An Update 21.7.11
Published July 21, 2011 | Dear Sisters, Brothers, Friends, and Family;
Thank you for coming back to my website if you don’t already know I have been posting pray request under the supporters tab if you need access to them and or my newsletters let me know via email. I am so blessed to have all of you in my life – a quick money update for ‘Orientation and Training with LAM (A personal found raiser) total 8% of the total 2,500 has come in : However this number is a little off due to PayPal processing fees but, as soon as I am able the number will be at its full 8% or 200.00 USD. As fare as PayPal fees go I’ll be adding them back to the founds as I have the money to do so but, it is possible that the amount of money that has come in at some point will be off by a good 2 or more % and If this happens I’ll let you know if it becomes a need but, it’s my hope that it will not become an issue as PayPal fees are so low it should be easy to add that money back into the founds. If you have any question about PayPal or the fees let me know and I’ll do my best to answer them. If you want to add the fee into your PayPal payment feel free to go over to http://www.gregledet.net/ppfcm.html and enter the amount you would like to send in the top and it will let you know what you need to send in order for me to get that amount ; Do not feel like you have to add to an amount to pay the fees they come out of the transaction I am just giving you the website so you can see what is left after the fees and so if you wish to add the fees in – I don’t want anyone to feel they need to use the tool it’s just there so that you can see what PayPal is getting when you use your credit or debit cards.
LAM update on 3rd of Aug I will be moving on to the next step of the app when I have the founds need to do so at this time I do not wish to take the money I need for the next step out of the funds that have come in because I don’t feel like that would be right for I need to invest my own money too. If you have any question about what money I am investing or have already invested send me an email and I’ll be more than happy to fill you in but I don’t feel like that info belongs here on my public blog but, if I get lots of email I might add a post to the supports area of my website.
Projects I’m working on ; Well I’m now working on a number of projects some which I’m not ready to say much about but, I can say this much. Yes, I am working on a book , Yes I am working on new content for my website , and Yes I am reworking my website. At this time I don’t have any dates for anything that i am working so sorry about that. However, it is my hope that by mid-October I’ll be able to post the concept for my manuscript and by the end of Feb 2012 it’s my goal to have the first 10 or so pages available for limited restricted preview but, like with most things these goals can change as events happen in life that I have yet to expect so keep an eye on this blog for more info. As far as the rest of the project they too are works in progress and when I am ready they will be add to the website.
English teaching at this time I do not have any students and therefore am now spending my time on other things but, this does not mean that I will not teach a class here or there at the request of anyone because, I am more than open to doing just that.
Blessings and peace
Chris
an update
Published June 14, 2011 | Oh! Hey you, it’s been such a longtime but, who keeps track of time? What’s that, Oh YOU do then here’s an apology; I’m sorry, sorry for un-replayed to emails, un-answered questions, lack of updates, lack of begging able to get a hold of me , and so on …….
I’m going to risk it and whatever happens well happens; I have spent the past four weeks to write this post and therefore have started more times on this one post then any paper I have ever written while I was a university student. I want to be honest, I want to answer every question that comes into my inbox, I want to send each of my friends a hand written note, I want to feed every child who has not eaten, and I would love to insure that the young infant who lives next door will grow up to become anything he wants to be: in a world where he does not have to be a begger , a world where food is available to all , and children don’t have to sell their bodies to survive.
I sit here on my computer that is connected to the internet, in a one room house that has not one char but three as well as a bed, a place for preparing food, I even have a table and there are people who live near me who do not have access to such things and who are making less money than most of us could ever think of making never mind living off of. I have been living here in Mexico for the past two years and there is little I can show for that time yet, I have meet some awesome people and have learned a number of things. I have learned that God’s voice can sound like my own and I need to use caution when discerning his call, Gods time is slow and God does not keep time like we do, If you try to fight with God you will not win, God can tell you NO, and its ok for adults to fall down and try again. Going into my third year living in Mexico it is my pray that God is going to move in the community in which I live in ways that I can only imagine. I have been blessed time and time again and I am thankful to everyone who has supported me these past two year through pray or in other ways. This past month I got my work visa from the Mexico government it took me about two months to get and took a good amount of work but, now I have it. I do not have words to explain how blessed I am. If you have every lived in Mexico then you might have an idea on the process of getting a visa if not let me say this it is not an easy one. However, I have learned a lot from going through the process things that can only be learned from doing and not from studying.
