At the service with Pastor Jeremy as he gives the altar call.
This month has been a month of God showing us that He moves in mighty ways. Pastor Jeremy Creech and his wife Lindzee came down from The Sound of His Voice in Visalia, CA. to hold a service here at OA in the new building. Six people gave their lives to Jesus that night, and one person that we know of was healed! It is truly amazing to see God at work here in La Mision.
Another huge joy this month came when the river kids, our 10 newest daycare kids, accepted Jesus into their hearts!
Thank you to each and every one of you who keep OA and the kids and staff in your prayers, and for all you our generous supporters, thank you! God is doing amazing things down here everyday and all of you are apart of it!
The water in all of La Mision. All the water you see is usually never there.
A house that was almost completely under water.
OA's dorms. The water even came all the way over to the dorms. The water didin't fully make it in to all of them. Only some damage occured.
Happy New Year!!
2010 is now here, bringing a new year as well as a new decade. We would like to take a moment to just give thanks to our many supporters whose generosity enables us to continue to bless the kids of OA and their families. So THANK YOU to all you who have supported us financially, through prayer and by coming down and giving us your time and hard work.
Thursday, January 21 2010 the river that runs through town started to rise. By midnight the river had overrun its banks and began to flood the town. The daycare and the new expansion building are on top of the hill, so they are fine. The water did however flood the dorms, the church in town, some local businesses and many homes. We talked with the police in town and opened up the daycare as a shelter; offering food, clothes and a place to stay.
As a result we met 4 families from Oaxaca who reside in La Mision but were left homeless from the river. We were able to feed and clothe them, offer them shelter and share God’s love with them. We have now opened up the doors of the daycare to all 1o of the kids. Previously they would spend all day out in the fields, most not going to school and open to the many hazards of not being cared for. Now we pick them up and bring them to the daycare everyday. We have gained the trust of their parents, a group of people who have been treated in such a way that trust is not bestowed easily. By coming to the daycare the kids are free to just be kids, not having to worry about working in the fields alongside their parents. And the parents are free to work without worrying about the harmful effects the pesticides might have on their kids or other dangers. We have fallen in love with there kids and are excited to see what amazing things God has in store for their lives!
This month was also a month of great blessings. Corona Del Mar Community Church along with Good Price Restaurant Supplies blessed us with new industrial kitchen appliances. The donation was more than we had dreamed possible, which was evident in the fact that the kitchen we built was too small to hold everything we were given. God is good! And He continues to show us this characteristic time and time again. And for that we are so very thankful.
We are super excited about the blessings God has already brought into our lives this yea.r And we cannot wait to see what God has in store for the new children of the daycare, for our ministry and for our lives!
Two of the families who took refuge at the daycare during the flood. All of these kids now attend the daycare. They are the poorest of the poor in our community and in the most need of a no-cost daycare.
We were able to buy them mattresses after the water subsided. These are probably their most prized possessions.
Mary (Yajaira), Joseph (Luis), and baby Jesus (Jazlyn) during their Christmas drama!
This last month has been a busy one. We continue to take care of the 33 kids at the daycare and attend to visiting groups that come down to help. And lets not forget about our Christmas Celebration! The details are below:
Last month a group came down from The Sound of His Voice in Visalia California. They ventured down for the weekend and were a blessing to Open Arms and the community of La Mision. TSHV started off their trip by having a childrens program at the daycare, teaching the kids about the Holy Spirit. They also held a Bible study for the parents of the daycare as well as the members of our Men’s and Women’s Bible studies. This study, which was also centered on the topic of the Holy Spirit, led to a large event/ outreach at the end of the weekend. Over 100 people came to the event, which consisted of a carnival for the kids and their families and a special service where many people received the baptism of the Holy Spirit.
Additionally, a group from UCSD’s Mexico Ministry brought down a group of 30 students from the international house at the University. They began priming the outside of the new building and played soccer with the kids of the community.
