Happy New Year! Feliz 2011!

Thank you so much for your prayers in 2010.  Please lift us up during 2011...

My children and I wish you a happy, productive and blessed new year!!

Alan, Alyssia, Gloria and Rissa

A Friend's Testimony

Dear friends,

I would like to share with you a very special letter written by a very special friend.  He sent it to Jeff Holloway, associate pastor at First Baptist Church in Crosby, Texas, our home church.  For those of you who do not know, Gary is the one standing on the right and Kenton is the one directly in front of him (with glasses).  Please read on and glorify God with me.

Jeff,
I don't expect you to remember me, but we met at the memorial service for Gary and Carla Sloan years ago. Gary and I both pastored mission churches of Oak View Baptist in Irving, TX and Gary and Gloria and my wife and I co-pastored another one as well for a time while we were doing that. I was leading up a mission trip from Irving to Tapachula to help the Sloans when the trip was interrupted by that day on the beach of Playa Linda and instead we came to the memorial at your church. Not long after the deaths however, I still made that trip to Mexico with 3 others from Oak View including one of our newest mission pastors (Sergio Matassa), a man that Gary had lead to the Lord and baptized in Irving (Mauricio Ibarra who has since planted a church in Hutto, TX where he pastors still), and the minister of missions from Oak View (Jim Gerlach) who now pastors that church. Gloria no doubt has kept you abreast of some of what happened out of that trip that went from 20+ to our simple team of 4 just looking for ways to help the family and perhaps still find some ministry to the church(s) in Tapachula.

We had the opportunity to share Gary and Gloria's plan for church planting, evangelism, and discipleship with the leaders of the grief stricken Baptist convention there. It was not a meeting we were even aware was taking place during our visit, but we were invited to come in Gary's honor. In Gary's honor God did great things! I don't remember now if that happened before or after the memorial at your church, I think before. Out of that, thanks largely to Jim and especially Sergio's on going ministry to Chiapas, came a church planting movement that has seen hundreds, likely thousands, of new believers and at least scores of new churches being planted.

Jeff, I am amazed at how the connections work in God's hands, and just want to say thank you to you and your church for the faithful way you have supported the Sloans and their ministry, as well as church planting in Texas, Mexico, and the Pacific Northwest!

God bless you brother! I hope this encourages you in what you are doing there at 1st Crosby!

Kenton Johnson
Vice Moderator, East Zone,
Interstate Baptist Association

Happy Thanksgiving!!

I am away from my family this Thanksgiving Day, and I miss them, but I accept that there are circumstances that sometimes take us away from our loved ones... I am so truly thankful that our Beloved One is never far away from us! I am thankful to my Lord today and every day for so many things, but today, I am thankful for you and your continuous prayers for our family, our ministry and for missions!

"I thank God for every remembrance of you..." Phillippians 1:3

Alyssia, Rissa, Alan, Ginger, Larry, Glyn, Luke, Savannah, Ben, Sarah, Samantha, David, Robbie, Jessica and Thomas... I love you!  Save me some turkey and dressing!

In El Salvador!

 








I am in El Salvador celebrating the 25th Anniversary of Iglesia Bautista Vista Hermosa, a dear church pastored by a dear friend, Edwin Castellanos.  Last night I was part of the inaguration service of the 40th anniversary of Iglesia Bautista Miramonte, the church where I was called to missions and ministered in music.  I was asked to sing the "old songs".  It was such a blessing to remember!  If you are interested, the link to hear the guest pastor, Jeff Adams (my pastor those years in Miramonte), and my participation (I sang after the preaching), follow the link: http://www.livestream.com/quiquemartinez/video?clipId=pla_70b2d6c8-dd52-4b2e-ab16-4883829e87da&utm_source=lslibrary&utm_medium=ui-thumb
All in Spanish, of course...

Pray for these churches... They truly have a vision to reach the world for Christ and I will have the privilege to participate with them when my ministry as Global Mobilizer begins next year.

Voices of The Faithful Volume Two

As most of you know, I wrote 3 of the devotionals on volume 1 of Voices of The Faithful.  I have been blessed again to have been given the opportunity to participate in this new project.  I contributed 2 devotionals on volume 2.  Please consider buying these books to start a new year of inspirational, mission-minded, devotional life, and even better, share it with others!  Remember that all sales of this book support missions 100%.  If you cannot purchase it from me, go to http://www.voicesofthefaithful.org/ to order the books and other materials related to this wonderful project (the music video is great!).

