MY ACCOMPLISHMENTS
Anything that I accomplished in life has not been of my own effort. It is the Lord who deserves all credit. He is the one who gave me direction, guidance, blessings, protection, wisdom and supplied my needs.
The most important thing that I was able to do by God’s mercy was to accept the Lord Jesus Christ as my Savior. The next was when the Lord put a desire in my heart to be involved in reaching the unreached with the Gospel. Then led me to take a welding course in Waukesha in 1968. At that time, I could only say and understand very little English, but the Lord helped me through it. Right after I finished that course, I had a job waiting for me with no questions asked. It was a shop where Stone Breakers were built. The name of the business was “Highway Machinery Co. Two weeks after I started to work, I asked the owner Gene Johnson about taking two weeks off to go to Aguascalientes and see my family. He told me to see him the coming Saturday. I did and he gave my paycheck for the week and then he handed me another check for two weeks’ pay. I was surprised but thankful. After I got back, I worked for him as many hours possible that he would need me for. I also mentioned to him that I was going to attend the New Tribes Bible Institute. He was happy to hear that though he was not a believer. I tried to witness to him, but he was never interested. I asked the Language Coordinator Jean Dye Johnson to fill out the application for me and I handed to Paul Burkhart the Bible Institute Principal the day before classes started. He didn’t look at, he just said come tomorrow. The Lord must have given him the assurance that I was ok. At least that’s what I like to think.
While working I was able to save plenty of money since room and board was only $14:00 a week. I saved enough to pay for the rest of the Training. The Lord then led me to continue the missionary training in one of the Boot Camps (As they were called back then) in Oviedo, Fl. On Jan 1970. It was snowing when I left the Bible Institute but there was plenty of sunshine in Fl. Then after finishing up that course, I made my way to the final stage of the training in Jan 1971. The Language Institute was located in Roach, MO. That was a very appropriate name for it because there were a lot of roaches.
While I was a student, I had the privilege and the blessing to collaborate with Jean Dye Johnson in the developing and recording of the Spanish program. It was called “Situational Spanish” Book 1 and book 2. For many years all missionary candidates going to a Spanish speaking Country knew my voice very well. It was used in Mexico and in all the Countries NTM works in South America. During the last semester I studied Portuguese because I wanted to go to Brazil. Portuguese was an easy language for a Spanish speaker and so I was done in 3 months. The staff, not knowing what to do with me, I was asked, to go to the Cherokees to put into practice the language and culture technics that I had just learned. Something funny took place while I was in that tribe. After I had being there for two weeks, I noticed that 2 men kept looking at each other and that made me feel uncomfortable. I though I had somehow violated their culture, but they didn’t say anything. I finally asked them about it, and they then asked me: Why do you keep asking how do you say this and that in Cherokee when you do speak Cherokee? I told them that I did not speak their language but that I was learning it. They asked again: Aren’t you a Cherokee? I told them that I wasn’t. They asked once again }: What tribe do you belong to? I told the that I was from Mexico. But in their mind, they understood New Mexico. I tried to explain the difference with no success. I just took that incident as a complement because that meant that I was learning Cherokee well enough for them to assume that I was one of them. After being done with the whole training in December 1971 and then became officially member of NTM on February 1972, I was ready to get ready to go to Brazil. Shortly after that I was approached by Macon Hare, one of the Executive members and asked me if I would be willing to consider going back to Mexico as NTM was praying about starting a work there. I had peace about it and started making plans. I had one main problem- I did not have a Home Church or any kind of prayer and financial supporters. Faith Bible Church at the bottom of the hill from the New Tribes bible Institute asked me to be a member of the church so they could start supporting me. Then the Lord began to raise more supporters.
In order to start the work in Mexico there had to be a main Survey Trips. Dick and Rose Sollis (She was Joe Moreno’s daughter. A Mexican American man who went down to Bolivia with the first missionaries that were killed by the Ayoré tribe) and I went on that survey in January 1974. We met in Mexico City where we inquired about the legal aspects and then straight down to Oaxaca, where the Executive Committee had told us to look into for being the State with more tribal groups. At that time, the Wycliff missionaries had permission from the government, and they had occupied the most strategical tribal areas. It didn’t look good for our Mission based on what I saw. From there we went to Chiapas and made our way back. The Sollis went back to the States. Even though Leadership had told us not to go anywhere else, I felt the Lord ,was leading me to Chihuahua. (Maybe, one of the reasons was because that’s where I was going to meet the one the Lord was preparing for me to marry) I went to Baborigame where I felt it was a good place to start a work, Guachochi, a center town that could be used by missionaries to get groceries and some health service, Cabórachi. another place where I felt it was also a good place for missionary work and Tónachi. I went back to the States and gave my report to Leadership. Finally in 1980 Leadership realized Chihuahua was the place to start. Other survey trips were done in 1981-1982where missionaries are presently working. Praise The Lord for all His goodness!!!
In 1996 Soledad and I helped Virgil and Jerry Holt start a Bible Institute in Chihuahua. Started with 3 students and by 2016 we were having over 50 students. In 1997 I became the Bible Institute Chairman and Soledad was the accountant and Secretary. In the early days we didn’t have much help and my wife and I were in charge of both boys and girls dorms. Later on we got more help. Now we retired after 50 great years of serving as a missionary and 36 for Soledad.
Today we have graduates from our Bible Institute from different Countries. Some of them working in Tribal areas in Mexico, Panama, Nicaragua, Tanzania and Papua New Genea
TO GOD BE THE GLORY!!!
