Why'd He Do That?

As the father of a five-year-old boy, I've gotten used to fielding questions all that time, anywhere, and about anything? Teddy takes nothing for granted. Why did you do that? What is that? What does it do. Try watching a TV show or a movie with him: Who's he? Is he a good guy or a bad guy? What's going to happen next? When we read him Bible stories he questions as well. He wants to know if the characters and events made God happy or sad, and if the outcome was good or bad. Sometimes he questions God's reasoning, and he is skeptical of symbolism. His concrete mind isn't always ready to accept abstract concepts and metaphors. He has perfected his own sort of diagram to illustrate "the vine and branches" with all the pruning and fruit-bearing. Sometimes his relentless questioning is too much for Dad, but most of the time I am grateful for his lively and flexible intelligence. He is developing the ability to think and reason.

As a church-planting missionary who has spent many years helping to guide followers of Jesus, I continue to appreciate the wonder and excitement of those who seek and find, ask and receive, knock and discover an open door. In our discipleship ministry we can almost always identify those who are truly studying the lessons, reading the Bible, and trying to make sense of it. They seek the underlying truths and the practical applications. They ask questions. Their spiritual minds are developing like Teddy's is in the cognitive realm. Others read the Bible and prepare their lessons in a superficial way. They never ask questions and never seem all that interested in allowing Jesus and his Words to shape the course of their life. It's that first bunch who keep me going forward. I thank God for them.

Public Service

This year of political campaigning in Ecuador continues at a frantic pace. Right now more than 1,000 candidates are wrestling for seats on the assembly to write a new constitution for the country. The constitutional commitee will meet in Montecristi, a small town just 10 minutes from Manta.

We recently saw a terrific example of public service as the USNS Comfort spent a week in the port of Manta. Comfort is a hospital ship. The officers and crew colaborated with local doctors and hospitals to see thousands of patients and to do hundreds of surgeries during their stay. It was our privilege to thank some of the men and women of our US Navy for their outstanding service.

This past week we were invited to the home of a family that had made a couple of visits to our church services. They expressed great appreciation for the preaching and teaching of the Bible, and for the classes for all members of their family. We learned that the husband and wife are professional mourners, providing music and prayer at funeral services and masses. Both husband and wife confessed that they wanted to open their hearts to Christ and hope to learn more of God's word. They prayed, trusting Jesus as their Lord and Savior. They ask us to pray that the Lord will provide another way for them to earn their living.

It's Already September

Let's catch up on some things that happened in August:

Joy and I celebrated our 25th wedding anniversary.

Our daughter Ashley celebrated her 22nd birthday.

Joy's parents visited us for about 3 weeks. Joy's father, Rev. Ted Wille, preached a series of sermons on the subject of stewardship for our church.

The response to the stewardship messages was excellent. The congregation made a faith promise of over $300 per month for our building project, and over 20 people commited to tithe faithfully for the general needs of the church's ministry.

We started weekly youth Bible study. The young people are accepting the challenge to read and memorize the Bible. In the weekly meetings we answer questions about their daily reading and talk about applications to their life. Luis and Melanea are assisting me with this group.

We are thankful for the way God has provided the needed funds for the purchase of the land for a future church building. Thank you for your generous contributions and prayer support for this project.

A Place for the Family

Joy and I just started discipleship classes with Javier and Cecilia. They made a number of comments about how they are growing in Christ and how much they enjoy the church. They are attending Bible studies, Sunday services, small group meetings and even help in an outreach ministry. They both give testimony of a living faith in Christ, and how much their lives have changed for the better since they began to follow Jesus. Among other things, they talk about the church's ministry to their daughter Christina. She sings the songs learned in Sunday School and even repeats the Bible verses she is learning there. Mom and Dad have bought her a Children's Bible, and she insists that one of them read her a story from it each evening before bed. These are the building blocks of the church God is constructing in Manta.

Summer Slump

It's easy for me to forget to blog when I'm busy doing the business of ministry yet it doesn't seem like anything exciting is happening. In truth, there are lots of exciting, even miraculous things happening every day. The beauty of the Christian life is seeing God's involvement in the daily grind through the eye of faith. God is at work in the young man who wants to turn his life around and attends church and his discipleship meeting faithfully for five weeks. He is at work in the hearts of those who look for ways to share with those who are in greater need than they are. He is faithful to supply enough hours in the day and enough days in the week to accomplish every task, plus give us a little more strength so we can share a smile and a few minutes with an unexpected visitor. His hand is not still. He is busily engaged in the details.
Everything moves forward. We are growing closer to the deadline for the purchase of property for the Manta church. We are still about $8,000 short of the goal, but a bit more comes in each week. Seven of our supporting churches and three individuals or families have made contributions to our project fund. We are very thankful for their involvement.
At the beginning of August there will be a new rotation of Sunday School teachers. Joy has made plans for a small expansion of the teaching team. We are praying that all of the workers in this ministry will be faithful to such a big commitment.

No Gas

Tempers are running high around Ecuador these days because of a shortage in the production of LP gas. That is the basic cooking fuel in Ecuadorian homes, where it may also be used in appliances like water heaters and clothes dryers. The shortage has gone on for a couple of months and seems to be getting worse. The president blames the production companies, while the producers claim that the state-controled selling price is less than the cost of production. The price has been established without increase for at least five years. Vendors are trying to cash in on higher prices in neighboring countries and are selling it there illegally. People waiting in long lines are getting hot under the collar. I drive around with an empty tank in the trunk of my car just hoping to find a line to wait in. I may have to build a cooking fire. I wish I had paid closer attention in Cub Scouts.

Blue Ridge Group

A group from Blue Ridge Baptist Temple in Kansas City, including Pastor Bill Boren, ministered with us for five days toward the end of June. They did a great job, taking music and evangelism to elementary schools, parks, a children's home and the village of Travesía. They also participated in our regular church services. Their ministry was well-received and fruitful in opening doors for sharing the love of Christ with many in our community. Thank you, Blue Ridge Baptist!