Middle of the World

I am currently in Ecuador on a visa-renewal trip. This is my first time visiting Ecuador. I am staying with a host family in a town called Cumbaya, about 10 miles outside of Quito. The country is very beautiful- calm, cool. This is such a change from the hustle and bustle of Maracaibo.

Today, I went to a place that I have wanted to visit for a while now- Mitad del Mundo. Literally, the middle of the Earth- where the Equator lies. Here are some pics from today...

Demon Possession

The next day, when they came down from the mountain, a large crowd met him. A man in the crowd called out, "Teacher, I beg you to look at my son, for he is my only child. A spirit seizes him and he suddenly screams; it throws him into convulsions so that he foams at the mouth. It scarcely ever leaves him and is destroying him. I begged your disciples to drive it out, but they could not."
"O unbelieving and perverse generation," Jesus replied, "how long shall I stay with you and put up with you? Bring your son here."
Even while the boy was coming, the demon threw him to the ground in a convulsion. But Jesus rebuked the evil spirit, healed the boy and gave him back to his father. And they were all amazed at the greatness of God. Luke 9:37-43

I've read many times in the Bible about people being possessed by demons. I have also seen in movies where people are possessed. You can see it in their body- especially in the changes to their face, their mannerisms, even their voice. I have heard of it happening to people in the present day. And I think I might have seen it today.

Today in the children's ministry we had a boy of about 5 or 6 years old who I believe was possessed by a demon. While walking past the classroom door, I heard screaming inside and went in to investigate what was happening. The teacher said that this boy, M, just started "freaking out". When I entered, the child was being restrained because he had already bitten a few people, was punching, kicking, spitting, and throwing himself at people, furniture, and the ground. When I looked at him, his face was different. His eyes were buldged out, he was barring his teeth, and he was growling and snarling in a very deep voice. He looked me straight in the eyes, snarled at me, and spit in my face.

I, along with a few helpers, were trying to calm him down, but it didn't work. We eventually had to get help from a few men, who carried him out of the classroom so the rest of the children could continue class. While being held by his hands and feet, he managed to have enough strenth to lift himself completely off the ground and arch his back so his back was nearly 3 feet off the ground. He continued growling, snarling, spitting, etc for the next half hour. We eventually found his mother and he did calm down some.

While I've seen kids act out in class, I have not seen this dramatic of a change in a child within such a short period of time. What I saw in his face truly frightened me. One of the men who helped us, who is currently in seminary studying to be a pastor, remarked, "I have seen this before. I have seen this face before. The face of someone possessed by a demon. But never on a child this young."

"For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms." Ephesians 6:12

I don't know what truly happened to M. But I do know that we are in a spiritual war and fighting battles with the enemy on a daily basis. I also know that God is the victor! He has already won the war! To God be the glory!!

Changes...

The idea of me coming here as a missionary was to help work with the church to make changes to their programs, allowing them to become more developed, and thus attracting more people to the children's ministry (and the church) through evangelistic outreaches within the program. I was given the position of advisor to the ministry directors- advising them and training them on how to develop their own program so that they could eventually run the program without assistance and continue in the developmental progress. I have been working with this regularly over the past 9 months. While progress has been made within the program, we are far from our goal of seeing the children's ministry becoming the evangelistic outreach program we imagined. Changes have been made, and more changes are to come.

Right now, we are undergoing some changes in leadership with in the ministry. Due to personal problems, the children's ministry coordinators will no longer be serving as the coordinators. Their period of service was scheduled to go through the end of January. Since they are no longer in the ministry, the Pastor has appointed two interim coordinators to take over and continue with the development of the program. I am one of the chosen.

This appointment as interim coordinator is a major change for me within the church. I now will have an official leadership position in Filadelfia Church. I will also have the opportunity to work with and train Y, my co-coordinator. She and I have been working together within the ministry since I arrived and we work well together. We share the passion for the children and both want to see this ministry develop in a huge way.

I am excited for the opportunities that God is giving me here and how He is working through all the difficulites and challenges and providing every step of the way. I don't know yet what God has in store for me next year, but I know it is going to awesome. After all, God is in control of this ministry and He already has all the plans worked out.

And the next President of the United States is...

Today, I had the opportunity to exercise my rights as an American citizen. Yep, today I voted for the next president of the United States. Now, I know some people were wondering if I would be able to vote, since I am not in the USA right now. Let me explain the process...

In the summer, while I was in Ohio, I filed for an absentee ballot. I had to put my address in Ohio and my address in Venezuela where I wanted to have my ballot sent. The application was processed and an official absentee voting ballot was sent out to me in the beginning of October. I called the Board of Elections to verify this and was told it should arrive in 2 weeks.

However, this is Venezuela- with an almost non-existant postal system. I never got the ballot. I received an email from the US Embassy saying that it was time to mail in my ballot if I had not done so already. But I didn't have it... so now what?

