29th of May, 2007
Allison Weaver = the writer
Dear Friends and Family,
Hello once again from Santa Cruz complete with wind and rain. Sorry the weather was so depressing! Besides the weather, we are certainly doing well besides the fact that Jess is sick again. I just put my kids to sleep so I can write to you all! As usual, we are not getting much sleep and working 9 hours every day. The reason is becuase we are always having fun with a bunch of people and participating in many events. Also, we still participate on the worship team at church. In fact, I think Monday and Thursday are the only times I get 8 hours of sleep...not to worry we still thrive thanks to coffee (except for me because I refuse to drink it)!
Now more about Jess. She seems to be getting better, but it is another stomach or intestinal bug. Just pray that she gets totally better. She is at work today, so I think it is something that will pass.
So, now I guess you want to hear more stories, so I shall relate to you one about my kids in Kindergarden. As you know, I work with 24 kids. We never did get 30 which is the grace of God as we are two teachers. Many of them have learning disabilities and most have loads of energy. Also, some have problems with rebellion or violence because of very bad family situations. The next story I will relate is how Jesus allowed me to be a light to one of my kids. As I am continually refined by God he gives me many opportunities to reach my kids. Basically, a little girl in my class poked one of my little boys in the eye today with a pencil. I thank God that it was not hard and he was not seriously hurt. Of course, I had to take him to the infermery where the nurse checked his eye to make sure it was ok. I explained to my little girl what could have happened to his eye if it would have been worse and did what I call the "mom discipline routine". She cried and wanted to be forgiven. It turned out that I was able to share Jesus with her and showed her that he could take away her pain and guilt. So, I guess in a way I was able to plant a seed of Jesus that I hope grows. From the bottom of my heart, I hope that she chooses Him and recieves his hope. Well that is enough about my kids. Of course as all of us go through the storms of life, he constantly helps us stand and fight.
Another thing that is constantly on our minds besides our kids and the many activities in our lives is transition. We are winding down here at the Guarderia Moises as we finish at the end of June. After that then the last vacation and goodbyes. We are not looking forward to leaving Bolivia. Bethany and Jess are still figuring out future plans, and Rachel and I are going to colleges...sigh..I don't like to think of that.
Well, I guess that is about it for the NEW NEWS. Here are the prayer requests/ praises for the team.
Praises:
-Team unity
- Friends here in Bolivia
- Our talented team
- God's faithfulness
-Protection of God
Prayer Requests:
-Jess's health
- Wisdom
-Grace for Transition
- Eyes to see our kids the way God sees them
- Grace for the storms
Tuesday, June 5, 2007
Time keeps moving forward...
May 11, 2007
Written by: Rachel Albrecht
Blessings to everyone in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord! I must start with an apology for the lateness of my letter. You see, I seem to have gotten into the Bolivian habit of being late. I was realizing the other day just how Bolivian I´ve become. Actually our whole team has become more Bolivian. We´re almost never on time (in American standards) to any event planned or unplanned, but we usually do make it on time by Bolivian standards. We also have gotten quite accostumed to hot humid weather down here, so when the winds blew and the rain fell and brought colder temperatures we all nearly froze! We tend to get cold once it gets below 80 degrees Farenheit and this past week it´s been getting down to the 50s at night, and sometimes during the day too. And we´re not even into winter yet! We are currently in autumn and the winter weather is yet to come in June and July, though I´m told it should not get much colder than it was this unseasonably cold week in May. Thank the Lord!
On to more important things....Last week we had a prayer team from Pennsylvania come down to lead some sessions for the kids at the children´s home and also offer prayer to anyone who wanted it. We really enjoyed gettting to know the team and helping out with some of the festivities. I had the privilege of translating the Sunday School lesson for the kids on Sunday. It was my first time doing so for a group of people and I was amazed at how far my Spanish has come in the time we´ve been down here. Praise God for His providence!
Also last week, Jess and I were both struggling with stomach problems again. We found an American missionary doctor that has a free clinic here, and were very grateful for her services. We are now taking amoeba medication and hoping that will cure us (along with your prayers of course!) I also found out yesterday that I had some other ¨friends¨ living in my hair. I killed them with lice shampoo when I got home from work. Surprisingly though, having amoebas and lice didn´t really freak me out as much as it might have before. It´s pretty common for people to have them down here, and if loving on my kids in the daycare means I get their bugs, then so be it. They need all the love and care they can get. I had 4 kids move up to the next age-level class this week and I seriously almost cried. I think I understand now how moms feel when their babies go to kindergarten...
