"As he approached Jerusalem and saw the city, he wept over it and said, "If you, even you, had known on this day what would bring you peace - but now it is hidden from your eyes."  Luke 19:42

"Greater things are yet to come, greater things are still to be done in this city." Bluetree, God of This City

We had arrived early for our meeting, so GO's partner, Jorge Ramirez drove me around that part of the city of Juarez for a few minutes.  It was full of abandoned buildings. What had been a thriving area full of people and businesses only a few years before was now almost deserted.  This was the result of the last few years of intense violence related to the drug wars, along with the economic downturn. I was reminded of the Jesus looking over the city of Jerusalem and I think I felt a little of what he felt as I looked around Juarez.  Then I remembered the song that had come into my head that morning as I prayed.  It was Bluetree's God of This City.  I prayed that the work we were preparing to do would result in great blessing for a city that desperately needs a move of God.  Remembering that our God is capable of great things in such desperate situations encouraged me.

That day we met with over 30 volunteers from churches that participate in Juarez' Council of Evangelical Churches.  They were there to receive the beginning of our Community Health Evangelism training.  As we conducted our Vision Seminar, these pastors and church volunteers were eager to begin to work to transform their communities.  God had already been moving in amazing ways.  The Health Department had reached out to the churches to help them in their campaign to make Juarez a Healthy City.  Neighborhood committees were being formed in 1200 neighborhoods, and the churches were invited to direct the committees in their neighborhoods.  In his meeting with the mayor about the churches getting involved in this, and the potentially controversial decision for the city to work with the churches, Jorge was told by the mayor simply, "we need this in our city."

This is a great opportunity for churches to reach their neighbors by showing concern for their needs and sharing the love of Christ with them.  By training these committees in CHE and its use in urban settings, we hope to help these churches impact some of the people living in poverty in Juarez and see the city transformed for Christ.   As we shared the vision of what CHE is all about and how it could fit into what the Lord was already doing, they were excited.  They are eager for us to return with more training as the hope to establish 30 community health committees in neighborhoods served by churches involved in the project. 

We need your help to accomplish the plans God has for us in Juarez.  There are three ways you can help.  You can support our Community Health Evangelism ministry by providing funds to help us continue our training in Juarez.  If you are interested in joining a future team to Juarez to help with CHE training or community projects, contact me at lfrick@gointernational.org.  Please pray for Jorge and the Council of Evangelical Churches as they work to plan the next steps.  Pray for Dr. Hugo Stainez the health director and Dr. Jose Alonzo, his assistant who we will be working with.  Pray for God to provide direction, wisdom, and resources as we work to take the next steps in the coming months to implement this ambitions project. Pray believing that indeed "greater things are yet to come" in the city of Juarez!