Sunday, September 19:
I arrived back in Lima at 8:00 AM and had to rush “home” (my apartment - well honestly the Dan and Brenda Clowers apartment – but they said it is mine anytime, even if they are here) so I did rush home! Well after I found my way upstairs at the airport to Starbucks – everyone has to treat someone to something special and I was the only one there that I knew who needed to be treated “special.” Anyway my ride wasn’t there so I had to kill some time and what better way to do it than with a frappuccino.
I had only one hour from arrival at the apartment to get ready and depart for my morning assignment - preaching at Iglesia Centro Christiano De Avivamiento pastored by Gustavo and Jenny Rodriquez. He is ministering in Chile and I was the “fill-in.” His assistant and brother-in-law, Dr.(MD) Roger Falcon was my host and interpreter for the morning. He and his wife, Magaly, were interpreters for Marilyn and I the first time she came to Peru with me and that was before they were married. Oh, yes! The service ended with four or five (I am honestly not sure about one) who received Jesus. So it was a good day.
After walking about three blocks to a mall, (Marco Aroni said “3") but I counted more, we ate in an open air food court so to keep my food warm all the way to my stomach, I ate and let them talk. And the rest of the day was spent in getting the items I took on the trip to the jungle put in the correct place and into my laundry bag. Then I spent the concluding time sharing with the Clowers.
Now believe it or not, though I have been here an average of 2-3 times per year for the last 5 years, and for the last three years I have served as the Conference Missions Director for the SonShine Conference - this was the first time that Dan and I actually met in Peru. And I have stayed in their apartment at least 3 times before and preached here at the church. It “appeared” that we had something against each other and therefore avoided seen each other but the contrary is the truth. We tried, but never were able to accomplish it.
Monday and Tuesday, September 20th, 21st and whoops, this is Wednesday, the 22nd:
Well I have spent the time since Monday morning, either meeting Americans who asked to meet with me or working on the course, The Development Scope And Study of the Bible, just to get it ready both in Spanish – getting the correct translation for the student edition and the PowerPoint presentation as well ans seeing that the English (my copy) was in harmony with the Spanish. This is not an easy task for one who is not versed in Spanish. But with my limited knowledge and the help of Marco Aroni (the coordinator for Universidad Pacto de Vida (Covenant Life University) we have accomplished the task.
So today, after cancelling the recording session yesterday because we discovered there were some issues that needed to be settled and because we needed some additional equipment to set up the recording studio, we finally did begin recording today. We accomplished two full class lectures of 50-55 minutes each.
Our studio is set up in the living room of the apartment. It may look primitive to some but it worked. Agustin Ciccia, pastor of Nuevas Fuerzas (New Strength) along with Franz, who is a genius with computers and video, we made it and are looking forward to 5-6 hours of recording tomorrow.
Now for you who refer to me as “Dr. Gadget,” I want you to know the many “gadgets” I carry – many of them proved to play a key part in the establishment of studio: the wireless mics (2); the Sony MP3 recorder; a Sony 40 GB hard-drive camera; my aluminum typing table; my computer; my Proxima projector; my many cables and extension cords; and my Logitech controller for operating my PowerPoint.
So go ahead and make fun! I will get the last laugh!
Anyway, that catches you up on the details of the ministry through today as well as telling you what I will be doing for the next almost three weeks until Marilyn, Allison and David arrive. Except for Saturday and Sunday speaking engagements and meeting with pastors.
God bless and thanks for your prayers,
Dr D
Wednesday, September 22, 2010
Sunday, September 19, 2010
The Ayacucho Adventures of Dr D
Wednesday, September 15
It begins the same way! Get up and go! And that is what I did! I got up at 3:00 AM on Wednesday and journeyed to the Lima Airport, where I met Larry Cochrane and Larry Montgomery from Wilmore, Kentucky and Ismael Zubiandi from Venezuela. And that is where the event begins.
It was only a 40 minute flight from take off to touch down and we arrived in Ayacucho. It was certainly better than the 7 hour bus trip the medical team had to take from Lima. After going to the wrong bus station and then the wrong small buss transportation company, we finally met the team and piled into three 18 passenger vans loaded to the limits – including their top racks.
Now for the fun! YEAH! For the next six and one-half hours we turned left, back right, left, right – sometimes almost as soon as you got the wheels straight you turned again. That is bad enough, but then when you add the fact the road is gravel and drops for thousands of feet on one side or the other plus it is many – many times a one way road. Which means if another vehicle comes the opposite direction one of you has to pull completely over “if” there is room and if there isn’t then one has to back up so the other can pass.
And to complicate matters, you are crossing mountains 4,000 meters high (that is over 13,000 feet) and a passenger is also prone to car sickness it adds another dynamic – and we had two – one each in different vehicles.
Since we had no breakfast and there was a place about one hour out of Ayacucho – a tourist trap – we stopped to eat. Breakfast consisted of meat – “Cooie” (Guinea Pig) some lettuce and one of the 3,000 varieties of Peruvian potatoes and Inca Cola to drink. Not bad and I was hungry and YES the meat was delicious!
