Recent Photos

I wanted to share with you some shots from our recent trip to the Pyramids up north of the city.

Categories: Family, Photos

We Love it Here

Some common questions and concerns we have received from many of you is how are you doing? Are you safe? How are you adjusting?

From the 1st moment last November we really sensed the Lord's hand upon this vision and mission to Mexico City. Have there been struggles, frustrations and fears? Oh, more than you can imagine. Have there been times that we have lost it emotionally? Sure, especially with the phone company and other cultural differences. But in all this we are seeing God's hand upon our family, marriage and ministry. We couldn't be happier that we moved to Mexico City. We feel safe. We feel like God is blessing us more than ever. This past weekend we heard often from the boys that they love it here. There are many new adventures and explorations we get to be part of. They love homeschool and are learning a ton from Christine. You can even catch them speaking Spanish once in a while. They have found friends and we are meeting couples each week. Pray for us as we begin to initiate with some foreigners and Mexicans about starting a spiritual community group in our home.

Thank you for making this move encouraging and possible. Your partnership in this ministry is changing the face of Mexico.
Categories: MexicoCity, Family, Prayer, Newsletters

Movements Everywhere - updated

Many years ago we heard that Robert Goizeta (former CEO of Coca Cola) once told his shareholders that it was his desire to put a Coke within arms reach of every thirsty person in the world because he knew that about 5.5 billion people in the world wake up thirsty each day. Why not give each and every person a refreshing Coca Cola?

In a similar manner we know that there are about 6 billion people in the world who wake up spiritually thirsty each day looking for love, significance, and truth all found in the person of Jesus. Let's get the Gospel within arms reach to each and every person in the world to quench their spiritual thirst. That became a great visionary picture of what we want to aim for as Campus Crusade for Christ.

Now that we're in Mexico City this vision has resurfaced. How can we get a coke product (the Gospel) within arms reach to the 1,000,000 students on over 400 campuses?

We believe the best way to guarantee that students can come back over and over again to the refreshing person of Jesus is to provide a Coke machine (a Christ-centered Spiritual Community) within arms reach of every student in every department on every university.
Our dream is that every student in Mexico will know exactly where to find Jesus so they can hear about Him, learn about Him, know Him, grow with Him and share Him with others. That is an ongoing, life changing, campus transforming, city impacting, country revival, world penetrating vision.

This is not just exposing the campus to Jesus but providing an authentic Christ-centered spiritual community led by students to students that is focused on Jesus every day in every place.

The reality of this vision is overwhelming.

This past week we have met with Beatriz, Ryan and Christy and a local church's youth and potential leaders. We are encouraged that they are all wanting to join us from different churches and mission organizations in launching spiritual communities on each and every campus.

We will need thousands of more partnerships like these in order to raise up 4,000-8,000 student leaders over the next 3 years. Pray that God moves supernaturally in the hearts, minds and lives of people in Mexico City.
Categories: MexicoCity, Prayer, Newsletters, Family

Please Pray for us

Please Pray:

• That we will be rested and committed in the Lord's grace and truth. Psalm 27:4.
• That we will communicate clearly and honestly with each other.
• That we will see God's hand and presence in our lives and challenges.
• That God raises up student leaders on each campus and that we’ll have a model movement by Nov 1st.
• That God's hand will be upon our recruiting and resourcing web sites.
• That we'll have over 100 students from the U.S. here during Thanksgiving week to launch spiritual movements.
• That we'll have 100's of more church and ministry vision casting appointments.
• That God will move supernaturally in our personal community group with new friends. Pray this group impacts our community and beyond.

Categories: Family, Prayer, Newsletters

The World is Flat. Are we?

In order to be effective in the world and its changing cultures we, CCC, and other large Christian organizations or churches must adapt. We definitely don't adapt our core message, the gospel, but we must adapt our methods of communicating the greatest story to the world around us. If you haven't seen the stats (Revolution - Barna), churches in American are shrinking and dying as a whole. Yet around the world, especially in Asia, South Africa and Latin America churches are growing rapidly (The Next Christendom - Jenkins).

