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Salgado DR Mission Newsletter

Dear mission partners, friends, brothers and sisters in Christ,

First of all, we want to say thank you to all of our supporters: To those who pray and give faithfully so that we may continue our work here. It is through you that God provides for our needs which allows us to pay the bills and keep the ministry going. We know it is all from Him, but we also know that He uses His church as the means to provide for us. Thank you for your help.

We are getting ready for a medical clinic on Oct. 31- Nov 2. Please pray for that activity. Anthony and Stephanie Willis are coming again this year to serve the people in three communities. We will be in Piedra Gorda, San Lucas School, and the church of Hato Mayor. There are always plenty opportunities to share the gospel with people and obtain follow up contact information.

Pray that Anthony and Stephanie who are funding and working the operation arrive safely, that we will have all the supplies, doctors, nurses and translators we will need and that above all, God will be glorified. We appreciate their way of serving, generously bringing in almost everything needed to get the job done themselves, yet humbly serving alongside the nationals in a supportive role.  A wonderful and sacrificial example to follow. It’s just them coming and the rest of the team will be made up of local workers.

In the family we have had less health issues as of late, praise God. But Yeison did have to go to the hospital about two weeks ago for a high fever. There was something going around, but he got over it pretty quick.  We all had a cold and some sore throats, but nothing serious. Maya did hurt her ankle a few weeks ago and it turned purple and got swollen, but she is much better now and not limping anymore.

We are teaching English at a school and that is going well. They are mostly Catholic  and a few who don’t know what they are. But we have been well received and pretty much have an open door there to share. I am praying with students, have shared the gospel several times already and working on getting a Bible study started with some of the other teachers.  Please pray for that. One of my English projects for the high school students is about God and evolution. This is provoking tons of good questions and conversation from the students. Pray that the Lord would use us as an instrument to save some there through our Gospel proclamation.

Since my trip to Haiti, I have spoken often with brother  Leonel and he has been quite busy. He has been evangelizing, giving Bibles to new converts and discipling those who are making professions of faith. Pray for him and his ministry in Ounaminthe. He was asked to preach this coming Sunday at his church. The Lord is using him and opening doors, praise God. Please remember to pray for him.

I was recently asked to join a team of editors for a project called Theo Magazine. It is a very good and theologically solid resource for the spanish speaking world. It addresses all kinds of modern day issues the church faces and gives answers to questions about things that pertain to  LGBTQI agenda,  evolution, Christians and the arts, theology, apologetics, church history, missions and more. It is a quality project with several doctors and theologians from Latin America  doing much of the writing and on the team of editors. I was very humbled to even be considered apt to help in even a small role in this. The general editor who is also the president of a seminary  (Southern Baptist School) approached me about joining the team and doing some writing, networking with missionaries in other parts of the world, reporting and sharing practical ways for others in Latin America to get involved in missions, among other things relating to missions in general. There is even talk of a possible English version of the work. I was already asked to translate some of the articles to English and they approved of the quality of the translations, praise God. There is a lot of work going into this with launches in NY, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Peru, Puerto Rico and Colombia. Please pray for me and others working on the project. It is truly a privilege and an honor to be involved. May God be glorified and many edified through the work.

A special prayer request for our family, especially for Yeison.

We have noticed some minor behavior issues with Yeison for a while. But he seemed to have been improving. He listens when he is corrected, pretty good about sitting through church, but he’s also just a five years old kid with a lot of energy and a short attention span. But he is different from many kids in some ways. We recognize this and that he may possibly may have some special needs that weren’t as noticeable or as easy to diagnose before, but that are now being noticed because of the stage of development and learning he is in.

The school he is at (now attending with Maya and Nito) has contacted us several times in the past two weeks. We have gone in for meetings three times already about this and have a fourth meeting tomorrow. The claims of his unruly and reported extreme behavior are hard to believe, but many there have supposedly witnessed it.

Counselors and others are involved now but he is ONLY behaving this way at the school. And he has never done the things they are now telling us about before. It has been somewhat alarming. There are behavioral conditions that don’t show symptoms or can even be diagnosed until around 5-7 years of age.

He admits to his behavior later and knows it is wrong. To be honest, this has kind of rocked us as a family and we are trying to figure out what is the next step in helping him. Why is he suddenly acting out like this, and what triggered it when he did not do this before? We are still processing this whole thing.

One counselor at the school said it may be that he feels unsafe there without us. It is a new and intimidating environment. We taught at the school he attended last year and he did see us on a daily basis there. They say the tendency of kids who feel that way is to fight or flee.

Another said it could be subconscious and something he doesn’t understand, but may be a reaction directly connected to the first three months of his life. We don’t know at this point. He is fine at home but many who follow us through the newsletters or facebook know about his mother’s condition. Yeison also had a very rough start in life. But we are not sure what to even think about that right now.

We had a hard time even believing some of the things they said at first, but we are just concerned now and want to help him, praying that this is just a phase or something that will pass, or something that with a little help, he can grow out of. But we really don’t know at this point. We are receiving lots of advice from people back home with experience and even some books to read from those who know more than us about these kinds of things. For that we are very grateful. We just know we need lots of prayer for us and him.

Please pray for him and for wisdom for us as we work through this and seek help for our little man. Pray.

We have also been a little strapped financially for a few months now. Thank God for a couple of unexpected love offerings from a couple of churches, we have gotten by due to that.  But we are struggling paying the kid’s schooling and  do have a lot of other commitments besides our own bills and family’s needs here, so we are still in need of new monthly mission partners to keep up with all the needs and have more stability month to month. There are things we had planned but were unable to follow through with due to a shortage of funds. Some other things just have priority when things get tight, but there is so much more we could do if we were a little more stable financially.

10 people or churches at just $200 a month, 20 people or churches at $100, or 40 people or churches at $50 a month, would definitely free us up and give us the needed ministry money to work with. There are some churches able to do this on their own or with little help. Others can take this on as a project and help raise the needed funds for this mission. Please share the needs and pray about helping.

There are others we would like to help on this side but cannot at this point. There are things needed for the church building we would like to purchase, and resources for some of the men we work with but are not able to just yet. We have no emergency, furlough or reserve fund at this point. We are also hoping to get some life insurance one of these days. Please consider helping, by sharing these needs and prayer requests, or giving if you are presently not a monthly mission partner.

Please continue to pray regularly for our marriage, our children, the church. Pray for the Dominican republic and especially Haiti, that right now is in political turmoil. Pray for the Lord to grant us wisdom, patience and to guard our hearts during difficult times. There has been no shortage of those either. God has been kind to us, our own sin and shortcomings have kept us humble, suffering has molded us, His grace has sustained us, we are thankful for His love and faithfulness in spite of us. Pray that God will continue to be glorified in and through us. Pray.

In service to our King,

Antonio Salgado Jr.

 

We do not use a sending agency that gets a percentage of the money donated, so you can be sure that your gift goes directly to the mission field to meet real needs.

If the Lord so lays on your heart to give back to Him by supporting this ministry, you can send your tax deductible gift to:

CENTRAL MISSIONARY CLEARINGHOUSE
P.O. Box 219228
Houston, Texas 77218-9228
1-800-CMC-PRAY (1-800-262-7729)
Office: 281-599-7411
Fax: 281-599-7511

CMC serves hundreds of missionaries, but they ONLY receive the funds for us and in no way have control over how the funds are to be spent, or what we are to do as a ministry. This gives us liberty to be sensitive to the Spirit’s leading and make decisions about present and urgent needs. This is one of the reasons why we went with CMC to receive and get donations to us. They also only charge a tiny fee for administrative purposes (about 2%). This is the best way to get the most out of every donation straight to the field.

