EL RETO 2024!

EL RETO 2024 has come to a close!

This year's theme was "El Desafío", which also means "The Challenge" just like "EL RETO". 

David and Goliath was the main story-line as we find out in life that it's not always easy; there are Goliath's in our path that we need to overcome. We can only overcome with the help of the Lord.

Pastor Chuy did a superb job as leader of this outreach for the very first time. It is so exciting to me to see young people who grew up in church, be the leaders of the church today!

At least 120 students participated this year from almost a dozen different towns and cities in our region. A lot of the students' lives were impacted and many made decisions to follow Jesus.

The description in the YouTube video is in Spanish. Here is the English version:

The youth from Centro Cristiano Cofradía United in Cofradía de Cuyutlán, Nayarit, started their "Challenge" on September 7 and finished on October 5.

Four teams made up of various different towns and cities in our region: Cofradía de Cuyutlán, San Marcos, Santa Fe, Las Pilas, Arrayanes, Rosamorada, El Tigre, Zomatlán, Tamarindo, San Vicente, and Tepic, met together every Saturday to compete in physical and mental activities before coming together in "The Refuge" for Worship and teaching from the Word. The final dynamic of the day was to vote for another team to have to do chores...but...wait!...that team would receive a clue to a hidden treasure; which would give them an opportunity to challenge the winning team in one FINAL CHALLENGE.

The winning team (by points) was the Green team. But, the Black team found the treasure that gave them the opportunity to challenge them. In the end, after flinging a ball at Goliath with a sling, the triumphant team was the GREEN team! Congratulations!

But...WAIT!!!...the point to EL RETO isn't the pride of winning in the end, but instead the winners are each person who HAS LEARNED SOMETHING about God's Love, the Word of God, Leadership, or Life in General. Those who learned something, no matter if their team didn't win the RETO FINAL, they are the true WINNERS.

The purpose of this event is to Reach Out to young people, Restore their relationship with God, and Learn something about HIM.

Thank you to all who contributed to this event, especially Magnolia Bible Church in Texas who made it possible for each student to participate and hear God's Word for free!

This is an annual event that we have done each year since 2005. Our budget is $2,500 US dollars that pays for all the leadership training, promotional materials, props, game supplies, transportation, snacks, and prizes for all 5 weeks. Please consider contributing to EL RETO 2025 starting now. Click on the link below to see how and designate your donation for "Cofradia RETO". 

THANK YOU!!

October 2024 Ministry Update

This month's update features...

• Returning to Cofradía
• EL RETO IN FULL SWING!
• Cofradia Kitchen back up and running!
• Upcoming Pastors' Retreat
• Mission and Vision
• Ministry Opportunities for you
• Links to more
• September's Agenda
• How to Pray
• How to Give

Here is a link to the October 2024 Ministry Update...

Thank you so much for your partnership. We continue to remember you in our prayers.

GIVE THANKS TO THE LORD FOR HE IS GOOD;

HIS LOVE ENDURES FOREVER

Cofradia Kitchen Kids 2024-09

The Cofradia Kitchen is back up and running after taking a break during the summer. Each day, the kids receive food for their bodies and food for their soul before they head off to school. Thank you for investing in this ministry.

Shalom Chalet Air B&B

Shalom Chalet is cute little cottage owned by some Pastor friends of ours in Sequim, Washington, and rent it as an Air B&B. As a gift, they generously offered us a couple of nights there while we were in Washington this summer. It is advertised with "Relax Revitalize Renew" and that is exactly what you get! It was a very peaceful and relaxing stay for Geña and I. We spent a lot of time reading together, we went to Dungeness Park for the day and hiked down to the beach, and enjoyed the view of the bay from the dinning room window as we watched the sea lions bobbing in the water. It is definitely a fine place to consider for those who like to travel and stay at Air B&B's...or to try one out if you haven't before.

What a blessing! What a view! What a relaxing time!

Check out their page here, you won't be disappointed!

September 2024 Ministry Update

 

This month's update features...

• Dropping off Emma @ School
• Locals-led VBS in Cofradía
• EL RETO IS BACK!
• Upcoming Pastors' Retreat
• Mission and Vision
• Ministry Opportunities for you
• Links to more
• September's Agenda
• How to Pray
• How to Give

Here is a link to the September 2024 Ministry Update...

Thank you so much for your partnership. We continue to remember you in our prayers.