Thanks for your prayers, letters, emails, etc.! We really look forward to hearing from all of you and welcome it at any time! May the Lord make His face shine upon you this week!
In Christ,
Rachel Albrecht
Praises:
Rachel and Jess found a good, free doctor and treatment for their stomach problems
We are loving (in general) our work at the guaderia (daycare) and hogar(children´s home)
God has been providing for all of our needs we didn´t even know we had!
Prayer Requests:
Health and safety for the team
More opportunities to share our faith
For God to be preparing our hearts for our departure in July
That we would make wise decisions and maintain good communication
Written by: Rachel Albrecht
Blessings to everyone in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord! I must start with an apology for the lateness of my letter. You see, I seem to have gotten into the Bolivian habit of being late. I was realizing the other day just how Bolivian I´ve become. Actually our whole team has become more Bolivian. We´re almost never on time (in American standards) to any event planned or unplanned, but we usually do make it on time by Bolivian standards. We also have gotten quite accostumed to hot humid weather down here, so when the winds blew and the rain fell and brought colder temperatures we all nearly froze! We tend to get cold once it gets below 80 degrees Farenheit and this past week it´s been getting down to the 50s at night, and sometimes during the day too. And we´re not even into winter yet! We are currently in autumn and the winter weather is yet to come in June and July, though I´m told it should not get much colder than it was this unseasonably cold week in May. Thank the Lord!
On to more important things....Last week we had a prayer team from Pennsylvania come down to lead some sessions for the kids at the children´s home and also offer prayer to anyone who wanted it. We really enjoyed gettting to know the team and helping out with some of the festivities. I had the privilege of translating the Sunday School lesson for the kids on Sunday. It was my first time doing so for a group of people and I was amazed at how far my Spanish has come in the time we´ve been down here. Praise God for His providence!
Also last week, Jess and I were both struggling with stomach problems again. We found an American missionary doctor that has a free clinic here, and were very grateful for her services. We are now taking amoeba medication and hoping that will cure us (along with your prayers of course!) I also found out yesterday that I had some other ¨friends¨ living in my hair. I killed them with lice shampoo when I got home from work. Surprisingly though, having amoebas and lice didn´t really freak me out as much as it might have before. It´s pretty common for people to have them down here, and if loving on my kids in the daycare means I get their bugs, then so be it. They need all the love and care they can get. I had 4 kids move up to the next age-level class this week and I seriously almost cried. I think I understand now how moms feel when their babies go to kindergarten...
Thanks for your prayers, letters, emails, etc.! We really look forward to hearing from all of you and welcome it at any time! May the Lord make His face shine upon you this week!
In Christ,
Rachel Albrecht
Praises:
Rachel and Jess found a good, free doctor and treatment for their stomach problems
We are loving (in general) our work at the guaderia (daycare) and hogar(children´s home)
God has been providing for all of our needs we didn´t even know we had!
Prayer Requests:
Health and safety for the team
More opportunities to share our faith
For God to be preparing our hearts for our departure in July
That we would make wise decisions and maintain good communication
Stansberrry Anniversary
April 30, 2007
written by: Bethany Weiler
Greetings to all from the land of Bolivia that is beginning to turn cooler with the changing of seasons! We have had unusually cold temperatures this past week and are quite grateful that the sun has come out once again as we feel the heat of the sun on our faces! We were actually wearing hoodies and hats and shivering slightly in our jeans and sneakers...it was probably about 65 degrees or so...but it was cold!!! In reality though, I am convinced that the temperatures in the States are not the same as the feel of the temperatures down here, and another missionary lady agrees with me too. Something about the humidity and moisture in the air makes the cold just stick to you more and go down to your bones!
