Tuesday, December 3, 2024
Autumn prayer letter
“Ascribe to the Lord the glory due his name;
worship the Lord in the splendor of holiness.”
Psalm 29:2
Ramírez Family
Serving the Lord in San Nicolas, Tequisquiapan, Queretaro, Mexico
Autumn blessings to all of our faithful partners in ministry. God has been doing great things here in Mexico this fall. One major blessing from this fall is that our church has joined an organization of churches here in Mexico called “Lampei”. They are based in Morelia, Michoacán, Mexico. This group of churches is focused on planting churches, not just in Mexico but in the whole world. Our church is now “Lampei San Nicolas”. We are excited to see what God has in store for us with this change. You will read more about an event we did with them this October. You can learn more about them at, https://www.lampeiministries.org/
Women’s ministry: The past two months the women have enjoyed an evening of playing games and learning about first aid from Nidia, an RN that attends our church with her family. The women really enjoy these events and making memories together.
Conferences: Twice this fall I had the opportunity to join the other Lampei pastors in attending conferences here in Mexico. This was something that I needed and was a huge blessing to my life.
Discipleships: Our weekly discipleships are doing well and remaining faithful. My wife has had the joy of starting a new discipleship with a co-work of one of our church members. Mary is a mother of two small children, she has a hunger for learning more about Jesus and living for Christ. She has been faithful in studying the bible with Alicia and bringing her kids to kids’ club on Saturdays.
We also had a young mother and her son come from Morelia to stay with us for a week. During this time my wife was able to share about Jesus with her. Please pray for her salvation.
Kids’ club: The kids continue to meet every Saturday and learn about the books of the Bible. This week we will start preparing for the Christmas program.
Youth group: It has been great to see youth from San Nicolas join our group even tho they are not consistent in attending. We pray for their consistency and growth in Christ.
Farmer’s market: We have started back at being faithful in engaelizm at the farmer’s market every Sunday. It has been a blessing to see more people open up to allowing us share with them and visit them regularly.
Day of the Dead Evangelism: At the end of October my family and I went to Morelia to help with a week long Evangelism event with the Lampei church there. A group of Americans from California came to help too. During the week the group of 20 visited schools, parks, town squares and farmer’s markets to share the gospel with people who were out celebrating the day of the dead. We shared with them the God of the living and the hope we have in him. Thursday there was an interactive theater show presented at the church called “The route of the soul.” After each presentation there was a time for counseling and sharing more of the Gospel with those that attended. More than 100 people heard the good news of Jesus Christ this week and many more evangelistic flyers were handed out. Praise the Lord for this time.
Prayer requests:
Spiritual growth and number of people at church in San Nicolas.
That God would bless us with a team of people to help us reach more towns.
For the Green Card of Jorge, to be able to visit all of you soon!
The health and salvation of my parents, Carmen and Antonio.
For our relationship with God. That Boaz and Ana will know Him as Savior too.
For all the plans we have this year, that God will use each event to build His Kingdom.
Our financial support. Praise the Lord that more support has come in. Pray that more will join in supporting us.
We continue to pray for the car situation. The same problem happened again. We are praying for a solution to this issue.
Thank you!!
Blessings,
Jorge, Alicia, Boaz and Ana
jramirez@fim.org
awhitmore@fim.org
End of summer ministry events
The Ramírez family
Serving the Lord in San Nicolas, Tequisquiapan, Mexico
“Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever.”
Psalm 136:1
VBS: The last week of summer vacation 6-9 kids attended Vacation Bible school. The kids “traveled” to 5 different countries, learned about the culture and missionaries there. The last day was Mexico! I encouraged the kids to share the good news of Jesus Christ with the people around them here in Mexico.
Kids’ club: The kids club is sable with two sets of siblings and a friend who attend every Saturday. We continue to study the books of the Bible and learning them in order.
Youth group: Growth!! Our youth group has grown by two members. One of our kids’ club boys moved up to middle school and he and his older sister have started attending together. Praise the Lord.
Bible studies: Three nights a week I continue to meet with our in home bible studies. One is reading the Gospel of John together and the other two are studying Evangelism.
Sunday services: Our church continues to grow. We have two new Word of Life students serving with us this school year, Pablo and Devanay. This month I was able to preach at the Tequisquiapan church also.
Women’s meeting: The women at church look forward to their monthly meetings. In August they made different types of oven mitts and my wife gave a study on incorruptible beauty.
Stewardship conference: While at camp in July I made friends with the pastor and leaders from “La Roca Fuerte” church in Puerto Vallarta. They invited me to come and give a conference about good stewardship. In August my family and I spent a week with them. On Thursday evening the men and women were in separate groups, my wife and I both shared from the Bible this night. Friday, Saturday and Sunday I shared and encouraged the church in what the Bible says about being good stewards of our time, gifts, money and bodies. We were encouraged greatly by the people of this church. The week after we spent as a family enjoying time at the beach and visiting old friend of my wife’s from her time in Puerto Vallarta.
Mexican Independence day: September 15th we had a special service and time of fellowship at church to celebrate Independence day here in Mexico. It was a time of great encouragement for our church and we celebrated our freedom in Christ.
Prayer requests:
Spiritual growth and number of people at church in San Nicolas.
That God would bless us with a team of people to help us reach more towns.
For the Green Card of Jorge, to be able to visit all of you soon!
The health and salvation of my parents, Carmen and Antonio. My mom is doing better, please continue to pray. Thank you!
For our relationship with God. That Boaz and Ana will know His as Savior too.
For all the plans we have this year, that God will use each event to build His Kingdom.
Our financial support. Praise the Lord that more support has come in. Pray that more will join in supporting us.
Pray for our car. We continue to work on fixing our larger car or selling it. We need something more reliable. Praise the Lord we do have one working vehicle.
Evangelism outreach in Morelia. October 28 to November 4. Our church will be traveling to help share the Gospel with the people in Morelia. Pray for this event.
Thank you!