What is it? Why are they seeing some success?

I was listening to the audio of the World is Flat by Thomas Friedman a few weeks ago and something caught me as he was talking in chapter 11 (I think-it is 18 hours into the audio version). He mentioned that in order to compete small companies must make themselves big, using the flatteners of the internet, free trade and commerce, communication, and other described in his book. He used a shipping company in the middle east that does all the shipping for Airborne Express. They are run out small back room offices but now, this small company has made a huge impact and made themselves big.

But on the flip side, companies that have been big must make themselves smaller. He used E-trade as an example. They took something, your finances, that is normally operated by large companies and put that power into your hands the consumer via the internet. Now you can trade stock, check out your mortgage and make more investments all with the click of the mouse. The company is basically run out of your office, kitchen, or wherever you have a computer.

Now there are people that don't want to mess with their finances and just hire some big firm to take care of them. They don't call and they don't care. But others in this changing world, want that power in their own hands. They understand the rules for making money and taking care of debt haven't really changed; positive is good, negative is bad. But the methods to make those positives bigger and the negatives smaller has changed significantly. From what I have read and heard, not many just want to leave their hard earned money in their company pension accounts for some other guy to make decisions on. They want to maximize that investment.

In order to compete in this financial world big investment firms have had to make themselves small to us, catering to our needs and desires.

How do I see this playing out in Campus Crusade the past 55 years. In the 50's and 60's we were a small organization, new to the Evangelical church world, yet in all our actions and influence we were big. It seemed that if there was a "I found It!" evangelistic campaign or some sort of ministry training, Campus Crusade and it's small band of faithful and radical staff and students were behind the scenes sharing vision, mission and a belief that the Great Commission would be fulfilled. Small had big impact.

Today, 40 some years later, and after many successful ministries that were birthed, millions of people saved and sent into the world as missionaries, Campus Crusade is BIG. I think we may be the biggest Christian organization in the world. What does that bring? Great influence. Great impact. Great glory to God.

It also brings missed opportunities because in our hugeness we move slower. We trust in the tried and true that worked the year before or the generation before. We get a bit comfortable because we are big and we miss moving out in bold, radical, passionate faith. We miss the millions of people, our target audience, that are looking for a Savior and possibly have been hurt by traditional methods or are thinking a bit different than our grandmother would have thought 50 years ago. They still want to be saved but they just don't see any relevancy in the methods we use to get to them; a church service, praise and worship, a mass mailing, an apologetic speaker using all sorts of logical proof or just convincing preaching that misses their questions and doubts.

The reality is that the whole world is not calling for change. There are still hundreds of thousands who still want to and can find Jesus in this method. But there are millions of others that want to touch Him, experience Him, and see Him through their neighbors, on their streets, in the projects, in their language, on their campus and through a friend. They want to access Christ and His never changing message, the Gospel, personally, just like those using E-trade. This generation doesn't want some big firm making decisions on how they practice the methods of knowing a Biblical Jesus and His mission all while they sit in a pew and listen. They want control. They want leadership. They want change and impact in their neighborhoods and on the streets. They want Jesus in their lives making a difference

I would dare bet if we were to take a survey of young radical, sold out, Christian men and women they would not point to Campus Crusade as being the radicals of the faith anymore. We are present. We are hard working. We do have great strategies. We are big. But I would guess they wouldn't say we are the ministry that will allow them to change the world. I think what needs to happen is that we must become small once again with a big influence. We must take the control, power, and Gospel message out of the hands of the professionals, the big firms, the board rooms and put it back in the hands of those we say always could change the world, STUDENTS. Didn't Dr. Bright always say, "Reach the Campus today. Reach the world tomorrow." If we continue to be the big ministry that makes room for all the professionals/staff desires and giftedness and forget that we're a movement of students then we have missed the point. Then all we become is a club of Christian leaders that like using their gifts. Its not to say these gifts are valuable but the often times we missed the giftings of the students and their ability to make a difference. Maybe it isn't all about our orthodoxy, right doctrines, correct preaching, perfect weekly meetings and creative outreaches that are birthed in our staff meetings and offices. I would dare bet it is the passions, the conversations, the dreams, the prayer groups and the students behind them in their dorm rooms, coffee shops, bars, frat houses and workplaces that will make a difference.

