Happy Birthday Joe! The Big 5-0!

Celebrating Joe's 50th birthday with family and friends!

In another 10 years, he'll be middle age !

The Barcelona boys with Alissa and Vanessa!

Adalberto and Rich cooking Carne Asada with our neighbor Ed looks on.

Lori and Doris. Doris made the mango salsa and salsa fresca! Good Stuff!

Erica's great aunts, Rachel and Joann, made the trip down from Palm Desert,CA
along with Dean and Joy.

A thousand thanks to Erica and all who made this a genuine fiesta.
And those to all who came to celebrate with us!

We Celebrate His Resurrection!

“Why do you look for the living among the dead?

He is not here; he has risen!”

Luke 24:5-6 NIV

We've added Nevada to our list of visited states.

We are only missing Hawaii. Maybe we can stop over there on our way to Australia!



create your own personalized map of the USA

Back home for a while!

The Burgan's have returned to Mexico after several weeks in Palm Desert, CA with Erica's great aunt, Rachel.

She is doing well, by the way, continuing to grow stronger everyday. God has greatly moved in that she has had virtually no pain through this whole process. Her sister, Joann, is in from Pennsylvania to help with the driving until Rachel can remove the next brace. We enjoyed the opportunity help out around the house.

We are all well. We had a delightful time with Roy and Michelle Pike from Australia. Roy had been raised as a baby by Erica's Grandma Niehaus. Erica hadn't since him since she was 2!

Burgans with the Pikes in Algodones.

Just to give you all a heads up, we are planning on a road trip this summer. Tentatively, we will be leaving Mexico around May 22 with Memphis, TN as our first stop. I am hoping to publish a newsletter with a more definitive itinerary with the next two weeks - the paper and the stamps have already been purchased!

We are hoping to have a yard sell at the end of the month. Basically to eliminate one of the two storage units we have but also to help with the costs of traveling. The Father has already been more than gracious in supplying more than we could hope! The van needed a new water pump and new tires and God supplied! We are so grateful for you who choose to invest in us and the work of the Kingdom through us!

BTW! I did want to let you know that if you use Windows, Microsoft released a series of patches yesterday to fixed security problems in Windows and Internet Explorer. Run Windows Update today!

Here's a picture of Cody and Alissa building a lake in the backyard.

Be blessed!

Pray for Mexico and its national elections this year!

Faith healer protects Mexican presidential hopeful from enemies
Associated Press

VERACRUZ, Mexico – A faith healer known as the Black Wolf brushed basil plants over the face of Mexico's front running presidential candidate on Sunday to protect him against his enemies.

The leftist Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador went through the so-called “cleansing” ritual while campaigning in the southern Mexican town of Catemaco, which is a famous center of faith healers and alternative spirituality.

“I'm defending a just cause that gives me great spiritual and moral strength. This is no more than a cleansing to protect me against any circumstances,” Lopez Obrador said in front of a rally of about 5,000 supporters, who were mostly peasant farmers.

Many Mexican artists and intellectuals go to Catemaco in March to receive cleansings from faith healers such as the Black Wolf, whose real name is Lucio Escobar.

Lopez Obrador, who is the favorite to win the July election according to most opinion polls, has accused his political enemies of plotting to destroy him.

On Sunday, he said his adversaries will not defeat him.

“Nothing will happen to me because good always triumphs over evil,” he said.

-Click on the header to read the entire article.-

Obrador has been the front runner for president of Mexico. The "faith healer", Black Wolf, is in the city of Catemaco, known for its "Annual Gathering of Witches", is where this presidential candidate went for a so-called "cleansing" ritual. It is known as the witchcraft capitol of the world! As the leadership goes, so goes the country! Pray for Mexico, its people as they vote and its leaders! - Joe

Protestant churches gain ground in Mexico

Chris Hawley
The Arizona Republic Mexico City Bureau

In the United States, an influx of Mexicans is transforming Roman Catholic churches. But in Mexico, it's Protestants who are on the rise, led by evangelical churches like the Universal Kingdom of God Church, which runs the Sanctuary of Faith.

Protestants accounted for 8 percent of Mexico's believers in the 2000 census, up from 2.3 percent in 1970. Their numbers are growing 3.7 percent each year, twice as fast as the Catholic population, according to the National Institute of Statistics, Geography and Information Processing.

The churches are winning converts through a mix of social programs, charismatic preachers and stirring music.

Christmas Care Packages for Nigeria

Cody and Alissa participated in a program from "Voice of the Martyrs" to send Christmas Care packages to the children of men and women who had been killed for their beliefs in Nigeria. Since 1999, more than 10,000 Christians have been martyred in that country.