You may begin sending your support at any time at the address above. Simply include a note on a separate piece of paper that says “Antonio Salgado or Salgado DR Mission”(Checks should be made payable to Central Missionary Clearinghouse or C.M.C.)

You can also now give to the ministry online through the new giving solution called “click and give” at the CMC website. Just a simple click on the donate button on their page (see link below), and then click the “click and give icon/button”.*Note – On the list of missionaries there, click on Antonio Salgado / Dominican Republic.

https://www.cmcmissions.org/donate

Thank you for taking the time to read this update, and whatever you choose, thank you and God bless.

 

 

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Salgado DR MIssion Newsletter

Dear mission partners, friends, brothers and sisters in Christ,

Seven years ago we were getting on a flight to move to the DR. It sure doesn’t feel like it’s been that long and man has it gone by fast! Looking back we can see God´s grace and mercy countless times in our marriage, family and ministry. To Him alone be all the glory of any and all good that may have been accomplished in us and through us.

The kids started school here on Tuesday. Sahira is now a senior and Lord willing she will graduate at the end of the school year. Maya is a junior and Tonito is a sophomore. That means we will be having a child graduating each year for the next three years (Lord willing, of course)! It seems like just yesterday Trinity was graduating. This season of life has not been without it´s challenges, and we are still adjusting to the many changes the kids have gone through in the last couple of years. Continued prayers for them are appreciated as they become young adults. Yeison is the only little one left now. And although this is his third year in school, the two previous years were pre-k levels. So this is his first actual year of kindergarten. May the Lord grant them all wisdom and protect them from bad influences and temptations. Please pray for our children, including Trinity who is in Florida.

I just got back from a three day ministry trip to Haiti last Sunday. It was a short but fruitful trip. Maya came along to keep her old dad company and was very helpful. I was not able to make an extra trip to the capital in time to get the needed documents to cross the border with the mission van.  So Maya and I carried what we had and jumped on a bus to the border town of Dajabon. When we arrived we simply jumped on a motorcycle taxi to the bridge that connects Haiti and DR.  Leonel met us there with his motorcycle. We spent those three days getting back and forth with him as our transportation.

We were able to purchase  twenty one whole Bibles and ten New Testaments to take with us. Leonel has been needing Bibles for several months now. And although they weren’t as many as we wished to have taken, he was very thankful when they finally arrived.

Most of the time was spent with Leonel discussing the best possible ways to glorify God on future trips through teaching. We did a great deal of running around as he introduced me to several brothers, mostly pastors and other leaders from nearby churches. While we spoke about studying and teaching in general, most of the men I spoke with actually expressed their own desire to learn more  about Scripture in order to teach better.  And all of them were happy to hear of our desire to partner with them in this area and bring in teachers to help. This was an answer to prayer since some of them knew about my visit but we had never met before so I wasn’t sure what to expect. But two of the men specifically said that they have desired this very thing for a long time. It was encouraging to hear and perhaps a confirmation of sorts. So that´s three locations we will be teaching at on our next visit in and around Juana Mendez, Lord willing. We are thankful to God for opening this door to work with these brothers and churches. Pray for the humility of the teachers and the hearers, so that Christ´s name would be glorified and that His church would be edified.

In other news, there has been a drop in giving in recent months and unfortunately it´s at least in part to our inability to get back for longer lengths of time to report and fundraise. Sadly, it can be “out of sight, out of mind” for many churches back home. Some donors commit for a specific amount of time, whether it be six months or a year. We are thankful for them all and how God has provided our needs through each one, but we are always  in need of new donors and supporting churches in order to continue meeting all of our monthly ministry commitments. With growing ministry needs here and few visits back home, we are praying for new ministry partners. We find ourselves today with more needs than ever. Although we are short of our projected budget, we had a financially stable season where we paid the bills and were  able to do quite a bit of ministry and still help people above and beyond the usual. But as every year donations rise and they fall. Some stop giving, new ones start giving. God has been faithful to provide, but it has always been through His church, faithful , mission minded brothers and sisters back home. And we know that is how He will continue to provide for us.

The difficulty in fundraising now is that we are unsure when we will be able to get back to the states again. We ask that you please consider helping by praying often, giving generously and sharing the needs of this ministry with others. Your donations not only go to meet our family´s needs, but also the nationals we support, the church that was planted and all the expenses of ministry that come with those. Though we believe in keeping the main thing the main thing, we also believe in our responsibility to love, pray for and help,  bearing the burdens of others, especially those in the family of faith. Everything costs money and we could use your help during this low point in giving. Please consider helping us by:

  1. Praying- Please pray consistently and often  for our family and the ministry the Lord has entrusted to us.
  2. Giving- It would certainly help the financial strain we are experiencing if are willing and able to give an extra gift this month above and beyond your present commitment.
  3. And by sharing – Sharing the needs and prayer requests with others who can possibly help by becoming a ministry partners with us in praying giving and possibly even coming and serving.

It is important that you know who you give to and what your donations are going towards. For this reason we ask anyone who is willing, to come and visit us to see what we do here. We do wish more were willing to visit and see for themselves what the Lord has done and is doing. For pastors and teachers we need some to be willing to join us in our encouraging and teaching the nationals laboring faithfully with very little. But it is also an opportunity for those interested in serving the Lord in missions to come and get their “feet wet” a little. We are willing to open our home for those who wish to come for either reason. You can contact us through this website or at salgado@bcmissionarysociety.org.

In a praise report, we do finally have health insurance.  Christen is also feeling much better since her latest experience with parasites and several symptoms such as rashes, hair loss and stomach issues . We have been “deworming” everyone in the house over the last few weeks just in case anyone else may be carrying uninvited visitors.

The church in Hato Mayor is doing well and meeting regularly Sundays and Wednesdays. We also have a teacher giving English classes on Saturdays to many children in the community which is helpful in meeting new families nearby. Pray that this would open doors to share the Gospel with the children’s  families.

Here are some of the needs and prayer requests we ask you to prayerfully consider:

Pray for one dear sister of the church named Arelis who recently discovered she has breast cancer. This is the same sister who cares for her husband who had a bad stroke over a year ago. Please pray for her during this trying season.

Please pray about helping with our children’s schooling. This is one of our biggest financial needs we have as a family right now.

Please pray for our new ministry endeavors working together with nationals teaching both in the DR and in Haiti. For wisdom in the planning and for the funds necessary to carry them out. If you are interested in coming and joining us in reaching and teaching others, or are able to financially support this effort, contact us at salgado@bcmissionary society.org.

We are thankful and in awe at what the Lord has done over the last seven years. We pray that there is still much more in store for us for God’s glory, and that we may also be a means of blessing to those in need, especially those faithful but struggling men laboring in difficult places for the glory of Christ.

Pray.

In service to our King,

Antonio Salgado and family

 

We do not use a sending agency that gets a percentage of the money donated, so you can be sure that your gift goes directly to the mission field to meet real needs.

If the Lord so lays on your heart to give back to Him by supporting this ministry, you can send your tax deductible gift to:

CENTRAL MISSIONARY CLEARINGHOUSE
P.O. Box 219228
Houston, Texas 77218-9228
1-800-CMC-PRAY (1-800-262-7729)
Office: 281-599-7411
Fax: 281-599-7511

CMC serves hundreds of missionaries, but they ONLY receive the funds for us and in no way have control over how the funds are to be spent, or what we are to do as a ministry. This gives us liberty to be sensitive to the Spirit’s leading and make decisions about present and urgent needs. This is one of the reasons why we went with CMC to receive and get donations to us. They also only charge a tiny fee for administrative purposes (about 2%). This is the best way to get the most out of every donation straight to the field.

