Greg and Alicia Swearingen

Feet

2012-01-28T13:41:00.000-08:00

I took Annagrace for a special treat today - a foot massage. I don't know of any 8 year old girl that has gotten a foot massage. We had so much fun. The lady that we had was mute and mostly deaf. We communicated by writing - she was just precious and I was amazed that this woman had made a fairly good business for herself despite her circumstances.
But anyways, it brings me to the subject of feet. This amazing body part that moves us in all directions. Its what we stand on, walk with, run with and vitally need to get around. They sure are funny looking and when they hurt it affects our whole body. This week we took our feet to new ground to bring good news. "Sweet are the feet that bring good news."
We went to a field in the middle of no where to bring good news to those that had no hope. Our feet took us there, but it was our hearts that led us there. There are so many that need hope and love and good news. And it can be hard on our feet to go to others and help them. Our feet get dirty, tired and soar. I for one don't like it when my feet are dirty or when they hurt. But we must direct our feet to go where God leads our hearts. Where are your feet going?

New Chapter

2012-01-28T13:34:00.000-08:00

This is a picture of David with the kids from his class after they sang some songs for Christmas. He did really well at the school academically but for numerous reasons we just didn't feel it was the right fit. So we have started homeschooling again this semester and it has been great for all of us! He's a great kid and we love having him around more. And I can see his desire and heart to learn return. So a new chapter! God takes us places for seasons and we may never know why. We just know to be obedient to his leading and that is always where we want to be.
David is in the back on the right side in the photo.

Anniversary

2012-01-14T08:08:00.000-08:00

Greg and I just celebrated our 15 year anniversary. We were reflecting on all the twists and turns that life has taken. We both had goals and dreams for our lives and as we look back we are amazed at all God has done. We had no clue where we'd be living, or who we would meet or how He would change our hearts over time. We had no idea how kids would change us and continue to grow us. We had no concept of how little we really knew about life and God's sovereignty and plans. We still don't. We had no idea what our finances would look like or what assets we'd have. We had no idea how he could answer prayer in ways that were much better than anything we could have made up. And so here we are. Doing our best to follow God on our daily journey. Reflecting back on the great adventure it has been. And looking forward to what's next. We have no clue, but we know He does and we trust That His ways are much higher than our ways.
Thanks for being part of our journey!

Innovative

2012-01-07T14:57:00.000-08:00

Annagrace and I were walking along the Malecon, a famous stretch of Puerto Vallarta. The statue you see here is a live statue. A man painted in bronze and moves real slow when people put money in his tip jar. For bigger tips he'd get on the bike and ride, smile, wink or pretend to deliver mail.
It reminds me that we live in different times and things all over are changing and we have to change with the times. This is a creative and fresh way for this man to earn extra income and bring joy to people. Innovative! May God give you an innovative way to to provide for you and your families. And innovative ways to bring the hope and joy of God to those that need help.

Christmas

2011-12-29T23:16:00.000-08:00

The kids at Davids school made some neat Christmas decorations out of trash... This is a Christmas tree made from 2 liter pop bottles. There were also ball ornaments from small clear pop bottles and decorated CD's. It's a great example of using the resources that are available. We enjoyed Christmas this year with a visit from our daughter Amanda and her husband. The kids enjoyed their time off of school. Please pray for one of the local Pastors we are supporting here whose ministry is under much attack. His family has been doing an awesome job here in Vallarta and surrounding areas. But they are discouraged and in need of prayer, wisdom, resources and protection.
Also we could use prayer for our families health and direction. Feliz Navidad y Prospero Ano!

Same and Different

2011-12-07T18:02:00.000-08:00

Prayer Request

2011-11-24T08:13:00.000-08:00

My sweet baby girl has come down with a fever and is not feeling well at all. So please pray for her and for direction for us in getting medical attention if she needs it. She has such a servants heart. Wherever we go to serve, she jumps in. Whether serving hot dogs, holding babies, playing with toddlers, sweeping... Just whatever. She also has so much compassion for people and brings so much joy.

Thankful to Serve

2011-11-23T11:16:00.000-08:00

Here's Greg at an outreach partnering with the La Vina church here in Puerto Vallarta. We drove about 40 minutes inland to a small town called Ixtapa. Greg and Annagrace were working hard on getting hot dogs served up. We also had music, the team performed a skit, worship and a message. Nice people! Lot's of bugs! And a great time.

The second photo is Alicia with a few of the folks from the worship team at Worship in Paradise having some music time with the kids at New Beginnings Mexico. It wasn't a planned time - it's just what happened. The kids started surrounding our drummer Enrique and he started showing them what to do. And soon there was a jam session going. We are so blessed to serve!

Sweet Time

2011-11-04T18:03:00.000-07:00

We had a great time last night Supporting La Vina and along with a Colorado mission team. This is a boy showing us all a huge grasshopper he had found. This was such a sweet group of people. Moms handing us their babies to hold and play with, very kind children and a real sweet outreach. Mario and Lety have done such a great job reaching out to them and teaching them about the Kingdom! We really did enjoy getting to be a part.
This was the first time we ever made spaghetti for the food. It was quite a project - spaghetti for 140. The team came over and we had a production going on in my little kitchen. My kitchen has not recovered yet.
When it came time to eat those kids were running to the table. So anxious to get fed. Their big eyes staring down the food was precious. I felt like they were part of my family.

We used the lights of the basketball court surrounded by overgrown weeds for our meeting spot. The poor areas at night are a whole nother world.

Neighbors

2011-11-02T22:33:00.000-07:00

Here's a picture of an area we're going out to next. There are so many places and people that need a touch of God's love. We are taking a team out and partnering with another church to bless this area.
When I think of how many people and places that need God's love I can get overwhelmed and have to simplify it sometimes and even focus on whats right here. My own family or my neighbors. Lately its been my neighbors that have been on my heart. Have I extended a hand to them, offered help, friendship, or time? So many things go on behind closed doors - child abuse, affair, drinking...or just loneliness or depression. There are people in need right next door. Oh God - give us eyes to see.

The Field

2011-10-20T20:39:00.001-07:00

So this week we had a mission team in from Canon City and we partner with the La Vina that's out here and we go out to this field in the middle of no where to bless the community. None of us knew where all the people came from but they just started showing up on foot. We had a great time face painting, doing balloon animals, soccer, puppet show, dancing, food and a great word from Pastor Mario. We only had one light and so this is a picture of the kids in the front. Everywhere else it was pitch black.

No Hurricane

2011-10-15T01:25:00.000-07:00

Just an FYI that the hurricane didn't ever hit here. It hit south of here, and it was reduced to a category 2. So we are not hearing that there was severe damage. Some flooding and high winds for sure. But not people lost. And we're so thankful it didn't hit here. We got a few days of rain showers, but we've been through much worse here last rainy season. And it wasn't hurricane related - it was just torrential rains.

Here's a picture of an 80 year old man that takes care of people's yards for a living. He stores his things at the home we are renting and everyday he shows up here on foot to get his tools and go to the different homes he cares for. We will see him on his knees digging out weeds, on ladders cutting hedges - rain or shine. I'm always shocked at the kind of heat he works in. He has no retirement plan. He just keeps working and earns minimum amounts day to day. He's such a sweet man, always kind and always smiling.

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We've Got Rain

2011-10-12T04:49:00.001-07:00

This is my first hurricane. Greg's been in 2 when he lived in Florida. It started raining about 10 pm last night and it's rained steady all night. Not enough to flood our yard yet. It looks like it will be a good day to stay in. We rented some movies yesterday. You should have seen Blockbuster. The line was to the back of the store and there were hardly any movies left. Everyone else had the same idea.

Another Calm Night

2011-10-11T22:10:00.000-07:00

We again went to the beach tonight to see the activity. Businesses are boarded up, windows all over town are taped, and some businesses were totally empty. There were many locals at the beach to look at the water. It was high but not alarming. The surfing thrill seekers were out riding the waves and the sunset was beautiful!! Our sister and her family were supposed to fly in today but they cancelled the flight in. It hardly rained today - really it was quite nice. But they say it's coming tonight late. May God always be our calm no matter what the situation.

Rental

2011-10-11T03:39:00.001-07:00

I just wanted to ask for prayer for 1 of our rental properties to rent. It's still a good rental market in Canon and yet it has sat empty for 3 months now despite our efforts and the efforts of the manager who has been trying to rent it. Obviously we rely on that income as part of our mission funds here to do the work we are doing. And we have another that is coming up for rent in 2 weeks. Thank you so much!!

Calm Before the Storm

2011-10-10T19:39:00.001-07:00

So they say a hurricane is coming. Some locals that have lived here a long time say that they always make a big deal of it but it never really comes in this bay. Others are preparing, Davids school just called and is closing the next 2 days.
We went for a ride down to the beach to have a look. Call us crazy, but we did see that its not supposed to hit until tomorrow It was an eery calm. As we were watching the waves we all saw a dolphin jump out of the water and then tons more swimming north. We've never seen that before. It was amazing. The sky was beautiful. This picture shows a few of the dolphins. And then as the sky grew darker it also became a dark purple. Who knows what the next few days will hold, but we know that we have an amazing God.

Hurricane

2011-10-08T16:10:00.001-07:00

They say a hurricane is headed this way. Most tell us they always say it's going to hit but it never really makes it into the bay. Some near the water are boarding up and sandbagging. We're inland a bit but the Community Center where we host Sunday gatherings is just a block off the beach. Pray that our space would be protected.

Time to Boogie

2011-10-03T15:59:00.000-07:00

Balloon

2011-10-01T20:01:00.001-07:00

Here's Greg playing balloon on a recent trip to the orphanage. It's hot out there right now! But the kids still find the energy to play and seem to love visitors. It's always hard to leave. When we take teams out there we almost always have someone ask about adopting. Apparently it is possible but very difficult to adopt out of Mexico.

The Joys of Mexico

2011-09-04T19:57:00.001-07:00

No matter where we are, there are interesting people and things. I've just been amazed lately at how different we all are - created uniquely in His image. Regardless of our upbringing, our culture, our language... We are so different but all so special.
We are meeting LOTS of new and different people through Davids school and being stretched big time with our language skills. We have to get a tutor for David so he doesn't fall behind as he just doesn't yet understand the Spanish classes he is in. Algebra in Spanish when you hardly understand Spanish. See what I mean. And All the notes I get are in Spanish and the parent meeting and the parents... And then there's homework in all Spanish and 20 minutes of Spanish reading.
It's fun and challenging. After school a few days ago when all the students were sitting in class waiting for parents to come the teacher asked David in front of the other students if he was a Christian. He said yes and then the whole class made fun of him. A few days later some boys were teasing him a little calling him Cristiano. Davids doing great with it and is having more compassion for those who are different then the rest.
With Anna's homeschool I am having to be more disciplined but she is responding well to our new curriculum to really target her reading. She's a great student.

I always say some things are really expensive here and some are cheap. Here's an example for you. I was trying to get some mission brochures printed and the copy store wanted 23 pesos ($2) for some glossy paper. That was for 1 piece of paper!!!! Yowza. On the other hand Davids doctor visit was 100 pesos ($9). It was a comprehensive visit too.

The locals are getting more desperate. Guys are fighting over business - like car washing. We've had more people come to the center looking for food. There are no tourists here now which is great for traffic but bad for paying bills.

A few more interesting notes. I was standing at the community center today and felt something on my leg. It was a cockroach crawling up it. Oooh. I was just reading about St Francis and he made friends with all the animals - but I just had to scrunch it. My spiritual walk just isn't there yet.

There's a new club in town along our drive to the church Sunday mornings called "Club Kox" Their advertisements are interesting. I was talking to a man that had a job in one of the bars here and they really do party here until 6 am. Sometimes on the way to church Sunday mornings we see people coming out of places. It's crazy. I don't think I could stay up all night if I tried. We know one man who ministers to these folks in those wee hours. What a neat ministry.