Anyways, the team and I continue to work at the guarderia or daycare everyday and are falling in love with our kids more and more with the passing of time. We honestly can't believe we are up to just 2 and 1/2 months...time has truly flown while down here! We have also really enjoyed getting more involved with the children at the hogar or children's home and spending time hanging out with them and getting to know them better. I'm actually giving piano lessons to one of the girls there, so it's been quite an interesting experience to give piano lessons in Spanish, but I'm making it!!
This past weekend we had a celebration for the 53rd anniversary of the hogar and also a dedication ceremony of the casitas that the children are now living in with their parents. Each family prepared something special to share in the little program that we had, and it was really neat to see the choreographies that the kids put together. We actually ended up helping with the worship time and setting up in the morning for the church service and supper to accommodate about 200 people! We had a great time and enjoyed getting to talk with different people connected with the hogar in some form or another.
Please continue to keep our health in your prayers as we have been struggling with some stomach problems and such these past two weeks...I won't go into any details, but just keep our overall health in your prayers! Also, continue to pray for our overall strength and state of mind as some days are pretty stressful for us at times as we work with the kids here at the guarderia!
We thank the Lord though that He is continuing to lead and guide us and has always remained faithful here to protect us and provide for our every need. He is our ultimate source of strength and always there at our side. Thanks for all your prayers, support and encouragement!! It means a lot to us to know that we have so many people from back home praying for us on a regular basis!! Also thanks for your letters and cards!! May the God of peace continue to strengthen each one of you as you continue to serve Him and glorify Him in all you do and say!!
Que Dios les bendiga
written by: Bethany Weiler
Greetings to all from the land of Bolivia that is beginning to turn cooler with the changing of seasons! We have had unusually cold temperatures this past week and are quite grateful that the sun has come out once again as we feel the heat of the sun on our faces! We were actually wearing hoodies and hats and shivering slightly in our jeans and sneakers...it was probably about 65 degrees or so...but it was cold!!! In reality though, I am convinced that the temperatures in the States are not the same as the feel of the temperatures down here, and another missionary lady agrees with me too. Something about the humidity and moisture in the air makes the cold just stick to you more and go down to your bones!
Anyways, the team and I continue to work at the guarderia or daycare everyday and are falling in love with our kids more and more with the passing of time. We honestly can't believe we are up to just 2 and 1/2 months...time has truly flown while down here! We have also really enjoyed getting more involved with the children at the hogar or children's home and spending time hanging out with them and getting to know them better. I'm actually giving piano lessons to one of the girls there, so it's been quite an interesting experience to give piano lessons in Spanish, but I'm making it!!
This past weekend we had a celebration for the 53rd anniversary of the hogar and also a dedication ceremony of the casitas that the children are now living in with their parents. Each family prepared something special to share in the little program that we had, and it was really neat to see the choreographies that the kids put together. We actually ended up helping with the worship time and setting up in the morning for the church service and supper to accommodate about 200 people! We had a great time and enjoyed getting to talk with different people connected with the hogar in some form or another.
Please continue to keep our health in your prayers as we have been struggling with some stomach problems and such these past two weeks...I won't go into any details, but just keep our overall health in your prayers! Also, continue to pray for our overall strength and state of mind as some days are pretty stressful for us at times as we work with the kids here at the guarderia!
We thank the Lord though that He is continuing to lead and guide us and has always remained faithful here to protect us and provide for our every need. He is our ultimate source of strength and always there at our side. Thanks for all your prayers, support and encouragement!! It means a lot to us to know that we have so many people from back home praying for us on a regular basis!! Also thanks for your letters and cards!! May the God of peace continue to strengthen each one of you as you continue to serve Him and glorify Him in all you do and say!!