You may begin sending your support at any time at the address above. Simply include a note a separate piece of paper with “Antonio Salgado or Salgado DR Mission”(Checks should be made payable to Central Missionary Clearinghouse or C.M.C.)

You can also now give to the ministry online through the new giving solution called “click and give” at the CMC website. Just a simple click on the donate button on their page (see link below), and then click the “click and give icon/button”.*Note – On the list of missionaries there, click on Antonio Salgado / Dominican Republic.

https://www.cmcmissions.org/donate

Thank you for taking the time to read this update, and whatever you choose, thank you and God bless.

 

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Salgado DR Mission Newsletter

Dear mission partners, friends, brothers and sisters in Christ,

I thank my God in all my remembrance of you, always in every prayer of mine for you all making my prayer with joy, because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now. – Philippians 1:3-5

We have been back in the DR now for about three weeks and settling back in. This month we celebrate exactly seven years on the field. Thank you for your faithfulness in giving and especially your prayers over the years. We are eternally greatful for each of you.

We have an opportunity to teach again and have decided to begin teaching English at another school to help supplement our income until we are able to go home for a longer period of time and do some fundraising. Quite frankly, we just really need the money right now. It is only part time but Christen and I will both be teaching. I will also be helping at the previous school we have served for the last two years, but more in the area of counseling, meeting with the youth (and anyone else willing) for Bible studies after school hours and evangelism in that community. And although we need the money, I cannot commit to full time work either with all the other ministry responsibilities we presently have.

If I seem to have been more silent than usual in communicating in recent months, it is due partly to thew fact that most of my time and energy has been invested in the BCMS (Biblical Christian Missionary Society) project. For this reason I would like to apologize for a gap in time between communication and newsletters. But we have also been dealing with personal issues in the family, both here and back home which urgently needed our attention. We have served on the mission field for seven years now this month with no furlough, and it has it’s way of taking a toll on everyone. Please forgive me for this lack of communication. I will certainly make an effort to be better at communicating.

We still are present and financially supporting the work that was started in Hato Mayor. The church there will always be home and the brothers and sisters there are family near and dear to us. Recently, a Dominican brother named Victor Dominguez was installed as the new pastor. He is a godly man who loves the Lord, is a good teacher and we are very happy with him and his wonderful family and their willingness to serve. We ask that you please pray for him.

There are still challenges as there are in any ministry, and although the work will celebrate five years this December, the church is still very much an infant church and there is still much work to do there. But brother Victor truly has a servant’s heart, and is more than willing and aware of the challenges he will face. He has also expressed his desire for our continued help in the ministry. We remain in a supportive role and continue helping in ministry endeavors there, whether it be evangelism, providing resources, organization, edifying conferences with visiting pastors and teachers and/or helping raise money for projects and needs.

As I mentioned, we are not only working together with the church of Hato Mayor, but also on a national and international level too, investing in men in the DR and Haiti as well, bringing them resources, teaching and much needed encouragement. In fact we not only support and help with the financial needs of the church of Hato Mayor, but also support another pastor in Santiago, a sister teaching English for us at the church, a brother working as an evangelist in Haiti and several other individuals we help in different ways as donations and resources that come in allow.

I have thought it necessary to send to you Epaphroditus my brother and fellow worker and fellow soldier, and your messenger and minister to my need, – Philippians 2:25

The website for BCMS is up and running (biblicalchristianms.org). Although we had a few hiccups getting it started in the beginning, and are still experimenting with different themes for the site, we have begun posting updates and profiles about the men we support. The main purpose of the this ministry is to invest in faithful men that can teach others as well, whether they are presently in ministry or preparing for ministry. We certainly believe in the local church and do not want to interfere in other churches and their work in any way. We only wish to invest in, and help the men there to better serve right where the Lord has planted them. There are many faithful men here who lack resources and guidance and much needed encouragement.

Tychicus will tell you all about my activities. He is a beloved brother and faithful minister and fellow servant in the Lord. I have sent him to you for this very purpose, that you may know how we are and that he may encourage your hearts, – Colossians 4:7-8

We are planning to help the children of Hato Mayor and another church with school supplies this year as we have in the past. In this country, even for public school, if the children do not have the necessary uniforms and school supplies, they cannot attend. Unfortunately, many kids do not receive the education they need due to the family’s lack of resources. Please pray about helping with this important need.

I am also continuing my own studies in seminary now, which has unfortunately been put on the back burner several times when things got too busy with work in the church. I was actually in Santo Domingo last night discussing with one of the directors what I will need to graduate by next year. Please pray for me for wisdom in time management with a consistently busy schedule.

We have never stopped helping the church and many others we serve behind the scenes, but we do not really like announcing everything that we do either. We have received criticism in the past from both sides of either “not sharing enough” or “sharing too much.” There is always the existing tension of serving and helping without receiving the recognition, (“not letting your left hand know what your right hand is doing,”) coupled with the fact that we are missionaries and have a very real need of being good at communicating well with supporters, sharing updates and the work concerning the ministry. I have often felt that I find myself on one side of the spectrum or the other. The balance isn’t always so easy to identify and maintain. I have always struggled with exactly how much to share and how much to leave between us and the Lord. Prayers for wisdom in this area are certainly appreciated.

After a difficult year of health problems that Christen and I experienced, and worries of the declining health of our parents back home, and a season of other trials that just come with the territory of being in a foreign context, we are refocused and moving forward with several ministry plans. We are both much better in health and trying to take better care of ourselves now. Since we have been awaiting approval for Yeison to travel, and are at a standstill as far as a furlough for now, we have been working hard on organizing the details to make these plans happen, Lord willing of course.

On the Salgado DR Mission website, I will continue sharing updates and important family/ministry needs and prayer requests. As the ministry grows, the needs do too, but there are still needs we have as a family.

For example:
In past years, we have often done fundraisers specifically for the cost of the kid’s schooling. But for at least two years now, we haven’t had to do a fundraiser due to some generous individuals who helped cover a major percentage of it. And by God’s grace, we were able to cover the left over amount. But this year, we have not had anyone give specifically towards this need yet. They are already enrolled and the school will be expecting money soon. This need is very important to us and our children. PLEASE pray for this and consider helping by giving towards their education. There may be a fundaraiser coming if we do not have anyone help us with this soon.

We are preparing for another visa application for Yeison. But before we do, we will need to have many proofs that they (the US embassy) require that will guarantee his re-entry if he were approved for a visa. This time, with much prayer and guidance, we are doing everything we know to present the strongest case possible showing our ties here and his guaranteed return. We must do this until we can officially start the adoption process which is still a couple of years away. But we will have to begin meeting with the lawyer again to obtain documents of  proof of intention to adopt according to an immigration specialist for a State Senator back home. That is apart from the legal guardianship papers we presently have. Lawyers do not work for free either as we all know. Pleas pray and consider helping towards this as well.

We have not been able to take a furlough mainly for this reason, and we very much desire to be able to travel with him on our visits home. We soon will need an extended stay in the US for rest, time with family, but also for some serious fundraising. We are presently at our financial limit and need new ministry partners in order to meet the new budget. Please pray about this and consider joining us as a ministry partner.

