Harvest

This school year has been a greatly blessed one. I’ve been able to see the El Pozo community
grow in faith as well as in number.

This year we had 30 students in our leadership group, which we call “el Núcleo”.
It’s been a challenge having so many people for Bible studies, but we’ve also been
able to see more and more their desire to know about Jesus.

From that group, five girls decided to follow Jesus for the rest of their lives and declared

it through baptism.

I’d like to talk about three them:

Diana and Dinorah participated actively on this last semester, got involved in the

Núlceo and demonstrated leadership and admiration in the group.

They both graduated this semester and won’t be at El Pozo any more.

That is exactly why it’s been so important that they made this decision before leaving.

I’m really happy with all that they could learn and share with everyone else because

they are people that I’m sure will impact the world.

Diana was a soccer player in the UDLAP and she’s been accepted in one of the best

teams in Mexico to play professionally.

Dinorah, on the other hand, is making her professional practices in the international relations

secretary office in Mexico. She is planning to go to En Vivo as an intern in Salamanca, Spain.

Right now she is support raising, I’m sure her leadership can influence

more young students in Spain as it did here.

I’m also sure the decision they both made to participate,

learn, share and obey Jesus through baptism, showing their faith to others,

will help them in their projects and future relationships, and it’ll push people around

them to live like Jesus has taught them.

Finally, Marina, a student that participated in every activity at the Núcleo and became a

great leader everyone respected and followed. Her story before Casa Verde, however,

was totally different. At her baptism she wanted to share her testimony and said she had

thought of commiting suicide several times, and she was actually determined do it one day,

but God had a better plan. In that moment, one her best friends talked to her and invited her to

El Pozo.

She somehow decided to set her plans apart and go with her to that place.

From day one she attended an ‘en vivo’ event she has never again had suicidal thoughts and

she has turned into a respected and admired leader at the Núcleo. What an amazing blessing!

God decided to use our ministry to give hope back to her live and he definitely has an enormous

plan for her. I’m thrilled to keep working by her side next semester and see

God’s wonders through her life.

I am really happy with that because it’s a reflection of the love, care and patience we’ve

worked hard to give every student that knows Casa Verde. It’s the result of our teamwork,

not only this semester but throughout the years, trying to never lose the point, talk about

Jesus’ love,

be intentional in our relationships and showing them the meaning of community.

Every day that goes by I can see how God works in leaders as well as students,

creating an atmosphere that gets closer and closer to what the Church is.

We made two trips this year, too. One to the mountain, the other one to the beach.

Each one of them united our students in a special way.

We’ve seen friendships begin and grow, and be there for each other.

It’s great to see how they’ve understood the meaning of living in community and loving

one another.

We also went on our first Casas por Cristo international trip to Guatemala,

where we built a house for a family. This trip was one of great lessons for all

of us who went there,

as we had the opportunity to realize how many blessings we have.

The family we could bless with a house in Guatemala worked selling pyrotechnics.

They’d had a terrible accident and the father passed away in the explosion.

People in that community was really affected, especially this man’s family,

whom we could help by covering the basic need of having a roof over their heads.

It was a moment to meditate about everything that we have, and that there are people

that need our support. We went out of our everyday life and saw a bit of the big work that

is ahead to do, and that God wants to keep blessing more people though what we have and

through

our gifts.

In short, it’s been a blessed and at the same time hard year. However,

I think that complexity has brought good results, as being only a few in the staff made each of us

stronger in praying, in compromise and responsibility. We had bigger challenges and that pushed

us out of our comfort zone constantly, which no doubt helped us grow in a special way personally,

spirituality and in our teamwork. That is a great blessing because God demonstrates his power,

and the glory and honor were directed all the time to Him, being united and putting our

confidence

and strength in Him in every goal we wanted to achieve.

I love working for the Lord, but getting the economic support is getting more and more complicated. I still need around $300 per month, so I would like you to be praying that I can get there for 2018 and keep serving God much longer.

Thank you so much for all of the support and encouragement that you have given me throughout all this time!  If you would like to support me even more, here are a few ways:

FINANCIAL

One of the ways you can help is by deciding to support me financially (online or check)

Online: 

simply clicking on the following link DONATE. 

