Immigration in Spain

The population of Spain has increased from 40 million to 44 million in the last several years and most of that increase, if not all, has come as a result of immigration. Scores of people are moving to Spain from Eastern Europe and Latin America. In our church, we probably have a fairly equal mix of Spaniards, Romanians and Hondurans, although the Romanians seem to be outnumbering the others lately. We also have folks from Brazil, China, France and the U.S.

Most of these folks were believers when they came and they have brought energy and a renewed vision to our congregation. One of these is Alejandro (see photo above), a Romanian immigrant that is now part of the preaching rotation. He and some others have also organized a monthly service for Romanians and are praying to see where God leads in this area.

Continue to pray for the church in Spain as she reaches out to her own people and opens her arms to a large number of immigrants as well. Pray that the light of the Gospel will shine forth in this dark nation.

A Slice of Life in Spain

I thought maybe I'd try to give you some snapshots of life in Spain from time to time. I came across this photo I'd taken last fall and thought you might find it interesting. Many Spaniards buy their ham this way. Grocery stores will often have a section of their meat department devoted to these. The smell is very strong and I usually try to avoid this section of the store. Folks buy these and put them on a special stand either on their kitchen counter or table and slice off what they need. It's very different from the ham I'm used to eating in the States and I haven't acquired a taste for it yet.

Spring in Cuéllar

This is what the skies in Cuéllar have looked like since I returned (and possibly before). We have been having rain showers off and on almost every day. It makes everything green and we need the moisture so I can't complain.

There are signs of spring, however, like these pansies that are growing in our flower boxes. Next month the poppies should be out all over the hillsides. I'll try to take some photos so you can see what it's like.

April Update

Back in Spain

I am back in Cuéllar and busy unpacking, doing laundry, cleaning and reconnecting with friends. I will probably start language school next week. It was very hard to leave family and friends in the States but it helped to be welcomed back so warmly by the people in the Cuéllar church. And I was pleased to find that I hadn't lost as many language skills as I feared.

I will be spending Easter weekend with teammates who live just outside Madrid. They attend an English-speaking church and I'm looking forward to being able to celebrate the resurrection in my heart language. It's a comfort to know that wherever we are around the globe, we celebrate the same Christ and His great gift to us. May your time with family and friends be especially meaningful.

This month's quote:

"John didn't know on that Friday what you and I now know. He didn't know that Friday's tragedy would be Sunday's triumph. John would later confess that he 'did not yet understand from the Scriptures that Jesus must rise from the dead' (John 20:9).

That's why what he did on Saturday is so important.

Jesus was dead. The Master's body was lifeless. John's friend and future were buried. But John had not left. Why? Was he waiting for the resurrection? No. As far as he knew, the lips were forever silent and the hands forever still. He wasn't expecting a Sunday surprise. Then why was he here?...Perhaps the answer was pragmatic; perhaps he was taking care of Jesus' mother. Or perhaps he didn't have anywhere else to go. Could be he didn't have any money or energy or direction, or all of the above. Or maybe he lingered because he loved Jesus...

What about you? When you're in John's position, what do you do? When it's Saturday in your life, how do you react? When you are somewhere between yesterday's tragedy and tomorrow's triumph, what do you do? Do you leave God—or do you linger near him?

John chose to linger. And because he lingered on Saturday, he was around on Sunday to see the miracle."

Max Lucado, He Chose the Nails

Praises:

1. My monthly need has dropped to $100. Many thanks to those of you who either joined my financial support team or increased your current giving. God bless you!
   
2. An offer has been made on the Haleys' house in Cuéllar.
   
3. Safe arrival in Spain. I was delayed several hours but I arrived safely and so did my luggage.
   

Prayer Requests:

1. Continue to pray for my monthly support needs.
   
2. Continue to pray for God´s direction regarding the property/house in Barcelona.
   
3. The amount we need to raise for our increased housing expenses will depend on whether we are able to share the same house or whether we have two separate places. The amount I will need to raise will most likely be between $200-$400/month.
   

Leaving on a jet plane...

...don't know when I'll be back again. Sorry for the lame intro. When I went to the web to look for a jet plane image, included in the images was a picture of the sheet music to that song. And I couldn't get it out of my head.

I'm leaving the Denver area on Saturday. I fly to Detroit to spend a few days with friends and then on to Spain next week. I have been experiencing a lot of apprehension the last couple of weeks, mostly because I am going back to Spain alone. (Jon and Kathy will be staying in the States for another two months.) I know this time will be good for language acquisition (when you don't have English-speaking teammates to speak to, you're sort of forced to speak the local language) and it will be a great time to depend on the Lord and grow in my relationship with Him.

I have had people praying for me, and with me, in recent days regarding this issue and I am encouraged. I know the Lord goes with me and He is preparing the way for me. I'll blog again as soon as I arrive in Spain and let you know how things are going. Thanks for your prayers!