It's humbly stepping aside. Letting go of the reins and control of our ministries. Sharing the vision and mission. Releasing students (people) to change their campus, neighborhood, workplace and the world. Renewing and refocusing our mission for existence as an organization and church, "Turning lost students (people) into Christ Centered (Missional) Laborers.""For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost." Luke 19:10

Categories: Books, Leadership, Movements, SimpleChurch

What a weekend

Friday night was a follow up appointment with the Capital City Baptist church. Stephen Searfoss, their Spanish speaking pastor and I met about 3 weeks ago. I shared with him our vision and need of partnership on every level throughout the city. Immediately he sent me an email asking if we could meet with his youth and interested people. On Friday there were about 4 prep and college students and about 4 professionals, all who had a passion for Christ and His Kingdom work. We were super encouraged on the night and again believe that if we can have about 100-200 of these type of meetings and see God raise up about 4,000-8,000 student and professional leaders on each and every campus we'll see the city impacted with spiritual movements that will transform lives.

Saturday was a great day hanging out at our sports club by the pool and playing tennis. The kids just love it and are making friends from Brazil, Spain, Mexico and beyond. They are growing in their Spanish ability and are really getting good in the pool. We also have been meeting some friends from the U.S., Canada, Europe and Mexico. We have been sharing with them our desire to start a church or spiritual community. Many are interested and we're excited about God using this environment to encourage us, grow us and reach others.

Last night the staff guys, Craig, Joe, Jason and Nate, from our Enfoque Mexico team and the stint team went out to dinner in Polanco and off to Jai Alai in Condesa. I have heard about this speedy sport from my time in Tia Juana and from intro scenes of Miami Vice. It was killer. Basically we got free tix from my friend David Stamey (who is the most connected human in Mexico), who knows the start player's wife. We kind of learned the sport and realized we were at the semi finals of the superbowl of Jai Alai. The bummer is Mexico lost to those darn French. So fun.

The stint team gals came over to hang out with Christine and they encouraged each other so much. Christine had a great time.

Today we woke up and wanted to seize the day of low traffic and headed up to the Pyramids in the north. After a short 1 hour drive we climbed high into the clouds and were in awe of the history of Mexico. The boys and Isa were great tour guides and super brave.

Now we're seizing the fact that we have sitters coming over tonight and going out on a date. Yes, I know the Broncos are playing tonight but you don't know my hot wife. She is so fun.

Categories: MexicoCity, Leaders, Family, Leadership, Movements

Beatriz - She could be an angel

This past week, Craig, Joe (our new team member) went down into the heart of the city to meet with a wonderful woman. She was surfaced supernaturally this past summer when our summer project was sent down to find a few awesome contacts. She is just that. She has heard a call to reach college students. She graduated from UNAM a few years back and is a graphic designer. She has a 5 year old daughter and currently her husband is on a contract in Canada.

About a month ago I contacted her and asked her to brand our Ministry Enfoque Mexico with a cool logo and design and she killed it. Here is just a portion of what she did. Then she helped us work through the wording and design of an all time brochure that we'll use throughout the city and now the country. She is a talented woman with a passion for prayer, God and reaching college students.

This week we met with her to talk about opening up new networks of spiritual movements in her area and with her church. She is so eager to learn, talk to her pastor (who is in charge of 300 churches and 12 countries with in the F.I.C.U. denomination), and go on campuses to see what God can surface in student leaders.