An overdue update !
LAM , grad school , your trying to raise money ? Why ?, And other awesome question like ‘Where do you work ?’ ‘How can I get a job doing that?” and on the top of my list “When are you going to get a real job you know in an office?”
First off there are lots of what you would refer to as ‘real’ jobs that our not in any office or at least not using the conventional definition of the word. What we used to know as the ‘office’ has now become something to refer to as the place we do ‘work’ rather then the place where we work. The office can be now on the train, on the bus, in the middle of nowhere, or even in the air if we like – the office can be almost anywhere we can take it. Next, when ‘I get a real job’ well I have one or two maybe even three if you count each job one gets as a freelance English teacher / translator / blogger / and the list of things I do in a week comes on and on. Where is my office? Well most of the time it’s my small one room apartment here in town yet, other times it’s down on the docks, and other times it’s on the beach. Sometimes I travel 3,000 miles via Skype to fix an issue with someone’s computer up in Chicago or maybe I travel across the world over to English to fix a printer via remote desktop connection; so I’m sort of everywhere and nowhere all at the same time. You want a job as a freelancer? Well cool first you will need to move to a faraway land where you don’t know anyone or the language and then you’ll have to work your ass off to get your working papers then and only then can you enjoy the life as a freelancer. Um not for you; yea most people can’t do it and to be honest you don’t even have to level your house to do freelance work. Nope all you have to do is let people know you’re available to do task based work and setup some kind of pricing and then get to work. As a freelancer money is not always coming in nor are job request yes they come in from time to time but, usually I’m speeding more than what comes in. Wondering how that works well in short it doesn’t but, somehow at the end of the day things get taken care of somehow. Wondering what happen to going to grad school? Good question to be honest I’ve put that dream on the back burner on very low heat. Will I ever get to grad school? Yes, just don’t know when. Raising money; yep I’ve done this before for a number of things and every time asking friends and family to support me for the next thing just gets harder and harder; I know money is tight and I know most of us would not just give anyone money just because but, although I’m trying to raise money for another missions related event this time is a different.
First off it’s the first time I’m trying to raise funds for a personal tip, next I’m in charge of all the founding, and the goal is higher than any other I’ve ever attempted. I have set my goal to raise $2,500 USD which I’d like in hand by 18th September 2011.
And more about what this is all for
The LAM Orientation and Training conference is part of a long application process and begging invited to the event is simply part of that process. Therefore I have not been given an appointment nor have I been asked to join the LAM at this time. Rather the LAM Orientation and Training conference will give me an opportunity to solidify a calling to missions and to clarify what might be the next step in my spiritual and life journey. During the event I will receive training in ministry essentials which I can use later in life, whether I deploy with the LAM or not, such as
• What a call to missions is and means
• Cross-cultural adaptation and ministry
• Spiritual resilience
• Coping skills for dealing with stress
• Basics of Latin American culture
No matter what happens after the conference in January I along with others can benefit from what I learn at the Orientation. LAM’s Orientation is required for all missionary candidates so that the LAM as well as the candidate can learn more about each other including but not limited to allowing the candidate learn more about the LAM, and for the LAM staff to evaluate each candidate , and for appropriate training to begin.
Money:
The cost of the LAM Orientation and Training conference is about $500.00 USD yet this could go up.
Air travel: estimated at around 500.00 USD
Hotel: 59 per night for 3 – 7 nights estimated at 177 to 413 USD
Other unseen cost: estimated at 400 – 800 USD
=an estimated cost of about $2,213
+ 287.00 USD to help cover a cost outside the above such as the possibility of something costing a little more such as hotel or air travel cost.
I will not be using any founds from this personal found raiser for anything other than to help me cover the cost of attending the conference. However, if I have any founds remaining after attending the event in January or if I am unable to attended due to sickness and or other events that our outside my control and I would have the opportunity to attend in the summer of the same year then the funds will be held onto to pay for the later date event. Yet, if ant anytime between now and the January event it becomes clear that I will not be attending due to a personal decision and or otherwise then any founds that I have raised up to that point I will donate to a project to help fight poverty in the developing world and as will be so with any leftover founds from this personal found raiser if there are any such founds after I attend the event.