Blessings,
Jorge, Alicia, Boaz and Ana
jramirez@fim.org
awhitmore@fim.org
July prayer letter
The Ramírez family
Serving the Lord in San Nicolas, Tequisquiapan, Mexico
“Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord,
whose trust is the Lord.
He is like a tree planted by water,
that sends out its roots by the stream,
and does not fear when heat comes,
for its leaves remain green,
and is not anxious in the year of drought,
for it does not cease to bear fruit.”
Jeremiah 17:7-8
What a busy summer it has been. We have been so blessed to see God working here in Mexico.
We are thankful to God that we have three Bible studies every week. The Morales and Silvestre families are studying Evangelism. With Maribel and her family we are studying the Gospel of John.
The youth group girls continue to meet faithfully, we have changed their meetings to every other Saturday evening. Please pray that God will add members to this group.
At Kids’ club we have been working our way through the Bible book by book. The kids have been working on learning the books of the Bible in order. We have few kids but they continue to invite their friends, we average about 5-8 kids each week. Please pray for these kids and their salvation.
The ladies at church have enjoyed that last two meetings. In June Rosa taught how to weave a basket and in July my mother in law brought supplies to embroider tea towels. Each month my wife has more ladies attend, it is a great time for them to fellowship and be encouraged in the word.
One Sunday this summer Israel Millan came and preached at church. He and his wife have a Christian school in Tequisquiapan. Israel use to help us with music classes.
I have had the blessing to serve in two camps this summer. July 8-12 I served with Rosa, a member from our church, in the kitchen at young adult camp at Word of Life. We cooked for 600 people that week.
July 22-27 a group of 12 from our church went to camp. Thank you all for praying and supporting us that week. It was a week of blessings. I had a great team of workers in the dish room. Everyday I gave a break out session about “Don’t get caught in the web!” Encouraging the youth to not spend so much time on the internet and challenging them to think about what they do, see and hear on the internet. Boaz had a great week in the kids’ camp area with new friends, crafts and puppets.
Also this summer at church my wife and I presented Ana Jean to our church family and committed to be Godly parents and raise her to know and serve the Lord. This is a commitment we don’t take lightly and ask you to please pray for us as we seek to raise our children to love Christ.
Prayer requests:
Spiritual growth and number of people at church in San Nicolas.
That God would bless us with a team of people to help us reach more towns.
For the Green Card of Jorge, to be able to visit all of you soon!
The health and salvation of my parents, Carmen and Antonio. They are having health issues and live in a different state, it is hard to be far away at times like this. Pray for us too in knowing how to best handle this situation.
For our relationship with God. That Boaz and Ana will know Him as Savior too.
For all the plans we have this year, that God will use each event to build His Kingdom.
Our financial support. Praise the Lord that more support has come in. Pray that more will join in supporting us.
Pray for our car. We fixed the car as we said in the last pray letter. But it has broken down again and it has not worked for a month now. This complicates things for our movement for ministry.
August 6-10 we are having VBS. Pray for the kids and their families.
Thank you!
Blessings in Christ,
Jorge, Alicia, Boaz and Ana
jramirez@fim.org
awhitmore@fim.org
Camp update
“Let no one despise you for your youth, but set the believers an example in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, in purity.
1 Timothy 4:12
Ramírez Family
Serving the Lord in San Nicolas, Tequisquiapan, Queretaro, Mexico
CAMP!! We are at camp this week. We arrived Monday afternoon. Our church has 11 people here. My wife and I with our two kids, Rosa and her two teen aged daughters, 3 youth from San Nicolas and my in laws. My wife and I are serving with my father in law in the dish room, Rosa is cooking all the meals with the kitchen team, the 5 youth are campers and my mother in law is helping us with Boaz and Ana as well as doing crafts for the kids’ camp.
PRAY for the youth, there are still 15-18 campers that have not accepted the Lord as Savior. Praise the Lord that 12 campers accepted the Lord as Savior this week. Tonight is a special night for the campers. There will be a bon fire. At the bon fire the youth are encouraged to make a decision for the Lord. Those that are already believers make decisions in their growth. Thank you for joining us in prayer.
I have been giving a break out talk daily. “Don’t get caught in the web”, I have been challenging the students to think about their time and what they see on the internet.
THANK YOU! We reached our goal for camp!! Thank you for being a part of getting us to camp and allowing these youth to grow closer to Christ this week.
Thank you!!
Blessings,
Jorge, Alicia, Boaz and Ana
jramirez@fim.org
awhitmore@fim.org
May news
“For the joy of the Lord is your strength”
Nehemiah 8:10b
Ramírez Family
Serving the Lord in San Nicolas, Tequisquiapan, Queretaro, Mexico
A lot has been happening here the past month. Here is an update in photos! Enjoy!
Kids’ club has been going great! In June my wife will start a series of lessons on an overview of the Bible, this will go along with what I have been preaching on Sundays. Just like the kids, the youth group girls continue to meet faithfully.
I prayed for Abdy, a young lady from our church, who went to another state for a 4 month internship this summer. Praying she will be a light there.
A normal Sunday evening church service.
The kids all took a flower home to their mom’s. The flowers were donated by Uncle David, we will share more about his visit below.
Happy Mother’s day!
Ana and Uncle David. He is the kids’ great great uncle.
Boaz and Tío David. He was so excited to see Uncle David again.
Uncle David came and spent 10 days with us in May. He brought us close to 50 Bibles in Spanish. He also helped me with some work at the church.
Gabriel and David helping make the church more secure.
Finished project! This will add safely to the church building and allow us to play games outside with the kids.
Fixing the plumbing at church too.
This month at women’s group they had a great time “clowning around”. Arely lead fun activities about laughter and talked about the importance of laughter in your lives. My wife then lead a bible study about the joy of the Lord. They shared cookies and ice coffees and fellowship to end the night.