The ministry van has been a huge blessing in many ways. It has been used not only for the ministry of the local church, but we have also been able to serve several other pastors and their churches who do not have resources by making it available to them for transportation for various activities. And of course, for transportation when visiting pastors and teachers come with their church members to teach and serve with us. But at times, it too comes with a hefty price tag of maintenance and repairs. We do everything needed to keep it running like new in order to be able to go to any part of the country at any given time. We may even be taking it to Haiti soon and are presently investigating what forms the government requires in order to cross the border with a vehicle. But it’s maintenance is costly (as most vehicle maintenance and fuel is here), and the terrible road conditions certainly do not help. Any help towards this need is also is very appreciated.

On the BCMS website I will be sharing updates and needs more specific to that ministry’s vision and mission, Being primarily a 2 Timothy 2:2 ministry focusing on coming alongside and equipping the nationals. We have also begun working on writing original articles and resources for supporters and those we are serving, and translating them to make them available in English, Spanish and Haitian Creole.

We have a list of worthy candidates we desire to help and support in different ways, but until we acquire more commitments and/or new ministry partners, we are limited. Presently we only have posted those that we support on the website. But Lord willing, we will also post profiles of the candidates so that others can learn more about each individual and their own personal and ministerial needs too.

In the mean time, we are planning to help by taking the teaching to them through workshops and conferences that a couple of pastors here and I will teach. And though in a sense this is their most important need, their needs do go beyond that. Anyone serious about studying about the Word and ministry will need a computer, books, and other helpful tools like the internet for example, for ease of access to online resources. Internet access will also help for ease of communication between us (video calls and virtual meetings.) This also cuts down on the costs of travel until absolutely necessary. Most of these men also have basic needs for their own ministries like bibles, tracts etc., that we would love to help provide as well when possible. Please pray about helping with any of these needs.

Be on the look out for updates from our family and the brothers of BCMS, and please remember to pray for each of us. Pray for Yeison’s visa. Pray for grace and strength. Pray for wisdom. Pray for God’s provision in the often overwhelming amount of needs. Pray.

In Christ,
Antonio Salgado and family

 

We do not use a sending agency that gets a percentage of the money donated, so you can be sure that your gift goes directly to the mission field to meet real needs.

If the Lord so lays on your heart to give back to Him by supporting this ministry, you can send your tax deductible gift to:

CENTRAL MISSIONARY CLEARINGHOUSE
P.O. Box 219228
Houston, Texas 77218-9228
1-800-CMC-PRAY (1-800-262-7729)
Office: 281-599-7411
Fax: 281-599-7511

CMC serves hundreds of missionaries, but they ONLY receive the funds for us and in no way have control over how the funds are to be spent, or what we are to do as a ministry. This gives us liberty to be sensitive to the Spirit’s leading and make decisiones about present and urgent needs. This is one of the reasons why we went with CMC to receive and get donations to us. They also only charge a tiny fee for administrative purposes (about 2%).

You may begin sending your support at any time at the address above. Simply include a note a separate piece of paper with “Antonio Salgado or Salgado DR Mission”(Checks should be made payable to Central Missionary Clearinghouse or C.M.C.)

You can also now give to the ministry online through the new giving solution called “click and give” at the CMC website.

To get started you just need to click on the link below and register the first time. Just a simple click on the donate button on their page (see link below), and then click the “click and give icon/button”.
*Note – On the list of missionaries there, look for Antonio Salgado.

https://www.cmcmissions.org/donate

You will then have a private giving solution that comes with many benefits to you the donor. If you have any questions please call the office (tel:1-800-262-7729 or 281-599-7411), and they very kindly will walk you through what you need to do.

You can also donate to this ministry online with Paypal. Click the donate button on the home page of this site and you can send support of any amount directly to the ministry. You can choose the option of doing a one-time donation, but this is the fastest option to get funds to us.

Unfortunately through Paypal we are not set up for receiving recurring donations. But the other online giving option above does have the recurring monthly donation option. Simply register one time and that’s it.

For tax exemption, you must send your donation through Central Missionary Clearinghouse (CMC) at the address above.

As stated above, we do not use a sending agency that gets a percentage of the money donated as other ministries do, so you can be sure that almost your entire gift goes directly to the mission field.

Whatever you decide, thank you for praying for us and helping this ministry take the Gospel to the Dominican people, God Bless.

 

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Being Forgiven And Being Forgiving

“bearing with one another and forgiving one another if anyone has a grievance against another. Just as the Lord has forgiven you, so you are also to forgive.”
‭‭Colossians‬ ‭3:13‬ ‭CSB‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬

The Gospel is not just for the unbelieving world. The Gospel is very much for us believers too. We must never stop remembering. We must never stop preaching the Gospel to ourselves first, because we are indeed forgetful creatures. We must never stop looking to the cross in awe and wonder of what God has done, at the fact that we ourselves can be forgiven.

It was Charles Spurgeon who once said,

“While others are congratulating themselves, I have to lie humbly at the foot of Christ’s cross & marvel that I am saved at all.”

The pardon we receive really is very humbling, but it is also very liberating. How so you might ask? This Gospel mentality frees us and reminds us of the extent of God´s grace towards us in the death of His Son on the cross. It also reminds us of the depth of our own sin and the offense it is to God. Far more offensive and wicked than any sin anyone else has ever committed against us. For our sin is ultimately against our Creator, a God so Holy, so absolutely set apart, and with infinitely more worth than we as mere creatures have in and of ourselves.

But when we “get” the Gospel, really grasping why the death of Christ was necessary and it´s implications, we are freed from thinking higher of ourselves than we ought to. We also must recognize that unforgiveness and bitterness is a poison that is most toxic to our own hearts. And it is often our pride that is at the root of it. We should definitely be humbled by the grace demonstrated at the cross, but this grace should enable us to truly forgive others too. We may struggle at times, when the hurt is deep and person who hurt us is someone near and dear. We may get things wrong and go about things imperfectly. But the Spirit of God in us will cause us to desire to forgive, and we will eventually come to a place of true forgiveness towards others.

As Christians, we should be a forgiving people. Preaching the Gospel to ourselves and meditating on our own standing before God is most helpful when we struggle to forgive others, for it is a constant reminder of God´s grace towards us, AND the depth of our own sin. A sin so wicked and deep rooted in our own hearts, that it was only by the death of the Son of God that it could be paid for.

And it is indeed paid for. There are no more consequences or wrath reserved for us because Christ took it all upon Himself. All of it. For this reason ” there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” For those who are in Him. Yes, even those who you are having a hard time forgiving, if they are believers, their sin is covered. We have been shown a grace so wonderful and a love so transcendent, so beyond our understanding, that we will worship for all of eternity absolutely amazed that we actually were forgiven.

“But God, who is rich in mercy, because of his great love that he had for us, made us alive with Christ even though we were dead in trespasses. You are saved by grace!”
‭‭Ephesians‬ ‭2:4-5‬ ‭CSB‬‬‬‬‬‬

So pray, then go ahead and forgive that person. Don´t waste anymore time feeling bitter´and harboring such feelings. Your wounds will heal, and you will grow from this experience. Be “imitators of God,”  by showing grace and being forgiving.

Along with Spurgeon, I too must often..

“..have to lie humbly at the foot of Christ’s cross & marvel that I am saved at all.”

If we are in Christ we are forgiven, completely, fully, perfectly. Therefore, one of the distinctive marks of being a Christian, is to forgive others, just as we too have been forgiven.

Written by Antonio Salgado Jr.

