Tag Archives: Paraguay

Focusing on the People

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I don’t know about you, but I am not a person who often does things I don’t want to do. Only in an emergency or when it can really benefit someone do I put my sentiments aside. My first week here in Paraguay, I figured out it is best to just tell the Paraguayans when I do not like something. Now they joke about the things that I “won’t do”.

Though people sometimes talk about the sacrifices of being a missionary, I am not really that “sacrificial.” I live and serve in Paraguay because I enjoy it; I think God prepares us for what He asks of us. I don’t think He would call us to a life of continual discomfort.

Many of you know, I consider those who pray for us, support us, or visit us “partners in ministry.” Most of you can’t or don’t want to live in Paraguay, but that does not change your commitment to God and His plan to share the Gospel. Each one of you is an important part of what happens down here. 

Since y’all are partners in the ministry in Paraguay, I thought I would fill you in on some of the things I am being asked to do but don’t want to do, and to be honest, probably will not do.

In the back of all missionaries’ mind is the problem of dependency. Before arriving in the field, we are trained about the potential pitfall of dependency, and we are encouraged to take that into account as we consider how best to use our funds. Many times, when we don’t get the intended results we desire, it is because we have funded incorrectly. I have been reading a lot about doing missions well and how to fund it correctly.

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Angelica and I focus a lot on education. Our thinking is you can never take away what someone has learned. Once money is spent to educate, the recipients will always have that knowledge. We feel the same way about discipleship programs. We work hard to get to know people and to identify those who have both potential and calling. These are the things we feel are worthwhile. We care about the church here in Paraguay, but really, we focus on people.

Without getting into too much detail, I would say we are being encouraged to be more involved with the church as an institution, both with our time and resources. I am pushing back on this, not because I have a problem with the national church here in Paraguay, but because I think we can be more effective by serving and developing people.

We have been tremendously blessed by churches in The States. I know the benefit of a strong church environment. However, I think our Paraguayan friends should build and be responsible for their own churches. We want to be members, help prepare leaders and disciples, and let them run their church. Angelica and I feel we can better serve the Paraguayans and spread the Gospel by investing in people.

Included in this post are pictures of some of the people we have touched together. These are people who have a relationship with Christ, a personal relationship with Him.

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Toddler_WEBLydia_bothParaguayan Fact:

The gospel really IS good news!

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Look Out! The Paraguayans are coming.

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When I first began my preparations to serve here in Paraguay, I knew almost nothing of this country, and I really did not know too much about missions. I knew I wanted to serve in the field and felt fairly confident that God would take care of the details. I spent a lot of time thinking and praying about what I needed to become and what I was going to do. I have “become” something and I “do” a little, but it is the people we work with who really make things chic down here in Paraguay.

I met Angelica my first 45 minutes in Paraguay and started developing friends shortly after. I was introduced to dozens of kids and youth within my first week in country.  We have all been working together for the past 12 years, sharing Christ.

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In December, we are bringing a few friends with us to visit. These are youth that have been a vital part of our ministry for years. They are just a few of the great people who we work with down here.  They are energetic, enthusiastic followers of Christ, and we look forward to having y’all meet them.

You can’t beat the Christmas season in The States!

I know the Paraguayans get tired of me telling them how great the Christmas season is at home. I always tell them that Christmas is meant to be celebrated in the cold, because we know it was snowing when Jesus was born!

Anyway we are looking forward to sharing a little of our Christmas traditions with our friends and hope that we can get around to see as many of y’all as possible during our time at home.

Spreading the Gospel

Things move slow down here. I always heard we are slower down in The South compared to the rest of the country. Well, we are even slower down here in South America.

Two years ago, Angelica and I began focusing on the youth outside of the capital city of
Asuncion. We wanted them to have the same camaraderie and unity as the youth in Asuncion. We wanted them to have opportunities to develop, have fellowship and healing, if needed.

Over the past eight months we have been very active in the central part of the country. We have hosted several youth and adolescent events. Both the youth and the pastors have really responded. The youth from Asuncion were with us in everything we did.