A page will appear like this one, there’s a bit about my story and a green button below my photo which says “Give”.  On the ¨Give¨ page you can

decide if you want to make a monthly, or a one-time

donation (for this online giving you will need to use your credit card).

By Check: 

Fill out your information on the back, tear off the bottom portion, and make check payable and mail to: CMF International, PO Box 501020 Indianapolis, IN 46250

PRAYER

But above all, the greatest way you can support me is in prayer. I definitely need your prayers while I am still here in Puebla.  Please pray for my team and for our students and for all the is ahead of us in the coming semester.

My email is karlaalejandreolivares@gmail.com

Cosechando

Este año escolar ha sido un año sumamente bendecido, he podido ver a la comunidad de

el Pozo creciendo tanto en fe como en número.

Este año en nuestro grupo de núcleo tuvimos 30 estudiantes ha sido un reto tener a tantos

estudiantes en un estudio,

pero cada vez podemos ver mas y mas el deseo que tienen de aprender de Cristo.

de los cuales cinco chicas tomaron la decisión de seguir a Cristo por el resto de su vida

y lo declararon por medio del bautismo.

Me gustaría contarles un poco de dos de las chicas que se bautizaron ya que ambas se graduaron

este semestre

y ya no estarán con nosotros en El Pozo pero precisamente por eso ha sido de gran importancia q

ue Diana y Dinohra hayan tomado esta decisión antes de irse porque estuvieron participando

activamente su último semestre con nosotros, involucradas en el núcleo y fueron una demostración de

liderazgo y admiración en el grupo. Estoy muy contenta con lo que ellas pudieron aprender y compartir

con los demás porque son personas que estoy segura harán un impacto en el mundo.

Diana fue jugadora de futbol femenil en la UDLAP y actualmente ha sido aceptada por uno

de los mejores equipos de México para jugar profesionalmente, Dinorah en cambio está haciendo

sus prácticas profesionales, en la secretaría de relaciones exteriores del país.  Dinohra tiene plane

s de ir como interna a En vivo en Salamanca España, ahora mismo ella se encuentra recaudando

sus fondos, estoy segura que su liderazgo puede llegar a influenciar a más jóvenes en España como

lo hizo aquí.

Estoy segura que la decisión que tomaron de participar, aprender, compartir y obedecer a Cristo

por medio del bautismo mostrando su fe a otros, es algo que les va a ayudar en sus proyectos y

relaciones futuras y va a impulsar a la gente a su alrededor a vivir como Cristo les ha enseñado.

Finalmente Marina, una estudiante que participó en cada actividad del núcleo y se convirtió en

una gran líder donde todos la respetaban y seguían, su historia ,sin embargo, antes de casa

verde era completamente distinta. Al momento de bautizarse quiso dar su testimonio en donde

platicó que varias veces ella había pensado en suicidarse, y un día estaba decidida a hacerlo,

pero Dios tenía un mejor plan. En ese mismo momento, una de sus mejores amigas le habló

y la invitó a El Pozo, ella de alguna manera decidió dejar sus planes a un lado y acompañarla a

ese lugar. Desde el primer día que ella asistió a un en vivo no ha vuelto a tener pensamientos suicidas

y se ha convertido en una líder respetada y admirada por el núcleo.

¡Qué gran bendición! Dios decidió usar nuestro ministerio para regresarle la esperanza a su vida

y definitivamente también tiene un plan enorme para ella, estoy ansiosa por seguir trabajando con

ella el semestre que viene y ver las maravillas que Dios seguirá haciendo a través de ella.

Estoy muy feliz con eso porque es un reflejo del amor, cariño

y paciencia que nos hemos esforzado por brindar a cada

estudiante que conoce “Casa verde”, es el resultado de un

trabajo en equipo no sólo de este semestre, sino todo lo que

se ha venido trabajando a lo largo de los años, buscando

nunca perder lo básico, hablar del amor de Jesús,

ser intencionales en nuestras relaciones

y mostrarles el sentido de comunidad.

Cada día que pasa puedo ver cómo

Dios trabaja tanto en los líderes como en los estudiantes

creando un ambiente más cercano a lo que es la iglesia.

