MARTIN GARZON to OAXACA

Martin (left) is one of our very strong Student Leaders. He's been a pillar in the youth group for a long time and has a HEART OF GOLD!!! Those of you who know him, know that I'm not exaggerating and "Heart of Gold" almost doesn't do justice to describe his passion and commitment to serving the Lord and reaching the lost.

Martin is going to attend his second year of Bible School in Roca Blanca, Oaxaca for the next 10 months and we will miss him...A LOT! He is a very special man of God that inspires me and others that work with him. His influence in the youth of his town is incredible! I have not seen anyone be able to accomplish what he has for Christ. One of the things he's done for the guys is a 2-3 day camp, you can see this year's here.

Thank you for your prayers for Martin. He will be involved heavily in preaching and going out to different villages in Oaxaca. When he finished his first year in 2007, he came back on fire for the Lord and definitely a different Martin. He has maintained that passion and continues to move forward.

If you would like make a donation to help more students in this area to have opportunities like Martin, click here to see how. Make sure the donation is labeled "Cofradia-Student Scholarship".

EL RETO 2010 LOGO

EL RETO 2010 logo for this year looks like this...

ENGLISH: THE CHALLENGE 2010 "IN SEARCH OF...???"

AUGUST UPDATE

Greating Everyone! Thank you so much for your prayers this past month. We have been pretty busy with a lot of activities, but are thankful for what the Lord has been doing in our lives.

Last month, we asked for your prayers concerning...

• House Thank you for continuing to keep this in mind as we are looking forward to adding a couple of rooms upstairs.
• Zetas Issue Things have calmed down a little bit. The student are back in school for summer sessions and we’re looking forward to things returning to normal.
• Student Leadership Retreat We had an awesome time in Mazatlan with our new Student Leadership team. Thank you for keeping this in prayer. This retreat went really well and it’s usually an indicator on how things will go for the next 12 months. Here is a report.
• Summer Tournaments No injuries and lots of new students. This was a great opportunity to develop relationships with new students, especially the female soccer tournament where we had three teams of 4 girls each. Click here for a report and pics.
• Summer Camp We had a great time in La Cruz de Elota, Sinaloa with Cosecha Final La Cruz Church. Change Agents was the theme this year and you can see a report here.
• EL RETO 2010 Thank you for keeping this in prayer as we continue to prepare for this event. We are still in need of about $1000 for funding this event. A big thank you to those who have already donated. Let me know if you’d like to get involved and participate by sowing into what is the most impactful event for our students. Read here for the announcement.
  

Follow these links for more..
Border Trip—A quick trip to Tucson, AZ.
Inauguration—On February 27, 2011, we will be inaugurating the new church and beginning our weekly services there. Come join us!!!
Facebook—if you’re on Facebook, I’d love to get in touch with you!

This month, would you please pray for...

• House Thank you to all who have helped us in this area. If you would like to invest in our family, this would be a great way!
• Rebecka turns 8 years old on the 13th!!
• EL RETO 2010 Please continue to pray for this... Our biggest event of the year is coming up at the end of the summer and we are in the process of making plans right now. This year’s theme is “En Busca De..?..” (In Search of..?..). What do you search for in your life? We will be incorporating aspects of investigation and detective games. It should be a lot of fun! We are still in need of $1000 usdollars in order to put this together. Please consider sponsoring this event; email me if you’d like to make a pledge. Again, this is a huge event that not only our students look forward to, but the adults who help staff the event, AND the children can’t wait to grow up so they can be part of this event once they’re in youth group! (September)
  

Thank you very much for your prayers and continued support.
As you give, you are investing in the Kingdom of God. This is an opportunity for you to further His Kingdom, thank you so much! Click here to donate.


Blessings,
Steve, Geña, Rebecka and Emma Rose Silberman
Missionaries to Mexico
SKYPE: “srsilberman”

Summer Tournaments 2010

A few years ago we stared holding speed soccer tournaments for the youth guys. After a few tournaments we added volleyball. This summer, we had a good enough turn-out of girls in order to form our second female speed soccer tournament. 12 girls signed up and formed three teams. This was probably the most exciting part of the week...seeing them play!

