majestic when instruments and voices blend together in perfect harmony.

In ministry, it is just the same. We celebrate the accomplishments of the individual, but we strive to see the all the members of the Church working together in unity. While God can do much through the efforts of one surrendered heart, what can be accomplished when an entire community of believers makes itself available to be used by Him can be truly staggering.

This is the type of harmony that I believe we can achieve here in the Yucatan in the area of church planting. We’ve spoken already of the ministry of church planting that we are undertaking in coordination with the Jesus Film in the Maya language, a ministry designed to plant new, indigenous works in unreached areas. Now, we are seeing others join the vision of expanding the influence of the Kingdom of God as the District of Yucatán promotes the planting of reproducible churches.

Durning the month of January, district officials have invited Abimael Borbolla, the district superintendent of The Mexican state of Oaxaca to tour through the state of Yucatan and to challenge church leaders to look beyond their four walls, to reach out into unreached areas, and to plant new works, new works designed to grow and plant others.

The picture he painted was challenging. Since 1943, the birth of the Assemblies of God in Yucatán, 188 churches have been founded and sustained. When we compare these numbers to the 3,363 cities, towns, and villages that exist in our state, we find that only 6.5% of its inhabitants have access to the message that we preach. (Actually, the actual percentage would be lower as certain cities have more than one A/G church.) What is more sobering is that, at our current growth rate of 2.7 churches per year, we would not be able to finish the task of establishing a congregation in each location until the year 3258.

Nevertheless, I left the conference full of hope, not from the view of the enormity of the task, but from the comprehension of what we could achieve if we work together. As he challenged those of us assembled to plant new works, Abimael showed us that, if each church would commit itself to planting just one new, reproducible church every 5 years, the task could be accomplished in only 25 years.

The work is difficult but not impossible. As we see a vision cast and a church respond, we are beginning to see harmony take shape, a harmony that will enable us fulfill the calling to make disciples here in the Yucatán and beyond. As I reflect on the possibilities, I’m more excited than ever to be a part of what God is doing among us.

This Christmas season, we were able to return to the US to spend time with the family. Our days were full of visiting, catching up, eating (lots of eating), and just being together.

As we prepared to leave, Kelly’s mom asked what it was that we wanted to have for dinner. It was decided to prepare chicken and biscuits, a definite taste of home in then Yaple household. Still, while the meal was excellent, the preparation time is what really got me thinking. There was Kim, working into kitchen. Rebekah was there as well working alongside her, patting out biscuits onto a cookie sheet before baking. They were talking and laughing, pictures were being taken, memories shared. It was then that I was reminded that missionaries aren’t the only ones who make sacrifices.

How many moments in the kitchen has my mother-in-law missed because her granddaughter lived in a foreign country? How many meals has my Mom prepared for herself because her loved ones were far from home? We have are the ones who leave, but they are the ones who are left behind.

Nevertheless, we feel from our family nothing but support for what God is doing through us. I joked with a few Mexican friends as we were preparing for our trip that we were returning for the holidays because our parents had accused us of kidnapping their grandchildren, but nothing could be further from the truth. What happened to Jesus in Mark 3 (also in Matthew 12 and Luke 8 ) when Jesus’ mother and brothers had come to “collect” Jesus and take him home from his ministry has never been our concern. On the contrary, our parents have released us to the Lord, and pray constantly for the work that we are called to achieve. And even though my mom has wondered aloud on one occasion, “Why did He have to call you so far away?” Her sentiment was one of resignation preceded by, “When you were called by God to be a missionary, I gave you into His hands.”

And so, having returned to Mérida, reestablishing ourselves into our work and school schedules, I wanted to take time out to recognize the others who unselfishly gave so that we could be released to do what God has called us to do. Thanks Grandma G., Grandma Kim, Papa Dave, and all of the aunts and uncles (too numerous to type in a brief posting) for giving so that we could go. May God recognize and honor all that you have done, and bless you beyond measure because of it.