Pray about supporting me with pray for pray is more important than any money.
If you have any questions and or would like to take me on as a “project” send me a email or feel free to give me a call.
To learn more about LAM (Latin America Mission) go over to http://www.lam.org/
You can learn more and donate online at http://chrisdavignon.chipin.com/orientation-and-training-with-lam
Blessings and peace
Chris
WOW! its Aprial…..
Published April 6, 2011 |
It’s been quite a bit of time from my last post and to all who have been coming back here looking for something new to read; today is your day. Yes, the first post for the new year just four months and six days late – sorry about that. Back in December of 2010 I posted a blog called “Stories” but, as many of you have notice there has not been a new blog post in almost four months. No! I have not drop off the face of the earth, No! I have not stopped posting, and No! Nothing bad has happened to me or at least nothing that I could not deal with. Yes, I could have posted small updates from time to time here on my blog but, there has been little to write about and there has been some updates of random though that have been posted to my twitter and Facebook accounts respectfully: However, I know there are question and to all my friends, family, and to all the wonderful people supporting me with pray and or financial backing; I would not be able to do the work I do without you. So much has happened over the past few months that it’s hard to pick an event to start with so I think I’ll go from crazy to cool , to awesome then share a few pray request.
It was a cool overcast evening sometime in mid-November. I was walking back to my apartment from the big bus station located at the end of one of the two main roads that splits the city in half dividing the delegation into its respected parts. However, the division of the city is not significant or relevant to anyone who has never visited the old side of the city and yet, even a visit to the old side of the city would not help you understand the complex social systems that the division helps keep in there respected locations. Never the less even without a basic understanding of how things are and where they are located the events that happened to me on that November evening could have happened anywhere but, rather they happened here which makes them just that more fun. As I got close to my street I noticed to young men who seemed a bit out of place yet, not thinking much about them then with in a moment my ears heard the question asking what time it was then by the time that a replay came from my moth I found myself on the side of the street with a knife in my face and the young man that I had seen from down the road was not robing me. Yea, stuff happens and I’m thankful that nothing really bad came from it other than a big helping of inconvenience flowed by waiting to get my debit cards in the mail which took over a month for them to find their way to my PO box here in México.
There are three sides to Cancun – yes that’s right I said three ; How can that be well the first side of the Cancun is why it’s the city that so many collage age youth want to come to for their spring brakes : the clubs , the drinking , and the beach. The second side of the city is a bit harder to find but, it’s here some awesome beach front propriety that will cost you your life savings and perhaps a bit more – you get the point beach front propriety here in Cancun is not cheap and getting the right to “own” such propriety is a task that is not meet for everyone never mind how much of a pain in the um well it’s not easy to “own” anything south of the border and never mind the fact as non-Mexicans we are not legally able to own anything. have meet a few people who in spite of all the crazy laws and immigration policy have gained the rights to live here as others who I have spoken with have given up after years of trying. Then there is the third side to Cancun which most visitors to the city never see if they ever leave the hotel zone other than to go back to the airport: the city itself is made up of a number of different neighborhoods some poor other a bit better off each offering different foods and customs a place where many different people live of which many have come from many different places around the world and within México. Back in January of the year I made the decision to start offering low cost English classes – classes started with a few students and for the time begging is on hold due to the fact that I am trying to get my visa to work here and I prefer not to risk getting in trouble for working – I know lots of people who are like it’s not a big deal but, I’m not going to try my luck.
I’ll be blogging almost every day in April – the first 5 days as well as well some other unplanned dates so keep an eye out for new blogs.
Blessings and peace
Chris
Mexico city , update ; updated !
