Paraguayan Plenipotentiaries

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2011-07-20T07:01:00.001-07:00

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2010-12-30T15:57:00.001-08:00

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2010-12-30T15:44:00.001-08:00

Milk Goats

2009-10-05T22:51:00.001-07:00

Imagine if you will a man who cared for goats in order to sell their milk in the market. Everyone in the market loved his milk and even felt that it gave them a little extra boost of energy for the day when they would drink it.

This man had two sons. A wise son and a lazy son. Each morning the man would call his two sons and they would divide the milk so that each one would have a portion to take to market.

The wise son would carefully strain the milk, and place it in clean clear bottles so that the milk would be as delicious and healthful as it could be when the people came to buy it.

But the lazy son was not interested in working hard, he would dump the milk into any container he could find, add water to his milk to make it go further, and then he would put just a touch of sugar in the milk to make it taste a little bit sweeter.

For a time the people would come and buy milk from both sons, but as time went on they realized that the lazy son was watering the milk down and adding sugar. They realized that they never felt quite as good after drinking the lazy son's milk, as when they would drink the wise son's milk. In fact the people that drank the lazy son's milk were often given to bouts of sickness.

In that same way we are doing eisogesis if we treat stories as a hermeneutical discipline rather than a homiletical discipline.

Dani's Baptism - Declaration of Faith

2009-09-03T06:21:00.001-07:00

Dani, a good friend of ours from Ita Angu'a decided to be baptized.

Animoto.com

2009-06-30T12:35:00.001-07:00

2009-06-30T11:39:00.001-07:00

Homes near Ita Angu'a http://picasaweb.google.com/parplen/HomesNearItaAnguA

Maxine

2009-03-18T11:22:00.001-07:00

Somewhere in Missouri, on our way to Texas, we received a cell phone call from a friend of ours. As I answered the phone he said, "Hey, you guys must be near Sikeston, Missouri by now. Why don't you stop in at a restaurant named Lambert's Cafe and check it out? You guys will love it." How were we to know that this call would lead to a divine appointment of encouragement and support.

We arrived late in the afternoon and so there wasn't the usual crowd an Lambert's. This created a more relaxed atmosphere among the staff and waitresses. As the dinner rolls were flying, and unlimited amounts of fried okra were served by a roving waiter from a large stainless steel bowl, Maxine, our waitress came to take our order.

Maxine is a black lady, and looked to be in her 40's, she had a penetrating smile and an enthusiasm that went beyond what her job description called for. On her Lambert's uniform she had about a hundred pins and buttons with different sayings and pictures on them, and as she stepped away from our table after taking our order, James said, "Did you see that one of her buttons said 'Smile if you love Jesus'." James said we should ask her about that when she comes back.

When Maxine returned, I said, "Hey, we're smiling". She knew immediately what I meant, and she said, "I just knew you were." Maxine explained that she had been a Christian for a long time, and I explained that we were missionaries to Paraguay. We talked for a bit about the joys of knowing our Savior and then she had to get back to work.

As we were leaving Maxine approached us with a bag full of the biggest cinnamon rolls that you can image. These were followed by hugs for each of us and a promise to pray and support us.

From Sikeston, to the small town of Limon in Colorado, the Lord has given us a string of divinely encouraging appointments that have made our traveling a little easier.

Technorati Tags: Lambert's,Throwed Rolls,Furlough,Home Assignment,Christian,Encouragement

An International Send Off

2008-11-06T03:32:00.001-08:00

As we said good bye to Paraguay, the Cho family, from Taiwan and the Im family, from Korea were at the airport along with the Dreiling family.

Technorati Tags: Paraguay,Stout,Tom Stout,Kelly Stout

Simple Men

2008-10-06T03:08:00.000-07:00

Mighty rivers receive their songs,
and great men are remembered by many
Forest springs are known to few,
and simple men live quiet, unknown, important lives.

Rivers crash to the sea and demand that we come watch them,
and books of famous sit window displayed
Springs wait for those who know where to find them,
and simple men live quiet, unassuming, important lives.

Rivers carry many on their backs,
and there are men with many followers
Springs refresh a few deeply and they are content,
and simple men live quiet, small, important lives.

I do not know great rivers, Nile, Gangies, the Amazon.
They are names on a page, places I will never go.
But I know a spring.
He will have no song, He made no demands, He did not lead many.
He lived an unknown, unassuming, small and important life.
An important life to me.

-Tom Stout (Remembering Dad)

Technorati Tags: Funeral, Denny Stout, Stout, Denny, Tom, Stout, Simple, Men, Simple Men

Peter and Grace

2008-07-16T16:18:00.001-07:00

Needing a little break from the office I have decided to work at home. It is only about 50 yards away from the office, but the change of scenery is doing me some good.

I have been listening to, and studying the book of Galatians. I usually spend about 2 to 3 weeks in a chapter and then move on. I was reflecting on Peter's life as a disciple/apostle of Jesus as I listened to chapter 2. At our family devotion time we began to make a list of the stories we knew about Peter. Here was our list:

A zealot for Jewish nationalism

A fisherman by trade

Professes Jesus as the Christ, the Son of the Living God

Called Satan by Jesus

Walked on water

Cut off the soldier's ear

Denied Christ

Saw 3000 people surrender their lives to Christ at Pentecost

Taught by God to treat the Gentiles as equals. Visits Cornelius.

Now look at what Paul says in Galatians 2 about Peter's life some 14 years later. He made a doctrinal turn away from grace, because he feared the reaction of some influential men. For this, Paul strongly rebukes him, but some verses earlier he says this of Peter:

On the contrary, they saw that I had been entrusted with the task of preaching the gospel to the Gentiles, just as Peter had been to the Jews. For God, who was at work in the ministry of Peter as an apostle to the Jews, was also at work in my ministry as an apostle to the Gentiles.

Paul affirms his ministry, yet has no tolerance for Peter's compromise on the issue of grace.

It is heartening to know that a man who walked with Jesus, won thousands to the Lord and had a fruit filled ministry, was still struggling with the concept of grace. When in pride, I think that I am beginning to understand the depths of God's grace in Christ Jesus, I take pause, and realize I am only wading in that deep pool just as Peter was.

Tags: Peter, Grace, Galatians

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Lessons in Faith

2007-06-11T03:07:00.001-07:00

My son, James, eleven years old asked me if it was taking advantage of God to pray for something when you knew He was going to answer!

