Commit your work to the Lord, and your plans will be established. Proverbs 16:3 (ESV)
Planning for the Future
The first week in January, the regional leadership team for our Latin American and Caribbean Region met in Belize for our semiannual meeting. There we received updates on the mission work in each of our countries, assessed progress made on 2019 goals, made adjustments as desired or needed, and set new goals for 2020.
More than an hour's drive from the city, much of which was via dirt road, we arrived at Camp Concordia. The most interesting and unexpected surprise for me was the freshness of the air. Located in a little clearing in the jungle, oxygen was in abundance. With a nearly constant mist of rain, the air was literally dripping with humidity. Wildlife, especially huge flocks of noisy parrots and other birds could be seen and heard in the mornings.
Sharing the Gospel in the Garden
As many of you know, the local botanical garden is located a short distance from my apartment, and is a place I like to walk several times each week. The workers at the garden are quite friendly and inquisitive, as are many of the locals who spend time there. The question of what brings me to Santiago often comes up in conversation, opening the door for a chat about Jesus.
One of the men I have visited with on quite a number of occasions over the past year or so, recently called to me as I entered the garden, and motioned for me to come over. As I walked over to him, he asked if I could get him a Bible. I was delighted to take him a Spanish Bible, with Luther's Small Catechism printed in the front. Along with the Bible, I gave him a Portals of Prayer in Spanish, and also a bookmark I designed for our mission, that lists each of our churches, the location, contact info and times for services. It is my prayer that as time goes on, we will have opportunities for more visits and perhaps, at some point, he will venture into one of our congregations in the area.
Supporting Roles are Necessary
Mission work in Latin America continues to move forward at a blistering pace, thanks be to God! We are especially grateful for our missionary pastors who are on the front lines preaching, teaching and administering the sacraments. Not only do they serve one or more congregations, additionally they serve as seminary professors, either in person or via online classes. My role continues to be a supporting role, providing physical or electronic resources for our missionaries, our seminary, and our church workers across the region, so as to enhance their ability to continue work at the current pace.
Most recently I have been working to make many hundreds of photos, video clips, presentation slides, logos and other resources available to our missionaries online, in a format that is much easier for them to see at a glance, what is available. It is searchable and laid out by country, project, missionary and resource. Now if a missionary needs a specific photo for a grant application, they can quickly and easily locate and download it. The ready made Power Point slides are designed to make presentations look great. Dozens of slides are now available on the site (in English and in Spanish), which are free for our missionaries to download and use.
This has been a huge project that is for internal use only, but as it is being accessed and used by more and more missionaries, the feedback I am receiving is extremely positive. Now when a pastor is writing a newsletter at 11 p.m., after a long day of teaching classes and visiting parishioners, he will find the latest photos of his work on a page specially designed to showcase the most recent and best photos of him and his family on the field. It brings me great joy to know that God is using my unique set of gifts to provide resources like this, that greatly streamline common missionary tasks.
Did you know?
- A new missionary, Ashley Lehr, has just arrived and has begun Spanish classes. Another new missionary, Tirzah Krey, arrives later this week. They will begin orientation together upon the arrival of Tirzah.
- The seminary library is being catalogued, and books shelved. This is an ongoing process, as there are hundreds of boxes of books, and each book must be catalogued and shelved individually. Our seminarians have been a great help in this mammoth task.
Please Pray
- Thanking God for our missionary team in Puerto Rico. They continue to bring comfort and support to the people of Puerto Rico.
- For a safe place for the missionaries to hold worship services in Ponce, Puerto Rico. The new building was damaged by the earthquakes, so until it is declared safe, or repaired, there is a need for a temporary place to worship.
- For travel safety as I visit Honduras later this month. The Evangelical Confessional Lutheran Church of Honduras is a brand new Lutheran church body, so please pray for faithful pastors to teach and lead this fledgling little church.