GIVE THANKS TO THE LORD FOR HE IS GOOD;

HIS LOVE ENDURES FOREVER

MISSION IN THE MOUNTAINS

Lion and Lamb Church from Culiacán, Sinaloa, went on a missions trip to the Sierras of Nayarit to minister to the Kuare Indians. They handed out gifts to the children and played with them, gave medical consultations with their Doctor and handed out medicine, as well as sharing the Love of Jesus with them. The first Kuare person who received Christ in past trips, made a decision to get baptized this year.

Enjoy the video:

Thank you for your continued prayers and support of this ministry. Become a partner and join us.

Quick Trip to Mexico and Back

We had such a great time returning to Mexico for 10 days. It was the first time in a really long time that I was in Cofradia without a pressing agenda. I felt like I was on vacation! It was very relaxing...until the very end when things got really busy and didn't have time to finish a few things that were on my "non-pressing" agenda LOL.

We began our trip flying into Puerto Vallarta where Jimmy and Perla were waiting to host us for the night. We had a great time catching up and a long conversation in the morning about ministry, personal life, and future hopes and dreams. It was a true blessing to be with them.

With Jimmy and Perla's family

Jimmy and Perla blessed us with loaning us their car for the whole week so we would have the freedom to make stops along the way as we travelled to Cofradia the next day and not have to use the bus to go to and from Cofradia on our way back to Puerto Vallarta the next weekend.

This gave us the opportunity to visit with Pastor Ruben and Valeria in Las Varas. We took them out to lunch at the beach and enjoyed time with them as we talked with them also about ministry, personal life, and future hopes.

With Pastor Ruben and Valeria at Chocala Beach, Nayarit

Alan and Carito came to visit us on Sunday, but before that, we enjoyed a long breakfast with them in Tepic on Friday with much of the same type of conversations about ministry, personal life, and future hopes.

With Alan and Carito at Centro Cristiano Cofradia

The night before we left to return to Cofradia, we visited with Pastor Amado and his family. Not much personal time with them, but it was a blessing to be all together in family at his Mom's house enjoying a meal made by his son and some good coffee!

With Pastor Amado and family in Rosamorada, Nayarit

And, of course, with the advantage of living in the same town, we had multiple evenings with Pastor Goyo and Mati as we played cards and talked a lot about ministry. It is a blessing to know that the ministry is in good hands when we're away. Pastor Goyo and his wife are gems for Jesus! In passing, we were able to visit with many other people as they stopped in or were already there. What a blessing they are!

With Pastor Goyo and Mat at their house in Cofradia

Some of the other things we were able to do was visit the Tuesday night Bible Study Pastor Goyo leads, visit with the family who received a house in February, and touch base with some of the people who received glasses in April. I also met with Diego who is helps us with the House Building Ministry as we continue to work on the profiles of the eligible candidates and making note of what others need in order to become eligible. Geña was able to meet with the women two times to make soap, something that they are excited about to possibly become a source of income for them and their families. Finally, I had the privilege of sharing on Sunday something I've grown passionate about these past few months...Deuteronomy! There is so much in there and what a blessing this book is to us when you can see it through the lens of the New Testament.

Tuesday Night Bible Study w/Pastor Goyo

Visit with Zeferina and her daughter, the recipients of the house in February

Making soap with the women

Preaching on Sunday

Thank you for your partnership and prayers!!

Cofradia Kitchen Kids 2024-06

Each morning Monday through Friday the kids get a free breakfast sponsored by those who donate and a devotional time from Pastor Goyo. This has proven to be an open door to kids and now families are starting to come to church as well. Mati is doing a great job organizing and leading this time with them.

Please click on the donate button below if you would like to be a part of this ministry. There is room for donations as the funds are low at the moment.

Here are photos from this month:

Help feed the children of Cofradia by clicking below 

and designating the donation as "Cofradia Kitchen".

June 2024 Ministry Update

This month's update features...

• A quick follow-up trip to Mexico this month
• A Mission in the Mountains
• Mission and Vision
• Ministry Opportunities for you
• Links to more
• July's Agenda
• How to Pray
• How to Give

Here is a link to the June 2024 Ministry Update...

Thank you so much for your partnership. We continue to remember you in our prayers.

