Skate Event Update

It's been awhile now since the Revolution Youth Ministry skate event, but I did promise that I would put up some pictures and give an update on how it all went down. So here you have it. For months prior to the event Omar and Stephanie put many, many hours into organizing all the little details that must be covered to legally shut a street down in downtown Ensenada. As you can imagine there were piles of redtape to work through that kept on going right until the end. They found out only days before that they had to hire an ambulance and police officers to work the event in case anything happend. Permits were needed, Business owners on the street had to sign a release allowing the event to go forward and so on.



Finally the day came, the pro skaters with King Of Kings Skate Ministry(KKSM) arrived in San Diego where I met them and hopped a ride. It was time to set up the ramps. KKSM brought a trailer full of ramps down that they donated to the Revolution Ministry which was an awesome blessing. Thanks guys! Finally the skating began. A lot of local talent got to show their stuff and we had a great competition. The KKSM skaters did a demo for quite awhile and Zac set the pace displaying some crazy talent. We even had a suprise guest show up that added to the whole night. Danny Way and his brother were wandering around downtown when they came across the event. If you don't know who Danny Way is, Google him. He is one of the biggest skaters of all time and is best known for the fact that he jumped the Great Wall of China on a skateboard. Incredible. He put up a $100 bill to judge an improptu trick comp.
Side note-I ended up running into Danny a few weeks later in Ikea and stalked him for 45 minutes while he talked on his cell before I was able to chat with him. I told him where I had seen him and thanked his for stopping by and let him know how cool that was for everyone involved. He was really stoked to hear about the skate ministry and offered help if it was ever needed. Good guy.
The night ended with Eli sharing his testimony and giving an awesome gospel message of grace and love. A bunch of the kids there came forward to pray and invite Christ into their lives. It was a really beautiful time. Praise God for what He did!

Photography is fun

Hey everyone! Here are a few pictures from last weekends house builds in TJ. We did 3 houses with a company from Chicago and had a great time. All 3 of the family's were absolutely lovely as usual and will have a very special place in everyones heart's. One of the family's even made roasted chicken for the team which made me so happy after I talked about how much I was craving roasted chicken all weekend. The best part of the weekend for me was that a man who received a home last month came and worked harder than anyone else all weekend because he wanted to be a part of blessing someone in the same way he and his family were blessed. I remember when we were saying goodbye to him last month, one of the team members said to him, "this home is a free gift to you from us and a demonstration of God's love for you. But it dosn't stop there, now it is up to you to spread the love and the blessing to others who are in need." To see this man serving another in his community was such beautiful proof of how God touched his heart. I was training my new friend and roomate Chrissy in doing the team photography which was a lot of fun.



Coolest space toys ever!








Many people's living conditions












Airborne and lovin it










One of the precious and deserving family's receiving a home












Handing over the word










Figuring out the funkiest electrical job ever...4 hours later












Looking into the future











Welcome to my life











Teamwork












Border town












Dreamin











Hecho en Mexico












Bird in captivity











Drink up

Summer Update

I have to say I really admire and look up to those people who faithfully update their blogs. You would think it should be a very easy thing to do, but somehow it's just not. At least for me. Life is good and busy and full and communication just seems to slip away from me. So this may be a long one as I have a lot to catch up on. Kudos to you if you read the whole way through.
The last time I wrote it was a letter written on behalf of Kaiden. Obviously that was a very difficult time that I am continuing to work through on a daily basis. I struggled with a lot of doubt and confusion and anger at what seemed and still seems at times to be God's silence. So many times I felt like I was just staring at God's turned back. Of course the pain of losing Kaiden remains, but life also goes on and is filled on a daily basis with God's grace and blessings! One day at a time.
Once the funeral was over and it was all said and done, I felt even more alone because Steph and Omar moved back down to Ensenada. They had become my life in a way and I felt at a loss as to what to do with myself once they were gone. So I set about focusing on some badly needed me and God time. I will admit it is a little difficult to have you and God time when you are a little perturbed with Him (just being honest), but it was good anyways. The summer months were wonderfully relaxing for me as the Mission Adventures program was going on at our ministry locations in Ensenada and Tijuana. This meant that I didn't have house building teams on the weekends to be with as well as office work during the week which is the norm for me throughout the rest of the year. I was able to get caught up on a ton of administrative things that tend to slip away from me throughout the building season.
Now I am back in the midst of a very hectic schedule which I love and thrive off of. I am enjoying my work more than ever right now, even the office stuff which is definitely a God thing. It seems that every team that comes down is more wonderful and every family we build a home for touches my heart in a deeper way. This "job" never gets old and I continue to cry at the expression of God's love lived out during the house dedications.
Please continue to pray for my friendship with God and that my life will be centered in His will every day. I desparately want my relationship with Him to grow stronger lately and pray for a deeper understanding of God.
I will post pictures of the Skate Competition that Omar and Stephanie planned in Ensenada a few weeks ago. There was an amazing turnout and God's word was proclaimed and heard in the downtown core of Ensenada. Awesome!

