Laws of Man are not a Moral Compass

Greetings and blessings to everyone!

  We want you to know that each and everyone of you are in our prayers. It has been very heartwarming to receive so many emails from many of you who are worried about us and our situation with COVID here in Peru. The outpour of such kindness and prayers, we recognize as blessings and a gift from God.  Our situation here in Peru with the COVID virus is ever changing as I am sure is the case in the US. In July the government removed, for the most part, all of the military from our area and we were left with the obligation of maintaining the social distancing order and the nightly curfew which mandated that we were to be in our homes between 10 pm and 4 am each night. Although we had been asked by our Bishop and priest not to return to our formal ministries such as sacramental prep classes, youth group and bible studies we found comfort in the new normal of just being open to the Holy Spirit and knowing that soon our churches could open and formal ministries would be allowed to continue as we felt we could see the light at the end of the tunnel.  

    However due to the rise in COVID cases, as of August, the 1^st our region, along with many more regions, have now been placed back on a strict quarantine and they have moved our curfew up a few hours making it now mandatory to be in our homes each night at 8 pm until September. With the nightly curfew comes a mandatory stay at home order each Sunday, making the possibility of the Church doors opening here in Peru impossible any time soon, along with halting once again travel between any other regions of the country. Not to mention there is absolutely no concrete idea of when international travel will be allowed to resume which has made it hard for the Peruvian economy as many of the poor here rely on tourism for their family’s income. The government has said that, they are hopeful by the end of 2020 or the 1^st quarter of 2021 being an option of when international flights may return.

    It is surreal to think about what toll and effect this pandemic has taken on so many people’s lives and of the effects caused by the heavy handed governments which have had to take action out of fear rather than faith. I must note that I do not stand on either side of the debate. With one side fussing loudly about the need to wear masks and the other side screaming of the unjust of government overreach by shutting down their lives and meddling in their personal movements and affairs, it seems that picking one of their sides would not solve much when dealing with this pandemic.  It is important to know that with the eyes of the world we cannot combat the virus or its effects on this world; but to see with prudent eyes would be to see it through the eyes of the Lord and perhaps that is the best way to combat this pandemic.

    Knowing are actions must be a mirror image of the Lords merciful nature, and the need to obey the greatest commandment “You shall love...God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength....You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” (Mark 12:30-31) it gives a narrow gate to enter but we can be confident that our actions will be aligned with those that Jesus spoke about.

  I cannot help but think of the words of Saint Benedict: “that a person love not his own will nor take pleasure in satisfying his desires, but model his actions on the saying of the Lord, ‘I have come not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me.”(John 6:38)

 

  With that said I must share with you of my personal struggle during this quarantine, but 1^st I  desire to enlighten you of the familiar story of the two sisters Mary and Martha, which often replays in my head during my personal prayer time. As I recall the many times lately “I” have become a hindrance in Christ’s Mission set before me. I am very much a “Martha”, a planner, go getter, and a worrier, instead of mirroring the wisdom of Mary and her peaceful silence and contemplative nature like I know I should. After all, Jesus told Martha, “Martha, Martha, you are worried about many things. Mary has chosen the best part and she will not be deprived of it.”(Luke 10:41-42)

     Do not get me wrong Martha’s concerned nature and the life she lived of service is not frowned upon by Jesus; after all the Church celebrates ST. Martha and her life of service every July 29^th. However, Jesus addressed the fact that we cannot always live a life of service at all times. We must also have time for prayer and Holy Silence to set before the Lord. To desire to seek His face and the ability to possess a life of contemplation is also a very important role as a Christian and for our own sanctity. 

Although the Martha in me has definitely been challenged everyday during this time of uncertainty,  I have also been very blessed to see the new fruits that have come from living day to day, guided by the Holy Spirit and of contemplating on the face of Jesus in Holy Silence, rather than a “to-do” list.  As I have been reminded of the fact that to follow Christ also means that we should make His cares, wishes, concerns, and loves our own cares, wishes, concerns, and loves, rather than those of our own will. “For whoever would save his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it” (Matthew 16:24-25). But to do this “We need to find God, and he cannot be found in noise and restlessness. God is the friend of silence. See how nature - trees, flowers, grass- grows in silence; see the stars, the moon and the sun, how they move in silence... We need silence to be able to touch souls.”--Blessed Mother Teresa and it is “In silence and quiet the devout soul advances in virtue and learns the hidden truths of Scripture.”--Imitation of Christ

 In keeping this commandment, we obviously cannot live in this world, there is no mistaking that the only way to do so is to realign our hearts to that of our Lords. I know as a Christian I cannot without prudence solely live of what the Government demands of us, and live strictly on adherence to their rules, because their laws are not a moral compass, nor can I live on the liberal view point, with the mentality that I can live as if only my rights matter and are more important than my neighbors. Instead I must be focused more on the universal call to holiness and what that means personally for me and for those souls that I may help bring closer to Christ.