Furthermore, we had the amazing opportunity to celebrate the birth of Jesus with our kids and their families. Every year we have a Christmas celebration with the families of the kids here at the daycare and every year the celebration get more exciting. This year we were able to hold our celebration in the new building on the new lots. It was amazing! The kids and their families where blessed spiritually and monetarily. Our celebration consisted of dramas, a modern one as well as the classic story of Mary, Joseph and the little baby Jesus. We also had dances, where the kids dressed up and preformed dances to Christmas songs. Additionally, we had an opportunity for children as well as parents to come forward and give thanks to God for His blessings. The celebration also had a special time where a message was shared about the birth of our King and what that means for us. Finally the night ended with food and the opening of gifts.
OH! Lets not forget our special guest, that’s right our celebration also boasted the presence of a real baby cow! Because no OA Christmas celebration could be complete with out one!
We want to say THANK YOU to every church and individual that made this Christmas special for these children and families. GRACIAS!
Angela excited about receiving a Hannah Montana pillow!
When many said, “It couldn’t be done” We said, “In God We Trust.” When many said, “With this economy, you guys are brave to even think about expansion.” We said, “we are not in the World’s economy, we are not in crisis, we are in Christ.” The word or God says, “… in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to His purpose… If God is for us who can be against us.” {Romans 8:28, 31}
We know were called to start this no-cost daycare and help as many families as we can. We will not stop obeying His call on this ministry because of any lack; because in all things we are blessed! And we thank you for letting God use you to expand this ministry. Every prayer and every penny that is received with abundance of gratitude. We still have a ways to go until the building is completed, and until we can financially afford to take in 30 more kids. But we trust God and His faithfulness! He will meet all our needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus (Philippians 4:19)!
Men’s Ministry!!!!
Daniel and some other men in the community started a cell group (small group) for the guys in the community. There has been no place for these men to come and seek the word of God during the week. So for the past 2 months they have been meeting at our outside dining room of the dorms we built. Many of these men are coming out of drug and alcohol rehabilitation, or have had a “bad” church experience and are searching for a place to connect. They have found that they are accepted at the small group and it’s a safe place for men with all different types of backgrounds. Praise the Lord many of the Dads of the daycare are attending!!! Marriages are being saved, lives have been changed and people are accepting Christ! There is still a lot of work to be done but please continue to pray for these men
Pray they will grow into a deeper relationship with the Lord, that they will leave their addictions and vices at the feet of Christ, and that they will be restored completely and know the goodness, love and faithfulness of Jesus.
PLEASE BE IN PRAYER FOR THE MEN’S SMALL GROUP!!!!!!
As Open Arms continues to start and grow more ministries in La Mision we know that there will be storms and struggles. But we know that Christ has given us victory and we are more then conquerors!!!!!! (Romans 8; 37).
With your prayers and support and God’s help we can do all things.
KINGDOM WORK Wow!!! What a wonderful weekend. New Life Church from Alamo, CA brought a team of 25 men and women to serve at Open Arms. They painted faces, did crafts, held babies, taught a discipline class to our workers, helped with construction on the new building, and they sponsored four amazing events for the community. The first event was for the daycare workers and the leaders in our woman’s bible study. This event was Safari themed and talked about spiritual gifts and how we can use them to further the kingdom of God. On Saturday, we held two events, one for the woman and the other for the men in the community. The woman’s event was held at the daycare and over 100 women were in attendance. Several women gave their lives to Christ and were encouraged to join our Bible study. The men’s event was held at the dorms. This event was for the dads and their children. 57 men came and over 100 kids!!! They enjoyed jumping in the bounce house, braking piñatas, and playing games with their dads. Over 20 men gave their lives to the Lord! And were encouraged to start attending a men’s small group every Saturday night! Lastly, on Sunday we held a worship service for the whole family. The presence of God was so sweet, and again several people were saved!!! Thank you New Life Church for all your generosity, faithfulness, and your Kingdom work.
