We had another great month of playing sports and games with the kids while growing in our relationships and learning Spanish with the Community.
Our community at around 3 am.
Field Retreat!
We had a nice break during the month at the beach and a great opportunity to meet all of the OMS missionaries from different parts of Ecuador. We had a guest speaker (Randy Spacht) come and share some visions and ideas about effective ways to reach other cultures. Lacey also had the pleasure of leading some of the VBS events with the kids. It was an honor to meet everyone and learn about their ministry.
We decided to fast during our 21 days of prayer!
After our amazing retreat, over 90% of the OMS team got a stomach infection which lasted about 2 weeks and we are still trying to recover from it. We did not eat anything for about 4 days and then started eating bread with a little bit of peanut butter from the USA (thank you Travis and Amy for sending peanut butter). Clint had a similar infection in December and had finally gotten over it before the retreat only to get it again. It puts a new perspective on being incarnational. Before we got sick, we were basically eating anything off the streets, but we are trying to be a little more cautious now. We have a diet of a lot of rice, beans, and avocado with an occasional chicken.
Clint had a great opportunity to preach in Spanish!
This is a Church that some of our OMS friends attend in Catayamo which also happens to be one of the hottest places in Ecuador. I think that I lost five pounds during the service. We are praying that this Church will start sending out members to reach other communities in the Loja province.
Sophie completes school
Sophie graduated from Kindergarten. She may not understand Spanish, but she was able to watch the other kids in order to complete her work. She will also graduate from home school kindergarten at the end of February. We have brought all of the first grade home school curriculum and plan to start in March. I thank God for this amazing girl who is put in tough situations at times here in order for us to share with others. It is exciting to watch her grow in her faith. We are careful not to force Christianity on her, but to simply live out our faith and give her every opportunity to grow in hers. She reads her Bible every day with Lacey and loves to pray when we have company over.
News and Notes
God has opened some amazing opportunities and done some incredible things this month and we are excited to be apart of them. We would like to share more, however, at this moment we want to be careful in our sharing of others personal experiences with God in order to fill up a update letter. We do believe that the things that have happened this month will have a huge impact on fulfilling our purpose for being here and can't wait to share more with you all privately in the future.
React or Respond
This month was all about responding (not reacting) to others through diversity. God has taught us a lot of things through our weaknesses and we have continued to learn how to be content in whatever situation we are in. Instead of looking for other resources to lean on when we are struggling, we are focusing on God through prayer and meditation. We are also learning how to glorify God in the community while we are weak. We have no other option. We cannot hide or blend in during our struggles like we were able to in the States, and people are waiting to see how we will respond during our weak moments. Every decision affects our ministry either in a positive or negative way. They know that we are Christians and are looking to see how Christians respond to every situation.
Prayer Requests
Pray for the lost: In our community, in the USA, and all around the world. Pray that God reveals something to them so that their hearts are ready to listen when someone shares with them.
Pray for all Christians to read and understand their Bible so that we are strong in their faith, firm in what we believe, and prepared to accurately share with others.
Pray for our hearts and intentions. Pray that everything we do is for the glory of God. He deserves nothing less. Pray that we continue to find contentment in God alone and not in our current status or through others.
Final Thoughts
We thank God for you all and the time that you have invested in us. The most encouraging, exciting thing that we do each month is to hear from you all through messages or emails or Skype calls. Without having a Church or any of our mentors to encourage us it is easy to get discouraged and even distracted. You give us hope and remind us of our identity and purpose. We truly value our relationships with you all and understand the importance of them. It is an amazing feeling to read a message from you while knowing that you all are super busy and still making time for us. Thank You!
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