We're Back !

Welcome to the present.  It is now November 8, 2023.  Five years have past since I last posted on this blog and an update to my travels and doings is in order.

Soon I will begin to fill in this five year gap with bits and pieces of new information as to what I have been up to these past 5 years.

For now though I will have to limit myself to simply saying, "We're Back !

Settled in Back in Juarez

It's been almost two weeks now since landing back in El Paso and crossing the border into Juarez.  I have been back at my rented house here and getting around again in my 2001 Nissan Xterra.

This past Sunday I attended the church where I held Bible School classes the last time I was here before leaving at the end of June, 2018.  On Monday I had a meeting with the pastor of that church and we talked for two hours catching up on what's been happening since classes ended last time and agreeing to begin them again this coming Saturday.

We will be starting Trimester 2 with there with 4 returning students out of the 10 that completed Trimester 1 before I left last time.  For various reasons the others had made decisions not to continue.  This is not uncommon.  People make commitments to start and finish something such as Bible School and then one thing or another happens in their lives to halt their progress.  My prayer is that those who will be back will continue with these next 4 Trimesters but only time will tell.

In the mean time I am back to looking for other potential students from other churches to begin this 5 Trimester curriculum of Biblical Studies.

The Fall season is upon us, the weather has gotten cooler.  I am wearing jackets now and using propane and an electric heater inside my house.  Halloween is coming up next as well as Thanksgiving and of course Christmas.  We shall see what God has in store for us here as we purpose to serve God here in Juarez, Mexico. Stay tuned...

Houston Control, The Eagle Has Landed !

After a long flight across the Atlantic Ocean from Paris, France  I am safely back at my place in Juarez, Mexico and my next mission to Juarez has begun.  The plan is to pick up where I left off with presenting a formal Bible School opportunity to those in churches here that are looking for one.  I hope to begin offering classes as early as next Saturday beginning with a group of 11 people who are now ready to start Trimester 2 of our 5 Trimester program.

I have some things that I need to immediately take care of starting with my vehicle which has a dead battery and a flat tire but which otherwise is the way I left it back in June.  

Right now I am in El Centro, Juarez, the center.  I am getting re-acquainted with my old stomping grounds and getting re-connected with my old friends here.  Unfortunately my best friend whom I worked with for years here is no longer in Juarez.  Pastor Julio Hinojosa has moved himself and his whole family; wife and 4 sons to Ensenada, California where he was originally from.  He felt the call to God to return to his home town and start a church there.  Perhaps I will have an opportunity to visit him early in 2019.  Only time and God will tell if that is to be so or not.

My next travel plans do include traveling to San Bernadino, California for another Bible School conference in February of 2019 but that is still a ways off.  Now it's time to focus on my missionary work here in Juarez.  Stay tuned as this latest mission to Juarez unfolds day by day.

Sitting in Dallas Waiting for Flight to El Paso

Last night for what seemed likeseveral hours over France before we got to the Atlantic Ocean and then we kept flying and flying until final Newark, New Jersey popped up on the radar screen for the pilots.

Make no mistake, Paris to Newark non-stop is a long flight.  And why is their always a baby that won't stop crying almost the whole time ?

Other than that is was a good flight when you compare it to having to fly somewhere else first to change planes like we did on the way to Paris when we had to land in Rejkavik, Iceland and switch planes to fly the rest of the way to Paris.

My three months away from El Paso/Juarez is coming to a rapid close.  After waiting all night at the Newark, Airport for 4am boarding we finally took off and after a few hours we are no in Dallas, Texas.  Just a short hop to El Paso and then the adventure of 9 more months of mission work will begin.  Looking forward to a rest from all the flying first.  Want to lay down on my own bed in Juarez in the house I have been renting since January.  My good friend Adolfo has been house sitting for me in my absence. Hoping everything is the way I left it back at the end of June when I left to go back to hometown Buffalo. It was nice to have been away for awhile and now I can say it's nice to be back.

Aurevwa Paris

Today we say good bye to Paris. It has been a real nice time riding trains and buses here and seeing places like the Eiffel Tower and the Arch de Triumph.  

Their are a lot of things I didn't see but I am satisfied with those things that I have seen.  Had a real nice time in Auvers sur Oise where I rented a studio apartment for the month.  My host was very cordial and friendly and I will be leaving behind a few friends that I made during my time here.

But my work and calling remain in Juarez, Mexico and that is where I will begin to travel to today.  After mailing some letters in a little while I will take the bus to the train station and then take a 1 hour and 45 minute train ride to Orly Airport, the other airport in Paris.  I came in through Charles Degaulle Airport which is closer. 

Yesterday was a great experience as I made it to the top of the Eiffel Tower and enjoyed a great view of the entire city. Now I am ready for the 3,654 mile flight to Newark, NJ and tomorrow morning my flight to Dallas and then to El Paso, Texas and then across the border to Juarez, Mexico.  

God is able and in control and our hope and trust are in Him. 

Last Full Day in Paris

Just said Good Morning to my last full day in Paris for this month long trip here that I just experienced.  It's a cool and cloudy day.  Not what I had hoped for since I plan a return trip by train to the Eiffel Tower.  

This will be my third time there and this time I planned on climbing it to that top, taking an elevator back down.  Was hoping for blue skies since I will be in the highest place in the city and looked forward to a spectacular sight of the city.  Well maybe it will be good in a way because the line of people to the tower probably will be smaller.  

So that's the plan so far.  Take a train to the tower from where I am staying in Auvers sur Oise and make my way to the Eiffel Tower one last time before I go to the Orly Airport tomorrow morning for my flight back to Newark, New Jersey later in the afternoon.

Starting Back To USA Soon

Today is Monday, October 1, 2018.  I will spend two more nights here in Auvers Sur Oise in the studio apartment I rented for my one month stay here and then I will be sleeping elsewhere, first at the airport in Newark after my plane lands there in the late evening of October 3rd and then in my own rented casa in Juarez, Mexico on the 4th of October.

I have had a great time of new sightseeing here in both Auvers and in Paris where so far I have seen the Eiffel tower and the Arch de Triumph and the famous Chanps de Elysee street with hundreds of tourists walking on that street every day.

But now I am looking forward to getting back to my missionary work in Juarez and picking up where I left off with my former students in Bible School and going after new students and offering them an opportunity for formal Bible School. Today and tomorrow will be my last two full days here in France.  Wednesday is travel day.