Que Dios les bendiga
More on Samaipata vacation
April 23, 2007
by: Jessica Dening
Well it´s my turn once again to write of the adventures of Bolivia. This past week we finally took our overdue first vacation. We left Wednesday and traveled about 2 and half hours to the beautiful mountainous region of the Santa Cruz district to a small town by the name of Samaipata. Upon arriving we realized there would be plenty of time to rest considering that the town consisted of very little. So we had plenty of much needed rest that we didn´t realize we needed so badly. We began our time Wednesday with a silent retreat time until dinner, which was very good for all of us, then we continued that night with a time of worship and encouragement. The next day we set out to see the town, which like I said did not consist of much but we were able to use that time to relax and set up a hike for the next day. That night we had the opportunity to have a relaxing fire and enjoy the most beautiful sky of stars that we had seen in a long while. The next day we got up early to trek through a mountainous region and cloud forest, which is similar to a rain forest but recieves it´s moisture from the clouds due to its altitude. We enjoyed a beautiful view and recieved some much enjoyed excercise. Needless to say we were ready to sleep that night, but before we hit the sack Bethany requested that we check to her itchy head, and yup you guessed it, she became the first team member to recieve lice from our kids. So we spent some time removing the lice and then enjoyed a goodnight´s sleep before the group from Canada that has been helping out at the guaderia and hogar for the past two weeks arrived and we met them at a beautiful sight of waterfalls for some swimming in ice cold water and then attempting to go out for dinner. This is when things became interesting...as I asked for a table for 19 at La Vaca Loca (The Crazy Cow) the owner replied that he would need 10 minutes so we decided that we would wait in the plaza. Then the power in the entire town went out, and we discovered that they would not be able to cook for us without electricity which was a bit of surprise due to the fact that gas the most common form of cooking here in Bolivia. So this began the search of a restaurant that was capable of cooking for 19 without electricity. Bethany and I went to scoure the town with Natinho (our Bralisian friend) and Mark from the Canadian group and recieved information from another restaurant that couldn´t take us to go to a german owned restaurant that should be able to cook for us. Little did we know that this would just lead us to another restaurant that finally took us after wandering around town in the dark for far too long. Then we waited for about two hours to recieve the well appreciated food finally with electricity. That night we enjoyed a few games of mafia and hot coffee after freezing in the cold before heading to bed. The next day we ended our journey by going to visit incan ruins where we had our own church service and then headed home only to endure brake troubles and a flat tire. But we arrived safely and enjoyed another dinner with our new Canadian friends. We went back to work today, and though we are a bit tired from translating for the past two days, we were rested and ready to see our kids once again.
Prayer requests:
That are able to fully trust in God and surrender all to Him that will occur throughout our lives.
Our friend Rebecca will be healed, and the doctors can help her.
Team unity as we all have seperate stresses throughout the work day.
Safe travel as friends from the states that have been here since July are leaving Wednesday and the group from Canada is leaving Friday.
Praises:
We were able to rest and have time for ourselves.
We were able to make new friends with the group from Canada.
We are all healthy and touching lives at the guaderia and hogar.
by: Jessica Dening
Well it´s my turn once again to write of the adventures of Bolivia. This past week we finally took our overdue first vacation. We left Wednesday and traveled about 2 and half hours to the beautiful mountainous region of the Santa Cruz district to a small town by the name of Samaipata. Upon arriving we realized there would be plenty of time to rest considering that the town consisted of very little. So we had plenty of much needed rest that we didn´t realize we needed so badly. We began our time Wednesday with a silent retreat time until dinner, which was very good for all of us, then we continued that night with a time of worship and encouragement. The next day we set out to see the town, which like I said did not consist of much but we were able to use that time to relax and set up a hike for the next day. That night we had the opportunity to have a relaxing fire and enjoy the most beautiful sky of stars that we had seen in a long while. The next day we got up early to trek through a mountainous region and cloud forest, which is similar to a rain forest but recieves it´s moisture from the clouds due to its altitude. We enjoyed a beautiful view and recieved some much enjoyed excercise. Needless to say we were ready to sleep that night, but before we hit the sack Bethany requested that we check to her itchy head, and yup you guessed it, she became the first team member to recieve lice from our kids. So we spent some time removing the lice and then enjoyed a goodnight´s sleep before the group from Canada that has been helping out at the guaderia and hogar for the past two weeks arrived and we met them at a beautiful sight of waterfalls for some swimming in ice cold water and then attempting to go out for dinner. This is when things became interesting...as I asked for a table for 19 at La Vaca Loca (The Crazy Cow) the owner replied that he would need 10 minutes so we decided that we would wait in the plaza. Then the power in the entire town went out, and we discovered that they would not be able to cook for us without electricity which was a bit of surprise due to the fact that gas the most common form of cooking here in Bolivia. So this began the search of a restaurant that was capable of cooking for 19 without electricity. Bethany and I went to scoure the town with Natinho (our Bralisian friend) and Mark from the Canadian group and recieved information from another restaurant that couldn´t take us to go to a german owned restaurant that should be able to cook for us. Little did we know that this would just lead us to another restaurant that finally took us after wandering around town in the dark for far too long. Then we waited for about two hours to recieve the well appreciated food finally with electricity. That night we enjoyed a few games of mafia and hot coffee after freezing in the cold before heading to bed. The next day we ended our journey by going to visit incan ruins where we had our own church service and then headed home only to endure brake troubles and a flat tire. But we arrived safely and enjoyed another dinner with our new Canadian friends. We went back to work today, and though we are a bit tired from translating for the past two days, we were rested and ready to see our kids once again.