VOM readers funded more than 11,000 Christams Care Packs for the Nigerian families. Nearly $600,000 was donated for this outreach that touched many widows and fatherlss children.

To the right is a sample of a 180-page Gospel book distributed to Pakistani people. Click on the picture to see it larger.

Pictures from Tahoe!

Playing pool at the Embassy Vacation Resort!
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Cody and Alissa sliding around at almost 2 miles high!
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You can see most all of the 26 miles of Lake Tahoe from here!
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Ice Skating, too!
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Alissa builds her snowman!
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Cody and Alissa at the top of Heavenly Mountain - 9,123ft.
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Thanks to Great Aunt Rachel for taking us along with her for a great trip!

The Gondola to the top of Heavenly!

Alissa's turn on the slide! 

Cody sliding on his belly! 

At the base of Heavenly (That's the name of the ski resort!) 

South Lake Tahoe - Tubing! 

Lake Tahoe, CA

We have been blessed with a trip to Lake Tahoe with Erica's great aunt, Rachel McKinney! Check back for more pics this week.

Steelers Win Super Bowl XL

Photo by Peter Diana / Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (2/6/2006)

I don't know if God is a Steeler's fan, but I know He hears every prayer!

Just in case you didn't know...

Recommended reading: End of the Spear

The sequel, if you will, to "through the Gates of Spendor" is entitled "End of the Spear".

Description:

Steve Saint was five years old when his father, missionary pilot Nate Saint, was speared to death by a primitive Ecuadorian tribe. In adulthood, Steve, having left Ecuador for a successful business career in the United States, never imagined making the jungle his home again. But when that same tribe asks him to help them, Steve, his wife, and their teenage children move back to the jungle. There, Steve learns long-buried secrets about his father's murder, confronts difficult choices, and finds himself caught between two worlds. Soon to be a major motion picture (January 2006), End of the Spear brilliantly chronicles the continuing story that first captured the world's attention in the bestselling book, Through Gates of Splendor.

From Publishers Weekly
In this heartfelt memoir, Saint writes about growing up with the Ecuadoran tribe whose members killed his father in 1956, and about taking his wife and teenage children back to Ecuador in the 1990s to live among them again. Many of Saint's readers will be familiar with the spearing deaths of five American missionaries by Auca Indians a half-century ago, a story recounted by Elisabeth Elliot in Through Gates of Splendor (1996 revised edition). Saint, who was four years old at the time of the murders, adds to that familiarity with this account of his deep, familial bond with his father's assassin. Specifically, Saint debunks myths about the tribe. He explains that Auca, which means naked savage, is a derogatory name given to the tribe by outsiders, and that they are actually called the Waodani. While he does not dispute that they were vicious killers before they converted to Christianity soon after they murdered Saint's father, he takes pains to help his readers understand what led the Waodani to their murderous worldview. In a long passage, he tells the story of the 1956 murders from the Waodani perspective. Most of the book is devoted to his latest experiences with his Waodani family. Although Saint is not a very accomplished writer, his voice is authentic and humble, and his story will undoubtedly inspire many. (Dec.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

In theaters, starting January 20th, 2006.

Go here to see the web site for the movie.

Behind the scenes look at the movie.

Interesting site from Every Tribe Entertainment.

Every Tribe Entertainment Home Site.

Recommended Reading: Through the Gates of Splendor

If you have not read it yet, it is about time to do.
In Through The Gates of Splendor, five young men dared to make contact with a stone-age tribe deep in the jungles of Eduador. The Goal was to establish communication with a people whose only previous response to the outside world had been to attack all strangers. The men's mission combined modern technology with innate ingenuity, sparked by a passionate determination to get the gospel to a people without Christ. This new edition of the book offers fresh information about subsequent developments in Ecuador and in the lives of the five missionary familes that began in autumn of 1955.

The story is also available on VHS or DVD.

"Beyond the Gates " is a feature length documentary film experience about the Waodani Indians and the missionary men and women who have given their lives to reach them. This powerful emotional journey begins with the Waodani describing their way of life before the missionaries visited them in 1956. Narrated by the son of one of the missionaries and each of the wives of the men who died, the audience takes a nostalgic trip back in time to see how the men and women came to meet up with each other in Ecuador, An inspiring story of forgiveness and love.

Happy New Year! Welcome to 2006!


