Cristo Viene (Christ Comes), also known as The Fifth Baptist Church of La Paz, is one of the smallest churches we work with in the Southern Baja Convention.It is perched atop a hill that overlooks the massive Roman Catholic Cemetery in one of the poorest areas of La Paz.The roads in this colonia are all dirt and turn to rivers of mud during the rainy season.The houses are usually 1 or 2 rooms of cement block; some are only tar paper shacks.While there is electricity, city water does not extend this far.Each home has a small tinaco on top of its roof to hold water.The water truck comes once or twice a week to fill it up.The women plan their washdays around the schedule of the water trucks.

Cristo Viene is a church that has struggled ever since we've known her.The church's attendance varies from 12 to 30.They struggle to pay their pastor and their utility bills.And then, a year after we arrived, their pastor left, and they struggled to just stay together without a shepherd.David taught a weekly Bible Study while other leaders in the convention provided pulpit supply on Sundays.But in the midst of all of this, they still maintained their joy for Christ, and they still pursued their vision to build a mission in Calafia, an outlying community growing on the edges of La Paz.In 2001 a mission group from the FBC of Independence, Kansas came and helped them build a palapa structure for their mission site in Calafia.

Unfortunately, in late 2003, a year before we left for our year of U.S. assignment, the church suffered internal conflict that mostly revolved around a disagreement between two key families.David and other leaders of the convention intervened and mediated, but in the end, some people left the church and for awhile, there was the question of if this church would even remain in existence.When we left for our U.S. assignment in May 2004 we had no idea what we would find when we returned a year later.

Well, the first exciting news was that in January 2004, Cristo Viene was finally able to call a new Pastor.Braulio and his family moved from mainland Mexico to begin ministry in La Paz.His enthusiasm and discerning spirit has caused much healing.People began to return to the church. Many new people began to come too.And the FBC of Independence, KS continued to show their love by providing monthly financial support for the pastor's salary.

This past Saturday, September 25, Cristo Viene celebrated her 8th anniversary.Members from all the churches gathered to worship and praise God as this tiny church continues to make God's presence known in a poverty-stricken area of La Paz.There was a true sense of unity and joy as all the churches came together for this occasion.David was asked to preach which was a true honor.He preached from Revelation 2:1-7, where we are reminded not to forget our First Love, Jesus Christ.In this passage Jesus commends the Ephesian Church for their great ministry, their faithfulness in the midst of idolatry, their steadfastness in the face of persecution, but then he admonishes them because they have forgotten their first love.David reminded the congregation that without love, God's love, who we are and what we are mean nothing.It is only when we keep our eyes fixed on Jesus, it is only when we stay connected to our first love, that we begin to make a difference in this world.

Please continue to pray for Cristo Viene, for Pastor Braulio & his family, and for the vision God has for this faith community.This congregation reminds us frequently that size does not matter when it comes to furthering God's Kingdom.It is our commitment to Christ, not forgetting the joy of our salvation, and a belief that extraordinary things are possible because of our extraordinary God . . . these are what propel us forward.

Serving on your behalf in Mexico,

David and Joyce Reed