  In this season it seems that Jesus desires to highlight the Martha in me, as I have often forgotten to be more like Mary.  As I often heavily weigh my worth and how God sees my worthiness by the works of my hand.  The fact that I am always engulfed in the works of my hands rather than just sitting attentively to Jesus with my gaze fixed to his face has indeed been stressed during this pandemic, leaving no doubt that this season for me was meant to be a season  of change and a season of renewal. 

 With that said I have realized that within our vocation and ministry that we must welcome the opportunity to sit in Holy Silence with our Lord. It is a constant balance that we must maintain not to become too much like Martha and not enough like Mary. Since being called to live as a foreign missionary I have often worried if I am doing enough, If I was sacrificing enough for those I serve. So you can see that when the pandemic hit I felt our ministries were hindered significantly and I begged the Holy Spirit to prepare a way for us to show us how best to serve in this time while still obeying the rules of the government. Thanks be to God, through prayer and discernment the Holy Spirit made it clear to us where we could draw the line between following the rules imposed by the Peruvian government that hindered us from being able to keep the greatest commandment to love God and our neighbor.

  So, with that we have been able to make a respectable and holy decision to not actively visit the elderly in their homes. Forgoing our normal home visits that consisted of prayer and friendly conversation, instead we felt it to be more prudent to visit from a distance, so we have been walking to their homes to check on them and leaving food for them. We have also made the super hard decision to not visit the communities up in the mountains. As we felt that they are so many hours away from this crazy mess, secluded in their own world without intrusion from the outside world, we did not want to bring them harm and enter their secluded communities and bring the virus. Instead we communicate with them via telephone and have been able to check on them and pray together in that way.

  Thankfully, we have, yet again, learned new ways to serve as the Holy Spirit has led us to unusual opportunities this past month.  Thank goodness since the government has reactivated the quarantine measures, we have yet seen the military here in our town. We pray that in this round they will not return to restrict our movements any further than what they are. Because at the moment we are able to move around during the day and to buy our provisions as needed for ourselves and for those we have been helping by supplementing them with food.

  Also, without the militaries presence the children can play a lot longer together outside than the allotted 1 hour per day limit. and thank goodness the police next door has not said anything to them overstaying their play time.  And since our formal ministries have not yet been approved to resume it has provided the opportunity for all three of us to spend more time with the children here.

  I must tell you how Gabriel came up with a new way to serve his friends. He designed a water jug holder, complete with cup holders and had a local young man weld it into existence. It was really awakening to us the 1^st day that Gabriel wheeled out the new water jug holder for the afternoon fun and games in the plaza. It is something so simple that we often forget the riches we have while being able to afford to buy clean drinking water. A 5-gallon jug here is roughly 2 US dollars. Clean water here is a luxury and the children feel so honored to be invited for a drink of clean water and to have their own cup to drink from.  Since water is such a sacred symbol in the bible, and I cannot help but pray that Gabriel’s water ministry will be able to bring others closer to Christ in the way he intended.

  Julianna has been taken this time to fix broken statues, a bit of a different kind of ministry you can say. It all started with her fixing a broken crucifix that had been thrown to the side of the church and ever since she has been asked to repair others from people here in our town.

  We also have used some of the of extra time that we have on our hands to bake cookies and homemade chicken pot pies to deliver to our older neighbors in the community.

    Each Thursday night we still have Holy adoration and on Sunday we have a celebration of the word, despite the church doors having to remain closed.  We remain obedient to this time and as a family fervently pray that others may hear us as we proclaim the word of our Lord and rejoice in song.

     I can not help but cringe when the church bells rings, as we know it is not to announce Mass is about to start. Instead the only reason they ring is to announce that another person has died. It has become way to common of a sound. Just this week we had another death, not directly because the person had the illness but because of depression due to losing his job because of the governments shut down to stop the spread of the virus. Mr. Luis leaves behind his wife and 7 year old son. This is a ministry that is very hard for my children and I, we ask that you please keep us in your prayers and all those who have passed since March.