But those who wait on the LORD
Shall renew their strength;
They shall mount up with wings like eagles,
They shall run and not be weary,
They shall walk and not faint.
Isa 40:31NKJV

May this new year find you mounting above the storms,
running the good race,
and walking in integrity
as you rest in He who is our all in all!

Christmas 2005 in Palm Desert, CA!

Merry Christmas to all!

It is my hope that during these days of celebration that you will join with those shepherds and wisemen of long ago and seek out He who was given to us and is Christ the King!

More Black Families Home Schooling

I thought this was an interesting article from the Associated Press - Joe

Dec 11, 6:19 PM EST

By ZINIE CHEN SAMPSON
Associated Press Writer

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) -- Denise Armstrong decided to home school her daughter and two sons because she thought she could do a better job of instilling her values in her children than a public school could. And while she once found herself the lone black parent at home-education gatherings that usually were dominated by white Christian evangelicals, she's noticed more black parents joining the ranks.

Armstrong said she wants her children - ages 12, 10 and 7 - to have a "moral Judeo-Christian foundation" that public schools can't provide.

Read the entire article at the Yuma Sun.

National Black Home Educators Resource Association

Missions to Unreached Peoples

We took a road trip last week to meet with Bruce and Pat Ernst from Missions to Unreached Peoples.

Bruce is the International Director for Member Care.

MUP has 125 missionaries in 20 countries. They are focused on the 1040 Window. Essentially, the provide independent missionaries the opportunity to go to the foreign field.

Their Member Care division provides pastoral care for those on the field. Currently, MUP has most of their missionaries in Asia. However, they also have folks in eastern Europe. They have openings in both sort term and long term ministry opportunities if you feel so led!

Bruce and Pat were very congenial and open with us about the ministry and their role in Thailand. They are back in the States for the holidays, taking a much needed break. We very much enjoyed our visit with them.

It did remind Erica and I of our original intent when I left the pastorate in 1984 - to work with missionaries on the field, providing everything from pastoral support to babysiting to computer help or just a listening ear.

Pray for all who serve in foreign countries that the Father will provide the nurturing that they need. We, also, covet your prayers.

Alissa's Nativity Painting

The Flu arrived!

First Alissa and then Cody have come come with the full blown flu - headache, runny nose, fever, deep cough. But , praise God, neither Erica nor I have had any symptoms yet. I am just glad that we got that out of the way early!

Don't be afraid to say "Merry Christmas" as you are shopping this season!

It's begining to look a lot like Christmas!

Studying the Chronicles of Narnia

The kids are thoroughly enjoying reading the Chronicles of Narnia. Their only complaint is being able to read only one chapter a day!

Thanksgiving 2005

Giving thanks for God's provision, His goodness and His love as well as for our wonderful family!

NBC's Law and Order SVU Smears Homeschooling

Though this press release is from early last year, these same types of programs are running in re-runs on cable. We ought to be aware and responding!

On February 17, 2004, NBC's 'Law and Order - Special Victims Unit' - a legal drama produced by Universal TV Productions - aired a show about homeschooling.

It portrayed homeschooling as a cover for child abuse.

Needless to say NBC and Universal were unconcerned about offending hundreds of thousands of honest, law-abiding homeschool families.

For over twenty years modern homeschoolers have fought successfully against negative stereotypes.

Regrettably NBC and Universal have succeeded in perpetuating this latest attack on homeschooling.

It is blatantly unfair to negatively portray a minority and tar every homeschooler with the same brush.

The consequences for innocent homeschool families can be serious. Some people might actually believe the picture painted by Law and Order SVU and use the anonymous tip procedure to report homeschool families for abuse and neglect without any factual basis. Child Protective Services are obligated to follow-up these reports and homeschool families will face unwarranted harassment. This already happens all too frequently to families all across America. More importantly, real abuse will be missed because the system may be clogged with false reports.

The truth is that homeschool families are not havens of abuse but rather the leading edge of excellence in American education.

HSLDA is considering its options in this matter.

Home School Legal Defense Association

You can email NBC at LawOrderSVU@nbcuni.com

God blesses the Cookie Campaign!

Cody and Alissa were successful by the grace of God and raised enough money selling cookies to send two Christmas Care Packs to the children of Nigerian martyrs!

Praise God!

Report: China Arrests Priests, Seminarians

This week is the International Week of Prayer for the Persecuted Church.

Read the article here concerning the arrest of priest and seminarian in China.

Take the time to visit the Voice of the Martyrs website.

Pray for those who are laying down their lives for the sake of the Gospel and for those left behind!

