Greetings, November, 2009

You might think handshakes are handshakes; well, not necessarily. Sometimes you have to be creative. I was in a high-security area within the Tijuana children's jail (CMI) talking to a few boys behind a wall of steel mesh. When I finished and was ready to leave one boy stuck his finger through the mesh ... to shake. I took my two fingers and shook his one finger. We smiled and I left. That has to be the smallest handshake I've ever given.

Holding the bars of a cell containing six boys, I was talking to sixteen year old Felix. His hands were holding the same bars and his eyes were about eighteen inches from mine. "Felix, you need to give your life to God. He can do a lot better job with it than you have, right?" "Si, von!" Those few words meant more to Felix from behind bars than the same words I've told hundreds of teens on the outside! Teens are taking their young lives on a reckless road to disaster.

Faithful years of work at the CMI is paying off. Both the inmates and guards trust us.

Two weeks ago Spectrum was asked to have another two-day 'Bible Retreat' inside the prison area. The fifty kids that the guards brought to attend had one thing in common; none have had anyone visit them in months. For example; Enrique hasn't had a visit in over four years.

I'll let the photos tell the story of a prayerful and powerful Retreat. Songs, games, food and fun are a part of teen boys together. A Retreat like this gave us a time to get serious ... and get serious we did. Rafa and Carlos were our speakers. Carefully chosen, they've each spent their years in prison. Now, God's got them and we let them powerfully share with these kids. Carlos and Rafa could hit these teens in an area we couldn't reach. At this time the prayers of many of you came into play. Take a look at the prison Retreat.

THANK YOU FOR HELPING TO GIVE THESE KIDS WITH THE ONLY REAL OPTION IN CHANGING THE DIRECTION OF THEIR LIVES!