Mar. 29, 2008
Jewel- Part 2, Photos
Posted in True Missionary Stories
Here are just a few photos of my friend Jewel taken during her time in Asia as a missionary.
 Yes, that's some sort of makeup on the child. Wish I could tell you why, but I don't know.
 This was taken at the free school started by Jewel and friends.
 In this culture bread is used in place of utensils for eating.
 I love this picture!
 Jewel with friends
 Jewel on a typical bed in this culture.
Mar. 29, 2008
Jewel - Part 1
Posted in True Missionary Stories
One of my favorite people in the world is a woman I will call Jewel, for she is one! She is a true woman of God and my life pales in comparison to hers. I've been wanting to tell you her story (or part of it as there is just too much to tell!) for some time now and I finally found the English translation of her testimony she gave to me. It's a bit long, but worth the reading. I will post more pictures of her in another post.
Poverty Cannot Rob You Of Your Heart's Desire
Poverty and hard work are all I knew in my life. I was born into a poor family in Ecuador, South America. We were six children - four girls and two boys. I am the second oldest. We spoke Spanish in our home but we are of several races - Ecuadorian, African, and European.
My paternal grandfather worked very hard in a factory. His wife was a nurse. My other grandfather was a fisherman. My maternal grandmother is still alive, though she is blind. She was and is very poor. She used to work for other people cooking and washing clothes. My mother earns a living cleaning in a hotel. My father, an artist in his youth, now paints houses.
My parents divorced when I was 11 years old. My father had become an alcoholic and made life very difficult for us. He beat my mother and us children. For about three or four years we kept running from house to house to get away from him. It was very traumatic. Not only was Father abusive, he was also involved with other women. I hated him for his unfaithfulness. Finally Mother decided to divorce him. I was so angry I told my mother not to marry again or bring another man into our house.
A few years later, Mother did bring a man home. She was only 31 and was raising six children. She wanted someone to help her. She worked hard full-time to make it possible for us children to go to school. I didn't understand; I was just in my early teens. When the man moved in, I ran away. My two brothers also left home. One brother went to live with a close family friend; the other one went to my grandparents. My mother continued faithfully to pay for their schooling. My oldest sister ran away with a man when she was only 15 to get away from the problems in our home. I went to a Christian family. Although our family was Roman Catholic I had been attending an evangelical church since my parents divorce. So I went to live with my pastor and his family.
The man who came to live with Mother left after a couple of years. A short time later I returned home. Even though we lived in different homes, my siblings and I were always close to our mother. She continued to take care of all of us. Through her hard work, Mother was able to buy some land. We built our own home and finally had our own place to live.
When I was only nine years old, I started to work at odd jobs to help my mother with the family income. Mother taught us always to do our best in whatever menial job we did. She taught us never to beg, but to work for our food. I had to study at night most of the time. Because we had moved around so much I was never in one school for long. However, Mother made sure we studied.
My parents did not go to church, but they sent us children every Sunday. Mother taught us the Lord's prayer. She was not Catholic as were my grandparents. One night as I was praying, "Our Father in Heaven," I realized that the picture I was praying to was only of Jesus and His mother. There was no Father in the picture. So I said to God, "Your family looks like my family; we are without a father. But I hear that You are a good Father. I want to meet you as a Father." God answered my child-like prayer.
A couple of weeks later, a lady from the Baptist church came to my neighborhood to invite all of us children to a Vacation Bible School. My brothers, sisters, and I all attended for the week. That week I came to know Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior, and God as my Father.
The church was having evangelistic meetings at that time, and as I sat in the church service, I heard the pastor talk about God's love. He read John 3:16: "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life." Those words really spoke to me. I cried and said, "God how can you love me and everybody in the world and send Jesus to die for us?" I was just a child, but I knew I needed to be saved and cleansed. I hated people and I used to fight the boys in my neighborhood to protect the younger children. I knew I was a sinner. When I heard that Jesus loved me and that His blood would cleanse me an make me His child, I stopped crying. The pastor then called for any who wanted to know Christ to come to the altar. I went forward. I said, "Yes, I want to receive Jesus Christ as my Savior and Lord. I believe He died on the cross for my sins." A number of other people also came. The pastor and other Christian workers came to lead us individually in prayer to ask for forgiveness of sins and to invite Jesus Christ into our hears and lives. That day I committed my life to Jesus.
The church folks gave me a Bible and literature explaining what the churach believed, what it means to be a Christian and how to walk by faith. The people in that church were faithful and continued to teach and disciple me. I went to class every day. Although I was only 11 years old, my family saw a change in my life. I was shy, but I was serious in my decision to follow the Lord. I prayed for my family so they, too, would be changed by the Lord. And I wanted to work for Him.