May 16th, 2021 my wife and I, by the grace of God, started Sunday night church services in San Nicolas. There were just three of us then. God is good and we are excited to see what He is doing in San Nicolas. On May 26, 2024 we celebrated our 3 year anniversary of church services. We met in the morning and after the service we had a time of fellowship with lunch. Praise the Lord for these 3 years of His faithfulness.
Prayer requests:
Spiritual growth and number of people at church in San Nicolas.
That God would bless us with a team of people to help us reach more towns.
For the Green Card of Jorge, to be able to visit all of you soon!
The health and salvation of my parents, Carmen and Antonio. This week and the next we will be in Guadalajara visiting my parents. It will be a great time to see family and for them to meet Ana. Thank you for your prayers.
For our relationship with God. That Boaz and Ana will know Him as Savior too.
For all the plans we have this year, that God will use each event to build His Kingdom.
Our financial support. Praise the Lord that more support has come in. Pray that more will join in supporting us.
Praise for our car. Our car is back up and working! This makes things in ministry and life much easier. Thank you for your prayers.
Camp support. We thank you so much for supporting our summer camp trip. We have gotten a few offerings this past month. If you would like to help please specify in your donation that it is for camp. Contact my wife for more questions.
Thank you!!
Blessings,
Jorge, Alicia, Boaz and Ana
jramirez@fim.org
awhitmore@fim.org
Spring update
The Ramírez family
Serving the Lord in San Nicolas, Tequisquiapan, Mexico
Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil.
Ephesians 6:11
In March a group of students from Word of Life came and did ministry with us over the weekend. It is always a huge blessings to have these extra hands to help us reach more people in San Nicolas. They helped us with a medical brigade, kids’ club, a special youth group meeting, evangelism at the farmer’s market and the Sunday night service.
Holy week and the week after Easter are vacation days for the kids. We did a VBS for them during Holy week this year. We studied the Armor of God from Ephesians 6. Each day I taught about a piece of the armor and the kids made a piece as part of their craft. They also enjoyed singing a song about the armor of God. By the end of the week they had learned the majority of Ephesians 6 as well.
Our church family spent a day together during Holy week at a hot water springs pool. Days like these really help church members get to know each other better and make memories.
Kids’ club is going well. The kids are faithful and few. We are currently learning about the main people in the Old Testament. Please pray for these kids and their families.
The youth group girls have been busy the last few months. The second week of Easter vacation 4 young girls from church spent a week at Word of Life to see what the school is like. They all enjoyed the week there and one is seriously thinking about attending when she graduates from High school.
Each month the church in Tequisquiapan invites our girls to a special all girls event. The month of April was a picnic theme and painting event. A missionary from Word of Life shared her testimony and the Bible study was about waiting for a Godly husband. The girls really enjoy these events and connecting with other Christians their age.
Women’s ministry has been going well. There have been several visitors and have a group from church that is constant. The crafts they have done are key chains, painting and molding clay. They look forward to this Saturday every month.
I have been preaching an over view of the Bible going through book by book. This week will be 2nd Samuel. I also have enjoyed inviting friends to help with preaching. The most recent was a missionary from Word of Life, David Hidalgo.
Prayer requests:
Spiritual growth and number of people at church in San Nicolas.
That God would bless us with a team of people to help us reach more towns.
For the Green Card of Jorge, to be able to visit all of you soon!
The health and salvation of my parents, Carmen and Antonio. They are having health issues and live in a different state, it is hard to be far away at times like this. Pray for us too in knowing how to best handle this situation.
For our relationship with God. That Boaz and Ana will know His as Savior too.
For all the plans we have this year, that God will use each event to build His Kingdom.
Our financial support. Praise the Lord that more support has come in. Pray that more will join in supporting us.
Pray for our car. This week our larger car broke down. Pray that it will be fixed soon. It makes the weekend harder for us to only have one car.
Thank you!
Blessings,
Jorge, Alicia, Boaz and Ana
jramirez@fim.org
awhitmore@fim.org
Christmas and New Year ministry
“I lay down and slept; I woke again, for the Lord sustained me.”
Psalm 3:5
Ramírez Family
Serving the Lord in San Nicolas, Tequisquiapan, Queretaro, Mexico
December was filled with many ministry opportunities and sharing time celebrating the birth of the Savior.
We made cookies with Rosa and her daughters one day at our house. It was a fun day with Rosa’s family. Even Boaz got in on the decorating, I think he ate more m&m’s than he used to decorate with. It is a family tradition to bring plates of Christmas goodies to friends during the Holiday season.
Our kids’ club kids and youth practiced and performed the annual Christmas program this December. They presented the Christmas story from the Bible at our end of the year service. We had several visitors that heard the Gospel preached. Joaquin Cortes came from Word of Life to share the Gospel. We played games to start off the evening. Dinner was shared together as we celebrated the birth of Christ. If you look closely you can see the chairs we got with the offering for the first time this night. We also have gotten some new sound equipment too! Remember that they stole our sound equipment? We were able to buy some with the offerings we received. Thank you for helping.
During the last two weeks of December we took some time to be a family of three. We celebrated Christmas at home and New Year’s eve too. It was a great time of rest and relaxation.
Also during this time we visited the Mendez family and their ministry in Bernal. They have a Friday evening bible study in their home with several families that attend. I was asked to share and encourage these families to be faithful in the new year. It was a fun night of games, supper and fellowship.
In January we welcomed our newest little blessing. Ana Jean joined our family on January 3 at 8am. She and mommy are doing great. Big brother loves her and is always asking where she is. Both Ana and Jean mean grace, my wife says she is our double portion of grace. In Spanish Ana is Samuel’s mom’s name and the name of the woman who sees Jesus in the temple. Both women are prayer warriors, something we pray Ana becomes as she grows up. Jean is a family name on my wife’s side. We can not be more in love with this little girl.
January also got all the church activities off to a great start. The kids continue to be faithful in coming to Olympicos and memorizing their verses. One little boy who comes faithfully with his siblings learned the verse for the first time this last week! Praise the Lord.