Prayer requests:
That are able to fully trust in God and surrender all to Him that will occur throughout our lives.
Our friend Rebecca will be healed, and the doctors can help her.
Team unity as we all have seperate stresses throughout the work day.
Safe travel as friends from the states that have been here since July are leaving Wednesday and the group from Canada is leaving Friday.
Praises:
We were able to rest and have time for ourselves.
We were able to make new friends with the group from Canada.
We are all healthy and touching lives at the guaderia and hogar.
Samaipata vacation
April 14,2007
Allison Weaver = the writer
Dear Friends and Family of the Bolivia YES team,
Greetings from a very windy Santa Cruz, where lizards and geckos enjoy the sun and birds sing melodies strange to the North American ear. As a team we are especially happy this weekend because we get to rest, and next week is our vacation to Samaipata, a very beautiful place just outside of Santa Cruz. It should be a good time to relax with our team, and grow closer to our Lord and savior, Jesus Christ!!!!
Our vacation will be a welcome break from a busy schedule and hard work load. Each person that we meet here challenges us to be a light for Christ, especially with work where we see and interact with children from poor, hurting families. One example of a situation making me more aware of the hurt in my students' lives is George Luis. George is a boy of about 5 or so years of age. Besides rotting teeth, and a skin disease called Caracha (I am not sure of the name in English), I noticed something more in his eyes. I saw a lot of hurt and pain. When I gave him a bath the other day, I saw a large cut that looked like it was healing on his cheast. I asked him what it was from. He said that someone beat him up. I don't know if it was a knife wound, but it definitely looked bad to my unprofessional eyes. Things like that make me realize the blessings I do have, and resolve to show them as much love as I can.
Besides working really hard, drinking coffee and tea , and chilling with friends we have gotten involved with our church, Centro Familiar Cristiana Las Missiones. Bethany, Rachel, and Jess are regular members of the worship team, we attend youth group, and both church services on Sunday. Through our church, we have gotten to know people and become part of their family. Also, we have become increasingly involved with Stansberry Children's home and have gotten to know many of the kids, volunteer staff, and teens there.
Easter was amazing especially because of the sunrise service at Tahuichi Aguilera, the local professional soccer stadium. All of the evangelical Christian churches met together to welcome in Easter with a prayer vigil, and service lasting from 11:30PM-6:00 AM! It was incredible to see the sheer volume of Christians present and worship God with such a multitude of people! There were arround 40,000 people crowded into the stadium! It may seem small to the North American ear, but to me it was huge!! Then I went to church for breakfast and a service. Afterword we slept, and woke up with enough time to go to another service!
I really don't know what else to tell you all about...well, I suppose I could tell you about my birthday. I must thank all of you who remembered it, because you made it very special! My team was really nice and took me out to eat with a bunch of friends. We had a very fun day!
Well, here are the praises and prayers!
Praises
-Good health
-increased friendships
-God's grace for us as a team as we work
- Worship music in Spanish
- Good team relationships
Prayer requests
-Strength, patience and love while working with our kids at the daycare
-Safety as we travel
-Bethany, Jess, and Rachel's backs
- The Country of Bolvia
- Reknewed passion to reach out to our kids even when we are tired
-A third teacher for Alli's class...( I work with one other teacher in a class of 25 kids. We will be getting 30 children soon.)
I guess that is about it! May God Bless you tons, and give you peace!!!
Thanks for your prayers!
