Feliz Navidad-Dec 2024

Merry Christmas family & friends

“Do not be afraid”, the angel said. Then he told us, “I bring great news of great joy for everyone.” “The Savior-yes the Messiah, the Lord has been born tonight in Bethlehem, the city of David.”

I don’t know about you, but I never tire of hearing the story of the birth of Jesus. As Francisco and I enter into this Christmas season, we are excited about the festivities honoring our Savior. Our prison ministry team is looking forward to hosting our annual Celebrate Recovery Inside Christmas gathering for the female inmates of the Ensenada prison.

Let me share Gloria’s story with you

Gloria was brought to us by the prison guards during lesson 10 ‘Spiritual Inventory’. Our guidelines suggest we only receive inmates for the first six lessons of Celebrate Recovery Inside, but God had other plans.

You know that saying, ‘The eyes are the windows of our soul.’ Gloria’s eyes were dark and did not seem to have any light in them. When this question was asked, “What in your past is stopping you from following God’s will for your life?” Gloria got up and ran from the room. Shortly thereafter one of the prison guards came to us and asked if we would allow Gloria to continue to join us in Celebrate Recovery Inside as she knew Gloria’s story and recognized how deeply Gloria needs our help.

In Celebrate Recovery we never turn anyone away. Some, like Gloria, carry more pain, shame and guilt than others. Week after week, we are watching Gloria engage in the program and watch her being set free from some of her pain and shame. We look forward to celebrating Christmas with "Our Girls" on the inside.

Francisco and I had the privilege of attending the wedding of Claudia & Alejandro in Loreto. Many missionaries we had served alongside over the years came for the wedding. It was a great time of reuniting and catching up.

Before the wedding Francisco and I had a bit of extra time so we hopped on a bus and headed to La Paz where we were invited to share our stories at a men’s rehab center. Pastor Gustavo is part of the leadership at the rehab center, and has gone through Celebrate Recovery program. He uses the CR materials at the rehab center. Francisco ended his story with an altar call and 24 out of 100 men gave their hearts to Jesus. It was an amazing experience.

We pray this Christmas will be a time filled with joy and peace as you gather with your loved ones to celebrate the birth of Jesus.

Feliz Navidad,

Cheryl & Francisco

YEAR END GIFTS

When giving a Year-End contribution for tax purposes, please remember: Year-End contributions mailed to CTEN must be postmarked no later than December 31st. Online credit card and EFT contributions must be given on the CTEN webpage no later than December 31st (by 11:59 PM ET). CTEN is also able to receive contributions of stocks, bonds, and mutual funds, which are then sold and the proceeds provided to our ministry. Any Year-End gifts of stocks, bonds, or mutual funds must be received in CTEN's brokerage account by December 31st.

If you would like to join us financially in the Mexico Recovery Ministry, click on the link below;

https://www.cten.org/canada-giving

By phone 1-800-872-5404