My neighbor, Nati, who has known the Lord now for two and a half years was telling me about her days. She said, "sometimes I wake up grouchy. Then, I think why am I angry? And I pray to God to touch my heart and then I forget why I was angry and I'm happy." Then she said she has a pain in her side, but when it hurts she just gets up and works and praises God. Then it feels better. Her joy in believing is infectious.

Then I listen to my other neighbor, Dani, also a Christian for about two and a half years. She says, " I know it's only by faith that we can have anything. I know because I used to try to change myself before and it never worked. Then I just gave up and didn't worry about it anymore and now I'm changed. It was God who did it all!"

These expressions of faith teach and humble me.

"Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God..."
Rom.5:1

Kelly

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Our First Mens Bible Study This Year

2007-02-13T17:24:00.000-08:00

The dreaded "sheep worm" (yso ovecha)

2007-02-13T12:41:00.000-08:00

The Sheep Worm

2007-02-12T15:17:00.000-08:00

I grabbed my ringing cellphone and stepped outside to get a better signal. I took my usually "good signal place" under a tree in our front yard and began to chat. And then it hit.

An intense pain in the sole of my foot. I thought I had stepped on a bee, but the pain became more and more intense, and I had to hang up the phone. I searched the ground for what had stung me, and there it was... a sheep worm.

These babies are highly poisonous caterpillars that live in trees, but some times fall to the ground as the wind knocks them loose. They are called sheep worms because of their deceptively furry covering, which are actually thousands of little hypodermic needles poised and waiting for their next victim.

I told Denny to bring me an onion and a knife as quick as he could. I cut the onion and smeared it on the sting area, this brought some relief. Kelly went next door to get some help from a neighbor. He brought over a feather, some paper, some matches, a lemon, and a bottle of some black substance.

First he cut the lemon and rubbed it on the wound, this (like the onion) denatures the poison somewhat. He then lit the paper and waved it very close to the sting area. This singes off the minute hairlike stingers that get left behind by the caterpillar. Then he took the feather and dipped it into the bottle of black stuff, which turned out to be diluted creosote, and serves as a disinfectant. He smeared this on the affected area. Treatment complete.

By this time the poison had spread to my lymph nodes in my groin, where I was having cramp like pain. An hour later this pain subsided, but the pain in my foot continued for another 24 hours and then was numb for another 24 after that.

Such a little thing, that caused such lasting pain. I think words can be like that.

The Cost To Follow Jesus

2007-01-22T14:59:00.000-08:00

Dani, our next door neighbor and a new believer had promised to give her testimony at our next monthly get together, yet three times in a row our "Encuentro" was cancelled because of rain. She told Kelly that God was giving her a few more weeks with her friends before she would loose them all, because of her public stand for Christ.

I asked Dalmiro another new believer if he was afraid of that people would think if he got baptised. He answered and said, "If I was afraid of what people thought, believe me, we would not be having this Bible study at my house!"

Nati, Dalmiro's wife said she was more afraid of what God would think, than what people thought.

I constantly under estimate two things down here in Paraguay. One: how much it is costing these people to truly follow after Jesus. And Two: How the Holy Spirit can so empower people to live for Christ when they know persecution awaits them.

Thought The Fool

2007-01-18T15:00:00.000-08:00

Is it better be thought a fool or to be accused of being unfriendly? Many times out here in the rural areas, people come to ask for help or to sell something in order to get a little cash. One particular day a man came wanting to sell some pork from a pig that he was going to be killing the next day. I told him that I would like a certain cut of meat that runs along the spine of the hog. He said he would sell that to me and I waited for the meat to come the next day.

When he brought the meat, it wasn't meat at all, but just the backbone with a few dangling pieces of meat. This wasn't what I asked for. He also charged me for a prime cut of meat rather than for soup bones. What should my reaction be?

I could have demanded my rights and told the man that he was not being fair with me, but I did not. Such a reaction would have been justified, but also looked upon as very unfriendly. The man would probably have told his friends about the transaction and in the telling of the story my character would be described more strongly as angry and hard to get along with.

As it stands now, I just seem foolish in the eyes of this man, and as he recounts the story to his friends, my character will be described as naive and easy to be taken advantage of. Now, I do not relish this second stereotype, it does however, leave the door open to talk with this man and his friends in the future.

One of the hardest things for me to lay aside as a Christian are what I perceive are my personal rights, yet this is what I see the "God become man" doing all the time. It is not about my reputation it is about His. And He was accustomed to being thought the fool.

To be sure, unless the Lord directly shows me differently, I will not be buying things from this man in the future, but I do hope to have a
continued relationship with him.

On Money

2006-10-30T14:58:00.000-08:00

I've been wanting to write about our philosophy on finances and support for awhile. The things I will share are the personal convictions of Kelly and I. SIM as an organization, and other missionaries within SIM all hold some differing convictions in this area, yet all of us hold to the conviction that God is our provider and ultimately we trust Him alone for our finances and wellbeing, thus giving Him all the glory.

Our family has made the following declaration. "If God was to take everything away from us, yet leave us Jesus Christ, He would be enough." This means that, if God was to take my family, if God was to take my wife, if God was to take my sight, hearing or speech, if God were to take my health, still Jesus would be enough.

This is a daring declaration and yet we see this type of contentment reflected in many of the Apostle Paul's statements.

With regards to financial support the Apostle Paul says:
> I have experienced times of need and times of abundance. In any and
> every circumstance I have learned the secret of contentment,
> whether I go satisfied or hungry, have plenty or nothing. I am able
> to do all things through the one who strengthens me. Phi 4:12-13)

With regards to his present suffering he says:
> We are .... as unknown, and yet well-known; as dying and yet (see!)
> we continue to live; as those who are scourged and yet not
> executed; as sorrowful,but always rejoicing, as poor, but making
> many rich, as having nothing, and yet possessing everything. (2Co
> 6:9-10)

Paul expands on this "everything" in these verses:
> God is the reason you have a relationship with Christ Jesus, who
> became for us wisdom from Him, and righteousness and sanctification
> and redemption,
> (1Co 1:30)
> Blessed is the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has
> blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms in
> Christ. For he chose us in Christ before the foundation of the world
> that we may be holy and unblemished in his sight in love.
> (Eph 1:3-4)

And finally with regards to his past Paul says:
> More than that, I now regard all things as liabilities compared to the
> far greater value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have
> suffered the loss of all things ( indeed, I regard them as dung! )
> that I may gain Christ,
> (Phi 3:8)

As Christ has become more and more to Kelly and I we find our selves wanting fewer and fewer things. We find that the more we treasure Him, the less we treasure the things, the comforts and the conveniences of the world. We find ourselves striving more to know Christ and less to please ourselves. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy a nice air conditioned room and a big scoop of ice cream as much as the next guy, but we are not striving for these things.

