VBS at La Roca

Wow! What an exciting time we have had over the past three months! With interns here from Grace Covenant as well as students from the George School in Pennsylvania, we have done construction, clean up, Bible schools, delivered hygiene bags and clothes to the rancho, opened La Roca and had incredible devotional times in the midst of it all.

So, since there is more to tell than we can write in one short letter we are going to let the photos tell the story. God bless you. Keep us in your prayers and if God lays it on your heart to help us in anyway financially we would greatly appreciate it. God has moved in mighty ways here and there is much more to come. We invite you to be a part of it!

Here’s a look!

Worship Time! The kids sang songs about honesty, faithfulness, teamwork, and following the Lord!

Yum!

This young lady has had a good day :)

Carolyn, Fernando, Lisa and John prepare hot dogs.

The children play in the recently cleaned JARDIN (garden)!

La Roca's new sign!

Time to listen to God's word.

Coloring

Lisa's new friends

Jim talks with the kids.

Being the first of its kind in San Luis, La Roca opened on July 18^th with a Vacation Bible school that, at first, we were not sure would be attended!

The VBS was to start at 10:00. At 10: 20 we had no children. We were so disappointed but we just kept praying and believing that this was something God wanted us to do. Finally, close to 11:00 one little girl shyly entered the door. As the morning passed kids kept trickling in and by the end of the day we had 18 kids! They are loving the VBS and the attendance has been doubling each day to end the week with 76 kids!!!!!!! God is blessing us not only with the presence of these children but with volunteers from the neighborhood who are offering to help us in any way they can.

One example is Erial and Flore an artist couple from across the street who brought their son Giovanni to Bible school. They caught the vision for what the Lord is doing at LaRoca and though they are not yet believers have offered to volunteer free art classes to the kids who come to La Roca twice a week!

To hear these children squeal with excitement as they come through the door and participate with all their hearts in every activity has been a blessing that is hard to describe. Thank you so much for helping make this possible. We know that this is just the beginning of what God is going to do in this neighborhood and it would not be possible without you.

May God richly bless you and your family as we work together to build the Kingdom of our Lord and Savior.

Sincerely,
Jim and Lisa McTighe

Servants International

April 2008

Dear friends and family.

We hope this letter finds you doing well. Things have been busy as usual this month as we wind down the school year schedule and get ourselves geared up for a ministry packed summer.

W.O.W. Bible Study:

The Women of Worth International Bible study is still in full swing. We are studying the Purpose Driven Life this term and have had many incredible discussions about how to get our lives fully lined up with God’s purposes .We have also had 6 women accept the Lord as their Savior and have had many answered prayers that have encouraged our faith! God is so faithful!

La Roca: The youth group from one of the churches that’s working with us at La Roca held a work day to clean up construction debris and prepare the entrance for flowers that they have decided to sponsor. It is so awesome to watch as the body of Christ works together. The kids are pumped about La Roca and are looking forward to hanging out and inviting their friends to the new digs! A youth alliance has been formed in San Luis for the purpose of bringing youth groups from many different churches together at one time for conferences ,concerts, outreach projects etc. We are hoping to host these events at La Roca and be a part of what God is obviously doing here.

We also had a leadership meeting this month and are putting the different facets of the plan into action. There is much to do but everyone is looking forward to what we sense God doing in our midst.

Meetings with Pastors: Partnering with local churches for outreach is one of our goals for 2008. Part of our vision is to establish relationships with local churches in order to have churches that are willing to disciple new believers .This month we met with two pastors and their wives to tell them what God has laid on our heart. Both couples were very excited about working with us and have offered to help us in any way they can. One of the pastors we met with has planted 11 home churches in San Luis. We all share the same passion of spreading the gospel in San Luis and look forward to seeing those small home groups grow as people get saved during the summer outreaches.

Guadalupe Victoria: Discipleship classes are proceeding as usual at Guadalupe Victoria.

There is a team that is covering everything on Saturdays that is independent of our efforts. We really sense our season there ,for the most part, has come to a close. Though we are still planning to bring some of our youth from GV to help us with out reach this summer, we sense that the work there is in good hands and it is time for us to focus on La Roca. We will miss them terribly but there will always be visits from time to time.

Prayer requests:

* La Roca- preparation, training and outreach for the summer and beyond

* Health- Jim has been in a lot of pain with his back

* Materials and man power needed for the outreaches

*Favor with officials and people in general

*Right school for Patrick for next year

Thanks again to all of you are so faith fully support us each month with you finances and your prayers. We could not be here with out you. God Bless you.