One day, Mother asked why I went to the Baptist Church so often when I had not completed my Communion classes at the Catholic Church. When I finished all the Communion classes, she gave me permission to attend the Baptist Church regularly. That church is still my home church.
Every Saturday was Missions Day for all ages, from children to adults. We had Bible study first, read a missionary biography, then prayed for current missionaries. When we read about William Carey, the first missionary to India, his life really impacted me. I faithfully prayed for India, China, and the Islamic countries.
When I was 14 years old, I attended youth camp. One of the missionary children gave her testimony. We also watched a movie about the five young missionary men who were killed by an Indian tribe in my country. The testimony and the movie moved me to tears. I said, "God, I want to work for You." When the camp director asked if anyone wanted to attend their Baptist Seminary, I replied in the words of the prophet Isaiah, "Here I am, Lord, Send me."
When we returned to the city, I told my pastor I wanted to work for the Lord full-time. He gave me a job at the church. I cleaned, ran errands, and did odd jobs as needed. Then he gave me a job as a full-time secretary. I also taught music and Bible to the children in the church primary school.
I attended high school in the evenings and then university for two years where I studied accounting. Instead of completing my university degree, I went to the seminary. After four years of study, I earned a degree in Theology. Women students usually studied Christian Education, but I challenged the director to allow me to study theology. I wanted to be a missionary or an evangelist and pastor. I was the first lady in my country to study theology at the Baptist Seminary.
I was still praying for the countries of the world, but especially for the countries in Asia. I prayed fervently for the Lord to send workers there. The churches in Ecuador were not yet ready to send their own missionaries out, so they would not send me overseas.
I thought I would become a home missionary, so I applied to do missionary work in my country. I was not accepted because I was not married. It was too difficult to send out single ladies.
I started to teach at the seminary and traveled around the country with my church in evangelistic work, church planting and youth work.
In 1995 I went with some of my friends to the country of Argentina to a youth conference. In Argentina, someone gave me an invitation to a conference in Costa Rica (in Central America) the following year. When we arrived in Costa Rica in January 1996, we learned that it was a missions conference. When I saw the photos and heard about the peoples of the world who are unreached for Christ, I wept. I prayed, "God, is that what You are calling me to do?"
After the conference, the Lord spoke to my heart not to return to my country, but to stay in Costa Rica. I asked Him for confirmation because I knew no one in the country, had no job and no place to live. All of this was a very big challenge to me.
During the conference, I noticed a lady using a lap-top computer. I had never seen one before, so I asked the lady what it was. She asked me who I was. I explained that I had come to the conference from Ecuador. She spoke to me for about five minutes and then apologized that she had to leave. She was going to neighboring Nicaragua for a two-day missionary retreat. She gave me her business card and said, "God sent you here for something. If He is asking you to stay in Costa Rica and you need a place to stay, please contact me and I will be happy to help you. My church sends out missionaries and we can support you."
When she left, I cried. I said, "Lord, You answered already." I began to write letters to my family, to the church and to the seminary to resign from my job.
The lady I met was a pastor/evangelist. When she returned she took me into her home and gave me a job in her office. Then she sent me to a mission called FEDEMEC to tell them God was calling me to be a missionary. The people there received my testimony and said I could study with them. They gave me free tuition, obtained a student visa for me and allowed me to study about missions for two years.
The Lord wonderfully opened the hearts of the pastors in several churches in Costa Rica and in my home country of Ecuador. I finally arrived in Asia in September, 1997. I have since learned English and the local language.
In spite of my background and the grinding poverty, God has given me the greatest desire of my heart. Nothing can keep us from God's will when He steps into our lives.
Jewel worked in Asia for 10 years. She worked planting churches, started a free school and an orphanage. Her stories of her time in Asia are worthy of being written into a book. Wherever she goes, she has people on the edge of their seat in rapt attention begging for more. I am no exception! She is so inspiring.
Jewel is currently back in Ecuador for a year of sabbatical and is working on our team. She is a one woman army and never seems to tire of working for the Lord. She is truly amazing!
Sep. 1, 2006
Manuel
Posted in True Missionary Stories
Manuel is one of our main church planters who lives just across the river in Duran. Recently he has been having to stand guard 24/7 in that
his property is being invaded by squatters who are trying to possess
his legally obtained properties. Manuel's dream is to use this property
for badly needed social ministries amongst the poorest of the poor
(medical clinic, lab, eye clinic, training center, trade school, etc.)