We departed at 8:20 AM and arrived in San Francisco - Kimbiri (twin cities across the river from each other) about 3:30 PM. Then waited on the fourth van to get there with our luggage by stretching out on my bed on the fourth floor. I wanted to take a shower but there was no water running in my room. So I got up and went downstairs and discovered the luggage had arrived and lugged it up stairs and prepared for the evening banquet.
My comments on it are this: It was a long time before we got to eat but all the officials of the city, the mayor and the educators were there and were honored. So we got things off the ground.
Thursday, September 16:
Morning arrived too early with the roosters, the neighbors and the dogs beating my alarm to the punch. I had water —COLD— water for the shower and shaving, but that’s life overseas. Breakfast was a fried egg, with a potato covered with the typical Peruvian yellow sauce. We got that only because we refused to eat chicken for breakfast.
But this was after we walked to the Christian radio station – we were told – which turned out to be a TV station where we were to be interviewed. We did and they did and in one hour we finished and headed to breakfast.
I guess I should tell you this was a medical outreach with services in the evening and teaching on Friday and Saturday. So the first thing on the agenda was to spend the majority of the day taking the Mayor’s Tour. We visited a water purification plant – it was very interesting – and it was just beginning the process. Then we went to the waste treatment operation to see how they sort the solid waste, sell the plastic and glass, and process all the other waste by converting it into fertilizer. Then to their fish farm for a fish dinner and speeches by the mayor and other leaders.
FINALLY we got back to the hotel to rest and prepare for the evening rally. It was outside on the street next to the city building with plastic chairs and a high platform with “flexing” boards that provide a thrill whenever someone walked by or decided to dance to the music. And lest I forget, THE BUGS! But the Lord protected me and even though we were warned about the mosquitoes – I never had even one attempt to bite me or fly close enough to hear it. My prayer was answered. And I was protected without getting a yellow fever shot – which I found out I should have had.
Ismael Zubiandi- was the speaker and for all I know it was good. It was in Spanish and the people enjoyed it but I somehow did not understand it. It makes it very difficult to have to minister at the altar to pray for sick and not be able to pray with knowledge about the problem, BUT THE HOLY SPIRIT KNOWS and so you just lay hands on them an pray.
Friday, September 17:
Unfortunately the day actually began with the end of the previous day. No water at night to get rid of the accumulated dust and perspiration so you crash waiting on the dawn of the new day. However, it began the same way the other ended – NO WATER! I had just enough in my water bottle to try to rinse off the shaving cream and wiped the rest off with the towel and departed for the day smelling just like I did the night before – but since I could not smell myself I figured I smelled okay!
I was the first speaker of the morning. The crowd filled about half of the college class room when we started and by the time I finished they had doubled the number of the chairs and there was “standing room only.” I had the next session free. People continued to come, so for the next session they had all those who had heard me to stay and the rest to pick up their chair and follow me to the next class room and I repeated the first teaching which was on leadership. Lunch came next and then I had the remaining part of the afternoon free and my next session was on Saturday morning.
Another open square rally with more in attendance than the first night filled the street beginning about 7:00 for an hour with some Quechuan music – the music of the mountain people. It is very distinguishable both in musical sound and in language. After some more contemporary music, Pastor Desiderio Escalante from Chincha who lived in Kimbiri from the age of two and found Christ while living there shared his testimony and the altar was filled with those coming to make a commitment to Christ. This was followed by a long prayer time for the sick.
Saturday, September 18:
I skipped breakfast as did several other pastors when we discovered “Cow-Cow Soup” was the special (only) offering of the day. If you can not figure out what “Cow-Cow” is it is “cow’s belly” and I am not against it, just against putting it in my stomach – I have one already!
While on my way to the Church for my teaching session I discovered that Larry and Larry (read paragraph one) were going to stay along with a doctor to minister to 200 who had walked for two days down river for medical attention, while the rest of us were to leave at 10:30 AM. But to our dismay, we discovered there was no more medicine available – it had all been used!
I will “NEVER” forget the sad look on the faces – no, the tears – of those who arr hospital in the arrived at the church and were told they would not be able to be seen by a doctor or receive any medical assistance. There is not even a hospital or medical clinic in the area to which we could refer them. So I stood to teach, looking back at the rear door filled with eyes filled with disappointment and did my best to teach my final session.
As we climbed into our vans for the seven hour return to Ayacucho, we were greeted by people bring their offering – huge pineapples, fresh ground home grown coffee, oranges and various other fruit. You could see the love and yet know the sacrifice they were making to bring their offering to us. With gladness of heart because of the spirit in which it was given we received their gifts and later passed them on to bless others because we knew we would not be able to get them back to Lima.
We departed, all of us, and endured the long journey, probably never getting above 40 miles per hour for over any time frame of 3-4 minutes, but turning and turning, going up the mountain in a serpentine method we finally arrived in Ayacucho and our hotel for the night and the flight back to Lima Sunday morning.
As I complete the blog for these four days, I am able to recognize this as an “encounter for the future.” I handed out all of my Spanish Business Cards for CLU – there was great interest. I met a pastor from Lima, it was another “open door”. I met Nino Martini, a captain of the National Police Department of Peru. I had watched him lay hands on the sick and believe God for their healing. As we departed, he grabbed me, kissed me on the cheek as an expression of special connection because I had shared my 20 year volunteer ministry with him as a chaplain of the Fort Myers Police Department – we were more than just acquaintance were of the same fraternity. He wants me to become the “priest” (as he said in his broken English) of the Lima National Police Department. That will not happen but I do believe I will here from him again and have an opportunity to speak to new recruits and even some of the high officers of the military.