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Salgado DR Mission newsletter

Dear mission partners, friends, brothers and sisters in Christ,

As I write this we are still in the States. We have been here about three weeks now spending time with family. This trip has been very different from our trips in the past. Although we don’t come home very often, we do try to stay a bit longer than a month. For Maya and “little” Tony (who is bigger than me now) and myself, it has been almost two years since our last visit. I hoped to speak a little if possible and visit with some supporters and churches, but this trip was not planned for very long and the purpose of this trip was, sadly, to see and spend time with those loved ones who may not be with us for very much longer. I have only had the time to speak at two churches this whole month. One church close to home in Florida, and one in Louisiana. But we want to be close to the family as much as possible.

This trip was put together rather quickly due to the declining health of Christen’s father who has Alzheimer’s and is in a home. Thankfully, we have been able to check him out and bring him to the house we are staying in for days at a time for some much needed time together. But it has really been an emotionally difficult trip for all of us, especially for my wife.

Prayers are very appreciated for her, her father (Edward) and the family. My mother (Clorinda) has been in and out of the hospital with several health issues over the last few months with her health on the decline as well. Our time here has been spent traveling back and forth between Ocala and Tampa trying our best to prioritize who we can visit with and for how long, but it has proven to be very hard. Please pray.

The reality of being here for these reasons, on top of having to be away from Sahira and Yeison for this long has been very hard on us all. Yeison told us yesterday he packed his bag and was ready to get on an airplane to come to us. He doesn’t understand why he can’t come with us and this has been heartbreaking for everybody. Being between two worlds, feeling pulled and stretched in both directions in every way imaginable is not easy, but is just a reality of missionary life. Emotionally, spiritually, physically and mentally we are challenged all the time with tough decisions to make. I find myself constantly crying out to God for wisdom with feelings of helplessness and inadequacy. At times we feel like we don’t belong anywhere.

It will be seven years in August, in a different cultural context, and it will take a toll on anyone and certainly change you in many ways. Feeling too American to be Dominican, feeling too different to be comfortable back in an America at times, especially with the rapid pace of change for the worst here. You can probably imagine the confusion and strange emotions we deal with sometimes, especially the children. Praise God that we find our true identity ultimately in Christ and we understand we really are pilgrims and strangers in this or any land for that matter, even the land we were born in.

This helps us not to get too attached to places or things anywhere, but it’s never easy and very few people back home understand. Even well meaning  brothers and sisters who don’t know about life outside of their own context, or don’t have experience overseas or counseling missionaries, can fall short of giving us the counsel and encouragement we often need. Of course, any peace or comfort that we feel comes from Christ and the Spirit, reminding us and confirming God’s promises in the Scriptures. I thank God for His living Word. But humanly speaking, nothing seems simple and things are much easier said than done. It is God Himself who wills this so as to have us depend completely upon Him. This is when the rubber meets the road and we must surrender and simply have an attitude of the heart of “may Your will be done and not ours oh Lord”.

In a great article about the challenges of cross cultural church planting written by Jen Oshem, she describes just a few of the many challenges faced by those in situations similar to ours.

She is right on when she describes the following difficulties for families serving cross-culturally:

1. Traversing two or more cultures can prevent children from having a strong sense of identity and belonging. Also, the endless goodbyes with other expat families or with locals when the church planting family relocates can lead to loneliness and unprocessed grief.

2. Being immersed in a highly secular setting can have a greater influence on a child than their parents’ Christian influence. Kids might be exposed too early—and too often—to the realities of violence, poverty, sex trafficking, corruption, drugs and alcohol, and other dark, worldly trappings.

3. Physical health may suffer, as access to good healthcare may be nonexistent or far away. Everything from a middle-of-the-night fever to scoliosis can morph into a major, life-altering crisis.

4. Kids raised outside of their home countries don’t get to know their cousins, aunts, uncles, grandparents, or the neighborhoods their parents grew up in. They face significant gaps in knowing about their home culture’s norms (going “home” sure doesn’t feel like it) and everyone misses out on the support of extended family in the formative years.

5. Education is a constant concern. Learning in two languages is tough, not to mention dealing with special needs, keeping up with home country requirements, and navigating classmates’ and teachers’ expectations in a foreign country.

6. While everyone says, “Kids are so resilient,” the truth is they probably just don’t have the words to express the grief they feel in living through upheaval and uncertainty. Chances are their emotions are stuffed and saved for later. Many cross-cultural kids experience a season of processing trauma as young adults.

Even with the challenges faced, there is nothing else we would rather do. There is no other way we would rather spend our lives than to pour it forth in service for the glory of God. As we look beyond the trials and difficult moments, it is worth it. It is working in us an eternal weight of glory that greatly out measures any light momentary affliction we may face in this lifetime. And in comparison, as we consider eternity, yes it is light.

Although sometimes, it may not feel that way in the moment. Humanly speaking, is it hard? Yes. Are there moments when you want to throw in the towel and retreat? Yes. But, it is still so worth it. And the day we see our Savior face to face we will understand and even be thankful for those trials that formed us, grew us and forced us closer to Christ. We will understand and we will worship as He wipes away all of our tears, and we will finally be free from the presence of sin and suffering. Pray.

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Salgado DR Mission: La historia de Yeison (version en español)

“Muchos de ustedes saben acerca de la adopción de nuesto hijo Yeison. Muchos de ustedes saben que lo hemos tenido desde que tenía solo tres meses, saben que nació de una madre que presenta una discapacidad mental y que vive en circunstancias muy pobre y difíciles.

Pero aquí hay algo más que tal vez muchos no saben…

Y es que nuestro hijo es un producto de una violación. Su madre fue abandonada, maltratada y violada por un hombre desconocido y más tarde se descubrió que ella estaba embarazada. Esto es trágico y horrible, y todo aquel que cometa este delito debe ser llevado a la justicia. ¡Castrado incluso!

Sin embargo, agradezco a Dios que el aborto no es legal aquí en Rep. Dominicana. Al menos no lo es todavía, aunque lamentablemente puede ser solo un cuestión de tiempo.

Su madre biológica debido a su condición tiene la capacidad mental de un niño de cuatro o cinco años y nunca puede vivir sola y siempre necesitará atención, aun así ella sabe que tiene un hijo, sabe su nombre y tambien lo ama. Al mismo tiempo estoy seguro de que ella recordará lo que le sucedió, y tal vez no pueda procesar todo lo que sucedió durante esa experiencia traumática.

La pregunta es, ¿es culpa de Yeison?

Pues no, por otro lado lo que otros no saben es que Christen (quien es mi esposa) y yo habíamos estado orando durante algunos años para tener otro hijo el cual no podíamos concebir. Es cierto que al principio yo no quería volver a empezar de nuevo. Nuestros hijos estaban grandes y yo tenía mis planes. Pero mi esposa oró por mí y el Señor cambió mi corazón.

Oramos por un largo tiempo, y curiosamente, durante ese tiempo, Dios nos tenia trabajando en un lugar donde no teniamos recursos, solo compartiamos el evangelio, daba estudios bíblicos y predicaba con frequencia.

Luego el Señor orquestó las cosas de tal manera que no solo contestó nuestras oraciones, sino que nos puso en una posición para ayudar a Yeison, a su madre y a la hermana quien cuida ahora de ella. Yera (su madre biológica) está en una situación mucho mejor hoy que el día en que la encontramos con el bebé Yeison, por la gracia de Dios.

