Feliz Navidad my faithful friends.  It's Christmas Eve, and we'll be headed out to Immanual Baptist Church, where we have been serving, for a worship service and meal of various traditional tamalies.  We have been filling our time during these holidays serving famlies in need, and it has been good.  It is still rough, though, not being with your kids and loved ones.  (Other loved ones, that is..) We're planning, Lord willing, to be home next year, to celebrate our grandson's first Christmas.

We celebrated with our staff here this afternoon, and with a really needy family yesterday.  We managed to have three gifts for each of their four kids (thanks to several of you)...and dad Noe said ti was the first real Christmas their kids had ever had. Diana got the idea to do it up right for this family as she was asking their 8 yr. old about what she was wanting for Christmas, and she said..."We don't get Christmas presents."  Anyone know Diana would know that started the ball rolling!

Unlike most of the churches in the U.S., much more of the social community centers around the church, as evidenced by services four nights a week, apart from other smaller meetings.  In many ways it is resultant from poverty and lack of other diversions.  In some ways, however, there is a downside, as it frequently leads to legalism, and members are often looked down on if they are not at all services. In our men's meeting, I try to drive home that family should take precidence..

Hmmm...gotta go now... church starts in about 20 minutes...!

By the way, thanks to all for keeping up with our woork and lives, and for the consistant prayer and support.  Thanks also for the comments to this blog, too.  love, niel.