Kaidens Goodbye

Hi all, yes it has been awhile but with good reason. For those of you who weren't aware of what my life has revolved around the past few months, let me fill you in.
Last July my best friend Stephanie who is from Idaho and her husband Omar who is from Ensenada had their first baby, Kaiden Ezra Murillo. Kaiden was born in Boise as planned and then was to return promptly to Ensenada with his parents where they are missionaries. This plan changed when Kaiden became ill enough to be admitted to hospital only days before the Murillo's were to drive to Mexico. This began a long 10 months of hospital stays, blood transfusions, evasive surgeries and much much more. In all this time Kaiden was not able to eat as the main problems were with his digestive system not functioning. Kaiden was eventually transfered to the children's hospital down here in San Diego some time in Feburary. Since then I have spent any time out of work with Steph, Omar and Kaiden. At the end of March things just got worse when Omar was deported from the US on a technicality with his visa. This left Stephanie in San Diego with out her husband to help with the many medications that had to be prepared and given to Kaiden daily, the doctors/hospital visits and so on. Needless to say my time was dedicated to helping and supporting my sister/friend and being with Kaiden as much as possible. Praise God Omar was finally given a one month emergency visa on May 7th because Kaidens health soon took a turn for the worse which eventually saw him being air lifted to another hospital in Los Angeles. Omar and Steph spent days camping out in the hospital room until they were given a room at the Ronald Mcdonald house but were soon camping out in the room again when Kaidens situation worsened dramatically and he was moved to the ICU. At this point the doctors had no hope that Kaiden would survive even though we all still clung to the promise of God's healing. On Sunday May 27th I was building a house in Ensenada when I recieved a phone call that I needed to get to LA without delay. Stephanies parents and little sister had left Boise that morning and also drove straight for LA all day. By that evening Omar's parents and Stephanies parents had arrived at the hospital. By the next morning the doctors were telling us there was nothing else they could do and it was only a matter of hours. We prayed for a miracle, cried on each other and loved on Kaiden throughout the entire day. Around 5:45 that evening we stoof around Kaiden, holding on to each other as he went home to be with Jesus. It is still so hard to comprehend that our little warrior has left us. Stephanie still starts when she thinks to check on him at night, I still think I need to be quiet so as not to wake him when I walk into their room and I am sure that will go on for a long time. But I also rejoice that he is no longer in pain and is getting love from Jesus.
Thank you all so much for your prayers over the past months as we have gone through this difficult journey. If you would like to see Kaidens blog go to www.kaidenmurillo.blogspot.com. I kept the blog as if Kaiden was writing it and there are a bunch of pictures of our little man. The following is Kaidens last letter to everyone. Lot's of love, Felicia








Dear beloved friends,
This will be my last letter to you and I am in fact writing it from heaven. I really want to attempt to put your hearts and minds at ease even though I know you are all missing me so much. Thank you for the outpouring of love that each one of you has lavished on me and my family during my little life. Thank you for the many, many prayers on my behalf, on Papi and Mommy’s behalf. I know that your faith has been stretched immeasurably and some of you may wonder for what. I want to say that nothing has been fruitless and that God is so pleased with all of you. You have held onto God’s promises even when nothing made sense and now “the Lord will give strength to His people, the Lord will bless His people with peace.” You may never know what my journey, and your involvement in it, was all about until you get to the end of your life and look back at how it helped you or strengthened you in some other area of your own journey. In spite of the pain you are all going through, God is good in all His ways, He is faithful, He is loving and He is kind. And don’t I know it!
Now I get to be with Jesus.
Dear friends, I am finally whole and it feels so good. I can move freely and without pain and on top of that these Kaiden cheeks that you all loved to kiss so much are getting more than enough kisses from Jesus. So don’t worry about me anymore. Now I want you to take care of my Papi and Mommy. I can’t be there to brighten their days with smiles so I need you all to love on them like crazy. Pray for their hearts, hug them, cry with them, talk to them and share your best memories of me with them. “The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.” I love you all so much, you are in my heart and I will see you again some day soon.
Blessings from Kaiden in heaven.

A blubbering, sobbing emotional wreck

You would think that building houses for Mexican families would eventually get old. Well somehow it just keeps getting better and sweeter with time. I just got home from Tijuana where I was coordinating 2 house builds for a Canadian team. Two more families now have a real floor and a roof over their heads; a home to call their own. As well, 40 well to do Canadians have been touched deeply by the joy and love they witnessed in these family's with "nothing" despite their circumstances. Here are a few pictures of the weekend, they can do the talking.

Rain, Rain, Ahh Sweet Rain

Ok, so I am a little late, but you must admit, a month and a half is a lot better than what I had going before.
As I write this I can hear the pitter patter of rain on the roof begininng again. The last few days have seen a miraculous amount of rain fall in San Diego. We sure have had quite the weather lately. 2 weekends ago we were snowed on in Ensenada! That weekend was our Baja Vision event and we had 5 house building teams out in the colonias. Everyone froze to the bone as they were not prepared for snow in Mexico. Despite the terrible weather we all managed to have a wonderful weekend and God really moved hearts to support what we are doing in the northern Baja. One of the participants pledged 2 million dollars to our mission. Praise God! He is always faithful. This was such a wonderful answer to prayer as my department had really felt convicted to do some house cleaning as far as our relationships with donors goes. It was hard but the Lord rewarded us for our leaders obediance.
On a more personal note, I had a very nice weekend in Seattle a week ago visiting friends. I went to do wedding photography for some great YWAM friends of mine and was also able to see some of my adopted family in the Seattle area.
For those of you that have been following the happenings of my best friends baby, Kaiden, I am happy to announce that Omar, Steph and kaiden are on the road from Boise to San Diego as I type. After another round of surgeries and trauma for little Kaiden, his gastro intestinal doctor referred them to a specialist at the childrens hospital down here in SD. Needless to say I am absolutly thrilled that I will have them so near me for the next little while before they head the rest of the way down to their home in Ensenada.
Other than this I look forward to finally going to church this weekend. There is a church called Cornerstone that seems to continually be popping up wherever I turn so I am planning on checking it out on Sunday. I am dying to be connected with a church body again. It feels like it has been so long. Pray that I get plugged into the right place.