Passion for Paraguay

We had such a good time at Timmy's birthday party! Although it rained the second half and we had to move everything inside, it was still a blast. In fact, he keeps asking when we can have more balloons and cake! Thank God for a healthy 2 year old.

Today we are celebrating Thanksgiving. Unfortunately , in Paraguay there is no day to give thanks. And t here is no turkey to be found. I'm okay with that now, but m y first Thanksgiving Day here 5 years ago was a fiasco. I entered into a mini (okay, major!) crisis because I couldn’t find turkey, cranberries, stove top ( didn’t know you could make homemade stuffing!) and there were no canned pumpkin or cherry fillings to be found in the store. I remember it was the only day that I cried about missing home. (I am still learning how to cook from scratch!) Looking back, I realize how much emphasis we put on the exterior of an event and we miss the essence of the celebration. (i.e. Christmas). Well, this year we’ll probably be having chicken and eating yucca plant for our Thanksgiving meal, but we’ll also do what I love most…we’ll be sharing around the table our written list of blessings that we’ve experienced this year. We’ll also sing and make music. Norberto'...

We just had a work camp go home. They were definitely a unique bunch, and we absolutely loved them. They were all grandparents and one couple celebrated their 53rd anniversary this year. This group of folks worked as hard as any group of high schoolers and they had incredible attitudes and super flexibility. The truth of the matter is, they wore us youngin’s out! If you think you’re too old to serve, think again. One woman, 72 years old, is going back to school to get her bachelor’s in theology so she can teach women the Word of God. One man said this was his 6th mission trip and was already planning his next one. My dear retired college professor was here, bad knees and in, last year teaching a women's seminar and it was fantastic. We have other friends that are coming down for the 5th and 6th time this January. They are both in their late sixties and are professional builders. They take their vacation time helping us build churches. Another couple is in their retirement and they ...

We have a group from CMA (Christian Motorcycle Association) with us right now. We are going to dedicate three bikes while they are here, which is always a special event. This bike is specifically used for the Letra Project, the translation of the Bile into the Ache language. A team of four Ache leaders and an Argentinean Bible scholar have already translated the Gospel of Luke, and are completing Matthew, Mark and John at this time. Here is a picture of one of the CMAers handing over the keys to the Ache translator, Lorenzo. If you want to read more about Lorenzo’s testimony, read here .

Paraguay is ranked as the third most corrupt country in the western world according to a new study by the World Bank (Haiti and Venezuela are ranked first and second respectively). Corruption ruins lives, folks. This past weekend my brother-in-law, who lives in Asuncion, had his truck stolen in front of his work. He received a call the next day from someone who claimed that he had his truck and that for $1,000 he could have it back. However, if he made any contact with the police, he would be in great danger. He scrounged up the money and they arranged for him to send the money via western union to a random spot in the interior of the country and they would wait for the truck to be at a big supermarket in the capital city. Well, they sent the money on Monday morning to hold their end of the bargain and to their great dismay, their vehicle never arrived at the agreed location. So, they were robbed twice. Then, once my bil reported the entire situation to the police, he received more con...

We had a wicked storm on Oct 31. And I mean WICKED. It was Halloween night and right around midnight the wind started howling and the trees were cackling and I felt like Dorothy in Kansas. We grabbed Timmy out of his room and all retreated to the bathroom, the safest (and smallest) room in our home. We felt like there was seriously a cosmic battle going on around us and we began to pray for our safety, for our friends, our church and of course, the radio. This morning we drove around town and couldn’t believe the terrible damage the storm incurred on our small town. Our competitor radio station’s tower split in two and collapsed on a neighboring house. My heart went out to homes that had entire roofs fly off. Trees were down everywhere. Our little town made the national news! Well, the whole day yesterday we had no lights and no water. Try trying to keep a toddler boy clean all day especially when it’s muddy outside! We did lose a huge avocado tree on our lot, but I just thank God for ...