His in Mexico,

Jim, Lisa and Patrick

February 2008

Dear friends and family,

We hope this letter finds you well and blessed. First quarter has certainly gotten off to a running start. This month has been filled with family news as well as activity in the ministry here.

As many of you know Patrick had to be taken to the hospital in San Luis for an emergency appendectomy. A bit scary to face surgery in a foreign country, but he faced it like a trooper and was very comforted knowing so many of you were praying for him.

W.O.W. International Bible Study: The Women of Worth are moving forward and our meetings have been rich. We meet every Thursday morning and have been growing in number every week. Our most recent member is Sylvia from East Germany. Though she has no background in church what so ever, she is eager to learn and is asking some very challenging questions. It’s a thrill to get to be a part of her journey. We are up to 21 women now from 7 different countries! It is incredible to watch God work!

English Church Service
We finally have a church service here that is in English. Though we are working hard on our Spanish, it is nice to be able to go to church in our native language. There is a wonderful church here that is very missions oriented that has started an English service on Sunday mornings. We are really enjoying the services and Lisa is getting to sing on the worship team which, of course, she loves. We are planning to work with the

Children’s pastor this summer for VBS at La Rocca. Lisa was also invited to speak at a marriage conference sponsored by the church of another missionary here from the states. We never cease to be amazed at how God uses all of the twists and turns in our lives for His glory. Romans 8:28 is definitely true!

La Roca: Jim and a team of men from San Luis and Guadalupe Victoria have been cleaning out debris and building stairs to get La Rocca ready. Thank goodness for the internet and the “how to” websites! Please be praying that the man who owns the building will follow through with his promise to put in bathrooms and electricity.

We are also planning our outreach team trainings that will start in April. So far, we have 35 people that want to be on the La Rcca team. We are humbled and amazed at how God is drawing people.

Moving: We found out a few weeks ago that the house where we currently live has been sold and we are going to have to move. This will be our 6^th move since our house burned 3 years ago! We were shocked at first because we really like the house where we live and it is really feeling like home. But we kept praying that God would bring us a house that we liked as well. The market here has gotten very pricy and it was not looking good. But, Jim believed we would find one that would be even better and less money. And that is exactly what happened. We found a great house and it’s much less expensive then the other one! God is so faithful. Plus, the landlord has said that we can live there as long as we need to. They want to keep the house in the family and have no intentions of selling it.

Thank You so very much for your faithful financial support. Without your help this ministry would not be possible. Thank you, Thank you Thank you! May God richly bless you for your heart to serve through your giving?

Prayer requests:
* We are looking for 30 people to be intercessors for this ministry. Our vision is that each person would take one day a month that they would pray fervently for us. Pray and see if God lays it on your heart to be one of them.

*Lisa’s dad is having some problems with headaches and pressure in his head. Doctors not sure what it is .Please pray for his healing.

*We want wisdom in the area of Patrick’s schooling. Where he should be next year for High school

*Interns: Please pray about the interns we want to come from the states this summer to help us with La Rocca (information at available on World impact board at GCC)

* Trainings for outreach

*Good health for all of us especially Jim

January 2008

Dear Friends and family,

We hope this letter finds you well. We are all healthy and blessed, though a bit chilly! The temperatures have been down in the 40’s and 50’s, which would not be too bad except that houses in Mexico don’t have heat! Thankfully the cold weather only lasts a month or two.

January has been a time of setting our yearly personal and ministry growth plans in motion and looking to what God has for us in the New Year. So far, plans for La Roca, the Christian Community Center, are coming along. We have been getting quotes to have the building fitted up with the amenities we need to accommodate our needs. Soon we should be on our way to having it completed. We are looking to start our outreach trainings at La Roca by early spring. In the mean time, there is much to prepare.

W.O.W. (Women of Worth)

Our Women of Worth Bible study has just started its third session. We began last April with 4 women. This fall we had 12. This session we are up to 18 and there seem to be more coming each week! God is so faithful. Of the 18, we have women from Germany, India, Spain, Mexico, Canada and Korea as well as 6 states in the U.S.! Plus, over half of them are not saved, but curious. It is so exciting to have this opportunity! It was prophesied over us before we left North Carolina that we would be ministering to people from many countries other than Mexico. We had no idea that we’d be doing it in Mexico! Walking with God is always filled with delightful surprises!

