CMTS South Texas

Our Purpose and Vision

The purpose and vision of building a CMTS base in Texas is to duplicate and widen the Kingdom's impact locally and worldwide by encouraging, building up, training, serving alongside, and spurring on another region of the US, as well as creating low cost opportunities for frequent shipping of tangible items that will further the spread of the Gospel to these local areas.

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CMTS South Texas Fundraiser

Watch Our Short Film

We are thrilled to announce the launch of our NEW location in Sullivan City, Texas! This expansion allows CMTS to serve even more missions, churches and communities- right in the heart of the Rio Grande Valley (RGV).

Watch our short film and learn the story of how we got to Texas. See how God is working through us to bring a new ministry to Texas.

Our Story

For years, CMTS has felt a calling from God to establish another base in Texas. The founder, Andy Merrick felt a pull for several years, and the new directors Joel & Danielle Smith felt it too. The ministry prayed and asked God to lead them. If He wanted them to go, He would need to make the way. In April 2024, Equip, CMTS’ Discipleship Gap Year Program, was planning a mission trip to Mexico, which Joel & Danielle joined. While there, they reestablished old relationships and believed they had found a source to ship into the country again. Jared, the Director of YWAM MTY where Joel and Danielle stayed, shared that he needed help getting Bibles, clothes, and other supplies to the communities around his base.

In June of that same year, Joel and Danielle were invited to visit an old CMTS connection. So the two flew down to San Antonio, Laredo, and McAllen for five days, where they met with multiple pastors and ministries. They drove over 800 miles on dirt roads, and through two tropical storms. This first trip to South Texas opened the door for new ministry opportunities. One ministry became an answer to prayers when they offered to let Jared park a tractor trailer full of Bibles & the things he needed on their land right over the border. This ministry knew the border patrol in the area, which would make the process of sending items over the border easier. Over time, more and more ministries kept inviting Joel and Danielle to visit and help. Shipping to Mexico once again seemed like it was gaining momentum.

They returned in August to meet with a pastor so passionate about CMTS that he was ready to offer CMTS land in Texas. At this point, CMTS felt that while many wanted to help them, there still wasn’t a designated area that they should reside in. They decided to wait for Him to reveal the plans set in place once He was ready. Despite this hardship, CMTS could not wait to ship to Mexico again.

Danielle and Joel with a prickly cactus while traveling in Southern Texas

Dirt caked on to the rental car after driving through two tropical storms

One of Sullivan City's beautiful murals

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Joel & Danielle sharing their vision at a church in Texas

November 2024, Joel and Danielle flew to South Texas yet again where they met with a local pastor in McAllen, TX. A leader from the congregation mentioned how they researched the ministry and the service CMTS provides. This led to a strong connection with the pastor and his church, and he eventually asked Joel and Danielle to keep returning and share more about the ministry, both at his church and on the church’s local radio show. Finally, a church was beginning to see their vision! Joel and Danielle shared about CMTS & their vision for Texas at all three services at New Life Family Church in Edinburg. This church saw the values and knew that this kind of service was needed in the area. So many people asked how they could serve and help the team immediately that the support was overwhelming.

Joel and Danielle talked with the director at Rio Grande Bible Institute in Edinburg, and a pastor in Brownsville. It seemed as though God was highlighting the area of McAllen & Edinburg. They sought God, drove around to see the area, and made time to talk to the people in town. Most people said this kind of ministry was very needed down there.

In April 2025, Joel and Danielle spent a week talking to more pastors and following up with a few relationships they had already made. The team also got to meet with Kaleo Ministry in Reynosa, a church planting ministry which is right across the border from McAllen. They took Joel & Danielle to a property that their ministry bought a few years ago, and shared with Joel that, after purchasing the property, they were praying over it and seeking God’s direction in how He was going to use it. They felt God saying that it would be used for vocations, but as they are a church planting ministry, they weren’t sure how that was going to work. CMTS’ vision for the property would include the Equip program, vocational training, a mechanic shop, & warehouse. It seemed as though God was opening another door.

Joel & Danielle are very passionate about unity in the body of Christ. It is a beautiful thing to witness multiple ministries and churches come together and work together. As a ministry, CMTS is focused on serving and equipping other ministries, whether that is by giving them Bibles, clothes, and other supplies, or by connecting them to other ministries that will come alongside them. When God’s people work together, it is amazing to see what He can do.

The journey to this point has been long, but rewarding. Seeing God’s vision and plan play out in our lives is a blessing that cannot be fully explained. There is still so much to do before we can be fully set up in Texas though.