-Allison for the team
Allison Weaver = the writer
Dear Friends and Family of the Bolivia YES team,
Greetings from a very windy Santa Cruz, where lizards and geckos enjoy the sun and birds sing melodies strange to the North American ear. As a team we are especially happy this weekend because we get to rest, and next week is our vacation to Samaipata, a very beautiful place just outside of Santa Cruz. It should be a good time to relax with our team, and grow closer to our Lord and savior, Jesus Christ!!!!
Our vacation will be a welcome break from a busy schedule and hard work load. Each person that we meet here challenges us to be a light for Christ, especially with work where we see and interact with children from poor, hurting families. One example of a situation making me more aware of the hurt in my students' lives is George Luis. George is a boy of about 5 or so years of age. Besides rotting teeth, and a skin disease called Caracha (I am not sure of the name in English), I noticed something more in his eyes. I saw a lot of hurt and pain. When I gave him a bath the other day, I saw a large cut that looked like it was healing on his cheast. I asked him what it was from. He said that someone beat him up. I don't know if it was a knife wound, but it definitely looked bad to my unprofessional eyes. Things like that make me realize the blessings I do have, and resolve to show them as much love as I can.
Besides working really hard, drinking coffee and tea , and chilling with friends we have gotten involved with our church, Centro Familiar Cristiana Las Missiones. Bethany, Rachel, and Jess are regular members of the worship team, we attend youth group, and both church services on Sunday. Through our church, we have gotten to know people and become part of their family. Also, we have become increasingly involved with Stansberry Children's home and have gotten to know many of the kids, volunteer staff, and teens there.
Easter was amazing especially because of the sunrise service at Tahuichi Aguilera, the local professional soccer stadium. All of the evangelical Christian churches met together to welcome in Easter with a prayer vigil, and service lasting from 11:30PM-6:00 AM! It was incredible to see the sheer volume of Christians present and worship God with such a multitude of people! There were arround 40,000 people crowded into the stadium! It may seem small to the North American ear, but to me it was huge!! Then I went to church for breakfast and a service. Afterword we slept, and woke up with enough time to go to another service!
I really don't know what else to tell you all about...well, I suppose I could tell you about my birthday. I must thank all of you who remembered it, because you made it very special! My team was really nice and took me out to eat with a bunch of friends. We had a very fun day!
Well, here are the praises and prayers!
Praises
-Good health
-increased friendships
-God's grace for us as a team as we work
- Worship music in Spanish
- Good team relationships
Prayer requests
-Strength, patience and love while working with our kids at the daycare
-Safety as we travel
-Bethany, Jess, and Rachel's backs
- The Country of Bolvia
- Reknewed passion to reach out to our kids even when we are tired
-A third teacher for Alli's class...( I work with one other teacher in a class of 25 kids. We will be getting 30 children soon.)
I guess that is about it! May God Bless you tons, and give you peace!!!
Thanks for your prayers!
-Allison for the team
Wednesday, April 4, 2007
Visitors and New Happenings, By: Rachel
April 1, 2007
Yesterday when I was thinking about writing the team newsletter I thought, man, nothing has really happened lately. But, the more I thought about it, the more I found myself to be completely wrong. For instance, today for the second Sunday in a row, I attended some baptisms at a camp pool right outside of town. Today the whole team went and really enjoyed an afternoon "tranquilo" as they like to say here. It was also very refreshing to see people ready to show the world that they follow Christ by taking part in baptism, and also good to be reminded of the commitment I myself have made to the very same God who has brought me here. Particularly special was to see the daughter of our boss, Lucy, get baptized by both of her parents. Lucy's husband is the pastor of the Principae de Paz church which was having baptisms today.Yesterday was also a very important day for a lot of children in the Stansberry Children Home as they are now moved into 3 large houses, each one complete with a set of parents for the 9 kids living in each one. We are very excited to see this change taking place as we have become friends with the kids here and believe they can now have a life a little bit more normal than just living in an orphanage and sharing rooms with several people and not having very much parental attention. The change is large for the children and teens involved as well as the new parents, so please be in prayer for all of them during this transition.
Another exciting thing that happened last week was that on Monday we were visited by another YESer, Janene's, parents. Janene is one of my good friends from Hesston and is currently serving with the Guinea-Bissau team in Africa, however, her parents came to Bolivia to visit her older brother who is a missionary in La Paz and thought they'd make a much-appreciated trip down to see us as well. We were very blessed and encouraged by their visit. It was good to see some familiar faces once again!