Hemos hecho dos viajes este año uno a la montaña y otro a la playa, cada viaje ha unido a

nuestros estudiantes de forma especial  hemos visto amistades iniciar y crecer,

y estar el uno para el otro, es genial ver que han entendido el significado de vivir en comunidad y amarse

unos a los otros.

Así también hicimos nuestro primer viaje internacional de casas por cristo a Guatemala donde

construimos una casa para una familia, este viaje fue de gran aprendizaje para todos los que fuimos

ya que tuvimos la oportunidad de darnos cuenta de todas las bendiciones que tenemos.

La familia que bendecimos con la casa en Guatemala era una familia que se dedicaba a vender

pirotecnia, tuvieron un terrible accidente en donde el papá falleció debido a una explosión.

Pudimos ver cómo la gente en esa comunidad estaba realmente afectada, sobretodo la familia

de este hombre a la cual pudimos ayudar de manera en que cubrimos una necesidad básica que

es la de tener un techo donde dormir. Fue realmente un momento de reflexión en donde pudimos

ver todo lo que tenemos y que realmente hay gente que necesita nuestro apoyo, salimos del mundo

en el que vivimos cotidianamente y pudimos ver un poco de lo mucho que aún falta por hacer

y que Dios quiere seguir bendiciendo a más gente con lo que tenemos y nuestros dones.

En resumen, ha sido un año bendecido y complicado a la vez. Pero creo que la complejidad ha

traído buenos resultados debido a que somos pocos en el staff nos hizo reforzar aún más en la oración,

el compromiso y responsabilidad de cada uno. Los retos eran mayores y eso nos sacaba

constantemente de nuestra zona de confort, algo que sin duda nos ayudó a crecer en gran manera

de forma personal, espiritual y en el trabajo en equipo, eso es una gran bendición porque

Dios nos demuestra su poder y en cada momento la gloria y honra eran para Él al unimos,

poner nuestra confianza y fuerzas en Él para lograr cualquier objetivo.

Me encanta trabajar para el señor pero cada vez se hace más complicado ya que aun no tengo el apoyo necesario para mi sostenimiento, aun necesito alrededor de 300 dólares al mes, les pido de sus oraciones para poder llegar juntar esa cantidad para este 2018  y pueda seguir sirviendo al señor por  mucho más tiempo.

 Por esta razón para seguir sirviendo siempre necesito de su ayuda y una de las maneras en que  puedes ayudar es ofreciendo una donación para mi soporte dando click en el siguiente enlace   Donar  aparecerá una página

como esta, aquí hay un poco de mi historia y un botón que dice give

y es esa la página donde puedes entrar y decidir de qué maneras me quieres ayudar, ya sea de forma mensual, o de una sola ocasión, esta forma es deducible de impuestos. (para esta forma de ayudar tienes que usar tu tarjeta de crédito).

si quieres ayudar pero esta forma es  muy complicada para ti, enviame un email y te hare saber de que otra forma puedes hacerme llegar tu donación.

Pero sobre todo necesito de sus oraciones mientras estoy sirviendo, esto es lo que verdaderamente sostiene.

Mi correo electrónico es karlaalejandreolivares@gmail.com

GRACIAS!!

Karla

 

Back Home

It has been a great blessing to come back to El Pozo, I am so happy to be back in my country with my people, my food, my tacos… But I have to admit that I still miss living in Salamanca a lot, walking by its streets, going to En Vivo and seeing faces that fill my heart. It made me feel so much at home even being on the other side of the world.

However, I can’t complain, though Mexico received me with earthquakes, I love being here, I love the students that make Casa Verde feel a home for many.

As usual, I’ve seen God’s Hand working in every step I take, so I don’t have any doubt that I’m in the right place.

This year, our main purpose was being able to talk about Christ without fear, and we have fasted and prayed a lot as a team.

God is working in an incredible way in the ministry and the students’ lives. I’ve seen students that didn’t want to hear from God at all start to believe through our biblical studies with the Núcleo group. Velia, Karla and Marina are examples of this.

Three students that had each stopped believing in God for different circumstances, like an “unfair” death of a family member, their parents’ divorce, or because they studied at a catholic school after which they wanted nothing to do with God.