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We have come to know the youth from the Interior better and are working with several of them in leadership development. Angelica has also been able to develop a relationship and work with some of the girls who have suffered abuse.

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We are hoping to use the agriculture center that many of y’all have had the pleasure of visiting over the years, as a place to meet more frequently with the youth leaders in this part of the country. We also see this as a mission for some of the youth leaders from Asuncion.

Paraguayan Fact

All gas stations need a hang-around dog.

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Same Country . . . Different Culture

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Each year we offer a camp for the youth from all the Methodist churches in the country.  I have spoken about this in several newsletters. We have kids from all over Paraguay, but most of the kids come from the capital city Asuncion.

Over the past few years, we have tried to visit every church in the country. We wanted to give the youth in the rural parts of Paraguay a little more attention. This year, with the help of a team, we had a youth camp in the northern district. We spent two days with over 50 youth and had a great time together.656

One of the things we did was divide the boys and girls and spent time talking to them about different things. The girls were split into two groups between Angelica and another lady. Both were surprised to discover the number of girls who had been sexually abused. Most of the girls did not come from Christian homes and few had Christian neighbors. We knew this was a problem in rural parts of Paraguay, but certainly did not expect it to be so rampant.  Angelica discovered that almost all of the girls she counsels who have serious emotional problems, were sexually abused. Please join us in prayer for this problem.737

Team Work

Angelica and I have been hosting teams since we began our ministry here in Paraguay. Most of the year we work with fellow Paraguayans to help people and share Christ, and we only have a few months a year to work alongside our American friends. Hosting teams is a lot of work, creates a lot of unknowns, and never goes as planned. We like that.

This year we had an unusual number of flight, luggage and visa problems. We also had the best experiences we have ever had with teams. We know that teams want to help and come down to serve the Paraguayans, but Angelica and I work hard to make the time here a ministry to the Americans as well. What we experienced this year was different; a ministry to us. No matter at what stage we are in our Christian lives we can always be ministered to.Prayer_web

 Born in the U.S.A

I recently watched a movie about a woman who fled Austria during the World War II. It was a true story, and she mentioned several times during the film that her new home was America; in fact she said she would never return to Austria. 

The United States is full of people who have made new lives, full of people that now call America home. Many immigrants to America are glad to put the past behind them and would never think of returning to the places in which they were born. They have become safe and have prospered in America.

I now call Paraguay home. This is where I met my wife and where our kids were born. We feel comfortable here and we enjoy what we are doing. But unlike many people who have made America their homes, I don’t look back on my home country with ill feelings. I look back at a country where I was given the opportunities and education to live anywhere in the world I chose.

We enjoy living in Paraguay and what we do, but we will never forget the people who make it possible to share Christ in this part of the world.445

Paraguayan Fact:

It’s good to be Angelica.breakfast_SMALL

Late Nights

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When living in a country that has temperatures of 90 degrees or higher, more than half the year, early mornings become treasured time.  The hours between 5:00 and 8:00 a.m. are the most enjoyable part of my day. Angelica likes the mornings as well, and we usually have breakfast together each day. 

Lately, I have been eating breakfast alone or with a very unpleasant woman.  God has blessed Angelica with the ability to help people break free from debilitating situations. We work with a tremendous number of women and youth that suffer from economic, social, and spiritual problems. The Paraguayans believe in the power of prayer and trust Angelica to walk them through liberation from their suffering. This has involved many late nights and even a few overnighters. We don’t get to share our morning together as much as we use to, but we thank God for the people who have been freed and are living more productive lives.

Just a few minutes can mean so much

Waldimar is a very faithful member of our church. Ever since I have been here in Paraguay, he has been a mainstay at almost everything we do. 