We're praying she is just one of hundreds of networks that will open up, adopt universities and be part of bringing massive spiritual revival in Mexico City.
Categories: Leadership, MexicoCity, SimpleChurch, Movements

Ryan and Christy - Going for it with Assemblies of God

This past Monday night Craig, Christine and I met with Ryan and Christy Thomas. They showed up 3 months ago in Mexico City to plant churches in the south of the city with the Assemblies of God. Ryan grew up here as a missionary kid and they have been working with a church in the Northwest U.S. for the past 6 years. They are coming to Mexico City with a passion and plan to plant simple church planting movements.

It was a great night of steaks, grilled veggies, tortillas, dessert and sharing about what God has placed on our hearts. The history that Ryan has with churches, mission organizations and leaders here in the city is extremely strategic. We're praying that in our partnership, thousands if not millions will be trained to lead spiritual movements throughout the city and the world.

Now we are just trusting God to have about another 200 of these types of conversations with other leaders in the city. The city and scope is too big for one group, church, pastor to control it all. We need to labor together to bring a spiritual community to each and every student in the city.

Categories: SimpleChurch, Leadership, MexicoCity

Great Photos from Week One

My good friend Craig Johring posted a great photo run down from the past week. Sorry no pictures here in this post but follow Craig's Pictures

Categories: MexicoCity, Photos

New Phone Number

This past week I gave up on Vonage actually transferring (porting) my Sprint cell phone number of 12 years. I was told back in July it would take 10 days and it just hit 60 days. I gave up. I have no perseverance.

So if you're wanting to call us here in Mexico we have a new U.S. phone number. Drop us an email and we'll share it with you. All of this is dependent on how many Christmas gifts you'll send us.

Categories: Family, MexicoCity

National WSN Team Planting Movements

This past week was an adventuresome week. Craig Johring, my co-leader showed up last Thurs with his feet already running. He has been the Nebraska state director in charge of reaching all the campuses in Nebraska. God has used him in a profound way. He has had teams of 1-5 and they have led over 20 campuses.


Right away we met in a staff meeting with a short team we have serving here with us. This team of 7-9 will do much of the surfacing of leaders on the over 350 campuses. We met with their team leader Jason Sorge on Friday and his whole team on Saturday at our house. I was encouraged by our time as we prayed for each university by name. We're trusting God to provide a leader for a Christ Centered spiritual movement on each campus and in each faculty (department).

Sunday was a day of rest. Hmm the Sabbath. We also got ready for over 40 of our national and regional WSN (Worldwide Student Network) directors for one of their annual conferences. They are taking seriously what we're doing down here in City Focus Mexico City so they wanted to be part of the early stages. On Monday Layo, our Director of Affairs for Central American and Mexico spoke about transforming our cities, not just with Campus Crusade movements but with city wide partnership with those who have the DNA of Kingdom work. Ken Miller, my direct boss and friend spoke on movements of God (from Households to the Kingdom).

Then Craig and I made a presentation on what is Enfoque Mexico or City focus to the English speakers and how to plant simple spiritual movements in one day. The day was perfect. We could tell the Holy Spirit was all over the alignment, vision, mission and tactics.

The next morning 40 or so staff went to about 20 campuses to trust God to surface spiritual leaders to start, lead and develop these movements. The reality is that with over 350 universities and with over 4,000 departments, we may never be able to go back to these campuses. We're trusting God to raise up leaders to lead them and we'll coach these students from a distance.

What a day. The stories were awesome. I'll write more as they continue to surface. We ended that night at our house with a Taco and Churro ice cream Extravaganza. It was fun to pray, see what God did and get anxious about the future movements that will take over this city and country.


I was so encouraged by our National Leader Keith Bubbulo and local director here in Mexico, Steve Morgan. They challenged us, encourage us and got behind the vision of reaching every student with multiple spiritual movements. We ended our time with them on the canals of Xochimilco. The original Mexico City. Great music, great food and killer friends.

