The start of the coffee bean!
"Come unto me, all who are weary and heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light."
Matthew 11:28-30
| Our
Mission |
Photo Gallery |
| Monthly News |
Prayer Requests |
Our Mission
To
follow God's will for our lives so that we can serve Him in all we do,
go wherever He leads, and share His amazing love with those around us.
2) Guayllabamba, Ecuador - Tulcanza Family - Local Missionary Church with two outreach locations
3) El Batan Missionary Alliance Church - Ninos de la calle en riesgo
4) Just For Kids Orphanage and School- Valle de los Chillos, Ecuador
5) Home of Hope - Malawi, Africa, Canadian Missionaries
6) Missionaries and mission trips that God plants in our hearts - Renee
Photo Gallery
The views and plant life are incredible and diverse
The tree gourds are as unique as the people we meet!
Banana plantations and coffee fields span the horizon on every side.
Guadua is the type of bamboo that is used in much of the construction in Colombia because of its strength and durability.
You'll see it in buildings, bridges, and towers all over the area. The plants are often located
near the coffee plantations because they help the soil and water levels and provide needed shade.
Continue
to support missions around the world:
1)
Cusco, Peru - Romulo Tupa - Local Missionary2) Guayllabamba, Ecuador - Tulcanza Family - Local Missionary Church with two outreach locations
3) El Batan Missionary Alliance Church - Ninos de la calle en riesgo
4) Just For Kids Orphanage and School- Valle de los Chillos, Ecuador
5) Home of Hope - Malawi, Africa, Canadian Missionaries
6) Missionaries and mission trips that God plants in our hearts - Renee
Photo Gallery
The views and plant life are incredible and diverse
The tree gourds are as unique as the people we meet!
Banana plantations and coffee fields span the horizon on every side.
Guadua is the type of bamboo that is used in much of the construction in Colombia because of its strength and durability.
You'll see it in buildings, bridges, and towers all over the area. The plants are often located
near the coffee plantations because they help the soil and water levels and provide needed shade.
Monthly
News
As we head through August, we are getting into the swing of things here. With our first week of school completed, we both are feeling better about the school and the students. You can see Steve below in his very first classroom!
There have been many trials at the school as far as not being exactly what we expected and the promises of "maybe tomorrow," but God has confirmed for us during several times of uncertainty and doubt that this is what He has planned for us. I often tell Steve when I get frustrated that this isn't what I had planned and I have to remind myself that that is exactly right; this isn't what I had planned, but what God had planned. It is very ironic that the one person that really uses technology in the classroom gets the worst classroom that is the only one that cannot pick up the internet! There are no computers in the classrooms and only seven in the library so it was supposed to be a bonus to have wireless; and it is if you are anyone but me!
We are definitely at a country school in that we are out in the country on the end of town and are surrounded by fields of cows. We are given transportation home on a nice bus, but the departures all seem to be subject to the slowest person making it to the bus. We have been thinking about alternative transportation, but with the cost of living being close to that in the US and the salary half, I don't know if that is possible.
Steve hangs out with the baby Chiva at the Parque del Cafe
We plan to go to
Ecuador at Christmas time to spend some time with the projects that we
still are a part of there. All is going well though the family in
Guayllabamba needs prayer for their family situation trying to adopt a
child that was left with them five years ago. The school in
Montebello also needs prayer to keep the support for the new school
they opened last year for the needy children in their area.
Prayer Requests and
Praises
Prayer
- continued development of Steve's teaching career and good classroom
- the family situation for the pastor in Ecuador in Guayllabamba
- decreased allergies and bug infestations
- patience dealing with the "maybe tomorrow" that keep turning into "maybe in a few weeks"
- Steve's college classes as he works to achieve his degree
Praise
- good groups of students in our classes and teachers to work with at the school
- perfect weather and a good bus system to travel around
- improved health of my Uncle Don in Lewistown, Maine
- great internet service at the house for all communication and work
- no health issues at all in whole month we have been here
- $1 dollar lunches at school that are quite delicious
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As we head through August, we are getting into the swing of things here. With our first week of school completed, we both are feeling better about the school and the students. You can see Steve below in his very first classroom!