My in laws come for a month to help us after Ana was born. My mother in law helped us with crafts for the Sunday school and also did a craft at women’s group. Thank you to those that helped with this craft; sent the craft, sent extra supplies and came and helped us. This group really is a blessing for the women. Rosa and her daughters have really enjoyed coming up with crafts and teaching them to the others.
Sunday evening services are growing. We have faithful attendance. Praise the Lord for the new chairs. We had to add more rows a few weeks ago to accommodate everyone. Carlos Mendez and his family have been attending Sunday evenings and he is helping Jorge with preaching occasionally.
I continue to preach at the church in Tequis every two to three months. February was the more recent time I preached there. My family was not able to join me in person but they watched me on TV. Boaz was confused why dada didn’t respond to when he talked to him.
Please be in prayer for Boaz. The week of Valentine’s day my wife noticed that he was having pain and swelling, Boaz has a high pain tolerance. We took him to the doctor to be seen thinking it was an infection. It ended up being more than that and needing emergency surgery. They operated that same night, he spent the night at the hospital and came home the next day. Everything came out fine and he is healing well. Praise the Lord for our church family here and the doctors that took care of Boaz.
The youth group girls have been inviting their friends to youth group. This Saturday we are going to have youth group at their home. We are trying a different strategy to reach their friends and show them that church doesn’t have to be boring. Please pray for this event and the salvation of these young people. This is a picture of the three youth; Nidia, Abril and Cori.
Prayer requests:
This THURSDAY February 29 we have a medical brigade at our church. This is a free clinic for the town. Please join us in praying for the town and that many will come to Salvation.
This SATURDAY March 2, the youth group event in the home of the youth group girls. Salvation of the invited youth.
Spiritual growth and number of people at church in San Nicolas.
That God would bless us with a team of people to help us reach more towns.
For the Green Card of Jorge, to be able to visit all of you soon!
The health and salvation of my parents, Carmen and Antonio. They are having health issues and live in a different state, it is hard to be far away at times like this. Pray for us too in knowing how to best handle this situation.
For our relationship with God. That Boaz and Ana will know His as Savior too.
For all the plans we have this year, that God will use each event to build His Kingdom.
Our financial support. Praise the Lord that more support has come in. Pray that more will join in supporting us.
Thank you!!
Blessings,
Jorge, Alicia, Boaz and Ana
jramirez@fim.org
awhitmore@fim.org
Difficult moments
“He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will abide in the shadow of the Almighty.”
Psalm 91
Ramírez Family
Serving the Lord in San Nicolas, Tequisquiapan, Queretaro, Mexico
Wednesday December 13, 2023 I was informed that the building we use for church was open. I quickly went to see what had happened. It appears that some people broke in Tuesday night and took all our sound equipment, 2 tables and some tools. We are thinking of putting more security measures in place, we have begun by putting 3 locks on the front door. Pray for us as we make the place safer before buying more sound equipment. Praise the Lord that it was in the night and no was there and nothing worse happened. We are all doing well.
Thank you for praying for us and this situation. Blessings!
Thank you!!
Blessings,
Jorge, Alicia and Boaz
jramirez@fim.org
awhitmore@fim.org
Thankful
“Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth.”
2 Timothy 2:15
Ramírez Family
Serving the Lord in San Nicolas, Tequisquiapan, Queretaro, Mexico
Happy Thanksgiving! We are thankful for each and everyone of you, your support and prayers that allow us to keep working here in Mexico.
We are so thankful that all of our weekly meetings and activities are still going strong. The women’s meeting made Christmas decorations and in December will have a tea together to celebrate Christmas. Kids’ club is going strong. We practicing for the Christmas program that we will present on December 17th. We thank God that even though a few kids have stoped coming others have come back to kids’ club and Sunday evening services.
A few times a year other churches invite me to preach. In November I preached at the IBM Bernal. This church is part of a group of churches we belong to.
We are settling in to our new location and loving it! I was able to expand the worship area. It made more room for seating and the new stage area looks great! Even little Boaz is enjoying it.
Visit from Iglesia Vida
A church in Guadalajara came for a weekend in November. They helped with evangelism, youth group, kids’ club, worship, shared their testimonies, preached and taught a class for kids’ teachers. Their visit helped us get more contacts in San Nicolas and some new kids are joining us. Groups like this really help us do more and reach more people with the Gospel.
We continue to visit our contacts in San Nicolas and encourage faithful members during the week. Wednesday and Thursday evenings we are studying “Christian Life” with two families from church.
This month I have had the opportunity to study Greek koiné at Word of Life. The class was a huge blessing to me and is a great tool for ministry.
Also at Word of Life they invited me to preach at the students’ service. It was a great blessing to share the word with them.
Thank you to everyone who has sent a special gift for our chairs and sound project. We are about half way there now. We continue to invite you to be a part of this special offering. Let us know if you need more information on how to be a part of this project.
Prayer Requests:
Spiritual growth and number of people at church in San Nicolas
Healthy pregnancy for my wife and healthy baby. Baby should be joining us around January 8th.
That God would bless us with a team of people to help us reach more towns.
For the Green Card of Jorge, to be able to visit all of you soon!
For our relationship with God
For all the plans we have this year, that God will use each event to build His Kingdom.
Our financial support.
Thank you!!
Blessings,
Jorge, Alicia and Boaz
jramirez@fim.org
awhitmore@fim.org
July, August and September
The Ramírez family
Serving the Lord in San Nicolas, Mexico
“For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.” Romans 1:16
This summer flew by and was so busy with great ministry activities. The first week of August we took 4 youth to camp in Arandas, Jalisco. A group of 7 adults went along to serve as well, including my in laws. We served in the kitchen, washing dishes, cleaning the dinning room and helping with the kids’ camp. Three children of our servers attended the kids’ camp all week. It was a great week and everyone came home excited to live more for Christ. Rosa told her daughters, “I don’t know if you are going next year but I am!”
