Isaiah 43:1-3, 7, 10-13

But now, this is what the LORD says— he who created you, O Jacob, he who formed you, O Israel: “Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze. For I am the LORD, your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior... Bring my sons from afar and my daughters from the ends of the earth—everyone who is called by my name, whom I created for my glory, whom I formed and made.... “You are my witnesses,” declares the LORD, “and my servant whom I have chosen, so that you may know and believe me and understand that I am he. Before me no god was formed, nor will there be one after me. I, even I, am the LORD, and apart from me there is no savior. I have revealed and saved and proclaimed—I, and not some foreign god among you. You are my witnesses,” declares the LORD, “that I am God. Yes, and from ancient days I am he. No one can deliver out of my hand. When I act, who can reverse it?”
Isaiah 43:1-3, 7, 10-13

Wednesday, October 08, 2008

Birthday Parties and More

A couple weeks ago, we celebrated the birthday of one of our church members - Gaston - here at our house. We see part of our ministry as a family in having bigger fellowship events once or twice a month in our home. Seeing as we have a big yard, it gives people the chance to enjoy being outside. Gaston turned 65 this year - a marker year for anyone. He also helped us out by staying in our house all summer while we were gone, so we wanted to do something special in appreciation for him. 35 people from the church came in celebration of his birthday and enjoyed smoked pork and chicken (thanks to my husband), lots of fellowship and games (horseshoes, volleyball, football, and cachos - a Bolivian dice game).

We had a special time of blessing and prayer over Gaston.


This family, Carlos and Janet and their 3 kids, have been faithfully attending since we offered a class on the family a few months ago. Please be praying for their spiritual future.


Jana loved being outside and the center of attention.


Javier, one of our newest members, enjoying some down time in the hammock.


Sonia, Renan, and Jana. What did I say about the center of attention? Everyone loves on our babies so much!


Gaston, Javier and Pedro playing cachos.


Kitchen talk - Mary Jane, Gilda and Palmira.


The kids always enjoy playing with the tons of toys we have.


Playing football.


And this one's extra - here's a picture from our latest fundraiser for our youth - a garage sale at our contact center. It was a big success - all our members gave generously and we had a lot of walk-ins off the street. In all, they raised about 2000 bolivianos (about $300) for their trip to Paraguay in January. I think we're going to have another one in a few weeks.

4 comments:

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Diane said...

What a blessing you are to so many people there! Thanks for sharing yourselves. Love you, Mom

Anonymous said...

Your pics/captions are great at capturing the moments. Thank you for being LIGHT and SALT to so many. You family is precious! Would love to hug your necks! Brad and Vanessa and kids are coming our way this weekend!

Reegers in Ecuador said...

So,I think it's hilarious we both have dogs named Chaska. We had no idea...in fact we were really excited to find a new name for a dog. Our other dogs are names Chicu and Sisa, do either of those match your other dogs name? We love ya'll and are excited you are coming. Have a good one.