Man_WebWaldimar was diagnosed with cancer a little over two years ago. He has been through a number of physical and financial struggles. He is getting along much better and attributes it to the many people that are praying for him. He hardly ever tells his story of the trials he has been though without mentioning the ladies from Alpharetta, Georgia that prayed for him.  We just dropped in to the hospital for a few minutes to pray for him, and he gets tears in his eyes each time he tells the story.

Changes from the bottom up

So many times, we read in the news about helpless situations — countries and people that cannot seem to dig themselves out from under poverty and corruption. Environments that don’t seem to get better and sometimes are worse. Places that, no matter how much effort, continue to spiral out of control.

Paraguay, while a small insignificant country, seems to be on a constant path of economic and spiritual growth.  The youth that Angelica and I work with here in Paraguay are positively affecting the church and their country. They are strongly rooted in Christ, educated and motivated. We have invested time in a few young people and it has paid off tremendously. These youth are reaching heights that Angelica and I never dreamed of.

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Many of them have gotten or are getting an education because of a scholarship from y’all, through us. Most of them are the first generation in their family to grow up in the church, receiving years of Christian education and support.

Angelica and I feel that some of these youth are ready and in many cases maybe even better equipped to share Christ here in Paraguay or in other countries. We are exploring ways in which we can help them reach their potential. 

I recently read in a book that when we have a dream/goal to not ask “How”, that how is God’s department. Angelica and I don’t know exactly how to help some of these youth, but we do know that God has equipped them to share Christ throughout the world.

Paraguayan Fact

Paraguayan bread maker.

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The Youth are Our Future

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We often hear people say “youth are our future.” In my younger days, I recall parents saying “learn all you can from your children before they turn 18 and forget everything like their parents.” Now, as a parent myself, I think some of those people might have had a good point. I learn A LOT from my daughters, so I can see the wisdom in saying “the youth are our future!” However, it’s false if you are talking about the church here in Paraguay.

In Paraguay, the youth are not our future. The youth are our present. The youth alone make up more than half the congregation of our churches. They don’t just fill a chair in the crowd. They serve in the church. Even some of our pastors would be what many of y’all would consider youth.

The evangelical church here in Paraguay is teeming with energy, inspiration and vision. They understand that the power and joy of knowing and serving Christ is for people of all ages.

Most of these young Christian are first generation followers of Christ. Many don’t have parents who live out a Christian example in their lives. Their problem is not conviction of faith, it is how to live out their beliefs on a day-to-day basis. They believe in Jesus and want to know how that should direct their lives.

The youth down here in Paraguay are the life of the church and Angelica and I are grateful for the opportunity to help them apply their faith and for the opportunity to work along side them.

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Really The Kids Are The Tough Ones To Hang-Out With

Angelica, Camila, and I just finished our annual Adolescence Camp for the National Church. For three days, we had kids together from all over the country. It is three days of noise, celebration, learning, praying, singing, playing, and very little sleep. Oh yeah, and boyalso there are power outages and extreme heat. The kids are so intense that we bring in “pinch hitters” for various activities just so Angelica can rest a bit. When I need a break, I usually pull the father trick and say, “I need to take care of AnnaBelen.” If we are able to get more than three hours of sleep each night, we are lucky!  

These camps are tough on us older people, but they are worth it! Each year the experience seems better. Each year the kids are touched more. Each year the kids leave feeling forgiven and enabled. Each year Angelica and I come closer to God through our time with these kids.

Now it is time to get ready for Youth Camp!

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Mama Says “No!”

Whenever I travel to the Interior, AnnaBelen always wants to come. If she is not in school, with a little encouragement, I can get Angelica to agree.

Angelica is a little gun-shy because of the times I have broken down and spent the night in my truck. I can usually convince her by reminding her that I am like the Paraguayan MacGyver and can usually get us out after minimal inconveniences.

A few weeks ago, AnnaBelen and I were set to travel to the Interior with a pastor friend. He called at the last minute to ask if he could bring “someone he is working with.” When Angelica found out that the “someone” is a recovering drug addict who had been sober for only eight days, she yanked AnnaBelen from the trip. This was followed by one of AnnaBelen’s speeches about the “kind of people” that I was hanging-out with. “A missionary should care more about their children and not hang out with such people.”  Despite hours of protest by AnnaBelen, I eventually agreed with Mama and went without AnnaBelen.