Through massive corruption of local power brokers, he is having to
stand all alone against hundreds of people who have already paid money
to the brokers for Manuel's land. There is no police protection or
legal recourse. The only way is to stand out front and turn people
away. He is trying to maintain a Christian testimony but the corruption
is so rampant. It was beginning to look like he would lose all his hard worked for land
and dreams to unscrupulous, greedy people. My dh sent out an emergency SOS for prayer for Manuel. And, as we have come to expect, God answered. Manuel called my dh a day or so after our SOS. He was all excited to report that God had
sent him an ex-commando, a real foul-mouthed, fully-armed "Rambo" who
for unknown reasons had decided to take on Manuel's case and defend his
cause. He became Manuel's "best friend" and is standing guard 24/7
over the properties and threatens to blow off anyone's head that
attempts to invade the "Lord's property!" While I admit such "answers
to prayer" don't jive with my own personal theology, one has to admit,
WE PRAYED; GOD ANSWERED. I am continuosly amazed at how often God
responds to prayer not in the way expected, but often outside of the
small box we have Him enclosed! Manuel went on to say that the
Lord had impressed upon him the Scripture in Romans "BUT IF YOUR ENEMY
IS HUNGRY, FEED HIM, AND IF HE IS THIRSTY, GIVE HIM A DRINK..." So on
Sunday they fed all the invaders sandwiches and colada (oat meal
drink). Everyone was happy about that and assured Manuel they would
leave his land alone and only invade the others around him! They went
on to have an open-air evangelistic service and will begin a new
outreach group with those interested. If you are interested in reading about the other people we included in our SOS for prayer, you can do so here on my dh's blog. The answers to those prayers can be read here. If you do go there, you will see that I have "borrowed" part of my dh's blog entries. For some other stories about Manuel, you can go here. He is a true servant of God and whenever he calls I always wonder what God has done now!
Jun. 23, 2006
Byron's Story
Posted in True Missionary Stories
For some time now I have been wanting to share the story of Byron, one of our house church servant leaders. My husband beat me to it, so if you read his blog you will have already read this story. If not, read on. He's a fascinating person and someone for whom I have a lot of admiration.  Byron,
the house church servant-leader was not always known as a church planter or Christian Reggaeton
(Latin rap) artist. Most of Byron's life has been spent in and out of
jail cells as a wanted criminal. In his last gun battle with police he
was shot seven times. As he lay bleeding on the street awaiting an
ambulance, he was just conscious enough to cry out to God to save him.
The Lord heard his cry and spared him. Bryon was left paralyzed from
the waist down and is confined to a wheelchair. While in prison he was
exposed to the Gospel so many times he had the presentations memorized,
but still he rejected God's love for him. After being released
from prison, he returned to his former lifestyle. Things only went from
bad to worse. Finally Byron decided to end it all and take his life. As
he held a gun in his lap, and smoked a last cigarette, the Lord brought
back to his memory all the words of those who had witnessed to him in
prison. With the gun still in hand, he told himself he had nothing to
lose by giving Christ a try. There, by himself he gave his heart to
Jesus and promised to serve Him the rest of his days. Today he
lives right in the middle of what is one of the roughest parts of one
of the most violent, high-crime cities in all of Latin America. Byron's
passion--calling--is to reach out to the lost youth just like he used
to be. He lives alone in a tiny rented apartment that is open 24/7 to anyone
who wanders in and out at all hours of the day and night. He is a
friend to all, ministers to them, puts them up for the night, feeds
them whatever he has on hand, visits them in their natural habitats
(bars, crack houses, etc.), prays for them, counsels them, wins them to
Jesus, baptizes, disciples, and teaches them to do the same. "Church"
is always going on. 3-4 evenings/week they even meet as a Body! On the
wall beside his always open door he has a hand-painted sign that simply
says, "La Iglesia de los Muchachos" (Youth Church.) The "Youth Church" now has four cells and so far have baptized over 100,
mostly single mothers, street youth, and gang and ex-gang members. They
all come from abused backgrounds, and disfunctional families, but are
some of the most passionate youth I have ever known, completely sold
out to Jesus who has given them a second chance on life. Byron
is unshamedly an outspoken lover of Jesus, and is respected by all who
know him. Unlike myself, he is unafraid of the drug addicts, the
criminals wandering the streets, and those rejected by society. He
knows their world and goes straight into it to meet them on their own
ground. Bryon's ministry philosophy is "love them to Jesus." It works! He
has only three books in his possession. A Bible, a Matthew Henry
commentary that someone gave him, and a xerox copy of Frank Viola's
"Who is Your Covering." The work is hard, there are many setbacks.
Byron himself is highly criticized by fellow believers in the
established churches due to his unconventional ways of ministry.
