December 23

Hi everyone.  The years is almost over. How quickly it has passed! Since our last blog we have been super busy with one activity after another at the church. The two main events however were the last two Sunday services. Each Sunday we enjoyed over-the-top attendances of 137 and 129. Every chair was filled and chairs had to be placed down the middle aisle.

The first event, December 14th,  was a Christmas concert presented by a local musician playing the "cuatro", accompanied by his family and other musicians. His talent was outstanding and the entire church delighted in the presented message of Christ's first advent via their music.

I might add that twenty college-age kids from Asbury University were present in the service as well. They came to work with Chad and Chandi Mayes to do swimming clinics each evening in a neighboring town. Three days, in the morning, they worked at the church building, cleaning the shoulder of the roadway in front of the building and weeding and clearing brush on the church grounds.

Unbeknownst to us, there was another event planned during the worship hour. The church gave us a surprise 40th wedding anniversary celebration. They called us to the front and we assumed the church was going to give us a Christmas gift. Suddenly, there were flowers along with the wedding march as we were herded down the aisle for a reenactment of our wedding vows, along with a PowerPoint presentation of us and our family through the years. Afterwards there was a wonderful dinner given in our honor. We were BLOWN AWAY and totally SURPRISED!

Last Sunday, the 21st, the church celebrated Christmas with a evening meal. The ladies "put on the dog" with wonderful food and beautiful decorations. At 7:00 PM the evening service began with Puerto Rican Christmas carols, followed by an interpretive dance by the women/children's dance team. Then a forty-five minute play written by out worship director, Martha Lassalle was performed by eleven of our church members. It was wondrously hilarious.

Today several of our youth and college-age kids along with four adult sponsors traveled to San Juan to visit the children at Children's Oncology Hospital. They took blankets, knitted sock hats done by our church members, and other gifts to all the kids in that ward of the hospital. I am very proud of them!

In a few days we will give a rundown of 2014. But before we close, Mary and I wish you a Merry Christmas. Thanks for your interest in what we do in Aguadilla, Puerto Rico.