We started up English classes again this last week for the kids at Solitrillo. I honestly wasn't looking forward to going but it turned out great. I think I was just worrying about how to effectively teach as I'm preparing the curriculum and this is not my area for sure. I know I'm not supposed to worry - but it slips in now and then. It did turn out the kids were great and they were hungry for the food and hungry to learn.

Greg shared today on "our identity" and gave a great message. I sense that God is really doing something neat here in the heavenlies and the Kingdom will be reigning down in new ways. This fall we will be helping another local start up a new outreach/church.

Mexico Journal Update

2011-08-30T20:41:00.001-07:00

I just wanted to share a little about what's going on around here.

First, David has officially started in a bilingual school. He could use prayer for this. I remember just a few months ago he was telling me how he didn't feel like he was doing anything for God and he wanted to feel needed. Well now God has brought him to a bilingual school where the kids seem very disrespectful to their teachers and other kids and none seem to know Jesus. So God has strategically placed him. As parents we want our kids to hang around a good crowd and kids that will influence them for good. Here, he will be the influence and I pray he doesn't get influenced. They don't allow the parents in the classroom and you can't even talk to the teacher. Bizarre. Apparently that's common in Mexico. David shared with me today that one of his new books talks about sex education - but he said "don't worry mom I can't understand any of it - it's all in Spanish.". I've asked him to bring home that book for me to take a look at. I did get to look at all the other books, but that one hadn't come in yet.
Half the day is in all English and the other half is in all Spanish. That part is very challenging for him! But he is trying real hard.

David has had an ear infection all week and was not responding with drops. We took him to the doctor yesterday and got lots more medicine. She also looked at a gash on his foot he just got that became infected.

Annagrace just started a new homeschool curriculum. She is needing some extra help with reading and so her whole curriculum is geared towards that. It's more work for me - oh but she is so worth it. I need to be careful that other things don't creep in on my teaching time with her. God's given her many special gifts!

We've started back up again with English classes in Solitrillo and numerous other things. We're already talking about high season that's coming and trying to plan for that.

God has really broken my heart as of late for the hungry. This time of year here people are hungry because there aren't so many tourists and thus no income. I have felt what it's like to be hungry - I mean hungry during times I have fasted. But it's nothing like so many people around the globe experience. When I fast I have clean, pure drinking water. When I fast I have access to fresh juices and a juicing machine. When I fast I have a nice clean bathroom to go to often. So many people are on forced fasts because they don't have anything to eat. And when they do get something it might be a bowl of rice or pot of mush. Can you imagine? I have so many choices and variety... Even when I fast.

Greg is also back in the swing of things with Pastor Ric leaving for 5 weeks. He will be busy. He made sure to get me out to look at the ocean tonight. First time since I've been back.

We don't feel truly settled in our new place. We're still trying to find places for things and organize. Eventually... Right?

First Days

2011-08-22T04:26:00.001-07:00

Yesterday was out first day back to Worship in Paradise. My first day back leading worship. Today is Davids first day of school at a Mexican bilingual school and Anna's first day of homeschool.
It makes me think of all the "first days" I had growing up. The anticipation of not knowing what to expect and the excitement of not knowing what to expect. It's a love/hate kind of thing. But really everyday in the Kingdom should be like "first days" as we just never know what any day might bring. And instead of the whole anxiety that comes with it - we should have excitement about all that God is doing. We do read that we should not be Anxious about ANYTHING. Right? And God is up to some amazing stuff these days. Right? I had a friend telling me of all the bad things that were going on in his life, then to say that each one ended up being a huge blessing.

Anyways may your days be like first days and bring the excitement an adventures of the Kingdom.

Hit the Ground Running

2011-08-18T14:55:00.001-07:00

Our first day back and it was a busy day. Worship practice, register David for school, buy a little food and catch up on lots of things that have been missed. Greg had some meetings, his prayer meeting and went for a quick dive in the ocean.

I got my computer and guitar repaired while I was in the U.S. So I feel like I'm ready to go! Thanks everyone for the encouragement. The warfare here is greater than we experienced in the U.S. But Greater is He who is in us then he who is in the world. We are excited to see a greater movement of His Kingdom this year.

U.S. Visit

2011-08-16T08:59:00.000-07:00

So we are flying back to Mexico. I have mixed emotions. I just loved being in Colorado and seeing friends and family. I loved most everything about our time and miss the Colorado mountains, beautiful scenery and the Colorado air and water. You all are very blessed to live there. It was hard to leave. And yet at the same time I know we are called to go back to Mexico and serve. We cannot stay in our comfy place if the Word is to go forth. We must not remain where we feel safe and secure if we are going to bring hope to those that are hopeless. That includes whether we are called to go across the world or reach out to a neighbor.

Now why in the world God would call us to Mexico I do not clearly understand. We still stink at Spanish and I don't feel qualified at this thing we call "missionary work." I have often thought we are doing a poor job at being missionaries, but many have reassured me that my own definition of a missionary is a little off. All I know is that we are continuing to be obedient. And somehow God does the rest. Both Greg and I believe that this next year, God is going to do so much more through us. And for that we are thankful and excited. His Kingdom come! Thank you for all who are praying for us, supporting us and encouraging us to carry on.

Food and Forty

2011-07-10T21:52:00.000-07:00

Friday was my 40th birthday and I had such a great day. I woke up and went to the gym to workout and something was different. Let me back up... 60 days earlier I had started a course for the second time called Setting Captives Free to overcome my food addiction. I know most of you probably don't know or wouldn't think I ever had an issue but my heart and mind was often thinking of food - in a way that was obsessive. Anyways when I started Setting Captives Free two months ago, I had no idea that the last day would be my 40th birthday.
I wanted to share that as I was working out I felt different in a good way. Instead of having thoughts of food, my sin and my problem I was praising God for the victory in this area, how far He has brought me and where we might be going next. I wasn't thinking "how can I ever be free- it doesn't seem possible," rather I was thinking as a free person. Big difference! When we are so entangled in our sin, like it's so a part of us we don't know any different, it is an act of God to change our thinking. To change our beliefs. To give us hope to overcome and to truly make us into a new creation. And on Friday and Saturday and today I'm thinking like a free person. It feels different, like I'm not even trying, it's just happening. All things are possible with God. He is amazing! So... So far, I'm liking this 40 thing.

Casa Nuevo

2011-07-06T13:50:00.000-07:00

We've moved into the house next door. Thanks to all who helped. From a "stuff" perspective it was an easy move as we just don't have much stuff. The time was spent before the move helping the lady who owns the place clean out her place.

I like that there aren't as many ants here. Definitely more Mosquitos though. But no ants on the counters, my computer, or my guitar. I like that it's smaller - less to take care of. More time for hanging out with Jesus and the family and the extended family we have here.

I would have never imagined we'd end up just next door. God is so funny and totally knows what we need and what we can handle.

Turtle

2011-07-01T20:01:00.000-07:00

David caught his first turtle. He was so excited!

Mexico Journal

2011-06-29T16:40:00.000-07:00

The rain is here which is wonderful because it cools things off. It also makes the roads a muddy mess.

We are in process of moving and cleaning the old house and the new house. It happens to be next door. So that makes it really nice. But much work to be done.
Today the A/C broke and I worked out anyways. I was soaked from head to do. I didn't know it was possible to sweat that much.

At Solatrillo English classes today it was raining. We played Bingo with English and Spanish words and made hummingbirds out of toilet paper rolls. It went well and we didn't get to muddy.

Anna had a fat lip from hitting her mouth on the bottom of a pool. Her tooth pierced the lip. She's looking much better.

We've got another mission team coming in Wednesday and their going to be working on the new safe house. It's a great project called Compassion for the Family.

Both Greg and I could use prayer for our feet. We're wondering if it's because we have grown up with carpet and now it's all tile and cement here. (and hard dirt) But they hurt often.

Great Day

2011-06-26T21:29:00.000-07:00

It's so neat to see how God is moving here. I have struggled with this transition to Mexico for some time and i have not been quiet about the struggle. I'm so thankful for all your prayers. This week seemed to be another milestone for me and even our family. What does that mean? It means I have a new sense of hope and excitement with what God is doing and that I'm excited to be a part of it.
Even David said to me today, "mom I'm really starting to like it here.". That's huge!!

I made a friend connection this week that I have been waiting for and many of you have been praying for since our move. Praise God! And areas that I felt stuck in are starting to come together. It reminds of a song "You Come Like the Rain." by Jesus Culture. One minute it can be nice and then the heavens open up and it comes down good. God can surprise us like that! He can make things happen when it's time and it can be the most sudden explosion of momentum. More Lord!

Today my heart was touched to see an elderly man who was on his death bed just a few months ago come and worship with us. Another man was totally wrecked and I prayed with a woman who was weeping and longing for God to heal her heart. I made a connection with more worshippers here.

And I had some cream cheese roll for lunch that was amazing. Now that's a great day.

Cleaning Out Your Stuff

2011-06-24T07:23:00.000-07:00

So we're moving right next door. It's a house about half the size, but still nice and has everything we need. We looked at so many and were honestly frustrated with what was out there and what people were asking for rent. All these places are sitting empty and yet they'd rather let them sit empty then negotiate. Anyways, the lady that is moving out has lived there for 20 years and so there is LOTS of stuff to clean out. I went over yesterday to help her go through her "stuff" to get this one specific bedroom cleaned out and as I did my quick analysis of the situation (a room packed full of stuff) - I started to explain to her the process we were going to go through to get it cleaned out. And that process went something like this. First, we're going to have to just start. We'll have to pull stuff out of this room and make some piles outside just so we can have some room to work and figure out what's here. Second, let's make some different piles - trash, giveaway, take, store, etc.... so that we know where stuff is going and then can take action. We strategized for a moment - but as I was talking with her it seemed a parallel of how our hearts and lives at times need a cleaning out. We go around like we are doing just great, and yet "stuff" might be getting stored up in our hearts that we let sit there. "It's not hurting anything, it's too much trouble to bother with it, it won't hurt anything if I leave it there".... we can name all sorts of excuses. But we must at times take a look at our hearts and do a cleaning out of our stuff. The first thing we have to do is "start." And the next would be taking some of those piles outside so we can go through them. I was talking to a young girl just yesterday who has had a difficult life. I asked her if she had anyone to talk with about how she feels and the answer was no. So I see this young beautiful girl as having a whole room full of stuff that needs cleaned out and at some point she's just going to have to start. I've spent years cleaning out my stuff. Sometimes, more intensely then others. And I'm sure I'm not done. And we're constantly given more stuff. The good news is that when we bring our stuff to God, and we reach out and say "I need help," He can totally restore us! God is fully able to rebuild the ruins and restore the places long devastated (Isa 61:4) If you need help cleaning out your closet, here are some ideas on where to start. 1. Start 2. Ask a Pastor for recommendations on who to speak with 3. Look for materials that can help you. Greg and I like Neil Anderson's book "Freedom from Darkness," or if you have an addiction issue a great website is www.settingcaptivesfree.com There is so much more life, and so much of His glorious Kingdom that can be had right here on earth. Let's remove some of our stuff so that we can more fully worship and praise Him!

Mexico Mission Update

2011-06-20T22:10:00.000-07:00

I feel like I haven't been writing much on our blog to keep you up to date on all the happenings. It's been a busy few weeks with mission teams here and looking for a new place to live. We have finally found a place - not what we would have expected. We would look at a home or condo and it may have looked really nice, but just didn't connect for some reason. We made a few offers on places we liked but those didn't pan out. People kept reminding me that God is never late and I really was at peace with it. Greg was too. Anyways it looks like we're going to be moving into our neighbors place. She's blessing us and we're blessing her. And David is thrilled he won't have to say goodbye to the cat as he really made good friends with him.
God continues to provide for our finances although we could use prayer for 2 rentals back in Canon City - for those to get rented quickly and with good reliable tenants. We also lost some business income - but again God is so good.
Now I'm in the midst of packing and sorting through stuff to give away. The kids have easily been giving things to the giveaway box that we will take to the kids as they see the kids we serve don't have much. That blesses a mothers heart!

