Thank you!

Jack, the one-armed builder of "God's Mountain Retreat"

  As you will surely remember, the youth of my church in Missouri, la Iglesia Latina del Lago, and their Riverview Baptist counterparts were to take a “mission” trip to Tennessee in July.  Our two work projects were to paint the interior of a church and to help restore an elderly widow’s home back to a somewhat respectable condition.  The restoration effort included using chainsaws to reduce a fallen tree to firewood, replacing rotted planks on her porch, priming the exterior of the house for a paint job, and an assortment of other yard projects.  In the afternoons, half of the team would leave the worksite to run a boys and girls club in a town nearby  – something like a VBS.  Our catch phrase for the week was “open eyes”, an expression intended to encapsulate our purpose for traveling to Tennessee and spending a week at God’s Mountain Retreat.  We wanted to open our own eyes to see what God is trying to teach us and we wanted to open the little eyes of the boys and girls to see what it means when we say that Jesus loves us.  Considering the short time we had, I believe this trip was a great success.  I was particularly encouraged by two things: 

1. The way that the two youth groups interacted.  The American kids were very welcoming towards the Latin youth, allowing them to feel right at home among them.  The Latin youth told me they were very glad to be on the trip and said they hope that these new friendships continue to develop.  I hope so too. 
2. The way that the youth came away from the week with a renewed perspective concerning what is important in life.  Every night we had a time of singing, sharing, and encouragement.  The convicting work of the Holy Spirit was evident in the lives of the youth.  The last night there, several of the kids broke into tears as they confessed personal struggles in their faith and asked for prayer.  We pray that this was only the beginning of some needed changes in the hearts of these precious young people.     

          To those of you who were praying for the devotionals in the morning, I just want to thank you and say that I believe the Lord used them to contribute to the overall learning experience of the week.  I also enjoyed the personal connections I was able to make with some of the Riverview youth.  It’s so great to see young people truly eager to grow.

 The last few weeks have been filled mostly with visiting.  After leaving Missouri back in July, I went on a tour of the southern end of Lake Michigan.  My first stop was at a friend’s wedding in Muskegon.  Next I intruded on my Aunt Patti’s family reunion.  And recently I have been visiting friends all over the Wheaton area, including church friends, Bolivia friends, and Starbucks coworkers.  Once again it has been a pleasure to spend time with “Uncle” Dick Wyma.  He has plenty of floor space and has always opened his apartment to me whenever I come back to West Chicago.    

The first week back here in West Chicago I helped to coach a group of young boys at a soccer camp.  Community Fellowship Church has maintained consistent involvement with a Latin community nearby and had decided to run a soccer camp as another means of outreach.  There must be some strange magnetic force among the Latin people, because I seem to find myself with them everywhere I go!  It was neat to be able to work with some of the same kids that I used to tutor in the afterschool program when I was here a year ago.  It is exciting to see a church that is not just interested in short-term mission blitzes, but also in sustained, relational outreach with its own neighbors.  I am convinced that this is the sort of ministry that, in the long run, reaches people at the heart level. 

As a special, unexpected blessing, I have been able to spend a few days with my dad this summer.  He flew up to Florida last week to attend a conference with other NTM leaders from around the globe.  I’m so glad for email and telephones that allow us to remain connected though separated by many miles.  But it’s even better to be able to see him in person.  

With the end of August comes the beginning of a new semester – this time, my last.  Please pray for me as I return to Roach, Missouri to finish the last courses of my missionary training this side of the Pacific Ocean.  December will be here before I know it, and perhaps I will be thinking there’s still much more I want to know before moving on.  But for now, I am glad that I still have one more semester of training before I begin to make final preparations to travel overseas.   

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.