Only God knows why the events scheduled did not materialize as I had been told, but the establishment of relationships because they were built upon the foundation of the Holy Spirit will have great dividends.
It begins the same way! Get up and go! And that is what I did! I got up at 3:00 AM on Wednesday and journeyed to the Lima Airport, where I met Larry Cochrane and Larry Montgomery from Wilmore, Kentucky and Ismael Zubiandi from Venezuela. And that is where the event begins.
It was only a 40 minute flight from take off to touch down and we arrived in Ayacucho. It was certainly better than the 7 hour bus trip the medical team had to take from Lima. After going to the wrong bus station and then the wrong small buss transportation company, we finally met the team and piled into three 18 passenger vans loaded to the limits – including their top racks.
Now for the fun! YEAH! For the next six and one-half hours we turned left, back right, left, right – sometimes almost as soon as you got the wheels straight you turned again. That is bad enough, but then when you add the fact the road is gravel and drops for thousands of feet on one side or the other plus it is many – many times a one way road. Which means if another vehicle comes the opposite direction one of you has to pull completely over “if” there is room and if there isn’t then one has to back up so the other can pass.
And to complicate matters, you are crossing mountains 4,000 meters high (that is over 13,000 feet) and a passenger is also prone to car sickness it adds another dynamic – and we had two – one each in different vehicles.
Since we had no breakfast and there was a place about one hour out of Ayacucho – a tourist trap – we stopped to eat. Breakfast consisted of meat – “Cooie” (Guinea Pig) some lettuce and one of the 3,000 varieties of Peruvian potatoes and Inca Cola to drink. Not bad and I was hungry and YES the meat was delicious!
We departed at 8:20 AM and arrived in San Francisco - Kimbiri (twin cities across the river from each other) about 3:30 PM. Then waited on the fourth van to get there with our luggage by stretching out on my bed on the fourth floor. I wanted to take a shower but there was no water running in my room. So I got up and went downstairs and discovered the luggage had arrived and lugged it up stairs and prepared for the evening banquet.
My comments on it are this: It was a long time before we got to eat but all the officials of the city, the mayor and the educators were there and were honored. So we got things off the ground.
Thursday, September 16:
Morning arrived too early with the roosters, the neighbors and the dogs beating my alarm to the punch. I had water —COLD— water for the shower and shaving, but that’s life overseas. Breakfast was a fried egg, with a potato covered with the typical Peruvian yellow sauce. We got that only because we refused to eat chicken for breakfast.
But this was after we walked to the Christian radio station – we were told – which turned out to be a TV station where we were to be interviewed. We did and they did and in one hour we finished and headed to breakfast.
I guess I should tell you this was a medical outreach with services in the evening and teaching on Friday and Saturday. So the first thing on the agenda was to spend the majority of the day taking the Mayor’s Tour. We visited a water purification plant – it was very interesting – and it was just beginning the process. Then we went to the waste treatment operation to see how they sort the solid waste, sell the plastic and glass, and process all the other waste by converting it into fertilizer. Then to their fish farm for a fish dinner and speeches by the mayor and other leaders.
FINALLY we got back to the hotel to rest and prepare for the evening rally. It was outside on the street next to the city building with plastic chairs and a high platform with “flexing” boards that provide a thrill whenever someone walked by or decided to dance to the music. And lest I forget, THE BUGS! But the Lord protected me and even though we were warned about the mosquitoes – I never had even one attempt to bite me or fly close enough to hear it. My prayer was answered. And I was protected without getting a yellow fever shot – which I found out I should have had.
Ismael Zubiandi- was the speaker and for all I know it was good. It was in Spanish and the people enjoyed it but I somehow did not understand it. It makes it very difficult to have to minister at the altar to pray for sick and not be able to pray with knowledge about the problem, BUT THE HOLY SPIRIT KNOWS and so you just lay hands on them an pray.
Friday, September 17:
Unfortunately the day actually began with the end of the previous day. No water at night to get rid of the accumulated dust and perspiration so you crash waiting on the dawn of the new day. However, it began the same way the other ended – NO WATER! I had just enough in my water bottle to try to rinse off the shaving cream and wiped the rest off with the towel and departed for the day smelling just like I did the night before – but since I could not smell myself I figured I smelled okay!
I was the first speaker of the morning. The crowd filled about half of the college class room when we started and by the time I finished they had doubled the number of the chairs and there was “standing room only.” I had the next session free. People continued to come, so for the next session they had all those who had heard me to stay and the rest to pick up their chair and follow me to the next class room and I repeated the first teaching which was on leadership. Lunch came next and then I had the remaining part of the afternoon free and my next session was on Saturday morning.
Another open square rally with more in attendance than the first night filled the street beginning about 7:00 for an hour with some Quechuan music – the music of the mountain people. It is very distinguishable both in musical sound and in language. After some more contemporary music, Pastor Desiderio Escalante from Chincha who lived in Kimbiri from the age of two and found Christ while living there shared his testimony and the altar was filled with those coming to make a commitment to Christ. This was followed by a long prayer time for the sick.