As Christ has become more and more to us, we find ourselves needing fewer and fewer things. Whenever I am asked if we need something here on the mission field, I always find it difficult to give an answer. God has promised us food and shelter and I guess that's about all we "need". It is true that there are somethings that would make ministry and life easier, but that does not always constitute a need. We needed a way to sort through what was truly a need and what was just something that would make things easier.

This is where prayer and dependence on the Lord comes in. When we think we have a need, we just begin praying about it. We are confident that if it is a need that the Lord wants us to have, then He will provide the opportunity or funds to provide for that need. We are confident that He will prompt others to give towards our needs even though we have not asked them. So when we see the Lord's provision we are left without a doubt that this was something we needed in order for us to do God's will in our life and ministry.

Dr James H Taylor, great grandson of Hudson Taylor gives several guiding principles in the preface of the book "When God Provides" that sum up what I have been saying,

1. "God is dependable"
2. We are willing to, but "we do not need to talk to man about our needs"
3. Prayer is key
4. We choose to live simply
5. "God's work done in God's way will never lack God's supply"

May we all grow in our dependence on God and our satisfaction in
knowing Christ.

Still Learning

2006-09-25T14:57:00.000-07:00

While walking into town one day I had this conversation with a gentleman:

ME: Good Morning
MAN: Good Morning
ME: How are you this morning
MAN: Fine. And You?
ME: Great
MAN: When can you come by my house and visit me?
ME: Oh, about a month ago.
MAN: That's nice, but when can you come by and visit me?
ME: Oh sorry, about a year and a half?
MAN: Yes, but when can you come by and see me?
ME: I get it. About four years and then we go back for another stay
MAN: [Looks at me with great sympathy the way one might look upon a wounded animal]
ME: I'm sorry I'm still not understanding your question. Could you repeat it slowly?
MAN: When Can You Come By My House And Visit Me ?
ME: I'm so sorry. I'm still working on my Guarani. I'll be by your house next week.
MAN: Great! We'll see each other later
ME: Yes. We'll talk later

I am so glad that grace abounds to me both on the part of Our Loving
Father and on the part of my Paraguayan friends.

Unscathed

2006-08-07T14:56:00.000-07:00

We have arrived unscathed here in Paraguay and have spent the past week and a half in Asuncion. We have had the opportunity to meet many of the new missionaries that had arrived on the field since we went on furlough. We have also renewed many old friendships.

We are ready to tuck ourselves away in our little corner of the world here in Paraguay and will take what is supposed to be a five hour bus ride into the interior to the city of Yuty. In Yuty we will stay the night with our friends and co-workers the Reichs. Then on Wednesday we will make the short trip to our home.

Sitting in a Hotel Room

2006-07-23T14:55:00.000-07:00

We can't believe it. I'm sitting in a hotel room in Charlotte NC, and in just a few days we will be flying to our home in Paraguay. It has been a blessed furlough and we have seen God's continued powerful hand in our lives. We have seen Kelly healed of cancer through the skillful hands of surgeons and the wisdom of our oncologists.

We have seen God provide us with jobs, houses, cars, and funds beyond what we could have ever imagined. We have seen God provide peace and joy to our boys as they went through their first experience in public school.

We cannot express enough thanks to the people whom God had used to make this one of the best furloughs we have ever had.

We do have one complaint though. Our furlough was TOO LONG! We can't wait to get back to Paraguay. So pray through the following requests with the expectation of seeing God move as He always does when we look to Him as his children.

2004 Soup Kitchen

2006-04-17T07:49:00.000-07:00

They say a picture is worth a thousand words, so a video must be worth about a million.
Click on the link below and see a video of the soup kitchen ministry that we had in 2004.

2oo4 Soup Kitchen

You will need:
Something better than a "dial-up" connection.
Windows media player

Christ Alone

2006-04-09T16:27:00.000-07:00

I've been thinking about what it means to seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness.(Matt. 6:33) What does it mean for Jesus to be truly first in our lives; what does this look like?

Oswald Chambers wrote it this way in describing Paul, "he never again allowed anything to attract and hold the attention of his mind and soul except the face of Jesus Christ." Do we love Jesus like this? Does He dominate our affections to the exclusion of every other passion in our
lives?

The parable of the sower compares the types of soil with the condition of our hearts. One soil filled with thorns was described by Jesus as the heart of people who hear the word but then the "worries and riches and pleasures of this life" cause it to not bear fruit to maturity. Doesn't that sound like a heart that has not yet decided on Jesus' supremacy? Seeking first His kingdom, not letting other cares crowd our hearts --this is what true discipleship is made of.

Is there anything in your life right now that God is asking you to walk away from that causes you more pain than it should? When you contemplate putting Jesus first is there something that always makes you shrink back from such an abandonment of surrender? Pray about that thing. Take it to the Lord until there is nothing you have as your treasure except Jesus alone.

It is not enough that we know these truths, but for them to be life and freedom to us we must put them into practice. I examine my own heart and I pray "Lord, remove the thorns and change my heart into a "good soil" heart. Will you pray this prayer with me? Will you pray His
kingdom come, His will be done in my life as it is in heaven?

The Great Escape

2006-04-02T17:40:00.000-07:00

This story took place back in December 2004, but I wanted to get it in writing so I wouldn't forget.

It was still raining as it had been most the night when I put the neighbor's plastic table cloth around my shoulders and began the walk toward town. The mud slipped beneath my feet and oozed between my toes and I soon found there was more sure footing in the small rivulets that flowed down the middle of the road, than on the high ground.

I was on my way to a meeting in Guatemala, but first I had to get out of our village so I could be driven to the airport. The normally small stream that separates Ita Angu'a from Yuty had overflowed and flooded the only road leading to town. My friend Dan Reich was to meet me on the other side of the flooded area and then drive me the rest of the way into town and then on to Asuncion.

As I stumbled along, one of our neighbor's boys came riding up on a horse and relieved me of my suitcase and walked with me to the flooded area. As we came over a rise, there was Dan with some Paraguayan friends of ours walking up the hill toward me. Our friends continued on their way to their homes in the villages I had left behind, and Dan and I turned around and headed back to his car.

