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!

Father's Day

We had a busy and exciting weekend. Saturday we celebrated our first wedding in Manta. A couple of young adults, Luis and Melanea, tied the knot. Luis is a relatively new Christian who came to Christ through the testimony of Melanea's family and our church. He has been baptized and met with me weekly for a while to learn the basics of Christian discipleship. Melanea has been a believer since childhood and grew up in church in another city. She has been a faithful part of our church, along with her mother and sister. Luis and Melanea spent a number of hours with Joy and me in recent months preparing for marriage. May God bless them with a happy, long-lasting union.
Also on Saturday, the Travesía ministry had a fruitful afternoon. They always have a good attendance of children, but the number of adults attending has steadily increased as well. The leaders are very excited because they are beginning to see evidence of understanding and belief among those who listen to the Bible studies. On Saturday, seven adults opened their hearts to God in prayer for salvation! Please pray for the men and women who minister in Travesía as they confront the challenge of teaching the Bible to these adults who, for the most part, do not read. Pray with us about an adult literacy program for this community.
On Sunday our church attendance was a bit lower than usual. On Father's Day in Manta, kids go to the beach with dad, and mom stays home to cook an extra-special dinner. However, we had 12 dads present for the morning service. That's twice as many as last year.
After church we met with around 25 people from the church at the property we are in the midst of purchasing. Most of them had not seen the property. They were very happy to consider the possibilities of such a fine location. We spent a short time there in prayer, asking God to make his plans and projects a reality through our lives.
Be praying this week for a group of servants from Blue Ridge Baptist Temple in Kansas City, MO who will be ministering with us in Manta. They will be here from Wednesday to Monday.

Progress on Land Purchase

In an earlier post we mentioned a small plot of land that we are raising money to buy for a church building in Manta. Last month we received a number of special offerings for the fund. Please continue to pray for this purchase. The opportunity and need are very great.

About Our Kids

Amanda and Mike: They serve in a Christian school in South Korea. They recently celebrated their first wedding anniversary and are expecting their first child. Please pray for Amanda since her pregnancy has been complicated early-on.
Ashley: Ashley has been working with us for the past 6 months--teaching Sunday School and helping to prepare our children's ministry curriculum. Now she must return to the States and will be getting ready for her Senior year of college. She is engaged to marry Shane Coston. He recently came to Ecuador and proposed to her.
Alexis: Alexis is visiting us for several weeks this summer. We are so happy she is here. Alexis just finished her first year of college and will be continuing her education with classes in art and design next school year. Lexi has a boyfriend who will be visiting Ecuador for a few weeks this summer.
Teddy: Teddy is having a great time being five! He is definitely ready to read, having learned the letters and their sounds. He is always telling us what letter things start with. He enjoys wrestling with the puppies and playing learning games on the computer.