Passion for Paraguay

I recently began to pursue my Master's in education. I had postponed my desire for more formal training for a while, and then with the accident in 2012, going to school was the last thing on my mind.  Over these past few years, however, I have had the chance to teach at various Bible schools in Paraguay and Argentina, and I see opportunities for helping in this area in the churches I am in contact with. I believe that continuing my education will help me to be a better teacher, pastor, and missionary. Two years before the accident Julie and I founded ICCI, a small Bible-training center targeted at helping Paraguayans to discover their calling and preparing them for ministry. We had to give up this particular dream (although several students continued and are finishing their education this coming year at a sister institution), but training others remains at the heart of what I love doing in ministry. I love to learn, and I also love to help others grow and discover truth a...

Timmy's first day of school.  Our big guy started first grade on Thursday.   We are doing something completely different this year.  We are homeschooling him in the morning (primarily Bible, English and Reading) and in the afternoon he attends 8 de Diciembre Elementary School.  It is three blocks from our home and it is a national school.   This is their formation where they salute the flag before the children head to their classrooms. There are 14 first graders, which is an unusually small class.  It is shocking how few resources government schools have.  After two days of school from 1:00-5:00 p.m. the only thing they have done is read two stories and color two pictures.  The books have not yet arrived for the teachers and won't be expected for another month.  The state of education in Paraguay leaves so much to be desired.  Nonetheless, we feel like it is good socialization for Timmy to be in school, and he will get a b...

Despite the heat and lack of rain (thank the Lord for the rain that just arrived) this month has brought a huge harvest! Here's a sampling:  green beans  black beans have been peeled and packaged and ready to sell  One of our many squash... cucumbers (from just one picking)...we've harvested over 50 lbs so far Our harvest has kept us busy canning pickles...  shelling nuts at lightning speed with the new nut sheller!! and making peanut products.  Here's the wonderful production team...  The more we can process our produce, the better the revenue for the institute. Our students have been harvesting and processing agro products this week so we can still have products to sell while they are on summer break.  This Saturday is our closing ceremony and Sunday is our last service and the students will go home for the summer, so they have been working hard to get everything harvested before they leave. We want to share with you about an immediate need we h...

Today we started harvesting our peanuts (almost an acre) that we planted 7 months ago.    Look at the soil, loaded with peanuts! Here is Sonia, one of our students with me during harvest.   Our plan is to process the peanuts into peanut butter and elaborate other peanut-based products for our institute, so that ICCI can be self-supporting and the students can learn about micro-enterprise. We'll be posting more on our mini-industry. Our next step is to dry and store the peanuts. If you have any suggestions of names for our peanut butter brand, we're looking for ideas!

Children of Promise child sponsorship started up in Itapaso!  We teamed up with Light for the Nations Christian school to help the needy children in this depressed area. After seven years of serving the ministry, I no longer am the director for this fantastic program.  A wonderful young lady named Sandra (pictured left) is the new leader and she is doing a great job!  Here she is meeting with the new site coordinator for Itapaso, Diana.   The difference between Light for the Nations and the other public school in the community is night and day.  The desks are broken and there are not enough for every student, the windows are broken, the fans don't work.  While students here receive TOP NOTCH education. There are 25 children currently attending the school and currently, five still need sponsors.  Sponsorship gives each child a wonderful education and a snack and lunch every day.  The cost is only $25/month to change a life. Click HERE to t...

We are so excited to share that the ICCI (Christian Institute for Integral Training) classes began last night!  We had 8 students for English class and 12 students for spiritual formation!  This is our teaching classroom, which we've been working steadily to prepare.    We are so grateful to God for this beginning and we pray that ICCI continues to grow and impact lives.

E and V are two men that are being helped through your support of the MV Gift Catalog .  They are living at  CECI institute in San Lorenzo.  Through Missionary Ventures' Catalog projects, the institute received wheelbarrows, tools, seeds, and help in building chicken coops for their community vision to help change lives in despair.  These men are learning how to live their lives without the use of alcohol.  They are being discipled in God's word and using their skills productively to aid their own community.  Please pray for CECI as it reaches out to more hurting people in the community and shows them a healthy way to recovery and fulfillment.  Their next project is to start a Christian daycare for poor families that need a safe and loving place to send their children while they work. Thank you for your help with the Gift Catalog this past year!  There are many more ways you can bless a life with this year's gifts, so check out all the ways y...

Here are a few random things from this week... We can't stop watching the videos from Japan.  Timmy was watching and said, "Mom, why is there a house floating down the street?"  We're praying for all affected and we loved this miracle rescue story from the rubble. A-MAZING!!! We loved hosting a myriad of different folks this week for meals and counseling in our new living room.  After four years of building, we never thought we'd finish, but we are so grateful that we are wrapping up the details and are now able to show hospitality to more people, something we love to do. A big thanks to special people who helped us finish. We cleaned the classroom and office for ICCI this week, pictures to come.  It was a disaster. We took out four piques (sand fleas) from timmy’s pinky toe.  Um, no pics of that.  He’s getting so good at this, he is the surgeon’s assistant!     Here is a great post on the harms short term missions teams can do if...