Published May 5, 2010 | Days become weeks and weeks become months and months become years and time does not stop yet there are times where it would be nice to stop time, even for a moment. As a few of you might have notice it’s been over a month from the last time that I posted to this site and for that matter is has also been a moth from the last time I rely sat down and wrote anything that consisted more of a few brief words. However, after a very crazy month it’s the time has come for another update from Mexico City. About one year ago after I graduated from university I moved to Mexico city, Mexico to start a ministry or at the time that is what I thought I was going to do but, I quickly learned that most people did not want to talk to a 24 year old kid who just graduated university and I also learned that without a lot of money doing what I thought I was called to do was just not going to happen. After about 4 or so months it became clear that starting a new ministry for “street children” was just not going to be able to get off the ground. At this point I began the search for a missions organization which I found one that I thought I would be able to work with and that I thought would be able to work with me. However, at the end of many months of back and forth and a few issues that I had with the main office; It became clear that this was not the time to become a part of this organization but, I still support their work as they are doing wonderful things for the Kingdome. It’s also my pray if God wants to open a door for me with them I am more than open to re exploring the possibility of joining them in the work they do but, at this time I feel that that door is closed but, not locked so its possible that the door could be cracked open but, I don’t see that happing anytime soon and if your thinking why don’t I knock on that door ; well I will leave you with this I don’t feel that it would be right to knock on a door that God has closed for the time begging. About a month or so latter I was looking online and found the Latin America Mission website a site that I had visited in the past but, I never summited a request for more information as at time I was looking for organization I was still a student and had some time before graduation but, this time I requested that they send me more information about becoming a full time missionary with them; well that was a number of months back and the application is still on my desk. If you have been reading my blog for some time or if you just found me and have read through a number of my back post you will know that I have been working on this application for some time now and its just taking me a long time to get everything to gather that I need for it but, I am happy to say that the time is coming where I think I’m almost ready to send it back to LAM which is exciting. It was my hope that I would have been finished with it last week then my laptop died and I was unable to get the easy part of the application written but, now my computer is running again it’s my hope that within the next week or so that I will be able to get this application finished and put into the mail. In addition to applying to become a missionary with LAM; I am also applying for Seminary and if things do not work out with LAM or even if they do I might just start working on my master degree in the Fall or maybe in the Spring depending on money and if I can get any to pay for classes and materials. As most of you know that I have also been working on this application for some time as well but, unlike the LAM application this one requires parts that I have no idea how I am going to satisfy but, I know that everything will work itself out its just getting to that point. Please pray that I will be able to get these applications off my desk and into the mail also pray for a number of money issues that I am facing this month. If your interstate in know more about the money issues that I am dealing with or just feel that God is putting it on your heart to help me out a little then I would ask then you contact me via email or blog chat; or you could always use the “donate” button on this page to send me a financial gift. However, I know times are not easy for all of us so at the very least I ask that you pray with me as I ask God to pick me up and carry me through these crazy times. If you read my update on twitter or Facebook and you got two or three copies of it I’m very sorry I had an issue with FB/ Twitter earlier today and my post got reposted like two or three times then it did not go to my FB account so I posted there and then it showed up on FB from my twitter post so if you got a few copies of my update message I’m very sorry as there was and issue with the FB/ Twitter link between my two accounts. Thank you for reading my blog / visiting my website and I it’s my hope that these updates will come a bit more often than once every month or so but, if nothing is rely happing I don’t rely have much to say and don’t feel like posting.
pray request
1. That I will be able to sit down and get all the applications for missions organization off my desk with the next few weeks and that I will also be able to get my application for seminary in the mall and that all its parts will come together in the next few weeks.
2. That the issues that I am having with the federal and state governments will be taken care of in due time and that everything that needs to be done can happen with out issue.
3. That after a year of begging down here in Mexico city I will be able to start to see clear what God’s call is for my life as I continue to explore working here in Mexico city or in other parts of the world.
4. Pray for the local church and the youth the attend it from time to time.
My monthly expenses list Rent 5,500 MEX Clean fee for apt (ever other month) 250 MEX Food / transportation / Ministry 2200 MEX Compassion International Child in peru$38.00 USD Credit Card Payments $136.25 USD Student Loans (deferred for the time begging) =809.49 USD at a rate of exchange of 12.2 In normally = 852.00 USD – 809.49 USD from above est =42.50 USD but this month in was 631.5 USD – so thats what I have to work with for the month at the moment. Extras not included above as they are not monthly put are paid out from time to time ever 2 months or at other times. Land Phone 30.00 MEX 60 days Cell phone 100.00 MEX 60 days Website / Blog / Domain renewal 69.31 MEX per month paid in 3 or 6 months out , Domain 134.07 MEX per year good till 5.10.2012 – Website / Blog hosting good to 7.10.2010 then these fees will be due again.
Blessings and Peace,
Chris
Note the exchange rate from USD TO MEXICO PESOS is about 12.2 at time of post.