April 2024 Update
It has been said, "When you can't trace God's hand, trust His heart.” In recent days, we have struggled to see God's plan, but we have trusted Him to do what is best. And during this time, God has allowed us to serve even morepeople who were not even on our radar. It is a joy to look back and see His touch in the unexpected events of our lives.
This past month we have spent a lot of time trying to help the struggling church we told you about recently. There is much that needs to be done, but with our upcoming furlough our time is limited. We have focused on the things we feel like we can accomplish before we leave. Outreach into the local community is one of the things we can always help with. While knocking doors, we found multiple people within 1-2 blocks who didn’t even know the church existed. The first outreach activity we helped host was for the Bolivian Father’s Day that brought 2x as many fathers as they have had attend in the past. A medical clinic brought more visitors the next Sunday than church members. We are preparing for their church anniversary that will include an evangelistic push, but for now, preparation is more in the form of remodeling. This young new pastor inherited a building that was poorly constructed and not maintained. The roof leaks and there is a lot of water damage in the concrete walls. We are taking this week to get all this fixed and paint the church in preparation for a big Anniversary Sunday. Our desire is to be an encouragement to this small church and help them get a vision for what can be done in their community.
We have also been focused on medical clinics. In the past we have hosted large groups but this time we specifically planned for a smaller team so we could reach the community of our Guaraní church that is out in the country. Our first two clinics were at the church we are helping now in the city and at our first church plant, Mount Carmel Baptist. Then we headed to Ivitipora, the Guaraní community, where we were stopped by a blockade along the way. The only way we were permitted to pass was to treat some of the protesters. After a 45-minute impromptu clinic, they allowed us to pass with a promise to let us pass again in the evening as we returned to our hotel. In the afternoon, we learned of yet another blockade on our route. There had been a fight from counter protesters, so they would no longer allow our bus to pass as we returned in the evening. Our team had to leave our bus and continue on foot in the dark, through 2 blockades, about 3 miles apart, carrying our personal belongings and all the medical supplies, to get transportation to our hotel. Due to the risk involved, we set up a last-minute clinic in a church in a neighboring community instead of attempting to return to Ivitipora for a 2nd day of outreach. Across the 4 clinics, we had over 400 people come to be treated and each one heard a personal presentation of the gospel before they left. Looking back over the week, we can now see God's hand guiding and protecting all along the way. He allowed us the forethought to ask for a smaller team that was able to cross the blockades safely. He protected us through the protest yet allowed us to witness to people who we would not have otherwise. He allowed us to reach and treat very needy people in Ivitipora. He guided us to the unscheduled church where we attended to more people than we had in any of the other clinics that week. It was a blessing to see God at work through the smallest of details.
While our first 3 churches are fully autonomous, we do stay connected with them. One of the ways we do this is by helping them plan and host special activities. This past month, to boost the Wednesday night attendance, we helped provide a small after-church snack to those who came. People work late and most have a long commute home on public transportation. Many tell us they do not have time to get home, change clothes and eat before church. Each week we have seen an increase in the number of people attending these services. We are praying that they will realize that they can make it to church at night and begin to make it a weekly habit.
In closing, I would like to mention our upcoming furlough once again. Due to future ministry plans here in Bolivia we need to take our furlough slightly earlier than normal. Many supporting churches have already asked us to come and give an update. Most of our Sundays are booked but we still have a few midweek dates available. If you would like us to come give an update during our time in the states and you have not heard from us, please reach out and we will do our best to add you to our calendar.
