Yes, Joy and I are headed to Seattle for a 6 month home assignment. This is why we have not posted lately. We have been packing, closing down, cleaning out, planning, and saying good bye. We will be in Seattle for 6 months of deputation and fund raising for our ministry.
We hope to see many of our friends on this trip, as well as visit their churches.
We are hoping that we have found someone to live in our house (to watch it) while we are gone. An empty house--gets emptied! We have found housing in Seattle now and that is a great blessing.
Wednesday, Jan 9 we leave on Delta Airlines and arrive around noon on Thursday in Seattle.
Drop us an e-mail. We would love to make contact.
Sunday, January 6, 2008
Sunday, November 18, 2007
Paraguay Update
November 6-12, Randy was able to travel to Asunción, Paraguay to visit the San Lorenzo Alliance Church and the Awana club there. He was thrilled to see how the club is growing and to listen to the testimonies of people affected by the Awana ministry. Below you can see the club with Pastor Marcos Bernadini, Awana Director in the middle front.
This young man was playing and got dust in his eye. When he tried to rub it out, something abrasive cut a "J" shaped cut in the cornea which the parents did not see. This happened on Friday and on Monday they went to the Dr. They were told that the injury was permanent and the only solution would be a cornea transplant. Otherwise he would be blind in that eye. God intervened. When they went back to see the Dr for followup, she looked at the eye and said that it looks like he had perfect surgery on the eye. The young man can see perfectly from that eye. The Dr. cannot understand how his eye was repaired. Isn't our God GREAT!
Meet Julio- the parrot
Pastor Marcos Bernadini with his wife Lorena and his father
One Awana leader shared how she had been in deep depression for several months, sitting at home and crying. She was challenged to help in an Awana Club and says that working with the children there has brought her out of her depression and she feels better than ever.
Praise the Lord as we see how He is using this church to reach people with the Gospel.
Pray as they start a new church for middle class outreach. Marcos will be starting an Awana club in this church in March.
This young man was playing and got dust in his eye. When he tried to rub it out, something abrasive cut a "J" shaped cut in the cornea which the parents did not see. This happened on Friday and on Monday they went to the Dr. They were told that the injury was permanent and the only solution would be a cornea transplant. Otherwise he would be blind in that eye. God intervened. When they went back to see the Dr for followup, she looked at the eye and said that it looks like he had perfect surgery on the eye. The young man can see perfectly from that eye. The Dr. cannot understand how his eye was repaired. Isn't our God GREAT!
Meet Julio- the parrot
Pastor Marcos Bernadini with his wife Lorena and his father
One Awana leader shared how she had been in deep depression for several months, sitting at home and crying. She was challenged to help in an Awana Club and says that working with the children there has brought her out of her depression and she feels better than ever.
Praise the Lord as we see how He is using this church to reach people with the Gospel.
Pray as they start a new church for middle class outreach. Marcos will be starting an Awana club in this church in March.
Tuesday, November 13, 2007
Lightning injures Awana Club members
On Sunday the 4th of November, 76 children from the San Juan de Dios community went with their 15 leaders up into the mountains near their club. It was to fulfill one of the club activities. While they were out it started to rain then poured, then hail started to fall. Most Indians do not seek shelter from moderate rains. They were high up the mountain but found a shelter/refuge building and took shelter there. While there, a bolt of lightning hit very close to where they were. The ground was wet and the lightning exploded in all directions. All 76 children and the 15 leaders were burned by the lightening. Four of them were hospitalized but released after a week. The Red Cross and a local Hospital formed a medical rescue/brigade and went to help and aided in getting first aid and treatment for those involved. The Red cross is providing medicines and treatment. Several people show signs of burn, and many are still in a stupor.
This club is a church plant by another church. There is no church in this area. The pastor Guillermo Agualsaca (Awal- saka) indicated that people from nearby communities where some of the children came from were very unhappy and went away shouting that this is God's punishment for reading the Bible. In Catholic areas, reading the Bible is considered a sin. The people were very upset. Two other communities where new churches are being established using Awana, Shobolpamba and Shobolllinglling the people are blaming the children who went for bringing down this "judgment" of God.
This week there was a meeting of the community people along with the Red Cross. parents and people from the community were there. The Red cross people said that it is unusual that they were not all "carbonized" as when lightning strikes this way, that is the normal result. When they finished several of the clubbers spoke. Seven of them indicated that they were saved by two very large men who were dressed in white who protected them from most of the lightning. Then the asked our Awana missionary, Rodrigo Andachi to speak. He shared from God's Word that this is not a punishment from God, and that God loves them. He shared the gospel with them and it was received peacefully. This is a real answer to prayer. They are seeing the miraculous protection given to the children. Pray that this will bring much Glory to God and help establish the church there.