Sometimes I don't feel like I'm doing enough for the people here, but I then have to remember that God is ordaining my steps. I'm starting to build relationships exponentially and it seems more is starting to happen. As I've seen what is going on here and had the chance to observe these past ten months, I've been praying that God would strategically place us to help the leaders and wealthy here have new eyes to help their people. We can work with kids and communities and have an impact, but what if the people here really got on board with the vision to extend a hand. Oh the things God can do.

Injuries

2011-06-17T22:42:00.000-07:00

Hola Amigos,
I just wanted to let you know we've had all sorts of little injuries going on here so that you can be praying for us. Greg fell down some stairs last week and hurt his foot and his wrist. He's doing much better, but still not back to normal and not moving very fast. David fell backwards today and knocked his head on a steal bar. Jarred his neck and had a good size lump on the back of his head. We've been icing it most the day. No sign of conclusion or anything, but we're watching him closely. And somehow, Annagrace has injured her knee and ankle and is experiencing pain when she walks for the last 2 days. As for me, I'm doing good. But I'm a little tired of the extra work from taking care of everything else. :-) I've started packing up our current home as I know we have to move soon, but we still don't know where. Hhhhmmmm - what does God have for us??

I'm excited about what God is doing in our midst at the community center. It's always an adventure to be living in His will! Buckle up - there's more fun coming.

We're celebrating Annagrace's 8 year old Birthday tomorrow with an all girl party by the pool, games, pizza and cake. Happy Father's Day to all you Dad's out there.
Thank you all for your love and support.
Love The Swearingens

Reading

2011-06-14T14:44:00.000-07:00

I just spent time with a lady that leads our Reading Program And Bookmobile. What a loving heart she has for people to increase their level of education. She was in tears because she was on a bus here that shook her so bad her whole body was in pain. Apparently it had no shocks and the floor was split in two. But she didn't want to stop going out and teaching. She's been working with many kids but shared a story of a 7th grader who read his first book ever. Anyways we prayed with her and the pain went away. Praise God.

Sometimes when I have a tough day with the kids when I teach English I lose sight of why I'm doing what I'm doing. But this was a good reminder for me. When we can impact a Childs life by teaching them a skill that will build confidence and help them get jobs - it will change their lives forever.

Young Love

2011-06-12T20:08:00.000-07:00

Had a great day of worship with a young team from Fort Collins. This wasn't an experienced group of worshippers, nor did any one of them have unprecedented skill, but as a unified team, they brought their hearts before the Lord and it was so cool! It reminds me of young love - you know that new, exciting feeling of love. But this was just an authentic love for Jesus. And this team brought that in their hearts to worship. A fresh, beautiful love and faith of the young, fervently seeking and worshipping God. I was so honored to get to work with them. Just watched a beautiful sunset for a great way to end the day here in Vallarta. God is so good and is doing so much. I'm humbled to get to serve Him here.
I also am excited for our trip home in July to see so many of you! We are making an offer on a place to rent for our next year here - so pray for favor from the property manager if this is the place we're supposed to be.

Sand Castles

2011-05-30T07:59:00.000-07:00

Here's a picture of a few kids building sand castles in the dirt using left over urine specimen cups. Its a good reminder for me to Use whatever resources I already have.

Old CD's

2011-05-23T07:59:00.000-07:00

I was out at the "dump" last night helping with worship music again and just wanted to share a few observations. I love what God does and how He works. It seems so funny to me why He would have Rick and I - 'totally not Spanish speaking people' to be leading this "choir" in Spanish worship. But this choir is all about it and as I played guitar and watched them sing the songs we practiced, they sang their hearts out. They were passionate and it is at those times I see Just a glimpse of what God is up to.
I then went over to see what the kids were up to. 37 of them to be exact - coloring and putting stickers on paper when I dropped in. Many of them had an old, bright green CD that looked to be from some English speaking investment series. They were playing with them and having so much fun. Spinning them, banging them, sliding them, waving them. To them this piece of American trash was a treasure. It made me think of all the store boughten toys my children have. I don't think it makes them any happier. It's just another thing to play with for a time and then it does grow old. Or they grow tired of playing with it. Almost anything can be fun if we make it that way. Some kids were out on the street trying to fly a beat up, torn, half of a kite. That thing did make it into the air with some work. And what fun they had trying. I think of the brand new beautiful kite my son and I tried to fly in the states. It was too much work and we got frustrated with the process and didn't have much fun at all because we were caught up in the flying instead of just the journey. We are learning much here from these people and this culture. Enjoy your journey today!!

Update

2011-05-19T15:18:00.000-07:00

It is such an adventure here in Mexico. I had the opportunity to talk with a man who had an arm so badly deformed, was just diagnosed with cancer and had an aching heart from the loss of his wife. What a special man he was. We prayed together and I think we were both touched by God. As I prayed I had full faith that God could heal this mans arm before my very eyes. That didn't happen today, but who knows what He has in store for him.

I also helped with worship again out at one of the poor areas out near the dump. I don't really like calling it that as they are rich in their passion. Jesus didn't come to be with the religious leaders, He came to be with people such as this and I can tell when I'm out there. I definitely am feeling stretched leading songs in Spanish and working on where I put the accent of words.
With our English speaking worship team, we've been working a great deal on singing in unity and harmony parts. That's been fun and helping me grow. I'm still praying for a drummer - I had a djembe player for a time, and that was so fun. It's a new place for me trying to grow a team and the dynamic of people coming and going has both been fun and challenging.

I have really been pressing in to more relationship with God. It has been a challenge here. The other day I asked for prayer for that very thing and guess what happened? I all of a sudden got this crippling back pain and foot pain. Ok. I guess the enemy doesn't like when we pursue Jesus. So I asked for prayer from someone else later that day and the pain totally left and has not returned. And I've had some really special times of relationship with my Papa since then. So if you feel far - press in. Do not relent, do not stop until you find Him! Keep seeking him with all you have!

We could use prayer for David as he is still struggling to find his place here as well as struggling to connect with friends. He really just hasn't been able to let go of his friendships in Canon City. He compares all the new boys he meets to them and none ever compare. We really aren't sure what to do or how to help him. But God does!!

Thanks so much for keeping in touch and all of your prayers for the mission work going on here. I'm prepping a newsletter to give you some more details about the work we are doing. God is just amazing!

Toothbrush Fun

2011-05-11T12:41:00.000-07:00

Mexico Journal

2011-05-03T22:05:00.000-07:00

My son just had an "aha" moment he was sharing with me. "mom," he said, "the people here live in such small houses - like one room the size of a Colorado house has a whole family in it. And some people have closets bigger then these peoples houses". He was comparing toys and bathrooms and hallways and kitchens We had a nice chat about the reality of all that and I even caught a glimpse of his heart to help the people here. That's a gift for me for sure. If you live in Colorado or most places in the U.S. and are reading this, know that you are blessed. Even if you are struggling with your finances, or have had to move or are living in a shelter, it does not even compare with the circumstances of some of these people. We still see them have fun, laugh, spend time with family and worship in the midst of their circumstances. It's amazing.

On another note I saw more reality of our purpose in the heart of Zona Romantico here in Puerto. A woman came in to the community center today and she was so hurt and broken. She looked like she was ready to burst into tears. I also saw how she had no hope and yet she claimed to be very spiritual and have life all figured out. I've been in that place and could empathize and am so glad to have found hope. We are strategically located in the perfect spot to reach some real spiritual people with the love of Jesus. Thank you for helping us to reach the unreached.

Easter Fun

2011-04-25T09:15:00.000-07:00

This was my first Easter outside of Colorado ever. It was warm and sunny and just beautiful. We enjoyed spending it with some of our new friends. Our Easter Service was really amazing. We had a small choir that sounded lovely, and combined them with the band as well. Of course, the day was full of little surprises. Everything ran late. Things that were supposed to be done, weren't done. People that are always there to help with certain things, weren't there. Our Equalizer broke down right after we ran through our practice. And the kicker for the day was that one of the men went to the bathroom during the sermon and flushed the urinal, and the pipe broke bursting out water all over him, and the bathroom. Now the bathroom is right next to the stage, and we could all hear and see the chaos. So it was guys scrambling to get the water off, getting up on the roof, mops, circuit breakers... Oh and it was such a good sermon despite all that - probably one of Pastor Ric's best. Through all the little mishaps, God prevailed and we had a great day! He is victorious no matter what and he showed us that again today. We had a Community Easter buffet afterwards that was catered and the food was delicious. But most importantly, is that many stayed, and new people came to be together. We sat with one man that never goes to church. But this year, his wife invited him to church and the buffet and he came. We also had others from the community join us.

After all the clean up we had a great family time. We've been so busy the last number of years with all day services, we've not had time just to enjoy our family. I actually cooked a little and we sat and had dinner together. It was special!

Probably one of my highlights from our Easter week was getting to do a small acoustic set on Good Friday with Rick Williams who is also here on missions.

This is a link to the Passion Service I helped with at Madre Selva where New Beginnings is building a community center. This was their first service.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yvvqoyfHeD4

This is a picture of Annagrace and a few of the other choir folks. It's the only picture I have so far from Easter Sunday. Some other people had cameras so I'll have to try and get some more photos.

Clean

2011-04-10T16:37:00.000-07:00

I was just having a conversation with some friends who are helping build a community center near the dump where it is so dirty. We go out there sometimes to help feed or teach classes. But we all get to go home and take showers and get clean. They live in the dirt, they have no showers, it's just always dirty and there is no getting clean.
I've gone camping but I always get to go home at the end and get all cleaned up. It's amazing just how good it feels to be rid of the dirt. Makes me think back to Jesus day when they often washed someones feet when they arrived. Well that was because they walked in sandles or barefoot and their feet got dirty. It probably felt so good to them to wash their feet.
Sometimes we walk the beach but when we get back home, we wash our feet. I love getting the sand off of my feet. Who's feet can we clean today? There are some dirty ones out there. How can we serve those who live in the dirt whether right where we live or across the world?

Moonshot

2011-04-06T21:53:00.000-07:00

We got a moonshot today driving out to teach English. To get there we go through these dirt roads and shacks for houses. As we were going down one street a little 2 or 3 year old boy went running out across the street from one shack to another butt naked. It was a Kodak moment but we weren't prepared at all.

I'm telling ya, we see it all here.
Our night of worship went really well. I'd say God was worshipped and praised. At one point we broke up into groups to pray for each other and we had some definite healings. We're still a little shocked by them. One lady who's had chronic hip pain for 10 years is pain free. I spoke with her today, she said she was still shocked that the pain is still gone. She even went jogging. My feet have been hurting a lot since we came to Mexico - but after the worship they felt like new feet and they still do. I stand up on the ground and I am still in awe at how good they feel. It's wild. I didn't even ask for prayer for that.
We've had a number of people tell us they really felt the presence of God. How awesome is that. We don't always hear or see the fruit of any efforts we do, or don't always know why God might call us to do one thing or another so I feel so blessed to hear some of the stories of how He showed up.

May we be free enough to run through the streets giving a moonshot (not literally but spiritually).

Toothbrush Program

2011-04-05T13:26:00.000-07:00

So Greg spent a lot of time making these toothbrush holders. So we've got 4 holders and we take them out everytime we're out there teaching English. It's fun just trying to figure out where the kids toothbrushes are, eventhough they've got their name on the toothbrush, and on the holder. But we are all having fun doing it.

Today's Adventures

2011-03-27T21:57:00.001-07:00

Goodness sakes alive, you gotta watch these folks out here. I was so careful but got had for 20 bucks. The gas guy switched out the money I gave him and said I didn't pay him enough. I fell for it. I found the person I was mad at was me for not being on my guard. But I've already forgiven myself too. :-)

Some prayer requests...
-David hasn't been feeling well.
-Friday Night I'm leading a Night of Worship and would pray for God to fill all the areas where I am weak. His power is surely made present there.
-Annagrace is still having trouble reading and I'm going to have her eyes checked and look into tests for dyslexia. I mean shes got the best teacher in the world so it cant be that, right? I was actually praying for her the other day and just got one of those God thoughts that there is something else going on here So pray for guidance and that we find the right help in this town.
-We have to look for a new place to live here on a tight budget. Pray that someone else needs some house/pet sitting for the next year and/or God would lead us to the right community. And a safe place. We are learning more where the drug cartel lives here, probably good to avoid those areas.

