Passion for Paraguay

We arrived in Anderson after a thousand mile road trip with the family. We left Orlando after last weeks  Sunday morning service. In Orlando, we had a chance to connect with many friends. A highlight of the trip was the MVI (Missionary Ventures) conference. The theme of the conference was Renewal . Representatives from various countries made the conference a very international experience. Check out www.mvi.org For the next month we will be connecting with friends and family in the Midwest. Anderson has a special place in my life. My grandparents David and Lilian Meier went to Anderson College and felt their call into missions here. My mother, and some other relatives studied here and have gone into the world to do great missionary work. As we look ahead in the coming weeks, the kids are longing for some snow; this will be the first time Mark, Nicole, Nancy and Anahi see snow. We arrived with temperatures in the 50 s. We are told this is very warm for this time of the year....

As I started my day, within a few hours, I had a list of things to do. By 10 am I had enough items to keep me busy for a week. After several hours in the office, I was able to send audio messages and video conference with people on both side of the Equator. I sent letters out to several people in just a few seconds. I posted on FB, and I googled some maps while listening to a webinar. Did my grandparents or even my parents have these technologies? The answer is no. David and Lilian Meier left on a steam ship the port of New Orleans in December of 1935 towards South America. All the field knowledge they had was a letter from a German missionary who wrote to America saying. Will someone come to Brazil? That was the beginning. Their first trip lasted a decade serving in several places in South America. There where no phone calls, no daily FB updates and no cool Instagram pictures. Few words on a telegram, or when letters were written they delivered weeks later were the ways...

Day one Sept 1 st :  A typical day in our lives This idea of sharing with you this short daily entry came to me on my jog today. So I start right now, committing to write a daily paragraph about my life here in Paraguay for the next month.  Please pardon my grammatical errors or expressions that might not sound so English. This is a very spontaneous way of sharing for me. I hope you enjoy and it helps us to connect in spite of the distance. It’s almost 6:30 pm. I got up at 4:45 am this morning. I don’t usually get up this early.  I had to leave town for a commitment. I was back at 7:30 am. Nancy and I had tea (the Paraguayan kinds with the metal straw) then breakfast. I went on my jog, then I run some errands for Nancy, and then we all had an early lunch as a family of six now. Mark, Nicole and Anahi, went back to their afternoon school activities at 1:30 pm while Dominick (three months now) and Nancy took a nap.  I got on a bus and rode for 30 min to a ...

10 months of grieving and healing All to You, I give it all to You. I lay my life before You. Lord, I surrender all. All that I have been through, I give it to You now. And though I have some questions, things I'll never understand, I come into Your presence, and I place them in Your hands. I know that You are faithful. Your mercy will sustain me, and Your grace will see me through. I cast my cares upon You, and I come to You in faith . (From the album, Thank You Lord, by Don Moen) Ten months ago, my life changed forever. I still wish so badly that I could go back to my former life, connected to Julie and Timothy. I struggle, I wrestle, but at the same time I am aware that I have to embrace and accept the new life God is giving me. It’s so easy to think that we are in control, and that life as we know it will last forever. Nobody lives expecting tragedy. We avoid it. But there is an appointed time. This alone should give us purpose and direction. I want to make mine ...

This is a great post for parents who desire to raise children who will change the world.    What are you doing to help your children think beyond themselves?

This past year we were able to help six ministries with 8 motorcycles (or trikes)!  Enrique in Bella Vista  German in Carlos Antonio Lopez  Motorcycle for Cerro Moroti  Marcio in Caaguazu  First impression of Marcio's new motorcycle- pure joy!  Indigenous people near Carayaó.  Marcio rides on rough dirt roads to visit the tribes.  Pastor Mario in Jesus  Feeding center and children's ministry in Botanical Gardens in Asuncion Bible translation project to the Ach é people. Here are a few of the thank you letters that show how God is using these bikes: CMA motorcycles for Paraguay From Letra Bible translation CMA donates motorcycles to Paraguay 2 From Alma ministry in Caaguazu We are delighted to be the bridge for these deserving ministries to receive a more effective means to reach Paraguay with the love of Jesus Christ.  Please pray for their safety on the road and for grace as they spread the message of hope each and every...

