A friendly welcome, a listening ear, a tear shed in unison, one way you can support your missionary is by offering them re-entry support. Click play to find out how!
With love, 
The Downings
Ministry Story
Why does Ecuador need missionaries? This legend of La Raina Del El Quinche will give you some insight into the matter!
With love, 
The Downings
Wh is the head of the Church and why does it matter? Today’s podcast explores these questions.
God “hath put all things under his feet, and gave him [Christ] to be the head over all things to the church.” Eph. 1:22
“But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ: From whom the whole body fitly joined together and compacted by that which every joint sup- plieth, according to the effectual working in the measure of every part, maketh increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love.” 4:15-16
“For the husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is the head of the church: and he is the saviour of the body. Therefore as the church is subject unto Christ, so let the wives be to their own hus- bands in every thing.” 5:23-24
“And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence.” Col. 1:18
“Let no man beguile you of your reward in a voluntary humility and worshipping of angels, intruding into those things which he hath not seen, vainly puffed up by his fleshly mind, And not holding the Head, from which all the body by joints and bands having nour- ishment ministered, and knit together, increaseth with the increase of God.” 2:18-198
The head of an institution is its lawmaker.
“For the LORD is our judge, the LORD is our lawgiver, the LORD is our king; he will save us.” Isa. 33:22
“There is one lawgiver, who is able to save and to destroy.” Jas. 4:12
All organisms that make their own laws, creeds, disciplines, and systems of co-operation, do not hold the Head—Christ. Their law-making synods and general conferences ignore the divine Lawgiver, usurp the place of Christ, and sit in the stead of God, and are not Christ’s church, which is subject to Him.
Again, there is one head; hence, there can be but one body.
-D.S. Warner
With love, 
The Downings
Tree tomato aji hot sauce / Ají de tomate de árbol
Yield: ~1 1/2 cups of tree tomato aji
Tamarillo or tree tomato aji hot sauce is a very tasty hot sauce made from tree tomatoes or tamarillos, hot peppers, onion, cilantro and lime juice.
Ingredients
- 4-5 tree tomatoes, fresh or frozen if you can not find tree tomatoes you can use Tamarillo
- 2 ajies or hot peppers (serranos or red chilies are good options, habaneros if you are brave)
- 2 tbs finely chopped white onion
- 1 tbs finely chopped cilantro
- 1 tbs lime or lemon juice
- ¼ cup water
- Salt to taste
Instructions
First: If using fresh tree tomatoes peel them, boil them for about 5 minutes to make it easier to peel them.
If using frozen tree tomatoes, defrost them over night in the fridge, then cut them in half and scoop out all the insides.
Then: Blend the tree tomatoes with the hot peppers (seeded and deveined if you want it mild, you can always save a few seeds and add them in if it’s too mild).
Then: Transfer the blended mix of tree tomatoes and hot peppers to a small sauce pan, add the water (you can add more if you want a more liquid sauce) and cook on medium heat for about 5-8 minutes. You can also omit the cooking part, the sauce will be fresher, but will need to be consumed faster.
Then: Add the onion, lime juice, cilantro and salt to taste.
Enjoy! Serve warm or cold.
Notes
Replace water with oil (avocado, light olive oil, or a mild flavored oil) for a creamier Cuencano style aji (do not cook it after blending).
With love, The Downings
When the angels left them and went back to heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let us go over to Bethlehem and see this thing that has taken place, that the Lord has made known to us.” So they hurried off and located Mary and Joseph, and found the baby lying in a manger. When they saw him, they related what they had been told about this child, and all who heard it were astonished at what the shepherds said.
~Shepherds, Luke 2:15-18
Scum of the earth! The people who worked as shepherds in the fields around Bethlehem during the time of the first Christmas were considered to be the lowest of the low. They had a reputation for being dishonest and crude. They were the sort of people who should be avoided. Yet, when the Holy God of all creation announced the birth of His Son it was to these reprobates that He sent His Angels.