Smelly Worship

2011-03-18T22:38:00.001-07:00

Today I was worshipping out at the dump for the first registered Alpha class in Mexico outside of Mexico City. As I was singing I could smell the smell... You know the really stinky dump smell. It didn't matter. The presence of God was there and it was all so good that eventhough it smelled bad, it didn't. I don't know how else to explain it. While I was doing that Anna and David were playing with some of the Mexican kids. And Greg... he was running sound on the other end of Vallarta at the Paradise Community Center. His new found gift of sound mixing was used for a sold out concert to benefit the Community Center and all its outreaches and it included some amazing artists. The center is not only reaching out to the unreached, but providing some unique opportunities for people to make income through music, markets and shops. What will God think of next?..
He is on the move all over the world!

Waves

2011-03-14T07:11:00.001-07:00

Last night we sat and watched the sunset with the waves rolling in. The rocks clacked together as the water rolled in and out making a beautiful sound. We even saw a number of whales playing out in the water. We enjoyed a sandwich and a homemade pie and had water to drink. It was a nice evening. As I sat and watched the waves I imagined a 12 foot wave hitting and where it would hit. I imagined the destruction. And really I can't imagine. I see the devastation on the news and the pictures coming in - both the before and after.
The lives altered. Those gone. Those surviving. One day having all they needed, the next day in desperate search of water. I can't imagine how difficult this all must be for our brothers and sisters in Japan. We're praying for you!
I wonder how many were caught up in the heavens and had a glorious homecoming. I wonder how it will affect everyone on the planet. I wonder if many more will look for hope in Jesus during this time. And I pray for those that might blame God. My heart goes out to them. I really cannot fathom, and in my small attempt too, I'm overwhelmed. I just cannot imagine.

Love

2011-02-26T20:01:00.000-08:00

> Today I was reminded in my spirit why God called us here. Why we left what was comfortable and good. Why we couldn't stay.
> Love. The quote was "Go where love takes you." It was love that called us here, and there is no doubt, love is much needed here.
> There's a song by Kristene Mueller called Homeward Bound http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2lYwaN5KdgM
> That says "I will run this race and I will do it all for love.
> I will fight this good fight of faith and I will do it all for love. You are my great reward You're so worth fighting for and I can't wait to see your face." You might check it out - it's a precious song. But I was brought to tears as I remembered the race I'm on and the call of bringing love to more people. Thanks for all your prayers!

Mexico Questions

2011-02-24T20:26:00.001-08:00

On my recent trip to Denver and Canon City I was so blessed to see many of you. It really wasn't a long trip, but I got just what I needed from the Estes Park Worship Leaders retreat, to family time, to a visit to our sending church in Canon City. I just wanted to summarize the most commonly asked questions as I thought it would be interesting for each of you.

1. Why don't you look tanner?
Well that would be because I'm not out laying on the beach everyday! We're busy doing lots of stuff. On mission days when we are outside, we are under a giant shade tree or coated with sunscreen. Many of you know I'm not a big beach person - and I'm still not. Right now the water is a bit chilly but we try to get to the beach about once a week, just to watch the waves or sunset, not really to swim.

2. Is it safe?
We have not personally seen violence here in Puerto Vallarta. We have heard of things going on all around the area from Bucerias just an hour a way to Guadalajara which is about 5 hours a way. There is a lot of drug use here, but we feel safe and all the people we know here feel safe here as well. Many cruise ships just announced eliminating Mazatlan as a port stop because of some incidents, and that is about a 15 hour drive away. But the cruise ships are still coming here. The biggest crime we see here is petty theft, especially credit card/ATM theft. We actually just had our ATM card compromised and we are really careful where we use it and keeping the PIN covered. We're told that people will put reading devices in certain ATM's to get the numbers and somehow are able to make cards.

3. Was it hard adjusting?
Absolutely. But any move to another country would be. Just any move is for that matter. Period. We are constantly learning new things about this culture and environment we are in. And we have been blessed with people here to connect with. Some of the harder things were shopping for groceries, changing to pesos, the language barrier, learning to throw toilet paper in the basket-not the toilet, and figuring out how to drive here, and getting to know the system of things we need like license plates, visas, telephones and utilities. And of course, just making new friends. We've met some great people and look forward to meeting more.

4. What are some of the things you are doing now?
Each week, we go out to a poor colonial as a family where we serve and teach English classes. We are enjoying getting to know the kids out there. We just tested the kids as we were finding that some of them might not even know how to read Spanish. We were right about that and now have those kids working with some of the Spanish teachers learning how to read Spanish. Kids as old as teenagers that don't know how to read their native language. Our kids take the class, help at the other class and play games with some of the younger kids that are out there. They've done an amazing job.
Greg helps in so many varied areas as well. From fixing things, to pastoring, to hosting mission teams that come, to hosting prayer times and Bible Studies. It's always an adventure here in Mexico. He just created a toothbrush holder to hold brushes for each of the different classes we teach each week. Dental hygeine is something we are working on with the kids and we needed a way to keep all their brushes. If you just give them a brush and ask them to brush at home, it just won't happen. So we actually will have them brushing right there under the Big tree. Also, twice a week we provide a hot meal to the poor. The kids are so precious and we pray we can make a difference in their lives - helping to improved their skills, their confidence, their hygene, and their faith.
We are also supporting the efforts of the Paradise Community Center and Worship in Paradise. The center is a place for the community to use and it gets people into the church that would not normally step into one. It is located in the heart of "party and sex central" of Puerto Vallarta.
I've been working on building a team of worshippers and soon we'll have 5-6 people on stage. We're also making plans for a Night of Worship, a few conferences and big Easter plans.

5. What do you see God doing there?
I see how God is bringing together people from all over the globe and positioning them to create a team of people that are ushering in God's presence to this area. There are many that have gone before us that have planted the fields and much work has already been done. There is much more, but their is a greater harvest coming. I see a few Community Centers being planted in areas where it seems impossible that there would be places of hope in the midst of. I see how God is putting all the pieces together in so many ways, the right equipment, the right places, the right people. It's truly amazing to see how He works.
I've personally experienced God giving me words in Spanish for people - words I didn't even know and looked up later to find out what they were. That is so cool. I've seen many kids with faces that light up every time we show up with food and for classes. I've seen hearts turn to God. I've seen God touch the hearts of people trapped in lifestyles that are causing them to die. He is on the move here and we're thankful to be a part of what He's doing. And that's just the tip of the iceberg.

Favor

2011-02-14T13:01:00.001-08:00

Well we just learned that someone has been making charges on Greg's ATM-Visa Card. Theft is a common thing here - cash and credit cards... and up until now we have totally been protected. Praise God.
And praise God we had just gotten another ATM card 2 months ago so we at least still have a way to get money here. And praise God, Greg caught it quick! It just happened yesterday so it looks like maybe only $1,000 in charges around the area. So lots of things to be thankful for here.

Please pray for favor with the banks as they are telling us they hardly ever approve disputes with ATM cards.

Both Greg and I have been sensing the spiritual warfare here the last week in particular so it's not odd that this would come at such a time as this. But our God is greater and He's already won the battle.

Whales

2011-02-14T06:13:00.000-08:00

We've been seeing lots of whales from shore here as we drive near the beach in the morning. It's pretty cool. They are so huge! Reminds me that God is the creator and who else could have created such majesty?

Work

2011-02-07T05:33:00.001-08:00

This man uses his crutch and attached a harmonica and percussion and makes some pretty cool music. He hobbles around the beach and performs. They do some real creative things here in Mexico to make money and this is just one example.

Look into the Sun

2011-02-07T05:33:00.000-08:00

I met a person today that couldn't sit and enjoy the beauty of this sunset The devistation in their life blocked them from seeing life from clear lenses. So an exhortation to any of you that check my blog. Relentlessly pursue the presence of God until you know Him and have Him. Look towards the Son with all you have and if there are lenses on your eyes blocking you from seeing the Son, if you can't see Him, if you have no joy and have so much hurt you can't get past it - seek help, seek prayer, seek freedom, - it's worth it. And if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.

Whirlwind

2011-01-28T21:09:00.000-08:00

I just returned from our trip to the States for the Worship leaders retreat in Estes Park, visit with family and a visit to our sending church in Canon City. It was a whirlwind as we came in and went from one place to the next.... but I loved it!! We had so much fun seeing all of those we did get to see and catching up. And now that we are back, I even feel refreshed and encouraged to continue pressing on to share the hope that we know through Jesus.

This is just a picture from a recent visit to the Circus- Mexico Style. Oh my gosh was it funny!! And only $6 a ticket.

Get Ready

2010-12-30T16:05:00.000-08:00

For the past number of years, we were challenged and felt led to pray about a scripture that we would stand on for the year. And each year, as we asked God to show us a place in scripture that we could continually stand on for that year, He has been faithful to give us one. This year, I was a little taken back when I got the scripture. I was getting ready to step in the shower and it just sort of hit me. When I got out of the shower I went to the word and looked up the scripture to make sure I had it right. And sure enough, it was Ephesians 6:14-15 "stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace." This is a passage all about warfare. If you read right before it, it talks about the day of evil coming and to do everything you can to stand your ground. Also, that our war isn't against flesh and blood but against powers of this dark world. So can you see why I was taken back? I was a little scared for a moment thinking of what might be coming this year that I would have to do everything I can to stand. And there was a war coming. And then I started letting my thoughts get the best of me... like have I done everything I can to be ready? And what else is there? And what's the war going to look like? Oh my thoughts started racing. Not sure if you've ever had that happen. But then.... Yes, but then... the scripture took hold instead of my emotions. It's all right there in the scripture. Isn't this what we look forward to? Isn't this what we pray for? Victory. And victories not of our own accord but deep rooted, Kingdom victories that are eternal. Lives transformed and made victorious and freedom gained through the prayerful effort of His people. So then I started to grow very excited about the scripture I get to stand on this year. Truth, righteousness and readiness... WOW! This year is going to be exciting and I can't wait for all that is to come.

May 2011 bring you a new revelation of the love He has for you! And may He empower you to make a difference in the lives of others.

Some prayer requests for 2011:
-continued direction for us and all the mission teams and organizations we are working with
-that all the non-profits and churches would work together
-for CompassioNet Impact, Homes and Family
-all the little girls we serve that care for babies instead of going to school
-the 50% + of abused women here that just seem to accept it because their culture does
-the men who are MIA in the family here (we had a Christmas service in the poor area only 3 men showed - but 150 kids and 60 women)
-the community centers that are being planted
-and some personal requests: friends for Annagrace and David, for all of our protection, for continued provision, and that our love for Jesus would grow even more!

A side note:
We also have the option now for people to donate online through Paypal. In the last email I sent, I apparently sent the wrong link and it didn't work. Here is the right one for those of you who asked. Thank you! There is a link on our blog page at http://swearingen-family.blogspot.com/p/our-mission-work.html or you can go to: https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_s-xclick&hosted_button_id=G85ZBMDAGZ3KU
God has been so faithful. Please continue to keep in touch - we love it!
And if you are thinking of coming to Puerto whether missions or vacation, let us know. We'd love to see you or help facilitate your trip.

Things We Take for Granted

2010-12-18T13:50:00.001-08:00

Today I had the privilege of serving food and loving on a very dirty 10 year old girl that takes care of her 11 month old baby brother. The mother of the baby is only 17 and goes to work and their parents work as well, so the 10 year old girl is momma during the days. I didn't get to find out why she doesn't go to school. But look forward to her coming again as we do the outreaches 2 days each week and she indicated she'd come again.