Nine years ago today we pulled into Paraguay.  This is what we (and our poor truck) looked like the day before arriving to the Paraguayan border.  After being on the Pan American highway for over 70 days (we left Anderson, Indiana on Sept. 6) we were so elated (and exhausted) when we finally arrived that we both wept when we saw the " Bienvenidos a Paraguay " sign. As we reflect back on these past nine years in South America, they've been some of the best and yet toughest years of our lives.  I look at myself then and I see myself as a kid, a whipper snapper of sixteen years or so (I was much older than that!).  I feel like I've matured decades since arriving here; the Paraguayans are so gracious and have taught me so much.  Yet, I still feel in a way like a kid cross-culturally.  I'm still making language blunders and I'm still missing social cues and I definitely still (and perhaps always will) feel like an outsider.  I can't imagine what I woul...

Sometimes life gets so crazy that we have little time to talk in adult language.  So, almost every day sometime before dusk (about 30 minutes before classes begin) we stroll through the wheat fields and let the boy and the dogs prance like dear in the wheat while we push the stroller, wax philosophic all while drinking our yerba mate tea .  This is what keeps me sane some days.    This is the picture we took from our window this week.  I will miss the golden wheat fields that greet me every morning, but there is something so beautiful in watching the harvest.  It's the same joy I get when I see that one of my orchids finally has a bloom and the anticipation of waiting for it to open.  It's the growth process that builds my excitement in both cases.  We've been watching the wheat grow for months and the harvest represents that the time is come for the wheat to be used.  The harvest is a celebration of hard work and of the time that is n...

The last few weeks have been filled with travel and activity.  Paraguay hosted the CIID conference (Interamerican Conference of the Church of God).  There were representatives from over 13 countries in Latin America!  Here are the Paraguayan representatives in their typical dress. It was a five day conference packed with workshops, networking, worship services, good food and fellowship.  We led a session on "Integral Mission." The next CIID conference will be held in Nicaragua in 2013.  On the tails of the CIID conference was our South American missionary conference in Montecarlo, Argentina.  Sometimes you get so used to serving others, that you're not accustomed to being served.  The local church treated us so well with local food (can you say BBQ).  The missionaries came from Haiti, Colombia, Bolivia and Belize and the Ecuadorian group missed their flight.  We had some meetings and time for site seeing as well.  After being to the Igu...

and that's OK.  Let the mantle pass."  -Miriam Adeney.   I'm reading Kingdom Without Borders , which I definitely recommend.  The author, Miriam Adeney, argues that today we must partner globally in missions and that the West will need to learn to follow.  She says that even though most of the money, power, training institutions, publishing houses and international organizations are based in the western hemisphere, God is doing something new in our time that involves a shift from the West to the East and South. (p.40) There is much to say about this issue, but I'd like to hear from you .  What do you think?   Should the west move over? How important is it for you to be "linked" to believers in other parts of the world? 

Hey, thanks for sharing your ideas on the characteristics of a missionary !  Feel free to keep commenting.... These are my hallmarks right now, or what I view as really important to keep us sane:  Prayer warrior-  Our first weapon when we are without a clue and without strength (which is pretty much every day). Resilience -or just being really thick-skulled and not quitting even when things are very tough. Major Flexibility- and I’m not talking ability to do the splits (thankfully).  I’m talking about the ability to go to the bathroom in really gross conditions. The ability to change plans at a moment's notice and welcome in an uninvited guest for lunch.  A deep love for people of different cultures, beliefs and perspectives.  MacGuyverish  -That's being ingenuous and creative with few resources, for those of you who are too young to have watched the show.

***As a missionary friend noted... "It seems like the guy on the right is showing Jesus' love to the stone-faced man on the left" So, we were just asked by a leader in the church what we would consider to be the top five "hallmarks of a missionary." Honestly, I didn't really know what a hallmark was.*blush* Our trusty dictionary.com told me a hallmark is " any distinguishing feature or characteristic."    Hmm, sounds sophisticated. Okay, I just got my top five.... BUTTT, before I share mine, I'd like to hear yours! Go on, don't be shy... and certainly don't be stone-faced like the guy on the left!

Click on the Paraguayan Nativity scene to read our Christmas Newsletter May God's peace and joy fill you this Christmas season. Merry Christmas!!    Norberto, Julie and Timmy  

This month, our eighth anniversary here in Paraguay, we finally got hot water!  I can finally wash white clothes without having to boil them. I can wash greasy dishes and get them clean the first time. I can take a shower that lasts for more than 30 seconds (our widow-maker electric shower device only got the water warm) and I had to heat up four kettles of water every night for our son's bath.  We are all SO thankful that we now have hot water. Now, why is it that I feel so guilty for having this luxury, when none of my neighbors do??  I'm struggling today between gratefulness and being undeservingly privileged. This is my struggle many, many days.  