Looking over the past year, we can’t help but be overjoyed at the opportunities that God has opened to us. We’ve seen the first floor structure of a new Bible School building constructed, lives touched and restored through evangelistic outreach, believers strengthened through the implementation of systematic discipleship, and new areas opened to the gospel through the introduction of the Jesus Film in the Maya language.
Still, we’re even more encouraged about what the future holds. There is the feeling that we are on the verge of a breakthrough here in the Yucatán.

Bold steps are being taken to bring about church growth. Our district superintendent has stated that his goal over the next two years is to see 100 new churches planted and 100 ministers trained in order to guide these new works. We’re excited about the possibilities of coming alongside our superintendent to help attain that goal.

There is a renewed emphasis on removing obstacles to the gospel as well. We are moving forward with the Jesus Film Church Planting Strategy to remove the language barrier for those who don’t speak Spanish, and we are planning to attack the obstacle of drug and alcohol addiction through the resource and networking of two drug and alcohol rehabilitation centers utilizing Teen Challenge materials and strategies.

The possibilities are too amazing to imagine! What could it mean to the Yucatán to have one hundred new churches with trained pastors able to reach into even the most dire situations and declare the hope of Jesus, leading the lost along a sure path to restoration? However, even as we ready ourselves to leap into the New Year and the new opportunities that God has opened to us, we find the reality of resources holding us back.

As we write to you, we face a shortage of funds in our missionary account. If trends continue, our cash reserve will be depleted in a few short months, forcing us to drastically curtail our ministry expenses and perhaps watch as these amazing opportunities pass us by.

That’s why I’m making this appeal to you, not to ask you to “bail us out,” because we know that God is faithful to meet even the most overwhelming needs. Rather, we are asking for what might be credited to your account (Phil. 4:17). As you choose to invest in what God is doing in the Yucatán, you take an active part the advancement of the Kingdom of God although you can’t be physically present. We believe that God will work miracles of salvation and restoration here in Mexico and we want you to be a part of it.

As you plan your year end giving, would consider sending us a special gift? Your donation of any amount is your investment in the fertile ground of the Yucatán. Furthermore, it’s your active participation in what God is doing as He advances His Kingdom.

To make a donation, just click on the link provided below. It will take you to a secure sever which will step you through the process of making your tax-deductible gift:

Donate to David and Kelly Godzwa, Missionary Account # 269613.

Thanks for taking the time to read and consider this special appeal. We want you to know that we are thankful for the partnership that you have had with us in the gospel. As we stand together, we are hopeful that the best is yet to come

As our thoughts turn to the birth of our Savior, we are reminded that God sent His Son into the world to seek and save that which was lost. What a privilege we have to be used by Him as He carries out His work in Mexico. Take a look at our online newsletter to see just a glimpse of what He is doing among us. Click here or on the picture to read our latest update!

Our online newsletter is viewable as a PDF document. If you do not have the Adobe Acrobat Reader software installed, you may download it here.

They say that politics and religion are two topics that you should stay away from in everyday conversation, but are people truly turned off to spiritual issues? My students at Instituto Biblico Bethel found just the opposite.

As one of their requirements of my evangelism class, I sent them out with surveys in hand to help them understand the status of the gospel in Mérida. Some of the results were expected:

Religion:

Bible Reading:

But other items were somewhat surprising:

Opinion of the Bible:

Openness further spiritual investigation:

The other surprising find was the ease at which people responded to their survey questions. Although some rejected their attempts to ask them questions, the large majority of those asked stopped to participate. I guess this contradicts the popular belief, wouldn’t you agree?

Granted, this survey was in no way representative of the public at large, but the results show a respect for the Bible and an openness to find out more of what it says, at least here in Mérida.  That’s encouraging news as we set out to teach a new group of students how to engage and direct seekers into encounters with Jesus.

How about your situation? Are the people that you talk to open to finding out more about God or have you been rebuffed in your attempts to open conversations about spiritual issues? What steps are you taking to assess the spiritual climate where you live?

There are things that we like to keep to ourselves. Passwords and credit card numbers, secrets between best friends, and perhaps our opinion of certain individuals may come to mind as a few examples. But, when it comes to training churches to multiply themselves, you’d have to agree that’s something better shared with others. This past Saturday, that’s exactly what we did.