The ears who heard the first Gospel message belonged to the people who most needed a Savior. This is the loving nature of God! He is quick to seek out those who need Him most. He brings the improbable into His family.
Our hope for you today is that you will see others through the eyes of God. No one is too far away from God to be saved.
With love, The Downings
According to Wikipedia:
“Juan Santamaría (August 29, 1831 – April 12, 1856) was a drummer in the Costa Rican army, officially recognized as the national hero of his country. A national holiday in Costa Rica, Juan Santamaría Day, is held every April 11 to commemorate his death.
Santamaría was born in the city of Alajuela When U.S. filibuster William Walker overthrew the government of Nicaragua in 1856 and attempted to conquer the other nations in Central America, including Costa Rica, in order to form a private slave-holding empire, Costa Rican president Juan Rafael Mora Porras called upon the general population to take up arms and march north to Nicaragua to fight against the foreign invader. This started the Filibuster War. Santamaría, a poor laborer and the illegitimate son of a single mother joined the army as a drummer boy. The troops nicknamed him “el erizo” (“the sea urchin”) on account of his spiked hair.
After routing a small contingent of Walker’s soldiers at Santa Rosa, Guanacaste, the Costa Rican troops continued marching north and reached the city of Rivas, Nicaragua, on April 8, 1856. The battle that ensued is known as the Second Battle of Rivas. Combat was fierce and the Costa Ricans were not able to drive Walker’s men out of a hostel near the town center from which they commanded an advantageous firing position.
According to the traditional account, on April 11, Salvadoran General José María Cañas suggested that one of the soldiers advance towards the hostel with a torch and set it on fire. Some soldiers tried and failed, but finally Santamaría volunteered on the condition that, in the event of his death, someone would look after his mother. He then advanced and was mortally wounded by enemy fire. Before expiring he succeeded, however, in setting fire to the hostel, thus contributing decisively to the Costa Rican victory at Rivas.”
Santamaría was 15 years old at the time. His day is celebrated with groups of people marching through the streets with torches.
With love, 
The Downings
We love walking alongside our brothers and sisters here in Ecuador. We love sharing our mission path with you! Here is a story we want you to hear!
With love, 
The Downings
It is a blessing to hear a friendly voice or read a warm greeting in a foreign land. One simple way that you can support your missionary is through communicating with them regularly. Click play on the podcast below to find out how.
With love, The Downings
Today’s cultural insight comes in the form of a story. The legend of Father Almeida tells a story of sin and redemption. Just click play below to be regaled with local Ecuadorian lore.
With love, The Downings
Who is the foundation of the Church? Does it matter? Well yes it does! Click play below and find out why!
“Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD, Behold, I lay in Zion for a foundation a stone, a tried stone, a precious corner stone, a sure foundation: he that believeth shall not make haste.” Isa. 28:16.
“For who is God save the LORD? or who is a rock save our God?” Psa. 18:31.
“For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ.” 1 Cor. 3:11.
“And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone; In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord.” Eph. 2:20-21.
In the last text we see that the apostles were foundation stones. If we were required to interpret the “rock” in Matt. 16:18 as applying to Peter, there is yet nothing in such an application of the text that conflicts with the scriptures. The apostles all being foundations, of course Peter was one of them. Jesus would not have singled Peter out here because he had any pre-eminence over the rest, but because in conversing with him, his name, Cephas (a stone), called out the assertion. For evidence that all twelve were foundations, see Rev. 21:14.
Yet, Christ is the all-underlying foundation. The apostles, being first chosen and inspired to give us the New Testament, were foundation stones occupying a connecting position between Christ, the Rock, and the rest of the building. Christ is then the only Rock. “Other foundation can no man lay.” Only one structure can stand on one foundation. Christ built His church on Himself. All later organizations are without Christ as their foundation, and must perish.
-D.S. Warner
With much love, The Downings
