The Annex

We also wanted to share pictures from this Sunday in El Real. Thankfully we have been having good attendance despite being in winter months. One picture shows the whole group; both children and adults. The other picture shows one of the Sunday School classes - ages 9 through 11. This class has been growing very rapidly lately. We are so thankful for the Lord blessing this ministry of the church annex. We are also very thankful for Pastor and Ruth opening their home week after week for our use as a 'church' body. This commitment requires them to open not just their great room, but their kitchen, and at least 3 other rooms for SS class use. For 4 years they have made this sacrifice to allow us to meet at their house week after week, and we praise the Lord for their commitment to His work.

Youth Meeting on Saturday

Every Saturday afternoon we have youth meeting at church. But this past Saturday we did things a little differently to make things more interesting. We had game time at a nearby park first, where the teens could enjoy basketball, soccer, volleyball, and several other sports. Then, we went to our house for the meeting and pizza afterwards. As the pictures show, the schoolroom was full of teens - 53 of them in all - we couldn't believe how quickly the place filled up. Pastor Perez preached to the teens and then we all enjoyed pizza, juice, and cake. What a blessing to see so many young people desiring to seek the things of the Lord and have Christian fellowship with their peers.

Winter Camp

Winter camp....Here we come!....Yes, it is that time of year again. We are busily planning winter camp for our youth group. The dates have been set for July 3-5th, and we are expecting a good-size group of young people ages 10 and up to be in attendance. Camp will include special preachers from other churches, as well as several young people from sister churches. We are planning chapel times, Bible lessons, and of course (great!) camp food and special games and activities. Please pray with us in advance for this endeavor. Pray for God's wisdom and guidance in each preparation and plan. Pray for funds enough to cover the cost of camp rental, 3 days' stay, food, and other expenses. Our youth group has already having bake sales to raise money for this camp experience. We pray it will leave a lasting spiritual impression on each of their lives.

Youth Meeting in the Plaza

Tonight we had our weekly youth meeting in the downtown plaza square. We began by passing out tracts and invitations to those walking through. Then we sang songs, as is our custom, and then continued our meeting. Gabriel preached to the teens on not being ashamed of Christ, and how much of our heart is given to Him. It was neat to see the reactions of people walking by, to see such a large group of young people (there were about 40) in a public place, but not causing trouble. We trust our teens will have an impact on our city as individuals and as a whole group. Public evangelism is a strengthening exercise for anyone, and we pray it will have a positive impact on our youth as they learn to share their faith.

Back in Uruguay! De vuelta en Uruguay!

We are back in Uruguay! After our 2 month visit to the States, we are excited to back to our home and our work! And back in the swing of things! We must say that we were greatly blessed by the time away - visiting churches, making new contacts and renewing old ones, and of course, visiting family. The love and support that we felt as missionaries was unbelievable. We came back very blessed and renewed. We hope and pray that we were also a blessing to those we came in contact with. Do not despair - We have made a new commitment to keep this blog updated. So please visit this site frequently, and thank you so much for your prayers!
Estamos de nuevo en Uruguay! Despues de 2 meses en los Estados, estamos emocionados estar de vuelta en nuestra casa y nuestro trabajo! Debemos decir que fuimos realmente bendecidos en el tiempo alla - visitando iglesias, haciendo contactos nuevos y renovando los viejos, y por supuesto, visitando familia también. El amor y apoyo que nos dieron como misioneros fue increíble. Nos venimos muy bendecidos y renovados. Esperamos y oramos que fuimos de bendición para las iglesias y gente con la cual tuvimos contacto. No se desesperen - Nos hemos comprometido nuevamente a mantener al día este blog. Asi que por favor visítelo frequentemente, y muchisimas gracias por sus oraciones!

Annual Leadership Conferences

We thank the Lord for blessing our church's 4th annual leadership conferences held last weekend. The theme was "Growing and Prevailing" from I Corinthians 15:58 - "Therefore, my beloved brethern, be ye steadfast, unmoveable, always abounding inthe work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord." Bible messages and workshops were the order for the day, along with good Christian fellowship among our people and believers from Uruguay and Argentina. The main preacher was Pastor Ron Self, missionary to Argentina for over 25 years. Gabriel was among the workshop leaders, speaking on How to Have a Strong Youth Group. Our hearts were greatly blessed throughout the day by the challenges and encouragements to us as church leaders.

3rd Anniversary Celebration/3er Aniversario del Anexo

We give thanks to the Lord for 3 years of existence in the Real de San Carlos. On Sunday, we celebrated our 3rd anniversary as our church's first annex. We began with a special program including testimonies, special music, and Pastor Perez preaching our Sunday morning message. The testimonies focused on changes that Christ has made in members' lives in areas of the Christian walk and testimony. The message was based in Revelation concerning the church at Ephesis and that we should not lose our first love, being Christ. We had 55 in attendance for our morning service, including a large group of neighborhood children which have been reached as a result of the work in this part of Colonia. At noontime we all enjoyed hamburgers, hot dogs, salads, and lemonade, not to mention anniversary cake! We thank the Lord for not only a good number of souls that make up our 'congregation' in the Real, but the changes that He makes in us through His Word. Please continue to pray with us for spiritual growth for our little flock.

Damos gracias al Señor por 3 años de existencia en el Real de San Carlos. El domingo, nosotros celebramos nuestro 3er aniversario como primer anexo de nuestra iglesia. Empezamos con un programa especial incluyendo testimonios, música especial, y el Pastor Pérez predicando el mensaje. Los testimonios enfocaron en los cambios que Cristo ha hecho en las vidas de los miembros, especialmente la vida y testimonio de un Cristiano. La predicación fue basada en Apocalipsis sobre la iglesia en Éfeso, y que no debemos perder nuestro primer amor - siendo Cristo. Tuvimos 55 en asistencia para el culto de la mañana, incluyendo un grupo grande de niños del barrio que se han alcanzado como resultado de la obra en esta zona de Colonia. Al mediodía nosotros todos disfrutamos de hamburguesas, panchos, ensaladas, limonada, y también torta! Damos gracias al Señor no sólo por un buen número de almas, sino también por los cambios que Él nos efectua através de Su Palabra. Rogamos que siguen orando con nosotros por crecimiento espíritual en nuestro rebaño.

Children's Day/Día del Niño

Today we had the privelege of celebrating Children's Day (national holiday) with the little ones at church. Both in El General (mother church) and El Real, we had a special program for all the children in attendance. We sang more children's songs than usual, listened to the message brought by Pastor Daniel, and then all the kids went outside to play. Despite the cold, about 25 children enjoyed "The Olympic Games" and won medals and prizes for their efforts. Later, they broke open two piñatas, and filled their pockets with all kinds of candy. We finished with a snack of pizza, desserts, and hot tea, with both the adults and the young people. We give thanks to the Lord for this great activity, and we continue to pray for the outreach to all children here in El Real.

Hoy tuvimos el privilegio de festejar el Día del Niño con los pequeños de nuestra iglesia. Tanto en el Real (el Anexo) como en el General, hicimos un programa dirigido a los niños. Cantamos mas coritos para niños, escuchamos el mensaje traido por Pastor Daniel, y después salieron los menores a jugar. A pesar del frio, aprox. 25 niños disfrutaron de "Los Juegos Olímpicos" y ganaron medallas y premios. Después rompieron 2 piñatas, y llenaron sus bolsillos con todo tipo de caramelos. Terminamos con una merienda de pizza y pasta frola y té caliente, junto con los mayores y niños. Gracias a Dios por esta hermosa actividad, y seguimos orando por el alcanze de los niños acá en El Real.