Archive for March, 2021

The Excitement of New Life: Serafina

Posted: March 30, 2021 in Family Happenings, Ministry, Missions, Prayer
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Thrilled About Serafina

Baby Shower in Colorado for David & Emily and littler Serafina!

New life brings excitement, and we are thrilled about the soon arrival of our first granddaughter, Serafina Grace Diaso. She is our oldest son, David and his wife, Emily’s first child. We just can’t wait to meet her.

Last week Dawn and I were in Colorado Springs for the baby shower. The event took place on March 21st, the first day of Spring. Wouldn’t you know that it snowed! That’s Colorado for you. Although I must admit that the snow did make for a beautiful setting.

We all had a fun time with our family celebrating David and Emily and the coming of Serafina.

While we on our way to Colorado we got some disappointing news, and I took some time to pray in route. As I prayed the Lord encouraged me. He reminded me that Serafina is due at the end of April which is the same month that Dawn and Hannah were born in. I believe that the Lord’s hand is on little Serafina in a special way and that the Lord is going to bless our family and many others through her. Our Papa God is going to use her to bring healing to our family. The healing and the blessing will extend beyond our family.

I don’t feel like this is wishful thinking, I believe the Lord was encouraging me in this way as we flew and headed towards Colorado. Thank you, Jesus for caring for our family and these details!

Dawn and I had such a good time visiting our family, David & Emily and Jonathan & Hannah.

A Special Gift That Made Me Cry

Hannah Elizabeth Diaso and the engraved bracelet

We shared a special meal with David and Emily on one of our first evenings in the Springs . David made some delicious tamales. He’s become quite a cook, and he specializes in Mexican cuisine, which we all love!

When we finished eating David and Emily gave me an unbelievable gift. It was so amazing it made me cry. They gave me a bracelet with something our daughter, Hannah had written before she moved to heaven. It’s also engraved with Hannah’s actual handwriting. Tears formed in my eyes as I read what it said, and Dawn also began to cry when she read what Hannah had written.

It says, “Dear Lord this is what I long for I wanna be where you are! I can’t wait to go home with you and live in happiness all fo the days of my life. I love you! Amen.”

When Hannah wrote this entry in her journal she referenced Psalm 27:4. “The one thing I ask of the Lord— the one thing I seek most— is to live in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, delighting in the Lord’s perfections and meditating in his Temple” (NLT).

It warmed my heart fo read what Hannah had written. It was like a kiss from heaven. A reminder that God was preparing her heart to go home to be with Him in the days and months leading up to her sudden departure. We miss her so much, but we are thankful for the hope that we have in Christ. Hallelujah!

Give thanks with me for new life, and the assurance of the Lord’s good work!

Extend Your Hands to Help Our Familia!

Our Familia on the Big Island!

Before I say goodbye, I’d like to remind you of the ongoing and tremendous needs on the Big Island. I just received a note from a pastor today that told me that his $25 USD monthly salary was only enough to buy a package of coffee, some cooking oil and a package of detergent. Can you imagine living on that!?! How can you feed your family? on top of the exorbitant prices, they are having to wait in line for 5 to 8 hours to buy these products, when and if they are available.

Please extend your hands to help these beautiful families, our familia.

Donate today by clicking on the button below! Thank you!

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In His Grip, Dave

DiasoLifeOnTheBorder.org

The Light Invades the Darkness – 2

Posted: March 16, 2021 in Christianity, Church Planting, Ministry, Missions, Prayer
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The Goodness of God!
This building was once used for witchcraft to worship idols – it is now being converted into a church! The white altar in the middle has been removed – it was used for their pagan ceremonies.

God is so good. He is a good Father, and it’s wonderful to be on mission with him. It’s not always an easy journey, it’s filled with twists and turns. We are on an adventure, and as we love and seek our Papa God there is joy and fulfillment.

A Life and a Church are Transformed by the Gospel
Dave on a video call with Lazara

Just a few days after wrote my last post, The Light Invades the Darkness, I met the woman that had been in involved in witchcraft on the Big Island. Her name is Lazara, and she and Pastor Nelson shared more of her story with me. She just recently gave her life to Jesus. I talked to Lazara on a video call (photo on the left). I was able to encourage her and pray for her. As I prayed, she began to cry. It was special to see God touch her over the phone and through the miles.

Lazara used to lead a group involved in spiritism and witchcraft. She has a building like a church where they met to hold their ceremonies. Now that she has come to Christ they are in the process of cleaning out the building of all the articles that were used to worship idols and demons. The white altar which was used for their ceremonies in the photo above has been removed. They put up a cross and they are placing the Ten Commandments and Bible passages on the walls of the building. What a glorious transformation!