The Paraguayans had shown Dan that the best way to get through the flooded area was to walk perpendicularly to the road out into the marsh land where the water became much more shallow and then walk parallel with the road until the flooded area had been passed.

The only way to walk in the marsh was by stepping on top of the clumps of grass that were just above water level. Between the clumps of grass flowed two and a half feet of slow draining muddy water. More than once we lost our footing and slipped thigh deep in to the black goo.

Finally totally soaked and covered in mud, we made it back to Dan's car. After a quick shower and change of clothes at Dan's house, we were on our way to Asuncion.

The following day I was on a jet eating preprepared meals wrapped in cellophane and little wedges of cheese wrapped in foil from somewhere in Europe. And for the next three days I would be sitting in a classroom watching powerpoint presentations and listening to mission leaders from Latin America share their vision for the future of missions. After this
brief visit it was back to Ita Angu'a and the mud.

Often the life of a missionary is full of seeming dichotomies, where we find ourselves in simple conditions one moment and then in more modern ones the next. I say "seeming dichotomy" because there really is no dichotomy in a Christian's life. Everything we do has the same purpose no matter where or what the circumstances: It is to glorify Him.

What's important?

2006-03-27T05:31:00.000-08:00

My supervisor is one of the greatest managers of people I know. He has the ability to handle people with such diverse personalities and varying levels of maturity in a fair and straight forward manner. He has the ability to see what issues are important to address and which issues are better left alone. I value his opinion greatly, and so one day we were talking about some of the different men that work under him. I wanted to know what he thought about the men on our crew who called themselves "Christians"

There are some guys at work that go to church on a regular basis, yet their language is pretty heavily seasoned with "four letter words" and other obscenities. I ask my self, "How can they call themselves Christians and be talking like that?" I think about what a poor testimony they are having in front of people like my supervisor. Yet as I talk with my supervisor, he is not bothered in the least by the vocabulary of these men. In his mind there is no great dichotomy in a man who calls himself a Christian and uses the "four letter word" on a regular basis, rather he is offended by the poor work ethic of men who say they follow Christ. It has made me think much more about what is important to those around me , those I would like to reach with the message of salvation through Jesus Christ.

Yes, I may watch my tongue, but am I a "company man", and a "team player". Am I some one who shows up on time for work and actually takes only 30 minutes for lunch. Do I work as hard as I can, in the most efficient way, and do it for Christ, that His name might be glorified through me? I want to better see myself the way the world sees me and then let Christ change me in ways that will most effectively impact the lives of the men with whom I work.

Board Room to Red Boots

2006-03-19T16:22:00.000-08:00

Last Sunday I flew "red eye" to Charlotte, NC to serve for the last time on the SIM Board of Directors. I had been invited to serve as a missionary on home assigment for the past year. Wenedsday morning at 1:00 I was back in Bakersfield. By 4:30 am I was in my truck on my way to work, where I spray weeds with a solution of various chemicals and a red marker dye. It's impossible to work without dying your boots a pinkish red.

This Friday I will join James, our youngest son, and my dad on a trip to th "La Purisma" mission along the California Camino Real. Then Saturday, I will go snake hunting with my son Denny and some snake collectors looking for Rosey Boas and a certain species of California King Snake.

Besides these exciting events I will be continuing on the more mundane task of reformating some Guarani Bible Study materials, practicing Guarani, and spraying weeds.

Kelly has finished her chemo!!

2006-03-11T17:01:00.000-08:00

About a month ago Kelly had her last chemo treatment
and last month her bone scans, mamigrams and blood work
showed no cancer. She is now taking a drug to control
the way the cancer responds to her hormones.

More of Kelly's Thoughts

2005-07-21T10:31:00.000-07:00

As I walk through this cancer and the multiple
chemo treatments, God has given me great peace
in surrender to His will. I rest in His capable
hands and I marvel at how something I dreaded so
much has been virtually easy. The understanding
is that each treatment will bring on harder and
more difficult side effects. Yet, this has not
been the case with me.

Psalm 138:1-3

"I will give Thee thanks with all my heart; I
will sing praises to Thee before the gods. I
will bow down toward Thy holy temple, and give
thanks to Thy name for Thy lovingkindness and
Thy truth; For Thou hast magnified Thy word
according to all Thy name. On the day I called
Thou didst answer me; Thou didst make me bold
with strength in my soul."

Thank you all for your prayers.

Kelly

Kelly's Thoughts

2005-05-28T10:31:00.000-07:00

For a time, I'm going to use this space to let
Kelly personally share with you what the Lord is
showing her though this time of dealing with
cancer.

As I face this new challenge of cancer and the
ongoing treatments of Chemotherapy I have one
desire: that I might respond to all of it in a
way that is pleasing to God and brings glory to
His name.

My last few months in Paraguay God led me to
pray a prayer of surrender. I prayed and told
Him--"You choose everything, Lord, who I will or
won't work with, where I will or won't live, what
type of ministry I will or won't have. You
choose, Lord. I no longer want to decide what is
best for me, You choose."

Now upon arriving in the U.S. I am hit with
cancer. I feel as though I am being tested.
Are you sure you want God to choose? And my
answer is yes! I will take whatever He brings me
and I will embrace it. The only thing I ask is
that I might be faithful to Him in the midst of
this trial. This is my heart.

Thank you all for your wonderful support.
I know that God is sustaining me through
your prayers.

Newspaper

2005-04-20T05:35:00.000-07:00

My mind feels like a newspaper printing press, with the words and pictures rolling by so quickily they are unintelligible.  So I don't think I can give you a story this month.

God's Provision

2005-03-15T10:31:00.000-08:00

It has been over two months here and no rain.
It is a hard time for the subsistent farmer, for
my friends down in Ita Angu'a. The cotton's
growth stunted by lack of water forced bolls to
open too soon and too small. Soy beans dried in
the fields before they could even bloom, let
alone bear fruit. A tired despair of sweat and
dust marks the faces of the men who wait... and
wait.

This is the season for what would have been the
cash crops, the crops that would have put a
little money in the pockets of the poor. Money
to buy paint, fencing posts and wire, money to
buy a new pig or something special for the kids
and the wife. Money that would pay for needed
medicines and funerals in the comming year. But
now nothing.

