Letter from Susan Thomas temporarily in California
March 2012
Dave and me with our former co-workers in Compañeros en Misión, Rev. Dr. Jorge Pazos Aragón and his wife, Martha González Reyes.
Coming full circle in God’s mission
It’s March 31, our last official day as mission co-workers with Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) World Mission. Today is my final day to serve in mission support and team ministry, and it’s Dave’s official retirement date. And today we come full circle in God’s mission as we meet for breakfast in Nogales, Arizona, with our former partner from Compañeros en Misión, Rev. Dr. Jorge Pazos Aragón, and his wife, Martha. More than 11 years ago we met them when we became mission co-workers with the PC(USA). Their family became our family as we became theirs while we served together in Presbyterian Border Ministry. In our first 6 years of mission service we shared all birthdays and holidays together and have kept in touch since we left the border. While here, we also have visited with several of the volunteers who served with us in Compañeros.
Together with Rev. Saúl Feria and his wife, Gloria, at our home in Cuernavaca, Morelos, México. Feria was the president (moderator) of the National Presbyterian Church of México from 2006 to 2010.
Today we write to thank our family and friends for your support during those years of mission service. It has been a privilege to have served God and our denomination, and to have walked alongside our partners in Christ in México. For the unique way in which our church works in international mission—in partnership—we have deep respect for PC(USA) World Mission and our colleagues around the world. We have just completed an intensive itineration assignment that took us through 25 states in the U.S., speaking in dozens of churches. In each of our presentations, we have represented the other PC(USA) mission co-workers, taking every opportunity to speak on their behalf. With this letter we hope to reach many more of you in writing and with photos.
Dave and I encourage all of our Presbyterian friends to get to know and remember our PC(USA) mission co-workers who are serving in more than 50 countries. It only takes a couple of clicks on the computer to find them on the World Mission web pages. You can start here: https://www.presbyterianmission.org/ministries/missionconnections
Maybe there’s a region of the world that interests you, or perhaps you’ve heard about the work of one of our PC(USA) mission co-workers in particular. Either way, by name or by country, you can find a mission worker and begin to familiarize yourself with them. From there, you can initiate an ongoing relationship, stay in communication with them, and support them with your prayers and financial resources.
Gathered at Mo Ranch in January 2012, for a farewell retreat with our former colleagues who worked with us in México
As our mission service in México draws to a close and we come full circle, back to where we started, we ask you to pray for the other nine PC(USA) mission co-workers who were serving in that country when the recent rupture occurred in the binational relationship. Most of them are still in a time of discernment about the future. We know that PC(USA) World Mission will continue to work toward God’s mission in México, so we solicit your prayers for future ministry there.
We also request your prayers for our former partner denomination, the National Presbyterian Church of México, and for the country as a whole, which is suffering from the effects of war between rival drug cartels and the Mexican government. Nearly 50,000 people have died since the conflict began in December 2006. We encourage you to pray for the Movimiento por la Paz con Justicia y Dignidad (Movement for Peace with Justice and Dignity) that has drawn millions of Mexicans together to seek an end to the violence.
Dave and I wish all of God’s blessings for you, our family and friends in the U.S., and for our “family” in México. Que Dios les bendiga.
Susan Thomas, R.N.
The 2012 Presbyterian Mission Yearbook for Prayer & Study, p. 4
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