Now, the next step: Recruit more laborers, get on more campuses, create an infrastructure and pray, pray, and pray.
Categories: MexicoCity, Leadership

Not a coke but a Coke Machine

Many years ago I heard that Robert Goizueta (former CEO of Coca Cola) once told his shareholders that it was his desire to put a Coke within reach of every thirsty person in the world because he knew that about 5.5 billion people in the world wake up thirsty each day. Why not give them a refreshing Coca Cola?

In a compelling way I heard, we know that about 6 billion people of the world wake up spiritually thirsty each day looking for love, significance, truth all found in the person of Jesus. Why don't we just give them Jesus within arms reach so they can quench that thirst? That became a great visionary picture of what we want to do as Campus Crusade for Christ. Let's get the Gospel within arms reach to each and every person in the world.

I have thought about this statement a lot in the past 10 years. How do we do that. Well churches, organizations, mission agencies have been thinking about this and have many different solutions. I think for years we have talked about just getting everyone a coke product so they can quench their thirst.

Now that I'm in Mexico City this vision again has surfaced. How can we get a coke product (the Gospel) within arms reach of the 1,000,000 students on over 300 campuses? To be honest, if our goal is just to get the Gospel to them we could probably with about $300,000 do this by December of 2006. Our goal is not just to give them a coke to drink. We don't just want to expose them to the Gospel. We could do that by dropping Gospel tracks or Gospel videos on each campus and make sure that leach student reads the Gospel. That vision is too small, too easy, too attainable.

Our dream is to make sure that each and every student, on every big and small campus, knows where a coke machine is so they can go back over and over again to drink a coke. We want to make sure that each and every student, in each and every faculty (department) on every campus in the city knows where a Missional Christ-centered community is so they can hear about Jesus, learn about Him, know Him, grow with Him and share Him with others. That is ongoing life changing, campus changing, city changing, country changing, world changing.

Not just a coke but a coke machine.

Pray with us that each and every student, on every campus, in the city and beyond has within arms reach a Missional Christ-centered community so they can know and follow Jesus.

That will require new thinking. That will require thousands of student leaders reaching their campuses, praying for the lost, organizing their own groups, sharing with their friends and experiencing the mission and presence of Christ.

That is what we're all about. Join us! Pray with us! Come down and take a campus.

Categories: God, Mission, leadership, MexicoCity, Movements

To all the kids who survived the 1930's, 40's, 50's, 60's and 70's

I received this today from some friends, the Lindstedts.

Those Born 1930-1979!

TO ALL THE KIDS WHO SURVIVED the 1930's 40's, 50's, 60's and 70's !!

First, we survived being born to mothers who smoked and/or drank while they were pregnant. They took aspirin, ate blue cheese dressing, tuna from a can, and didn't get tested for diabetes.

Then after that trauma, we were put to sleep on our tummies in baby cribs covered with bright colored lead-based paints.

We had no childproof lids on medicine bottles, doors or cabinets and when we rode our bikes, we had no helmets, not to mention, the risks we took hitchhiking. As infants & children, we would ride in cars with no car seats, booster seats, seat belts or air bags.

Riding in the back of a pick up on a warm day was always a special treat.

We drank water from the garden hose and NOT from a bottle.

We shared one soft drink with four friends, from one bottle and

NO ONE actually died from this.

We ate cupcakes, white bread and real butter and drank koolade made with sugar, but we weren't overweight because.

WE WERE ALWAYS OUTSIDE PLAYING!

We would leave home in the morning and play all day, as long as we were back when the streetlights came on.

No one was able to reach us all day.

And we were O.K.

We would spend hours building our go-carts out of scraps and then ride down the hill, only to find out we forgot the brakes. After running into the bushes a few times, we learned to solve the problem.

We did not have Playstations, Nintendo's, X-boxes, no video games at all, no 150 channels on cable, no video movies or DVD's, no surround-sound or CD's, no cell phones, no personal computers, no Internet or chat rooms.......

WE HAD FRIENDS and we went outside and found them!