Our Wednesday Bible study was subdued. Only
stars in the early morning sky, no sign of rain
and another day to wait. As I prayed with the
couples and they shared with me the way things
were, I said sometimes it's hard to understand
what God is doing, how a growing season that
seemed so hopeful could end so miserably.

They said, "Not at all!. God allowed our corn
and manioc root to survive and we will have
plenty to eat until the next harvest. And the
money for taking care of the family...God will
just have to provide some other way." Tired
smiles and nods of agreement that express both
faith and hardship were passed among us.

Rain has come, but it came too late. Pray for
these hard times.

Ernesto's Baptism

2005-01-27T10:31:00.000-08:00

Ernesto Mesa is a 65 year old man with Rheumatoid
Arthritis who suffers from internal bleeding
from a stomach operation that never healed
properly. He has a hunched back and now is
unable to walk. He was nearly killed by a
severe bout with the flu.

He also loves the Lord and has rejoiced daily
for many years in knowing his Saviour. Up until a
few months ago, before the flu, he would hobble
around Ita Angu'a with his cane in hand, telling
anyone who would listen about the love of Jesus
and their need to repent and come to Him.

One day before we moved to Villarrica Ernesto
was baptised.

Carried in his bed down a foot trail that his
boys had widened with machetes for this very
trip, lifted over a barbed wire fence and
maneuvered through a small forest, and finally
placed by a small stream where his friends and
family were waiting, Ernesto, half grimacing
from the pain of his arthritis and half smiling
for joy, sat as two Paraguayan pastors and
myself sang songs and preached on baptism.

After one more song we lifted him from his bed
and carried him into the water where, in a
whisper of weakness and pain, he gave his
confession of faith and was baptised.

We returned him to his bed where he sat with
dignity, knowing that in this too, he had obeyed
the Lord.

God Said Move

2004-12-25T10:31:00.000-08:00

As I talked with our Acting Field Director here
in Paraguay, he related to me his concerns for a
young, first-term, missionary couple that was
under incredible stress.

Left to pastor a growing church and direct a
small school with no other missionaries to help
on site, they were at the point of calling it
quits and heading back to the states.

When I hung up the phone and told Kelly the
story, we both felt an overwhelming burden for
this couple, and we asked God if He might want
us to go help them. The Lord impressed upon us
that it was His will to go.

We will be trimming back severly our ministry
here in Ita Angu'a as we will be moving to
Villarrica. Villarrica is where Kelly and I
first worked with youth and helped plant the
very church this young couple is now pastoring.

"Had we heard the Lord clearly on this
decision?", we wondered. A confirmation that we
had, came after spending only 3 hours in
Villarrica looking for a house.

A member of the church in Villarrica is going to
let us use for free his fully furnished house.
This house has everything all the way down to
silverware. We will basically just walk in and
settle down. In that same three hours we were
also given the use of a car for free. PRAISE THE
LORD!

Pretty Mundane

2004-12-05T10:31:00.000-08:00

10 hour layover in Bolivia
flight delayed
then cancelled
24 hours in a hotel
4 hour flight
4 hours by bus
2 hours by car to Ita Angu'a
sleep
one day of ministry
sleep
6 hours by car to Asuncion
7 days in bed with intense fever and headache
dinner out with SIM chaplin
7 1/2 hour bus ride back home to Ita Angu'a
"ready to roll"

Sometimes it's pretty mundane,
just like that.

My Pistol

2004-11-02T10:41:00.000-08:00

As I practiced some Guarani and had my quiet
time with the Lord, I heard a pick-up truck go
by our house on the dirt road. I thought it was
odd that someone was out so early, but I also
knew someone had been stealing cattle from the
farmers around our house. So with that a made a
mental note of the sound of the truck and the
time; 3:15.

I decided to ride my horse to my discipleship
meeting because it had rained the day before,
and the horse was a lot more sure footed than me
on muddy roads.

I was on my horse and on the road when I heard
the sound of that same pick-up, this time coming
towards me on the road. I could see it's lights
sweep out on the forest trees as he rounded the
last corner between him and me. Then with his
high beams on he came up the road and stopped
about 15 yards ahead of me.

My horse tensed up under me, and he was not
liking the bright lights. I was not likeing
the fact that these may be armed men who had
just stolen a cow! I turned the horse to the
side and as I did I heard the truck door open.
I couldn't see a thing beyond the trucks lights.

I thought about my options. Run? They'd catch
me. Ignore them? They still might shoot me,
because I'd seen them. Bluff? At the time I
thought this was the best option. I pushed my
shirt-tail to the side and reached back to my
right hip, acting as if I had a pistol holstered
at my side. (Many men travel with pistols on the
roads at night, so this seemed like a reasonable
bluff.) So with my pretend pistol held at the
ready, I stared them down. And waited for their
next move.

Their next move was to get back in the truck and
move towards me. I held my ground, ready to
pull my finger out, and use it if I had too.

As they passed they yelled out my name and began
"whooping it up" and laughing. They were all
friends of mine, going to an early morning
agricultural meeting. They knew me well and
knew I didn't have a gun to my name. They had
been watching me and laughing the whole time.

3:00 AM Bible Studies

2004-09-12T10:31:00.000-07:00

The alarm goes off at 3:00AM, and I'm actually
getting used to it. Twice a week, and soon 4
times a week, I'll be getting up at this hour to
go to Bible studies with some key men and their
wives. These are the men I think that God will
use to continue His church while we're gone to
the States for a year.

I'm out the door and 4:00 and then the 45 minute
walk on a star lit road, next, a nice shortcut
through some very dark woods and I arrive at
Maximo's house. From a distance I can see the
firelight escaping from between the slats of his
cooking room.

He's been up with his wife for a while, talking
about the kids and the crops. They invite me in
to a small wooden room with a fire burning in
the middle of the floor. A blackend aluminum
tea pot sits among the coals. We sit near the
floor on low, short benches and drink hot tea,
chatting about how dry it is, how hard the
ground is, and and how the birds ate his first
planting of corn. Soon he'll say, like he
always does, "Let's go brother and read God's
word"

We walk about 50 yards to His father's house
because he has electricity for lights. Maximo's
mom hurriedly swats at the table with a rag to
clean off the dust and then reverendly puts down
a table cloth where I will set my Bible. It's
time to pray and get into the Word.

