Serving Those in Need

Our church has been very active since the earthquake in getting food, water, clothing, and other needs to those who are suffering in Manta. We are cooperating with local and international missions organizations to put God's love in action around us. Please help with your prayers and with generous donations as God provides you with funds and directs your heart. Thank you!

Christmas 2015

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year from the Anzalone family. Last week we had a couple of great outreach opportunities. First, the women's ministry has been delivering handmade diaper bags and gifts to the maternity clinic at one of the local community health centers. Our church was invited to participate in the Christmas party held for senior citizens, patient with disabilities, and all of the expectant mothers. We shared presents, candy, puppets, music, and a Gospel message with over 200 people present plus the health center staff and administrators. It was a great opportunity.
Since June, one of the families in our church has been inviting neighborhood children for a Saturday Bible time. This weekend we were invited to attend their Christmas program. The number of kids has grown to between 30 and 40. Parents from the community attended to see the kids sing and portray the Nativity. We also told the Gospel through the Christmas story. Pray for this outreach ministry to continue to grow.

Food Pantry Christmas Party

On Saturday, December 5, the church prepared a Christmas activity especially for the women and children of the households served by the food pantry ministry, Bendecidos para Bendecir. The Women's Sunday morning Bible class prepared food, games, arts and crafts, and a special devotional. The children were treated to a great program of puppets, music, refreshments, stories, and candy, all prepared by our generous Sunday School staff. The men and teens who were present were given a New Testament, and heard a personal explanation of the Gospel story. Every "ministry client" received the usual box of staple food items, plus fresh vegetables and chicken. Thanks to generous donors of extra money, we were able to provide over 90 children with Christmas gifts to take home too! Everyone, both givers and receivers, were joyful, blessed, and grateful. Pray for this ministry as Gospel seed is planted and hard ground is cultivated and watered, that God will give a great harvest.

Baptism Sunday

We are thankful for the way God is faithful to bring new disciples to our family of faith at Iglesia Bíblica Bautista de Manta. We regularly see men, women, young adults, teens, and children give public testimony of their new life in Christ by means of baptism. When we first planted the church it was necessary to hold baptism celebrations at the local beach -- a very beautiful, public place--but many in our church family were not able to be present to witness the event. Since we have been using the baptismal pool in the auditorium, everyone present on Sunday morning gets to share in the excitement!
Another blessing in recent years is seeing many of the children who have attended Sunday School since their early years acknowledge Jesus as their Lord and Savior. This is due to the influence of the real Christian testimony of their parents, and of the faithful ministry of our many fine Sunday School and Children's Worship teachers throughout these 10 years of ministry in Manta. David was baptized on the last Sunday of August, his mother and older sister are also following Jesus. David demonstrates good understanding of the Gospel, but even more importantly, he gives evidence of personal saving faith in Christ.

Six Weeks in USA

Winter weather! Family flu! Renewed relationships! Faithful fellowship!
Those phrases summarize our six weeks of travel in the USA from February 4 to March 18.

The weather was a big change for us, as you might imagine. Snow, ice, freezing rain, sub-zero temperatures are not part of our daily life in Manta. We had sweaters, coats, and jackets in storage, and friends even had some of our clothing waiting for us in a duffle bag when we arrived. The winter weather made interstate travel slow and treacherous sometimes (stopped completely for about 2 hours in Kentucky), but we traveled with God's care and protection everywhere we went, back and forth through 9 states. A family in Virginia had generously loaned us their family mini-van. It was a perfect vehicle for us, very reliable; and we were extremely grateful that by God's grace we were able to return it without incident.

Carla and Teddy started getting sick early in the trip with sniffles, coughing, headache, and general yuckiness. Their symptoms seemed to hang on for a few weeks. Then Tony and Joy were hit hard. Joy had an especially awful case, even had to miss church one Sunday and go to an urgent care clinic in Michigan. Eventually back in Tennessee, Carla and Teddy were getting well, and Tony, Joy, and Matthew went to our family doctor. We are almost well now.

