The Flying Horse of San Carlos

The Cabalgata Outreach was wonderful. I painted three banners for the floats and the group handed out 1,000 flyers to the people riding horses and floats from Acuna to San Carlos on Saturday. It was an all-day event, with over 8,000 horses and riders reported to have participated in the parade. It was amazing to see that many horses in one parade. In the evening, we went to the plaza in San Carlos where the groups played Christian music and the pastors from Brownwood and Uvalde shared messages. So many people gathered in San Carlos after the event that it was a great opportunity to share testimonies there in the midst of the crowds.

Not long after the music started, a man named Victoriano came up to me and I started to talk to him about the Lord. He was obviously intoxicated and I began to share with him about a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. We spoke for a few minutes when we heard a horse come galloping down the sidewalk with a rider, ran up the steps towards the gazebo in the plaza. A man on foot fell between me and the horse, carrying a metal baseball bat and apparently trying to hit the man on the horse. The man on the ground was being chased by the horse and rider, or so it appeared to me.

Several officers came running up to the horse and rider, yelling, “Policia! Policia!” One had a machine gun and two others had pistols drawn. Within seconds, the horse lost its footing and slipped, throwing the rider off.

I got up off the bench where the man and I were talking and we walked about 4 steps before the horse came flying over the bench and landed on its back with its hooves in the air. The poor horse just laid there, in shock, breathing, but not moving an inch. I started praying, as did the other Christians there, and the man at the microphone started praying for all the people in the crowd. Within a few minutes, the man who was on the ground earlier, mounted another horse, and was trying to explain to the crowd that is wasn’t his fault. He was bleeding badly from a machete wound across his stomach and arm, and the blood was falling on his horse and saddle. He was obviously very drunk.

Not a good picture because I was trying to get out of the way for the police men...but you can sort of see the horse with hooves in the air...

The other man tried to lift his horse up but was unable to get it to budge. Pedro, our friend from Tepeyac, helped him get the horse to its feet and amazingly, it seemed uninjured. Both men and horses left the scene without police escort or intervention. I was surprised but more in awe at God’s protection for me and the man I was speaking with. The horse had passed where I had been sitting, and landed right where my feet were, and I was only a few feet away and less than a minute earlier had been in the horse’s path. Amazing God. After the excitement died down, several people and the pastor came over to me to see if I was alright. I just kept telling them God had protected me and they all agreed. Unfortunately, Bill missed the excitement, as he had decided to stay home that evening due to his cold.

We had 12 children come for an impromptu art class Monday afternoon, and they spent two hours drawing and enjoying some cake and lemonade for a snack. We had fun and the kids are looking forward to the Christmas Program on Saturday morning.

We pray God's blessings on you and your family this holiday season. We know how easy it is to forget the reason for the season. Celebrating the birth of our Savior is a wonderful part of our Christian faith, and we are so grateful for His sacrifice for us.

Blessings to all of you from Tepeyac, Coahuila. We thank the Lord for you and for your encouragement as we share the gospel here in Mexico.

In His grip,
Bill and Toni

Birthday Cakes and Testimonies

It was a nice week, and the weather has been beautiful. Bill and I attended a school program at the Primaria across the street on Friday, the 18th of November. (Elementary School.) The children were dressed in traditional clothing, looking like the men and women of the Mexican Revolution, 200 years ago. The mothers made the meal and served it to the visitors. I took lots of pictures and even got one of Bill on a mule with the teacher’s sombrero. I could hardly quit laughing, he looked so funny. It was a great event for the community.

We had 21 children for the art and English class on Saturday, and it was fun to see all of them. They listened to Blas while he shared a Bible story from the illustrated Bible, and they memorized their verse, reciting it for a prize from our collection of goodies. Even little Emmanuel, our three-year-old prodigy, recited his verse.
After the class, we took Blas and Paula with us to take the children home, and stayed to visit Blas’ brother, Rito, and his family. We sat out under their enormous trees and they served us coffee while the dogs chased their chickens and goats. It was such a beautiful day and the family homestead where Blas and his 9 siblings grew up is really an amazing piece of land. They have no electricity, but have a water well and the house that Blas’ grandparents built is still there, although the thatch roof is gone and the rocks are falling because of the weather. The wooden structure they lived in after the rock house is still standing, and is over 80 years old, Blas said. It was originally built in Ejido Emiliano Zapata, and they moved it to Palmira, then to this homestead where it sits next to the cinder-block house they currently reside in.

After we got home, Bill and started to settle in and get ready for bed, but about 7:30 our neighbor, Sandra, came by and asked if we would like to go to a church service in San Carlos. We went with her and her daughter-in-law, Laura, and her two children and it took awhile to find where the service was being held. About 9 pm, we found the group holding their service in a back yard, complete with two guitars, microphone, keyboard and amps. The brother from Brownwood shared a message, along with several attending that shared testimonies of God’s work in their lives. Our friends, Hilda and Pedro also shared part of their testimonies at the microphone. We sang praise and worship songs with them and the neighbors came close to hear the music, testimonies and teaching. What a glorious time with the believers! We got home after 11 pm, but were recharged and blessed by what we heard in San Carlos.

Sunday’s service was full of children to celebrate Paula’s birthday. The children learned their Bible verse and shared with the whole church after Sunday school. We all enjoyed cake, cookies, Coca Cola and mixed nuts. It was fun and everyone had their fill of cake.