Hallway

Same hallway : 2 different pictures

Breakfast Room

Tio Josué, Esther, and Leslie

Master Bath

Yes, that is a wirlpool!

Our Bedroom

Just mine until October when Leslie and I get married.
Currently I'm sleeping on a pallet blankets on the floor.

Guest Bath

Before Cleaning

Living Room

Living Room (otherwise known as the cathedral)

Dining Room

The dining room right as you enter the house.

New Apartment! & Pics Coming

Tuesday we received a green light from the Lord, and Leslie and I rented our first apartment (which will be for me until we get married on October 7 here in Torreón). Our landlady is from an Arab family that is super nice. It turns out that even though our apartment is not in the same city, Cecilia (our landlady) attends a Bible study in the home of one of the members of the congregation in Lerdo.

(Click here for a map of the area)

Another exciting fact is that last month our pre-marital counselors looked at and considered the same apartment. They own a Christian bookstore in Gómez Palacio across the state line, and our landlady has been to their store. When Leslie and I rented the apartment, we didn't know about any of these connections! Crazy considering that we live in a metroplex of over 1 million people!

The apartment is way beyond anything I had ever dreamed of living in, and the price was the same as that of many other tiny places we had seen that were much less luxurious. God had an awesome blessing in store, and we praise his name. Thank you for your many prayers.

I am taking some of Leslie's batteries to my apartment today to take some pictures so that hopefully I can have some up for you tomorrow. I think you'll be impressed.

Prayer for Health Needed

I ask for your prayers for my health over the next few days. I have had a respiratory infection that started a week ago, and I began taking an antibiotic to knock it out. The antibiotic apparently has not had effect and my doctor says I should have already been well. I am going to begin taking another antibiotic today that is stronger to see if we can overcome. Most of all we ask the Great Physician to heal and restore complete health. Thank you for your prayers and concern.

A Sandy View

This is a view of Sam's Club across the boulevard from Leslie's house during a sand storm. They are pretty mean around here.

El Vado Turned Rio

Here in the region of the Laguna, there is a dry riverbed that divides the two largest cities of this metroplex, Torreón and Gómez Palacio. The call a dry riverbed "un vado", and my guess is that this comes from the Arabic word "wadi" for a dry riverbed. The bed of the Rio Nazas is quiet wide, and soccer fields and basketball courts have been developed side-by-side along the length of the vast area.

Several months ago I saw a large photo at Mc Donalds of the Rio Nazas full of running water. They say this happens once every 40 years or so. Since that day I have said with a prophetic tone that I would see that day come soon when water would flow in that river.

Well, I am here to tell you that that dry sand is soaked from the recent rains and water is standing throughout parts of the no-longer dry river bed! I praise God for the abundant rain he has sent to this region.

Concluding House Search Soon

Leslie and I have been looking for a house for almost a week-and-a-half and I have completely worn myself out. I am trying to rest this afternoon to get over a case of laryngitis. Hopefully I can make a deal on a house in the next day or two and move on to other things.

For the last two Sundays I have been working with children at Leslie's church. Until I have a base of new Christians to start a new congregation in Torreón, that will be my home church. There were 34 children in my class today! but at least we had five teachers to help out.

In a few minutes Leslie's small group comes over for Bible study and fellowship. I'm going to go help get ready for that. May God shower his riches graces and mercies upon you through his Spirit.

More Rain in the Desert

It has been raining here quite frequently here still in the desert. It has been really nice because it makes the afternoons and evenings a little cooler, but quite muggy.

Leslie and I are just about to choose a house. We are down to two options and hopefully tomorrow we will be able to close a deal. Once I get settled in and find my battery charger, I'll be able to take pictures and let you see a little bit of my new world here.

I went to the university today and met with the university president. He was telling me of good memories with my grandfather and my mom's family. He also said that they are wanting to change some of my classes and give me classes in the afternoon in their new developing language center that will offer classes to the community.

This will be an excellent way to establish contacts for future evangelism. I have to spend time getting to know people and learning culture here before I can be an effective missionary.

Pray that God will begin preparing the cultivating the hearts of the my students and colleagues, and that he will open my eyes to opportunities to minister. We want God's reign to come along with the rain he has sent!

Rodeo Up!

Last night Leslie and I went with several friends to a "charreada" (similar to rodeo). It was really neat. The grounds are beautiful, and the place is adorned with typical Mexican decorations. Most of the events are much like events you would see at a typical rodeo in the U.S., but some are completely different.