Now I am worried about what AnnaBelen might think about some of my college buddies.

Paraguayan Fact

Not all Paraguayans are graceful on the Futbol field!

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To Give or Not to Give

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I always questioned whether giving was truly greater than getting. You can’t beat getting a good (expensive) gift or even a surprise gift. Who does not like looking under the tree and seeing lots of presents marked with their name. Many people say that Christmas is their favorite holiday, usually rolling off a number of reasons. But I expect it is because of the gifts.

Over the years here in Paraguay, I have begun to feel the joy in giving. So much has been given to Angelica and I. We have had so many opportunities to give gifts, scholarships, and help. Most of the funding for these gifts is not even ours; it is just resources that come through us.

We get to benefit from the generous giving of so many of our friends at home. It is really nice to be able give gifts to people that usually don’t ever receive. We thank all of y’all for letting us see the joy on the faces of Paraguayans when we give to them.

May y’all all have a Merry Christmas and come to know the joy of giving to others.

A Month of New Beginnings

Not only is Christmas the month that we celebrate the birth of Christ, but it is the month that we celebrate graduations. Here in Paraguay, December marks the end of the school year. This year was special because Angelica graduated from Seminary.

Juggling school with all of Angelica’s other responsibilities was really a challenge. There were many nights that she only got a few hours of sleep, many weekends without any rest, and a lot of stress.  The kids and I are very proud of her and know that this will add to the ministries here in Paraguay.

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Angelica and I were blessed to be able to help several of her classmates afford Seminary. A few of her classmates traveled from the Interior each week, returning to their churches late Saturday nights. We look forward to working with many of them in ministry here in Paraguay.

December is also the month for graduation at The Susanna Wesley School.  This is always a big party and Angelica is challenged to make it better each year. One of the teachers at the school informed Angelica that several families had been fattening up a pig for the event, and they expected a big affair.

As always, Angelica was able to pull it off, even with the rain and threat of power outages. (Most everything is done outside in the Interior, so weather is always a factor.) We had a great celebration with live music, speakers from Asuncion, and lots of food.

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It is just graduation from the sixth grade, but it is as far as most of the kids will go. Not only have these kids been able to study about the world for six years, they have also had the very unusual opportunity to study the Bible as well. For the community in Quinta Linia, this is a major cause for celebration and a time to demonstrate thankfulness.

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Feliz Navidad!

Paraguayan Fact:

In Paraguay, decorating the Christmas tree is done in shorts.

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The 100s

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It starts each year in late August — a little tinge of anxiety, builds to nausea by mid-September, and full-blown loathing by October — seven months of miserable heat.

We are now in our second day of rolling power outages and have many more to come. I could live with the heat, even without AC, but without fans and a way to keep the fridge cool, it is pretty tough.

I should not complain. At least we have AC in our trucks these days.

I always thought, at some point I would get use to the heat. I thought I would eventually not wake up each night sweating. I thought planning meals and bedtime around power outages would get easier.

Well, they don’t. Don’t get me wrong. I love living and working here in Paraguay! But I could stand a little more cool weather.

Enjoy your winter up north!

Good Reinforcement

You know those national tests that we take in the U.S. — the ones that estimate students’ academic level compared to other students around the country? Well, we don’t have those here in Paraguay.

I am always asking Angelica, how she measure the academic level of the students at the Susanna Wesley School? This is something that has frustrated me for years. We often hear stories of how the one or two kids who continue their education in town seem to excel, but that has never been enough for me. I want a way to gauge the kids academically and in other ways.

I still don’t have that, but a local pastor’s wife is now working in the public school in the closest town. The pastor told Angelica that the students who come from The Susanna Wesley School are set apart from the rest of the students. They are more advanced academically but also much better behaved.