But they somehow decided to come to El Pozo and God started to touch their hearts. They began to know that Loving God that loves them no matter what. Little by little their walls are falling down, and although they are still in that process, I am so grateful I can get a first-hand look of this change in their lives.

There’s also Gaby, who has been involved at El Pozo for some years now. She’s got a huge heart for Jesus and she’s decided to get baptized and give her life to the Lord publicly. We are so excited to see what God is doing in her life and the example that she is for other students. Eva, who was her mentor, just came from Spain for the baptism this week. I would like to ask you to be praying for Gaby, and that she can keep reflecting Jesus with her testimony.

I love working for the Lord, but getting the economic support is getting more and more complicated. I still need around $300 per month, so I would like you to be praying that I can get there for 2018 and keep serving God much longer.

There are also several projects we are working on for which we need economic support. For example, next Easter we are going to Guatemala to help build a house for homeless people. We want to take 10 students. It would be around $500 per student, but not all of them have the economic possibilities. They are very excited to go and are working on different activities to get the money for the journey.

Thank you so much for all of the support and encouragement that you have given me throughout all this time!  If you would like to support me even more, here are a few ways:

FINANCIAL

One of the ways you can help is by deciding to support me financially (online or check)

Online: 

simply clicking on the following link DONATE. 

A page will appear like this one, there’s a bit about my story and a green button below my photo which says “Give”.  On the ¨Give¨ page you can

decide if you want to make a monthly, or a one-time

donation (for this online giving you will need to use your credit card).

By Check: 

Fill out your information on the back, tear off the bottom portion, and make check payable and mail to: CMF International, PO Box 501020 Indianapolis, IN 46250

PRAYER

But above all, the greatest way you can support me is in prayer. I definitely need your prayers while I am still here in Puebla.  Please pray for my team and for our students and for all the is ahead of us in the coming semester.

My email is karlaalejandreolivares@gmail.com

De vuelta en casa

Ha sido una muy grande bendición volver a El Pozo, estoy  muy contenta de volver a mi país con mi gente, con mi comida, con mis tacos, pero debo admitir que aun extraño mucho vivir en Salamanca, caminar por sus calles, ir a En Vivo y toparme con caras que me llenan el corazón, tanto que me hacían sentir en mi hogar aun estando del otro lado del mundo.

Pero no me puedo quejar, aunque México me recibió con terremotos, amo estar en El Pozo, amo estos estudiantes que hacen de casa verde un hogar para muchos.

Y como siempre he visto la mano de Dios obrando en cada paso que doy y no tengo duda de que estoy en el lugar correcto.

Dios está trabajando increíblemente en el ministerio y en la vida de los estudiantes, he visto

Velia, Karla y Marina

como estudiantes que no querían saber absolutamente nada de Dios han sido quebrantados y han comenzado a creer todo esto a través de nuestros estudios en el  grupo del núcleo, un ejemplo de eso son Velia, Karla y Marina, tres estudiantes que cada una por circunstancias diferentes dejaron de creer en Dios, circunstancias como  la muerte “injusta” de una familiar, por el divorcio de sus padres o porque estudiaron en una escuela católica que cuando se graduaron no querían saber nada mas de Dios.

Pero por diferentes circunstancias ellas empezaron a venir a El Pozo y Dios empezó a tocar sus corazones, empezaron a conocer a ese Dios de Amor que sin importar nada El las ama y poco a poco sus barreras van cayendo aún se encuentran en ese proceso pero estoy muy feliz de poder ver de primera mano ese cambio en sus vidas.

Gaby contanto su historia con Dios en El Pozo

Y  también está Gaby una chica que desde algunos años ha estado involucrada en El Pozo, ella tiene un corazón enorme por Cristo ella ha tomado la decisión de bautizarse y entregarle su vida al señor de manera pública, estamos muy emocionados de ver lo que Dios está haciendo en su vida y el ejemplo que es ella para los estudiantes, Eva que fue su mentora viene desde España para bautizar esta semana, les pido que tengan en sus oraciones a Gaby para que ella pueda seguir mostrando a Cristo con su testimonio.

