Safety, Sickness and the Sovereignty of God
Its hard to believe its already been three weeks since we have been back from the US. We are very grateful for the time we had in the US. It was a great encouragement to us and we felt greatly refreshed for our service for the next 18 months here in Argentina. It was great to see some of you. We wish we could have seen more of you.
As I write I am sitting in the dining room with my wife and two daughters with the heater at its maximum (we don´t have central heat - which is how most houses are here). Its cold outside (32 F). As a family we have been indoors a lot lately. The government authorities canceled school and other activities for a month as a precaution against the spread of the swine flu. Wendy our youngest had fever all day yesterday and now she is doing better. There is a lot of fear and confusion regarding this sickness and politicians have been using this situation to attack their opponents accusing them of not reporting the true numbers of cases. Its hard to know what really is going on. Some are very concerned, others think it has been blown out of proportion. As a family and as a ministry we are attempting to be both wise in our responsibility to take precautions and at the same time rest in the sovereignty of God who reigns over all and gives us true peace.
Speaking of peace, many people are lacking peace not only because of the fears related to the spread of the swine flu but also because of ongoing robberies. Just the other day I was talking to the person to whom we have rented our house in City Bell (we are living in La Plata - 30 minutes away - our contract here ends in a year at which time we will return to City Bell). He told me that the neighbor right next door (who used to be our neighbor when we lived there) was surprised at 7pm in her home by five men who broke in through the windows, all dressed up, all with guns and tied her down until she would give them all the cash she had. After taking some cash the men went to the next house (not ours) and the neighbor there pulled out his gun and started shooting at the robbers. They got away (they ran in a field right in front of them). No one was hurt. This was the second time in the last months that this type of robbery has occurred in this neighborhood. It has made us think twice about moving back to our same house in City Bell. We are praying for wisdom and seeking to rest in His Sovereignty.
1. Please pray that God would use these circumstances for the spread of the gospel, for open hearts and for opportunities for us as individuals and as a church to be a light of hope and proclaim the gospel in this context.
2. Pray for my trip to Chile (BTCP). I leave next Tuesday. Pray for good contacts in Santiago (the captial) and a productive time in Valdivia with Ariel. Pray for my family as they stay behind (for health and protection).
3. Pray for the church plant in City Bell. We are starting our first small group with a discipleship series called the discovery series. Pray for Kurt as he leads this. I will start to preach on the gospel of Luke when I get back from Chile. Pray for life transformation through these means.
4. Pray for our Bible Institute in La Plata. Pray for George, Nico and I as we teach classes this semester. Pray that God would use these classes to help equip people to better serve Christ and His Church.
5. Pray for the Union church in La Plata. Pray that God would continue to raise up godly leadership as my role has decreased there and as the british missionary who is the pastor there is also wanting to have less responsibilities on his shoulders (especially because of his delicate health). Pray for us that God would use us in the lives of key people here as our time in La Plata draws to an end. Pray for Caro in her involvement with the women and the women´s ministry. Pray for Nico as he preaches, leads and disciples in La Union. Pray for George and Emily as they teach and disciple here as well. Pray for them as they adjust to being new parents!! (Madeleine was born a week ago).
6. Pray for the expansion of the BTCP. We now have about five hundred copies of each book and are praying and seeking strategies to help leaders across the nation by promoting a vision and a tool to train others. Pray for Kurt as he carries more responsibility for this ministry.
7. Pray for us as a family. Pray that we would be wise and godly in the way we raise our kids, in the way that we treat each other in our marriage. Pray that we would remain strong in our times in the Word and in prayer.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR PRAYERS AND SUPPORT!
Please let us know how we can pray for you! We enjoy doing this at meal times as a family. Just let us know how we can pray!
Warmly,
Greg, Caro, Alaina and Wendy
Posted July 11, 2009 by Greg and Carolina.
08-24-2010 The "one anothers" in Scripture
03-24-2010 D-day
12-21-2009 Merry Christmas
11-04-2009 Learning to Pastor
07-11-2009 Safety, Sickness and the Sovereignty of God
04-15-2009 A police officer's hospitality
01-30-2009 New beginnings
10-03-2008 Skype phone
10-02-2008 Visas, Shots and Protesters
09-04-2008 Travel and Sickness II (photos and update)
07-27-2008 Medical Mission Trip
07-02-2008 A missionary's confession
04-30-2008 Life in La Plata
02-22-2008 Returning Home
01-28-2008 Take to the World
12-22-2007 Merry Christmas!
12-05-2007 An update on Mike Terry (our pastor)
11-27-2007 Please pray for our pastor in Argentina
10-14-2007 WHAT´S A HOME SERVICE?
04-04-2007 TEAM MINISTRY
02-01-2007 Exaltation of The Cross
12-07-2006 What's a typical day look like?
08-30-2006 A burden for the interior of Argentina
05-24-2006 Training Leaders In Argentina
04-05-2006 A New Year of Ministry
01-11-2006 Coming to Texas
12-29-2005 Becoming Familiar with the Aiport
10-06-2005 BTCP graduation