This did not just happen by circumstance. The quality of the kids that finish the school are a culmination of a lot of preparation by Angelica and a lot of dedication by the teachers. Because of y’all, we are able to really touch these kids’ lives.

We feel honored to have been a part of this with so many other people.

Maybe Something New

We are always exploring new ideas.

This year, it was getting the clinic starte, hopefully to be up and running by next year.
We also visited almost every church in Paraguay over the past year.

Now we are thinking of adding more home visits. We have done this in the past, but would like to do it on a larger scale. The Paraguayans that partner with us at the school and the agriculture project do such a good job, it frees us up to pursue other ministries.

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We don’t really know how it will work out yet. We know we would like to use some of the youth who we work with in Asuncion. It would have to be done in Guarani. We have even thought about helping the “Campasinos “ (country people) start small groups of believers.

We feel that God has done great things down here in Paraguay — that he has equipped many people to share the Gospel. We don’t want to just rest on what we have
accomplished in the past, but we want to constantly look for new ways to share Christ.

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Paraguayan Fact

In the summer, everyone goes shirtless.

So Much Happening

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So much is happening at the Agriculture Center in Paraguay!

There is such a thing as “too much of a good thing.” I have been so overwhelmed by activities at the Agriculture Center in Quinta Linia that I told the man who helps me, “We are going to have to designate places for people to meet, walk and park or we were not going to have any more grass.”

There has been a constant flurry of activity at the center for the past three months. We have hosted three teams, three groups of agriculture engineers, three cooking classes, two bonfires, two Bible studies, one equipment demonstration, a Kid’s Day — Oh, and a few World Cup Parties!

Dia de Campo

This past week we helped host an event in the village. The event was actually held on a farm “across the way” from the center.  It was called Dia de Campo (Day of the Country) and was put on by the Ministry of Agriculture.  The event lasted two days and involved more than 250 people, including over 20 engineers, veterinarians, government officials, and representatives from The Ministry of Agriculture.

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The first day we hosted classes at the center on cooking with local products and classes on making natural detergents and cleaners.

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The second day, they set up tents in different locations on the farm and participants were divided in groups of 15. Every 25 minutes, a group would start out on a rotation, visiting the first of the seven tents. The tents were dedicated to many different aspects of farming, from soil preparation and planting to harvesting and packing.

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The culmination of years of work by lots of people.

These last few months have been a long time coming and have been put together by the efforts of Americans and Paraguayans — always with the goal to help the Paraguayans enjoy a better life and know Christ. We are grateful to every person from here and afar that has been a part of this ministry throughout the years. This would not be possible without the efforts, talents, prayers and support from so many people.

Worst Vacation Ever / Best Months Ever

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Worst Vacation Ever

Our family once took what Camila called “The Worst Trip Ever”. It was summer vacation for the kids —  really, winter down here. We planned to visit the southern tip of Paraguay, which I discovered is quite cool and rainy during July. The roads were a mess, and it took a good bit longer to get there than I had anticipated.

Despite my impeccable sense of direction, we got lost. Around midnight, we finally arrived at the famous Hotel Tirol. (Dr. Josef Mengele once stayed and was almost caught there, after the war.)

Tirol is quite the place in the summer. But in the winter, we found that it is all but closed down. They finally agreed to let us stay and put us in a room that Camila said “smelled like old people.”

After going to bed hungry, the next morning we walked up what seemed like a thousand steps to find that the kitchen was closed. We eventually convinced them to fix us a grill cheese sandwich and watered down coffee. Unfortunately, the kids could not bring themselves to enjoy their breakfast for fear of the stuffed wolf on the wall of the dimly lit dining room.

After our delicious breakfast, still tired and famished, we hauled our luggage and AnnaBelen, who was less the two, up the thousand steps and left. It might not have been high season for the hotel but the price sure seemed like it.

For question of time and space, I will stop here. Though, I would like to mention that the weather just got worse and the last night of our “vacation” was spent all sleeping in the same bed.

