The long awaited disk at work on the landsite
It has been close to a month of hard physical labor since my last blog, and I have not had the energy to drag myself to the computer at the end of most days. Today being Saturday, we decided to take the day off and let our weary backs rest. Besides, we awoke to a morning-long deluge, so it was a good decision reached last evening.
I have a number of things running through my head of late, and I will ask you to bear with me as I ramble in what might seem to be disjointed ideas and rabbit trails. So, please forgive the tangled and circuitous pathways that my mind may follow.
I want to begin with a quote from the same book that I mentioned in one of my previous blogs – “Jungle Pilot, The Life and Witness of Nate Saint”. Nate once wrote in a letter to his father, “I feel like the general who said he liked a certain officer because he ‘isn’t always trying to convince me that a thing is impossible just because it can’t be done’”. Nate then went on to say, “We would be glad if the doubtful and the fearful would pray with us, but we would rather, with Gideon, be accompanied by those people who can help us at the risk of disappointment.”
Oh, how very true his words are on the mission field.
Several weeks ago I was standing ankle-deep in muck in the sugarcane field, machete in hand, my clothes
We first loosened up the area to be dug with our post-hole digger
dripping with water from the gallons of sweat pouring from my body in the 110 degree sun, every muscle screaming in protest, fire ants tormenting me as I cut seed cane for the replanting of the flooded out fields, and the thought kept going through my head “What are you doing this for anyway?” “There is never enough money for the work to go forward. Some give lip service to the vision, but disappear into the woodwork when any work begins. Others actually directly oppose and speak derogatorily and disparagingly against the vision and work that we are doing”. “Why even bother trying?” But then something came to mind: “What would dad have done?”
I don’t want to be sacrilegious, but do you remember those bracelets that everyone seemed to be wearing about ten years ago that said simply, “W.W.J.D” (What Would Jesus Do)? I suddenly thought “What would Alvin have done?” “What did he do?” I sometimes have difficulty knowing exactly what Jesus would do in a given circumstance. The answer to that question seems more nebulous at times. But I do have a pretty good idea of what my father would have done, or did do, and of the life that he lived. Besides, I had close to sixty years to observe what he did under varying circumstances.
Back-breaking pick and shovel work is the only way to prepare for the footers
W.W.A.D? Well, for starters, he never was one to shirk work or responsibility. He refused to let down his end of the load, even if he had every right to do so. He would have taken a machete and fought the fire ants and heat and mud, shouldering the load. He would not have complained or groveled in self-pity. He would have pulled his weight, and more. And I have a good idea that that is also what Jesus would do under the same circumstances. I wish to do the same.
We are so blessed. A couple of weeks ago Javier and I were able to begin clearing weeds and overgrowth on the farm with the disc and spring-toothed harrow. It still involved a lot of machete work and hard physical labor, but we did have the help of the tractor. We are not done, but we are moving in the right direction.
We are in the process of transitioning into a new curriculum and academic covering for the Bible Institute. This is not a simple process, and involves some serious questions for all of the directors and teaching staff. The result will bring a much more advanced level of teaching, but will also mean a lot of work and change for everyone, most certainly for the staff. The covering that we are prayerfully moving towards is under an organization called Zion Christian University, which is itself under Zion Fellowship International. ZCU has Bible Institutes in many countries around the world and offers academic covering at a degree level of study. This is a huge move for us, and we need God’s wisdom and grace. Please pray with us now during this time of transition and change as we continue to seek God’s will.
I mentioned in a former blog that Theresa and I have been able to be involved in a little work in a town about a
Javier digging trenches for the footers
half hour south of us called Pujal. This is a little church that was begun about thirteen years ago by a pastor and his wife from Valles. We have learned to appreciate this pastor and his wife who walk in gentleness and humility. On the 5th of October we were involved in the presentation of a film for youth (to which many adults also attended). It was a time of real ministry and blessing. Through our visits there we learned to know a couple who have invited us back to visit them in their home for a fish meal. We will be attending their little church tomorrow morning, and then enjoying some cat fish with them in their home during the afternoon. This is what “church” is all about I think. We get so caught up in form and religion sometimes that we miss the authenticity of real life. After all, wasn’t much of Jesus’ ministry “hanging out” with people; not necessarily with a preconceived agenda other than simply to show love and the Kingdom of God to them?