If you enjoyed Voices of the Faithful, you'll love a brand-new year's worth of inspiring stories from the front lines of faith-366 new devotions from male and female missionaries around the globe. You'll hike mountain paths, jolt down rutted desert roads, pick your way through the teeming markets and crowded urban slums. You'll meet boisterous children, worried parents, anxious teens, curious seniors... all hungry, whether they know it or not, for the Good News.

My devotionals:

Volume 1
July 2
August 17
November 29

Volume 2
June 12
October 16

An Article About an Old and New Story

I thought you might want to read the latest article written by a talented young man for our IMB website.  Please go to http://imb.org/main/news/details.asp?StoryID=9038 to read the article.

Blessings to all!

The Gift of Fellowship

 

One of the things that I miss when I am on the mission field is the fellowship with my sweet sisters in Christ during Sunday School or Women's Bible studies.  I truly love the ladies in Mexico, but most of the time, I am the one having to teach, or that is expected to lead.  It is a refreshing experience for me to attend a Bible class with the only intention to fellowship with the Lord, His Word and the women in the room.  Thank you so much for such sweet times, FBC Crosby WOW* ladies!!

*Women of Wisdom

Showing God's Love in a Practical and Creative Way

After buying some beautiful bags from Beto and Margarita, a husband and wife team, Beto said to me, "This is exactly what we needed to pay our rent!".  This precious people from Aguascalientes had been Christians for a while, but they had not been attending church for several months.  I was able to share with them that day how much God loved them and was showing them His love by providing for their needs.  They are now growing and active in their congregation.  Margarita learned how to make the bags thru her sister Irma (now Facio Nova's administrator), Irma learned it from Susana at one of FN's workshops, and Susana learned it from me.  Help this business/ministry continue to spread the love of God in a practical and creative way.

More Facio Nova Products...



A few more...

Industrias Facio Nova... An Ecological Way to do Missions!

Behold, I will do a new thing, Now it shall spring forth; Shall you not know it? I will even make a road in the wilderness and rivers in the desert. Isaiah 43:19 (NKJV)

Ecce ego facio nova et nunc orientur utique cognoscetis ea ponam in deserto viam et in invio flumina.  Isaías 43:19 (Latin Vulgate)

Comunidad Cristiana Obra Nueva is a network of house churches in North West Mexico City.  Due to the difficult economic situation our families were facing, we asked God to help us find a business project to help them find a way to provide for themselves and impact their communities.  The Lord led us to develop Facio Nova Industries, an ecological answer to our prayers!

Facio Nova Industries uses recycled wrappers to make a variety of products like purses, placemats and jewelry. We are excited about the possibility of using an ecological technique to help our families, and at the same time encourage a much needed recycling culture in Mexico.  Facio Nova has also developed a workshop and manual to teach others this technique.  The FN workshop is another way to fund our business/ministry. 

Our desire is not only to provide a way for our brothers and sisters to meet their financial needs, but also to follow the example of Christ by presenting a witness of a real and practical gospel.  We have found that this project is a great evangelistic and church planting tool.  In addition to that, some of the funds earned through this project are also being set aside to support Mexican missionaries.

We sell some of our beautiful products here in Mexico, but their handmade and ecological value is better appreciated in the United States.  We are trying to find people like you who would be willing to promote Facio Nova in their area.  Along with this letter, we are including a catalog with our current available items.  If you are interested in any of the products, we will be shipping them to you at no cost.  Once you have sold the items, you can mail a check to an address we will provide to you.  Of course, if you are able to send the money up front, it would be even better!

If you are interested in supporting our project or have any questions, please write to me for more information.  I understand that not everyone will be able to become one of our volunteer distributors in the United States, but I am asking you to consider prayerfully how we could team up together to expand the Kingdom of God here in Mexico City in a very practical and creative way.

For more information, write to facionovamexico@hotmail.com or to me, Gloria Sloan, at gsloan09@gmail.com.

The following is a sample of what our precious artisans have made.  Some articles are no longer available... But if you are interested, send me an email and I'll send you a list of prices and the items that we still have for sale.

In a following blog, I'll send more pictures of Facio Nova products and the pretty faces of the women involved in making them!