Today's lesson is about John 1:12, 1 Peter 1:3
and John 10:28. Maximo struggles to use his
pencil which is barely an inch long, his
handwriting and spelling are like that of a
second grader. Later I will work a little in the
fields with him, clearing brush with a machete or
hoeing weeds in his field. Then it will be me
who works like the second grader. In the field
Maximo will guard my pride and encourage me in my
work, even though I am slow and weak. Now, I
will encourage him.

Pencils, hoes, and machetes are but rough and
primitive tools compared to the Word of God and
the work it is able to do. We are not asking
God to change our handwriting or our fields, we
are asking Him to change our hearts.

The sun has yet to come over the horizon, but it
is light enough to be in the fields, so Maximo
must get on with the work of feeding his family.
As I rise to leave, we pray that God would
continue to guide us, and we pray for rain.

I love this man, and how I love to see him
growing daily in his knowledge of the grace of
God.

Being Foolish

2004-08-24T07:01:00.000-07:00

"Get ready to feel foolish." That's one of the
things I'd tell people if they wanted to
minister in a rural area of Paraguay. I grew up
in a suburban neighbourhood and my contact with
life on a farm has been limited to "hogs" and a
couple of friends with 4-H projects. Here in
rural Paraguay there is a whole body of knowledge
which it seems everyone knows, except me. Here
are a few examples of my "foolishness."

If your going to hang meat outside over night,
hang it REALLY high. Dogs can jump over six
feet to rip a bag and get the prize. (Recently
lost 24 pounds of beef by hanging it too low.)

Chickens only look fat, but are able to
squeeze through seemingly impossible spaces.
(After loosing all my beets to a marauding
band of neighbourhood chickens, due to improper
spacing of picket fence boards)

You don't try to cook a whole 64 pound pig
over an open fire. (Pigs here are raised for
the fat that can be rendered from them, and so
nearly 32 pounds of pure fat dripped into the
fire, worth about 5 days wages for the men in
our village.)

Don't ask someone what time you are going to
light your self on fire. (A language slip up
when I meant to ask What time we are going to
start the fire.)

My egos can get bruised pretty easy when I
forget that who I am is defined by Who I know,
and not by what I know. When we feel foolish,
inadequate, or out of place, my we all find
comfort in knowing our Lord Jesus.

Rolf and the Joy of Giving

2004-07-28T07:01:00.000-07:00

Rolf is a German baker, who was won to the Lord
by the patient discipleship of our former
co-worker Mark Johnson in Villarrica.

Last year when Rolf heard that we needed a place
for our next youth camp he volunteered His
property as the site. He has a small farm where
he used to raise cattle and raises pigs and runs
his bakery now. When we agreed to use his
property, he went into "high gear".

He tore down the infrastructure of his milk barn
to make a dining area. He emptied his feed
mill and storage area to make a place for the
girls to sleep. He felled a 20 foot pine tree to
use as the center post for a huge 45 foot in
diameter building with a thatched roof which
would serve as the main meeting room.

He built bathrooms, installed showers, and lit
the area completely with florescent lights.
Except for about 80 dollars, all the expenses
were paid for out of his pocket.

Everytime I would see Rolf, I would tell him he
didn't need to spend so much to improve the
property. He always answered the same way.
With a broad smile and a "bear hug" he would say
he loved to do these things and if just one
young person came to know the Lord at camp it
would all be worth it.

Rolf knows the joy of selfless giving.

Our Car Was Stolen

2004-07-07T05:31:00.000-07:00

Apon waking this morning I found that our car had been stolen.  We have reported this to the police and informed our neighbors. Our greatest treasure continues to be Jesus Christ and we know that God has a purpose in everything he allows to happen to those who love Him.

It will truely be a miricle if our car is returned to us.  Many are stolen, few are ever recovered.

The Man and the Machette

2004-06-18T07:01:00.000-07:00

Unlike the city, there is very little night life
in the village where we live, and even less
movement when it is pouring down rain. However,
it didn't stop the two men who were calling
outside our front door on this particular night.

The men were soaked with rain and had been
running for about 3 miles to get to my house. A
friend of theirs had slipped and fallen
backwards onto a machete he was carrying in a bag
on his back. They said he had lost a lot of blood
and needed to go to the hospital.

We got the men some towels and jumped in the car
to go get the man. The roads were not pretty
and the man who had fallen lived in a hilly
area, so we were unable to make it all the way
to his house. I stopped the car and turned off
the lights and immediately we were surrounded by
the blackness of the night. In the distance,
from the direction of the injured man's house I
could see the light of flashlights bobbing up
and down as they moved closer.

As the lights got closer I could see they were
carring the injured man on a cot type bed. The
man was on all fours like a dog and his fingers
gripped through the strips of raw hide that
laced the cot's surface. He grimaced as they
sat the bed down. The machete had been driven 3
inches deep underneath his shoulder blade.

The rain poured even harder as we left for the
hospital, but we arrived with out incident.
After the doctor cleaned and sewed up the wound
we started for his house. I felt the road back
to his house was now impassable and didn't know
what to do. Then about a 1/2 mile from his
house the man said that he could not ask me to
take him on such a difficult road and told me he
would walk the rest of the way.

In the heavy rains and darkness my headlights
barely reached 20 yards and the barefoot,
shirtless man quickly faded from view as he picked
his way down the path looking for the best
footing.

I will visit this man in the coming weeks to see
how he is doing, read the Bible and invite him
to our men's Bible study on Saturdays.

Mourning and Communittee

2004-05-21T07:01:00.000-07:00

"Oh, Tomas!", a woman mourns, as she hugs me and
meets me at the gate of her sister's house who
had died 9 days ago. It is the last day of 9
days of reciting the rosary, and it is time for
the "Tupa Mba'e".

This is a meal that is served to the people of
the community in honor of the person who has
died. Traditionally the meal was served to gain
God's favor on behalf of the deceased loved one
in order to help him move out of purgatory and
into heaven.

To many the traditional reason has been lost,
and it is now done as a community service.

I am here at the request of the family, and
after shaking 30 men's hands, I am seated at the
table in front of an alter adorned with black
cloth, flowers, candles, and a picture of the
woman who has died.

The meal starts with a beef soup, followed by
another kind of soup with spiced corn dumplings.
In turn another plate with rice and milk is
served for dessert. It is almost more than one
person can eat.

While I eat inside the house, some 350 other
people are being served by family and friends
outside in the yard.