Saturday, September 18:
I skipped breakfast as did several other pastors when we discovered “Cow-Cow Soup” was the special (only) offering of the day. If you can not figure out what “Cow-Cow” is it is “cow’s belly” and I am not against it, just against putting it in my stomach – I have one already!
While on my way to the Church for my teaching session I discovered that Larry and Larry (read paragraph one) were going to stay along with a doctor to minister to 200 who had walked for two days down river for medical attention, while the rest of us were to leave at 10:30 AM. But to our dismay, we discovered there was no more medicine available – it had all been used!
I will “NEVER” forget the sad look on the faces – no, the tears – of those who arr hospital in the arrived at the church and were told they would not be able to be seen by a doctor or receive any medical assistance. There is not even a hospital or medical clinic in the area to which we could refer them. So I stood to teach, looking back at the rear door filled with eyes filled with disappointment and did my best to teach my final session.
As we climbed into our vans for the seven hour return to Ayacucho, we were greeted by people bring their offering – huge pineapples, fresh ground home grown coffee, oranges and various other fruit. You could see the love and yet know the sacrifice they were making to bring their offering to us. With gladness of heart because of the spirit in which it was given we received their gifts and later passed them on to bless others because we knew we would not be able to get them back to Lima.
We departed, all of us, and endured the long journey, probably never getting above 40 miles per hour for over any time frame of 3-4 minutes, but turning and turning, going up the mountain in a serpentine method we finally arrived in Ayacucho and our hotel for the night and the flight back to Lima Sunday morning.
As I complete the blog for these four days, I am able to recognize this as an “encounter for the future.” I handed out all of my Spanish Business Cards for CLU – there was great interest. I met a pastor from Lima, it was another “open door”. I met Nino Martini, a captain of the National Police Department of Peru. I had watched him lay hands on the sick and believe God for their healing. As we departed, he grabbed me, kissed me on the cheek as an expression of special connection because I had shared my 20 year volunteer ministry with him as a chaplain of the Fort Myers Police Department – we were more than just acquaintance were of the same fraternity. He wants me to become the “priest” (as he said in his broken English) of the Lima National Police Department. That will not happen but I do believe I will here from him again and have an opportunity to speak to new recruits and even some of the high officers of the military.
Only God knows why the events scheduled did not materialize as I had been told, but the establishment of relationships because they were built upon the foundation of the Holy Spirit will have great dividends.
Tuesday, September 14, 2010
PACKED AND PREPARED FOR THE “EYEBROW OF THE JUNGLE”
Tuesday, September 14:
I have just completed the task of packing for my first experience in the jungle area of Peru. Although it is not “in” it still is called the jungle by the Peruvians, better “the eyebrow of the jungle.”
We fly from Lima at 5:30 in the morning, arrive in Ayacucho at 6:40 and then meet our bus for a seven hour ride over very treacherous roads through the “cocoa leaves” – the basis for cocaine. So it can be dangerous not just from the roads but from those who use the roads to transport their drugs.
We will make our way to San Francisco and Kimbiri just across the river. Aschinca is the name of the tribe of people who live in this area. They still live by their ancient tribal customs. One of the big struggles is the marriage practices. They have no marriage laws and most girls bear children at the age of 12. Now I understand why I was asked to speak about sex. It isn’t that they do no know how, but they do not practice morality with it and therefore it becomes a major problem in the Church.
I have not figured out the schedule yet. I know where we are going and when we return from Ayacucho on the airplane and that there is at least a seven hour journey from San Francisco. And I know that my plane departs Sunday morning at 6:50 AM, arriving in Lima at 8:00 and that I have a service at 10:30 AM. Beyond that information I am lost.
I look forward to meeting the North American who will be at the airport– I have talked to him by phone – and those on the bus in Ayacucho from Peru and from North America.
So this will be challenging and exciting. Well if you call battling mosquitoes fun! Even though it is still cold here they tell me it will be “hot” in the jungle. But their hot is in the 70's. They really do not know what hot is do they!
God bless and keep me in your prayers,
Dr D
I have just completed the task of packing for my first experience in the jungle area of Peru. Although it is not “in” it still is called the jungle by the Peruvians, better “the eyebrow of the jungle.”
We fly from Lima at 5:30 in the morning, arrive in Ayacucho at 6:40 and then meet our bus for a seven hour ride over very treacherous roads through the “cocoa leaves” – the basis for cocaine. So it can be dangerous not just from the roads but from those who use the roads to transport their drugs.
We will make our way to San Francisco and Kimbiri just across the river. Aschinca is the name of the tribe of people who live in this area. They still live by their ancient tribal customs. One of the big struggles is the marriage practices. They have no marriage laws and most girls bear children at the age of 12. Now I understand why I was asked to speak about sex. It isn’t that they do no know how, but they do not practice morality with it and therefore it becomes a major problem in the Church.
I have not figured out the schedule yet. I know where we are going and when we return from Ayacucho on the airplane and that there is at least a seven hour journey from San Francisco. And I know that my plane departs Sunday morning at 6:50 AM, arriving in Lima at 8:00 and that I have a service at 10:30 AM. Beyond that information I am lost.
I look forward to meeting the North American who will be at the airport– I have talked to him by phone – and those on the bus in Ayacucho from Peru and from North America.
