Updates

This is the entrance to our mission house!

This is the chapel of Independencia, a rancho that my family and I used to go to weekly.

This is our group that climbed the mountain. It was really cool, there is a shrine to Mary on the top where she appeared to a shepard!

This is one of the many amazing views from on top of the mountain

This is me translating at Independencia!

This is the pinata I got for my birthday :-)

This is one of my many attempts to hit my pinata with a blindfold on my face

This is our missionary Jonathan on the roof holding the pinata

This is my face shoved in my wonderful cake for the traditional "mordida"

I hope y'all enjoy these pics, and that they help you get a feel for what it is like here! I will try to get more later and put them up for you.
Peace and Love in Christ,
Alyse

Touched

Dear readers,
I have continued to be abundantly blessed by God's love and providence. Yesterday was my birthday! I had a delicious cake and a pinata as a surprise! Another girl on the group also had her birthday yesterday and we celebrated together. We had an amazing rancho experience and I was just so blessed all day! I have been taking pictures and hopefully I will be able to share them with y'all soon! Today I just got back from home visits. We visited a man who has a lot of trouble walking, and we were able to give him crutches. We visited a woman who is truly one of the most good natured people I have ever met and we visited a little boy. His name is Luis Angel and he is 9 years old. He is one of a family of four and last year his older brother died of a rare and aggressive disease. He was in the grade underneath me and his sister was in my class. Luis Angel has cancer in his blood. No body ever visits him so Tonio, a missionary, is his best friend. He has the most amazing smile and a truly kind and happy heart. His family lives in a two room adobe house and they are an example of true poverty. Luis cannot be cured. He is taking medicine to help calm his disease, and unless God cures him he will die in not too long. I am crying ad I write this, I don't know if I have ever been so touched by any home visit or any person I have ministered to as Luis. Every week Tonio visits him and gives him the homework of drawing him a picture. As I sat there and spoke with Luis Angel all I wanted to do was help him, and I was overwhelmed with the sensation of hopelessness. I ask you to pray for the Torres Cerda family and especially for Luis Angel. I cannot imagine what his family must feel to be attacked with such hardships and yet his Mother smiled the whole time and thanked us for coming. I could write forever but I need to go.
Peace and Love in Christ,
Alyse

Blessings!!!!

Dear readers,
I have arrived safely back at my dearest General Cepeda. We had a slight stumbling block at the border, but as always God had our back. We had a totally safe and happy trip here. We were greeted by the four full time missionaries that have been living here the past month. I have just been here a day but I know that God id going to move powerfully in and through this group. I didn't know the full extent of how much I missed this place until I got here. I was able to visit two of God's saints today and that gave me so much joy! I have reached the point that the thought of my life without missions is unbearable. I want to give my whole life to the service of my brother's and sister's in him who gives us life! I am so blessed with all that I have seen and experienced, I don't know why God blesses me so abundantly, but I do know that I am ready to live my life in thanksgiving for those blessings. Thank y'all for reading and praying with and for me! I love you all!
Peace and Love in Christ,
Alyse

He has overcome!

"I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world." John 16:33

I think this is an amazing verse, what a consolation! So many times I am overwhelmed, overwhelmed by the world and all of the bad that it contains. It seems impossible to overcome it all, and for us it is. But here we can take heart and know that we don't need to overcome it because it has already been claimed. Jesus came and he claimed it, he overcame the world and it is his. The troubles will not follow us, we do not need to be afraid. Because the one who saved us and who gives us life and freedom has the world, and we don't need to worry. It is exciting! And even though we will have trouble, we belong to him and the world is his. Praise God!
Peace and love in Christ!
Alyse

Mission trip

Dear readers,
I have been very busy and blessed lately! Yesterday an acting group I have been a part of this year put on a play that was super blessed and awesome! I am going down on a mission trip on the 20th of this month to General Cepeda. It is much overdue since I had hoped to go during holy week, but everything is in God's perfect timing! I will be there for my birthday, so I am super excited about that! But I ask all of you to please be praying for me and for my trip. Pray that I would be able to touch all of those God has prepared for me and that all those attending the trip would be blessed. Also just be praying for the situation in Mexico in general. I thank all of you for your prayers. I am praying for y'all and I hope each one of you is blessed!
Peace and Love in Christ, who strengthens us all!
Alyse