We're the traveling trio!  Our little guy feels right at home in the car (Don't worry Mom, we didn't travel with him like this!) and being in new churches each weekend.  This past weekend (in Katuete and Ciudad del Este) we had the best response to ICI so far!  We had several people talk to us about the possibility of studying.  One couple in particular has a strong call to ministry.  They both work full-time and would need to quit their jobs to study, but we are praying that God will provide and give them the courage to take this next step. This weekend we will be in Santa Rita and next weekend we hit Encarnacion.  Please pray that God would speak to the people that need to be a part of the training program and that God would give us protection as we travel.

 Of the 80 blankets were received this year , through the Missionary Ventures Christmas Catalog , over half went to children on the streets or who are living in orphanages.  We worked through the Secretary for Children and Adolescents to make sure the blankets were distributed to the most needy children.  These are some more blanket recipients, which were delivered in June-August (our winter): These kids were found either working or sleeping on the streets by social workers.   These boys wash car windshields on very dangerous, busy streets to help their family make ends meet.    This little guy's mom works all day and he stays home alone. These are some girls in a shelter for abandoned children.    Thanks so much for making a difference in the lives of these little ones!  Please pray that the situation changes in Paraguay to better defend and protect these vulnerable children.

Right now our power is out.  Usually that would mean no internet and we'd be up a creek, because today is our office day.  However, our computer has a charged battery and we have a portable modem, so thanks to technology, we're in business! What a HUGE savings technology has been for us!  I think about Norberto's grandparents on the mission field and when they received a telegraph it meant someone had died.  Even missionaries twenty years ago had to make very expensive phone calls and pay for slow fax messages to connect with those back home. When we first arrived in Paraguay we could only call mom once a month because it was so costly.  Today we whip out emails daily, upload videos, scan documents and we talk via skype and do video calling for free .  I heart skype .  Grandma can see her grandson every week and check out what new invention he's created with his legos and she can see his boo-boos and blow him kisses, like grandmas love to do.  H...

This past week we crossed the ferry over to Argentina to preach in Montecarlo for their three day festivities. We shared in three different venues:  a marriage seminar, an evangelistic night and the church's anniversary and Thanksgiving celebration. The church was beautifully adorned for the celebration. Between services we visited the city's labyrinth park which is the largest in the country.  It took us over 30 minutes to find our way out! It is harvest time for yerba mate tea. Every few miles we see trucks over packed like this one on their way to the tea factories.  Did you know that the tea has to be harvested by hand ?  This weekend we celebrate Children's Day (August 16) with various activities.  More on that later...   We hope you have a GREAT weekend!

We're sitting in a conference right now by the Christian editor, Marcelo Lafitte, and he just made a statement that made me think... He was talking with a pastor from South Korea and asked about the reason for the high porcentage of nationals who are committed to Christ and the pastor said, "We have a strong compassion for the lost. If we are sitting on the train with someone who doesn't know Jesus, we won't leave their side until we haven't at the very least given them something to read or invited them to visit a church." Wow!  I can be so apathatic to those around me because I'm so busy with my life and agenda.  Father, give me a deep compassion for the lost sheep around me.  Help me to put my priorities aside when you give me opportunities to share with others about your hope.

"The saving purposes of Christ among the nations and in our neighborhoods will not be accomplished unless Christians choose to suffer." -John Piper, Desiring God I read those words this morning and I felt instantly convicted.  When do I ever choose to suffer?  Not enough.  I spend more time choosing comfort and ease instead of choosing to sacrifice or even worse, suffer.  When I think about suffering I think about great Christian martyrs like William Tyndale, Jim Elliott, Dietrich Bonfoeffer,the Whitmans and countless others. I recently read the story of the life of John Hyde, missionary to India.  John Hyde knew sacrifice. He would pray on his knees for 8 hours a day crying out to God for the lost around him.  His doctors say that the strain of his burden for the lost drove his heart into premature failure and death. In fact, bewildering his doctors, his heart had shifted from the left side of his chest to the right hand side.  Frequently, he wou...