I know it is very possible that as my family has, that the recent times have been riddled with many uncertainties for you and your family as well. We pray that you may be blessed to seek and to encounter the face of Christ, and that within your search you will encounter the most holiest of places where you may sit in the midst of His silence,  far away from the noise. You may find to carve out the time in your day, may be difficult at 1^st but rest assure, that once you open your heart and silence the noise, your appetite for such prayer will increase over time; because during these intimate times in prayer your heart will be inflamed with such love and holy wisdom that you will be drawn more and more to these intimate and holy encounters with Christ. There you will find your moral compass! 

We love each one of you!

Karen, Julianna and Gabriel Del Castillo

We would be honored to receive your prayer request. At anytime you may send them to us through our email address listed below.

We would be extremely blessed if you would pray for us to remain obedient and humble to the will of our Lord.  

We thank you for your prayers and your support. 


Without the sacrifices made by each of you this work would be impossible. 

Prayer request
 Email:  karendelcastillo@familymissionscompany.com

Donations Web Site: delcastillo.familymissionscompany.com

Perfect families do not exist

  Listening to the homily on the Feast day of the Holy Family the main focus of the homily was of a family that consisted of a Father, Mother and children. And rightfully so. Their example of obedience to God’s will, their unconditional love for God and for each other. Their immense desire to serve God and others before themselves, and their never wavering faith,  are truly saintly examples for families to live by. 


  However I cannot lie, I did feel for a brief moment,  a bit confused of my purpose not as a foreign Catholic lay Missionary but as a single mother. I also felt heartbroken for all those who were in attendance,  that could not for whatever reason  play part in the “perfect role”.  What did they think, what were they feeling? I feared that those who were present felt they fell short of being worthy enough. With a Homily totally and  intentionally directed to intact, whole, perfect families. (the ones which included Father, Mother and children) Again I whole heartily believe that it should have been this way, however perhaps I am struggling with not what was said, but the lack of what was NOT said.  I certainly feel Jesus would not have excluded so many. After all so many people my family serve (and which were attending mass that night ) must have felt a bit unworthy. Towards the end of Mass the only two complete families who were gathered  were invited to receive a special blessing at the front of the church. 


  My heart was struck with sadness as I  looked upon the rest whom were watching. What about the little 9 year old girl who walks her blind grandfather to church each Sunday. What about Jose who is 19  and loves to serve others, and who has lived with his grandparents since he was 10,  after his Mom and Dad separated and chose to abandon him while they pursued other love relationships. Or Milton who desires and prays daily for his wife and him to receive the sacrament of marriage after living 10 years together. What about all the women who attend the church without their husband for whatever reason and who pray for them in such a holy way. Or for the widows who lost their spouse but yet still must endure and press on for their children.  I could not help but to think that these people felt unworthy to be called a family after what they had heard or rather the lack of. After not being invited to the front of the church to receive a special blessing upon their little,  not so perfect,  rendition of a family. 


  I recently took a class over the Catechism of the Catholic Church. Studying and learning the importance of knowing ones audience while teaching the Catholic faith. To be sure that when passing on the “word of Faith” that it’s done in its wholeness.  Learning that it is truly important for one to know and to take in account the needs of those who we are teaching , “our audience”. The General Directory for Catechesis (GDC 145) reminds us of the importance of the principle  “to teach from the Deposit of Faith for any given audience must take into account, not only the amount of time available, but also such factors as age, education, background, and culture.” I could not help to think that It could be a possibility that the homily for the night was a bit misdirected to the wrong type of group and fell short to engage the attending audience.  However despite the shortness of the full truth,  I found wholeness and a since of purpose in our mission we have been set on here at our new post.  A better understanding of the cross I bear as a single mother and why I have been asked to carry into the mission field for everyone to see. There is honestly no way to hide I am a single mother who also has been called to serve Christ as a foreign missionary.  I am not called to carry my cross with a sadden heart, but with a Joyful heart. Walking with a since of completion and fullness, knowing that Jesus is right beside me. 


  It’s our duty as baptized Catholics to pass on the trueness of our Faith. To not water down the teachings of the Catholic Church. However there is a flip side to this. We must not be above others and so caught up in the Hierarchy of the Church, so much that it prevents ourselves from extending love, generosity and forgiveness to those who may fall short of being the living example of the Holy Family.  To exclude the teaching of Jesus’s merciful love and forgiveness,  is not a successful way of discipleship.  After all Jesus healed and  forgave Mary Magdalene, Chose Saint Paul to become a missionary,  despite the fact he persecuted Christians, and  the list does not stop there. Jesus ate with thieves and sinners. Called Zacchaeus down from a tree in order to visit with him in his home. And forgave those who nailed him to the cross. 


