December Missionary News

from the Nortons in Mexico

"You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on it's stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven." Matt. 5:14-16

It is our prayer that God will use our family to be a light unto the world!


















Our medical team being a light unto the world!

A medical clinic was held in November for the people who live on the airstrip that we wrote about last month. We had a total of about 40 people come. Ten were seen by our medical team and medication was given out to those who needed it. We had a great turn out for the children's table. We made bracelets with colorful beads that each represented a part of the gospel story. We had two 13 year old boys, who stayed with us the entire time. We enjoyed getting to know them.

Lacy and Alia were great helps at the Kids' Table!

We also had plenty of time to talk to other residents.

Molly with our new friends - Monica and her son, Oscar.

Monica (pictured above) expressed a desire to study the bible. We will be following up with her. Others just seemed to welcome the companionship. We are continuing to pray about other ways to be a light to this impoverished community.

Noah and his new friend, Daniel. Daniel enjoyed his time at the outreach coloring, making a bracelet and playing ball with Noah.

We are looking forward to seeing many of you in Bradenton over the Christmas holidays. We will be in town from Dec. 15 - Jan. 7. Please let us know by email if you would like to hear more about our time, so far, in Mexico!


For His Glory,
Carl, Lisa, Lacy, Alia, Noah and Molly

Alia's 8th Birthday!

For Alia's 8th birthday we had a birthday scavenger hunt!

We began the hunt by making "Birthday Scavenger Hunt Hats!"

After our hats were complete, we went on our scavenger hunt. We had to find lots of things like 5 pinecones, 10 pieces of trash, a Steven Curtis Chapman cd (which no one found!), 2 Spanish bibles, etc. We also had to answer hard questions like "What is the capital of Honduras?" "What is the 14th book of the Old Testament?" "How many doors in the base?"

And here in Tlaxiaco, you never know who may crash your party!!!!!!!!

"Jamon" the base pig!!! (Alia was real excited to see him at her birthday party!!)

After the excitement of the uninvited guest, we ended the party with cake!! (No, Jamon did not get any cake!!!)

November Missionary News

"I will sing of the Lord's great love forever; with my mouth I will make your faithfulness known through all generations." Psalm 89: 1-2 We consider ourselves blessed to be here in Mexico singing of our Lord's great love! This has been an exciting month for us! We were able to see two local young people, who were being discipled by students and staff here at GFM, turn their lives over to Christ and be baptized! Praise be to God!!

God also showed our family a "neighborhood" in which we believe He wants us to minister. The "neighborhood" is actually an old airstrip that has not been used in many years. People have built their houses alongside this strip. Only a few of the homes have electricity and there is no indoor plumbing. We are praying about how we can minister to them. One idea we have been given is to teach them to make solar cookers. This has been done with great success in some of the outer villages. We are also planning a medical outreach in the neighborhood with our medical team here. Please pray for God's blessings on our continued weekly visits to this neighborhood!

And finally, God has brought two young girls into our lives. Judit, age 11, and her little sister, Belem, age 4, live down the street from the missionary base. They do not come from a Christian home as their mother practices witchcraft. However, they do come and participate in the weekly bible study for children at the base. They are precious children and come to our house almost daily to borrow DVDs and/or coloring books. Lacy and Alia enjoy playing with them and speaking Spanish with them. Judit and Belem do not know any English. I believe God is building a relationship in which Judit and Belem will be able to see the love of Jesus in their friends!




Lisa and Alma (the Pastor's wife) in Oaxaca City
celebrating Lisa's birthday at the mall play place!

Our kids enjoyed some play time with their friends in Oaxaca city!

Lacy's 10th Birthday!

HAPPY 10th BIRTHDAY, LACY!!!!!

For Lacy's 10th birthday we had the kids from the base over for a movie night! They watched "The Little Mermaid."





Lacy and Alia had fun dressing up as mermaids with Tamlyn and Sydney! We had chocolate cake and, of course, popcorn with the movie!!

October Missionary News

Tlaxiaco's biggest ministry opportunity is market day! On Saturdays, the population nearly doubles as people from all the surrounding villages come to town to buy and sell their goods. The sights, sounds and smells of market day totally envelope you as you enter the town. It is very common to see people walking long ways carrying a crate of live chickens or pulling a pig along on a leash. People walk long ways from some villages, some barefoot for their journey. Turkey, goats, sheep and pigs are tied up all around town by their owners, hoping to get a fair price for them to support their family. Even through closed car windows you can hear the animals protesting. Tarp after tarp is strung up in the center of the town with people selling anything they can so that their own family will be able to have their needs fulfilled. Imagine a man who made a beautiful, hand-carved wooden headboard and literally carrying it all around town for an entire day trying to find a buyer!

Also present are the poorest of people. People that so desperately need help, and often times need to know that they have a Savior who loves them! We have seen a lady whose feet were so badly diseased that she was crawling from corner to corner to beg for money. Time after time, you hear stories of how a a family is living without the presence of a father, because he is in the states trying to make money so he can send it back to feed his family. There is such a need for God and such an awesome opportunity for us to show the love of Christ. Most people here are eager to talk about God and have many questions about Christianity. They have a true love for one another, so evident in watching how they help and depend on one another. And the joy that comes to their face when they see babies and children.... This reminds us of why God, our wonderful creator, has sent us here - TO LOVE HIS PEOPLE!!!!!!!!!!