Global Impact Conference in Spartanburg, SC

What a blessing it was to spend four wonderful days with First Baptist Church North in Spartanburg, South Carolina.  A big thanks specially to the members of the Sonrisers Singles Sunday School Class.  They took such good care of me and made me feel so welcome! My children and I have been blessed by their love, attention and generosity toward us.  It was so encouraging to hear and share the excitement and passion for missions that Dr. Mike Hamlet (Senior Pastor), Al Phillips (Missions Pastor) and the rest of the staff showed all throught the GIC.  I pray for the opportunity to visit with First North again!

Alan's Future Living Arrangements

My son, Alan, will be 16 years old in March of 2011.  He will be the only one of my three children returning to the field with me (Alyssia and Rissa will stay in the United States for college).  Since I am not able to live in El Salvador because I was born there (IMB policies), I will live in Tegucigalpa, Honduras.  My new assignment will require for me to do some traveling and I cannot leave Alan alone in Honduras.  So, after a lot of  prayerful consideration, we decided it is best for Alan to live in El Salvador with my parents.  He will be in a safe and familiar environment and only seven hours away from me.  PLEASE PRAY as we get ready to make the change.  I personally was not expecting to have an empty nest so soon!

From Mexico to El Salvador

As you know, I will be transfering from twelve years as a church planter in Mexico to Central America (Honduras, El Salvador and Nicaragua) as a mobilizer.  I wanted to share portions of the letter I wrote in May of this year to officially request this transfer.  The assignment I accepted later on was expanded to Honduras, El Salvador and Nicaragua.  I will live in Tegucigalpa, Honduras and my son will live in El Salvador with my parents, 7 hours away from me (I will talk about this arrangement in a later blog).

May 29, 2010


I have been a church planter for twenty-three years; twelve of those years I have served in Mexico, not only planting churches but developing strategies for church planting. My place of service for the past five years has been Mexico City. I was the team leader for NW Mexico City and now I am part of the Mobilization/Missions Team. In the past year, I have planted a new church, developed a new mobilization strategy, established two businesses and left a network of house churches (that my team and I started four years ago) growing and multiplying. It has been a very productive year. I don’t mean to be prideful about my accomplishments, but I would like for you to understand that my desire to leave Mexico, is not due to failure in my ministry, interpersonal problems or lack of love for my precious Mexican people. My desire is more than a personal wish, it is a divine calling. I am aware that you do not know me personally, so I am taking the time to write these lines to explain my heart to you and give you a reason to trust my judgment behind this request...
... So, let me explain that I am not only a church planter, strategist and a mobilizer, but I am also a mother. In fact, I am a widow who has been able to raise three amazing children on the field and have also managed to have a successful ministry. I have learned to live a balanced life. I am definitely not taking credit for my success, I know that God called me to be a missionary, and He also chose for me to do it as a single mother. Therefore, God also equipped me to remain and thrive in the land He chooses me to serve. I am fully aware that if I have accomplished anything, it has only been because God has enabled me to do it, and because I have tried to remain obedient to His leadership in my life. Of course, my life and ministry have not been perfect or without flaws, but in all, God has been glorified and fruit has remained.


... I consider myself to be an American, El Salvador is very foreign to me, but I did spend 19 years there and I have a special connection to its people. Also, even though I am from El Salvador, I have earned the respect and appreciation of many in own native country. That becomes another positive aspect in my involvement in El Salvador. I have good relationships with many pastors and leaders in the country, and I am welcomed in churches where my influence could have an impact for missions.


Lastly, speaking as a strategist, I believe El Salvador has the potential of becoming a spearhead in missions in Central America and even Latin America. They have experienced a great revival, and they have received many precious gifts. It is important that we do not wait too long to stir them and lead them to share their blessings with the world, before they loose the excitement and passion of their first love (sadly, I am starting to see signs of that)... There are many churches in El Salvador with many human and material resources that are waiting to be led in the right direction. I would like the opportunity to present them with the right strategies, or help them develop their own, to fulfill our Lord’s Great Commission unto the ends of the world.


When my husband and daughter died in Chiapas (eleven years ago), Peggy Jones (Richmond Associate, then), told me “The Board is here to support your calling. We appointed you in basis of your calling. We are not the Holy Spirit. If you tell us that you are called to be in Mexico, the Board is here to support you on basis of that calling”. I trust that the IMB still operates in that same spirit...

And we have such trust through Christ toward God. Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think of anything as being from ourselves, but our sufficiency is from God, who also made us sufficient as ministers of the new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.

2 Corinthians 3:4-6, NKJV