There have been many trials at the school as far as not being exactly what we expected and the promises of "maybe tomorrow," but God has confirmed for us during several times of uncertainty and doubt that this is what He has planned for us. I often tell Steve when I get frustrated that this isn't what I had planned and I have to remind myself that that is exactly right; this isn't what I had planned, but what God had planned. It is very ironic that the one person that really uses technology in the classroom gets the worst classroom that is the only one that cannot pick up the internet! There are no computers in the classrooms and only seven in the library so it was supposed to be a bonus to have wireless; and it is if you are anyone but me!
We are definitely at a country school in that we are out in the country on the end of town and are surrounded by fields of cows. We are given transportation home on a nice bus, but the departures all seem to be subject to the slowest person making it to the bus. We have been thinking about alternative transportation, but with the cost of living being close to that in the US and the salary half, I don't know if that is possible.
Steve hangs out with the baby Chiva at the Parque del Cafe
Because I have the
camera, Steve is forced to be in many pictures in a variety of poses!
We
continue to pray for God to use us to be a light for Him wherever we
are. The people in the area of Colombia where we are are very
friendly and genuine, and the area is safe, peaceful, and beautiful. I
have never seen so many varieties of birds in one place before in my
life. It really is a shame that the image of Colombia keeps many people
away from a place that really is a nice place to live. Tomorrow is
Steve's birthday so we plan to try out a nice restaurant after we
travel to el Centro to pickup our "purchases" from today. I left a pair
of shoes with a guy with a cart on one street to get some new heels, a
clock that wasn't working on another street with a different guy, an
order for a pair of lamps made out of guadua across the bridge, and a
couple fans to beat the heat at school that we were too tired to carry
on the bus so we said we'd be back tomorrow. A "tragedy" this week for
anyone who knows me was that after I traveled to the next town, an hour
away, and finally found all the ingredients to bake cookies, purchased
the cookie sheets at highwayman prices, and got it all mixed up in the
hallway kitchen, I neglected to check the oven to see if it actually
worked and lo and behold, it did not. Unfortunately, neither did our
neighbors but now we both know that we need to ask our landlord to get
them fixed or replaced so it wasn't all bad. (Back again to the "maybe
tomorrow?") The dough is still in the fridge with hopes of someday
being cooked before it becomes a hard expensive unusable lump.
I pray that all is going well with everyone back at school, especially at Fairplay, and that is a good year for all. I continue to remind myself to shake out my clothes and shoes to avoid having to scream and throw them up in the air when something flies out of them; luckily it is only about once a week. I lean in the verse that God will never give me more than I can bear and since I know that anacondas and tarantulas usually don't climb up four flights of stairs and since the doorman won't let them in anyway, I can sleep okay at night.
We continue to pray
about how we can get involved here in the local and school community to
serve God and are looking forward to all He has in store for us. I
don't know if trimming the bushes around the apartment building counts,
but someone heard I worked with plants and asked if I would help them
out. We may not be coffee drinkers but we do what we can to be a part
of what's going on!
Cathy and Steve
I pray that all is going well with everyone back at school, especially at Fairplay, and that is a good year for all. I continue to remind myself to shake out my clothes and shoes to avoid having to scream and throw them up in the air when something flies out of them; luckily it is only about once a week. I lean in the verse that God will never give me more than I can bear and since I know that anacondas and tarantulas usually don't climb up four flights of stairs and since the doorman won't let them in anyway, I can sleep okay at night.
Cathy and Steve
Prayer
- continued development of Steve's teaching career and good classroom
- the family situation for the pastor in Ecuador in Guayllabamba
- decreased allergies and bug infestations
- patience dealing with the "maybe tomorrow" that keep turning into "maybe in a few weeks"
- Steve's college classes as he works to achieve his degree
Praise
- good groups of students in our classes and teachers to work with at the school
- perfect weather and a good bus system to travel around
- improved health of my Uncle Don in Lewistown, Maine
- great internet service at the house for all communication and work
- no health issues at all in whole month we have been here
- $1 dollar lunches at school that are quite delicious
return to home page