When our meal is done, we stand together behind
our chairs and recite a Catholic prayer. I am
asked to lead the prayer this time, but have to
tell them I don't know the special prayer. An
older man tells every one that I will pray in my
own way. After nods of agreement all around I
pray for a blessing on the household and thank
God for the food.

I go back out into the yard to shake more hands
and chat with people. I sit next to Juanita, an
old woman whose son died in my car last year as I
rushed him to the hospital. I put my arm around
her as she cries and remembers her loss.

Three and half hours have past and it is time to
go home. Being part of a community means
weeping and rejoicing with those who live around
us. It means giving to the needy and receiving
the generosity of these same needy people.

Stuff on the porch

2004-03-02T07:01:00.000-08:00

We get many things left on our porch at night,
and they're left for many reasons. We have had
vegtables left in order to thank us for some
kind thing Kelly and I had done. We have had
puppies left because they were so sick that
nobody wanted them. But recently we had our
biggest suprise yet.

We told you last prayer update that our house
had been broken into twice while we were away,
but we didn't tell you that they stole both our
digital camera and our video camera. This was a
discouragement to us because both of these
things were purchased with special gifts that we
had recieved from supporters. We knew that God
had provided and God had allowed these things to
be taken from us.

Well, the other morning we opened our front door
to find both cameras in a plastic bag on our
porch.

The people around here say the thieves
"repented". I think that's a pretty good use
of the word. They not only felt sorry for what
they had done, they changed the way they were
going by giving back the stolen items.

It remains to be seen if the cameras are in good
working order and it remains to be seen if the
thieves will repent of their "sins" and not just
of their "sin".

Horse Ridding

2003-12-20T07:01:00.000-08:00

I had never ridden a horse, before a couple of
years ago, and I still am no "cowboy", but I
want to be!

Up until a few months ago, getting on my horse
meant finding a chair, putting it down near
where the sturip hangs and climbing on board
with the prayer that my horse would not begin to
leave without me. Oh, but now I was an
accomplished rider and could mount up with little
problem and no chair. So I was ready to perfect
my mounting technique.

I had been watching some old "Bonanza" episodes
and was impressed by Hoss Cartwright's ability to
get on his horse with such gracefulness, even if
he was a big man like me. So I determined to
try out his style the next day.

Foot in stirup, then a small hop, a big push, a
graceful arc of my leg over the back of the
horse, TOO MUCH MOMENTUM, and over the other
side of the horse I fell. There, rolling away
from seemingly bigger than life size hoofs, I
realized I was no Hoss Cartwright.

Great adventures and occasionally bad mounts,
that's missionary life.

God's Word

2003-11-09T07:01:00.000-08:00

A priest in our area told his followers that the
only reason people come to the Bible study at our
house, is because we give out money. This has
had two contrasting results. Some people don't
come to the Bible study because they are cynical
about missionaries who just give out money to
gain followers. And some people come to the
study because they just want money.

We don't give out money, but are charitable in
other ways. It is however, these kinds of
misconceptions that we come up against, and the
very reason we spend so much time developing
relationships with those in our communittee.

As our friendships grow with our neighbors, they
become our advocates before those who say things
that aren't true. These same friends are more
open to God's Word because they see that we
speak the truth and then walk it out in front of
them.

Putting together a lesson

2003-09-16T07:01:00.000-07:00

As I put together the lessons for each Saturday,
I first do the Bible Study, then write it out in
English, and then translate it to Guarani.
During this last step I often ask a Paraguayan
to help me. One week I was working on the story
of Joseph from the Old Testament.

This week my helper was our maid, and as she
fixed the noon meal, I told her how Joseph fled
from Potiphar's wife. I asked her if she
understood, and she said yes, but she thought it
was odd that Joseph was a homosexual. She
arrived at this conclusion because no normal man,
that she knows, would ever reject the advances of
such an agressive woman. After explaining to
her that he would not sleep with Potiphar's wife
because God did not want him too, she said, "Oh,
you better make sure you explain that."

When we got to the part of Joseph interpreting
dreams, she recognized this "profession" right
away and told me that there were people who study
and use books to interpret dreams. After probing
a little more, I discovered that these people are
basically witch doctors. Once again I explained
that God had directly given the interpretation of
these dreams to Joseph and that he used no books
nor studied to interpret dreams. She said,
"You'd better explain that too."

A culture that venerates vice and witchcraft
needs these stories and the stories of God's
working in our lives to see that there is a
better and right way to live.

Toribio

2003-08-07T07:01:00.000-07:00

I am always so impressed with the sacrificial
service of so many Paraguayan Christians that we
have the privilage to work with. One such man
is an evangelist named Toribio Franco. He was
asked to be one of our speakers at youth camp.
Like many pastors in Paraguay Toribio also has a
full-time job. After working an 8 hour day he
rode 3 hours by bus and another hour and a half
by car to get to the site of our camp. When he
had finished speaking he then turned around and
made the 4 1/2 hour trip back home in order to
be at his work by 6:00 the next morning. As
missionaries we are only a small piece in God's
plan for Paraguay. The greater work He is doing
through men like Toribio.

Wilfrido

2003-06-17T07:01:00.000-07:00

Wilfrido was a 32 year old man who died in my
car as we raced from Yuty to a hospital 2 hours
away. I have been with several people at thier
deaths, and it is never the phisical aspect of
the person dieing that leaves an impression on
me, rather it is what happens spiritually. I was
present when Wilfrido stepped from this life into
an eternal life of torment in Hell, for he did
not know the Lord. As his mother wailed with
sorrow and his cousin shouted in anger at having
lost a friend, we made the hour trip back to his
house. Waves of deepest sorrow flowed over me and
I wonder how many must die, before the Lord will
give us our first convert here in Ita Angu'a.

Two days later while at a Catholic prayer
service for Wilfrido, a neighbor lady came and
asked me to read the Bible with the greiving
mother. I was able to talk about the importance
of not only having faith in times like these, but
to have faith in the right thing, or person, in
this case: Jesus Christ.

Death is real, but our Lord gives victory over
even this. Plead with us before the cross, for
the many in Ita Angu'a and the surronding
communites that do not know Jesus.

2001-02-15T06:02:00.000-08:00

Many months ago when we closed the youth center we knew it was God's timing, but we did not know all the reasons He seemed to be leading us down this path.  We can now see it was the begining of a transformation.  God is transforming Kelly and I in the most radical ways.

