From Justo Dorantes Sr.
THREE BAPTISMS IN YOBAIN
I am excited to let you know that there have been three baptisms in the Mayan village of Yobain. Those people who have been baptized are; the man who rents the palapas, his son and a neighbor. When I met the man, who rents the palapas, he invited me to his home in his village to study the Bible. When I arrived in his home in his village of Yobain, he was waiting for me with ten other people. It was a Sunday that I was able to visit them. They had no Bibles or songbooks, so I carried two extra Bibles and songbooks to share with me.
I told them that the church that was established in the first century worshipped in a particular way. I showed them first, how the church worshiped. I showed them with the Bible what that church did when they gathered to worship each Sunday. Right after we had our worship in the home of this man. As we prayed, sang, read the Word of God and partook of the Lord supper and the collection, they were paying careful attention at each part of the worship. When we finished, they told me that they had never seen anything like it. They said that in their experience, nobody had never explained to them why we do this things in worship.
TRACTS
I brought to them some tracts for them to read and to share with other friends and relatives. As soon as they saw the tracts, they asked me if they could make a personalized Self-Inking Address Stamp. In this way they would stamp each tract and people would know where to go to worship or where to ask questions. This is a very poor village where there is no industry to find jobs, the city of Merida is far away to go to work there. They decided that with the contribution of this Sunday and next Sunday they will make they will have enough for the personalized self-inking address stamp.
It amazes me that this three people who have been baptized are already thinking about how they can share the gospel with others. They have found something; they have found salvation and they are eager to share it. The man who rents the palapas told me that we can use his house as the place where we can have worship every Sunday.
BIBLES AND SONGBOOKS
I have received the great news that the Beltline congregation will be purchasing songbooks for this new group of believers from Yobain. Thank you, brothers and sisters, from Beltline. I ask your prayers as we continue to travel to this Mayan village every week.
JUST LIKE IN THE BIBLE
What is happening in the Mayan village of Yobain reminds me of how the Church of Christ started in Philippi. It started with a woman named Lydia who was a seller of purple. The Bible says that arriving in Philippi, the missionaries first visited a river where women met to worship God on the Sabbath. Lydia was one of the women present that day. Lydia was a devout woman who worshipped God.Although she did not know about Jesus. She immediately became a Christian when she heard the gospel and was baptized. Acts 16:13-15
On the Sabbath we went outside the city gate to the river, where we expected to find a place of prayer. We sat down and began to speak to the women who had gathered there. One of those listening was a woman from the city of Thyatira named Lydia, a dealer in purple cloth. She was a worshiper of God. The LORD opened her heart to respond to Paul’s message. When she and the members of her household were baptized, she invited us to her home. “If you consider me a believer in the LORD,” she said, “come and stay at my house.” And she persuaded us.
-Justo Dorantes, Sr.
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