Following your Call at all Cost

Words can't express how proud I am of my brother and his family.  They are in the midst of leaving the USA and headed to a new land to follow their call.  Join me in praying for them in this season.  It is surely a time of so many emotions.. overwhelming at times I am sure, but I trust that our Father is sustaining them now and will continue to do so!  There is no greater joy than to be in the center of His will watching Him work wonders.  What a privilege to serve our Lord! God speed familia! 

http://sevenmileroad.org/blog/?p=1022 

Learning to expect the unexpected

As you all know we came to BA with a set of goals and ideas of what our time here would be about.  Of course we knew in our minds to expect the unexpected and we were open to serve in any capacity needed or wanted.  Well, after being here several months, we also began to feel a desire to work with the college students at church.  Many of them we knew from when we lived here before and they were teens.  As we began to hang out with them and discuss life, college, theology, we realized that a group was needed to discuss things further and with more of them.

So back in March we had a first meeting where we presented the idea to them to form a university/professionals ministry at La Mision.  It was a  great night of discussing needs, ideas, and service projects.  Since then we have met again to continue planning, and this past week we were able to fellowship with a college team visiting from the USA, chaperoned by a friend of C's.  What a great time of comparing college lifestyles and sharing how faith is lived out in both.  For us it was perfect timing to have them come and spend time with the college students from La Mision; it inspired them to view college as an opportunity to share Christ.. not just a place to go study and then leave.  (It was also great to share our life here in BA with an old friend of C's)

We are excited by this unexpected opportunity God has placed on our laps.  We enjoy this group very much as well as are challenged by them to stay on our toes. Pray for them as many of them come from humble backgrounds and are the first in their family to go to college.  It is an exciting time for La Mision to have about 15 of its own youth attending one of the top universities in  Latin America, the University of Buenos Aires.  In the future we will share more with you about this ministry and the students.

 

The ladies from La Mision  and the missions trip from Ohio practicing language skills and getting to know each other.

C with a friend from her "youth group" and college days, visiting BA with a college team.

K and a youth from La Mision practicing English.

The two groups together.

Thursday Workshops

The dream of the vocational school is slowly coming together.  Phase one is bringing the carpentry classes to the neighborhoods near the church.  These neighborhoods have high unemployment and the residents have very little means to acquire job skills. The Lord has opened a door in the community center in one of the neighborhoods and for now K is teaching every Thursday evening.  For now they are more like mini workshops since new people come every week along with some regular attenders.  Even women are attending that want to build furniture for their homes.  We wait and pray the Lord uses this to draw people to Himself as well as give them a means to provide for their families.   We will keep you posted as the school continues to develop and the vision becomes a reality!

Happy Easter: Celebrate the Resurrection!

USA Easter tradition: Coloring Easter Eggs 




Celebrating Easter.. we constantly remind our children what is Easter about.. Isa will answer "Jesus' resurrection" then we will continue to say "why celebrate it?", "How does it affect you?" After talking about it with him and getting funny answers as always, I am left wondering, why do I celebrate Easter. Do I really internalize what I say I believe? Do I believe in resurrection life and all that Christ did for me on the cross? And if I really do believe it, do I see change in my life brought about by that belief? I long to see the power of the resurrection in my life and the life of those around me. Our prayer is to see that power transform lives here Argentina. We pray you see it in your life today! I leave you today with those questions as we celebrate Easter together in different parts of the world! Felices Pascuas Amigos!

Argentine Easter Tradition: Making Easter bread called "La Rosca de Pascua."  S and I got to make one in her preschool.

 

Celebrating Easter in the neighborhood, Los Pinos

 

A choir from Puerto Rico visited and ministered in Los Pinos.  La Mision's children's choir also sang!  

