Samuel Gill Servant in Training with NTM 
A Trip to the Zoo
After months of discussion and planning, the ESL (English as a Second Language) classes are finally under way at Riverview Baptist Church. For about a year now, RBC has made the Latin church here feel very welcome at their facility. The previous partnership that the Latin church had was not so favorable, so we are very grateful to have such a generous and cooperative host church in Riverview. Although the interaction between these two bodies is still fairly limited, we have been working to change that and to see how Riverview can help La Iglesia Latina to extend its outreach in this community.
Last Tuesday marked the beginning of our trial ESL classes to immigrants in the area, and I think it’s fair to say “so far, so good”. The attendance has demonstrated the fact that this is definitely an interest among the hispanic community. As for the volunteer teachers from RBC, they will be required to pass a 3-day training seminar in order to participate in the program. The idea is to provide an opportunity for developing conversational English skills to both believing and unbelieving immigrants in the area. Only the Lord knows where this opportunity will lead, but for now it’s satisfying to see that we’re moving.
This Saturday, 7 members from the Latin Church and 24 members from Riverview Baptist will be piling into 2 buses and heading out for the first combined mission trip of Riverview\’s history. Our destination is Vonore, Tennessee, home of an isolated campground built by a one-armed man (no joke). It will be a privilege to serve alongside of Steve, the youth pastor of RBC. He has such a love for the youth of his church and a heart to serve others. When I approached him several months ago about the possibility of our youth joining his on this service trip, I was pleasantly surprised at how supportive he was. What a blessing when God’s people open their arms to receive others. At first I was a little apprehensive about how we would raise the $300 per student, but as of today, we have earned and raised almost all of the money needed.
I am excited to see the way the Lord will use this to work in the lives of these youth. Last year, during a service trip to Birmingham, Alabama, I was so encouraged to see the way that the youth of Community Fellowship responded to the challenges and opportunities we encountered there. There were a number of kids who desperately needed to get out of the house, out of their bubble, and into the practice of serving others. Afterwards we heard several testimonies of how God used that time to refocus their attention on Him and His kingdom. I pray that this year might be similarly beneficial for the team traveling to Tennessee.
Besides being responsible for the 5 Latin youth, I will also be leading morning devotions. As you pray for our trip and for the growth of the teens, I would appreciate your prayers that I would have wisdom in preparing and delivering the morning devotional. Our main objectives will be to run a well organized boy and girls club and also to perform work projects at two different local churches.
In the meantime, I continue to enjoy my stay at the Valencia hotel. Well, it\’s really just a home, but they sure treat me well. By God\’s providence, this past week was the one week of the whole year that Mr. Valencia and his oldest son Nacho have off of work. (Apart from that they work about 55+ hours a week all year. I have been able to help out some in different areas which has hopefully relieved some of the pressure when they get home.) In order to take advantage of the vacation time, we decided to take a trip to the free St. Louis zoo. For a number of reasons, the Valencias have never been able to travel much, so it was a privilege for me to drive the family to the zoo and enjoy the day away from home. Then on Friday we drove about 30 miles to the nearest large mall. Although they arrived from Chile 8 years ago, Mr. and Mrs. Valencia had never seen the mall. The two things that impressed them in our outings: 1. How fast and close the cars fly down the interstate and 2. How I could simply go online and print out a map and then know where to go. I guess you forget the fact that it takes time to learn how to perform a seemingly simple task like that. As for the mall itself — I don\’t think they were too impressed with the prices. Can you blame them? One of Mr. Valencia\’s favorite words to describe this culture: exagerado. I\’m inclined to agree.