Probablemente habría muerto si el Señor no hubiera cruzado nuestros caminos. Yeison estaba malnutrido y deshidratado cuando lo encontramos. La madre de Yera se estaba muriendo a causa del cáncer y Yera no tenía idea de cómo cuidar de él. Ella ni siquiera podía cuidar de sí misma.

Pero esto me hizo pensar y realmente me horroriza pensar, ¿qué hubiera pasado si el aborto fuera legal aquí?

Estoy casi seguro de que tendríamos un hijo menos de lo que tenemos hoy. Me rompe el corazón solo en pensarlo. Incluso en casos de violación, como con nuestro hijo, el niño nunca debe ser quien pague el precio. Nunca está bien asesinar a un niño en el vientre de su madre.

Si Dios quiere, Yeison podría ser el primero de su familia en estudiar y tal vez en ir a la universidad. Hoy en día es bilingüe y muy brillante. Lo amamos tanto y realmente no podríamos imaginar la vida sin él el día de hoy. Sus hermanos lo aman y lo cuidan. Él ha traído tanta alegría a nuestra familia y Dios nos ha enseñado mucho a través de él durante los últimos cinco años. Estoy muy agradecido de que el Señor le haya permitido a Yeison nacer en un país donde el aborto todavía no es legal, o él no estaría con nosotros hoy. Solo pensarlo hace que mi corazón se ponga pesado. El aborto es asesinato, y aunque debemos ser amables al abordar el tema, los cristianos deben trabajar juntos para ponerle fin. Ministrar y dar esperanza a quienes hayan tenido un aborto y que ahora sienten la profunda pérdida y el dolor.

Cuando veo a Yeison me veo a mí mismo. Él es un recuerdo constante del Evangelio para nosotros. Porque cuando no éramos hijos de Dios, Cristo vino a rescatarnos y a través de Él, podemos ser ADOPTADOS en la familia de Dios.

Para mí, aparte del matrimonio, la adopción es una de las imágenes más hermosas del Evangelio.

El Creador Todopoderoso se convierte en nuestro Abba Padre. Pasamos de ser enemigos perdidos y rebeldes a convertirnos en hijos e hijas privilegiados. Esto hace que mi corazón se regocije y sea extremadamente agradecido.
Esto debería motivarnos a adorar apasionadamente y vivir para él. ¡Alabado sea Dios de quien todas las bendiciones fluyen!

Que vivamos y actuemos de tal manera que las personas puedan ver el Evangelio en todas las áreas de nuestras vidas y que de ningún modo sea de palabras solamente.”

By: Antonio Salgado

Ministerio: Salgado D R Mission
web: www.salgadodrmission.com

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Salgado DR Mission: Yeison’s story

With so much talk about abortion these days I have something I want to share since everyone seems to be putting their two cents forth. This is not a structured argument or anything, but it is part of our story.

Some of you who have supported or follwed thi sministry know about a special little boy named Yeison. Many of you know that, through an incredible series of events, the Lord opened the door for Yeison to come into our home when he was only three months old. Many of you know that he was born to a mother who is mentally handicapped and lives in very poor and difficult circumstances.

But here is something many may not know….

Our son is a product of rape. His mother was left alone and abused by an unknown man, and it was later discovered  that she was pregnant. This was absolutely a tragic and horrific act, and if ever found, that wicked man should be brought to justice. Castrated even!

Yet, I thank God that abortion is not legal here in the Dominican Republic. At least not yet, although sadly it may be just a matter of time. Yeison’s  biological mother is mentally about four or five and can never live by herself and will always need care, but she knows she has a child. She knows his name. She asks about him. She loves him. I am sure she remembers what happened to her, though she may not be able to process everything that happened during that traumatic experience. Even in her condition, you can see that she loves her son.

The question is, how is this Yeison’s fault?!  If so, how?

Another thing that others may not know is that  I had prayed for a few years for another child. Admittedly, at first I did not want to start over. Our children were getting older and I had my plans. And back then, I was dead set on them.  But over time, the Lord changed my heart.

I prayed for a long time, and interestingly enough, during that same time God had me working in a very poor area for a few years when I shared the Gospel, taught Bible studies and preached often.

The Lord orchestrated things in such a way that He not only answered prayers, but He put me in a position to help Yeison, his mother and her caretaker. Yera (his biological mother) is in a much better situation today than the day we found her with baby Yeison, by God’s grace.

But the sad reality is that he probably would have died had not the Lord crossed our paths when He did. He suffered from malnutrition and was dehydrated when we found him. Yera’s mother was dying of cancer at the time and bed ridden, and Yera had no idea no how to care for Yeison. She couldn’t even care for herself.

But this got me thinking and it truly horrifies me to ponder, what would have happened if abortion were legal here?? Especially in a case like this with Yera’s condition and it being a rape?

I am almost certain that we would have one son less than we have today. It breaks my heart just to think about it. Even in cases of rape, like with our son, the child should never be the one to pay the price. It is never ok to murder a child in the womb, period. Every human being, be it inside the womb or out, at any stage of development from conception, has intrinsic value and created in the image of God. We simply have no right commit such atrocities regardless of how some may try to justify it.

Lord willing, Yeison could be the first one in his family to study and perhaps go to college. Or better yet, he may throw himself upon the mercy of Christ and be used mightily by the Lord someday. But this I do know,  he is already bilingual and very bright. We love him SO very much and really could not imagine life without him today.

His siblings love him and always cared for him with such tenderness. He is no different to them at all. He has brought so much joy to our family, and God has taught us so much through him over the years. We are so very thankful that the Lord allowed Yeison to be born in a country where abortion still is not legal or, chances are, he would not be with us today. Just the thought makes my heart extremely heavy. Abortion is murder,  be sure of it, and though we must be gracious when addressing the topic, Christians should work together to end it…. AND minister and give hope to those who may have had an abortion but now are feeling the deep loss and sorrow. There is forgiveness and there is healing for them.

When I see Yeison, I see myself. He really is a constant reminder of the Gospel for us. For when we were not God’s children, Christ came to rescue us and through Him, we can be ADOPTED into the family of God.

For me, apart from marriage, adoption is one of the most beautiful pictures of the Gospel. The Almighty Creator becomes our Abba Father. We go from lost enemies and rebels, to becoming co-heirs,  privileged sons and daughters. This makes my heart rejoice and extremely grateful. And the only proper response to this is to worship passionately and live for Him. Praise God from who all blessings flow!

May we live and act in such a way that people can see the Gospel in all areas of our lives. God forbid, they only hear it in our words alone. Pray.

   

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Salgado DR Mission Newsletter

Dear mission partners, friends, brothers and sisters in Christ,

First of all, thank you everyone for your prayers and support over the years. It is truly appreciated more than you will ever know. We believe that those who pray for and support missions play a role just as important as the missionary on the field.

An update on our daughter Maya:

As I write this had to taker her to the hospital  last night for a consistently high fever over the last three days now. With today  (Saturday) four days.

When we got to the hospital and they examined her, they said there hasn’t really been much dengue fever around this area, but a few cases of chikungunya are showing up again. (For those unfamiliar with the terms, we are talking about mosquito borne illnesses). But we were recently far from the city in an area with lots of lagoons and Maya did get bit up pretty good. More than the rest of us at least.

They did some blood work on her it came back showing that it was viral and the doctor started saying that it actually might be dengue, but they would need another blood test. At first they said in 48 hours, but within minutes they said it was much  better to get it done and compare the results within 24 hours just in case.

Her blood pressure was a little low and she was somewhat dehydrated. So we need to control the fever the best we can until then, keep her hydrated and pray until the next blood test to see what’s going on. Thank you everyone for the prayers.