Best Months Ever

Angelica and I have had a few packed months of ministries. A few packed months of training. A few packed months of fellowship. Over the past several months, we divided up into teams and visited eight churches, some near some far.

Paraguay 2014 198On occasion, the trips resembled “the worst trip ever” but with one difference — great fellowship with the youth.  We had the chance to meet with lots of the youth and adolescence, many we did not know.  We had opportunities to do some training and learn a little from them. We had the opportunity to see the youth and adolescence leadership in action and they are great. It is rewarding to see years of work and preparation come to fruition.

A few weeks ago, we had a two day youth and adolescence gathering. We were blessed to have a group of our American friends participate with us as well. It was two days of praising, learning and fellowship. It is always uplifting when we can get Christians together from different cultures for worship.

baby pigsDuring the past few months, we have had a busy schedule at the Agriculture Center. The Ministry of Agriculture continues to use the facility for teaching and now we are looking into creating demonstration plots.

A few weeks ago, we had a surprise visit from the manager of the farmers market in Asuncion. We set-up a date for him to come back and teach us how to better care for and back product once it is harvested.

Finally, this month Angelica began work on the clinic that she has been praying for, for so many years. A team came down and helped start a house for the traveling doctor to stay in. The first day we had about 25 people from the community come and help. In a few days, we will have a group come down and help us start on the clinic building.

A Little Help

Angelica and I are always amazed by the assistance that we have in serving here in Paraguay. My dad once told me that life is easier if you don’t surround yourself with stupid people.  The people that we work with both here and in The States sure make our lives easier. When I began preparing to serve in Paraguay, I never anticipated so many people helping in this endeavor.

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Paraguayan Fact

Sometimes early mornings can bring big surprises. And we just thought that she was fat!

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It depends on your perspective

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Living in Paraguay and being married to a Paraguayan has taught me a lot, mainly that people are different.

I loved the cold weather when we were in the States this year. Angelica could not seem to get warm. Each night I had nightmares about the heat in Paraguay, while Angelica lay beside me dreaming of the “lovely” sunny weather in Paraguay. Each Sunday at church, I longed for the more “rock-n-roll” music typical in Paraguayan services, while Angelica cherished every fleeting moment of our traditional music and the choir. I fidgeted in the pews, missing being able to wear shorts to church, while Angelica enjoyed getting up early to dress-up.

Both Camila and AnnaBelen had differing views on our time in the States as well.  A few days after our arrival, AnnaBelen began longing for home and Camila started in about how our time in the US is never enough.

In our family, as in most I assume, we don’t see eye-to-eye on a lot of things, but we all agree that we appreciate and feel blessed with a great maternal and church family. We are incredibly thankful for everyone who has helped us along the way and/or is helping us now. We do not feel like we are here in Paraguay alone and know that God has put each and every one of y’all in our lives for a reason. That we can agree on!

Good Decisions

Somewhere along the line, we made the good decision (I insist was my idea) to invest much of our time in the youth of Paraguay. Actually, it was an invitation by the Bishop that got us involved with the youth. Every time we are together, I come away thankful for the opportunity to work together with these young people in sharing Christ in Paraguay. I am always amazed by their ability and boldness in living a Christian life. They have made my time here more enjoyable and the ministries more effective.

Angelica and I are delighted to have the opportunity to work with the National Youth, and now also as the chaplains of the National Adolescence. The churches in Paraguay are very connected. Many members know members in other churches, especially the kids. We get together for a lot of spiritual, social, and sporting events. The younger generation is the most active generation in the churches in Paraguayan culture.Students2

We are looking forward to working more with the churches in the Interior of the country: working to help them build the community that we have in the capital of Asuncion and working to help them develop better kids, adolescent and youth programs. We have a great team of youth to help us with this and hope to involve some of the younger kids as well. This has been a dream of Angelica’s for some time and we are looking forward to getting started.

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Paraguayan Fact

Paraguay is “melting.” We have had 15 days and counting of 103 to 108 degrees.

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