GIVE THANKS TO THE LORD FOR HE IS GOOD;

HIS LOVE ENDURES FOREVER

 

Pastors' Perspectives 2024-2

These are bi-anual updates through the eyes of the Cofradia United Pastors. Here they share what is going on in their ministries, needs they may have, and prayer requests. Thank you for your partnership with this ministry. Your contributions help them to succeed. If you would like to make a special donation to one or more, please follow the instructions here, and if you would like to send them a note, please feel free to do so here.

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Pastors Gregorio (Goyo) Hernández and Matilde (Mati)

Lead Pastors of Centro Cristiano la Cofradía United

Cofradia de Cuyutlán, Nayarit

Report: 5.29.24

Greetings to you all who have been keeping us in your prayers and who have blessed us and the ministry. We are beyond grateful for your provisions which have been of such a great blessing. 
 
I share with you that we have continued with the Freedom in Christ Conference as well as the Grace Conference. The latest conference took place this past month of April. It was a great blessing for all the people involved. Many testimonies emerged from the lives of many brothers and sisters after partaking in this conference, and there were moments of great revelation for the people. One of the testimonies was a sister in Christ who was hurt by a person close to her and the conference taught her to forgive the individual and rekindle a relationship with them. 
 
In June of last year, my wife became ill and we have had some financial difficulty as well, but we are awaiting on the Lord. Since June, there have been other health issues that have appeared such as the dengue hemorrhagic fever which interfered with our ability of attending a pastoral conference. My wife and I were unable to attend because of these health issues. Before the other pastors left town, they called us and asked to come to our house to pray for us. We accepted and after the powerful prayer time, my wife felt better than she had in a while, thanks be to God. I personally was very impacted by that moment. The word says when we are unfaithful the Lord remains faithful. The verse of 2 Timothy 2:13 states, “if we are faithless, he remains faithful, for he cannot disown himself.” Because of Christ we are healed, and we declare that for my wife that she is healed in the name of Jesus Christ. Thank God for his Faithfulness. 
 
As for the ministry, it has been going well and we have had many bible studies and conferences with an emphasis on leadership. We have started to look forward to the possibility of having more bible studies throughout the week in some of the brothers and sisters’ homes. So far, there are two leaders who have opened their house to have and lead these bible studies. We are focusing on beginning these studies in the neighboring town of Arrayanes and we have been praying for some time for this to come to fruition. We are also wanting to start some bible studies in the homes of leaders here in Cofradia de Cuyutlan. We have also been studying some Andrew Wommack books which have been a great blessing. 
 
As far as my personal spiritual growth, I keep studying and remind myself of the Apostle Paul said in Philippians 3:13-14, “Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upwardcall of God in Christ Jesus.” 
 
Blessings to all of you brothers and sisters who took the time of reading this letter. I wish you all the best. I also want to thank you all for your dedication and your gift of sharing with this ministry. May the Lord keep you all in his blessings and His grace. Again, thank you for the provisions you all have blessed us with. 

Sincerely,
My wife and I and all our family. 

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Pastors Horacio Garzón and María

Indigenous Ministries

Centro Cristiano Arrayanes Facilitators

Cofradia de Cuyutlán, Nayarit

Report: 5.31.24

Brothers and Sisters!! It is great to greet you and we hope as you read this you are enjoying good health. Thanks be to God that we are all doing well.

Thank you brothers and sisters for sharing with us a family link in Christ, through whom we are all greatly blessed. Thank you for your generous harvest and fruit of the love of God directed towards us, which encourages us to give in grace what whe have recieved in grace so that others may see how good God is.

Brothers and sisters, I would also like to take this opportunity to joyfully share with you that the Word and Work of God in these past few months has been manifested by His move in our ministry. We have recieved disciples to advance together to the glorious position that we have in Christ through the Grace Conference by the author Neil Anderson as well as The Authority of the Believer by Andrew Wommack. Two works that give foundational truths to the believer to dynaically exercise spiritual victory for the glory of God our Father. We do not forget that both manuals are backed with scripture and it encourages us to come into a clear understanding that God is an excellent transmitter and it’s up to us to be good receivers, far from any form of interference that would disrupt our connection with God.

Brothers and Sisters, in one occasion I arrived at Steve’s house for our discussion group over the book The Authority of the Believer. I was a bit anquished because my son who was working in the United States was really sick. Steve asked me how I was doing and I told him I was anquished. He asked me why and I told him about my son and I was worried. He asked me why again and it was then that I realized that by Christ’s stripes we were healed so I believed it. That afternoon I learned that my son’s fever had left him and that he could stay to continue to work, a little while later, he was completly healed for the glory of God.

