"This won't make you fat..."

If you haven’t already noticed I have been trying to post a blog every week. While not all the information may be “wow” and “aha” moments I feel it is important for me to be able to share with everyone that is supporting me in both prayer and financially as well as a place to share special prayers for the many different things we face daily and praise for those victories as God works in our lives and in the lives of the many Paraguay people. I have come to realize that prayer is so crucial and important and I didn’t do a very good job of keeping you updated while I was in Peru and therefore missed out on so much prayer, sharing, and praise along the way. Because of this I have purposed myself to have a blog once a week describing my week and sharing any prayer request/praise reports I might have.

Monday was our day off and I did nothing, but it was a day of nothing that was needed and ended up being a very good day. A Day that was very needed! Tuesday was also a fairly light day of organized work and was spent as a preparation day for the rest of the week.

Wednesday we met with Patricia whom we have had a few meetings with before. We showed the Felix Vargas movie, which shares Felix’s testimony and how God has transformed his live. Patricia watched it along with a gentleman who lives in the house with her. Over the past few weeks this man has not been real interested in God or the devotionals we have shared so it surprised me when he came in, sat down, and watched. Unfortunately after watching the movie he wasn't all “gung-ho” about accepting Christ like we had hoped, however I am not discouraged because I believe a seed was planted that night and we will continue to do our part to nurture it as we allow the Holy Spirit to draw this man to the Lord. After the movie as we were talking Patricia offered us some food and remember the rule of thumb on the Mission Field is “if food is being offered you eat.” So Yoli and I agreed and joined in eating one of the best meals I have had in a contact’s house - lentil soup and onion rings. We had just finished our food and then they offered us more. Yoli wanted more but I didn't, as I was really full, so when they brought more out I said that I did not have any more room but thanks for the food. They quickly replied to me: “this won't make you fat so you can eat a lot of it” and then gave me more to eat. I thought that this was one of the funniest things I have heard since being in a different country - well that and “is everyone in North America big like you?”
Thursday we went to the cell group hosted by Gerardo Gordo. We call him Gerardo Gordo because there are two of them - one is on our team and Gerardo Gordo who lives here at the church with us. By the way it is not bad to call him that in Spanish here. We thought we were going to be leading a cell group this night but we ended up being there as participants in his cell group. It was a blessing and a great learning experience for us because we got to be a part of a group that has been led by Gerardo for a few months which allowed us to learn from someone who has been doing cell groups here in Paraguay for a few months.
Friday we met with another cell group hosted by Lula. I find this group to be very frustrating for me because while Lula has a passion for her neighborhood and she wants to bring the light of God to all her neighbors there is not headway being made. We talked this week and decided that we are going to start going door to door in her neighborhood, getting to know people better and sharing a brief devotional if they are open to it. We are praying for this to work and if not then we will look for other ways to continue moving forward in this area.

Saturday was the Youth Service which is growing, slowly, but it's growing. We seem to have more people come each week, but they are different than those who was there last week so we are praying for more consistency of those who come so that the base can continue to grow. Leon preached and I have to say that it was one of the best sermons I have heard and it seemed that most of the teens were really focused and listening. It was a very good night and a end to a pretty good week.

Prayer Requests:
1. We have a Kid’s Event planned for this Saturday, which is right before the kids go back to school. Pray that this event goes well, that we have sufficient help, and that we can make many more contacts and connections with the community around us.
2. Please be in prayer for the cell group at Lula's house. There is a lot of possibility of this group growing however we need some additional inroads and contacts in the neighborhood.
3. We have a pretty busy schedule this week, which makes this a praise and prayer request. It’s praise as we are starting to meet with two more cell groups this week. Please be in prayer for these two new cell groups that we are beginning to work with.
4. Continue to pray for our relationships down here. In case you haven’t heard living on the Mission Field in a different country and culture with a group of different people you didn’t know before you arrived can have some challenges. Please pray for the Paraguay 40/40 team as a whole and for each partner group: Mike & Felipe, Leon & Gerardo, Emily & Patty, and for Yoli & myself we continue to figure out how to work together as partners and a team.