In less than 24 hours, our daughter’s blood test results got much worse (her levels of her white blood cells and red blood cells etc.) The doctors said it is a possible dengue or it could be a couple of other things but she needs to be hospitalized according to her bloodwork.

There is a specific test they can do to know for sure. All we know right now is that she is getting worse. Usually we treat dengue or chikungunya just keeping hydrated and controlling the fever with Tylenol, but there are some dangerous strains of dengue that can cause you to hemorrhage, so she needs to be watched closely by doctors and have bloodwork done every 24 hours. The private hospitals wanted a $1000 deposit up front, but since we do not have insurance we had to take her to a public but decent children’s hospital. The same doctors from the “good” private clinics also work here though. The difference is you only pay for the treatment, meds and/or materials needed if operated, but not a hospital’s fee for the stay in a room if hospitalized or doctor’s fees. For now we wait another 24 hours for another blood test to monitor what’s going on. Prayers for Maya are very much appreciated.

As we approach Summer we are considering a short but necessary trip to the States. It has been about a year and a half since our last visit and we have some serious needs. Fund raising from the mission field has proven to be very difficult. We would love to visit and report back to those who pray for and support us. But we are honestly are very behind in raising funds for usual yearly needs such as the kids schooling, funds for the ministry itself and many personal needs as well. A lot due to the difficulty we have with Yeison’s visa situation. It has simply proven difficult to raise funds when out of the country.

We try to be very active concerning updates by personal interaction with donors online, newsletters from our website shared on social media, and in emails, and of course, Facebook with the most frequent updates on our ministry and personal pages. Perhaps it is due to this unfortunate gap in reporting and fundraising in person that giving has dwindled.

It happens over the years, times when we are getting by well financially, and others when things get much harder for us. We have survived using love offerings and such that come to us. But our actual monthly budget needs are no longer being met, and the needs and bills keep coming. When things are good financially, although there will always be needs, and some things that are not in our power to resolve, with what we have received in the past we were able to do much for others and pay the bills. When giving takes a hit (due to the many commitments here) many times we must use personal funds to cover the needs. But you can only do that for so long before the well starts to run dry. Between the needs of the brethren, the bills and needs of the church,  our family, even cutting corners on some of our own  needs, we have come to difficult spot financially.

Two or three months of unexpected and expensive medical bills, repairs, and needs that come up on top of the usual expenses is all it takes. Then comes the tension of our reality here.

 

We depend on the support of the saints back home. We have to live, we have bills to pay, but we are here to serve them. How do we not help them? When things get tight the temptation is to buckle down and go into survival mode. But it isn’t that simple. We have food and clean water, clean clothes and for now at least, our health.  While some dear people we know, brothers and sisters in Christ even, don’t have the basic necessities often times.  Or they can’t afford the medicine they need to stay alive. It does something to your heart. It does something to your conscience. At least it does to mine. When we can’t help as much or are running out of money, it isn’t very easy to be here.

The kids schooling is a hard thing as well. It’s time to enroll for next year and we don’t have the money right now. We are thinking about moving to a cheaper home but there are lots of costs involved in moving, including first and last month’s rent which we don’t have right now. We need to get home and do some serious fundraising but we can’t as a family stay long because of Yeison’s visa situation.

Even on extended stays in the past, (just the way it has played out), I have spent much time reporting and preaching wherever I am invited, but run out of time and don’t get to fundraise  as much to “new” audiences for new supporters. And honestly, it is just very difficult to ask for money, or anything else for that matter! I really struggle with this even though we have been here seven years.

It also gets expensive really fast staying in the States and trying to travel with a family. It’s been by God’s grace and the generosity of the saints who open their homes to us and lend us vehicles that has allowed us to get around by in the past.

In a praise report, thankfully one pastor and his church has graciously invited us to Louisiana to share about the ministry, and offered to cover our trip there. There may be some support coming from that. Praise God, we are very thankful for that! But we would also like our kids to at least have a short visit home as well to visit. It’s been two years for them and they would like to see the family and we totally understand and would like them to have a break as well. We would need to fly our kids to Florida and find our way there from Louisiana which we cannot afford at this time. There are some churches and dear brothers and sisters we should (need) to visit in different states to report to and thank for their support and prayer over the years. I am not sure how I will get there as of yet, the Lord has always provided a way in the past. Please pray about helping.

Our newsletters are usually not this transparent about the hard side of things personally and financially. We share much about some hard things happening in the lives of people around us and in the ministry. But very few know the many difficulties we have faced secretly and quietly suffering over the last seven years, and some even presently as a family. So I am just going to say it. I am pretty concerned about our financial situation and we need your help! We are certainly praying for the Lord’s provision. Yet I know He ordains the end as well as the means, which is no other than the bride of Christ, the church itself. Brother, sister, will you please pray for us and give if you can?

We need new monthly mission partners. People have been good about occasional love offerings and such in the past,  and many times are specific answers to prayer that come in just in time, but it is difficult to build a budget around that. We need an increase in monthly funding to catch up and cover the extra costs of the church and the brothers we support here personally. There’s the church’s electric, water, supplies and mercy ministry fund come from our offerings. The medical insurance for a very sick sister here, the maintenance , insurance and fuel for the bus, an evangelist in Haiti  and a  pastor here that we support personally. These are just some of the needs above and beyond our children’s schooling and other family needs.

How can you help?

By praying, we have no doubt that in a major way the prayers of the saints back home interceding on our behalf have played a major role in sustaining us this long on the mission field. The Lord has answered those prayers time and time again. We have seen the Lord touch the hearts of some saints back home and seen His faithfulness to provide in big and unexpected ways through those prayers in the past.

By giving, if you are already a mission partner, would you consider sacrificially giving above and beyond your current commitment for X amount of time to help ease the financial burden we currently have? 

And also by sharing, would you be willing to share these needs with your local church, friends and other believers in your own circles who understand the importance of missions and have a passion for the Gospel?

We purposely do not use a sending agency with large overhead costs that retains a significant percentage of the money donated, so you can be sure that your gift goes directly to the mission field.

If the Lord so lays on your heart to give back to Him by supporting this ministry,  you can send your tax deductible gift to:

CENTRAL MISSIONARY CLEARINGHOUSE
P.O. Box 219228
Houston, Texas 77218-9228
1-800-CMC-PRAY (1-800-262-7729)
Office: 281-599-7411
Fax: 281-599-7511

CMC serves hundreds of missionaries, but they ONLY receive the funds for us and in no way have control over how the funds are to be spent or what we are to do as a ministry, which gives us liberty to make real needs a priority and yet have room to be sensitive to the Spirit’s leading. This is one of the reasons why we went with CMC. There are also three trusted pastors which sit as our mission board.

You may begin sending your support to the Salgado DR Mission at any time at the address above. (Checks should be made payable to Central Missionary Clearinghouse or C.M.C.)

You can also now give to the ministry here in the DR online through the new giving solution called “click and give” at the CMC website.

To get started you just need to click on the link below and register the first time. Just a simple click on the donate button on their page (see link below), and then click the “click and give icon/button”.

https://www.cmcmissions.org/donate

You will then have a private giving solution that comes with many benefits to you the donor. If you have any questions please call the office (tel:1-800-262-7729 or 281-599-7411), and they very kindly will walk you through what you need to do.

You can also donate to this ministry online with Paypal. Click the donate button below and you can send support of any amount directly to the ministry. You can choose the option of doing a one-time donation and in emergencies this is the fastest option to get funds to us.