So this will be challenging and exciting. Well if you call battling mosquitoes fun! Even though it is still cold here they tell me it will be “hot” in the jungle. But their hot is in the 70's. They really do not know what hot is do they!
God bless and keep me in your prayers,
Dr D
Sunday, September 12, 2010
A Great Day!
Sunday, September 12:
Another Lord’s Day is coming to a close and that makes for another “SPECIAL DAY!”
We had a great service, even if I was the preacher! Think about that! Now Smile! See, it has been a good day! How do I know? Because you just smiled.!
New Strength (Nuevas Fuerzas in Spanish) is growing both numerically and spiritually. You can hear, see and witness it by the Spirit during the worship and while delivering the Word. The last two times I have ministered here I have delivered messages which are far from being the basic messages of the past to a new congregation. There is a new depth in the body.
Now how do I tell you about the response and the flavor of the service without sounding egotistical? Maybe this will do. They had between 80-90 adults in the Tent of Meeting (It is literally a tent but supported by aluminum poles and trusses). Pastor Agustin Ciccia told me he had orders for 50 CD’s of the message. And one visitor requested my phone number so he could pass it on to his pastor because he believed his pastor would want me to minister in his church on a Thursday (since all my Sundays are filled.) Well, I’d better be honest – well I am but what I mean is – one visiting pastor purchased 15 to disperse to other pastors and churches.
The message conclusion is an encouragement for the people to worship and to “SHOUT” as Israel did when the had completed the seventh trip around Jericho on the seventh day. There was good response but it subsided. Then from outside the flaps of the tent was heard the “Cock-a-doodle-doo” three times of a rooster.
I guess in Peru if the people do not shout and praise the Lord the roosters will!
Or maybe my sermon was “for the birds!”
Anyway the response has been gratifying and I know God touched some who have previously been very reserved in the expression of their worship.
Now it is time to get back to the computer and do some work and preparation for the air trip to Ayacucho and then a seven (7) hour bus ride to San Francisco which is located between the last range of mountains and the jungle. They call that area the “eyebrow of the jungle.”
God bless and thanks for your prayers!
Dr D
Another Lord’s Day is coming to a close and that makes for another “SPECIAL DAY!”
We had a great service, even if I was the preacher! Think about that! Now Smile! See, it has been a good day! How do I know? Because you just smiled.!
New Strength (Nuevas Fuerzas in Spanish) is growing both numerically and spiritually. You can hear, see and witness it by the Spirit during the worship and while delivering the Word. The last two times I have ministered here I have delivered messages which are far from being the basic messages of the past to a new congregation. There is a new depth in the body.
Now how do I tell you about the response and the flavor of the service without sounding egotistical? Maybe this will do. They had between 80-90 adults in the Tent of Meeting (It is literally a tent but supported by aluminum poles and trusses). Pastor Agustin Ciccia told me he had orders for 50 CD’s of the message. And one visitor requested my phone number so he could pass it on to his pastor because he believed his pastor would want me to minister in his church on a Thursday (since all my Sundays are filled.) Well, I’d better be honest – well I am but what I mean is – one visiting pastor purchased 15 to disperse to other pastors and churches.
The message conclusion is an encouragement for the people to worship and to “SHOUT” as Israel did when the had completed the seventh trip around Jericho on the seventh day. There was good response but it subsided. Then from outside the flaps of the tent was heard the “Cock-a-doodle-doo” three times of a rooster.
I guess in Peru if the people do not shout and praise the Lord the roosters will!
Or maybe my sermon was “for the birds!”
Anyway the response has been gratifying and I know God touched some who have previously been very reserved in the expression of their worship.
Now it is time to get back to the computer and do some work and preparation for the air trip to Ayacucho and then a seven (7) hour bus ride to San Francisco which is located between the last range of mountains and the jungle. They call that area the “eyebrow of the jungle.”
God bless and thanks for your prayers!
Dr D
PERU: BACK ON THE FIELD AGAIN!
Saturday, September 11:
Let me being at the beginning of this trip:
Thursday, my travel day was a typical experience without anything significant, other than a $600 plus item was lost on the airplane and when the container was found by those who searched for it – the contents were gone! I guess I like to throw money away! It is fun????????
Then I discovered that I had forgotten to change the “sim card” in my travel phone. Meaning: I could not call for assistance when I discovered the item was missing and I do not have access for others to call me.
Number 3: I brought a special surge protector with me to protect all items I plugged in and failed to note it was not good for 220 volts. Therefore I had a sudden electrical explosion, a rancid odor and the end of the surge protector!
Do you want to hear another one? I forgot my regular leather sport jacket. That translates into the reality that I have only one sport coat for the entire trip – 7 weeks!
Enough of the “blues” because I do not have time to dwell there! Why? Because there is “good news” available! Anything that begins with a struggle has got to have a great ending and my expectation is soaring! So let us move on and hurry through Friday because it was just a heavy work day in preparing some courses to be sure I have the correct translation on my PowerPoint presentations.
My ministry began with a combined youth service with three churches: Nuevas Fuerzas with Pastor Agustin and Jessica; Iglesia Centro Christiano De Avivamiento with Pastor Gustavo and Jenny Rodriquez and Iglesia Vida with Pastor David and Ceci Hodges. The attendance surpassed the 100 mark.