I also apprecitated how a family in need was greatly blessed with a precious house which will be a great relief for them. The whole family will be able to enjoy the house. It was a blessing to be able to help work with the group that came down and provided the financial resources for the build.

Brothers and Sisters, I am convinced that God is not mad at us and he forgives all forms of sin and his great love invites us to exercise his power in order that we may live in confidence and secure in his peace giving thanks for every moment.

Thank you brothers and sisters. Please receive greetings from my wife, María, and know that we are sincerely grateful.

Thank you,

Horacio Garzón Orozco

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Pastor Amado Verdin and Lourdes

Lead Pastors of Casa de Oración, La Hermosa

Director of Restoration Center, El Faro de Esperanza

Rosamorada, Nayarit

Report: 12.30.23

God bless my beloved brothers and sisters in Christ says the word of God in Mark 16:17-18. 

One day on my way to fix a vehicle in a different town, my phone rang, and the owner of the vehicle asked if I could pray for his wife. I said yes. When I arrived at the man’s house, the mother asked if I could please pray for her daughter. I asked what the matter was, and the mother explained that the daughter had gone many months without being able to sleep through the entire night. The daughter then emerged from one of the rooms with an unkempt appearance, disheveled hair, and tired eyes. Once we greeted each other I assured her that everything would be alright. I asked where the best place to talk was, and I was led to a room where my presence was met with the main pastor and four ladies of the church. This caught me by surprise, knowing that their pastor was here and had already prayed for her without success meant that this would be a more challenging mission than I thought. I asked the woman to sit and told her to hold eye contact with me. The reason for this was that in Acts 3:4, Peter and John healed a lame individual, but for this they asked him to keep his eyes on theirs. Like them, after making eye contact, I helped her to renounce any conscious or unconscious pact with Satan she had made from viewing pornography. She explained that some nights there would be a spirit in the shape of a dark shadow that would cover her as she lie in bed unable to sleep.

When praying for her deliverance from the spirit, the demon manifested itself and began to choke me and repeatedly told me to be quiet. While I wrestled with the demon, the pastor sang songs on his guitar and the ladies of the church prayed for the deliverance of the demon and the freeing of the woman. Once the demon in the woman's body was off me, she ran off like a dog on all fours. The demon made its way to the pastor and balanced itself over him and demanded him to be silent. The demon proceeded to try to bite the pastor and I commanded the demon in the name of Jesus to stop, and it stopped. The demon tried to run and escape, but I stopped it and demanded it to leave her body in the name of Jesus. The woman fell to the ground in a faint manner, and she was freed from the demon. Today, her and her husband live normal lives, are attending church, and have become part of the church family.

We had an event at church where an evangelist visited, and I invited a woman who said that she was having demonic appearances. She tried to consult the priest about her situation only to be told that it was an issue she had to deal with on her own. She also looked for help with a pastor, and for some reason he was unable to help her. Her family arrived at the church event, and when they all exited the taxi, they entered the church. However, the woman mentioned that she was afraid of entering the building. I told her there was nothing to worry about. I prayed for her and rebuked any sort of impediment from the enemy, and she was able to enter the place with peace, and she sat down with a tranquil spirit. During the event, the evangelist prayed for her, and she was freed from the evil entity that controlled her and her family. To this day, this is great news to the town they are from.

Pastor Amado thanks all of you for your prayers over his ministry.

(Here is Pastor Amado's most recent update as he asks for help with Room and Board Scholarships for the Interns at the Restoration House.)

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Pastors Ruben Perez and Valeria 

Lead Pastors of Restauración y Vida

Church Plant Pastor in Mazatan, Nayarit

Las Varas, Nayarit

No report available yet.

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Pastors Jimmy Orozco and Perla
Bahía de Banderas, Nayarit

Report: 12.30.23

We all have a very special relationship with our Father, and it will keep growing because it is the most important thing forever and always.❤️‍🔥

With my wife and I’s marriage, every day we are learning to love like our Lord. The kind of love that never ends, that forgives, and gives one confidence. 😌 Our kids have grown to know the Lord, the one who has known us since the beginning, and they are learning through reading the Bible and spending time in prayer. We have become stronger, and we venture toward getting closer to the goal!🙌✨ 

We give thanks to God for our pastors Steve and Geña Silberman for they have become an inspiration in our lives moving forward.