Remember when the group came to help build the school last month?  Well, " Luz para las Naciones " (Light for the Nations) school was inaugurated this weekend and classes start today!  The church rallied around the project and different people donated their services to make the tables, sew the curtain and smocks, paint the walls and decorate.  Doesn't it look fantastic!   The school will start with kindergarten and the goal is to add a classroom each year. Norberto shared a few words at the dedication service.  Here's the ribbon cutting.  This is a very exciting time for us, because we believe it is crucial to invest in the lives of children and youth if we want to see any lasting change in Paraguay.  ICCI leadership school for youth is set to open next month and our hope is to open another Christian school in San Lorenzo next year.  Keep praying with us that we will be light to the nations!! 

Yesterday wrapped up our national Youth Convention Weekend here at our church. The theme was "Heroes in 3D". Every session dealt with Heroes of the faith and what it takes to be a hero in today's culture (our testimony, our decisions, our willingness to be set part and be courageous and prepare for what's next).  Our speaker was Youth Specialties Paraguay director, Paulo Lacota  Here is our youth ministry leadership team The worship team was incredible! Praising with all their hearts  Games at the river Norberto was in charge of rappelling Sat. afternoon.  So much fun!  Terere time! Concert with Christian rock band "Extremo" on Sat. night These are the young people who feel that God is calling them into ministry!  We talked to them about ICCI and pray that they continue to take steps of obedience toward preparing for their calling.  These are the young heroes that will change Paraguay!

There is NO WAY on earth this could have been done without you. Thank you friends for your help with the Matching Grant Challenge for the ICCI Leadership Institute!  We received word that we arrived  $10,041on December 30.  Any gift that came in Dec 31 or after has not yet counted toward our total goal.  We will keep you posted as we hear more information on the final total. We are jumping up and down and are so thankful for your prayers and participation to help us reach this HUGE landmark!

 Only 4 Days Left... The December 31st deadline is fast approaching!  There's still a wee bit of time to help us meet the $5,000 Matching Grant Challenge for the ICCI Leadership Institute .  This exciting endeavor will train up young Paraguayans in a marketable trade and help them become leaders in the church and community. We need your help! You can donate now by clicking HERE .  Preference your donation for special project:  "Paraguay Bible School" Thank you so much for helping us reach our goal!

It's about time for an update on our leadership institute .  We are now accepting applications for classes in March!  Even though we don't know how many students will enroll, we have ordered 14 beds from some Christian metalworkers.  This will be one of the trades that the students can choose to learn at the institute. Here is an idea of their fine work.   These are the mattresses we ordered, thanks to generous friends who have been giving to the institute's needs. We are still needing about $10,000 to purchase everything we need for the institute's launching in three months.  Even though we don't have students or all the funds yet , we're taking steps of faith. The great news is that the Matching Grant Challenge is still on, but only until December 31st .  You can click here or click the red "Donate Now" button to the right of our blog and make a donation to special project "Paraguay Bible School." Don't forget that for every dolla...

This past week we received some very encouraging news.  Some friends of Paraguay are willing to match any gift given to the Leadership Training School up to $5,000 that is given before December 31st. This is HUGE, friends. That means that when you donate now , (Please preference your gift for Paraguay Bible School) a contribution of equal value comes from an anonymous source and effectively doubles the impact of your giving. If you give $100, it's matched by another $100 and the ministry receives a total of $200. If you are considering a donation to help start this school to train up future Paraguayan Christian leaders, please don't think too hard!  We need your gift!  The reality of the approaching starting date (March 2011) is looming above our heads.  While we are not yet fretting about the lack of funds, we need more people to come on board with the vision to transform the next generation of Paraguayans with the love of Jesus.  We have our list of...

As many of you know, we have gradually shifted from radio responsabilities to focusing on the startup of a bi-vocational institute to train Paraguayans For the next three months we will be traveling to various places in Paraguay to recruit and challenge young and not-so-young to dedicate a time to study the Bible and learn a trade. Our journey began in Obligado 17, some 30 minutes from our home. There, at a little country church that seats about 40 people we shared a lovely day surrounded by wheat fields, slow growing chicken and fresh air. The Obligado 17 church is led by farmer. He has felt God calling him to oversee this small congregation that him and a number of farming families began some 5 years ago. We enjoyed a home country meal, and enjoyed fellowship all afternoon. They are eager to walk along side this project. NEXT Stop. Bella Vista. We shared here this morning with the congregation who made us feel at home. When the chuch is packed it sits 400. The people in B. ...

Young people are leaving Paraguay by the droves.  There are few available jobs and the brightest young people are frustrated as they have no place to use their skills.  Young Christians in our region are also frustrated because they don't have a place to study for ministry and Christian service. Something has to change. We desire to raise up a new generation of Paraguayan leaders.  Many young people want to serve God here in Paraguay, but they don't know where and how to begin.   They are lacking the tools and the structure to learn about their gifts and how to apply them practically in the world. Enter ICI:  Integral Christian Institute.  This holistic training will focus on character development, leadership skills and Biblical training.  Young people who are at least 18 years of age will be a part of enriching classes such as New Testament, personal finances and time management. Since so many Paraguayans are unemployed it is crucial for stu...