We were blessed to visit with family and friends in Virginia, Tennessee, Missouri, Kansas, Michigan, and Ohio. Renewing these precious relationships is very important to us. We got to spend time with our kids and grandkids! What a blessing! We had the privilege of ministering in 3 churches in Tennessee, including a couple that we believe will be new partners for our work in Ecuador. We visited one of our partner churches in the Kansas City area that will be sending a missions team to Ecuador this summer. In Michigan we had the rare privilege of ministering in our sending church, Great Lakes Baptist Temple, during the annual missions conference. The people at Great Lakes are very special to us, and it was a joy to have fellowship with them. Lastly, we got to spend time with Mountain View Chapel near Charlottesville, VA. The amazing church family of MVC has been God's special instruments of grace in our lives, and we love them dearly.

While in Charlottesville, Carla had a follow-up cardio appointment at University of Virginia Hospital Medical Center. After her basic tests and imaging were completed, her cardiologist smiled and said, "I don't think I'll need to see Carla for two years."  Her heart is working beautifully. She still has a small amount of pulmonary valve stenosis, but right now that is not causing any problems. The doctor said that it may never cause her any difficulty, and he does not expect her to need major surgery in the future! We are amazed and grateful to God, and to many of you for your prayers on behalf of Carla.

On Wednesday, March 18 we flew back to Guayaquil, Ecuador via Panama City, and by Thursday afternoon we were at home in Manta. Thanks for praying for us, and please keep praying as we get back into our active ministry here.

Christmas 2014

Anzalone and Taylor kids say, "Merry Christmas!"

Children's Sunday School program at Iglesia Bíblica Bautista de Manta.

The couples who serve on the church leadership team.

La Sequita

On Friday, October 10, a group of about 15 people from our church responded to an invitation to visit the town of La Sequita, about 30 minutes east of Manta. A family from the town attends our church and is interested in helping their neighbors learn about Jesus so that their lives can be changed just as theirs has been by the power of the Gospel. The family opened their home to host the children and young people, their neighbors and friends. The picture shows one group of children working on a coloring sheet. They also made bracelets and enjoyed a puppet show. The adults and teens watched a movie and had refreshments. We are proud of the way our church responds to opportunities to take the Gospel to others. We want to grow into a church with a missionary heart!

Prayer Report October 2014

October 2014

Here are seven encouraging items from our ministry:

1) Joy and I received permanent residency visas. This will save us time and money since we won’t have to renew missionary visas annually, plus it make our presence in Ecuador less dependent on bureaucratic whims from year to year.

2) We taught a couple of exciting Bible study series as part of the Thursday night Leadership Training courses at the church in Manta. Both the men’s and the women’s groups were very faithful in attendance and in getting homework done each week. Some have even taken the course material to teach others what they learned.

3) One of the men who was baptized in April came to follow Jesus through the testimony and influence of his young daughter and his wife. Now he is sharing his faith in Christ with others at work, in their neighborhood, and among their relatives. He consistently brings people to church, usually filling his pick-up truck, some have become believers, and he is teaching them discipleship lessons.

4) Three young women were baptized in August. It is very encouraging to see new believers following Jesus and being identified as His disciples. One of those baptized is a teenager from the Montañita Verde Children’s Home.

5) The church has been growing in giving and generosity. One project has been the support of orphaned and needy children in Uganda in partnership with a church in Virginia and another in Kampala. The people of our church in Manta have given three and four times as much as our original commitment each month. Tithes and other offerings have increased along with that special project.

6) Volunteers have been working on the church building. The pastoral office area is nearly done. Volunteers have prepared walls and painted Sunday School classrooms. They have also been working on a second nursery area. Recently the men have been learning to make windows. There are lots of windows needed around the building so this will be a big help.

7) One Saturday afternoon we held a teacher-training seminar for the children’s ministry workers. Over 20 people came including four new volunteers. Plans are underway to reorganize and expand to be able to minister more effectively to the growing number of children.

Thank you for encouraging us. We hope that you’re encouraged too!