Our summer classes this year consisted of daily Art, Bible, English, Musical Instrument, and Dance class for the kids at the daycare. The kids enjoyed every part of this summer. They especially loved learning to play drums, guitar, base, and taking singing lessons.
We also put on a one-week huge VBS here at the daycare. The theme was cowboy, the kids dressed up each day and we transformed the daycare into a western ranch. The kids learned daily that God is Real, God is Always with Us, God is Strong, God is in control, and God is Great. The kids told us that this was their favorite week out of the whole summer.
Now that summer is winding down school is coming fast. And this year Packs of Love, an organization started by two young girls who collected used & new backpacks, filled with school supplies for needy children. Every school age child at Open Arms received a pack of love. Gracias Packs of Love!!!
In other news, the first apartment of the duplex, located next-door in the new building we constructed is officially done. Rachel and Robin our new long-term missionaries moved in and are enjoying their new place.
Taking the next step towards the future of Open Arms
The Lord has truly blessed us with amazing growth of this ministry in such a short amount of time. Our vision has always been to open as many no-cost daycare’s as God allows us to do. We are excited to announce the next step towards the future of Open Arms. We have found a property that is 7.5 acre on the outskirts of Ensenada in a community called Maneadero. This is a farm community where many migrant workers live and work in the agricultural fields. Many of these people don’t even speak Spanish, and most the time they take their children to work with them.
Many of these children don’t even have the opportunity to go to school because of their lack of birth certificates. We feel we are called to help these migrant workers, and we are taking the next step to help the poorest of poor in Mexico.
Amy & Chris Boggs and Dawn and Drew Neldon are jumping on board with us as we begin the second campus of Open Arms. They worked for several years at Door of Faith Orphanage & feel that more daycares are vital in keeping kids out of orphanages and off the streets. They will be the administrators of the second campus. Currently they are raising $120,000 to purchase the property for the 2nd daycare.
Please keep these families in and future of Open Arms in your prayers. Thank You!!!
Summer has been filled with the fun, smiles, laughing children, soccer, beach time, and lots of hard work too!!!!
We would like to send a big thanks to New Life Church Alamo, CA, Corona Del Mar Community Church, CA, The Refuge from Scottsdale, AZ, and the UCSD crew for all their hard work!!!! This last month we focused on getting the duplex apartment done for our two new volunteers that will be serving at Open Arms. The groups were able to tape and mud the dry wall, and they also installed more drywall on the roof of the big playroom. Thanks for all your hard work you have helped so much with this project.
NEW FAMILY COMING INTO OUR OPEN ARMS!!!
We accepted three young children Angela, 9, Antionio, 8, and Bryan, 4. We at Open Arms received this family by faith, knowing we were over capacity and under budget. But God has been faithful and there has been plenty of space, since some kids are on vacation this summer.
This family has a very special story, one of desperation turned into hope. These kids were literally fending for themselves while both their parents worked. There mother travels to Rosarito (30 min North) and their father to Tijuana (50 min North) everyday. With both parents working the kids were left to themselves. Every once and a while the kids uncle would watch the kids but would end up leaving them. They were always dirty, hungry, and you could find them wandering the streets well after dark. Their mother had sent in an application many months back but we had no room. She would call almost every week begging for a spot for her children. Finally she told us that she was scared the uncle was sexually molesting her daughter and she had no one else to help her. At that very moment we accepted them into our Open Arms Family. Recently, during our midweek service they all opened their hearts to Jesus and accepted Him into their hearts. They have told us that they have never felt so much love like they do here at the daycare.
Thank you all for doing your part in keeping families together and the children off the streets and out of orphanages!!! Please keep these families in your thoughts and prayers
The Quest from Novato, Ca came down with a mission’s trip to help the daycare and serve the community. They funded and installed the insulation and the drywall for the new daycare building!!! Also a dentist and dental assistant helped fix the teeth of the daycare kids and their families. Furthermore a veterinarian came and offered his services to the community. This group was willing to serve God wherever there was a need!!!! Thanks for all your hard work.