I have been guilty of taking so much for granted when I lived in the U.S. Like bathrooms, floors, roofs and clean water. Like aid and programs to refer single moms to, and trusting schools to provide education and resources that teach about hygiene, and diseases and germs. But my heart ached today to see this little mommy. Most of the 10 year olds I know in the U.S., whether rich or poor are talking about what they did in school, or saw on TV, or a new toy or game.

For those of you wondering about the girl that got a knife in her throat accidentalty, she is awaiting some reconstructive surgery, but she is doing well.

Thanks so much for your support while we are in missions. The impact we are making one person at a time is tremendous. We're doing an outreach this Sunday and anticipating 200 people. How exciting.

Foot

2010-12-04T15:45:00.000-08:00

Today, I spoke with a man that had a foot for a hand. I just asked him what happened and he said he was born that way. He functioned with it very well and made it work. I was amazed to watch him work and the joy regardless of the circumstances with which he lived with. He was a blessing to us!

Stop to Give Thanks Now

2010-11-25T09:49:00.000-08:00

We are overwhelmed at how you have encouraged, equipped and loved us through the years. With all of our faults and short-comings, crazy ideas and mistakes. Regardless of whether we've been good at keeping in touch or not, regardless of whether we sent you a gift or a card. To you-- we say Thank You!

We are so thankful to God for all the restoration and redemption He has done in our own lives and the lives of those around us. We are in AWE of how He works. After Jesus healed the lepers, one stopped and went back to thank Him - and if you haven't done that yet today - D O I T N O W! There has got to be something you can thank Him for. Some of you may have lots, some a little - but thank Him. We have seen so many more people here with nothing and they still have gratitude and thanks for the One who has provided it to them.

"One of them, when he saw he was healed, came back, praising God in a loud voice. He threw himself at Jesus' feet and thanked him..." Luke 17:15 Both Greg and I were on the ground this morning throwing ourselves at the feet of Jesus in gratitude and praise. We've given away and sold almost everything, and yet, we feel we have even more. How is that possible? Only with God.

Anyways - I could go on, but you have a lot to do, and so do I. And if you've not stopped yet to Thank God for all He has done - do it NOW.

Adios Amigos
With Much Gratitude and Thanks
Alicia & Greg

David's Birthday

2010-11-08T15:37:00.000-08:00

My Friend

2010-11-06T13:20:00.000-07:00

I just thought you'd appreciate this story. We were at Sallotrillo - future site of a community center and up came running this young man probably with Downs that I had not seen before. He just sat right down at our English class and wanted to be part of what we were doing. His teeth were so rotted and he had old food hanging from his mouth and teeth. But I just embraced him. He can't write. But we worked on drawing a line. He was so excited to try. He'd make a crooked line all over the page, and I'd affirm him, and he would just giggle in glee. He can't talk, but he would smile and hug. For a moment while Greg was teaching I was keeping him distracted and praying for him and it made me cry. I was so blessed to see him that day. He then followed us everywhere. So we went to take a family photo - he's in it. When we went to our car - he was there. His family came and were waving for him to come home, but he shook his head no and they went on and he just stayed with us until we had to go. You never know where God might touch your heart. Mexico doesn't have any special programs for the Physically/Mentally Handicap - they are generally just taken care of by family, the best they can.

intimacy

2010-11-06T09:01:00.000-07:00

I've been using this word a lot lately in the context of my relationship with God. I've been longing for intimacy with Him, desiring more of Him and aching to be nearer than ever. So I was just pondering on the word and got the bright idea to look it up. To be intimate means familiarity or something of personal nature. And intimacy is the act of being intimate. I love this definition "characterizing one's deepest nature." Oh how I want to know a deeper nature of God and for Him and others to know a deeper nature of me.

I see the word Intimate in the NIV only 4 times, and only once in the context of relationship with God. Job 29:4, "Oh,for the days when I was in my prime, when God's intimate friendship blessed my house..." Intimate friendship with God - how wonderful. There are synonyms of that word that are used numerous times in the Word - like belong, close and near. I want to be those things to God, and He with me. Psalms 139:3 says "that He discerns my going out and my lying down; and He is familiar with all my ways."

So I believe and have been living out, going to a new level of intimacy with God. And for me, that has looked like this.
-Being transparent to the point that I'm a little out of my comfort zone (But my comfort zone is exactly that "mine" meaning selfish and independent) and God calls us out of those places for Him
-Spending more time seeking Him by worshipping and being in His Word (pressing in more than ever before)
-And "not being conformed to the patterns of this world, but being transformed by the renewing of my mind," which in essence is continually taking thoughts captive and seeing if they abide in the truth of the Word

And so, that's been my journey as of late. I didn't set out to purposely do this - some was out of longing, some out of separation from what I had already known, and some of out desperation. And what I've found thus far, is that God is drawing nearer then ever, and I'm seeing a shift in my relationships with others as well. I'm closer to my husband and kids, and I'm seeing that also affect my relationships with other people. There is a new connectedness (if that's even a word) to others. And God is showing up in those places. Now that's good stuff!! I just wanted to share this with you as I believe this is foundational to the mission work that God is calling us to which is to "restore places long devastated." This area in Mexico is full of people who have hearts and lives that have been "long devastated," and God is longing to restore them. I'm humbled to be a part of whatever that looks like. (Isaiah 61). And I'm so thankful to partner with you in all that God is doing across the globe.

English Classes

2010-10-27T15:41:00.000-07:00

So our family is helping with English classes where a future community center is in the works. When I first went out to this outreach area to help with English classes, I thought "they need so much, how is this really helping them?" What I've discovered is if they can speak English as well as Spanish, they are much more likely here to get jobs. If they have more schooling, (past Middle School) - they are less likely to be involved in Domestic Violence and Abuse. So it seems that it is a big deal. It's one way we can help lift up a community in addition to sharing the saving grace of Jesus. Our family is involved. David plays soccer with the boys and then helps out with one group that Greg teaches. Annagrace and I work with the younger kids, playing games - and then have a class of older kids for English.

We also spent time yesterday with a man that is starting a safe home for women and children to escape the violent place they might live. He went to the social services department here and asked what the biggest need was. They told him that there is no Domestic Violence safe home in Jalisco (closest one being 6 hours away). He said - ok - "I can do that." And so he's now given his life and finances to making that happen. Anyways, we learned that of the 20% that they have statistics on here, over 50% report abuse in their home. It's common for fathers to prostitute out their children. Women are treated poorly. Alcoholism is a big problem, and thus so much violence in the family. So his ministry is called Compassion for the Family and we're praying about how we can support that ministry more. There is no help for these women and children, so most of the time, there is no where for them to go.

We have also been helping a man who just got his children back from the orphanage. He had been a drunk, and the wife left him and the kids when they were babies so they were taken to the orphanage. He's cleaned up his life, working and doing his best now to raise his kids. CompassioNet Impact was able to provide uniforms so the kids could go to school. So lots of good stuff happening here and we are humbled to be a part of it.

The Pee Story

2010-10-18T06:39:00.000-07:00

I was at The Paradise Community Center yesterday practicing for Sundays gathering and our car was parked right at the door where we could see it. A man walked up to it and from my angle it looked as if he were trying to get in. I said something to Greg and he ran back to check it out. Turns out the guy was drunk and peeing on our car. I was a bit mad and shocked at first - like how dare he. But then I was sort of glad - that we are in a place where there is much opportunity to bring Hope to people.

Our car was also spit on a few days earlier by a street vendor because we didn't buy his stuff.
It's really heart breaking - the people here are desperate.
Last week we went out to a poor community where it looks like we'll be going every week to help teach skills, feed, and love on the people. The community is mostly single moms - one girl in our class was only 17 and already had 4 children. She was such a beautiful girl who lives and only knows a culture where women are treated more like slaves. Pray God would help us to know how to equip and enable these women and children.

On another note it seems we've seen some shifting in the atmosphere here and the Kingdom is breaking through!

What We are Up To

2010-10-08T10:45:00.001-07:00

This week Greg went with a group of Pastors to check out a site where they were feeding a local community and doing a Bible Teaching for the kids. There is a group looking at land in the area to make an actual community center to serve these people.

The kids and I visited Madre Silva which is a community near the dump and here is a picture of Annagrace helping the kids play a game. She loved being the one in charge of the game. David mostly played water gun fight with some of the boys. And then we helped serve hot dogs. This was the first time Annagrace was out here and she couldn’t believe it when I told her these were their homes.

Oramos por Mexico

2010-09-30T20:22:00.000-07:00

Got to join in a prayer meeting of about 900 local Mexican people to pray for Mexico. It was neat to see their passion and hearts for God. Greg was out of town, but the kids went with me and we worshipped in Spanish. (the best we could). And what timing with all that is going on with the rains, floods, earthquakes and hurricanes. I had a few people email to ask if any of it was close to us. We did feel one of the earthquakes, but no damage. We have had much of the rains and the home we are staying out only flooded the yard. We are having to pump out the water into the street and we've been pumping for days now. I've never seen so much water. The hurricane hit Venezuala which is probably 20 hour drive away and the landslide is probably 15 hours away. There is 1 community maybe a few hours from here that were impacted heavily by the rains as well. In Puerto Vallarta, we lost a very important bridge, and the roads are a mess from the rains washing away gravel and pavement.

Storm

2010-09-27T20:28:00.000-07:00

Another doozy of a storm tonight with lightning right over us and thunder so loud the house shook. This storm broke my heart for all those living here that are living with mud floors and tin roofs or even those with no roofs. These storms are common during rainy season and I wonder How do they make it through it? Their homes have become mud pits, all that they have must get soaked. And then to dry out just to rain again. God bless those people.

Independence Day

2010-09-20T06:03:00.000-07:00

Here we are Celebrating with the locals their Mexican Independence Day. They had many activities last week to celebrate including parades, fireworks, bands, carnivals and dances. This was a little party our neighbor invited us to. It was great for the kids especially.

The Unknown

2010-09-15T10:52:00.000-07:00

I took the kids for a walk this morning as I needed to go to the market. We stopped at a little place to get breakfast. I asked in Spanish what they had to drink and I understood the reply very little. They gave me a sample of one thing and I ordered it although I have no idea what it was or what was in it. The other drink I thought I ordered was some fruit juice and I got back warm fresh carrot juice. The kids liked neither of them and asked for a Coke from the cooler. Not for breakfast "I said.". Then we went to the little market and I got to see a chicken get it's head cut off for the first time. So I'm a city girl and have never witnessed this stuff. Then we bought some fruit to try that we've never even seen before.

There are so many Unknowns in our world. We might set out expecting one thing and something altogether different happens. When Jesus came on the scene the leaders of that day were expecting an earthly king that would look like what they thought an earthly king would look like. But no - He ends up being an eternal King with a Kingdom that reigns in heaven and on earth. It was unlike anything they had ever seen. He was full of compassion and moved to serve. And He gave Of Himself fully.

The unknown we might walk into everyday. How exciting and what an adventure. Embrace it as an opportunity with a Kingdom that never fails.

earthquake

2010-09-14T16:48:00.000-07:00

Alright - Greg and I are fairly certain we just felt an earthquake. Something made the whole house shake. Anyone hear of anything in Puerto Vallarta?

Escuchame

2010-09-10T09:14:00.000-07:00

This morning I awoke with a word that I believe was from God. It was "Escuchame." Now in my Spanish lessons so far I have not learned this word and I had no idea what it meant when I got it. But before I share that - let me give you a little background to my day yesterday. I again was crying out to God. I've had many good days, but yesterday was not one of them. All of a sudden I was overwhelmed with grief, sorrow and hurt. All the things and people I'm missing came flooding back. Again, I was on my face, crying so hard I could hardly breathe begging God for help, as well as speaking to Him frankly (lamenting) about the way I was feeling and what I was hurting about it. As well as reading the Word for some hope.

We see in Psalms that David lamented to God and so it's a Biblical thing that I believe is okay to do. I've never been one to pretend like things are just great when they are not. So I go to God and lament until God gives me peace in a certain area. So anyways, this word "Escuchame," came to me right after that day. I looked it up in my Spanish to English translator and it simply means, "Listen to Me."