Memorial day barbeque, Latino style

About a month ago the Latin church posted a sheet where those interested in being discipled could list their names. By the end of the night there were already seven or eight people who had written their names on the list, expressing their interest in growing in their walk with the Lord. Interestingly, some of those who put their name down were not even believers. Last night at the Wednesday night Bible study, I was pleasantly surprised to see how many of those people are still demonstrating genuine interest in studying the Bible for themselves. Edgar and his wife, Jasmin, are two of those who were first to sign up. Last night, we were learning about the person and character of the Holy Spirit, and I was shocked to hear Jasmin\’s insight. She had memorized a verse in Ephesians and was able to apply it to the subject at hand. Later in the evening she gave testimony to how the Lord has been working in her marriage and family. Praise God for changed lives.
            In so many ways, my time with the church here has become such a blessing. Both the way they have made me feel welcome (despite not being Latin) and the evidence of the Spirit at work in our midst have been so encouraging. In particular, I have come to appreciate and respect our pastor more and more and truly enjoy the fellowship we share. He is such a servant to others and has an incredible passion to see the new believers mature in the understanding and application of their faith. While initially somewhat skeptical of some of what was happening in the church, I have since found myself challenged and blessed by the heart of the pastor and his desire to be used by the Lord. My outreach team from New Tribes (there are five of us) have been privileged to witness God\’s answer to many of our prayers for this group of believers. Please praise the Lord with me for the ways He is working in the Latin church and in my own heart. I\’m learning to take the Lord seriously when He said, “ask anything in my name and it will be granted to you.”

Last weekend I went to watch my cousin graduate from high school and also compete in the Central Missouri high school track sectionals. It was fun to show my support for him and a blessing to be with family for a few days. He did so well that this weekend he will be competing at the state level here in Jefferson City, which means I won\’t even have to travel to see him run.

I am now settled in to my summer residence — the home of a very hospitable Chilean family in Jefferson City. I\’m glad that I will be able to continue serving in the Latin church for these couple months, but I\’m also excited about some new opportunities that I am looking into. Sebastian (the Chilean guy who just graduated from high school) and several of his friends may be joining me for a guys\’ Bible study once a week. Since two months doesn\’t allow for a whole lot, my desire is to take a look together at a few of the Proverbs and see how they apply to the life of a young man. I\’m also interested in getting back into the jail ministry that I have only been able to do a few times. In the meantime, I\’m also trying to put together a portfolio of Cambodia and my vision for future ministry as a means of communicating to others who I am and where I am going. Trying to juggle these and still be available here at my new home may prove a little tricky. I would certainly appreciate prayer that I would be both diligent and considerate this summer.

Valencia Family - my summer hosts

This weekend the Hispanic church is having an outreach to the mothers of the area. The women in the church have been encouraged to invite the mothers they know to the church for a celebration and gospel message on Saturday night. Please pray that we as a church would know how to take advantage of this and other similar opportunities. Two weeks ago we hosted a basketball tournament and saw over 150 people from outside come to enjoy the competition. We would love to see some lasting fruit come from these efforts.
            I need wisdom for this summer. Now that I have found a place to live, I’m trying to plan how to best use my time. First of all, I want to be a testimony and encouragement to this family that has invited me to stay with them. For those who remember Sebastian, I will be staying with his family in Jefferson City, about an hour and a half from here. Lord willing, I would like to disciple Sebastian and some of his friends — possibly even begin a Bible study if they are interested. Most of them are unsaved. I am also hoping to help my mom (who is in Bolivia) prepare the curriculum for a linguistics course she is teaching. And, of course, I will continue to serve as the youth leader until I go to West Chicago in July. Please pray as I seek the Lord in these and other opportunities to serve.

Praise:  Our recent campout went very well.  It was great to hear the youth be open about their struggles at home.  They are turning to the right Person for help.

        Sebastian began playing guitar last semester when he was challenged by the need for help on the music team at the Hispanic church. Although he has taken some drum lessons before, he is otherwise quite unlearned in music. Now seven months later, Sebastian has convinced not only me but also his parents that this is a commitment that he is serious about. A few weeks ago he played his first song in front of the church as a special number with the rest of the youth joining him in singing. Now his parents are offering to buy him his first acoustic/electric guitar. It’s so fun to watch him improve and want to use his new ability to honor the Lord.

