Monday in Bogota

We had devotions with Pastor David this morning.  He always has amazing insight to share from God's Word.  Today he talked about Jesus' very first miracle--turning water into wine.  He shared that every time we share the gospel with others we are like the servants who filled the pots with water.  When they have heard and accepted the good news, then Jesus turns the "water" of their life into new wine.  

Because today was a national holiday, we spent both the morning and the afternoon sharing with people in Parque Simon Bolivar.  

First Campaign of 2018

We left very, very cold Kansas City at 9:00 a.m. yesterday morning; spent 5 plus hours at the airport in Houston and finally landed in Bogota around 10:45 p.m.

Unfortunately, the immigration lines were packed so it took two hours to get through--undoubtedly, the longest lines we've ever seen.  We arrived at our hotel at 1:30 a.m.  L o n g   d a y!

We plan to get rested up today and have a great week.  The teams (from California and Florida) will all be here by late afternoon.

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On a personal note, Stephen's mom checked out of the skilled nursing facility yesterday, after a thirty-day stay.  We found a family member who is going to provide care during the week, but his dad will be alone on the weekends.  Please pray for his parents as they transition back home.

Welcome 2018

Somewhere in the middle of 2017 I felt like I "ran out of words" and decided to stop blogging.  Now that 2018 is here, I think it may be time to return to the blog. I want to try to make it less about what we are doing in the ministry and more of what we are becoming in the ministry.  I don't know what it's going to look like or how long this phase will last, but I hope I enjoy the process.

The last three months of 2017 were especially difficult, with a variety of trials/ challenges/frustrating events and more.  I've not made it a habit to share the hard things, but I'm thinking that perhaps my failure to acknowledge that things do not always go perfectly, might be unwise.  I've never wanted to look like I'm complaining or dwell on negative things, but hardships/trails are one of God's most powerful teaching tools.    

The difficult season started with a series of problems with things, i.e. broken refrigerator, broken truck, flat tire, broken van window and more.  It's so easy to complain and feel "put upon" when things happen, especially when this type of problem comes with a price tag. We tried to keep a positive attitude, knowing that "things" can be replaced, however, in the middle of those issues, we came a series of family health problems:

• My niece, LIz, fully rejected her transplanted kidney and went back on dialysis. She had complications and ended up in the hospital for a week in October.  
• My brother, Ron, had a mild heart attack while working out of town
• Stephen's mom had several falls and her overall health continued to decline

Things have stabilized for my niece, although she will need surgery in January to repair a problem with her diaphragm.  Praise the Lord, my brother has very little, if any, damage to his heart and did not need any stints or by-pass.

Stephen's mom went to the hospital earlier in December and after a three-day stay was moved to a skilled nursing facility.  Her 30-day stay ends on January 5 and his dad is planning to take her home, against the advice of her doctors and the counsel of her children.  Our New Year's Eve party was a family conference call (3 brothers together, 2 other siblings on the phone) to determine what course of action needs to be taken in the situation.  At the end of the evening, we decided not to fight them, but rather allow them to return home and provide support through in-home care--at least in the short-term.

There are no easy answers as we move through this phase of life.  Thankfully, my dad, who celebrated his 92 birthday in October, is still in good health and is able to live alone. He is beginning to consider a move to a maintenance-free apartment, so we may be handing a move for him in the near future.

Although we have more than 12 mission trips per year, they are not equally spaced out through the year.  In fact, there are months when there are no scheduled mission trips, for example mid-January through February, April and September. During 2018, we've decided, as the schedule allows, to spend more time in the states to be of help to our parents and support our siblings.   

We are flying to Bogota, Colombia on Friday for the first campaign of 2018, but will be returning to Kansas City instead of El Salvador.  Our plan is to return to San Salvador on March 1 when the 2018 campaign season really gets going--three campaigns in a row during the month.

We know that God has a plan and that he is always faithful, but we covet your prayers for Stephen's parents and siblings as we all navigate this difficult time. In addition, please pray for us as we balance family and ministry--it's hard to be away from our regular ministry obligations with Vida Nueva.

 

Bogota Campaign Highlights

We flew to Bogota, Colombia, on Saturday evening, June 17.  We checked in to the hotel and met the team of six from Copper Springs church, Fresno, and Steve and Pam Kern. We worked with them on Sunday and Monday.  The team of six from Abundant Life, Lee's Summit, Missouri, arrived late Monday evening and began working with us on Tuesday morning.

As usual, we loved seeing our friends at church and worshipping with the Guadron and Hernandez families.  After church we went to the Gran Estacion mall for lunch.  Instead of an evening campaign, we went to the park in Usaquen, a tourist area about 25 minutes from the church.  We were able to share one-on-one until it began to rain.

Monday was a holiday in Colombia, so we went to Parque Bolivar and shared the gospel with people all over the park. 

Highlights of Family Campaign--June 2017, Part 3

We spent Monday morning sharing at a public school in San Salvador.  Tuesday morning we went to a public vocational school in Apopa and shared in two different classes.  The lesson we taught was "Redeeming the Time," which came from the life of Samson.  The director of the school was so happy with the presentation that she invited us to return on Wednesday morning to share the lesson with the 7-8th grade students.  Since the school originally scheduled on Wednesday had not confirmed our visit, we were happy to return to the school in Apopa.

Thursday morning we went to the central park in Santa Tecla and shared one-on-one.  Obviously, the parks are quite a different environment from the schools, so the parents had to keep a close eye on their kids.  I was privileged to translate for the Batton family and both of their children.  Adam shared the gospel using his soccer ball and Ana, aged 6, shared the gospel with the evangel cube.  She was so matter-of-fact with her presentation, "This part of the cube represents that you need to make a decision.  Do you want to reject Jesus and spend eternity in hell or do you want to accept Jesus and spend eternity with him in heaven."  As adults, we could do well to share the gospel like a child and not try to over complicate it.  

 

Friday morning we traveled to Aguilares and shared with a rural school.  Not only did the group share the lesson and gospel, they brought each child a new backpack filled with school supplies and at least 2-3 pieces of clothing.  The children were so excited--the smiles on their faces tell the story!

Highlights of Family Campaign--June 2017, Part 2

As I mentioned in my previous post, this is a very large group. On Sunday morning we asked Fellowship Bible to attend the 9:00 a.m. service and Christ Chapel Bible to attend the 11:30 a.m. service so they could all have receivers to hear the simultaneous translation of Pastor Steve's message into English.  

For the Sunday evening family festival we worked with Pastor Koky Lopez and our campus in Lourdes.  There is always a good crowd when we have a festival in Nuevo Lourdes.  The people were packed in to the small park.  There were 22 professions of faith and many good contacts.