International Christian Tennis Association: 10/1/06

ICTA Women's Pro Team
Mexico Missions Tour

Rach and Mel's flight delayed in Atlanta 10 hrs! Still smiling, though!

Hello! And welcome to the International Christian Tennis Association. Great to have you visit us. Recently our 4 member ICTA Women's Pro Team journied through Mexico on a 13-day missions tour to ITF Pro Tournaments.

This missions tour was amazing! A highlight for sure was God using His tennis missionaries to rescue a 16 year old girl from a sexually abusive situation with her married tennis coach. In addition hundreds of Christian tracts and New Testament Bibles written in Spanish were handed out! This was such a God-blessed time for our 4 member missionary team!

A 10 hr flight delay means lets visit downtown Atlanta to hand out Christian tracts!

The journey began with the ICTA Women's Pro Team splitting into two groups. One group flew from Daytona Beach to El Paso, the other from Orlando to El Paso. They all stayed with a great friend and supporter of ICTA named Andy. His son, Rob, trained with me and went on a large-scale ICTA mission trip to the Int'l Tennis Hall of Fame last summer.

Atlanta's airport is huge. Much work and travel is involved in pro tennis and missions.

Breakfast at Andy's house. Already tired from the time change and flight delays, the girls prepare to drive to Juarez w/ Andy!

This Christian missions journey will take the girls from El Paso, Texas to Juarez, Mexico. Then from Juarez to Mexico City. From Mexico City they will take a bus to San Luis Potosi. Plans had to change, though! Bigtime! You'll see what I mean in a bit.

Neat dog living next door to Andy. Click on the pic to see it enlarged!

The gang saying hi, and the dog slobbering

Andy (in front) leading the group to the Rio Grande River, which seperates the USA and Mexico and is right next to his house.

Mosquitos in the grass... ouch!

Diving into the Rio Grande... not.

Andy drove the team of tennis missionaries to their hotel in Juarez. Here is a view from their room.

The main missionary work of the ICTA Women's Pro Team tour began in Juarez, Mexico at an ITF $10,000 tournament. Juarez, Mexico is 10 miles away from El Paso, Texas. Juarez can be a dangerous place. It is known worldwide for the 342 women who have been murdered there in the last 12 years.

Our missionaries were safe the entire trip. The tournament is in a nice location. I prayed and fasted for their work to be effective in letting people worldwide know Juarez is a place in need of Jesus. They were amazing examples of women standing up for Christ.

Breakfast at the hotel.

Finishing breakfast before their first match at the International Tennis Federation $10,000 Tournament, the Copa Blues in Juarez.

The tournament was held at a beautiful tennis club in a really nice section of Juarez. The girls safely walked from the hotel to the club each day!

Our mission trip to Juarez was a last minute addition to the schedule. Honestly, mission trips are expensive and though we wish we could go to every tournament in the world, we can't. But, I felt we were called to go to Juarez. Sure there were tennis benefits, but I felt something bigger was in store! Though I could not have ever know just how big it was. Even as I type I am in amazement at how incredible our God is and how He uses His people for His purposes. Want to know what happened? You'll have to wait...

A quick pic upon arrival!

Winning a main draw match and serving hard for Jesus!

Taking a break!

Tennis missionaries and friends hanging out. God is working in the life of one of these girls in an amazing way.

Awesome experience to see the sights in other countries.

The girls gave this bus driver a Christian tract. Notice he placed it on his dashboard just to the right of the stering wheel!

Lunch with an atheist friend

Nice match!

The girl in the middle is now here with ICTA fulltime after being rescued from an abusive situation with her tennis coach.

This is the beginning of a life changing experience. More later in ICTA Video!

Rach & Mel lost a close doubs match to the #1 seeds.

Go get em Rachie!

You get em too, Newgy!

Nice match Mel

Newgy and rach seeing the sights.

On to Mexico City!

The missionary family in Mexico City (mark's parents) own this 1991 Beetle, which are still being made just like the originals!

Mark's dad, Jim, who lives in Mexico City as a missionary who helps plant churches, driving the girls! Jim has been to our place in Palm Coast, though I was preaching in a church in Alabama when he visited.