       Our most recent courses here at the missionary training center have included Grammar and Animism. Grammar has provided a good review of some of the material I learned at Moody. It has been helpful to have some more practice analyzing different grammatical structures and seeing how New Tribes organizes the information a little differently. I’m looking forward to the day when I get to implement this knowledge.
       If you’ve ever been told that seeing a black cat cross your path is an omen of bad luck, then you have had a taste of what it means to be an animist. Animism is the missiological term referring to any worldview system that believes in many spiritual beings and forces that inhabit the natural world. Animists are consumed by fear as they try to figure out what powers controls their world and how they can manipulate those powers for their own ends. The vast majority of religious systems around the world fall under this label. Our professor, a veteran missionary from Papua New Guinea, stressed how important it is for the missionary to make it his ambition to be a student of his audience and their worldview. He reminded us that without this, communicating the Good News of Jesus accurately is impossible.  I wonder if this is true within our culture as well. . .
         Among the many things that I enjoyed this past month, I recently had an experience that does not fit that category. First, allow me to back up for a second. As many of you know, I love to run. Unfortunately, my knee no longer shares my passion. I have tried multiple times to try to broaden it’s perspective. However, as it insists that running is no fun, I have decided to play along for the time being. Before you judge me as weak-willed, I must say that it has furnished some fairly convincing arguments.
         Luckily for me, running is not the only cheap aerobic exercise; there’s also cycling! After finding a free bike and cleaning it up, last week I was excited to take the first of many rides which I assumed would follow. I had been treating my knee with extra care – perhaps even spoiling it – in hopes that it would reward me with total compliance for this debut ride last Wednesday. Yes, just as I had hoped, my whole body seemed to be basking in the delight of this new form of exercise. Although my lungs and muscles were taxed by the work, every sinew and joint was responding wonderfully to these smoother movements. I finished my first ride without the slightest complaint from my knee and was turning the last corner to arrive back on campus when suddenly things went south. I realized I was moving too quickly to make my right turn, so rather than ride past and then come back, I opted to apply both breaks as hard as I could. What I forgot was that I can break the bike, but not the momentum of my body. Needless to say, the biked stopped sooner than I did, giving me that uneasy impression you get when you leave home convinced you are forgetting something important. As we well know, the body is a delicate organism.  Fortunately, I was able to minimize the extent of the injuries by offering my face to cushion the fall. You will notice from the pictures that this was a pretty effective move. Apart from the fact that I didn’t know who I was or where I lived for about 15 minutes, I sustained relatively minor injuries – just a couple bruises and raspberries. Fruit can be expensive this time of year, so that was a nice bonus.

For about six consecutive days, including Saturday, the weather forcast for yesterday (Sunday) predicted rain most of the day.  We were afraid that our weekend fun with the youth was going to be seriously dampened by the weather.  However, after about a 15 minute burst of rain at 9 am, the skies cleared up and we had a perfect day.  Thank you, Lord!

Thank you so much for praying.  We had 8 kids come - about what we were expecting.  I think it’s fair to say that they really enjoyed the activities.  We laughed our way through Madagascar II on Saturday night and then hit the sack around 2:30 pm (with the time change).  Sunday’s activities went well, except that the treasure hunt was a little more challenging than the kids had anticipated.  2 1/2 hours of running around and solving riddles left the kids tired and hungry, the perfect lead into a hamburger lunch.  I think today they can look back and say they had a great time, although there were moments when we had to encourage them not to give up.  

The crowning activity of the weekend was our devotional after breakfast.  It was so neat to hear the youth share about different things they are learning and to express the ways they are struggling at home or in school.  When we asked for prayer requests, someone mentioned "unsaved family."  One of the girls, who was invited by one of the regular comers, asked me, "What does it mean to be ’saved’?  I praise the Lord for the opportunity to share with this girl what it means to accept Jesus as her savior.  Now we are praying that God would help Kat to make this personal.  She comes from a church where the Gospel is not taught.  Please pray with us for Kat and for wisdom as we continue to disciple the youth.   