We are currently congregating in an incredible area in the Bay, San Juan de Abajo, Nayarit. The people are wonderful, and the pastor is a great teacher and mentor. He mentors us with our marriage. Ernesto and Katy are attentive to detail, and they have so much love towards us, which had been such a gift! 

We are also currently in contact with our church family in Tepic. Alan and Carito are taking their time in their walk in what needs to be taken charge of.😊 

We are currently living in Bahia de Banderas, Nayarit, and God, being faithful to his promises, has opened the doors for us to open our carport this past May for gatherings. Currently, there have been seventeen people saved and today they walk in new life. They have accepted the life of a beautiful relationship with the Lord. This is one of the many things that has been occurring in our place. 

We also finished a project we call Scoop.❤️‍🔥 This project entails that at the beginning of the day from 6AM to 7AM through Zoom; we pray and indulge ourselves in the word of God from Genesis to Revelation. We were able to finish this project on December 29th of this past year, and it has changed our hearts. 

Be faithful to His word and glory be to God!🙌✨ We are expecting great things from God this upcoming year of 2024 and we are excited to see how the year unfolds. We are prepared to know Him more and help others know Him through us.❤️‍🔥🙌 

Blessings to all! 

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Pastors Alan Contreras and Carolina

Cofradia United Tepic

Tepic, Nayarit

Report: 5.27.24

Hello, we are the pastors Alan Contreras Magallanes y Carolina Reyes Serafin. We are the church Cofradia United Tepic and we are having services on Sundays. We are currently studying Andrew Wommak’s book A Better Way to Pray.  We are so happy for what the Lord is doing with the ministry. The church is learning and growing in the Lord. We are also expectant for a new location for the church because we are growing and are currently located in our household. However, we are praying and believing for the Lord’s perfect timing. 

Thank you for being part of this ministry of Cofradia United. We love you all and we are grateful for your service and for the love you all have for us! Blessings to our family through Christ Jesus. 

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Pastors Rodrigo Romero and Annel

Cordero y Leon

Culiacán, Sinaloa

Report: 5.29.24

Greetings to all our brothers in Christ. 

 

We are pastors Rodrigo Romero and Annel Sánchez. We have the privilege of serving the church “Cordero y Leon” (Lion and the Lamb) in Culiacan, Sinaloa. On August 21^stthe church will have its 5^thanniversary. In these five years of ministry, the Lord has shown us His faithfulness in every moment and circumstance. We have seen his healing hand working in the hearts of each person of the congregation.

 

In these last couple months, His goodness has been unwavering and present in every moment. We began the course of Freedom in Christ and there have been many individuals and couples who have found healing and are now searching for the Lord. Many families have been touched by the love of the Lord. A mother and daughter who have recently found the Lord have provided some of their land as a meeting place for the congregation. The church used to meet in the garage of the small house my wife and I rent, but the location needed to be changed because we no longer fit. The new location has given the opportunity to grow certain areas of the church such as the kid’s ministry, which is growing rapidly. Apart from this, the new location is closer to the “Hospital for Women” where we share the Word of God, pray for the sick, serve coffee and have food drives with blankets on colder nights. 

 

The first weekend in July we will be traveling to the Sierra mountains of Nayarit to share the gospel with the people group of the “Cuare” (click here to read a little about them). Apart from preaching we will be providing medical support, medication, and vitamins as well as toys and candy for the children. There will be fifteen missionaries who will go, and the expenses of the rental van, food, and gas comes down to $1,600.00 dollars for all of us. We will be working on raising the money for this trip with high hopes and with the grand expectation of what the Lord will do in this trip.

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UPDATE: HERE IS A VIDEO REPORT OF THEIR TRIP:

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As for my wife and I’s own desires in our heart, we have been praying in our eight years of marriage to become parents. We are still trusting in the Lord. In faith, we have begun a fertility treatment. However, even though we currently do not have the economic resources to finance our treatment, we are still hopeful that the Lord will provide for all our needs. 

 

We are all thankful for all our brothers and sisters in Christ who have taken the time to read this report. I pray that the Lord blesses you all in your spirit, mind and body. I share with you the verse that we have been ministering these past couple months. 

 

“El que dice que permanece en él, debe de andar como él anduvo” (1 Juan 2:6)

 

^“ Whoever claims to live in him must live as Jesus did.” (1 John 2:6)