Me encanta trabajar para el señor pero cada vez se hace más complicado ya que aun no tengo el apoyo necesario para mi sostenimiento, aun necesito alrededor de 300 dólares al mes, les pido de sus oraciones para poder llegar juntar esa cantidad para este 2018  y pueda seguir sirviendo al señor por  mucho más tiempo.

 Por esta razón para seguir sirviendo siempre necesito de su ayuda y una de las maneras en que  puedes ayudar es ofreciendo una donación para mi soporte dando click en el siguiente enlace   Donar  aparecerá una página

como esta, aquí hay un poco de mi historia y un botón que dice give
y es esa la página donde puedes entrar y decidir de qué maneras me quieres ayudar, ya sea de forma mensual, o de una sola ocasión, esta forma es deducible de impuestos. (para esta forma de ayudar tienes que usar tu tarjeta de crédito).

si quieres ayudar pero esta forma es  muy complicada para ti, enviame un email y te hare saber de que otra forma puedes hacerme llegar tu donación.

Pero sobre todo necesito de sus oraciones mientras estoy sirviendo, esto es lo que verdaderamente sostiene.

Mi correo electrónico es karlaalejandreolivares@gmail.com


GRACIAS!!

Karla

Goodbye Spain.

Someone once told me that the life of the missionary is saying "hello" and "goodbye" constantly.  It means being sad and heart broken because you're going to another place and at the same time being excited because you are starting something new ... Well, this is exactly how I feel right now.

My time in Spain has come to an end, and although it is an end with many tears, it is a happy ending.  I have cried a lot but I have learned that tearful goodbyes are a good thing.  A goodbye that hurts me is good because it means that it matters and that this year and a half in Spain has meant something and changed me for life.

And no, it was not the country that I fell most in with -- although it is beautiful with its captivating cities and with an incredible culture.  What I really fell in love with were the people I met when I passed through the blue door of En Vivo.  These people received me with so much love and their smiles have filled my heart every day since the very beginning.

I have seen how God has transformed hearts and worked in the lives of many students but there are three students in particular who I will carry in my heart forever.

Me, Lorena, Miriam, Lydia (staff) and Kat

At the beginning of this semester I already had a close relationship with them, but in February they were each passing through difficult situations and had the best idea that they could think of -- to pray.  And not only that, but to pray together and thus we started our prayer group.  Every Thursday from 4pm to 5pm we would gather to share and pray for whatever was happening in our lives.  In many of the meetings there were many tears, and honestly, I am grateful for that.  And I am not happy because they were sad, but because they felt comfortable enough and had enough trust to be vulnerable and to cry together.  When one of us cried we all cried with her and it was beautiful.

It was a great blessing to see how God was working in the lives of these girls, and even more so, to celebrate Miriam and Kat graduating and making plans for the future.  Miriam plans to join Globalscope next year as an intern.  Kat will start a master's degree in Granada and, when she finishes, she plans to serve in Globalscope too. Lorena has a few years of study left in Salamanca and will continue serving and leading as part of the student leadership team.  I am so proud of these girls and amazed to see what God has done in their lives and hearts.  I ask you to keep them in your prayers.  They are a clear example of what Globalscope is and why I have decided to continue working with this ministry, but now in Puebla, Mexico.

I believe that it is time to go home to Mexico but, I feel certain that God has called me to continue in my work with Globalscope international campus ministry.  I am excited that this August, I will being joining the staff of El Pozo, the Globalscope ministry in Puebla, Mexico

Thank you so much for all of the support and encouragement that you have given me throughout all this time!  If you would like to support me even more, here are a few ways:

FINANCIAL

One of the ways you can help is by deciding to support me financially (online or check)

Online: 

simply clicking on the following link DONATE. 

A page will appear like this one, there’s a bit about my story and a green button below my photo which says “Give”.  On the ¨Give¨ page you can

decide if you want to make a monthly, or a one-time

donation (for this online giving you will need to use your credit card).

By Check: 

Fill out your information on the back, tear off the bottom portion, and make check payable and mail to: CMF International, PO Box 501020 Indianapolis, IN 46250

PRAYER

But above all, the greatest way you can support me is in prayer. I definitely need your prayers while I am still here in Salamanca.  Please pray for my team and for our students and for all the is ahead of us in the coming semester.

My email is karlaalejandreolivares@gmail.com