Monday and Tuesday, five teams of 6 members each played volleyball. Wednesday and Thursday was the soccer tournament for the girls' and guys' teams. 25 guys played on 5 teams of 5 members. For the guys' soccer, this was the most evenly matched teams we've ever had so that made it more exciting and interesting for the players!

Friday was the finals for both sports...

Gollo's team won the Volleyball tournament.

Jazmin's team won the female soccer tournament.

Raul's team (Los Bebeleches) won the male soccer tournament.

I've noticed that the more we do this, little by little there are relationships being built as the students overcome the fear of man and know that they will find peace in Jesus.

KOSECHANDO DESTINOS 2010

Kosechando Destinos (Harvesting Destinies) is the summer camp our youth go to each year. This year the theme was "Agentes de Cambio" (Change Agents). Many of the speaking had to do with our identity (which was cool because that's what we focused on at the Leadership Retreat). If we do not understand who we are in Christ and experience change ourselves, it will be difficult to see change in the world.

Many of the students were touched by the Lord which is vital in order to see change in their life. The activities were much the same as camps in the past with 10 teams of 10 students competing in games and trying to avoid "nominations"--the decision on who will be cleaning camp and the bathrooms each day. For the ultimate penalty for not participating or simply having a bad attitude included eating snake and having a raw egg broken over your head. Hmm exciting!!

The event that was really cool was on Friday, we brought the students into town to do some social work at a couple of different locations--a place where "special" kids come to stay and do activities and another place called "the Grandfather's House" where retired people can hang out, do crafts, plant gardens and be involved in certain things in the community. It's a lot like a Senior's club. The students did a lot of painting and cleaning inside and outside the two locations. After a late lunch, we paraded down the streets of La Cruz de Elota to the plaza where we held an evangelistic concert (click here to see short video). It was a great to see so many students being renewed and encouraged in the Lord to keep on serving him--something we've needed here.

Here are some pics at "The Grandfather's House"...

The parade in the streets of La Cruz...

The Evangelistic Concert...

The Cofradia gang in the van...

Back at Camp...

Earlier in the week, the students were challenged to give something up that they treasured as a sacrifice to God. I've seen this happen in the past where the things "sacrificed" were never returned to the students. This year, under the suspense of fire on stage and the appearance that these sacrifices would be burnt, Pastor Héctor reassured the students that God saw their heart and was pleased with their sacrifice. Just as the angel stopped Abraham from actually killing his son, God saw Abraham's heart and provided a lamb to be sacrificed instead. In the end, Pastor Héctor returned the student's belongings to them and used this as a teachable moment. With the same measure of pain in giving up the sacrifice, was the measure of joy they received in getting what is "close" to them back.

Worship at Camp.

Those of you who support Geña and I have sown into this camp. Gas and Tolls were paid for by the little extra that was sent to us this month. Thank you very much!!

CENTRO CRISTIANO INAUGURATION!!!

ESPAÑOL ABAJO...

On February 27, 2011 we will be inaugurating the new church building in Cofradía. We have been using it for special events and one of the rooms for youth group, but we will begin to meet together on a weekly basis every Sunday on the inauguration date. This has been a huge blessing for the church in Cofradía and surrounding towns because we meet at the mission base where there is not enough room at all for everyone to fit.

We would like to invite you to join us for this special day. Many of you have held this work up in prayer, many of you have given financially, and others have sacrificed time to come down and physically help! We thank you very much for taking part in this ministry. Come join us on February 27, 2011!!!

ESPAÑOL:

El 27 de Febrero de 2011, vamos a inaugurar a la iglesia nueva en Cofradía. La hemos usado por eventos especiales y uno de los cuartos para el grupo de jóvenes, pero empezaremos a reunirnos juntos cada semana los Domingos a partir de al fecha de inauguración. Esto ha sido una gran bendición para la iglesia de Cofradía y los pueblos alrededor porque hemos estado reuniendo en la base de misiones donde ya no cabemos.

Les invitamos a que nos acompañen en este día especial. Muchos de ustedes han estado orando por esta obra, muchos han sembrado financieramente, y otros han sacrificado tiempo para venir y ayudar físicamente! Por eso estamos muy agradecidos a ustedes por tomar parte de este ministerio. Vengan a acompañarnos el día 27 de Febrero, 2011!!!