Vacation bible school: When we got back from camp we had a vacation bible school for the kids. The theme was “Not ashamed”, the kids learned about 5 people in the bible who were not ashamed of telling others about Christ and that some times it came with a cost. We had a great week. Thank you to those that helped with sending us crafts!
Olimpicos: The kids’ program on Saturday morning is going strong. The kids are faithful in attending and learning their verses. The grandmother of one of the kids told me that at school her granddaughter was telling other kids that calling God, “Dioscito” is not ok because God is big and strong and powerful. We sing a song at kids’ club that taught her these truths. God is good!
While my mother in law was here in July she taught the ladies’ meeting. She brought along a wooden circle to paint with a verse on it and a cross to decorate with. In August Charito came from the Tequis church and taught the ladies how to make hair bows. Then in September Sarai came from Word of Life to teach a class on salsas. She made 2 delicious salsas and one cream cheese dip. This time has been a blessing to these women as they share fellowship and laughter. Each month someone shares a devotional and encourages the others in their walk with the Lord.
ACE: At the beginning of the school year my family and I visited a christian school lead by Israel Millan and his wife Fernanda in Tequisquiapan. One day I taught the Bible class with a craft my wife put together, and the next day sports class. Israel is a friend of mine from Word of Life and was giving music classes in San Nicolas.
Every Friday night we have a prayer meeting at the church in San Nicolas. This is a promise I have with the Lord to pray for this town even if it is just my wife and I every Friday night. God has been blessing this time with answered prayer and a several weeks we have not prayed alone! Praise the Lord!
After camp God placed it on Gabriel and Ada’s hearts to open their home for a Bible study and to invite their neighbors. We have been going strong reading the Bible and praying together every Thursday evening. It is a joy and blessing to watch this family grow in the Lord and share the gospel with their neighbors.
As God has been growing our ministry in San Nicolas we have been running out of space. I had been praying and looking for new places to meet for a few months. At the end of August I found a place that met our needs. It was move in ready and is able to grow with us. Praise the Lord for this provision.
Our first Sunday in the new building we celebrated Mexican Independence day (September 16th). We played games, ate pozole (a typical Mexican soup), welcomed several visitors, sang worship songs and heard a message about our freedom in Christ. It was a great evening in fellowship with our church family.
Prayer requests:
Spiritual growth and number of people at church in San Nicolas
Healthy pregnancy for my wife and healthy baby. Baby is growing and mom is feeling good.
That God would bless us with a team of people to help us reach more towns. Praise that we have students from Word of Life serving with us this school year.
For the Green Card of Jorge, to be able to visit all of you soon!
For our relationship with God
Our financial support
We would like to invite you to join us in purchasing chairs and sound equipment for the church. We received a generous offering for sound this summer but still need some to complete the purchase. We don’t have enough chairs for everyone as we grow, praise the Lord! If you would like to be apart of this please communicate with us directly and we will get you more information.
Thank you for your love and support!
Blessings,
Jorge, Alicia and Boaz
jramirez@fim.org
awhitmore@fim.org
May and June update
“The LORD will fulfill his purpose for me; your steadfast love, O LORD, endures forever. Do not forsake the work of your hands.”
Psalms 138:8
Ramírez Family
Serving the Lord in San Nicolas, Queretaro, Mexico
Baptisms. We thank God that our three youth (sisters) made this public demonstration of faith in May. It was a blessed day of fellowship shared between our San Nicolas church and the Tequisquiapan church. Our praise team had their first performance and did a great job. We also celebrated 2 years of Sunday church services. Praise the LORD!
Every so often I invite other pastors or Christian friends to preach at the church in San Nicolas. In May a classmate of mine, Daniel Ibarra, from Word of Life came with his family and he preached at the baptism service. Then in June a Word of Life missionary, Omar Morales, from Taiwan and Thailand and his family came and he preached. It was interesting to hear about ministry in Asia and what God is doing there.
Gaby and Gloria are two sisters from the Tequisquiapan church that we have always helped with projects around the house, taking them to doctor appointments and grocery delivery. These ladies are faithful supporters of the ministry in San Nicolas. In June Gaby moved to an assisted living home about 4 hours away. We helped them with packing and the big movie. We will miss Gaby a lot and pray for her often.
Keypoint Bible Church
Through a series of God events Pastor Matt and his daughter Vienna came to visit us for a long weekend. It was a blessing and encouragement to us to show them what God is doing here in Mexico. They were able to see a lot in a short time. They also brought us a lot of awesome things for ministry. We look forward to using all the craft supplies at VBS this summer. Thank you!!
The kids loved trying on Matt’s big shoes at kids’ club. They saw our youth group and church service and participated at women’s meeting. The ladies made chalk boards our of kitchen pans and cross magnets. Matt and Vienna also enjoyed the farmer’s market on Sunday morning and seeing around San Nicolas.
We are so grateful for this visit and excited to see what God has for our churches in the future.
Olimpicos: The kids’ program is growing rapidly! This past Saturday we had 18 kids! Praise the LORD! Over half of these kids are from San Nicolas.
The kids are also really enjoying memorizing and doing their Bible study at home. 4 boys moved up in level. They get a certificate, pin and hat for finishing a level.
Women’s meeting: In May the ladies made chalk boards and in June they made plastic flowers out of recycled water bottles. They have so much fun making their craft and spending time together. My wife has started encouraging each lady to take a turn sharing the devotional.
Fernando and Arely are a couple who recently joined us in ministry in San Nicolas. Arely is a professional clown. We did an evangelistic with them where we helped with evangelistic flyers. We hope to do more events like this in the future. They have been a huge blessing to our ministry team. Praise the LORD!
In June it was our turn to travel and visit other missionaries and help them with their ministry. We traveled to Morelia, Michiocan to visit friends of mine from Word of Life, David and Doni Garcia, Armando and Christina Peña. These two couples pastor a church and school in Morelia. My wife and I helped them with discipleships, bible teaching, woman’s ministry, men’s group, youth group, a church plant and preaching. It was a fun and busy weekend. Praise the LORD for this opportunity to serve with other believers.
