January 2005 trip report & photos

Dear friends,

We are safe and soundly back from Lajas. We had a great time out

in the village. As well as getting quite a bit of work done on the house, we

were able to spend a lot of time with people. Many of the Tepehuan are

coming by the house now to visit which makes it much easier on us. We

were able to get a lot of language time in. With the help of a couple of

Tepehuan friends, I was able to get much of the outside walls parged

with a mixture of clay and cement. It took three full days with much

experimenting with the mix, but we finally got there. Below is the

"parging" team.

Marselo (far right)

is our closest

neighbor. He tells

us that a week

before we arrived

in Lajas, someone

had tried to break

into our house at

night. He heard

the noise and so

pulled out his gun

(something to the

equivalent of an

AK47) and let a

few shots off into the air. With good reason the would be thieves fled. He said they left so quickly he didn't get to see who they were. Little wonder! Marselo probably needs little encouragement to make opportunity to use his gun, but in essence, he was putting his life on the line to protect our house. If the thieves knew who it was that scared them off, it could be a possibility that they could target him in the future. We thanked him for his help and let him borrow our garden hose as reward for his swift and brave action.

Thanks to all who prayed for an opportunity to talk with Julian the

governor of Lajas. We were able to sit down with him and the rest of the

leaders. I quickly laid out for him our desire to live in the village

stating the possibility of teaching English in the school, future dental

clinics and medical aid, help with the airstrip registration process,

and teaching them to read and write their own language etc. He was very

receptive and explained the process of how we would need to be at a town

meeting that is held at the end of each month. A number of those present

when I talked with the governor were people that Anne Marie and I had

helped over the years, and they spoke up for us, stating what we had done

for them. This next Sunday, January the 30th, is the next town meeting.

Julian told us to be in Lajas for that meeting, and our proposal will be

explained to the whole community (including outer-lying villages).

Everybody will have opportunity to state whether they are in agreement

or not, and will also be able to question us publicly. I imagine we will

be given an answer right there and then. The plan is that Anne Marie and

I, and our two youngest - Julian and Sophia, will fly into Lajas on

Saturday the 29th. The meeting will be the 30th, and we will return to

Durango the 31st.

PLEASE PRAY AND ENCOURAGE AS MANY FOLK AS YOU CAN TO BE PRAYING FOR THIS MEETING. Here are some thoughts to help you pray more specifically and effectively. Thank God that this meeting is even happening. Pray that Satan will not hinder the going ahead of the meeting nor stop us from being able to get there. For wisdom to know how to present and how much to present to the village as to our purposes there. The possibility for our coworkers to be able to live out there as well. For courage, insight and wisdom in answering questions that we will face. That Satan will not have opportunity to distort what we say and cause rumors about us. That the Lord will grant us much favour with the Tepehuan, and that as they listen to us speak, that they will get a sense that our living in their village will give them opportunity to have spiritual freedom and peace with God. That the Lord would give courage to those people we have helped and are for us living in Lajas, to speak out on our behalf. In the end, that the Lord's will be done in Lajas as it is in heaven.

roll over the photos below for captions