In this article you will read about my growing conviction that I would NOT have been prepared without the training I am receiving. I suppose I will never be totally ready for what lies ahead, but I sure am learning a lot this semester.
When I was in the eighth grade, I read a book about a medical missionary who lived in India for many years, giving his life to help the outcast lepers. Dr. Paul Brand had such an incredible love for those people that his work opened many doors for the Gospel in India. Although I considered becoming a medical doctor at the time, obviously that never happened. A couple of weeks ago we took a course on "International Health and Wellness." This class reminded me of yet another area of my life and ministry that will have to be entrusted into God’s hand. Although we learned quite a bit in one week, it was obviously not intended to turn us into trained nurses. If statistics mean anything, I’m sure that in the future I will be asking for prayer because of a need in this area – probably multiple times. 
Something that is often overlooked when preparing for missionary service is how much we depend on technology in missions and how important it is to know how to set up some kind of electrical system. In many countries around the world – and particularly in remote areas where we will be working – electricity from the local power companies is either unreliable or inaccessible. What are usually simple activities, such as washing clothes or cooking a meal, can become significant chores. The students here at the MTC are currently in a course to prepare us to deal with many challenges regarding this area of electricity. Did you know that there are at least 4 different kinds of electricity that comes from the wall, depending on where you are in the world? I doesn’t take but a couple seconds of 220 volts to render an American appliance useless. (My family had a knack for burning out appliances in Bolivia, and it seemed like they were always borrowed appliances). To complicate matters worse, missionaries often have to produce their own power, using either solar, wind, or hydroelectric power. Unfortunately, there are no such thing as house calls to the local electrician.
New Tribes has a team of engineers and technicians who work full-time to train and support the technical side of missionary work. The head engineer here has countless stories of things blowing up, melting, catching fire, falling, etc. because missionaries were not properly trained in this area. While I do love figuring out how to take advantage of all of these incredible advances in back-woods technology, I’m glad someone’s watching my back and can help out when I get stuck.
The latest news from our outreach is that the youth from the Hispanic church are coming this Saturday to the New Tribes campus. Yesterday, one of my co-workers and I spent several hours planning an elaborate treasure hunt for the youth. This is one element of our weekend getaway that we have prepared for the youth. We will also be watching a movie, eating lots of food, sharing from the word, and, weather permitting, going for a hike. Please see the prayer requests page to know how you can pray.
One of the joys of this semester is being able to continue getting to know and serve the believers of this Hispanic church. Now that I have developed a good relationship with the youth, I see how much they need consistency in teaching and discipleship. I mention this only because it may play in to my plans for the summer. Honestly, I feel pulled between the decision to stay here for the summer or to return to West Chicago. I would love to stick around and continue to be involved here with this church. At the same time, there are so many people at Community Fellowship that I would like to see again, and there are always opportunities for involvement there as well. Please consider this decision as well when you pray for me.

What’s planned? 

• movie night on Saturday 
• pancake breakfast Sunday morning
• an elaborate treasure hunt
• hamburger lunch and . . .
• a time of singing and sharing. 

Everyone seems to be really excited about this time together.  I would like to ask for prayer as we plan, especially for the treasure hunt and the devotional.   Also, pray that all the kids would be able to come and that the weather would permit us to have the treasure hunt.  Thank you, and please come back to read the report of how it went!

Fun Figures

Miles covered: 3000
Average MPG: 31
Sermons listened to on the road: 13
Houses slept in: 6
Churches attended: 4
Number of times I fell asleep at the wheel: 0
Enjoyment quotient: 7.674 x 10^9

Hi friend. As promised, this is my review of my holiday globe trotting. I was quite pleased that the Lord allowed my Christmas break to go as planned. I only missed one engagement that I was really hoping to make. And once again I was delighted to visit family and friends whom I have not seen for a while.
Two of my good Tambo friends and I were invited to join the Al Lotz family – our school principal for many years. They are now living in Rome, Georgia, a welcome refuge (for me) from the winters of Chicago. The fact that Christmas was not white did not bother me a mite; give me Georgia and 60s anytime. The four of us (their son was the fourth stooge) had a great time together picking up where we left off and reminiscing about our Bolivia days. Among other things, we also enjoyed soccer tennis, piecing puzzles together, and making Bolivian salteñas. Although these opportunities seem to be few and far between, they are such a blessing when they come.
The bulk of the rest of my break was spent catching up with my brothers and sisters from two churches in North Carolina. During my stay, I shared a room with my cousin Daniel and enjoyed the time to fellowship with family. There are many reasons why I love visiting the Doss family, but I would lie if I said my Aunt Jeany’s cooking was not one of them. Seriously – Wow! Let’s just say I’m glad for the sake of my diet that she lives several states away.
On a more serious note, my time with family was not in the best of circumstances. My Uncle Ken was diagnosed with cancer last year and is fighting for survival right now. The battle against the side affects of the chemo has been all uphill, so he doesn’t have the energy to do much of anything. It is difficult seeing him in this situation because he hates being so useless. At this point it’s just pray and wait to see what happens. I was glad that I had the chance to be there with them and help out some around the house and with clearing out his office.
Now that school has resumed, I’m back in Missouri, ready for a new semester like a linebacker waiting for the hike. Something about the break and some lessons I revisited with the Lord have refueled my tank and restored my determination to make the most of this time. Please continue to pray for me as I seek to keep Him first in all. Thank you.