I did Bible research once on whether God was listening to 'even me.' Well this time I went to the word to research just that phrase. It is in the NIV version 59 times. I've included a link here so you can look to - it's good stuff.
http://www.biblegateway.com/keyword/index.php?search=listen%20to%20me&version1=31&searchtype=phrase&startnumber=26

So I'm not sure as of yet - exactly why He gave me that phrase, but I know that I'll be searching the Word and spending time in His presence to find out - and that's exactly where I need to be. Thanks so much for all your prayers.

Here's a few pictures from the last few days. It's been raining like crazy here. The state of Jalisco which Puerto Vallarta is in is trying to get "state of emergency" status from the government of Mexico as the rain has caused many bridges and roads to go out. The drainage systems here are poor so the streets become rivers. We have lakes in our yard. But hey - at least it's warm.

This picture is a main highway and it just collapsed.

What Do You Like?

2010-09-06T07:39:00.000-07:00

We've been here 3 weeks now and I've finally found some things I like. I've had to dig deep knowing the scripture says to give thanks in all circumstances but I couldn't pretend I was loving it when I wasn't. I tried to look for the best. But amidst some of the hard parts I have found that I REALLY love the warm weather. I actually sweat here and it feels good. I love that my skin isn't flaky from the dryness of Colorado. I love the Pinada drinks made of coconut and pineapple and I love their guacamole and salsas. And I do see that there are so many hurting people that don't know the love of a Father - and so, I am excited about all the opportunities we will have to share "Hope."
Greg loves that his sinuses have been clear!
And the kids LOVE the beach (I enjoy watching them have fun but I still haven't overcome my sand and wave issue). I trust that will come.

Anyways all this made me think of focusing on the things that are good right where we are at. We seem to live in communities that thrive on bad news. But look at your life right now where you are - isn't there something that you like?
What are those things?

Stray

2010-09-01T11:27:00.000-07:00

On a morning walk we came across a stray dog. There are many strays here. Yesterday we saw a dog across a fence in a field with bloody ears.
The kids especially are heartbroken to see how this culture seems to care for their animals. Not everyone I'm sure, but their seem to be so many. We have researched where to take strays now when we find them. The dog today we were able to lead to the front of our house to get it food and water and then it took off before we could get it in the car. The roads are so bad here that you the dog can surely run away faster than you can follow them. We prayed for these dogs.

It was quite an adventurous walk. I fell on some moss. It is so humid right now I just was walking on the sidewalk and caught a little patch of it and went down. I knocked into David on the way down and clocked him good in the face. I had to slide off the moss event get up. It's like pure ice. But we are all good and no bruises or black eyes for it. But it makes for a good story for our day.
When we set out on our days we never know what we might come across... The moral of that story is to embrace all that God brings our way with thanksgiving and of course to pray without ceasing.

Unexplainable

2010-08-29T14:09:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I was excited in a way I couldn't explain and when I awoke this morning the sense was still there. It was a feeling I can't explain - an expectancy for what God is doing and wanting to do and has already done.

The scripture that spoke to me is John 11:40 where Jesus says "did I not tell you that if you believe you would see the glory of God?". That something spectacular is going on. That when we press into Him and what He is doing- we see His Glory and I believe I sensed His glory in a new and fresh way today. In an unexplainable way.

Stuff is happening all over the globe. People are searching more than ever for truth and life. We just spoke and prayed with a man today who doesn't even know why he is alive, doesn't want to get up and just wants to be home with the Lord in heaven. After praying with him he had a new sense of hope. We had some good tears and healing tears. God is on the move everywhere. And I was reminded that I'm here in Puerto Vallarta because we were obedient to go where Love takes us. Be obedient to The Father and go where love takes you.

Our First Week

2010-08-17T14:55:00.000-07:00

I haven't written in a few days as I needed some disconnected time and time to dedicate to the kids. They got here on Saturday by plane and were escorted by my dear friend Tamara. We hugged them tight and we've been enjoying exploring Puerto Vallarta with them. Sunday we worshipped with the folks at the Puerto Vallarta Vineyard. They had balloons, cake and welcome sign for us (Bienvenidos) and we enjoyed getting to know some of the year round people. After church we hopped on over to the beach to let the kids play. Sunday night we enjoyed the beautiful sunset from on top of Vallarta with some new friends for dinner.

I am struggling a bit knowing what to get at the grocery store. I used to really watch my labels and try to buy healthier things, but here - I can't read the labels. So my shopping sprees so far have been little ones just experimenting with different foods. Today though, we ate at a Subway per David's request. He was begging for American food. It was good. Close to the same so it was a good break from all the local foods.

Yesterday, we went to a touristy kind of place called El Eden where you swing out on a rope over a river. David and Annagrace both did it over and over. Then we headed down to the beach to relax a little. We are really trying to take it easy these first 2 weeks as we worked hard right up until we left. But I do have to say, everywhere we go here, I am overwhelmed by the need, the poverty, addictions, health and conditions and have been asking God where to start. There is so much. But God does have all the resources and all the answers, and I know He will direct us mightily.

Tamara and I went for a walk this morning to scope the neighborhood around where we are living. We came upon a line of people outside about a mile long and it turns out it was for local kids registering for school. It started raining, and all these people came by bus or walked a long way to get their kids registered for school - it will be a half day to full day process to get them signed up - normal for around here. I finally found my camera so will get some good snapshots soon of the area.

We are house sitting while we are here at least for the first 11 months, so we have been getting accustomed to our new house and the things we have to take care of including 2 cats. Annagrace has bonded with Socksie the cat.

I'm headed off to take the kids for a little walk. There is a beat up tennis court a few blocks down I thought we'd explore.

We're a little more used to the bugs. We have mucho mosquitos, sugar ants, lizards and many unknown kind of bugs. The sugar ants are everywhere - Greg just eats them and drinks them. He told the kids that - and they both screamed "yuck." There are even some on my computer as I type this. But we also have beautiful flowers, trees and vines. Hasta la Juego.

A Few Sites A Long the Way

2010-08-13T10:51:00.000-07:00

A Few Pictures from our Drive

2010-08-13T10:43:00.000-07:00

Sunset picture

2010-08-12T06:42:00.000-07:00

Picture of the restaurant that was so good

2010-08-12T06:40:00.000-07:00

Wednesdays Road Journal

2010-08-11T20:21:00.000-07:00

We spent the night in Mazatlan, what a crazy busy place.

So I report the fun and adventurous and also the rough parts. Some reality of our move hit me this morning cause I woke up crying. Missing everyone and remembering all the reasons why I didn't want to move to Mexico in the first place. We aren't in Kansas anymore. People are so different, bathrooms are different, water is different. It's a lot different and it sunk in this morning. Greg just loves it and was so nice to me through all my tears.

Just the night before in a dream God gave me some song lyrics about Him being my "oasis," and my place of refuge. So the scripture that really spoke to me today came out of Deut 33:27 "the eternal God is our refuge and underneath are the everlasting arms." and that's what I'm resting on.

Then I spent an hour or so playing guitar while Greg adventured out to the bank and checked on our car. I felt much better after that.

One of the definitions of a sacrifice is to suffer loss or give up.
It has to cost something to be a sacrifice. So Romans 12:1 hits home here, "to offer your body as a living sacrifice, and this is my spiritual act of worship."

We totally got lost in El Rosario trying to find the toll road. Seemed like a cute little town, although very poor.
Had to go ask directions and sort of heard what the lady was trying to tell us in Spanish and we did make our way back to the highway but we never did find the toll road.

Saw some Ladies on bikes with high heels on. It's just not something I've seen in America. Ate at a place outside of Tepic that was a pit of a place, definately not up to FDA standards. But it was really really good. The chips they put on the table were whole fried tortillas and the salsa came in a ketchup jar. They gave us a basket of half limes on the table too. Greg had shrimp tacos all rolled up. I just had beans- but I'm not kidding- they were the best! Saw 6 trucks full of army looking fellas standing in the back of trucks. At least this time they weren't following us.

Near Tepic we pulled onto road to San blas. Beautiful winding roads and jungles. We thought we'd find a hotel there for the night but had to turn back because the roads were so curvey.

To get into Tepic and then between Tepic and Nuevo the roads reminded me of the Colorado Rocky Mountains with big hills winding around the mountains. Of course these mountains aren't as big but the scenery was breath taking and we'll have to explore more without a van full of stuff. The jungle was all around us and canopied over the road at many places. It even smelled beautiful and sweet. It felt like a little piece of heaven here on earth. There were also places of clouds/fog on the mountains where we could hardly see 100 feet in front of us. It was beautiful.

So the day started with me grieving my losses and ended with me seeing womderful glimpses of His beauty and why i like it here. It was a good day.

We found a cheap place in Nuevo Vallarta for the night. Greg took a dive in the ocean yet again. I just watched. I've got to warm up to this whole ocean thing. Beautiful lightning storm after that.

Road Journal for Tuesday

2010-08-10T12:20:00.000-07:00

Not as much wildlife today. Lizards and rats running across the road, cows and sheep along the roadside at times.

The town of Navajoa was a crazy place the whole main street was torn up so we couldn't get to any of the businesses there. It's a big city so we thought we'd stop at the bank and a restaurant there. But we had to detour through the whole town.

The last town we were in there were window washers at every stop light. As soon as we'd stop they would rush out and spray water on our windows before we could even blink and then expected us to pay them for the service we tried to say no to. They would do it even if we said no. (except once when we just had it done and then 50 feet later they tried again). This time I yelled no no no and waved my hands. They got the message. But I felt bad for yelling. In the states on the street corners they beg for money so it was nice to see them working for it here. Entreuprenial.

The places we have seen along this journey have been heartbreaking. The dwellings the people live in look like shanty towns we would have in the U.S. The equipment they have looks like stuff we would have put out of service a long time ago. Everything is old and dilapidated and has graffiti on it. It's rare to see something without graffiti.

My heart broke for the man selling peaches on the roadside in the hot sun. No shade and it's got to be in the 90's. I went for a 20 minute jog this morning at 6 am and had so much sweat pouring off me and was overheated for the next hour. So I know it's hot.

At breakfast they served us some green peppers. It looked like a bell pepper. Greg took a tiny bite and bent over in shock with his mouth open wide. He grabbed my tea and chugged it and then ran to the convenience store and chugged sprite. He was still complaining of burnt mouth even 30 minutes later. I guess it was hot.

We went through the security check point at Sinaloa and the officer asked us a bunch of questions and we had no clue what they were asking. Finally we found one thing we understood and told the officer where we were going and they let us through.

Thank you for your continued prayers on our road trip. God has been faithful.

Road Journal

2010-08-09T19:45:00.000-07:00

Our Mexico road adventure so far...
Had 1 car coming straight at us head on, 1 car literally stopped in front of us on 60 mph stretch, 1 car totally cut us off, we saw a Dead cow right off the road, Deer running across road in front of us and Police trucks right behind us after we crossed the border with police standing up in the back with machine guns.

And Some of the most disgusting bathrooms I've ever seen and they charged money for them. Next time it's a bush.

But... "He makes our path straight."

And we were totally blessed by getting lost to find the border crossing we weren't trying to go through and it ended up there was no one there. (so we got through all the red tape very quick) And We got green lights both times through customs, had no trouble when we were stopped at the border and the officer looked in our car.

Found a hotel in San Carlos on the beach that seems nice at the right price. And i even got to Skype our kids It's been a good day. Thanks for all your thoughts and prayers.

Family Picture

2010-08-09T18:05:00.000-07:00

Anxiety NOT

2010-08-09T11:38:00.000-07:00

A few thoughts from today's travels. First I was a little tense and
was thinking how I'd be so much better once we got through the border.
And then I'd be better once we reached our destination. And then God
reminded me of a talk I just so happened to share with the youth. The
2 main points were 1. Be faithful wherever you are now and 2. Worship
regardless.
So I was reminded of that and here I was getting caught up in the
destination instead of just embracing where I am on this journey. Greg
and I laughed about that for a long time.
But I know it's a continuous process for all of us to not worry about
what's to come, to avoid thinking and saying -"when this or that
happens then things will be better". So the both of us started
thanking God on our car ride and for our customs process and embracing
the road trip instead of just waiting until we arrived.