  It’s easy to teach from the perspective of Holiness, but from sinner to saint perhaps many of our teachings and Homilies  can fall short throughout the Church. However we must not forget the most fundamental point,  that Jesus came to save. To save the people,  that perhaps have not been born into a life of holiness, or had a loving family to teach them about God or the merciful love of Jesus Christ. He came to save the sinners.

Jesus said to them, 'It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.'" Mark 2:17

The feast day of the Holy Family should inspire all of us to become more like them. To be obedient to Gods will, To serve others, to love without conditions and to have a servants heart. That is how all families should live. Perhaps you are a single mother or a single father. Maybe you are a step parent. Or even have adopted a child or been adopted yourself. Maybe your living with your grandparents.  The fact is our families my look a bit different from the Holy Family. But we still can strive to obtain this level of Holiness. We our still worthy to do so. 


Pope Francis said that “We are all called to be saints; we must remember that holiness is a gift from God- Not something we can achieve on our own. Holiness is not granted only to those who have the opportunity to break away from ordinary task, to devote themselves to prayer. Rather, everyone is called to holiness in their own state of life. It’s by living with love and offering Christian witness in our daily task that we are called to become saints… Always and everywhere you can become a saint, that is, by being receptive to the grace that is working in us and leads us to holiness.” 


He also said at his address to Families on Sept. 27, 2015 

 “Perfect families do not exist. This must not discourage us. Quite the opposite. Love is something we learn; love is something we live; love grows as it is 'forged' by the concrete situations which each particular family experiences. Love is born and constantly develops amid lights and shadows. Love can flourish in men and women who try not to make conflict the last word, but rather a new opportunity. An opportunity to seek help, an opportunity to question how we need to improve, an opportunity to discover the God Who is with us and never abandons us. This is a great legacy that we can give to our children, a very good lesson: we make mistakes, yes; we have problems, yes. But we know that that is not really what counts. We know that mistakes, problems and conflicts are an opportunity to draw closer to others, to draw closer to God.”

   My prayer for this blog is to entice all types of families to call upon The Holy Family to intercede for them. For all families whatever they consist of , or made up of, to seek the Holy Family as a role model and as an example of how a family should live. For those who may be a single parent, my prayer for you is that The Holy Family might join you in your day to day task as you play both roles, Father and Mother to your children. For your children to not feel abandon or alone, that they have a since of a complete family. For your children to see an authentic witness in you;  of your willingness to be guided by our heavenly Father, to willing receive the Love of His Mother, Mary and to have the  obedience of Joseph to follow God’s will.

Please pray for my family. That we may be a family to all those we serve here, who do not know the true meaning of a family. We desire to bring them the knowledge and experience of what it is to have unconditional love, generosity, forgiveness and desire to follow Christ. We pray that through seeing Christ in us,  that they may have a desire to know and become more like the Holy Family – Jesus , Mary and Joseph. 

   Holy Family of Jesus Mary and Joseph pray for us!

Karen, Julianna and Gabriel Del Castillo

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Our Christmas wish is a home for the poor!

Lately I have been a bit frustrated, 

asking myself,  if I have become so

 blind that I can not see the poor whom I serve?

  I am ashamed to say that I struggled a bit to share this with you. Embarrassed and ashamed that it is very possible that I have, become so blind and poor to see the needs of others. Losing sensitivity to the poverty we live among day in and day out. Perhaps because it has just become the new normal for my children and I.  Where it does not faze us to see and experience the living conditions of our friends we visit each week.  After all there is no illness or addictions in the family, there is both dad and mom in the picture and the entire family attends mass every Sunday together. However God insisted that I see them with His eyes. To see their needs and their worth. 


   For the last two weeks I have awaken in the middle of the night with a great desire to help them. With a burning desire within, that I must do something. Knowing that they have no way to build a home for themselves, As Marixa stays at home caring for their three children. Milton struggles to find enough work to provide for the needs of his family at times holding down 3 different jobs. If that’s not enough Milton was recently told to leave one of his jobs,  as he confronted his employer and tried to defend the 32 underage children (some as young as 8 years old) working in the factory where he had been working at. Even with the struggles this family has seen financially both Milton and His wife know that they must praise the Lord and to be obedient to Gods will for them. That they must not lose faith. 

