August 2021
Visiting the Communities Again
30/08/21 19:53
So we have begun our visits again to the communities to talk with the pastors and leaders and see how they're doing.
Friday - trip to Capulispungo to chat with the pastor, Antonio Mariño. His wife and another woman prepared lunch for us. Lord willing, with Antonio we will restart the bible program FLET we were studying before the Pandemia hit.
Saturday - Cachisagua. The men of the church were preparing lunch while the women met in the church for a conference. Ruben, on the left, is the pastor. Their need: discipleship.
Sunday - the congregation at Shobol Llin Llin invited us to participate in evangelism at a community called San Juan, which has no evangelical church. We invited David Proaño and his family to help, who have a ministry of Open Air Evangelism.
That same afternoon with visited a church in Ambato to see how they run their children's ministry, and then, in the near future, to give them more ideas for their ministry.
Time to move on!
23/08/21 13:20
One and a half years at home! Keeping up with folks over the phone and teaching kids through ZOOM. Last Wednesday we finally received our second dosage of the COVID vaccine. By God's grace, we have decided it's time to get back to the communities. I'm thankful that during the "quarantine" God has opened a new ministry with children. Now our plan is to visit the pastors in the communities, sit down to talk, and learn from them what their real needs are. I have a list of over a dozen visits to make. God has His perfect timing and plan, and now we'll see what's in store for us.
(During the quarantine we had time to prune our peach tree and reap a harvest we had never seen before!)
Working with children
16/08/21 19:46
Usually when we are invited to a church, they ask us to give the message/sermon. But my focus is changing. I'm now interested in the kid's program. Since I've been working with half a dozen kids on Saturday nights on ZOOM, I've gained both experience and interest. Kids want and need some good teaching, and usually the teachers don't have much experience or training.
Good friends of ours wanted us to visit their church, and I told them I would spend my time observing the classes for the children. They had a total of 30 kids! The teachers did a good job of working with the children, although I could already tell areas where they could improve. (I've learned the hard way.) I was surprised that the teacher for the teens was brand new! He did the best he could.
So now I'm thinking about working with churches on their children's program. We'll see how God leads.
Migration and Education
10/08/21 10:34
All six kids showed up Saturday for the bible class. Even though we held the "graduation," they want to continue. This week I have had conversations with several of our Quichua friends, all who are planning to migrate to the US, illegally. I have a problem with illegal migration, and I have a problem with "The American Dream," which is just an illusion. But as I look as these kids, I realize they also have migrated. Not to the US, but to the city. That's reality. I continue to ponder over the bleak future of the rural communities, and have no answers. My present hope is to help these kids get a good education, both spiritually and academically.
All in God's Hands
02/08/21 10:04
Faby had surgery three months ago to remove carcinomas from her cheek. Two weeks ago I had my fifth minor surgery to remove another carcinoma from my arm. The sun shines fierce on the Equator. We are all in God's hands. He takes care of us, and we follow Him day by day. Psalm 31:14-15a