I mean hypothetically speaking what if we never arrive where we think
we are trying to get to? Then we would miss out on just enjoying the
journey. What if Joseph wasn't faithful when he was sold into
slavery? He may never have been entrusted to more and eventually put
in charge of all of Egypt.
"Be anxious for nothing," and that means nothing.

FYI - people just stand on the speed bumps in the middle of the street
selling stuff from birds to tortillas to peaches to nuts.

The Scoop

2010-08-05T06:54:00.000-07:00

Some new folks are checking our blog so I just wanted to do a current
update of what we are up to.

Back in May we felt called to move to Puerto Vallarta Mexico to join
in the efforts of CompassioNet Impact and Worship in Paradise. We have
basically quit our steady paying jobs and comfy, more secure life
styles for an adventure to reach out to those in need in Puerto
Vallarta. We have entered the world of totally trusting God to provide
for us.

Some people tell us we're nuts, some think it's exciting, some can't
wait to visit and a few are glad to see us go (hopefully not too
many). We will keep you posted via this blog or you can sign up for
our monthly newsletter at http://eepurl.com/lNgj.

A few of the things we will be doing in Puerto Vallarta are as follows:
1. Vacation On Purpose - if you are planning on visiting Puerto and
would like to join up with a mission team or project for a day, let us
know.
2. Hosting numerous mission teams and coordinating projects and
outreaches including building homes, bookmobile, small business
training and loans, clean water for those in the dump community,
outreach cookouts and help for broken families
3. Serving with Worship in Paradise in numerous ways including
organizing conferences, building/training a band and serving alongside
of the Lehman's in whatever will bring hope to the people
4. And playing with the kids on the beach!

There is much to do and we are so thankful God has broken our hearts
for the people there. We're excited to see what happens as we step out
to serve. We will keep you posted.

If you are interested in partnering with us in our efforts we are
looking for those that might commit to supporting us on a monthly
basis, whether $10 or $1000. Donations are tax deductible and can be
sent to:
Vineyard
245 So. Raynolds Ave.
Canon City, CO. 81212
Note for Swearingen missions

If there is something we can be praying about for you, please let us
know!

TTT

2010-08-04T07:11:00.000-07:00

TTT stands for Totally Tired Tuesday because we were wiped out
physicall and emotionally. It's been an amazing few days. Sunday we
celebrated our last day with the Vineyard in Canon City and were so
honored by all your love and blessings. Thank you. The baptism send
off party was soooo very fun. It's not just about what God is doing in
us, but all of us as He advances His Kingdom here on earth.
And it blessed us big time to get to pray for some of you. Some of our
highlights for the day:
-seeing a few homeless ladies join in the festivities, falling in love
with Jesus and getting baptized.
-praying for freedom for one lady that had been experiencing tight jaw
for years and seeing her freed up
-getting to speak life and words into some young people that God is
calling into missions
-and all the cards and words (muchas gracias)

Monday we spent the day packing and were able to head out of Canon.
When it was time to leave, David and I cried. It Is hard to leave what
we love and know. But after a good cry, we were ready to move forward
into what God is calling us to.

Greg and I were sooo tired Tuesday and rested a lot. But today we are
starting to feel rejuvenated and just wanted to thank all of you for
your prayers, encouragement and love!!

Keep in touch!! We want to hear about all God is doing in each of
you. Blessings
David, Annagrace, Alicia and Greg Swearingen

A Smiley Face

2010-07-30T14:18:00.000-07:00

I had a whole set of "Willow Tree" statues and I gave them all away except for one that was the most special to me. It was a lady standing up, with no face and she held a single red rose. She represented love and there was just something about her that I had to keep it. Anyways, in the midst of packing, the kids have had to get a little creative in their play and the other night, Annagrace came over holding the statue. She said "look mommy, I gave her a face." She had taken a black pen and added 2 little eyes and a smile. Part of me wanted to cry and the other part of me wanted to burst out laughing. In my confusion I remained sort of frozen. Annagrace seemed so proud that she had done something for me by adding that smile. Later that night, I realized how precious that smile was on that statues face. I like it even more now. It represents the joy that my daughter brings me, and the journey we are on. It's not about the destination, but about the trip. And we don't want to miss what God has for each of us wherever we are at on the way.

It's Almost Time

2010-07-23T12:01:00.000-07:00

So the last few days the reality of our upcoming adventure has hit. We
had our 4th garage sale and then gave everything else away. As we
boxed the last of it up, it was like I saw a lifetime of stuff going
away. Almost all that we own... Gone. Come August 1st our jobs...
Done. I had a good cry and it really felt good too. Now looking
forward to the adventure to come and all God has for His people. And
we are freed up to be and go where He is moving. How fun! Well at
least it sounds fun and adventurous. I'm sure there will be much
challenge and growth too.

The reality of having to say "so long," to all our friends and
family... Is here. One wise young lady reminded me just yesterday that
it's not "adios," but rather "hasta la juega," which means, it's not
goodbye but See You Later.
I dont like saying goodbye so that really spoke to me. We will see
you again whether it's in the flesh in Mexico, whether it's a visit
from us back to the states or whether it's in Eternity - we will see
you again.

Our last Sunday in Canon City is August 1st. The Send Off party is
1:00 pm at Centennial/Duck park. We are looking forwarding to lots of
hugs!

Needs

2010-07-18T07:43:00.000-07:00

Well we had our last garage sale. Our 4th one. At the end we had
invited a few more people to come who would really be blessed by
recieving some free stuff. And then New Horizons came and collected
the rest. As we were boxing up the last items the reality hit and I
just wanted to ball. But we were too busy. (but I did have a good cry
later). It was the reality of almost everything we have being gone.
Things that were once so special to us. And then also the thought of
'now what?'. What will we do in Mexico when we need this or that.

But God gave me a verse from Philippians 4:19. "my God will supply
every need of mine according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus."
Why would I let worry creep in? He has got us covered and He will
provide for our needs when they arise.

Thanks to all of you who have supported us through this, come to our
sales, moved stuff, taken stuff, let us store stuff, etc. It's not
about the stuff... "our commonwealth is in heaven." Phi 3:20

A Place for Us

2010-07-11T19:22:00.000-07:00

We are just pulling in from Puerto Vallarta and we had quite a world
wind trip looking for a place to stay. We looked in different areas
looking for what might suit our family but also wondering where God
would have us.

We finally settled on a place in the Marina by Saturday night sort of
by process of elimination but it still was more than we wanted to
spend so we thought we should wait and pray.
The next day we learned that the Vineyard Pastor and his wife in
Puerto, Ric and Joy, got a call from a friend who is leaving for a
year and needed someone to watch their 3 bedroom house and care for
their 2 cats. And for that we would get half off the rent. Wow.

We rushed there on our way to the airport to look and it is a safe
home with enough space, a yard for the kids, an extra room for family
or friends, a yard, a park down the street, within what we budgeted
and it's nice. Praise God. We felt like this was the direction and
are waiting for some paperwork to wrap up the details.

Had we not looked at all those other places we wouldn't have know what
a deal and blessing this one was when it came. And we sure had fun
looking. And met a lot of nice people too.

Cool Stuff

2010-07-08T09:35:00.000-07:00

We just found out that Greg would have to sell his Blazer as it was
too old to take to Mexico. I guess if it is older than 8 years the
Mexican government won't allow you to bring it in. Not sure what the
reasoning is. Greg was pretty heartbroken. He had sort of a thing for
his Blazer. He loves the mountains and this was his first 4 wheel
drive vehicle in his life so he could get further back in the woods.
But the cool part is once he resolved that he had to "let go" of his
car, it sold the next day. A friend of ours had called the church
yesterday to report his car had broken down and someone told him that
we had one for sale. Turned out he already had the funds set aside
that was what we were going to ask. On the test drive, they drove to
the bank. Wow. We didn't even have to put a sign in the window.
I honestly thought it would take a long time to sell as I have never
really liked that car. But I guess it's a guy thing.

Anyways God is so good and continues to show us that everything is His!!

Free to Move

2010-07-04T13:44:00.000-07:00

I've always enjoyed the excitement of a move, the adventure of change
and the thoughts of the unexpected. I don't usually like some of the
details like moving furniture, eating pizza/fast food and not being
able to find any of my stuff. So far our house is still liveable with
beds, kitchen table and couches. What else could we need?

There are many days where it feels so good that we are freeing
ourselves up from the stuff so that we are more free to move where God
is calling us.
What ties you down from going where God is calling you to go and doing
what God is calling you to do?

Heartbeat

2010-06-12T10:22:00.000-07:00

I was sharing with Greg last night that when I'm confused, stressed, thinking about too many things or can't make a decision - that I like to lay my head on his chest and focus in on listening to his heartbeat. If you've never done this, you really have to focus in. I can't talk, Greg can't talk - I can't be thinking about anything else, but just focusing in on listening to his heartbeat. If you've never tried it, you should. It's amazing.

But then take that focus and compare it to focusing in on God. Sometimes we let everything drown Him out. We get busy DOING stuff instead of just listening and being in His presence. When we take the time to really listen and be with Him... all else falls into perspective.

What's Next To Do

2010-06-11T06:02:00.000-07:00

This statement from Oswald Chambers has been resonating In my heart
and mind the last few days. "it is much better to fulfill the purpose
of God in your life by discerning His will than it is to perform great
acts of self-sacrifice. Beware of paying attention to or going back to
what you once were, when God wants you to be something that you have
never been.".
Greg and I have been talking about this topic as well as it seems so
simple and can yet be so challenging. The simplicity is just seeking
the Father's will. Seeing what He is doing and putting our hand to it.
"now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do
them.". The difficulty is not so much doing and striving and making
decisions of our own accord - as that is how we have been raised in
this culture.

May we all be discerning of His will that He has purposed for each of
our lives and press on. Not for status, or promotion, or money or
fame- but for the prize. Phil 3:14

So what is next to do? Nothing but hang out with the Father. Enjoy a
relationship through Jesus. A heart-to-heart relationship.

Blown Away

2010-06-06T22:36:00.000-07:00

I am just blown away how God orchestrates things. It was heavy on my
heart this week that I was supposed to introduce this song called
"Born" this week for our Sunday gathering. I knew Greg was sharing on
the first temptation of Jesus and I wasn't sure why that song would be
a fit as the lyrics talk about what we are born to do. Anyways,
Saturday night he told me he was leaning towards more of an identity
message. So on Sunday morning after I heard him talk it totally made
sense. It was about knowing who we are and our identity as followers
of Jesus no matter what is going on around us And that is what "Born"
is about. We are called to worship, to sing and to shout- when things
are great or when they are tough. And so we proclaim it.
And I was so blessed today to share this song that I believe was a
"download from the heavenlies.". It was a big step of faith for me to
share, and I am humbled that Mike K and Scotty K believed this song
was of God and have been working on an audio version of it.
It is God who determines the life, the breath and the audience of a
song. And whether this was a one time thing or one that is played many
times to come, only He knows. And regardless, I praise Him. And
regardless I was blessed today to share it. Thank you for letting me.