I called the Board of Elections again and the nice lady in the office there was sure it would arrive any day now and that I should get it in time to mail it in. She obviously doesn't understand how things work here. She did say that if it didn't come in time, I could print off an emergency write-in ballot and mail that in, which is what I did.

The best option for mailing it in was to send it through the American Embassy and Consulate office here in Venezuela. Of course, the Embassy is in Caracas and the Consulate office in Maracaibo is only open on Monday mornings from 8:30am- 12:00pm. So, last night, I completed my ballot and declaration form- verifying that it is me voting, and printed it out... well, not exactly. My printer would not print.

This morning I went to try to find security envelopes (which do not exist here), print my ballot at a printing shop, and go to the consulate office to send in my ballot. I spoke with the American Consulate and he wasn't sure if I needed to have my ballot notorized. He had to call Caracas and find out. Ohio does not require it. So, into the double envelopes, sealed, and affixed with 1 USA first-class stamp, my ballot is being sent to Ohio. :-)

Now, all I can do is pray that God will allow the right person to win the election. After all, it's in His hands anyway!

Back to school

There is a concept in the teaching profession- for teachers to be lifelong learners. Well, although I am technically not teaching right now, I am still a teacher, and I am continuing my education. I am a student again!

This week, I started taking 2 classes.

Class #1- The first class is part of the Christian Education department at the church. Filadelfia Church offers 15 different courses for members to become more educated in their Christian faith and to develop their understanding of the fundamentals and the beyond- fundamentals (more advanced portions) of Christianity. Monday nights, I will be studying the History of the Church (Part 1). This course starts with the church immediately after the death and resurrection of Jesus and continues through the decades, teaching about the development and advancement of the church. I want to see how much I can understand in a classroom situation taught completely in Spanish and see what I can learn in the process. :-)

Class #2- The second class I am taking is a Spanish Sign Language Class. This class is offered through a school for deaf students in the city. On Tuesday mornings, they offer Sign Language and Language Therapy classes for the parents of the deaf children. These classes are open to the community for anyone who would like to learn. Since my minor in college was American Sign Language, the idea of learning Spanish Sign was intriguing. Spanish Sign and American Sign are as different as speaking Spanish and English- and I am trying to keep the two languages separate. When class started yesterday, the professor asked if everyone believed in God. She then lead the class in a prayer (Christian prayer- not Catholic). I was both suprised and excited about this. I am not used to anything outside of the church starting with prayer, but it was exciting that the professor is Christian.

The topic for instruction was learning the signs for the members of the family- words like Mom, Dad, Son, Daughter, Grandma, Grandpa, Aunt, Uncle, Cousin, etc. In the process of going through these signs, we learned other signs. Some signs I learned were: dog, street, learn, understand, sad, die. I also learned "let's go to church on Sunday". I also know how to say "The son of God died for you". I am hoping that the aquisition of this new language will open up new doors of evangelism into the deaf community- especially since Filadelfia Church now has a Sign Language Interpreter on Sunday afternoons for interpreting the service.

So, it is back to school for me- with the possibility of expanding my opportunities to be used by God.

Marcha Para Jesús

This afternoon, under blue skies and a blazing Maracucho sun with heat indices nearing 110ºF, thousands of people gathered together to walk the streets of Maracaibo, Venezuela. Was this some sort of political parade? No. Actually, it was a celebration. It was the celebration of Jesus! That's right, thousands of people walked through the city, proclaiming Jesus is Lord, He is alive, and He is the way!

Young and old, from every church and every denomination in the city they came. Crowded within the street next to the plaza, packed like sardines, we waited for the march to begin (more than an hour late- very typical of Venezuela). Once it began, there was singing, clapping, and shouting "Cristo vive!" as we walked down the main streets of town, heading for the stadium several kilometers away.

All traffic was stopped for our march. People in the cars, trapped by the march and the traffic behind them, wondered why all these people were marching. You could tell in the quizzical looks on their faces. One man was actually driving down the other side of the street with his head turned backwards, checking out what was happening on our side of the street. Many people from the apartment complexes were looking out their windows, shouting and waving Venezuelan flags.

We stopped in several places where we prayed for the city. When we approached the stadium more than 2 hours later, everyone was hot and tired, but energized from the excitement of proclaiming the name of Jesus throughout the city!

Gathering for the march

Marching through the city streets- for Jesus!

Pray for peace!

Hands lifted high in adoration of Jesus

Venezuela and Zulia State flags- declaring Jesus Lord of Maracaibo, Zulia, and all of Venezuela!

Marching into the stadium at the end of the march.

An invitation to pray

I would like to invite you to pray for Venezuela on October 12. On this day, thousands of Christians will be marching through the streets of every major city in the country... for Jesus!! This event is called "Marcha para Jesús". (http://www.marchaparajesus.com.ve/2008/) Every year, on October 12, thousands of Christians fill the streets across Venezuela (and other parts of the world on various days throughout the year!) and walk through the streets proclaiming that Jesus is the Answer and Savior for Venezuela!