And then the really big news – we are beginning to build staff housing on the missionary training farm!!
On Monday this week we began with pick and shovels to dig out for the foundation work. Last night at about 8:00 o’clock we finally ended pouring the first stage of the footings and dragged our aching bodies home for the night. Today it is raining and we are able to rest.
The base is prepared with a hand compactor. No hydraulic hammer here.
Listowel Community Church is sending a work team down at the end of January to complete the building project that we are calling the “galera house” project. The “galera”, as you will remember, is the steel roofed pole shed that we put up at the beginning of the year. The plans are to utilize just a bit over half of this space for a staff house for a couple who will live on site. The rest of the space will be used in tractor and equipment storage, as well as in a locked room for tools and supplies for the missionary training farm. The work is brutal and the hours are long, but we are blessed. We have been praying for well over a year for the ability to begin putting up the needed buildings on the land so that the mentoring and missionary work can begin. This prayer is finally beginning to take form. This is just the first step of what is so desperately needed, but it is a good start.
Listowel Community Church is in the process of raising the funds for the building and to send down a work team. With the beginning of the funds raised they are sending money down for us to complete the foundation and floor as well as the external concrete block work – the most brutal and time consuming part of the build. Their team, having only five actual work days while here, would not have a chance to accomplish a build start-to-finish in that short time. However, they will be able to work miracles in partitioning walls and the completion of the inside of the house. We feel that this is a very good arrangement and we anxiously await their arrival in the new year.
If you would like to be a part of this project than please send your gifts to either LCC (where your giving normally
Rebar is prepared and tied together
goes if in Canada), or to Newsong Church (where your giving normally goes if in the U.S.). Please note the gift “for building project”. All gifts are tax receipted.
We still desperately need, and are expectantly praying for a team to come down in order to put in a septic tank and field for the training center site. As I have already said, we are now beginning to build our first staff building on the farm. Soon, the Lord willing, other buildings will follow. We desperately need someone to feel God’s tugging to head up a work team to come down in order to put in a good septic field now while the work is just beginning to take shape. If we wait too long it will no longer be possible. This could be a very doable and fun project for a group of guys who know something about this kind of work. They would have to raise the funds to complete the project since we have no money to do so, but they would be richly blessed. Please pray with us, but as Nate Saint stated in the quote above: “We would be glad if the doubtful and the fearful would pray with us, but we would rather, with Gideon, be accompanied by those people who can help us at the risk of disappointment.”
Getting ready to pour. Our modern implement – a cement mixer
I will end this blog on a sad note. My only reason to do so is so that you can pray for the work that Theresa and I are involved with, and for each of the people with whom we work beside as co-laborers; specifically for Javier and Cristina, and Mario and Alejandra with whom we work very closely. Over the past several months the opposition and hostility towards them and the Bible institute, Project LAMBS, and Casa del Obrero (the missionary training center) has become more slanderous and vindictive. Sadly, this is coming directly from brothers and sisters who have chosen to take offense, or have chosen to misunderstand the work. The problem is that it has become a hurtful campaign of slander against our brothers and sisters. As it turns out, Theresa and I as non-nationals cannot be directly hurt as badly, but for these local leaders it is a very painful time to be accused of all kinds of evils and antichristian things.
Please pray that God will uphold the hearts of those who are serving him against opposition and hostility. Pray that lies and conjectures will cease, and that broken relationships can be mended. After all, how can antagonism and self-serving kingdom building possibly bring glory to God; especially if this is done because of jealousy of one brother against another? Didn’t Jesus very plainly say in John 13: “Love each other. Just as I have loved you, you should love each other. Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples.”
Please pray for unity and love in Jesus’ body.
Your friends,
Steven and Theresa
