The Raymers

May 2009

Dear Praying Friends,

Psalm 68:19 “Blessed be the Lord, who daily bears us up; God is our salvation.”

These past few months have be filled with lots of activities and visitors. We are thankful that God upholds us each day and gives us the strength to accomplish His will. This month marks 16 years that God has allowed me to serve here in Mexico.

We are thankful for the many friends and family that have been able to come visit us over the past couple of months. In February, Debbie’s folks were able to spend a few days with us on their way back to Mission, TX, after a pastor’s conference. At the end of the month Russell’s folks were able to come spend a week with us. Then a couple of weeks later in March, Debbie’s sister Ana and her two boys came for a few days. We so enjoyed having our family come visit us and see the wonderful things that God is doing here in Monterrey. We also were blessed to have visits from a couple of families who came to visit us from Reynosa. The first couple had been in our youth group when we were serving in Reynosa. They have since gotten married and are now faithful in church as a couple. The second visit from Reynosa was from a family who is planting a new church on the outskirts of the city. It was very encouraging to hear how God is blessing their ministry. Please be praying for the Ramos-Portugues family as they labor in this very needy and opportune area.

We are excited about many of the special ministry opportunities we have had over the past few months. In February, we were able to rejoice with one of our colaborers the Gibsons, as the mission they have been pastoring was organized as a local church. This is an exciting step to see the church form and now take on many responsibilities. We were also able to celebrate Easter Sunday with this church and see the wonderful work that God is doing outside of Guadalupe.

March was very busy with many activities. Russell was able to help with a special creation conference here at the Christian University of the Americas. It was wonderful to see the church’s auditorium filled the three days of the conference. Mid-March brought the annual Harvest Teen Rally to Monterrey. The rally in Monterrey saw over 5,000 people in attendance. There were several hundred salvation decisions. Please pray for the local churches as they now work with those who made decisions at the Rally.

In April we were involved with the Iglesia Bautista Genesaret in a special activity of distributing wheel chairs and walkers to those who had needs. This was done in conjunction with a ministry called “Wheels for the World” who collect wheelchairs around the United States and then take them into other countries to meet both physical and spiritual needs. Russell spent two days working as a mechanic on the wheelchairs to help make them fit the recipients. He also helped as a translator. Debbie worked in the sewing room helping to make cushions and bags for the wheelchairs. Each recipient and his family/friends that came with him was given a bag that contained a Bible, Gospel of John and a couple of other books. There was a group who shared the Gospel with each one of them. It was a true blessing to see the faces of those who received these gifts that for many are something they would never have been able to obtain.

Russell preached at two different church’s missions conference in the past couple of months. The first church was the church we were blessed to have been attending in Mission, TX, before our move. It was wonderful to be able to see many friends and share with them the ministry that we are involved in. Then two weeks ago, Russell preached on missions at a church here in Guadalupe. It is a blessing to see the churches here in Mexico looking beyond their “Jerusalems.” This next Sunday, Russell will be preaching the special Mother’s Day service at another church here in Guadalupe.

Carena continues to grow and loves all the visits. She is a real people person and has to be around people. She had two weeks off school for Easter break, then was back to school for one week before the schools were closed again due to the Swine Flu outbreak. She should return to school on the 11^th of May. We thank God for keeping us and the students here safe and healthy throughout this outbreak of sickness. She loves to help her mommy in the kitchen.

Please pray for us as we prepare for the summer. Due to concerns of the violence reports, economic conditions and the swine flu outbreak, our summer mission teams have been greatly reduced. We still have several groups who will be traveling with us and a couple of the other missionaries here at the school. We are excited about what we know God will do this summer.

Thank you for your faithful prayer and support over years that we have been privileged to serve our Master here in Mexico.

In Christ,

Russell, Debbie & Carena

Russell, Debbie & Carena Raymer