‘Entrenando a tu familia’ conference in Mérida, México
In May this year, the event ‘Entrenando a tu familia’ (Training your family) was held in Mérida, México. This 2-day conference was hosted by Pastor Juan Carlos Martínez of Calvary Chapel Las Americas and keynote speakers included Pastor Craig Caster and Pastor Fernando Rodríguez. The event was very well received with over 850 attendees – such is the demand for teaching on family today within the church.
The organizers testify to God’s hand being on the whole occasion – the convention center where the event was held was the only one suitable for the large crowd but was way over the budget. Yet upon learning what the event was and how it was for the families of Merida free-of-charge, the person in-charge of the venue decided to support the event by charging only 7,000 pesos ($350.00) to cover overheads! On the day of the event when it was discovered that the crowd was too large for the room the venue manager moved them to an even bigger room (which normally costs 500,000 pesos!) Our God is so good!
The event itself was a great success with many testimonies from participants. Numerous parents attended from the Calvary Educational Center Christian School, and were moved by the message they heard and thankful for the FDM workbooks they received for free. One family had lost all hope – they were on the verge of separation and in the process of saying their goodbyes to the church – but through prayer, encouragement and discipleship with FDM materials, the Lord has been restoring their marriage and they are still an active part of the church. Even a lady from the maintenance staff was so moved by Pastor Craig’s teaching during the conference that she received Christ and brought her children to be prayed for.
The Calvary Chapel Las Americas is a small church with many married couples who have studying FDM’s materials for years. They have taken seriously their discipleship in the areas of marriage and parenting and have seen so much fruit over the years. The church is passionate about family discipleship and enthusiastic to share what they have been learning – so many from the church volunteered their time to help with the organization of the event. We praise God that he is using a small church like Calvary Chapel Las Americas to revive surrounding churches and believers! We continue to pray for the families in Mérida – that they will commit their lives and marriages to God and that His Spirit will work powerfully among them.