Blessings,
Rachel Albrecht
Praises:
Our Spanish is getting pretty good
We are finding ways to get involved in the community outside of work in the daycare
Health in general has been pretty good
God has been providing for our needs, even those we didn't know we had
Prayer Requests:
Rachel and Beth's backs as working with little kids has been quite hard on them
Encouragement for the team
That we would keep our focus here till the end
That we will trust God with all the details of our future plans
That health will continue to stay good
That God will open doors for us to share the Gospel as it is sometimes hard to find opportunities to share as we are somewhat boxed into our work at the daycare and in the church
That we reflect Jesus to the children we work with daily
P.S. Sorry about the website not being updated much recently. The computer we usually use to do that at the daycare has been down for a while so we're not sure when we'll be able to post more pictures and whatnot. Please be patient! :)
Yesterday when I was thinking about writing the team newsletter I thought, man, nothing has really happened lately. But, the more I thought about it, the more I found myself to be completely wrong. For instance, today for the second Sunday in a row, I attended some baptisms at a camp pool right outside of town. Today the whole team went and really enjoyed an afternoon "tranquilo" as they like to say here. It was also very refreshing to see people ready to show the world that they follow Christ by taking part in baptism, and also good to be reminded of the commitment I myself have made to the very same God who has brought me here. Particularly special was to see the daughter of our boss, Lucy, get baptized by both of her parents. Lucy's husband is the pastor of the Principae de Paz church which was having baptisms today.Yesterday was also a very important day for a lot of children in the Stansberry Children Home as they are now moved into 3 large houses, each one complete with a set of parents for the 9 kids living in each one. We are very excited to see this change taking place as we have become friends with the kids here and believe they can now have a life a little bit more normal than just living in an orphanage and sharing rooms with several people and not having very much parental attention. The change is large for the children and teens involved as well as the new parents, so please be in prayer for all of them during this transition.
Another exciting thing that happened last week was that on Monday we were visited by another YESer, Janene's, parents. Janene is one of my good friends from Hesston and is currently serving with the Guinea-Bissau team in Africa, however, her parents came to Bolivia to visit her older brother who is a missionary in La Paz and thought they'd make a much-appreciated trip down to see us as well. We were very blessed and encouraged by their visit. It was good to see some familiar faces once again!
Blessings,
Rachel Albrecht
Praises:
Our Spanish is getting pretty good
We are finding ways to get involved in the community outside of work in the daycare
Health in general has been pretty good
God has been providing for our needs, even those we didn't know we had
Prayer Requests:
Rachel and Beth's backs as working with little kids has been quite hard on them
Encouragement for the team
That we would keep our focus here till the end
That we will trust God with all the details of our future plans
That health will continue to stay good
That God will open doors for us to share the Gospel as it is sometimes hard to find opportunities to share as we are somewhat boxed into our work at the daycare and in the church
That we reflect Jesus to the children we work with daily
P.S. Sorry about the website not being updated much recently. The computer we usually use to do that at the daycare has been down for a while so we're not sure when we'll be able to post more pictures and whatnot. Please be patient! :)
Finding Friends and Water, By: Bethany
March 20, 2007
Greetings to all from the sunny land of Bolivia! This past weekend, we had an amazing time attending a conference held right here in Santa Cruz called the Global Discipleship Training (GDT) Alliance, where representatives from all over the Americas (North, Central, and South) have come to attend this meeting to compare notes, encourage one another, and figure out new ways to evangelize and spread the gospel of Jesus Christ. This has been a very encouraging time for our team, and we are excited to attend the closing program tomorrow to spend time together withour brothers and sisters from all over the world!