In Yaxcabá, the seat of a municipality of a decidedly indigenous population, 4 groups from churches in surrounding towns gathered to hear how they can reach into that indigenous community with the help of the Jesus Film. Pastor Josué Novelo hosted the Jesus Film Team, Pedro Pablo Balam, and Angelino Ek, as they taught the church planting course that they had attended just a month before and put into practice in Cocoyol. Now, they were taking the theories and methods that they had proven, and were passing them on.

I had the privilege of preaching to this group as the seminar began, but the true blessing was to see these men, who had applied the vision, share it now with others. They did the teaching. They answered the questions, and they made themselves available to help these groups put the concepts that they were teaching into practice, and they were taking them up on their offer. On December 10th, the church in Yaxcabá will travel to Santa Maria for the next scheduled projection of the Jesus Film in Maya.

True, some things are better kept to ourselves, but, when it comes to church planting, the best advice is to pass it on!

To take a look at more of what went on, and to see the actual Action Groups, check out our photo album of the event here.

Cocoyol (coco – joel’). It isn’t on google maps, but it certainly exists. It took us over 3 hours to get there, which included a few wrong turns. It was raining during about half of our trip and raining when we arrived. Why did we go? To be part of a new work going on in Yucatan to start or “plant” new churches in the Mayan language. We are what you might call the “link” – hooking up those who have a vision to see the message of Jesus brought to people in their own language with a group of believers who have a desire and commitment to start a church, oh, and that speak both Maya and Spanish (that part is important!).

The Maya have been in math & history books, in several tourist guides and even in Hollywood, but I don’t think the current culture or people get that much publicity. In Cocoyol, we saw a snapshot of life for this indigenous people group.

It was a bit like entering any other small town at first glance. After we found the correct road, we traveled under a canopy of trees, that would have provided shade had it not been raining, and arrived at the “center of town” where the Catholic church and the local school were situated on two joining sides of a basketball court. The team had arrived before us, visiting the 100 families that make up this Maya community and letting them know about the event. Upon returning, they got to work setting up a portable screen and projector to show the Jesus film, not in Spanish but in Maya. “Wait!” you’re saying, “aren’t you living in Mexico?” Yes, yes we are. Although Spanish is the national language of Mexico, there are, according to Wikepedia, over 6 million indigenous Maya in 4 countries! And one of those is Mexico.

While the setup was taking place, I watched, snapped some photos, and spoke with the kids who were gathering. Fortunately, I didn’t need a personal translator since some of the kids were able to communicate in Spanish. I even got a few questions/words in English since some of the kids’ family members most likely have work in tourist areas. One particular boy acted as a sort of spokesman for the group; he even confiscated my camera and snapped a shot of Rebekah and me.

However, the kids spoke to each other in Maya, all the time. It was like being in another country for me. I knew that there were several families, even in the city where we live, who continued to speak Maya inside the home or between family members. There are older ladies in our church who help us with basic phrases to learn something new in their native tongue. But, hearing their everyday conversation being spoken in something other than Spanish was a bit surprising.

This was not the first time that the message of Jesus’ love had come to the small town. One boy told me of another group that had come on a few occasions (with a bigger screen!). The difference, we hope, is that the team’s goal is to come, to stay, and to speak their language. The Maya language. The team is not from America or Korea, but from a larger town in Mexico, about 30 minutes or so away. And they don’t plan on being a passing memory.

I played a small part, not being on the team and not speaking the language. Sure, I spoke Spanish and a few answered me in Spanish. I mainly talked and played with the kids. My kids and I taught them Simon Says and they taught us “veneno” (poison) which, fortunately, was a harmless game where they spun in different directions holding hands They practiced some English phrases and I practiced some Maya ones. They were amazed at the height of our daughter, who is 12 going on 13. I marveled at their ages being 12 and 17 and still being in the 3rd and 6th grades, respectively, of their elementary school.

It is clear we are very different, but we are loved by the same God. I am glad my God doesn’t speak to me in Mandarin or French or Turkish. Can you even imagine? . . . That is the idea behind this team and others that will follow in their footsteps and in the footsteps of Jesus – speaking the language of the people, sharing His beautiful words of life.

Kelly’s added a few of her photos from the trip to our photo album. You can view them all here.