Church Building Project

Another exciting thing on the horizon is our church building project! The mother church is in desperate need of more Sunday school classrooms, so we as a church are moving into action. Within the next few months, we asking the Lord to provide the $7,000 we need to divide the original chapel from only one into several classrooms. We are raising a special building fund for this purpose, for which we already have $500. Please pray for our people in this matter, that God would increase our faith in Him and the remodeling could be completed in a timely fashion!

Upcoming Easter Program

We are looking forward to this month and its related activities. With the much talked-about holy week, good Friday, and Easter Sunday coming up, we want to make the most out of this season to reach the unsaved. Many Uruguayans see the week before Easter as simply another week of vacation, and a time off school or work. We would like to challenge them to personally know the Savior who came to die and take our place on the cross. Please be in prayer for the evangelistic meeting we have planned in El Real (where our church annex is) for Saturday, April 23^rd at 6 p.m. We will be inviting the whole neighborhood for a special Easter multi-media program, followed by a salvation message and invitation. We trust the Lord will be pleased to see souls saved and new contacts made through this outreach. Thank you for joining with us in prayer for this special event!

Anonymous

Our great God sure works in mysterious ways, in ways we don´t understand how or why. One example of this is when someone chooses to give anonymously to a work. As humans, we tend to want glory and praise for our financial sacrifices to someone. But sometimes, God uses anonymous givers to bless us in unknown ways. Or He prompts a prayer warrior to lift us up when we are unaware, but need it most. We are particularly thankful for an anonymous donor, who, for months has been sending us funds, apparently without wanting us to know who they are. If you are reading this, Thank you for giving. God knows each one of our needs and through your giving we have been reminded of that. We have been greatly encouraged to know there are still Christians who follow God´s command of ´Seek ye first the kingdom of God...´ and who desire to lay up ´treasures in Heaven.´ And this saint(s) is not looking for men´s applause as we so often do. Instead, he/she knows that God loves a cheerful giver and will bless that in more ways than we can count! Thank you to this anonymous donor who is blessing our lives. And thank you to all of you as prayer supporters who many times remain ´anonymous´ to us - but not to our Heavenly Father!

update, J. LaCaze

Well we are finally back into a ´routine´ - as much as it could be called one! I have school Tues. through Friday a.m.´s, we have our regularly scheduled meetings each week during week nights, Gaby with visitation during the week, and then both of us on Saturday...all to prepare for services on Sunday! We have gotten off to a good start in school and I am thankful for that. Although we have had some extended summer-like weather, so I have still been enjoying summer activities with the boys in afternoons.

Last Sunday was a victorious one for our church congregation, as the first official church service was held in a neighboring town, Juan LaCaze. Pastor Juan Carlos and his wife Valeria, along with Pastor Andres and his wife Eugenia, have been going once a week for several months now to evangelize and make contacts in this city. Of course, now that Juan Carlos has been ordained, the goal would be to start a church there as soon as possible. Today they saw an increase in their attendance, as there were 4 people in addition to those from our church. We continue to pray for this ministry and the souls in Juan LaCaze, that the Lord would open doors there in the days and weeks to come!

I´m sorry!

It may seem hard to believe...but the previous blog entry was written in January when we first got back to Uruguay. I was unable to actually post it until today due to technical difficulties! I just want you all to know that I haven´t forgotten about my promise to keep the blog more updated! And what´s more, I´ve now designated Sunday afternoons as my blogging time. So Lord willing, this will only continue to increase the frequency of entries.

Back in Uruguay!

We are back home - in Uruguay! It is hard to believe that we´ve been back almost a week now. And it has been quite the change in climate for us all...going from the snow and cold to the hot summer! It is great to be back with our church people. And we are especially thankful to those who took our places while we were gone. Of course the work of the Lord continued on without us! Now we are looking forward to a full week, preparing for our church anniversary and baptisms this Sunday. We will also be hosting Dr. Steadman from Baptist World Mission for leadership conference meetings and the pastoral ordination of one of our young men, Juan Carlos. Please pray for us and our church this weekend as we celebrate what God has done here in Colonia, Uruguay.

In the U.S.

For those of who have previously checked my blog and not found anything new...well, I've vowed anew to change that! So please come back every so often to see how I'm doing with it! We trust this can be an accessible venue for sharing our life and ministry with our prayer supporters, so I will be keeping more on top of this.
Well, our news is that we have been back in the U.S. for almost a month now! We are staying in NWOhio, with Rebekah's parents. We are so grateful the Lord provided for our trip back. And, we are greatly enjoying our time with family and friends in the Northern hemisphere. We have been travelling to our supporting churches, and visiting some new ones as well. Thank you for praying for us during this time, for our safety while travelling, and for strength to minister to the church folks we visit with. God has been good to us, as He always is, and we praise Him for that.
Meanwhile, Pastor Archie was left in charge of the Annex in Uruguay on Sunday mornings. The people continue to be faithful in their attendance. Please pray for our church anniversary (#12) and summer camp season about the time we return to Uruguay (Jan. 19th)! It will be wonderful to see our church people again, and to return to the warmer weather. Although Gaby and Steven are outside making a snowman as I write! And we certainly hope to enjoy a white Christmas as well!

Salvation & Christian Growth

We would appreciate your prayers for the Bustos family. They are a couple with 10 children; the parents and several of the older children have made decisions for Christ in the last year. Last year we had the privilege of discipling them as a family, and are looking forward to beginning once again very soon. They have been coming to church and learning about this new life in Christ, despite their daily struggles. Please pray for continued spiritual growth, consistency, and provision of work for Luis.
Just last night we did have the privilege of witnessing Luis' sister, Veronica, come to know Christ as her personal Savior as well! Gaby gave her the gospel and she readily accepted. She lives out of town but would like to move to Colonia. Of course we would also be pleased with this change as there is no fundamental church in the town where she currently lives. Thank you for taking time to pray for this family!

Pastor!

This weekend sure has been a important one in our lives. On Saturday, Gabriel was tried before the council and later ordained to the ministry as a pastor! After A LOT of studying, and some nervousness as well, he was able to answer all the questions satisfactorily. Whew! There were eight pastors on the council, to whom Gaby defended his faith and doctrine as a Baptist pastor. There is always more to study about our great God and the Bible, and we were challenged to increase our time doing so. But for now we have reached this step in our lives - of being Pastor & Pastor's wife - and we are very excited! We thank God for bringing us to this point, and we thank our pastor & supporting churches for their part in getting us here as well.

Tough Kids
We are thankful for the chance to work with an ever-growing number of children in Sunday school. But with that growing number comes more responsibility. There are a handful of 'bus kids' that have had a hard time adjusting to an orderly, disciplined environment on Sunday mornings. In the past months, they have made the SS teachers wonder if the class was learning anything, and wonder what else we could do to get their attention. We decided that we were not going to let them off the hook that easily. If we want them to learn about God, we must first be a good and constant example for them. Spending time with these handful of kids has been our goal, not just on Sundays, whether it's going to the park after school or Gaby taking them fishing on his day off. We have tried to show these children love, but firm love. And we have seen changes. While none of them seemed to be able to sit still during the song service, several of them do just that, and during the class time as well. Probably the most rewarding individual in the whole group has been Romina, a 9-year old girl that could barely get out 2 words because of her shyness when she first started coming to church. Now she is the first one to come up and greet Gaby and me on Sunday mornings. We are very encouraged to see the changes God is working in these lives, and hope to be a little example of Christ's love to these hurting souls.

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.