   It reminded me of Pope Francis’s call to all Christians to remember the poor “the treasures of the Church”.  Pope Francis asked “ Do I, a Christian have at least one poor person as a friend?” I was overwhelmed with great Joy to know, I do. I truly do have friends who are poor! Pope Francis reminded all, that “the poor are valuable in the eyes of God”, that “they need someone to take them by the hand”. But more so “the poor remind us how we should live the Gospel: like beggars reaching out to God.”


  Knowing that many of you are gearing up for Black Friday, Cyber Monday and giving Tuesday. Scoping out the ads for the best deals for this year’s Christmas Gifts for that special someone. Or perhaps you’re a business owner trying to find that perfect charity in which to make your companies end of the year donation to.  I knew I must seize the moment and yet again become a beggar in the name of Christ and to reach out to each of you.

This is where they cook

Kitchen area

Buckets used as a sink 

   I urge you to prayerfully and carefully take a look at the pictures of our friend’s home.  This is what we as missionary see every day. Ask yourself what you would do if these were your friends. Perhaps even reflect on the things you see in each picture. The hanging clothes with no dresser drawers to go in. The beds, the walls in which anything and everything crawls through. Or perhaps your eye notices the dirt floor. Whatever strikes you about these pictures ask yourself if God is asking you to forgo one or two items on your Christmas list this year to help this family out.   We cannot allow ourselves to just overlook the poor or to pass them by. We must see them as Christ sees them.  VALUABLE!  And as the treasures of the Church.  

One of their beds, made with blocks and bamboo 

The children's bed, with sweet little Alondra taking her afternoon nap! 

A humble area. Clean dry clothes hang on a line, because their is no drawers. A table made of blocks and bamboo. 

Despite what it may seem, the home is very incredibly clean and in order. 

  Please prayerfully consider making a difference in this families life. Giving them a gift that they could not ever possibly return. However your gift will not go unnoticed in the eyes of our Lord. We invite you to make a special onetime donation to help build a home for our friends. Milton, his wife Marixa and their three children all live in this hut made of bamboo, over a dirt floor in which contains no doors.  


  Our goal is to give them a small one room home with a concrete floor, brick walls and a door. If its Gods desire to provide more than enough funds for the small one room home, than we would use the extra funds to set them up with a water storage tank and an outdoor bathroom.



  Our Christmas wish this year is that you will prayerfully consider making a donation so together we can build a home for this wonderful family. Whom have become are sweet friends. Because God sees the poor as the Treasures to the Church. 

“Do I, a Christian have at least one 

poor person as a friend?”

 Pope Francis

17 November 2019

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Online: Follow the link

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12611 Everglade Road, Abbeville, LA 70510

***  Important please place in the memo:

 HOME FOR THE POOR

*** If you have any question about the home that we would like to build or would like personally to make the journey to Peru to help build the home feel free to contact us at : Karendelcastillo@familymissionscompany.com

Never ashamed

Matthew 10:32-39

Don’t Be Ashamed of Your Faith

 “If you stand before others and are willing to say you believe in me, then I will tell my Father in heaven that you belong to me.  But if you stand before others and say you do not believe in me, then I will tell my Father in heaven that you do not belong to me."

Julianna my daughter is never ashamed of her faith or her call to missions.

Wednesday our new Priests we our serving called us for a meeting in the bigger town of Bagua Grande in which they live in. To our surprise they gave us a monstrance to take, so we could expel the blessed sacrament in our home town. What a wonderful gift.

It was our day off and we had to purchase supplies while in town and could not leave it in the truck. My faithful daughter said "I will carry it into the market with us. "
"No shame at all", she said.

As we bought our supplies , she carried it with knowing that the monstrance is a showcase for Jesus. She even turned to me and asking if I thought Jesus was still present inside it, in tiny fragments?

He must have been. A store owner where we were buying balloons from, for our youth group meeting, starting crying and telling us she has cancer and that her boyfriend is cheating on her. All we could do is gasp! Knowing what was under the veil was the monstrance. We knew she was not just telling us about how she was scared to die or how sad she felt that her boyfriend is cheating. She was telling Jesus in the tiniest fragment what her heart felt. It was an awesome experience to see Jesus at work. Julianna placed the monstrance on a nearby table and laid her hands on sweet Lily and began to beg our Lord to heal her from cancer and to heal her broken heart. God is so wonderful!

A New Journey Begins!