Sent with warm regards
Alicia Swearingen

Garage Sale

2010-05-18T05:53:00.000-07:00

I'm gearing up to get rid of stuff. It's amazing how much we collect through the years. As I go through drawers and closets - I just think to myself, "where did we get all this?" Anyways, the garage sale is this Friday from 9 am - 2 pm if anyone is interested in bringing stuff over to sale or you are interested in shopping, you are welcome. All proceeds go to none other then "missions." :-)

Bad Hair Day

2010-05-11T19:06:00.000-07:00

Oh - I had such a fun morning. I got this thought that I'd highlight my hair this morning. It just sounded good. My hairs looking a little shabby so why not. I stopped at the store for a highlighter kit and bought one that had some fancy cap with it. I get home and put this cap on and it has hundreds of little holes in it that I am now supposed to use a special knitting tool to reach through the hole and pull a little strand of hair through. After a half an hour, I got barely a half of one side of my head done. And then I start wondering how I would even get the back. I text Greg to see if he can come home for a little bit to help me. What a kind man he is. I looked like a complete spaz with all these little strands of hair sticking out. But at this point, I'm not bailing on this whole thing. I've got $10 and time invested. And I'm sure I'm going to look like the picture on the box, right?? So Greg does the back for me. "Does this hurt?" he would say as he yanked the hair through the little hole. I tried real hard not to scream or cry, cause it sure did hurt - but I also needed his help, had my $10, my time, his time and my pride all involved. And then Greg and I just broke down laughing, the 'almost pee-your-pants' kind of laugh. Anyways - we made it through. I don't know who came up with this technique for highlighting, but I can surely tell you I'll never do it again. It ended up being a 2.5 hour process (I guess I have a lot of hair) - and the end result - it doesn't look like I even had my hair highlighted.

Well the other day, I prayed for more laughs and joy and after this whole incident - I thought - hmmm - God sure has a strange way of bringing laughter. But I'm so thankful for it and how He can surprise us even in the most of mundane activities. I got another good laugh tonight as I had cut Greg a piece of cake and turned around and set it at the table where he sat. The look on his face was classic, he seemed almost speechless - there was this tiny little bite there. When I noticed what he was seeing, I looked down on the ground and busted out laughing yet again. Somehow in transit the cake fell off the plate and I hadn't even noticed. It made a big mess, but it sure was funny. Greg thought I really jipped him by giving him this tiny piece of cake, or that I was sending him a message he needed to drop a few pounds. We all had a good laugh over it. haha mommy spilled

We have such a fun God. "The joy of the Lord is my strength."

A Day

2010-05-08T17:31:00.000-07:00

What a beautiful day. My daughter and I spent some much needed time together. The children's art museum, lunch, music, a boat ride and even some ice cream. She is such a joy! Greg and David headed to Denver to spend some much needed time with his family. It's been sort of an emotional week with sharing the news of our move. Especially for me. God has been so faithful though to speak clearly to us regarding this direction. I'll share more later on some of our journal notes on how this all transpired. But today with Annagrace, I was realizing how easy it is to get too busy to enjoy the small things. Not just small things - but the things that bring us joy. I've gotten away from that the last few weeks with thinking about all the things that need to be done, when I really should be playing more with my daughter. :-)

Glorious Riches

2010-01-27T18:29:00.001-08:00

God is so faithful. I spoke with a man yesterday who had shared with
me the financial debt he was in and now shared the true blessing and
favor God lavished on Him. And again I wonder why I ever would doubt
His provision.

So I feel like He's calling me to move forward with producing a cd
which is totally crazy to me. For many reasons. First, why? I mean
why would I do that as there are enough cd's and enough artists out
there. Secondly, I certainly don't have the means or skill. The means
meaning it cost 20,000-30,000 to do it right. The skill meaning there
are thousands of others with more talent. As I was wrestling with God
about it I heard "that's not for you to know all my reasons, just to
be obedient."

I do know God downloaded these songs. I've always thought they were
just for me but He calls us to be good stewards of what He gives us.
And so He's trusted me to get out His Word through song and to reach
people with the message of hope and justice through the means of
worship. So be it. I submit to your call Lord. All this seems like
much work and I'm still not clear on how or what. But I just read from
Philippians 4:19 that "my God will meet all my needs according to His
glorious riches.". All means all, right? So if He calls us to do
something, we go, we do and we trust Him to meet the needs out of His
glorious riches.

May I hear clearly in all God is speaking to me. May all I do be of
Him and for Him. May the songs He's written through me be a fragrant
offering, an acceptable sacrifice, pleasing to God."

Press On

2010-01-26T07:24:00.001-08:00

Today Greg was out of town and I had such a tough time getting up.
Which meant it was tougher for the kids. Anna cried a lot. Her hair
wasn't just right, her shoes were too tight and I confronted her on
not cleaning her room and telling me she did. (Not the best timing on
my part) But We got to school on Time and here I sit at the cafe with
tea and bagel in hand seeing something new from Gods word yet again. A
passage I've read a million times and the one God gave me to stand on
for the year. Phillipians 3:12-14 "not that I have already obtained
all this or have already been made perfect but I press on to take hold
of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me.". WOW
You mean He took hold of me? I love that. He not only drew me to
Himself He took hold of me. And so why wouldn't I press on to take
hold of that for which He took hold of me for. Meaning He has a plan
for me and took hold of me for that very purpose. And that purpose is
in that same scripture "to win the prize for which God has called me
heavenward in Christ Jesus.". My purpose and my goal is to seek Him
fully. That is why He took hold of me. That is the prize to press
towards. That is clarity in purpose. I love my Papa God and how He
speaks to me (and all of us) through dreams, vision, people and His
Word. It's priceless.

2008 year in review

2008-12-31T16:22:00.000-08:00

It is so good to reflect on where we've been and all that God has done this year. In the story of David, many times he reflected back on the last victories and all God had done. He remembered when God delivered him and no matter what the new circumstances he continued to trust in God's soveriengty. I personally was griping the other day that not enough was happening and I wanted to see more miracles. But Greg and I started sharing on all that's gone on this year for us personally and then as a staff at the Vineyard, we reflected on all God has done in our midst this year and I was completely in awe. Reminded of His victories, His hand healing, delivering and moving. We so often look at the new battles or ponder on what's not happened, or the economy, or the gloom of the darkness on this earth. Oh - but there is so much God is doing to bring His heaven here on earth. When we reflect on all He has done, the hope and joy stirs in our hearts. And I praise God for the reminder.

Here are some of my highlights of this year - some small, some big - but obviously enough to mention as a highlight for the mere fact that God's presence was manifested in some way.

1. This summer, Annagrace and I went up to Pueblo to go to the Spiritfest. I sat there with my 5 year old daughter worshipping God. I remember just weeping as I watched her enjoy the music and play giddily along the riverwalk. God blessed me so much with this little girl. She brings me great joy.

2. This summer I had a break from VLI and God burned on my heart some songs. I am not a songwriter, I'd never written a song before and a dozen came gushing out. As I sing them even today, I weep. God gave me a gift as they so minister to me. I usually can't get through them all. This is a reminder to me that with God all things are possible and He is a God of miracles.

3. I have been honored to be married to a man that has sought God faithfully. This year I watched him graduate from VLI and be ordained as a pastor. I never thought I'd be married to a pastor. And Greg has grown so much. What a blessing to see Him walk with God in this journey. God sure knew who I needed by my side.

4. I have had the honor of praying with many ladies this year. Prayers of healing and deliverance. I can't express the miracles I've witnessed God do in ladies lives. Women that have gone through unbelievable pain, that are finding a God that does hear their cry. But I'm also amazed that God used each of those times and ladies to touch my own heart and life.

5. I had the delight of sharing a special tea time with my mom. In the busyness of kids, marriage, school and ministry I have not spent much alone time with my mom. So although it was only 3 hours one afternoon, it is time I'll always treasure. It was a time for me to apologize to my mom for all the times I've made choices that might have caused her pain. She is a wonderful woman. We cried, we shared.

6. Another highlight is working alongside all the staff, leaders and volunteers that are "doing the stuff.". I am constantly blown away how God has used so many to do His work. I am constantly learning and growning from each of them. We are doing life together, encouraging each other, being there and being transparent.

7. Our trip to puerto vallarta was a blessing. We got to spend time with family and enjoy family time as our act of worship. We truly can be worshipping wherever we are and in whatever we do. We celebrated Greg's parents 50th wedding anniversary. What a feat in this day and age. And what an example they have been for us. Greg, myself and David hooked up with the Pastor from the Vineyard there to do an american football outreach with another team that was there. We had so much fun just hanging out with the locals playing football. I just watched and talked to the younger kids on the sidelines. (Well I got to practice my Spanish.)

8. Lunch with a friend just at the right time was a blessing this year. I was dealing with something that was difficult and stretching for me. And right then I had a friend bring me lunch, hug me, listen and smile. She didn't know anything that was going on, but God sends us people to show us His love.

9. My business trip to Philadelpia was awesome. I used to travel alone all the time for work and have always enjoyed to travel. It seemed though that God used this trip to speak to me much about pressing forward, about engaging with the lost more than ever. He gave me dreams with full blown color and beauty like I've never seen. Also, while I was there, I had the opportunity to view some of America's history in the Liberty Bell, and the Constitution Center. I wept over and prayed over our country - where we've been and where we are headed.

10. I come to number 10 and not one thing comes forth but rather many. There is really too much in one year that God has done, it just all can't be expressed in a top 10 list. But I leave you with one last thought for 2008. I grew up not knowing Jesus - and then after I gave my life to Him in 95 there were numerous times I still doubted Him or something in God's Word. But I can tell you without a doubt that I have felt His presence, seen His glory and been touched by His love. He is so God and we are so not. Does He do miracles today? Yes. Does He answer prayers today? Yes. Does He heal today? Yes. Can we really know Him? YES! Spend 2009 seeking Him out and He will show you a life you've never dreamed.

His kingdom come!
Blessings in 2009, Alicia

Sent via BlackBerry by AT&T

Merry Christmas From the Swearingens!

2008-12-04T19:14:00.000-08:00

Greetings and blessings to you this joyous Christmas season. We thank God for each of you and for the many blessings in our lives throughout this 2008 year. As usual we try and re-cap our year in case we weren't able to keep in touch with each of you.

We just returned from a family trip to Puerto Vallarta, Mexico to celebrate Greg's parents 50th wedding anniversary. We enjoyed spending time with family, the warm weather and boogy boarding in the waves. We also were able to join in a few outreaches with the Puerto Vallarta Vineyard. There were 17 of us in all.

We didn't travel much this year out of state, but rather stayed in town and enjoyed the mountains and Fort Collins. Alicia went to Philadelphia for the national NATLE conference and loved seeing the history of America there.

We'll go youngest to oldest. Annagrace is now 5 and brings so much laughter to our home. She loves playing tea, gymnastics and playing with friends. She started half day kindergarten this year at Four Mile Christian school and loves it! We asked what she wanted to tell you all and she said "I love toys."

David is 8 now and in 2nd grade at Four Mile. He likes recess and P.E. - sounds familiar. His love is football and he turns just about any place into a football field. He also likes to read and play leggo's. He says to ask him 8 times 8, cause he knows that.

Amanda is now 24 and celebrated her 1 year wedding anniversary to Brandon Stephens this August. They've moved a number of times this year. Brandon has been a great addition to the family and seems to take care of our daughter pretty well. She graduated in May from Colorado Christian University with a degree in Psychology.

Alicia won't say her age - everyone thinks she still looks in her 20's so we'll just leave it that way. She enjoys spending time with family and friends, reading, praying for people and worshipping/guitar. She's been busy this year with VLI - which is the Vineyard seminary and will be graduating in early April. Her summer break was spent helping launch the Pueblo West Campus.

Greg's the oldest in our family so he's last, but definately not least. He's getting funnier the older he gets - go figure. We sit around the dinner table and try and make each other laugh, and he has been winning a lot lately. He bought these totally goofy football slippers and let lots of people dunk him at the summer Vineyard picnic.

He's had a busy year as well. He was officially ordained in March and was the Associate Pastor at the Canon City Campus Vineyard. But then, God put it on our hearts here in Canon to help the Pueblo Vineyard and so he was made the Campus Pastor there, while remaining Executive Pastor in Canon. We still live in Canon but drive to Pueblo a few times each week. We have enjoyed getting to know our new friends in Pueblo, while getting to stay close to home with our old friends. It's like God is blessing us double!

We thank you all for your support, encouragement and prayers. Please keep in touch! Our contact info is:

Greg 719-289-1371 greg@vineyardlive.org

Alicia 719-289-0458 alicia@vineyardlive.org or alicia@data-deliver.net 866-225-1289.