Boaz has been growing so much in the last two months. He talks a lot now, says new words every day. He finally started walking!! He has loved all the news kids his age to play with and has learned a lot about sharing. His biggest news is that he is going to be a big brother in January. We are beyond excited and blessed to be adding another little one to our family.
Prayer Requests:
Spiritual growth and number of people at church in San Nicolas
Healthy pregnancy for my wife and healthy baby
That God would bless us with a team of people to help us reach more towns
For the Green Card of Jorge, to be able to visit all of you soon!
For our relationship with God
For all the plans we have this year, that God will use each event to build His Kingdom
Youth camp July 31-August 5
Vacation Bible School August 15-19
Our financial support
Thank you!!
Blessings,
Jorge, Alicia and Boaz
jramirez@fim.org
awhitmore@fim.org
Awesome God in an awesome April
“But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.”
Matthew 6:33
Awesome April!
What a busy and blessed month it has been. We thank God for all of your prayers and support.
Olympicos: The kids are still faithful in coming on Saturday mornings to learn and grow in their faith. During the Easter vacation we had a 5 day activity for the kids. The theme was “Rescue”. The kids had fun learning about all the ways Jesus rescues us. Thank you to those who helped make this week possible.
Kids’ day!
To celebrate the kids we invited them over to our house for swimming, pizza, ice cream, a movie and games. We all had a fun day. Even Boaz got in on the pool fun.
Happy Resurrection Sunday! He is risen!
On Resurrection Sunday a missionary, Gerardo Coronado, with Life in Messiah and his family came to San Nicolas. Gerardo presented a typical Seder dinner, what the Last Supper with Jesus would have been like. He explained the meaning of everything and shared the Gospel. Many visitors were with us this day, everyone enjoyed the Seder and were encouraged by the message.
Soap and grocery bags were the crafts at the two women’s meetings. In March Maribel, a church member, taught the ladies how to make soaps. In April they celebrated Mother’s day by painting cloth grocery bags. Salem, a Tequis church member, came and taught different techniques. It is so great to see the community forming between the ladies at these meetings.
40 years of God’s faithfulness; This was the theme at the Word of Life Mexico 40th Anniversary. We had a long full day at the Bible school where I studied 3 years, celebrating and hearing testimonies of God working these past 40 years in Mexico.
Praise the Lord! Thank you for joining us in prayer the last year as we have asked God for my US Green card. This past month we were told that the first step paperwork has been accepted! What a huge answer to prayer. There are still many more steps to make but we are on the right track! This week we will talk to the lawyer and do more paperwork. Continue to join us in prayer for this process.
Prayer Requests:
Spiritual growth and number of people at church in San Nicolas
Mexico Lindo, Mari and her family that we are visiting and we can be faithful in continuing this Bible study.
That God would bless us with a team of people to help us reach more towns
For the Green Card of Jorge, to be able to visit all of you soon!
For our relationship with God
For all the plans we have this year, that God will use each event to build His Kingdom
Our financial support, we are still at 76%. Thank you!
Thank you!!
Blessings,
Jorge, Alicia and Boaz
jramirez@fim.org
awhitmore@fim.org
Thursday, March 23, 2023
January, February and a little March too
“I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.
John 15:5
Ramírez Family
Serving the Lord in San Nicolas, Queretaro, Mexico
What a blessing filled few months it has been. Alicia’s great uncle David and his wife Louise visited us for a week. In that week they helped us organize at church, stamp bibles and evangelistic material with the church information, shared testimony with the ladies, taught us how to make sour dough bread, evangelized in the farmer’s market, played with the church worship group, brought us many Bibles for all ages, encouraged us and loved on Boaz. We were very blessed by their visit.
Every month the church in Tequisquiapan has a marriage class. For Valentine’s day they had a special supper and renewing of your marriage. I married my wife again!
Youth
We have been able to attend several things for youth. There is a young ladies meeting once a month at the Tequisquiapan church that our youth have been a part of. At their meeting they do a fun girly activity and then have a time to learn from God’s word. This has been great for them to make new friends and grow in their faith.
Our youth group also attended a sports day in the park with other area churches. The youth played sports with weird rules and were involved in a time of evangelism.
Parents are not left out of youth activities. A church in Querétaro held a class for parents about identity and what God says about who we are in Him. One mom from church attended with us, it was a great learning event.
The youth group had been holding strong. There are now 3 young ladies who are part of the group each week.
Olimpicos: The kids’ club has changed name. We are now using a program with the kids that is similar to AWANA. The kids are really liking their new format of learning Bible verses and being encouraged in their faith. We have 10-12 faithful members of Olimpicos.
Sunday church service: Every Sunday we have our regular church service in the evening. There are 5-6 families that join us each week. I am currently preaching about acceptable sins: sins we commit frequently as Christians, the series is called “It’s still sin.
Music class: Tuesday and Thursday evenings we have music class with Israel. The class is learning to sing together and play as a group. They have learned several songs and once sang in church, one of the youth played percussion when Aunt Louise helped us with her Ukelele.
In March we were blessed with a visit from my wife’s aunt and cousin, Marcia and Sara Aguilar. They helped us with visiting, we visited many women from church. They also blessed us by bringing material and other things from supporters in Iowa. Thank you to everyone who has sent things for our ministry!
Prayer Requests:
Spiritual growth and number of people at church in San Nicolas
Mexico Lindo, Maribel and her family that we are visiting and will soon start a bible study with.
That God would bless us with a team of people to help us reach more towns
For the Green Card of Jorge, to be able to visit all of you soon!
For our relationship with God
For all the plans we have this year, that God will use each event to build His Kingdom
Our financial support, we are now at 76%. Thank you!
Thank you!!
Blessings,
Jorge, Alicia and Boaz
jramirez@fim.org
awhitmore@fim.org
Wednesday, January 25, 2023
January 2023
Behold, how good and pleasant it is when brothers dwell in unity!