It’s been awhile since we have sent out an update. Please forgive us, it was not meant to be, but life here in the last month has become a whirlwind of to do lists and goodbyes. In my prayer time I have asked God to create a perfect time to sit down and reach out to all of you whom we love so much. I cant lie, One morning , I thought instead of prayer time I could take that time to write to you. Praise God,  I did not fall for that trick. Instead God awarded my obedience with a perfect evening after a long hot day to sit in quiet to connect with you all.

First things first, we must thank each of you tremendously for your prayers and your financial sacrifices. Its amazing to watch Gods plan come together. And indeed with much grace, we found raising money for a mission truck became a blessing, rather than a burden. So many of you poured your heart out in prayer and just the right amount of money came in to buy the perfect truck for our new post. By far is it not new, and it needs A LOT of love and care but it fell into our laps,  just like the precise amount of money needed to buy it did. God is so amazing. We have purchased new tires and have had a chance to repair the most urgent things here with our mechanic Jose,  who has such a servants heart to help all of us Missionaries here in a very special way. He reminds me of my two oldest sons back at home  Mason and Maccray whom despite what the world says, they always try to do their best and in the most honest way possible. Because of Jose’s dedication and hard work we feel confident that we will make the drive safely to our new mission post.  

                     

We were bless and honored to be able to accept an invitation from Father Francisco to attend Pope Francis’s announcement, via the “Nuncio Apostólico ” Monseñor Nicola Girasoli, who currently resides in Lima, who traveled here to the jungle to spend time with the missionaries, priest and religious sisters serving the poor in this area. He was truly amazing to hear speak. Oh and he also spoke English which was a treat in of its own. 

Monseñor Nicola Girasoli With Pope Francis

Bellavista’s Church tower with the Peruvian and Vatican Flag

                                                                      

It has been a very bitter- sweet  month as we wind down our ministries, Home visits and sacramental preparations. Saying good bye has not come easy. To leave the ones we have come to love. To share together the fear of earthquakes, heat, bugs, last year’s forever week long power outage,  constant search of water, sickness and death, we have been together in solidarity with our neighbors through it all. We came to live among the poor and indeed our first two years we have done just that. My children and I would have never in a million years could have dreamt of the abundance of gifts God would bestow upon us as he did while serving His beloved poor here. To give up everything and to become poor only in return to gain more than you ever had, seems impossible, but my friends it is not impossible for our God.

                                                                                                                                                          

Since our return to our current post in late January, we began Sacramental prep. classes for a handful of the children that showed desire to enter into the Catholic Church. Some had only received their sacrament of baptism so they received 1^st communion and the sacrament of confirmation.

                                     

One of our hardest ministries to leave is the wonderful youth. The youth here have the same problems as the youth in the states. Possibly even more when you add in their poverty and living conditions,  but yet they are so full of JOY! Our Friday night youth gatherings are coming to a close but no one in the room has a sad face. We know God has a plan for us all and we need to follow him with a Joyful heart. And until the last day we have, we will enjoy our time singing , dancing and playing games as we journey together with Christ leading the way. 

                                                 We took our youth to the pool in a nearby town

 Youth group games

Please join us in praying for all those who we have been blessed to live among and serve. We pray fervently that God will fill their hearts with His love that is so much greater than we could even imagine,  as we prepare to enter are last few days here. We must trust in the Lord and the plans he has for us at our new mission post as he leads the way.

We also ask for your prayers that our transitions into our new post will be blessed. We especially pray for faith strong enough to trust that even the tiniest little details have been planned out in the most divine way.  We walk into what most of society would call the “unknown”.  Just as we followed Christ to our current post 2 years ago, sight unseen, our purpose unknown, we do the same as we follow Christ to His new home he has prepared for us as we embark our 3rd year living among the poor and finding ways to serve them and meet their most basic needs. We know just as much as we did 2 years ago, only the name of the town he has called us to. Please pray that when we get there we are met by the Holy Spirit, who will guide us to our waiting ministries and to our new friendships we will make as we journey with those we live among to a greater kingdom than what we have ever laid eyes on.

Our going away lunch with all of our wonderful missionary community. We will Truly miss them all!

We love you and would love to know how we can pray for you in an attentional way. Please let us receive the Lord’s graces by allowing us to pray for you in a special way. You can send us your prayer request at anytime by Whatsapp message  51 941-992-525 or send us an email at Karendelcastillo@familymissionscompany.com.

God Bless you,

Missionary family of Jesus, Mary and Joseph, Pray for us!