It seems like a lifetime since we last posted. We have had one intense month!
Before we tell you about Seminary week we want to share two experiences at two churches with which we are honored to partner.
Since we last wrote we had the opportunity to attend several churches, all of them are wonderful and loving. One of them, the Carapungo church, has made a significant inroad into their local school. The pastor’s wife, Lidia, has taken something that she had learned from a North American sister in Christ who has invested some time visiting and teaching the Ecuador church and given that teaching in an unlikely place.
On day Lidia listened to some of the kids in her church talk about a problem in their school. There were many students being abused by other students. Lidia’s heart broke for the students and she was moved to action. She approached a teacher she knew at the school and asked if she could share a powerful truth that had made a significant difference in her life with her class. She was invited and she shared some basic Christian teaching about the Christian ethic of individual value, fairness, and love. The students listened and the Gospel worked! Over the following weeks the teacher and school administration were so impressed with the change in lives of the students that they invited her to share with the entire school.
We are so proud of our sister who took what she learned from another and shared it with those in need. Her actions are a testimony of the effectiveness of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
We also had a wonderful experience with the Comite del Pueblo church. We arrived early to the church one Sunday with the intent of attending Sunday School. We were surprised to find that the church cancelled Sunday School once a month so that the people can walk the neighborhood around the church, meet people and pass out literature. Our family was privileged to walk alongside of our brothers and sisters through their neighborhood meeting people and sharing Christ.
The story continues in a wonderful way. A few weeks after we experienced this act of evangelism we had the opportunity to visit a hardware store near the church. Guess what we saw on the counter? The literature that was passed out a few weeks before! Written words have a way to staying around.
Every year the S.E.T.E. (the Church of God Seminary in Quito) offers a week long schedule of intensive classes. The preparation for this week is time consuming. This year we were able to offer five classes. A missionary working with the Bible League of Quito taught “The Church and The Community.” A local pastor taught “The Pentateuch.” And Timothy was privileged to teach “Leadership Development,” “Simple Doctrine,” and “Missiology.” We had 27 students, two translators and three professors.
We thank everyone who helped provide such a wonderful week of encouragement and learning.
Next year we plan to offer more classes and we will push for participation from 100% of our churches.
Would you or your pastor like the opportunity to participate in upcoming Seminary weeks? If so, click here and you will be directed to our Global Strategy page. Simply click on the email icon and we can begin our conversation about your participation.
We are privileged to work with our brothers and sisters in Christ in Ecuador. We are honored to partner with many churches and supporters from our home country. If you would like to help us by joining our support team we would love to partner with you! Please click here for our donation page.
With love from the equator,
The Downings