Some of the guys wore traditional Mexican sombreros, and others wore Texan cowboy hats. There was a charreada band, and they seemed to enjoy themselves like we used to in the rodeo band, but the music was very traditionally Mexican of the cowboy lifestyle. It seems like every song had the same beat and melody, just different lyrics.

I wish I had taken my camera!

I Have Moved

Just to let everybody know, I have successfully moved to Mexico by God's grace! Last night the trip was a little treacherous because there were floods in the desert. I had to stop for more than out hour in one small town because the water was flowing 5 feet deep over the road. Once it finally got down to 2 feet, people started driving carefully across, and I followed.

When I got to Torreón at 1:00 am, they had had floods as well, and the main thoroughfair was covered with about 12" of water. I carefully drove through the many blocks of the southern half of the city. It felt like I was in a boat again, except when I saw a terrible wreck that reminded me of my terrestrial grounding just below the water.

The sun is shining again here, and steam rises from the streets. The trees and plants are raising their boughs to the One who gave them a much needed drink. Let us join them and praise God for watering this thirsty desert.

Elk in the Highlands of Tecuán

Elk at camp in Tecuán.

These elk don't have to worry about their lives, they are protected.

Last Day in US

Today I am finishing up packing and storing the belongings that I won't take. Some things I will just give away. I hope to finish tonight and take off tomorrow morning on a new adventure and new life in Mexico. I begin teaching on August 14, and Leslie and I plan to get married at the beginning of October. Big changes are in store!

Taking Back Torreón

TAKING BACK TORREÓN FOR CHRIST

Dear Partners in the work of Christ,

The Mission

You have a new opportunity to participate in the advance of the Lord’s kingdom in the foreign field. Torreón, México has been targeted as the sight of a new church plant by the Christian Community of the Laguna, a congregation of the Lord’s church in Lerdo, where my fiancée serves as director of children’s education. The metropolitan area of the Laguna includes the cities of Torreón, Gómez Palacio and Lerdo with a total of close to one million people.

Christian Community in Lerdo has a strong, healthy congregation of 500 members that reaches the cities of Lerdo and Gómez Palacio, but now, in its 16th year the congregation is strategizing to establish a new congregation in Torreón, the largest of the three cities. The preacher invited me to participate in this ministry with six members of the Lerdo congregation earlier this year, and the Lord has opened the door for me to go teach in a local university starting in August.

This opportunity would allow me to connect and develop relationships with students, faculty and their families while gradually starting group Bible studies. The objective is to form a congregation in Torreón after the first new believers are baptized, and equip them to minister in the power of the Spirit back to their families and friends. I will be working together under the guidance of the ministers and elders there. By God’s power and guidance, you and I can reach this city.

My Job

I will be working mornings at the Autonomous University of the Laguna teaching English, and in the afternoons and evenings I will dedicate time to evangelism, Bible studies, and eventually leadership training. I look forward to your participation and continued communication. Exciting things are in store!

How Can You Help?

1. Prayer Partners – we need partners who will be dedicated to pray regularly for the lost in the city God has called us to, our financial provision, and for our ministry.
   
2. One-time Financial Gifts – one-time gifts are needed to help with my move and transition from Abilene to Torreón.
   
3. Monthly Financial Support – for those who are called to give on a regular basis, we have a monthly need of $1,750 to cover personal expenses over the next year.

Checks can be sent to the Kingdom Advance School of Ministry with a note attached setting the funds aside for Brian Hailey. Please do not write my name directly on any part of the check.

Thank you for your love and participation,
Brian Hailey

Return address:

Kingdom Advance
P.O. Box 3504
Abilene, Texas 79604

Mexican Pine Forests

The lush mountains of the state of Durango in Mexico are MARVELOUS! My parents came to visit Leslie and me in Torreón, and we traveled to an encampment (Tecuán) in the mountains about 5 hours west of Leslie's house. The cool thing is that my mom remembers all of this area from when she was a kid. Just a few miles away from Tecuán is where my mom's family got their "chichimoco" or chipmunk. He was their pet for several years.

Desert Watered Down

I am writing from a rainy spot in the desert. I have been here in Torreón for a week now, and it has rained several times. With the rain have come more comfortable termperatures, and that is wonderful because it is usually like an inferno here in this part of Mexico during the spring and summer. I have some beautiful pictures that I have loaded on my comptuer, but I haven't been able to connect it to the internet in order to post them. I also took pictures of a dust storm blowing through before all the rain. It is really impressive to watch a dark shadow come over the earth. You can see half of the picture clear and the other half dark with sand.