Recently he married a couple in the house church who were living
together out of wedlock. Both had become believers and wanted to "make
things right." Many fellow Christians heard about what he had done and
have now turned their backs on Byron demanding he retract what they
call an unlawful wedding ceremony. After all, who gave Byron the
authority to perform a wedding as an unordained, "lay leader?" One
thing I keep reminding him as he faces his accusers is to remain
focused on those that Jesus loves--the lost. Jesus said, "I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners..."But
not all is an uphill struggle. One of Byron's converts has become his
girl friend and they are to be married soon. He has started physical
therapy to see if he can overcome his paralysis and walk again. That
hope combined with an upcoming wedding is reason to
celebrate and sing. Would you
stop right now and pray for Byron? Pray for God to continue to use him
in reaching youth who live without hope or a future. Pray for his
physical healing. Pray for the young disciples as together with Byron
they seek to win to Christ the whole sector of the city where they live.
May. 1, 2006
Churute..... the rest of the story
Posted in True Missionary Stories
If you were interested in the Churute story then you'll be interested in hearing about ...the rest of the story... as Paul Harvey says. My husband and daughter went out yesterday (I was home with a sick son) and he gives this report. Check it out! Linda
Apr. 7, 2006
Churute
Posted in True Missionary Stories
The life of a missionary is rarely dull. We have gone into the Satan's backyard as it were to bring light to the darkness in people's lives here. You can be sure Satan doesn't just sit around and watch us! We have been witnesses to many interesting events as God begins to move in mighty ways among the people that come into our lives. Some of these events are stories that need to be told. This category, Missionary Stories, will attempt to do just that. These first few stories have been shared already in our newsletters so those who have been supporting us with prayer for a while will have read them. But you won't have seen the pictures! Enjoy!
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For months the church that meets in the house of Manuel had been travelling every weekend to the small rural community of Churute about 40-minutes outside of Guayaquil. Their purpose? To plant a church in this roadside town where Manuel owns a piece of property.
After fruitless weeks of door-to-door evangelism and doing everything they had been taught by us missionaries, the church was about ready to give up.
But then God stepped in to the situation.
Manuel owns a nice piece of land in Churute. By the carelessness of a neighbor, Manuel's land was set on fire burning everything to the ground including his valued Mango trees. The whole community was prepared for a tense confrontation, and possibly violence due to the indifference the neighbor "Don Carlos" had showed towards Manuel's property and his total economic loss.
Manuel was of course quite distraught by what had taken place and was unsure of how to proceed. Get the police involved? Sue the neighbor? Demand restitution? Confront the callous neighbor and give him a good tongue lashing? Before doing anything, Manuel decided to pray for a week seeking God's mind on how he should proceed.
Once the Lord had given him the answer and peace of mind, Manuel made a trip to Churute. Word quickly spread in the community that the "fireworks were about to begin."
Upon arrival, Manuel announced that he wanted to see "Don Carlos." Neighbors stirred, whispers ensued, and someone ran to get the man who had burned Manuel's field to ashes.
"Don Carlos" arrived expecting a confrontation. Before Manuel could say a word, "Don Carlos" began blurting out excuses and defending himself about what had happened. Manuel lowered his head, listened a while, then chuckled a bit and interrupted him in mid-sentence... "Oh that, don't worry about it...I realize it was an accident...could have happened to anybody...just be a little more careful next time... What I came to talk to you about today was that we were wanting to enlist your help in trying to get the whole community together to see a film we have. We were hoping you might help us with the refreshments and provide some bread and maybe something to drink for the kids so that it might be a good time for all. Think you could help?"
To say the least, "Don Carlos" was stumped and at a loss for words. All he managed was, "Of course...count on my help...when did you want to show the picture?"
A week later, the day came to go show the movie, but neither Manuel or anyone in their church had enough money for gas to be able to take the old car they use to mobilize themselves. As the time drew nearer for having to leave to get to Churute, they began praying that God would send them some gas money. Just in time, someone walked in off the street wanting to buy some tracts. They had some on hand and sold $5 worth. With the $5 they had enough gas to get to Churute and back!
Arriving towards evening, the whole community turned out for the film showing on the life of Christ (word had spread about what had happened between Manuel and "Don Carlos.") After showing the film, Manuel gave a short evangelistic message and an invitation for people to give their hearts to the Lord. EVERY PERSON PRESENT STOOD to their feet raising their hands towards heaven, praying aloud--including "Don Carlos!!!"
The long prayed-for church was born that evening in Churute. That evening the Light came to Churute. Jesus Christ was glorified as His church was planted in this tiny roadside community. A blip on the map overlooked by the world, but not forgotten by God.
P.S. What has happened since then in the past two years? There are now THREE other churches besides the one in Churute. Manuel is moving forward with his plans to have a church in all the neighboring towns!
This is Manuel.
The following two pictures are of the new church in Churute.
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