I had been asked to speak on the subject, “The Will of God” because there is a mentality here among the younger generation that one gets saved, attends church, gets married, works at their job and not much else.
I will not re-preach the message with which I struggled in preparation, but the delivery was free, flowing and fun (even for the preacher) with the result of an altar service for over one hour. However I do want to tell you that finding the will of God is easy! I can tell you right now what the will of God for you!
Most people spend agonizing hours trying to determine the will of God. Simply stated, when you are born again you have been called into the full-time ministry. So all you have to determine is how you are going to earn your living while you serve God. Your job could be God leading you into the position of being one of the five-fold ministries (apostle, pastor, teacher, prophet or evangelist) or into any other “job” that will provide income whether it be that of a doctor, a mechanic, a salesman, a secretary or a myriad of other occupations.
Look at Ephesians 4:1 where we are told to walk worthy of the vocation to which we are called. Our vocation is the call of God to ministry and therefore the only area left is that of a “hobby.” So our vocation is ministry and our “hobby” is the job we use to keep our needs supplied.
My premise, my understanding is that once we understand what God wants from us - ministry a personal relationship with him that produces salt and light for the world, then everything else, food, shelter and clothing fall under God’s responsibility to provide for us.
Enough of the message. The altar ministry of one hour in length and the one and one-half hour of fellowship afterwards were satisfying and exciting, so Sunday here we come!
Let me being at the beginning of this trip:
Thursday, my travel day was a typical experience without anything significant, other than a $600 plus item was lost on the airplane and when the container was found by those who searched for it – the contents were gone! I guess I like to throw money away! It is fun????????
Then I discovered that I had forgotten to change the “sim card” in my travel phone. Meaning: I could not call for assistance when I discovered the item was missing and I do not have access for others to call me.
Number 3: I brought a special surge protector with me to protect all items I plugged in and failed to note it was not good for 220 volts. Therefore I had a sudden electrical explosion, a rancid odor and the end of the surge protector!
Do you want to hear another one? I forgot my regular leather sport jacket. That translates into the reality that I have only one sport coat for the entire trip – 7 weeks!
Enough of the “blues” because I do not have time to dwell there! Why? Because there is “good news” available! Anything that begins with a struggle has got to have a great ending and my expectation is soaring! So let us move on and hurry through Friday because it was just a heavy work day in preparing some courses to be sure I have the correct translation on my PowerPoint presentations.
My ministry began with a combined youth service with three churches: Nuevas Fuerzas with Pastor Agustin and Jessica; Iglesia Centro Christiano De Avivamiento with Pastor Gustavo and Jenny Rodriquez and Iglesia Vida with Pastor David and Ceci Hodges. The attendance surpassed the 100 mark.
I had been asked to speak on the subject, “The Will of God” because there is a mentality here among the younger generation that one gets saved, attends church, gets married, works at their job and not much else.
I will not re-preach the message with which I struggled in preparation, but the delivery was free, flowing and fun (even for the preacher) with the result of an altar service for over one hour. However I do want to tell you that finding the will of God is easy! I can tell you right now what the will of God for you!
Most people spend agonizing hours trying to determine the will of God. Simply stated, when you are born again you have been called into the full-time ministry. So all you have to determine is how you are going to earn your living while you serve God. Your job could be God leading you into the position of being one of the five-fold ministries (apostle, pastor, teacher, prophet or evangelist) or into any other “job” that will provide income whether it be that of a doctor, a mechanic, a salesman, a secretary or a myriad of other occupations.
Look at Ephesians 4:1 where we are told to walk worthy of the vocation to which we are called. Our vocation is the call of God to ministry and therefore the only area left is that of a “hobby.” So our vocation is ministry and our “hobby” is the job we use to keep our needs supplied.
My premise, my understanding is that once we understand what God wants from us - ministry a personal relationship with him that produces salt and light for the world, then everything else, food, shelter and clothing fall under God’s responsibility to provide for us.
Enough of the message. The altar ministry of one hour in length and the one and one-half hour of fellowship afterwards were satisfying and exciting, so Sunday here we come!
Sunday, July 4, 2010
A GRUELING EXCITING DAY
Sunday, July 4th
The public ministry arm of this trip is over, but ministry continues.
The public section began this morning at The Lighthouse Center, Pastor Guzman. It is an Assemblies of God Filipino congregation that is “turned on” in worship and to the Word. For a while I was rubbing my eyes to be sure I was really in Brussels, Belgium and not back home at Life Church. The worship and the flow of the Holy Spirit was definitely reminding me of home.
Pastor Guzman did not tell me how to turn the service to him after I ministered the Word, but when I motioned for the worship team to come, he stepped forward and whispered in my ear, “You go ahead and do the altar service.”
That took a load off of me. During the worship time I had heard the voice of the Lord direct me to pray for the sick. I wanted to be sure that was the direction and when the Pastor spoke to me it was a confirmation. At that moment a release came. I will not be able to write all that happened but suffice it to say there was confirmation after confirmation that this service had all be orchestrated by God’s divine plan.
I had been encouraged to contact a couple of pastors to fill in the Sunday morning, but I just did not have a release to do it but when Missionary Bill Schwartz told me he had suggested me to Pastor Guzman, I knew instantly that I was to accept the invitation. It was a divine connection and an extension of the Kingdom of God.