Baking cookies for Nigeria

Cody and Alissa are baking cooking today - chocolate chip, peanut butter and snicker-doodles. They are going to sell them over the next couple of days to raise $25 for a Christmas Care Pack to be sent to a child in Nigeria whose parents were martyred for the sake of the Gospel.

We found this through the Voice of the Martyrs who support those families who are being persecuted for the Gospel. This week is slated as a time prayer for the persecuted church worldwide.

Each Christmas care pack includes a shoulder bag filled with:
• T-shirt
• New Testaments
• Christian Children's books
• bar of soap
• toothbrush & toothpaste
• school supplies
• eating utensils
• some food and a few sweets

You learn more about the persecuted church at the Voice of the Martyr's website.

The Chronicles of Narnia as curriculum

Erica and the kids have recently started a unit study using the C.S. Lewis "Chronicles of Narnia" as the base. The study includes reading through the Chronicles, though not in the order in which they were written, Bible and character studies, vocabulary and spelling and, of course, reading.

They are all having a great time with it. There are lots of extra activities and good ideas included. The kids are doing a crossword puzzle today!

The study is entitled, "Further Up and Further In" and is available from Cadrom Creek Publishers. There is a different book by the same title about C.S. Lewis but it is not the unit study.

I recommend you investigate it or contact Erica for more information.

Burgan Newsletter November 2005

I am still confident of this: I will see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living. Wait for the LORD; be strong and take heart and wait for the LORD.
Ps 27:13-14 NIV

As hard as it is to believe it, 2005 is almost over!

This has been a year of waiting – waiting in line at the border, waiting on the Mexican government but most of all just waiting on the Lord. Many years ago, I took a verse from Ecclesiastes to heart.

“Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might…” Eccl 9:10 NIV

So that is what we have done this year.

To read the entire newsletter, click on "Read More" below.

La Sombra is a work planted and pastored by Rich Barcelona who, along with his wife Lori and their five children, has been in Mexico for eight years. This past summer, the church celebrated its fourth anniversary. It is a work that, like all work in Mexico, sees good days and bad. The folks accept Jesus as their Lord and Savior then comes that “working out your salvation with fear and trembling.” (Phil 2:12) Fornication and adultery are so common that it is difficult to convince the people of the need for purity. It must come from the Holy Spirit. The same holds true for lying, gossiping and back-biting. These things are so ingrained in the culture that only revelation brings liberty.

Rich and Lori have, by the grace of God, established a good work here. They stand steadfast and faithful. They have proved to be good friends, for which we are grateful to God. It has been our privilege to lead worship on Thursday evenings and Sunday mornings for them this year. Cody has been doing an incredible job on the drums, but we haven’t been able to convince Alissa to sing with us as yet. As out-going as she is with the kids, she is still shy in front of groups.

Also, this summer, I spent a number of weeks working on a house remodel in Palm Desert, CA. Erica’s great aunt (her grandmother’s sister) Rachel, moved to Palm Desert, which is right next to Palm Springs, last year from Los Angeles. We had the pleasure and privilege of taking some time away and visiting with her over those months. Rachel has been involved with some friends there in the Coachella Valley in some real estate ventures; mostly remodeling, but now some new construction as well. Anyway, they were going to hire someone to help out at the house and asked if I would do it.

We were certainly grateful for the opportunity to work to help meet the bills and for Rachel’s generous hospitality in hosting us at her house even a couple of weeks when she was back east.

Erica has continued pressing forward with the kids and their education. Thank God for the Internet and public libraries! With those two resources, it has been easier to find what she needed. Erica is also serving as vice president for the local homeschool support group – H.E.Y. (Home Educators of Yuma)

Since we had the time, we have taken the opportunity to spend more time together as a family. Cody and I have been building a model airplane of the Corsair used by Pappy Boyington of Black Sheep Squadron fame. Both Cody and Alissa are working on earning badges through the Contenders for the Faith and the Keepers at Home programs. The kids must fulfill certain requirements to earn a badge, similar to merit badges in Boy Scouts.

We have also added to our family recently. Two years ago, the kids received parakeets as gifts from Adalberto and his wife. This summer, Erica decided to let the birds build a nest. You buy these pieces of logs to put in the cages which the birds hollow out into a nest. As long as they don’t have a nest, they won’t lay eggs. Well, our little birds got busy and soon had a nest of eight eggs. When we returned from one of the weeks in Palm Desert, we found all the eggs broken. It wasn’t long, however, until we had eggs again. This time they have begun to hatch. So far we have three new baby parakeets. There are still 3 or 4 more eggs so we may yet have more.

