WELS mission workers in Mexico are relocating to León, Mexico, because of increasing drug violence in Torreón, the current center of WELS mission work in Mexico. The move, which affects 12 WELS members, including four missionary families and two lay members volunteering for WELS Kingdom Workers, should be completed by mid-March.

WELS missionaries currently help serve four mission congregations around Torreón, which will now be served by two national pastors and one Mexican student training for the ministry. The Mexican Lutheran Seminary, which is also located in Torreón, will now operate from León.

The Confessional Evangelical Lutheran Church, WELS' sister synod in Mexico, is using this as an opportunity to reevaluate its ministry work and plans for the future. The church body's seven national pastors helped the WELS missionaries decide to relocate to León, which is a safe, metropolitan area with no Lutheran churches, centrally located in Mexico.

Missionary Mike Hartman, coordinator of WELS' mission work in Mexico, explains that the plan is to establish two new congregations in León and then return to Torreón in the future if the violence subsides.

Hartman says, "Paul's missionary journeys come to mind as the mission team heads to this new location. On numerous occasions Paul had to modify his plans and leave a city unexpectedly. Each time God used the occasion to bring his Word to new areas."

The relocation also highlights the importance of training the national pastors in Mexico to eventually take over all aspects of ministry. Once the national church has a strong foundation of pastors and lay leaders, WELS missionaries will no longer be necessary. The ordination of two new pastors at the end of January is one more important step in that direction.

To learn more about WELS' mission work in Mexico, visit www.lutheransinmexico.com.