Well you do have to eat and so we enjoyed a “Hector Chicken” lunch and hurried home to catch the 8:30 worship of Life Church on the internet and was able to participate in the first half of the sermon before departing for the evening and final service of the Belgian International Pentecostal Holiness Convention with Pastor Mauricio Salazar and representatives from two other congregations.
And so my day ended, with a great Greek Meal and fellowship in the evening sunlight at the Brussels’ Park, a couple of blocks from the stadium where the Tour-de-France climaxed for the day.
Now all that is left is spending personal time with the missionaries, pastors and friends on Monday. Yet this is often the most important time in this ministry God has opened for me to Pastors and Church leaders in the nations of the world.
Thanks again for your prayer,
Dr D
The public ministry arm of this trip is over, but ministry continues.
The public section began this morning at The Lighthouse Center, Pastor Guzman. It is an Assemblies of God Filipino congregation that is “turned on” in worship and to the Word. For a while I was rubbing my eyes to be sure I was really in Brussels, Belgium and not back home at Life Church. The worship and the flow of the Holy Spirit was definitely reminding me of home.
Pastor Guzman did not tell me how to turn the service to him after I ministered the Word, but when I motioned for the worship team to come, he stepped forward and whispered in my ear, “You go ahead and do the altar service.”
That took a load off of me. During the worship time I had heard the voice of the Lord direct me to pray for the sick. I wanted to be sure that was the direction and when the Pastor spoke to me it was a confirmation. At that moment a release came. I will not be able to write all that happened but suffice it to say there was confirmation after confirmation that this service had all be orchestrated by God’s divine plan.
I had been encouraged to contact a couple of pastors to fill in the Sunday morning, but I just did not have a release to do it but when Missionary Bill Schwartz told me he had suggested me to Pastor Guzman, I knew instantly that I was to accept the invitation. It was a divine connection and an extension of the Kingdom of God.
Well you do have to eat and so we enjoyed a “Hector Chicken” lunch and hurried home to catch the 8:30 worship of Life Church on the internet and was able to participate in the first half of the sermon before departing for the evening and final service of the Belgian International Pentecostal Holiness Convention with Pastor Mauricio Salazar and representatives from two other congregations.
And so my day ended, with a great Greek Meal and fellowship in the evening sunlight at the Brussels’ Park, a couple of blocks from the stadium where the Tour-de-France climaxed for the day.
Now all that is left is spending personal time with the missionaries, pastors and friends on Monday. Yet this is often the most important time in this ministry God has opened for me to Pastors and Church leaders in the nations of the world.
Thanks again for your prayer,
Dr D
Saturday, July 3, 2010
BELGIUM: THE FIRST THREE DAYS!
July 1-3, 2010
Sometimes “time” goes so fast and your schedule is so cramped with things to do in preparation and the mind just skips a beat! What beat? The “Blog Beat!” So here we are........
The flight over was uneventful except for the 9 hour layover in Atlanta, but I took advantage of the time and laid out the structure for a new message called: “Connection Power.” So at least the time wasn’t wasted.
I arrived at 8:10 AM on Thursday in Brussels. Their entry process is a breeze compared to other countries. No documents to complete and the customs people just watch as you pass them. Maurico Salazar met me and we were off and running – to the BED! I had not had but 2 hours sleep since Tuesday morning at 7:00. So a quick nap was in order – but the problem – I was so tired and sleepy I could not stop with a “nap”and spent most of the afternoon falling asleep and waking up only to do it again until supper.
Now when you are in Belgium, you MUST have a Belgium Waffle! So after the meal, Mauricio, Betsy, his daughter, and Obed, his son, and I headed downtown to wrap our lips around the best waffle in Brussels! We were sitting at the sidewalk tables indulging and heard the sound of a band. We looked up the street and saw a parade heading our way.
We later discovered that it was the annual celebration of entrance of Charles the 5th from Spain into Brussels from which he reigned while alive. It was unique! All horses, people and vehicles were typical of that period of time. They passed so close that sometimes you had to move to keep from being “sprinkled” (really I didn’t need to participate, I have been baptized) and anyway this was a “horse sprinkling”! The only camera I had with me was my new iPhone 4. Man did it take good video – you will have to see it to believe it!
On Friday morning after 12 hours of sleep (but it was 11:00 AM) Mau (as Maurico is called) told me it was breakfast time. and then we were off to meet a couple of missionaries: Bill & Gretchen Schwartz, who will be moving to Belgium in the next 6 months and Ronald & Margaret Turner from Romania for lunch at Pizza Hut. However it was just 30 minutes after completing a Mexican breakfast: A tortilla with eggs sunny-side up covered with catsup and refried beans. So I only had a Pepsi to drink and enjoyed the fellowship.
I spent the afternoon doing office work – better sermon preparation for the services on Saturday and Sunday. I wanted to get to sleep but when it is still light at 10:30 and 15 minutes later it is just turning dark – but that isn’t all of it – it gets light at 4:30 AM – full light! Added to that is the 6 hour adjustment and you now face another problem. Trying to get you body to cooperate with the newly introduced facts which say it is bedtime. I did not succeed until 3:30 AM and then it was revile at 7:00 and into the car and off to the Church at 7:45 for the graduation service at 10:30.
