We have been in Cuenca for a year and had never been to the main museum so while the kids were on the school vacation we decided to go. Outside of the museum there are ruins from the old city of Cuenca. It's pretty neat how they made their buildings and harvested their foods. The kids enjoyed seeing all the rock walls and learning more about the culture here. It's a definitely a must see for anyone who comes to visit.
Friday, October 19, 2012
50 Years
Our family went to a 50 year wedding renewal with a couple from the church here. It was a great night where their grandkids, kids and the rest of their family celebrated 50 years of marriage and a re-commitment to their marriage at the same time. It is rare these days, especially here in South America for two people to have committed that much time in their lives being married. There is so much divorce or other problems that enter the marriage that it is hard to find a couple that has been willing to work out their differences or problems and make the marriage work. So it is a great accomplishment to celebrate a couple who had been together for 50 years and counting. We hope that through this celebration, many of the people in our church will also be willing to rededicate themselves to their relationships whether they are married or not but in all their relationships. Especially the one that they have with God. So please be in prayers for the marriages in this church, the couples who are struggling and for all those in the city who struggle with the commitment of marriage. And also a pray of praise for this couple who celebrated 50 years together. As well, keep Travis in your prayers as he works with couples who are struggling or want extra help to make their marriages strong and healthy. But especially that whether single, married, divorced or all other things, that our relationship with God is the most important dedication that we have and ever will make in our lives.
Via Flickr:
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Chorro de Giron
During the school holidays we went with the church in Azogues on a little trip to a waterfall about an hour away from Cuenca. Just by the waterfall was a little park where you could play soccer, the kids could go on swings and slides and you could barbeque food. So the church got together to get some things to put on the barbeque and we enjoyed the day playing games, eating great food and taking a hike up the mountain to see the waterfall. Some of the youth even went walking behind the waterfall getting soaked in the process. It was not a warm day so I don't know what they were thinking. As well we were able to meet a new couple that the church invited with twin girls who were two. Travis has started meeting with them since this time as they have had some struggles in their marriage. It was great to meet them in a more relaxed and comfortable place then at the church building because they felt more at ease and were more open to talking about themselves. So please be in prayer for them and their family, for their marriage and the opportunity that Travis has to teach them more about God and his plan for them. Also be in prayer for the church in Azogues as they continue to search for new opportunities to invited people from their community to come to know God. And for our continued relationship with the group there and that we can have more times like this mini trip to get to know them better.
Friday, July 27, 2012
Let's Start Talking
For the last two weeks we have had a group of four Americans that have been teaching English using the book of Luke. This is last week's party with a Mickey Mouse theme. The student's had fun playing a bunch of games, relay races and eating lots of great treats. Tonight is the next party with the theme of 'Christmas in July.' It should be lots of fun. We have had quite a success with this program, in fact Travis and I are teaching a group class for people who want to take the one-on-one classes but just don't have enough vocabulary to communicate very well. And Hermel who normally teaches that basic class during the normal year is teaching a large group as well. We will see what happens starting September when we start our regular classes again. It looks like I will end up teaching a intermediate class as well as the basic and advanced levels. But we have been glad to have this group here as Cuenca is a university town and many people are interested in learning English. It just gives us one way to gain friendships and hopefully in the future bring more people into a relationship with God. Please continue to be with us this next week as we wrap up the one-on-one classes and for the relationships being build with the students.
Mancora, Peru
At the beginning of July and right after the kids were done school we headed on a nine hour bus ride to the beaches of Mancora, Peru. It wasn't really in the plans for us but out of necessity more then just for fun. Due to some recent changes in laws for visas, we needed to reapply for our visas within 30 days of the expiry and with all the paperwork. Not knowing the the laws had changed we ended up missing the deadline by 4 or 5 days so they told us that we could not apply as we didn't do so in enough time. The only option for us was to leave the country when our visas expired and reenter as tourists. And then to reapply for our missionary visas. So knowing that we had to wait for a few documents from Canada we decided to take a vacation since we had to leave the country anyway. We spent the week in a small town of Mancora, enjoying walking along the beaches, trying some good food and taking a break from the work here in Cuenca. It's been awhile since living in a beach city and we enjoyed being able to go to the beach everyday, the warmer weather and time together. The kids loved the beach, loved playing in the waves and making sandcastles. We searched for shells and rocks to bring back home with us and watched the sunset every night. It was good to get away for a bit and enjoy just the family. We are glad to be back home and working again. We have almost all of the paperwork that we need to renew our missionary visa but still are asking for your prayers that this will happen quickly and that we don't have any more surprises. Hopefully by next month we will again have our missionary visas.
Susanna and Isaac Get Baptized!
Travis and I have been studying with twins Susanna and Isaac. They are the brother and sister of one of the evangelists, Pablo. They have been very interested in the Bible and what it means to their lives. On June 30th, our 11th wedding anniversary they dedicated their lives to God through baptism. Their friends, family and people from church came to watch this important time in their lives. The unfortunate thing is at the pool that we went to baptize them did not want us doing it without paying, so only a few of us went in and paid the price. I videoed their baptism and then let the others watch who stayed outside the pool area. Even though it was an unconventional way for a baptism, they really were happy (both a bit shy) that not everyone was there. Afterwards, we invited everyone to our place for some snacks and time to celebrate. We even got a special song sung to us since it was our anniversary that day. Please be in prayer for Susanna and Isaac as they begin their walk with God and continue to grow spiritually. And with their family, especially Pablo and their brother Manuel as they continue to help them grow in Christ.
Birthday Party!
Ceara and I went for a long trip one day to go to a birthday party of a friend from her school. We had received the invitation and according to the directions it was at a party house and seemed pretty close to where we lived. However, it took us at least 30 minutes to arrive and when we got there we actually were one of the first to get there. However, the party house was a neat place, it had a few inflatable toys to play on, a large yard for games and soccer and this pool. It was a very cold day so being outside was not as fun but after the birthday boy got there (who ended up with a fever) we were able to go into the pool room which to our surprise was heated and a needed break from the cold outside. Ceara had lots of fun playing with her school friends and I got to visit with some of the ladies. Unfortunately this was probably one of the last times Ceara will get to see those friends from school as next year she will be attending a new school. But like we tell her, you'll have lots of new friends next year and can always call your old friends for a play date. But it was good to get together one last time with them.
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