Tijuana

Wayne on Christian Radio station Nueva Vida

We recently had an opportunity to share on a popular hispanic radio station, broadcast throughout North America. We were asked specifics on what we do as an organization, day to day. We thought you might be interested in these statistics of our day to day operations:

Food is collected 7 days a week, in the San Diego region, and carried across the border into Tijuana Mexico 5 days a week. More than 20,000 pounds of food are distributed every week. The recipients of this food, are residents of many different facilities, including orphanages, elderly homes, infirmaries and rehabs. Among these, there are 5 homes for the elderly, 9 homes for children, 5 medical clinics, 12 rehabs, 1 shelter for trafficking victims, and 1 shelter for deportees.

There are 12 outreaches each week, throughout Tijuana, to distribute food to hundreds of people who come through the food lines. In addition to these facilities and outreaches, nearly 200 individual families are provided for, each week. Among our Tijuana partners and team, there are 8 organic, grassroots churches represented.

We also continue to have a core team of 26 Chiropractors, Hands for Life, who rotate coming down twice a month, to treat the men, women and children of the facilities, and surrounding communities. The people love the care and hands on attention they are given!

Drs Ron & Mary here with a group of children they just treated.

Most recently, food and shelter were provided for a hundred or more Haitian and African refugees, after long journeys to Mexico. Due to the civil unrest in their homelands, they have come to Mexico’s bordertown of Tijuana, awaiting appointments for asylum in the US. The already overburdened-by-migrants, city of Tijuana, is unable to care for all the new refugees. Thank you for your partnership, which helps us offer that care!

Some of the refugees here with our Tijuana partners.

UP NEXT: Weekend Sept 30-Oct 2: Carol and team will be leading worship at the Arise Camp Meeting, a youth retreat for Native American youth, on the Soboba reservation. Soboba is about 2 hours northeast of where we live. Would you please pray for team/band unity, clarity on songs and music, for the breath of GOD on the worship, and that people will really experience the presence of the Lord, as they worship. Also, please pray for breakthru’s for the youth, as they learn and receive. The kids will be leading their own outreach on the reservation on Sunday, after the church service. Please also pray for protection and safety for us and for our team and all those involved. We really need this!

Oct 6-9: Carol, Wayne & team will be heading out to Tahlequah, Oklahoma, to participate in a large First Nations/Native American worship & prayer gathering. Tahlequah is the area where the Cherokee people, Creek people and other First Nations tribes, were taken and left, during the Trail of Tears. This ANNA Call (All Nations North America) gathering, is the first of it’s kind, in terms of being led by, and specifically for First Nations believers. Carol and her team will have the opportunity to assist in worship leading with First Nations friends, and potentially some other worship opportunities as well. Please be praying for the same sort of things as above, as well as for the many details that need to fall in line to fly a team out to OK., to fall into place. Please pray for Wayne’s mom, Mary, dog sitting with Franki, here at home!

“Worship”

January & February were ‘suddenly’ months for VoB worship! It ‘suddenly’ came up that we were able to go to 4 different reservations in Southern California, all within 2 hours drive of San Diego, for worship and prayer. We were able to go to Soboba reservation, 2 hrs north, San Pasquale reservation, here in east San Diego, and Morongo reservation, near Palm Springs. On the 4th reservation, Pala, here in San Diego, we went simply to be with friends & hear a special speaker who was sharing at the Pala Lighthouse church. What a privilege and honor to spend time in worship & prayer for the First Nations people, on their own land. The beauty of this, is that it wasn’t just ‘white’ people, or Native Americans, but it was ALL of us, working together, singing, praying, playing, eating, dancing together, all to further the Kingdom of GOD in this earth. In addition to that, even though we’ve struggled to get food across the border to Mexico, we have been able to deliver several large truckloads of food to our friends on the San Pasquale reservation. They, in turn, have been able to bless many, many needy families on that and other reservations. Isn’t GOD awesome?!!

This year, 2016, and onward, we hope to have more of these opportunities. Southern California is home to more reservations than anywhere else in the country. We have many First Nations friends who are seeking the Lord for their people. We’re honored to be able to stand alongside them, seeking the Lord for the original inhabitants of the land. Please continue to lift up these endeavors, as we have several possibilities coming up.

“and we know that GOD causes all things to work together for good to those who love GOD, to those who are called according to His purpose” Romans 8:28

“Compassion”

Thank you for all of your prayers and support through our recent border crossing issues. Some things have progressed along. We still do not have our normal favor extended to us, as we are not able to cross as much food as we were crossing. We are still collecting the food every day, but unfortunately are limited as to how much and what specifically we can take in. The loads have to be smaller, but the fees are 5 times higher than before! So we have also had to decrease how many times we cross, to better steward finances spent at customs. We’re believing things will get better soon.

On a positive note, we have had an amazing response from agencies on the south side of the border, who have stepped up to help us get the food to those who need it. Our partner, Greg, had a meeting with the municipal social services of Tijuana. They still have permission to bring donations from the U.S., through Mexican customs. But we had been unsuccessful in convincing them to collect and deliver the MannaPack Rice (healthy meals, formulated with nutrition for malnourishment) we take in. A great blessing occurred, when we recently acquired the Tijuana Chief of Police to champion for our team! She got the social services department to bring in the food. She believes that fighting hunger can lead to less crime. The chief has even come to our outreaches, along with her entourage of body guards, 2nd in command, and officers. We anticipate greater favor to come.