This was an thrilling experience. I learned that Logos Bible School (which is a two year Bible training school under Covenant Life University) has 60 students that have completed the two year program and many more who have been theire for at least one year since it began. Today, in the service were 6 pastors in attendance who had graduated from Logos and they counted at least 6 more who were not present who are pastors or in active ministry. They represent about 15 churches that have been started by these graduates.
One pastor has 5 Churches he has started or are under his ministry. One student was hired by the Church of God to be the supervisor for Europe for there inter-cultural ministries and spoke to me today and said he and his wife wanted to enroll in CLU by internet and complete their degree. An African pastor to an African congregation here in Brussels also approached me and communicated the same desire.
At the Luncheon the Regional Missions Coordinators for Eastern Europe, David and Linda Fallin were talking with me and the door for placing CLU in Hungary is swinging open as well as Romania. In addition, Logos is going to add the remaining two years of curriculum and become a full extension campus of CLU.
One important item I forgot to state: Many students from Logos are now back in their home countries in Africa and beyond in ministry. So you can see that Life Church through CLU is impacting the world!
Tomorrow morning I will be speaking to an Assembly of God Filipino congregation and then will complete the IPHC (International Pentecostal Holiness) Belgian convention tomorrow evening.
God bless and thanks for your prayers.
Dr D
Sometimes “time” goes so fast and your schedule is so cramped with things to do in preparation and the mind just skips a beat! What beat? The “Blog Beat!” So here we are........
The flight over was uneventful except for the 9 hour layover in Atlanta, but I took advantage of the time and laid out the structure for a new message called: “Connection Power.” So at least the time wasn’t wasted.
I arrived at 8:10 AM on Thursday in Brussels. Their entry process is a breeze compared to other countries. No documents to complete and the customs people just watch as you pass them. Maurico Salazar met me and we were off and running – to the BED! I had not had but 2 hours sleep since Tuesday morning at 7:00. So a quick nap was in order – but the problem – I was so tired and sleepy I could not stop with a “nap”and spent most of the afternoon falling asleep and waking up only to do it again until supper.
Now when you are in Belgium, you MUST have a Belgium Waffle! So after the meal, Mauricio, Betsy, his daughter, and Obed, his son, and I headed downtown to wrap our lips around the best waffle in Brussels! We were sitting at the sidewalk tables indulging and heard the sound of a band. We looked up the street and saw a parade heading our way.
We later discovered that it was the annual celebration of entrance of Charles the 5th from Spain into Brussels from which he reigned while alive. It was unique! All horses, people and vehicles were typical of that period of time. They passed so close that sometimes you had to move to keep from being “sprinkled” (really I didn’t need to participate, I have been baptized) and anyway this was a “horse sprinkling”! The only camera I had with me was my new iPhone 4. Man did it take good video – you will have to see it to believe it!
On Friday morning after 12 hours of sleep (but it was 11:00 AM) Mau (as Maurico is called) told me it was breakfast time. and then we were off to meet a couple of missionaries: Bill & Gretchen Schwartz, who will be moving to Belgium in the next 6 months and Ronald & Margaret Turner from Romania for lunch at Pizza Hut. However it was just 30 minutes after completing a Mexican breakfast: A tortilla with eggs sunny-side up covered with catsup and refried beans. So I only had a Pepsi to drink and enjoyed the fellowship.
I spent the afternoon doing office work – better sermon preparation for the services on Saturday and Sunday. I wanted to get to sleep but when it is still light at 10:30 and 15 minutes later it is just turning dark – but that isn’t all of it – it gets light at 4:30 AM – full light! Added to that is the 6 hour adjustment and you now face another problem. Trying to get you body to cooperate with the newly introduced facts which say it is bedtime. I did not succeed until 3:30 AM and then it was revile at 7:00 and into the car and off to the Church at 7:45 for the graduation service at 10:30.
This was an thrilling experience. I learned that Logos Bible School (which is a two year Bible training school under Covenant Life University) has 60 students that have completed the two year program and many more who have been theire for at least one year since it began. Today, in the service were 6 pastors in attendance who had graduated from Logos and they counted at least 6 more who were not present who are pastors or in active ministry. They represent about 15 churches that have been started by these graduates.
One pastor has 5 Churches he has started or are under his ministry. One student was hired by the Church of God to be the supervisor for Europe for there inter-cultural ministries and spoke to me today and said he and his wife wanted to enroll in CLU by internet and complete their degree. An African pastor to an African congregation here in Brussels also approached me and communicated the same desire.
At the Luncheon the Regional Missions Coordinators for Eastern Europe, David and Linda Fallin were talking with me and the door for placing CLU in Hungary is swinging open as well as Romania. In addition, Logos is going to add the remaining two years of curriculum and become a full extension campus of CLU.
One important item I forgot to state: Many students from Logos are now back in their home countries in Africa and beyond in ministry. So you can see that Life Church through CLU is impacting the world!
Tomorrow morning I will be speaking to an Assembly of God Filipino congregation and then will complete the IPHC (International Pentecostal Holiness) Belgian convention tomorrow evening.
God bless and thanks for your prayers.
Dr D
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