Psalm 133:1
Happy New Year!! We had a very busy and fruitful end to 2022. The Lord is GOOD! At the beginning of November Alicia’s parents came to visit for 2 months. This was a huge blessing!! Vonnie helped with all things crafts for the kids, taught two women’s meetings, one on bracelets and one on decorating Christmas cookies. Kent helped with the direction of the kids’ Christmas program. Alicia and her dad also sang special music at several churches. It was a great time for Boaz to get in lots of grandparent time. This was a huge help for my wife and I to be able to do ministry without distraction.
The evening of December 22nd the church held it’s Christmas event. The kids presented their skit and two songs, special guest pastor Ruben Fonseca shared the gospel, we played games, had an ugly sweater contest and shared lots of delicious food. Many family members attended and many heard the true meaning of Christmas for the first time. Also at Christmas we visited many homes door to door, gifting the kids goodie bags. We were able to make many new contacts this way.
Christmas is such a special season to be able to share and have fellowship with other Believers in the area. I was invited to share the gospel at the Iglesia Biblica Misionera Bernal. It was a lovely evening of worship.
In November we celebrated the first birthday of Boaz. It has been a blessing to watch this little boy grow and to be his parents. For his birthday 20+ family members came to celebrate with us at a local hot springs pool.
After a very busy December we were able to take a week off to visit family and friends in Guadalajara. Some good family time and some much needed rest. The regular church activities have resumed again. This year we have also begun offering music classes to church members in hopes of starting a praise team. A young lady at church has started a reading club on Tuesday and Thursday evenings, the purpose is to teach kids who don’t know how to read and to help other kids to read better. The first evening we had 8-10 kids!
We are excited to see what God has in store for San Nicolas this year! Many exciting things are already in the works; visitors, women’s activities, camp, Vacation Bible school during Holy week and Summer vacation. Thank you for being a part of these events in prayer and financial support. If you would like to be part of these events in person please let us know, there are many opportunities available.
Prayer Requests:
Spiritual growth and number of people at church in San Nicolas
That God would bless us with a team of people to help us reach more towns
For the Green Card of Jorge, to be able to visit all of you soon!
For our relationship with God
For all the plans we have this year, that God will use each event to build his Kingdom
Our financial support
Thank you!!
Blessings,
Jorge, Alicia and Boaz
jramirez@fim.org
awhitmore@fim.org
Friday, January 13, 2023
November 2022
“Know therefore that the LORD your God is God, the faithful God who keeps covenant and steadfast love with those who love him and keep His commandments, to a thousand generations.”
Deuteronomy 7:9
San Nicolas to Iowa
Late summer early fall Alicia and Boaz traveled to Iowa and I stayed in San Nicolas. We were blessed with this trip by a relative of Alicia’s. While we were apart God worked both here and there.
This school year we asked for two students from Word of Life Bible Institute to come and do ministry with us. Evelyn and Daniel are here serving with us every Friday thru Sunday. It has been a huge blessing to have them.
Youth group: In September we started a “Club Biblico” in San Nicolas. There are about 3-5 regular attenders. What a joy to see this ministry start in San Nicolas. We have had the desire to start a youth ministry for awhile. It wasn’t until now that God made it possible and opened this door. We are so grateful to be able to reach the youth now. Please join us in praying for the youth of San Nicolas.
Kids’ Club: Maribel continues to invite kids from town and many have started coming. There is now a group of about 10-12 every Saturday. We have started Christmas program practice with the kids. My father in law will be the director of the program while they are here.
Sunday school: Every week we have more kids coming on Sundays. Some just come for the class, they even come without parents. God has blessed us with more teachers for this ministry, this is a huge help for my wife.
Sunday church: The Lord is working and in only a few months our new meeting space and chairs are almost full every Sunday. Those that come are regulars, each week there are new visitors too. Praise the Lord!
Mexican party: September 16 is Independence day here in Mexico. The church in San Nicolas hosted a party to celebrate. We sang songs, played games, ate pozole and I shared the Gospel. Many new people came and several that don’t know Jesus as their savior.
Evangelism: On Sunday mornings in San Nicolas there is a farmer’s market. A few times a month we have started attending and sharing the gospel and handing out tracks. This has helped the church to be known in the town and share hope with the lost.
Updates to the building: In the month of September I was busying painting and doing small improvements to the meeting space. A few youth girls painted John 14:6 on the wall, a lady from church sewed curtains to replace the newspaper that was coving the windows and I cleaned and painted the classroom and a room for guests to stay.
Women’s ministry: In September chef Sarai taught the ladies how to make salsa. Then in October Alicia and Evelyn taught the ladies how to make three kids of salads: apple, potato and egg. After the class one of the ladies shared her testimony. Several ladies joined us. It is a wonderful time of fellowship.
Discipleship: During the week my wife and I have several discipleships. It is exciting to see each one grow and understand the gospel.
Visiting: The Lord has opened doors for us to begin visiting other towns; Mexico Lindo, La Trinidad and Fuentezuelas. In La Trinidad we visit an elderly couple once a week to read the Bible and pray with them.
Pastors’ School: In October we were blessed to attend Word of Life’s pastors’ school in Huatulco, Oaxaca, Mexico. It was a wonderful week of teaching, fellowship and relaxing.
Alicia and Boaz’s trip to Idaho and Iowa: Thank you to all who were able to visit with my wife and son, those who hosted them and took great care of them. They had a great trip and we saw God work in each detail.
Prayer Requests and Praises
1.The church in San Nicolas to grow and establish.
2. Opportunities in San Nicolas to share the Gospel. More families to visit and help.
3. Visits in new towns and the salvation of the people we visit.
4. Our spiritual needs and relationship with Christ.
5. Jorge’s Green Card. A quick reply about the appointment.
6. Our financial support. Praise that we were able to raise support with the visit in Iowa/Idaho. Pray we can reach 100% soon.
Thank you! God is doing great things here in Mexico. You are all a part of this ministry.