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Christmas with Family

We had the joy of spending the time from Christmas to New Years with our whole family, 19 of us in the mission house of Central Baptist Church in Crossville, TN. It was an amazing, unique, new experience for us. To be with our six children, three sons-in-law, and eight grandchildren was a blast! Joy's parents live nearby and shared many meals with us for a four generation reunion. We were too blessed for words!

Carla's Surgery

One big purpose reason for this time in the States is for Carla to have her heart repaired. On October 8 she had open heart surgery at University of Virginia Medical Center in Charlottesville, Virginia. This picture with the surgeons was taken about 72 hours after surgery. She has been progressing toward being able to leave the hospital. She has several weeks of recuperation ahead. God has been good in working through the prayers of his people.

Date for Carla's Surgery

Please be praying for our daughter Carla, age 9. She will be having open-heart surgery to repair an atrial septal defect on October 8. She will be at U Va Medical Center in Charlottesville, VA. We are very thankful for the doctors that God has provided for Carla. We also have strong local support from the Mountain View Chapel church family that has been extremely generous in taking care of us while we are in the Charlottesville area. We are greatly blessed by our extended family and our wide-ranging team of supporters who hold us before God's throne in prayer.

Visas!

We've been praying, waiting, and working for a long time to get these visa packets for Carla and Matthew. We are very excited to be traveling to the States soon for Carla's heart surgery, family time, and reporting to our great support team around the USA.

Father's Day 2013

We encourage families to get their picture taken at church on Mother's Day and Father's Day. Each year the number of families waiting to pose gets bigger. Joy makes the photos into beautiful cards that we print out for each family.

This picture is unique. Wilton and Mónica have three children, but they recently became house parents of Montañita Verde Children's Home. Here they are posing with their own kids plus six! Every Sunday they load up the truck and make the drive to Sunday School and church. They are doing a great job and we would appreciate your prayers for them.

Children's Day

On Sunday, June 2, our children's ministry workers did a great job of making it a special day for all of the kids at church. They made the Bible story come to life with costumes and drama. They had music, games, and treats for everyone. We appreciate the work of the team each week.

Visitors from Battlefield Baptist Church

Pastor and Mrs. Karl Skinner and six other members of Battlefield Baptist Church in Gainesville, Virginia were our guests for a week. They did a terrific job of evangelism and outreach in parks, children's homes, our Travesia village ministry, and in all of our Anniversary Weekend activities. They were a great blessing.

Christmas Program

On Sunday December 18 the Sunday School children presented a Christmas program. They used costumes, music, and Scripture to portray the Christmas Story.

Evangelismo in Jaramijó

On Saturday, November 26, the Manta church took the puppet ministry on the road to the nearby fishing town of Jaramijó. Besides the puppets, around 30 people from the church went along to do set-up, pass out invitations and tracts, lead music and games, and talk to the adults standing around. There was brilliantly hot sunshine, but around 40 kids came out to enjoy the shows, music, and games. They heard the gospel and Bible stories, and at the end of the program, 12 children heard the plan of salvation from the teachers and prayed to receive Jesus as their Savior.

Baby Dedication

Jacinto, Maria, and their family were please to present their newest family member to the church on Sunday. It is our custom to have a prayer of blessing and dedication before the congregation. The parents are asked to bring their child up in the knowledge and training of Jesus. The church is asked to support the parents in this effort as a loving Christian community where children are welcomed, evangelized, and trained as disciples of Christ.

Baby Dedication

We are always happy to see families grow in their faith and commitment to follow Christ. Here is one of the couples that we have prayed for and worked with over the past few years. It was a blessing to present their baby Abbey during a Sunday church service and to offer a prayer of dedication for her and her parents.

Puppet Ministry

Last weekend we had BBFI Missionary Jenny Carpenter come to Manta to train our children's ministry workers, and others who were interested, in the use of puppets. She did a great job in workshop sessions on Friday and Saturday and the folks were excited to get started. We organized four groups that immediately began working on songs and skits. On Sunday, the first group presented a skit and songs to the children during the worship and preaching service. It was a big hit with the kids. We look forward to this being a fruitful ministry in both evangelism and education.