Our time here continues to grow more and more interesting...for example this past Saturday, Jess and I woke up to find that we had absolutely no water in our house, and we realized that in order to clean, make breakfast and shower, we were going to have to find water. So, we decided that the best thing to do was go ask one of our neighbors, which just so happened to be Jess´s aunt here in Bolivia, if they too were out of water. Well, when we realized that not just us, but in fact the whole neighborhood was out of water, we decided that some action must be taken, and seeing as we were the first ones up that morning, we would rescue the other girls on the team and find water to make breakfast! Being the great thinkers that we are, we realized that the hogar de niños has a separate well from the city, and would therefore have water, so we went over there to lug home a big 5 gallon bucket of water, only to discover that the other girls were up, had breakfast made, and in fact were using water out of the faucet that had just been spitting out air 15 minutes ago! So, we ended up not rescuing our team, but if ever we should be in a shortage of water in the future, Jess and I have a whole rescue plan made up, and will be right on the job in minutes!
Work at the daycare has been keeping us hopping and on our toes, and we are constantly asking the Lord for patience and strength daily, but He is always faithful to meet our needs and lift us up when we fall. I personally am beginning to really learn what it means to make the joy of the Lord my strength, and He continues to be our constant source of hope, strength and joy! I pray that the Lord would continue to pour out His blessing in your lives as you continue to serve Him with all your heart!
Things to keep in prayer:
-Strength and patience for each and every day as we work with the kids, that we would see them as Christ sees them and show them His love in everything we do and say
-All of our backs as we are constantly bending over the whole day and lifting kids around
-Our Spanish language as we learn more and more, that the Lord would continue to open our minds and allow us to communicate easily with all the people that we have come to love so much here
Praises:
-The overall health of the team has returned, and although some of us have a little bit of a cold, our stomachs are doing a lot better
-We have had an amazing time meeting brothers and sisters from all over the Americas, and it has been very encouraging for our spiritual lives
-We have discovered amazing Spanish worship music here, and have all fallen in love with this beautiful music which is such an encouragement after a long day of work
¡Dios les bendiga!
Greetings to all from the sunny land of Bolivia! This past weekend, we had an amazing time attending a conference held right here in Santa Cruz called the Global Discipleship Training (GDT) Alliance, where representatives from all over the Americas (North, Central, and South) have come to attend this meeting to compare notes, encourage one another, and figure out new ways to evangelize and spread the gospel of Jesus Christ. This has been a very encouraging time for our team, and we are excited to attend the closing program tomorrow to spend time together withour brothers and sisters from all over the world!
Our time here continues to grow more and more interesting...for example this past Saturday, Jess and I woke up to find that we had absolutely no water in our house, and we realized that in order to clean, make breakfast and shower, we were going to have to find water. So, we decided that the best thing to do was go ask one of our neighbors, which just so happened to be Jess´s aunt here in Bolivia, if they too were out of water. Well, when we realized that not just us, but in fact the whole neighborhood was out of water, we decided that some action must be taken, and seeing as we were the first ones up that morning, we would rescue the other girls on the team and find water to make breakfast! Being the great thinkers that we are, we realized that the hogar de niños has a separate well from the city, and would therefore have water, so we went over there to lug home a big 5 gallon bucket of water, only to discover that the other girls were up, had breakfast made, and in fact were using water out of the faucet that had just been spitting out air 15 minutes ago! So, we ended up not rescuing our team, but if ever we should be in a shortage of water in the future, Jess and I have a whole rescue plan made up, and will be right on the job in minutes!
Work at the daycare has been keeping us hopping and on our toes, and we are constantly asking the Lord for patience and strength daily, but He is always faithful to meet our needs and lift us up when we fall. I personally am beginning to really learn what it means to make the joy of the Lord my strength, and He continues to be our constant source of hope, strength and joy! I pray that the Lord would continue to pour out His blessing in your lives as you continue to serve Him with all your heart!
Things to keep in prayer:
-Strength and patience for each and every day as we work with the kids, that we would see them as Christ sees them and show them His love in everything we do and say
-All of our backs as we are constantly bending over the whole day and lifting kids around
-Our Spanish language as we learn more and more, that the Lord would continue to open our minds and allow us to communicate easily with all the people that we have come to love so much here
Praises:
-The overall health of the team has returned, and although some of us have a little bit of a cold, our stomachs are doing a lot better
-We have had an amazing time meeting brothers and sisters from all over the Americas, and it has been very encouraging for our spiritual lives
-We have discovered amazing Spanish worship music here, and have all fallen in love with this beautiful music which is such an encouragement after a long day of work
¡Dios les bendiga!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)