Blessings,
Jorge, Alicia and Boaz Ramírez
jramirez@fim.org
awhitmore@fim.org
August 2022
Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”
John 14:6
Hello!
This summer has flown by for us. It was a summer of many activities and even more blessings. We spent the first week in August at camp in Guadalajara. My wife helped with the kids of the people serving. They had about 15 kids and were exhausted at the end of the day. I served as head counselor. It was a very rewarding week and 25 youth accepted Christ. Enjoy the pictures below. One of our biggest praises in that two of my nieces attended camp with two friends, this is a first ever. Please join us in praying for them. Thank you for your prayers!
The church in San Nicolas is growing and doing well. Before camp my nephew Francisco and I cleaned and repaired the new space we are renting. It took us about 2 weeks to finish. Praise the Lord for this new space (pictured below). It came just in time for us to have space for new families to come and some old members return.
This next month I will be fixing up and painting two other rooms we rent. One will be used for a kids’ classroom and the other for hosting possible students from Word of Life.
August 23-26 was our annual VBS! This year we learned about animals in the Bible. Creation, Noah, Daniel and the Good Shepherd. On the last day a Christian clown came to have fun with the kids and share the Gospel. About 9 kids joined us daily. The kids we have are faithful.
At the end of our Life of Christ lesson series we rewarded the kids with the most points with camp scholarships, Word of Life camp. 4 kids from our kids’ club and one of their friends attended. I took the kids to camp on Monday, we visited them Tuesday night at camp, Wednesday afternoon at the pool and picked them up on Friday. They had such a great week they talked and told stories the whole way home.
This summer I continued to preach at the church in Tequisquiapan. Pastor Coleman and I are continuing to teach on the Life of Christ. I also had the opportunity to preach at a fellow FIM missionary’s church in Queretaro. That sermon was about King David, the temple and worship. I preach most Sundays in San Nicolas, we had one visiting pastor and Francisco preach this summer. Preaching is one of my greatest joys and blessings.
After camp we got to spend some time with my family in Guadalajara for one of my sisters’ wedding anniversary celebration, 25 years. Then another sister, her two kids and another nephew came home with us and spent 10 days in Tequis. This was a great time with them, we had a lot of fun and Boaz loved seeing his cousins.
Now for the surprise! Many of you already know but Alicia and Boaz are back in the USA! They surprised her parents on Thursday August 25th. They will be in Boise, Idaho until August 30, visiting family and a church of one of Alicia’s uncles. They will be in Iowa from August 30 until October 11. We were blessed with this trip and saw God’s provision in all of it. The main goal is to raise support and connect with churches. I am still waiting on my Green Card appointment and was not able to join them this trip. They will be at the following churches on these Sundays.
September 4 - Bethany Reformed
September 11 - New City
September 18 - Liberty E Free
September 25 - Meriden E Free
October 2 - Stanton E Free
October 9 - Oakdale E Free
They are in Iowa to connect and see everyone they can before they come back to Mexico, where I eagerly wait for them and continue to do ministry. Please reach out to my wife if you would like to see them, have a group you would like her to share our ministry with in person, or if you would just like to have coffee or a meal together. Her email address is awhitmore@fim.org. She would love to see you.
Pray Requests:
1. Alicia and Boaz’s time in the USA and Jorge’s time alone in Mexico
2. The church in San Nicolas to grow and establish
3. Opportunities in San Nicolas to share the Gospel. More families to visit and help
4. Praise for a great summer of ministry
5. Jorge’s Green Card. A quick reply about the appointment
6. Our financial support. That this month in Iowa would be fruitful
Thank you for all your love and support!! We could not do this without each one of you.
Blessings,
Jorge, Alicia and Boaz Ramírez
jramirez@fim.org
awhitmore@fim.org
July 2022
The Ramírez Family | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Ministry Partners, ¡Hola from Mexico! Hope you are all having a blessed summer. We have seen God’s blessings in San Nicolas, Mexico this summer. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The church is remaining steady in its number of people weekly, those that come are starting to come more regularly. I have been preaching through Ephesians this month. This month we have been blessed to have Francisco (preaching in the photo on the right) serving with us, he is my nephew, the only other believer in my family. We visited my family for a week in Guadalajara, while we were there Francisco was kidnaped outside of his church and held for ransom. His family was able to borrow money from a family member and pay for the release of my nephew. Thanks to God that he was released that same night without any harm done to his person. He came to serve with us for one month. Boaz likes having his cousin here. Francisco is the 1st and Boaz is the 34th. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Kids’ club is doing well. We just finished a study of the “Life of Christ”. There have been heart changes in the kids these last few months. Many more are memorizing verses each week and several a now playing games without cheating. One new little girl brings new friends each week. Praise the Lord! The kids are looking forward to summer camp in August. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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My wife continues to have a monthly reunion with the women. The past two were classes on construction/concrete mixing, where they made little flower pots out of concrete and the following month they learned how to plant and care for flowers and plants. This time of fellowship is wonderful for the women of San Nicolas. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Thursday evenings we have a growing group that meets to share prayer requests, pray for each other and the town and study Romans. God blesses us weekly in this time. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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My wife and I have been busy visiting serval families in San Nicolas brining them groceries and helping them with other needs. One young boy joins us on Saturday’s for Kids’ club, he is so excited about what he has learned that he shares everything with his family. This month we were in Guadalajara to visit and help my dad. He spend a few days in the hospital for a hernia. He is back home and doing much better. It was a blessing to be able to spend this time with him and the rest of the family. I shared the gospel with some of the family the night Francisco was kidnaped after he was at home again. Please join us in praying for their salvation. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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We have all the paperwork for Boaz done!! We also have all of my green card papers in and are in the waiting process to hear from the US government on when we will have our interview and my medical check. Thank you for praying with us that they will respond soon! | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Prayer Requests
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THANK YOU! We are grateful for your love, prayers and support. God is good! Thank you for being a part of what God is doing here in San Nicolas. Blessings, jramirez@fim.org | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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May 2022
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