…TO THE END OF THE EARTH

In 1959, our parents, Bob and Nellie Mishler left Oregon and headed south to Baja California Sur (BCS). They went to help Cecil and Faye Byers and family establish a mission base in La Paz. What is now a 20 hour drive from San Diego to the southern tip of the Baja Peninsula, back then took over 10 days! It was all dirt road from Ensenada south. As my dad was a pilot, much of their missionary travels were done by flying around the Baja in the Piper PA-12 Supercruiser pictured here.

Meanwhile, back in Oregon, our grandparents – Mel and Emily Mishler – were also feeling God’s call to the nations and were busy helping missionaries raise support and get sent. In 1961 they established Latin American Fellowship and moved to Mexico full time.

By the way, the southernmost tip of the Baja Peninsula is called Cabo, which means  “end” in Spanish. And we believe from here — our “end of the earth” — the Holy Spirit will empower and send out laborers to the ends of the earth.
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REVIVAL FIRE IN OREGON

The somewhat untold story in all of this was how my parents and grandparents first received a fresh baptism of the Holy Spirit in the mid 1950’s. For the first time they believed that the last days outpouring prophesied about in Joel 2 and affirmed by Peter in his sermon on the day of Pentecost, is still for us today. We are still in the last days!

This revival also birthed a passion for missions. So they began to pray and seek the Lord about this call. However, the denomination to which they belonged did not believe that the gifts of the Holy Spirit were for today. So, they were disqualified from being sent out by them to the mission field. And thus, Latin American Fellowship was born. LAF has continued to support missionaries, local pastors and churches in Mexico throughout the years.  

LASTING BLESSING IN BAJA

Bob and Nellie, Mel and Emily had significant and lasting impact in Baja California Sur. They spread the blessing of the Lord wherever they went. They always liberally shared the little they had with others. One day while driving in La Paz in the early 1960’s, our dad (Bob) spotted 3 kids whom he had been seeing roam streets. He found out that they were orphans living on their own. He picked them up and took them back to the mission, and an orphanage was born. Later, more kids were rescued and given a home.  

Imagine my joy when preaching at a church a few years back (2019), I was approached by Javier, who introduced himself after the service as one of those three orphans!  When I met him  he was around 65 years old and still serving the Lord.  He recalled with clarity when my mom made him a birthday cake as a child.  It was the first cake he had received in his life.  It’s amazing how a seemingly insignificant gift can be a blessing that stays with a person for their whole life!  Another one of the three orphans went on to go to the Bible College our grandparents founded in Navojoa, Sonora, Mexico (just across the Sea of Cortez from the Baja).

MISSION ON THE MAINLAND

In 1978, our grandfather Mel Mishler passed away.  He had launched a Bible College in Navojoa, and it was in its 3rd year.  So in August of 1978 we packed up in our travel trailer and drove to Navojoa to set in order what remained.  That trailer would be our home for 7 years.

Our parents felt that their mission was to raise up a local pastor to take over the ministry there.  In 1980 we met Enrique Figueroa at a youth camp in Guadalajara, and Dad knew right away that he was the guy for the job.  He married Lorena in 81 and, with the help of Latin American Fellowship, were sent north to attend Portland Bible College for a season.  Upon their return to Navojoa, Dad began transitioning them to pastor the church.  The baton was officially passed to them in 1986, and shortly after Dad and Mom moved back to Oregon to be with us kids (we had all graduated High School at that point).  Enrique and Lorena are still faithfully pastoring that church (Templo Calvario) to this day.

BLESSING FROM AFAR

Even after moving back to the US, Bob and Nellie continued to provide oversight and counsel to Templo Calvario and other churches and leaders, and also made frequent visits to Mexico.   They were no nonsense, behind the scenes, genuine leaders who truly loved the people they served.  All of us kids want to be like them!

The vision of LAF has always been to raise up and equip national leaders who will plant churches and send missionaries, and to connect US churches with local churches in Mexico so they can work together to extend God’s kingdom.

The Mishler family, along with the board of Latin American Fellowship, and many wonderful financial supporters, are continuing the legacy to bless the Baja and beyond.  We have founded Baja Blessing as a local expression of Latin American Fellowship for our current ministry in the Baja Peninsula.  Our mission is to continue to strengthen and bless local pastors that will impact Mexico and the world.

Baja Blessing is a ministry of Latin American Fellowship