Saved By Grace
We have more great news!!!! Another mother has accepted Jesus as her personal savior. Luz the mother of Berenice, 8, and Alejandra, 3, was desperate for the daycare last year. Her husband was put in jail and she found herself a single mom looking for work, and someone trustworthy to care for her two children.
Now almost a year later the girls have grown in the Lord so much. Luz says that her girls were the ones to show her Gods love. They would pray for her, recite bible verses to her and through this she has seen the grace and love of God. She said “ One time my daughters were playing with their cousin and he was sick, they both decided to lay hands on him and pray for his healing. I couldn’t believe it. My daughters new more about love and God then I did. They are the ones who keep me going. If it was not for the daycare I don’t know where our lives would be,” says Luz
Baby Dedication,
Heidi had the privilege of dedicating one of the babies at Open Arms to the Lord this past month. Amparo the mother of Favian,12, Orlando,8, and Andres, 3 months has been attending Heidi and Miriam’s Bible study very regularly. She and her boys have accepted Christ since they started coming to the daycare. This last year she gave her life to the Lord. Now she know about Christ, and she wanted to present her new baby to the lord as a public act showing that she promises to raise him in the ways of God.
Praise the Lord!!! The new expansion building on the side lot has now been framed. We want to give a big thanks to all the hard working men from New Life Church, Alamo CA for their efforts in framing the 6000 sq ft building to expand the daycare. The new building will allow us to double the amount of children at Open Arms. The expansion of the daycare will bless many families’ lives in La Mision. Our goal is to finish the project by the end of the year. We know God has called us to continue advancing His Kingdom by providing no–cost childcare and we know he wont stop providing now. You can always assist by praying, giving finiancially, or giving you time or services. Please prayerfully consider investing in Open Arms.
Mothers Event:
The second annual mother’s day event was held by New Life Church, Alamo CA. The mothers and their children came to Heidi and Daniel’s home for a time of worship, sharing, fellowship, food and extreme makeovers. Instead of our typical mother’s meetings we had a fiesta. We served dinner and dessert, raffled away prizes and had a nice time-sharing the Word of God with the ladies. The women shared testimonies and talked about how to make your home a Godly one. Additionally, one of the women from the group was a hairstylist so we raffled off two makeovers. Not only did she cut these two ladies hair she cut most of the kids hair from the daycare too. While the two women got their makeovers the rest of the women played icebreaker games. Each Mom had to take some pieces of toilet paper and however many they took they had to share some thing about themselves. Most of them shared about how thankful they were that God has changed their lives and blessed them so much. There was not a dry eye in the house!!!! They shared how the daycare has not only changed their kid’s lives but their lives as well. The mom’s have been transformed in just one year and it is so nice to see that the daycare is truly saving families!!!!
God continues to show His faithfulness to Open Arms. This spring break we undertook two major projects, and three great groups helped us achieve our goals. This spring break we focused on completing the dorms. Intervarsity form UCSD helped paint the dorms, and labored in laying in the foundation for the dining and kitchen area. Then, ChristThe King Church from Blaine, WA brought their youth group and constructed the outdoor dining and kitchen. They also held a VBS with the kids, and donated blankets for every child!!!
Additionally, The Quest from Novato, CA came down and was in charge of laying all the cement footings for the foundation of the new building & daycare. We thank all of you for your hard work and fearless dedication in helping Open Arms!!!
Easter at Open Arms:
This year during Easter the Christ the King group ushered in the week with a VBS about the last days of Christ. This week for our Wednesday service we were able to share the last super and communion with the kids and the group. It was great to see how the children took a moment to ponder all Christ had done for them. Then towards the end of the week we had our annual Easter egg hunt. The kids really enjoyed decorating their Easter bags and searching for the hidden eggs. For some of the kids it was their first Easter at the daycare, and a very special time to share with them. For many of them Easter was all about looking for eggs, now they can celebrate the real reason.