Rodrigo will be visiting this Thursday again. He is encouraging them to keep sending the children. He will report the results after that.
I understand that someone was filming all of this including the lightning strike and some of the rescue. I am trying to get a copy of the film.
This club is a church plant by another church. There is no church in this area. The pastor Guillermo Agualsaca (Awal- saka) indicated that people from nearby communities where some of the children came from were very unhappy and went away shouting that this is God's punishment for reading the Bible. In Catholic areas, reading the Bible is considered a sin. The people were very upset. Two other communities where new churches are being established using Awana, Shobolpamba and Shobolllinglling the people are blaming the children who went for bringing down this "judgment" of God.
This week there was a meeting of the community people along with the Red Cross. parents and people from the community were there. The Red cross people said that it is unusual that they were not all "carbonized" as when lightning strikes this way, that is the normal result. When they finished several of the clubbers spoke. Seven of them indicated that they were saved by two very large men who were dressed in white who protected them from most of the lightning. Then the asked our Awana missionary, Rodrigo Andachi to speak. He shared from God's Word that this is not a punishment from God, and that God loves them. He shared the gospel with them and it was received peacefully. This is a real answer to prayer. They are seeing the miraculous protection given to the children. Pray that this will bring much Glory to God and help establish the church there.
Rodrigo will be visiting this Thursday again. He is encouraging them to keep sending the children. He will report the results after that.
I understand that someone was filming all of this including the lightning strike and some of the rescue. I am trying to get a copy of the film.
Saturday, August 25, 2007
RENTON HIGHLANDS AWANA LEADERS
THANK YOU RENTON HIGHLANDS CHURCH
Wow, we finished our first of two conferences. Thanks to a team of Awana Leaders from Renton Highlands Church from Renton, Washington, we were able to get the materials ready for this conference. Each year we publish a book with he notes of all the classes. The Renton Highlands Group brought us a machine to put the spirals in the books and that helped greatly with the work.
The cookie crew
The equator line is not on the equator....
A car full
Checking pages on the books
Trying out the spiral machine
The Renton Highlands Awana Leaders on the Equator
Later another team from Trinity Baptist Church in Renton, Washington dropped in at the conference to help with logistics making our conference easier.
THANK YOU TRINITY BAPTIST CHURCH
Wow, we finished our first of two conferences. Thanks to a team of Awana Leaders from Renton Highlands Church from Renton, Washington, we were able to get the materials ready for this conference. Each year we publish a book with he notes of all the classes. The Renton Highlands Group brought us a machine to put the spirals in the books and that helped greatly with the work.
The cookie crew
The equator line is not on the equator....
A car full
Checking pages on the books
Trying out the spiral machine
The Renton Highlands Awana Leaders on the EquatorLater another team from Trinity Baptist Church in Renton, Washington dropped in at the conference to help with logistics making our conference easier.
THANK YOU TRINITY BAPTIST CHURCH
Saturday, July 7, 2007
ORCHIDS IN OUR YARD
I enjoy growing orchids, whether wild ones that I have brought home or some of the more exotic hybrid varieties. Here you can see a couple of the wild varieties that I have growing in our yard.
Work Team holds Workshops in our office
Carol Laut and Suzanne Ellis came to Ecuador with a work team from the Derwood, Md Alliance Church. They were able to hold workshops in our office to teach how to teach missions to children, How to share the gospel, how to prepare age appropriate lessons and how to give object lessons from science and nature. Tom Larason spent hours working on our computers to get them working in top condition. Our house was full with nearly 70 people in attendance at the workshops. We are now praying that God will enable us to build two more stories on our office to be able to put in larger conference space.
AwanaGames in Ecuador
June was a busy month.
We were able to participate in or lead two AwanaGames in Ecuador. The first was held in Quito and the second in Imbabura (around Otavalo). Children from several churches came to participate in a friendly competition of 10 of the main Awana games. It was a great opportunity to present the Gospel to the parents as well as the children. You only have to hear the tremendous roar and see the smiles on the faces of the children to know how much fun they had.
Three young people did face and arm painting, placing flowers, caterpillars or balloons in the 5 colors of the Gospel Glove. While they painted the 90 children, they shared the gospel story with them during the Imbabura games.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