Nelson wrote me this morning and said that the Lord is using Lazara to bring many to Christ. The building that was used to worship Satan is now being converted into a church! It reminds me of the Apostle Paul and his amazing conversion. God used him in a powerful way to bring many to Jesus.

This testimony is so rich, and it reminds me of the power of the gospel. We often pray for transformation. We pray for people to come out of the darkness and into the light, so it’s so good to see it happen right before our eyes.

Gospel Expansion
Sara, Justo’s wife discipling some of the women that recently came to Christ

One of the other pastors on the Big Island, Oniel told me about a wonderful story of grace renewal. He went with his leaders to the homes of two families that recently received Christ and they helped them destroy their idols that they used for witchcraft. The church also baptized 14 new believers in the past week!

Another special friend, Pastor Justo told me that their church had seen 20 people come to faith in the last month! God is on the move. Dawn and I are receiving a number of reports about people coming to faith and being released from the bondage of witchcraft. It’s exciting to be part of God’s kingdom work.

Please Extend Your Hands to Help!
Our Familia in Need on the Big Island

At the same time, because of the ongoing pandemic the economic situation continues to worsen. Pastor Jorge just wrote me this morning about how bad things are getting, and he asked us to pray. Jorge is one of the pastors that we’ve been sending financial aid to. I think the Lord is using the scarcity to cause people to see their need for Christ. Yet, the needs are very real, and it hurts our hearts to see our familia suffer.

Dawn and I want to continue to help, and do more so that we will reach even more families on the Big Island! Your prayers and generosity will aid these families and the gospel in undeniable ways. Click on the button below to give today. Extend your hands to provide food and basic necessities for a family in need!

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In His Grip, Dave

DiasoLifeOnTheBorder.org

The Light Invades the Darkness

Posted: March 4, 2021 in Church Planting, Ministry, Missions, Prayer
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Victory in Jesus Over Santeria
Our familia is faithful to pray!

In the last month we’ve received a number of messages from our familia on the Big Island informing us about the battle that they are experiencing. The battle rages on, but they are seeing victory as the light of Christ penetrates the darkness.

One of the pastors, Nelson told us that their church has been dedicating time to prayer and fasting for breakthrough. He said as they were faithful to pray that the Lord answered in a big way. A woman who not only was involved in witchcraft, but she was a leader among them. She led a group of people involved in ‘brujería’, witchcraft in the city where Nelson’s church is located. It may be hard to believe coming from our context, but she’s led hundreds of people because there are so many people who are involved in Santeria in that area.

At the beginning of the year, the church felt compelled to pray against the evil in their city. They were praying all night long against the Santeria in their city, which is a form of idolatry and witchcraft. This woman who was a leader of Santeria in their city came to one of the church members and confessed that she was broken and that she couldn’t continue in her wicked ways. She just couldn’t do it anymore. They shared the love of Christ with her, and she gave her life to Jesus. Now she is growing in her relationship with Jesus and she is involved in the church.

Wow! Amazing! Thank you Jesus!

There is power in the name of Jesus!

The Gates of Hell Shall Not Prevail
Pastor Adolfo with his wife and the group he is training in church planting on the Big Island

As Jesus says in Matthew 16, the gates of hell shall not prevail against the church. In Ephesians 6 Paul exhorts us to stand firm against the schemes of the devil, because our battle is not against flesh and blood, but against powers and principalities.

Our prayers, your prayers are powerful. We destroy arguments and take down every lofty opinion that exalts itself against the knowledge of God. We are more than conquerors in Christ!

Our Familia Needs Your Help
Some of the families that we are sending aid to on the Big Island

Thank you so much for standing with us in prayer for all of our familia in Mexico and on the Big Island. Thank you for your donations that bring aid to the hurting and the downtrodden. One of our church planters on the Big Island, Lucas and Maria just sent me a note and asked for help, because the prices are going so high. A bottle of detergent costs $24 USD, and the average salary is only $25 USD a month. How are they supposed to live under such conditions? Basic food items like rice and beans cost 2 to 3 times as much as they did just a few months ago. Not only are prices high, but they have to wait in long lines to get their food, because there isn’t much food available.

Please extend your hands to help!

Dawn and I realize that after sharing these needs with you for a few months the urgency seems to wear off, but the need is even greater now, and we don’t know when things will get better. We’d like to ask you to make a generous donation today for our familia. They are so thankful every time they receive the donations that we are sending them. I wish you could see their smiles, and the gratitude that we can see on their faces when they receive the aid that we are giving to them. Give today your gift goes a long way. Extend your hands to provide food and basic necessities for a family in need!

Click to Donate…

In His Grip, Dave

DiasoLifeOnTheBorder.org