Invisible Children

www.invisiblechildren.com/home.php

I was checking my Facebook as I like to do so periodically during the day, and I was hit with a link a friend posted. It is the story of three college aged guys who went to Africa to make movies and their lives were changed forever. What they saw affected them in a deep way. They saw first hand the children abducted to become children soldiers for an evil man named Kony... A man whose agenda is purely power. He is described as pure evil, changing innocent children into monsters. Needless to say, I was impacted by this video all that they show and tell about the history of Uganda. Then I am further impacted in a different way, by the thought that 3 young guys, saw an injustice and for the last 6yrs have been doing all they can to fight it. They have created a worldwide movement to stop Kony. I was also hit by the reality of what one man can do, one evil man. This man has 5 countries in Africa living in Fear!

Now think about it. One person, controlling 5 nations through fear, abducting children. 3 young college kids in the forefront of bringing peace and change... WOW.. what can I as one person do? Even more so, what can I with the power of the Holy Spirit living in me do? I ask you the same thing? What can you as one person do? A LOT! I know this has not much to do with our work here in Argentina, but at the same time it does. It has given me a kick in the pants.. to get working, get praying to open my eyes to see how can I use my gifts to bring change. I challenge you in your life, in your sphere of influence to do the same. It has given me a bigger burden to challenge the young youth here in La Mison especially the college kids to be inspired. We have been feeling a burden to start a college group at La Mision, and this has confirmed it for us. We want our college kids to use their gifts to be an impact on this world for God's glory. Pray with us that we all would hear God's call and rise above ourselves!

March forward

Hee hee.. did you catch my play on words... it is finally March and for us it is time to "march forward."  Arriving to March has been a goal of mine since we started packing our house in Buffalo.  I knew back then that it would take at least six months to get settled in and a year to feel at home.  I knew that would come in the Fall (which is in March here), we would have some kind of routine in place once the kids were in school and things at church would go into full swing after the summer.

And so it is... Isa has started school on the 2nd. He is loving it, though I worry about how long his school day is.  He leaves about 7:45 and doesn't get home till about 4:45. He is going to a bi-lingual school and is enjoying his new friends.  I totally respect him.  He began school at the end of the school year last year.  He was there from Oct. to Dec.  He began without speaking any Spanish.  Now, he speaks and communicates well.  I am amazed and blessed by his transition.  Thank you for your prayers, God has answered them.  Keep them coming for a good school year =).  "S"  will begin pre-school next Monday.  She will be going to a school nearer to us and is only in Spanish.  We also had the option to send "A," but we have decided to let her stay home and enjoy one more year with her mommy.

On the ministry side, things are starting to pick up.  "K" today will be visiting one of the "villas" that is predominantly Paraguayan. He will be going with the director of the social service ministry as well as one of our youth (that is no longer as young as we remember hee hee).  In this location there is a group of carpenters that want to learn to make kitchen cabinets, so it is a perfect way for "K" to make contacts into this community as well as laying the groundwork in this area for the vocational school.  Please keep all this covered in prayer!  Keep his safety in prayer as violence in the villas is very high.

For me, "C", I have met and will continue meeting with my cell group weekly and we are now doing a book study.  I am excited because I also have started meeting with a key leader to plan out the Bible school for the leaders in the church.  We are preparing the curriculum and classes and hope to begin meeting with our teachers in the next few weeks and then kick off soon after. Again keep this in prayer.  The church is in a very hard place and is walking through many transitions.

Ok, this blog entry has gotten long.  We will attempt to write more often. Still getting used to  the whole blog thing... Feel free to send questions or ideas of what you would like to see discussed on the blog.  That will help me with entry topics =) Blessings!! 

Un dia con Jesus/ A day with Jesus

"A day with Jesus" was the name given to the day we as a church, La Mision, went to spend a day outdoors.  It was a mixture of retreat, church picnic, church outdoors and so much more. It was a time to eat and fellowship together.  Many enjoyed playing sports, others enjoyed the sunshine and conversations, some lucky few even got an outdoor nap.  My favorite was having our Sunday service outside!  There is just something about worshipping God outdoors; I love it.  I love to sense His creation around me as we sing to Him and hear His word. I think there is just a little kid in all of us that just likes to be outside.  It was a wonderful time for all.  Isa even got to have some birthday cake with his church buddies.   "A Day with Jesus,"  a day with His followers, His creation, His presence...