I am excited to participate in this event. This will be my first march and I am excited to see all of my brothers and sisters in Christ come out into the streets on a hot, Maracucho, Sunday afternoon to proclaim Jesus is Lord!

And so, I ask you to please pray. Pray for the march. Pray for the people who will be marching- for their health and well-being as it will be very hot at that time (most likely with a heat index near 110ºF- and the march goes for about 2 hours). Pray for the people who will be seeing the march- for them to understand that Jesus is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. Pray for the country of Venezuela- that there will be a turning to Jesus and a great revival. Pray for the leaders of the country, including President Chavez- for his salvation- and for the stability in the political climate of the country.

VENEZUELA... JESUCRISTO ES TU RESPUESTA!!

A difficult day of ministry

Yesterday, a large group of people- young and young at heart- went to the senior citizens' center/ nursing home to do ministry with the elderly. We have gone here before and it is usually a joy to see the looks on the faces of the people as we come in to "celebrate" with them. As one of the residents told me yesterday after looking at all the balloons, "we are having a party!" There was singing, dancers, refreshments, and a time to be able to share the Gospel with them. While not all of the residents there were able to understand, some did and prayed to receive Christ!

However, this was a very difficult time for me. Yesterday was my Gramma's birthday. Gramma went to be with the Lord last December, and this was our first October 4th without her. I knew it was going to be a difficult day for me- I was very close with her- but going to the party at the senior center was a little too much for me to handle. I was unable to stop the tears as I started thinking about the party that would have been thrown for her if she was still on the earth and the party she is experiencing in Heaven.

While I know that she is in Heaven and I will see her again, it is still hard being away from her right now. I look forward to our reunion in Heaven and can't wait til I can talk to her again- and tell her all about what God has done in my life since she left (although she might already know!)

I love you Gramma. I miss you. I will see you again!

A big Christmas thank you!

On Saturday, a group of people from the church went to do ministry with children and teenagers- through a variety of activities. The activity was held in a place called "Niños del Sol" and it is a housing facility for teenage boys who have no family- they have either been abandoned or removed due to various reasons- the primary of those being drug abuse. Also brought in were 100 children- mostly between ages 2-10, from the casa escuelas- which are house churches for children in poor neighborhoods.

The worship team from the church was there to do a worship service- concert style. The teenagers were more interested in this than the younger children. It was a great time of worship. The music director also gave his testimony and led times of prayer.

After the worship time, the groups were split up. The younger children were involved in small group activities while the teenagers were learning values and how to show them to people around them. Things like having patience, peace, love, self-control, etc. These are things that these boys do not have or do not know how to put into practice. The Gospel message was also presented to some of them from our own local missionaries.

Next on the agenda was a drama skit- for all children. The drama is a re-enactment of Noah's Ark and told from the perspective of some of the animals. The younger children really liked the drama- but even the teenagers paid attention.

The teenagers were then led to a chapel where they were spoken to about having a relationship with Jesus Christ and that it doesn't matter how many problems you have in life, Jesus can set you free! Many of these young men accepted Christ as their Savior.

The young children were also exposed to the Gospel. The evangecube was explained to them and they were told about how much Jesus loves them. They were then shown love by being given gifts.

Now, this is where the Christmas thank you comes into play. I was told that we had boxes to give to each child. Each box has things in it but each one is different. What a suprise to find out that the boxes that we had recieved were the Operation Christmas Child boxes. So many people help out each Christmas by filling shoe boxes with toys and needed items for poor children around the world. Well, we received 100 of those boxes! Thank you to all of you who fill a shoe box every Christmas to help poor children around the world.

What kind of reaction do you get?

This morning, while cleaning up a little around the house and getting ready to go to the church, I put on the movie "Sister Act" to have something playing in the background. I have seen this movie many many times, and there is one part of the movie that always gets to me.

The part I am talking about is this:
Sister Mary Clarence (Whoopie Goldburg) is leading the choir of the Catholic Church in a song that is loud and active- so loud it can be heard from the streets outside. The camera shot then goes outside of the church and you hear someone from outside say, "I wonder what is happening in there." This is followed by several people from the street walking into the church to see what is happening.

This scene always gets me thinking. Are we doing things in our churches that would cause this type of reaction- where people on the streets would be so intrigued by what is going on inside that they would literally walk in off the streets to see and hear the truth? What changes do we need to make within our church to draw the attention of those around us? Are we willing to make the changes- leaving our comfort zones of what we have been doing- in order to reach out to those who need to hear the truth?

This is the kind of reaction I want to see in the children's ministry (and within the church as a whole) in Filadelfia Church. I am praying that God will provide us the opportunity to change what needs to be changed in order to attract everyone around to come and see and hear the truth of Jesus Christ.