The Romero Carrillo Family
PROFILE:
Alonso Romero of Cofradía and Karina Carrillo of San
Juan live in Cofradía with their three children, Aaron, Ingrid and Carim.
This sweet couple met at a dance in San Marcos, six
years ago. Alonso asked Karina
where she was from, and when she answered San Juan, he told her he had never
been and would like to visit sometime.
They started talking, and soon Alonso went to Karina’s mom and asked her
if he could visit Karina. When
Alonso lost his job, due to the business shutting down, he went to Karina. He told her it might be a while before
he had another job and the money to come visit her. He then asked her to come to Cofradía with him and she
did.
The family of five shares one room in a house with
Alonso’s grandmother and uncle.
For income, Alonso works in his uncle’s fields and feels obligated to
work for free as rent payment for the house. Therefore, Alonso is looking for a second job that would
provide money to support his family.
For Alonso and Karina, a house will be a gift from God
and a place of their own where their children will grow.
It is with great joy and excitement that we share with you that Alonso and his family received their house last night!
Alonso is a very hard worker and dedicated many, many hours to help with his new house. It was very exciting to see his enthusiasm and gratitude for this gift.
Ephesians 2:8-10 says, "For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith--and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God--not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God's handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do."
This family received a free material gift that is only to last them a time here on earth. The spiritual gift of salvation from God is eternal; it lasts much longer that the earth! What we witnessed in the physical material world these past few weeks is a picture of what spiritual salvation is...a free gift. All we need to do is RECEIVE the gift God has provided for us--SALVATION THROUGH FAITH IN JESUS CHRIST. Jesus paid for our sins when he died on the cross and rose from the grave, making it possible for us to be saved.
Much like what verse 10 says, "...we are God's handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works...", is the example that we saw in Alonso. He already had received the gift (even though it was not yet completed) and worked really hard (not to EARN the gift, but because he had already RECEIVED the gift).
It was an exciting time. Thank you so much to Marion and Loretta Sluys for their generosity and making God's love visible.
You can do this, too, by forming a team and coming down to build someone a house. Here are some people who are waiting. The only thing we require of them is that they have their own land to build on.
Future builds here in Cofradia are already being planned. We will be pouring the floor to Pastor Abimael's family's house on Saturday and The Well from Salt Lake City will be joining us for this build which will take place in Tuxpan, Nayarit.
In January, Cy-Fair Christian Church from Houston, Texas will be joining us to build a house for Florentina from Cofradia.
Enjoy the photos of the House Dedication:
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| The front of the house. |
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| The back of the house along the street. |
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| The back porch with water cistern and bathroom. |
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| Kitchen and dining area. |
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| Living room area. |
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| Bedroom #2 |
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| Bedroom #1 |
