Goldfuss update (November 25)

Dear Praying friends,

You may get tired of hearing it, but as always, but we do thank you for your prayers.

We forgot to mention it last week, but we were thrilled to Elsa and Alondra present again in our services. They are each living out of wedlock, with a child, and they each have brought their partners to church in the past. Last Sunday they showed up together, Elsa with her little boy and Alondra by herself. Elsa's little boy was not feeling well and screamed for a lot of both services, albeit in another room. Many of you have prayed for them throughout the years. They are unsaved, but it is still a blessing to see them come to church (they have to take public transportation to get to our church and it takes over 2 hours.) Please pray for the Lord to have mercy on these two young ladies and save them for His glory and honor and their good.

On Saturday, Nico, Marcos, Memo, Beto and I worked all day to get the other part of the divisions up for our new half of the building. Please pray that we would be able to finish it up to be able to use it. There was a good spirit and it was encouraging how some different spiritual topics came up and how the men conversed about those. Praise our great God for the spirit of fellowship and communion we have because of Christ.

On Friday night, Melissa invited two of the older girls from gymnastics, Brooke and Yorman, to sleep over with her in her room above the garage. Brooke was very tired and fell asleep, but Yorman asked many questions and Melissa had an excellent opportunity to give her the gospel. Please pray for their salvation. On Saturday afternoon, Brooke and Yorman's 2 sisters and 2 other cousins came to help our girls and Melissa bake and decorate Christmas cookies. It was an enjoyable time for all of them. Please pray for our girls' testimony and witness before these unsaved friends.

Last week we asked you to pray for Francisco's father who is gravely ill and probably on his deathbed. He asked me something similar to this: "Mike, if he feels better and I can give him a bath, what do you think about me trying to baptize him with the water, even if he doesn't know it?" That was an opportunity to speak with him about what baptism really is and how it does not save. Please pray that the Lord would remove the scales from his eyes to see the glorious face of the Lord Jesus Christ in the gospel.

This Sunday, we had an incredible blessing. Jesus, Analilia, and their four children arrived!!!!!!!!!!! Many of you know that Analilia left about 1 1/2 months ago because she couldn't stand the difficulties at home with Jesus' brother and his three boys. We honestly thought that they would never return again. Praise the Lord that we were wrong and that they did come. Please pray for them to repent and believe the gospel as well.

This Saturday night at 7 PM we are having a piano recital. Melissa has done an excellent job in teaching about 15 children and young people (and a few older ones as well.) They are going to be giving us a recital after three months of lessons. Please pray that the Lord will enable some of them to continue on so that they may even be able to help in the future in accompanying our hymns in church.

Thank you for all of your prayers,

Have a Happy and very Grateful Thanksgiving.

In Christ,
mike for all the goldfii

Goldfuss update (November 19)

Dear Praying Friends,

We apologize for not getting an email update out for the past several weeks. Things have been quite hectic. Thank you for your prayers during this time.

1. A family in our church has had some problems with Morgan about several different issues that are very legalistic. First of all, Morgan talked to the man, explaining his position biblically. Then, Morgan and I talked to the man, and then Morgan and I talked to the man and his wife. Each night was a conversation lasting about 3 or 4 hours. It was exhausting. The situation appears to have been resolved by God's grace. The wife appears to be trusting only in Christ for her salvation. The father appears to be trusting in his works and high morals for salvation. Please pray for the Lord to save Gabriel. Praise the Lord for Morgan's humility in dealing with the issues and admitting where he was wrong. After the second night of talking, things were not looking too promising as far as resolving the issues, but it was a tremendous blessing to leave their home after the third night and feel relief and gratitude to the Lord for working in the family and the situation.
2. That same week, Morgan dropped Mike and Mikey off at Mikey's basketball practice at 3:30 on Wed. afternoon. Morgan received a call in the parking lot from his dad asking him to go check on his grandmother who had fallen. Morgan has done this many times before and it's usually nothing. When we arrived at church at 6 PM, Ruth met us at the door telling us that Morgan's grandma had died and Morgan couldn't come. So Mike quickly prepared in 30 minutes to preach that night after our prayer service.
   When someone dies in Mexico, there is normally an all night vigil in the home with the burial the next day. Mike went to the home and for the second time that evening, was called on to be instant "in season and out of season." :-) At midnight, he was able to give about a 25 minute gospel message. A "spiritist" man was present and interrupted several times to give his opinion. The interruptions and Biblical answers caused people to really listen well. Morgan and Memo drove Mike back home around 1 AM, and when they returned to the house, the spiritist man had brought his "spiritual leader in also" and that man was speaking. Morgan said that it was very interesting how people were sleeping and didn't pay any attention to him. When he would go to the kitchen, people would get up and go to the living room. When the man would go back to the living room, people would return to the kitchen. It is amazing the difference between truth and error and how people with error really have nothing to offer. Pray for the Lord to use His Word to save some of the hearers from that all night vigil. Pray for Alejandro to be saved also. He has harbored a lot of bitterness throughout the years because of some terrible things that his mother did to him when he was a child.
   The next day, Mike accompanied Alejandro and his family to the cemetery where there is a crematorium. The body is delivered (in a rented casket no less) and the whole family waits around the cemetery for about 2 hours while the body is cremated. The ashes are then delivered to the family. Practices are definitely different from what we have grown up with.
3. Cristi, Carissa, Matthew and Cherith all take gymnastics classes. All of their friends there are unsaved. Cristi and Carissa especially have had some excellent opportunities to witness to their two friends (9 and 11 years old.) The friends are very openly opposed to the gospel and were stating their beliefs about the day of the dead in which the dead spirits of loved ones supposedly return to eat from altars with food that people have prepared in their homes. They were also asking Cristi and Carissa about why they want to be modest in gymnastics and not show off their bodies. The girls gave some excellent answers which is encouraging since we just recently had a 3 week study on glorifying Christ in our church and homes with modesty. Pray for the girls (and our boys) to truly be in Christ and that their answers would truly reflect the glory of God. It is easy to see the struggle between wanting to please friends and wanting to please our Savior and Lord. Please pray for Faith and I to have wisdom to shepherd and guide their hearts.
4. Last Monday Mikey and Mike went to Texas for our annual trip. We need to get our US car registration done as well as shop for things that may be cheaper there or things that we cannot get here in Mexico. It is about a 1,500 mile round trip. We left on Monday morning and arrived home on Friday night. It was a very busy and exhausting week, but we were able to get most everything that we needed. We praise the Lord for His protection as it is a grueling trip.
5. This Saturday we are to have another work party to try to get the divisions finished on the other side of our building. Please pray that we will have a good turnout and be able to get the job done.
6. Francisco called yesterday and said that his father is near death. Please pray for the Lord to use this in Francisco's life to truly save him. He has a profession of faith from past years, but very little desire to obey Christ. May God increase each of our desires to love, please and serve Christ in all that we do.
   

We thank you so much for your faithful prayers, encouragement and support. May the Lord richly bless you this week.

In Christ,
Mike for all the Goldfii