We fell out of trees, got cut, broke bones and teeth and there were no lawsuits from these accidents.

We ate worms and mud pies made from dirt, and the worms did not live in us forever.

We were given BB guns for our 10th birthdays,

Made up games with sticks and tennis balls and, although we were told it would happen, we did not put out very many eyes.

We rode bikes or walked to a friend's house and knocked on the door or rang the bell, or just walked in and talked to them!

Little League had tryouts and not everyone made the team. Those who didn't had to learn to deal with disappointment. Imagine that!!

The idea of a parent bailing us out if we broke the law was unheard of.

They actually sided with the law!

These generations have produced some of the best risk-takers, problem solvers and inventors ever!

The past 50 years have been an explosion of innovation and new ideas.

We had freedom, failure, success and responsibility, and we learned.

HOW TO DEAL WITH IT ALL!

If YOU are one of them . . . CONGRATULATIONS!

You might want to share this with others who have had the luck to grow up as
kids, before the lawyers and the government regulated so much of our lives for our own good

And while you are at it, forward it to your kids so they will know how brave (and lucky) their parents were.

Kind of makes you want to run through the house with scissors, doesn't it?!

The quote of the month is by Jay Leno:
"With hurricanes, tornados, fires out of control, mud slides, flooding, severe thunderstorms tearing up the country from one end to another, and with the threat of bird flu and terrorist attacks, Are we sure this is a good time to take God out of the Pledge of Allegiance?"

For those that prefer to think that God is not watching over us....go ahead and delete this.

Categories: Family

Mexican President: Is the Chaos over?

Calderon: Me siento muy bien!
It's official. Sixty-five days after the voting took place, Mexico has a new president. After four hours of speechifying, the seven-member federal election tribunal unanimously certified conservative Felipe Calderon as the winner of the July 2 contest."

We'll see what comes in the weeks to come. We still haven't visited downtown.

Categories: MexicoCity

New shots of the family

Check out the many photo updates!

Categories: family, photos

Great visit from the Rents

   This past Tues my parents on a spur of the moment trip came down to visit us for a week. What a joy. This trip, non like the others, we started the home project early. They helped us fix a few small things here and there, hung up pictures and just play around the house with the

This past week I meet a new friend David and we went to the horse races on Friday night. No big news there other than Mexico City has a wealthy, wealthy class. Then Saturday morning we headed down in traffic to the San Angel Bazaar. What a treat. Handicrafts, art, sights, sounds and tastes of Mexico. The kids loved and so did my parents. We ate great quesadillas up stairs in great restaurant and then ended our time by eating home made ice cream on the steps to the square.

That night Christine and I got to get out alone for 1st time in 6 weeks. We celebrate our 13th anniversary today, Sept 4, so we went out to Aguila y Sol. The food and the service was off the charts. Christine ate Chilean Sea Bass and I ate a great steak. It was fun to let the manager pick our wine, appetizer (the best
octopus we have ever had) and just take care of us. We are very grateful for the time alone, talking, praying, remembering the past year and being excited for the time ahead.

Sunday we met with David, his wife, Deven, her parents and their 10 month baby Max for a drive down to the south, way south; Xochimilco. This is the area that has 180Km's of canals and we battle traffic and crazy pot holes and finally made it to the boat docks. What a time. We spent 2 hours cruising around the canals listening to mariachis, eating steaks and tacos, drinking, laughing and just flat out enjoying the day. This is a must visit for all coming to Mexico City.

As we drove off we pulled into a huge plant and flower mart. I couldn't believe my eyes and my mom, a green thumb herself, was taken back. I think she felt like she had gone to heaven. We bought 6 plants, 50lbs of dirt all for $20 US.

After a short 1 hour drive back, hitting some water and almost loosing it on the freeway, a short nap last night and a quick drive to the airport this morning at 5 am, mom and dad are on their way back to Los Angeles. What a time. Great memories. Great time all around.

Categories: MexicoCity, Family