Unfortunately through Paypal we are not set up for receiving recurring donations at this time. But the other online giving option above does the recurring monthly donation option. Simply register one time and that’s it.

For tax exemption, you must send your donation through Central Missionary Clearinghouse (CMC) at the address above. 

Again, we do not use a sending agency that gets a percentage of the money donated, so you can be sure that your gift goes directly to the mission field.

Whatever you decide, thank you so much for praying for us and helping this ministry. God Bless You!

 

 

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Salgado DR Mission

Dear mission partners, friends, brothers and sisters in Christ,

The month of March was somewhat difficult, but by God’s grace we are feeling refreshed and much better than last month. In good news, the work at the school has gone well. Well in the sense that there constant opportunities to share the Gospel with teachers and students alike.

I began meeting again with anyone who will come on Tuesday nights for a Bible study. It resulted that a large group of youth began showing up although it was open to everyone. So pray for those who are coming and others at the school who have heard the gospel as well as for me, that God may continue to give me boldness and love and that He would continue to give more opportunities to serve.

The other side of the coin is the sad and utter depravity we experience and deal with in ministering in hard places. Just below and around the school is a very tough area. The school goes through teachers pretty frequently. It is hard work, stressful, emotionally and spiritually tolling work. Very few children and youth there are easy to deal with, they challenge your authority and call you vulgar things, the older ones fight a lot and bring weapons to school,  but we are patient to correct and love them.

You have to understand their world and be merciful. People raised there, and other places like it are regularly exposed to acts of debauchery and even perversion in some  homes and neighbors homes. They begin to imitate and speak about these things from a very young age. It is hard for them to even see or better yet even imagine above and beyond the horizon of their immediate context and the only little world they know. A lot of these kids are basically raising themselves and their younger siblings. Pray for them, that at some point the Lord would graciously allow them to hear the Good News, and respond in repentance  and faith in Christ.

The church in Hato Mayor has several members who need much prayer. Sister Arelis who cared for her husband Pedrito who needs lots of help himself after his stroke, is now down herself after a knee surgery. Their daughter is there helping and caring for them both. Another sister in church has had a string of difficult trials after a bout with cancer, please lift up sister Fidelina.

Unfortunately we have had to make several expensive trips to the mechanic for maintenance and repairs. The amount spent was very significant and unexpected so it hit us pretty hard. We have only a few more repairs to do that are necessary.

But, our overall health has improved greatly, praise God that we are healthy now, aside from a few stress related symptoms, we are very thankful. But many brethren here are not so fortunate and are suffering from illness that have no near end in sight, please pray for them.

There is always a tension one feels as a missionary when the needs are overwhelming and people fall between the cracks because time and resources are so limited. I want to encourage the brethren back home, that within your own circles of influence, to not go throughout your day (work, school, home, next door, or out somewhere) without being intentionally praying and seeking for someone to help and share the Gospel with. We miss too many opportunities to bless others and be faithful to our calling in announcing the Gospel, often times because we get too consumed with…ourselves. May we remember the words of John the baptist, “He must increase, but I must decrease.”

But praise the Lord, that in even spite of much temporary suffering, the brothers and sisters of Hato Mayor are united and committed to move forward in the work of the Lord and soon, Lord willing, I will be helping evangelize and bring in some brothers from other places (apart from those currently helping us with preaching, among those is Daniel Toribio) and help organize some activities with other churches that we fellowship with to help encourage the brethren as well. Pray.

We are financially supporting (and will be for a while) the work in Hato Mayor as a local church, who are not near being ready to financially be independent. As we begin supporting national pastors and evangelists as BCMS, we will need the help, prayers and resources of our brothers and sisters back home. We are praying for more mission partners to come alongside of us in order to teach and equip these men with the resources they need.

We have begun officially supporting one Dominican brother, Daniel Toribio  and will begin supporting a Haitian brother, Leonel Riviere now in this month of April, both of which we have known for years. As the Lord provides the funds, we desire to support other like minded and faithful men,  who can teach or preach.  It is important that we or other trusted brethren can also testify of their walk and integrity.

This is a huge but very important  task and commitment of equipping, discipling, encouraging, praying for and visiting these men. Doing what we can to help them become men of God who can properly handle the Word of God. We want to encourage and help them to be effective right where the Lord has placed them, proclaiming the Gospel and faithfully teaching the saints.

But in order to do this well, and enable us to come alongside other men that the Lord is raising up, we will definitely need your help. We are presently completely stretched as far as we can be financially each month. But this is a project you can take on as an individual or as a church.

We want to help poor or financially struggling candidates who really cannot afford anything, but truly desire to serve the Lord and can teach others.  Some we will help on a monthly basis with $8000 Dominican pesos , which is the equivalent of only $160 US dollars.

For example, a church can support two men for $320 dollars and know the money is going directly to them, or to help purchase things they absolutely need like resources such as bibles,  some online seminary, good books, tracts, or a laptop to mention a few. All in an effort to elevate the quality of  the teaching and preaching to be more biblical right  in the places these men are presently ministering for the glory of God, and in the context of their local churches of course.

There is much work to do and this is an opportunity to help invest in the men the Lord is raising up to work in His harvest, to care for His people. Please pray about helping. The new website with the men’s profiles and backgrounds is in the works. Pray.

“Those who give and pray for missions, play a role just as important as the missionary on the field.”

We purposely do not use a sending agency with large overhead costs that retains a significant percentage of the money donated, so you can be sure that your gift goes directly to the mission field.

If the Lord so lays on your heart to give back to Him by supporting this ministry,  you can send your tax deductible gift to:

CENTRAL MISSIONARY CLEARINGHOUSE
P.O. Box 219228
Houston, Texas 77218-9228
1-800-CMC-PRAY (1-800-262-7729)
Office: 281-599-7411
Fax: 281-599-7511

This ministry (CMC) serves hundreds of missionaries, but they ONLY receive the funds for us and in no way have control over how the funds are to be spent or what we are to do as a ministry, which gives us liberty to make real needs a priority and yet have room to be sensitive to the Spirit’s leading. This is one of the reasons why we went with CMC. There are also three trusted pastors which sit as our mission board.

You may begin sending your support to the Salgado DR Mission at any time at the address above. (Checks should be made payable to Central Missionary Clearinghouse or C.M.C.)

You can also now give to the ministry here in the DR online through the new giving solution called “click and give” at the CMC website.

To get started you just need to click on the link below and register the first time. Just a simple click on the donate button on their page (see link below), and then click the “click and give icon/button”.

https://www.cmcmissions.org/donate

You will then have a private giving solution that comes with many benefits to you the donor. If you have any questions please call the office (tel:1-800-262-7729 or 281-599-7411), and they very kindly will walk you through what you need to do.

You can also donate to this ministry online with Paypal. Click the donate button below and you can send support of any amount directly to the ministry. You can choose the option of doing a one-time donation and in emergencies this is the fastest option to get funds to us.

Unfortunately through Paypal we are not set up for receiving recurring donations at this time. But the other online giving option above does the recurring monthly donation option. Simply register one time and that’s it.

For tax exemption, you must send your donation through Central Missionary Clearinghouse (CMC) at the address above. 

Again, we do not use a sending agency that gets a percentage of the money donated, so you can be sure that your gift goes directly to the mission field.

Whatever you decide, thank you so much for praying for us and helping this ministry. God Bless You!

“I give thanks to my God for every remembrance of you, always praying with joy for all of you in my every prayer, because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now.”
‭‭Philippians‬ ‭1:3-5‬ ‭