First our marriage of 9 years is being transformed.  And we are closer to one another than a year ago.  We spend each morning in prayer together (unless I do something crazy like drive 10 kids to Asuncion for the night and return at 3:30 in the morning!)  and are ministering to each others needs better than we ever have.  Kelly feels more part of my ministries because we are praying about them and I feel more a part of her ministry in the home as we lift these things together before the Lord.

God is transforming our priorities.  As we grow in our understanding of the unspeakable treasure we have in Jesus Christ, many things are falling by the wayside.  Things that seemed so important have grown dim as they are placed beside the glory of knowing Jesus in a deeper way.

Ministry "activity" is falling by the wayside,  as hours spent in uselessness for the Kingdom are now filled with more time to be with people, pray and share the Word.  It is a simplifiying of what I used to call ministry and it is really getting back to the basics.  Abide in Christ, and the fruit will come.  May the desire of my heart be more of a reality each day.

Kelly and I have realized we have been placing far to great a priority on insuring our own comfort.  Is Christ enough?  Indeed!  As we grow in our dependence on Him we see that comfort is less of an issue and that after all our heavenly Father know far better how to comfort us than we do ourselves.  How many times in vain have I tried to fill my life with the world's "trinkets",  seeking comfort and yet pushing myself away from the very thing my heart cries for: "A peace that passes all my understanding"

We are being transformed as we learn to trust in God in new ways.  You might think that the life of a missionary is, of course,  a life of trusting in God, and I tell you that it can be, it should be, but it is not implicit in the job description.  We have so foolinshly denied God opportunities to glorify Himself in our lives and ministries because we are masters at "making things happen" , "getting the job done, no matter what it takes", and "robbing Peter to pay Paul".  We call Him Lord, but we have learned He has not been in far too many areas of our lives.  Kelly and I are longing to see God glorified as we stop leaning on our own understanding and begin to .acknowledge Him in all things.

Our desire is singular.  It is to know the Savior in a more deeper way.  We do not know where this leads and we do not care.  It is not a carefree attitude of a fool, it is the knowledge of the freeing truth that  if we are found in Him, even in the darkest moments, His discipline and guidance will be our comfort.

I said we are being transformed,  and this is a process unfinished.  What I've said is just as much our prayer for the future as it is testemony of what God is doing now.

The Youth Center Closes

2000-09-15T05:51:00.000-07:00

After more than 5 years serving the youth of Villarrica, I believe it was God's will that we close the youth center.  This has been one of the hardest decisions I've had to make in my 13 years as a youth pastor.  To answer the question why, is to take you on a spiritual journey.

About 3 months ago at a spiritual retreat for the missionaries here in Paraguay, the Lord began to convict me of my lack of intimacy in my relationship with him.  Over the course of the previous year I had let activity in ministry slowly become a replacement for an intimate walk with the Savior.  Because so much of what I let define me are my activities, I was deceiving myself by thinking buisiness was Godliness.  At the retreat I finally became contrite and submissive enough to hear what God had been trying to ask of me all along.  The speaker at retreat gave each of us a little card called, "My Convenant" which challenged us all..

MY COVENANT

Lord I give up all my own plans and purposes, all my own desires and hopes and accept Your will for my life.  I give myself, my life, and all, utterly to you to be Yours forever.  Go on and on filling me with Your Holy Spirit.  Use me as You will; send me where You will;  work out Your whole will in my life at any cost, now and forever.

I wish I could have said, I had been living such a covenant, but I had not been.  I knew that I needed to change some things and so I began to pray and seek His will.  Through many confirmations the Lord lead me to close the youth center and re-examine all that I have been doing here in Paraguay for the last few years.  One of those confirmations came one morning as I prayed and read the Scriptures in my devotion time.

"If a man abides in Me and I in Him, he will bear much fruit, apart from me he can do nothing"  This verse is found in one of those particularly difficult passages to understand, and I don't claim to have the ultimate word on its interpretation, only that the Lord used this verse in my life in a particular way.  The words "much fruit"  and "nothing" were those to which the Lord drew my attention.

Where was the fruit from the youth center ministry?  Since it's opening there had only been a handful of young people that had made a commitment to Christ.  This was fruit, but not "much fruit".  I believe now that this is due to the fact that I was doing almost "everything" apart from Him. 

When the youth center was founded it was done so with much prayerful consideration, and dependence on the Lord for His direction, but somewhere along the line I let routine become the guiding voice and I let self confidence replace a dependence on Him.  For these things I am deeply repentant.

I'm trying to live out a surrendered life and ministry to Him once again.  I'm asking the Lord, what's next, and waiting on Him.  I do know this; that the "Lover of my soul" wants a deeper relationship with me.  And I do know that the secret to fruit bearing in ministry and in my walk with Him is in direct proportion to my yieldedness to Him.

May we all continue our journey with the Lord Jesus with the freshness and utter dependence on Him that we lived out when we first came to know Him.

'Big House' Helps Break the Devil's Hold on Paraguay Youth

1997-06-01T14:42:00.000-07:00

VILLARRICA, Paraguay—About 40,000 people live in Villarrica. Half of the population is under 17. That’s why SIMers Tom and Kelly Stout (US) and short-termers Dan and Christy Reich minister at the Big House—a youth center with a homey environment as well as ping pong, billiards, video games, and a volleyball court.

The Big House attracts young people who would never set foot in a church or camp meeting. Kids like Richard.

"He’s a very stoical fellow," Tom explains, "doesn’t show his emotions a lot. One day, he came into my office and began weeping. He had been caught using and selling marijuana. And as we talked, I learned that he had gone to a cemetery and dug up a corpse to give the head to his old girlfriend as revenge for breaking up with him."

The conversation continued for six hours, during which time Tom saw Richard’s heart begin to harden again. Though they talked about surrendering to Christ, Richard tried to negotiate with the Lord what parts of his life he would surrender and what parts he would not.

Since that discussion, however, Richard is still moving slowly toward Jesus. Recently he brought Tom his Ouija board and some pages of occultic literature so he could destroy them.

He also admitted talking with spirits, reminding Tom and Kelly that ours is a spiritual battle that will be won only through prayer.

PRAY . . .

Only God can expose Satan’s lies and open the hearts and minds of kids like Richard to the truth of Christ’s love and salvation by grace. Please join Tom and Kelly and Dan and Christy in prayer. And ask that God would bring more young people to the Big House and more Christian workers to befriend and guide them. May God one day soon use these young people to spread the gospel to every corner of Paraguay!

Article from SIM Now Magazine