Guadalupe Victoria (the rancho)

We are back in full swing at the rancho. We started classes on January 19. It was good to see everybody again. Everyone was glad to be back in class. Through some miraculous circumstances, we have become friends with a wonderful brother in the Lord from Arkansas by the name of John Clendenin. Though his primary purpose here is to facilitate adoptions in the U.S., he will be joining Jim in teaching a new youth and young adult class for the guys. Lisa will continue with the girls.

One of our goals for 2007 was to raise up at least 6 leaders in the youth and young adult class. We did that and are continuing that discipleship this year and are preparing them to join us in San Luis at La Roca for out- reach training. We are excited to see what God is going to do in the lives of these young people who ,for the most part ,have never been anywhere off of the rancho.

September/October 2007

Dear friends and family,

We hope that this finds you all doing well. Life here has been extremely busy as we are sure it is for you. School is back in session and we have been busy working at Guadalupe Victoria, resuming our Thursday Bible study in our home and building an evangelism team for outreach.

Guadalupe Victoria:
We have continued our discipleship classes and we are seeing a real understanding take place in our group. We are teaching a lot on evangelizing and they are all anxious to learn how to share their faith. It is very exciting. These teens that usually start having babies by age 18 are now starting to believe in a future they never thought possible. God is so faithful!





Waters of Grace is continuing and we are investigating the possibility of drilling another well. The “trading post” where people, come to “shop” for needed items like clothes and shoes, is also going well. They trade services like cleaning the buildings and grounds for goods. They love it!

Going back to school was made an exciting time At Guadalupe Victoria. This year, for what usually is a stressful time due to the lack of needed school supplies, the families enjoyed a happy time with the generosity of the International Club of San Luis who helped us purchase back packs and supplies for all the children. Team work is an awesome thing… everybody wins!

Bible Study:
The (English) Bible study is going great! We have 10 women now from three counties and 7 different U.S. states who are taking the class. These women are mostly wives of corporate executives who have been transferred here with their jobs for a period of 1-4 years. They are from many different religious backgrounds (or none) and it has been beautiful to watch God move in our hearts as we gather each week and share the Bible and pray for each other.

“La Roca” The Rock
Through some miraculous circumstances, we have made a friend who has offered to bless us with a warehouse space to use for our ministry. This space is right between a rather affluent area and a very poor neighborhood. We are not exactly sure what God wants us to use it for, but our sense is that it is to be a Christian Community Center where families can come with their children for recreation and classes .We are also believing that this is the place where we will be able to disciple and train evangelism outreach teams to not only reach the ranchos but the inner city of San Luis Potosi as well. God is putting the team together and we are praying, watching and walking one step at a time.

Well, that’s all for now. Thank you again for your faithful support. Without your financial help sustaining and expanding this ministry would not be possible. May God bless you richly for your generosity for the Kingdom.

Serving the Lord in Mexico,

Jim, Lisa and Patrick McTighe

La Roca

Welcome to La Roca (The Rock) Servants International’s new home in San Luis Potosi, Mexico! Here are some before and in progress shots.

Pretty rough to start!

But now after some months of progress La Roca is taking shape...

It's a lot of work but it will be awesome one day! Can you see the change?

Some clean-up, wiring for electrical, a few bathrooms, some furniture and we can get started!

Just a reminder:
We are coming up to the Christmas season and our customary Christmas fiesta at the rancho is a big part of what the 160 people there look forward to each year. (Sixty percent have no jobs and only one parent (a mom) the other forty percent of families that are employed make only $60 per week.) The celebration includes warm clothing, blankets, food, toys and candy for the children. Of course this takes extra money.

You can help! A little can go a long way... so any help would be great!
As the year ends, please remember that any funds contributed to Servant’s International before December 31, 2007 will be tax deductible for 2007. Muchas Gracias!

Servants International, Inc.,

16103 Weatherly Way, Huntersville, NC 28078

http://www.servantslove.org/

June/July 2007

Dear friends and family,

Wow what a busy summer this has been and it is not even over! June started out with Lisa attending a two week missions encounter in L.A. that is a requirement for Foursquare missionaries. Jim stayed back in Mexico with Patrick to finish out the school year and keep things going at Guadalupe Victoria. Lisa learned a lot about how missions works in Foursquare and got to hear many inspiring stories from other missionaries who had been on the field for many years. She was in a class with 15 other missionaries who are going to be stationed everywhere from Ireland to South Africa. It was an incredible experience for her to be with these wonderful people and we look forward to keeping up with them through the years to see what God will be doing in all their lives and ministries.

A Divine Appointment!