Just a few weeks ago, we were blessed with a visit from the ACTS Church of Bedford, PA. They spent several days blessing the folks in SLRC. Their days included preaching and sharing at the Dump, hosting a movie nite at La Sombra (which was a packed house), clowning at an old folks’ home and sharing the Gospel with the Oaxaca and Chiapas Indians on the outskirts of town. They all had a real servant’s heart and were an encouragement to us as well.

I would like to share with you some of what we see as needs here in San Luis. Though I am not entirely sure as to the reason why, most Mexican couples that we encounter are not married to each other. If there are children, and being good Catholics there is usually a brood, the chances are real good that the man currently in the house is not the father or at least only the father of the youngest. Because of the cultural dominance of the Catholic church, divorce is not an option. So, rather than divorce, they just commit long term adultery.

What this means is that if a woman gets saved and the man she is shacking up with does not, she is faced with a dilemma. If she stays in the home, which often belongs to her and not the man, she commits adultery or fornication. If she asks the man to leave, then she may be separating a couple of children from their father and she has no income coming into the home. If she leaves, then you add to the above that she has no place to live.

There is such incredible need for a place where these women can go and find refuge and safety, where they can learn a skill, where they can get out from under the oppression and away from the danger of drug and alcohol abuse. There is such need for a place where women can learn how to be mothers, how to manage their households and how to walk right with the Father.

School is mandatory up to 6th grade which is called Primary. Grades 7 – 9 are referred to as secondary and are not mandatory. To go to Secondary, parents must supply uniforms and often pay a small fee per month and buy books and supplies. What we in the USA would recognize as high school is called Preparatory and is not free. Not only are there uniforms, books and supplies but there is also tuition required for attendance.

For many teen girls, the future is pretty bleak. Even if they can finish Secondary, job perspectives are slim and low paying. The lure of the sex industry is strong with prostitution legal in Mexico and “table dance” clubs very popular. Even if the girls know enough to stay away from these jobs, the cultural pressure exists for them to find a man to take care of them. Again, because of the moral climate of the culture, 15 and 16 year old girls are shacking up with 25, 35 or 45 year old men. The chances are very good that they will get pregnant quickly and their fate is seemingly sealed having prostituted themselves one way or another. We know of one woman, and I am sure that she is not unique, who is in her mid-forties and has eleven children by five different men. She has grandchildren older than her youngest daughter.

There is a need for a place for these girls, a place where they can be safe, where they can receive training in computers and English, sewing and cooking, and following Christ in purity and integrity. There is a need for a place of refuge and comfort where they will be loved for who they are, protected from the wolves who would use them and then cast them aside, pregnant and desolate.

Statistics tell me that about 6% of Mexicans are non-catholic Christians. What those statistics don’t tell me is how many of that 6% are Jehovah’s Witness or Mormon or some other sect or cult. What I do know is that in our town there are many small churches. I am talking about churches with less than 25 people in attendance. Of those churches who really are Christian, if there is a pastor, he or she has very little if any training in understanding and teaching the Word and no training whatsoever in nurturing a flock.

When you are confronted with a society that is corrupt to its very core from the lowliest beat cop to the highest level of municipal, state or federal government, mediocre Christianity is not going to have an impact. When the culture is saturated in a religion whose expressed purpose is to squelch the evangelical movement and which has such a stronghold on the people as to be demonic in nature, a Christianity without the power and demonstration of the Spirit is an exercise in futility.

There is a need for a center where the local pastors can come and to where they can send their flock knowing that they will not be proselytized but that they will receive Bible-based training for the whole man. There is a need for a place where life skills can be taught – what the Bible says about finances, government, marriage, and parenting, where the Word is taught in its fullness, in its entirety, where one can learn to flow in the gifts of the Spirit by example and by receiving instruction to avoid abuse and misuse.

These are the needs that we see, that burden our hearts:
- a place of refuge for mothers from the sex industry or those just trapped in ungodly situations
- a place of safety and training for young women to prevent them from falling into the traps of this culture and the enemy
- a place for training Christians, preparing them so that they may help prepare others for the soon return of Christ.

We recognize, however, that we cannot meet these needs, especially not on our own. More than anything, we need people, people with a burden, people with a calling, people willing to lay down their lives here in Mexico.

There will be other needs but unless we have the people the rest is moot. Join with us to pray the Lord of Harvest to send laborers here – from the USA, from Mexico, maybe you!

Please do drop us a line or give us a call. We’d love to hear from you.

Joe, Erica, Cody and Alissa Burgan