About them.

Andrés’ family has lived on their remote ranch in the Sierras of Nayarit for three generations. Originally of the Tepehuan tribe, they have lived off the land and continue to do so. About 20 years ago, a missionary brought the Gospel to their ranch. Andrés’ parents converted, but it put an end to one of the family’s sources of income and prestige—growing marijuana. Andrés decided to kill the missionary on his next visit.

On the day of the missionary’s next scheduled visit, Andrés and his brother waited on the trail for the missionary to come by. They had positioned themselves in a strategically located rock formation that would hide them well while also requiring the missionary no alternative but to pass through on his way to the town.  But the missionary never came, so they returned home only to find that the missionary had, indeed, miraculously passed through and was already with the family. It was that same missionary trip that Andrés lay down his gun and his former life and surrendered to Jesus Christ.

Andrés has studied at the seminary at Rancho Agua Viva and is now the ordained pastor at the church planted on their family homestead. That church serves people all over their area who live in other remote ranches.

Linda, originally from Chowchilla, California, was a full time missionary through Agua Viva Ministries for five years. When Andrés came to study at the seminary they met and fell in love, and in February of 2009 they married.

They live in a home on the family land made of bricks that Andrés has made by hand. They have three young daughters. Andrés and Linda own livestock, a small store, and land, in which they keep a garden for themselves and raise hibiscus leaves to sell for tea.

Their workload is divided between pastoring the church, visitations of the families, evangelizing other areas, and working the land. The ranches of the area are many hours from the nearest medical help, so much of the burden of doctor and ambulance falls to Andrés, as the pastor. They live a taxing life, with dangers we cannot imagine. For example, there is an ongoing tension in their area because so many grow marijuana and the Christian life threatens that trade.