Just when she thought it was all winding down, Lisa met an incredible young woman on the plane home who was on her way to San Luis Potosi for the second year with a group of young people from the Fellowship of Christian Athletes. Her name is Shelli Brown and she and Lisa hit it off like sister from the moment they began to talk. They exchanged numbers and we had the opportunity to join their team for a day of ministry in the town of Rio Verde where they partnered with a local church for VBS and conducted a sports camp in a local public park. It was awesome to see over 200 kids have the opportunity to engage is sports with these Christian athletes.

Karla, Lisa, Shelli Brown, Missy

VBS for the small children was a huge hit!

The Barretts inspiring and working with the children

FCA college athletes working with the kids

These mission trips have come about through a vision of Jean Barrett. Jean has a manufacturing company in Rio Verde, SLP, Mexico and is a former NFL player with the San Francisco 49ers. He has had FCA sports camps in his home state of Oklahoma for 10 years and had the vision to bring the same camp to Mexico. We are glad he did and look forward to seeing them again next year. We continue to marvel at the creative ways God makes Himself known and the beautiful way the body of Christ functions together. Many came to know Christ as a result of their being here and the week ended with a big cook-out where they served hundreds of hamburgers, chips and cokes!

P.S. Did I mention that Shelli is moving to Charlotte and is going be attending Grace Covenant? ............ is God good or what?! Please find her, say hello and give her a warm welcome!

July took us to the states where we met our girls Kristen (26) and Britany (28) as well as Lisa’s Dad (81) for a week at the beach at South Padre Island. It was the first time since Christmas that we had all been together. Needless to say we were thrilled to get to be with them.

Top: with Britany Bottom: Patrick with Kristen

Patrick's cratering birthday cake flambe'

While there we celebrated Patrick’s 15th birthday complete with a homemade chocolate cake, his favorite meal of pork chops and mashed potatoes and ended the day with a rousing game of Apples to Apples. It was a perfect day. There is nothing like family. It was just all too brief. The week ended with Britany going back to New York City where she will be teaching for the 3rd year a Rye High school. Kristen and Patrick went with Papa back to Rome Georgia where they attended his infamous “Papa Camp” that included 4 wheelers, fishing, horse back riding, shooting guns and wearing the grass off in the back pasture with a go cart! After having a blast with their forever young Papa (81), Kristen returned to Baton Rouge where she is finishing her 3rd and final year of Graduate school at LSU and Patrick came back to Mexico on July 29th to help interpret for a mission team from Massachusetts in La Huestecta (Mexican jungle).

Guadalupe Victoria
Things are still progressing at the rancho. We are having church services one Sunday a month, special Bible institute classes for leadership and doctrine classes for the local pastors in the area. We saw one woman (Juana) healed from a shoulder injury that kept her from raising her arm. She came for prayer after a church service and she was moving her arm above her head and praising God for her healing! Luisa also came for prayer and was healed from strong headaches that have plagued her for years. God is so faithful and He is proving Himself over and over at Guadalupe Victoria in many ways. Jim taught the discipleship classes while Lisa was in L.A. and has been building shelves along with some of the guys at the rancho, for the trading post we have started.

Lisa and Karla addressing a women's group.

Following the lead of some of the women who would bring us tortillas or tunas (fruit from the cactus) to exchange for clothes and shoes, we decided that the people there are really wanting to have a hand in bettering their lives rather than just getting a hand out. It has been a beautiful thing to watch and is proving to be a blessing to all. The women and some of the youth leaders are arranging the clothes and other items in the “store” and are really doing a great job organizing things and setting up the system for disbursement.
We are also getting the sense that God wants us to build a church building there. We talked to a Christian friend who is a builder and he has agreed to help us make the plans and clear the land. We will keep you posted on the progress. This same builder is going to also help us access some of the housing needs so that the team from GCC can help with repairs when they come in November.

Jim and the boys building shelves.

The weather here has been extraordinarily wet and cool this year. This has been a fantastic blessing for the crops and the livestock as God has not only changed the spirit of the people but completely changed the complexcion of this desert community.

Pigs love puddles!

Well those are the highlights of what has been going on in our end of the world. We hope that you are having a great summer and that you are taking time to enjoy your families. We also want you to know that we appreciate your support of our family here in Mexico. Without your prayers and financial support we would not be able to be here doing what God has called us to do. Thank you for your faithfulness. We know God will richly bless you as you sow into His Kingdom. We love you and pray God’s richest blessings upon you. May His presence be your portion in all you do.

Serving Him in Mexico,

Jim, Lisa and Patrick McTighe