A Few Pictures

I thought on this blog I would show a few pictures of what we saw when we arrived in Paraguay. The first picture is the first welcome to Paraguay we received.

Sherry took this picture as we were leaving the airport. We didn't think it would be too wise of us to take pictures at immigration or customs. The officials might not like their pictures being taken while we were trying to enter the country. The airport and all the customs and immigration lines were really short, and we were allowed in the country with all of our 15 suitcases and 6 carry-ons. They only asked to open 4 of them. They kept asking if different things were new or used (for example; our printer), but all in all, they didn't hassle us too much.

This picture is of a normal, neighborhood streets in the capital city, Asunción. As you can see, they are not paved. Most of the main streets are paved, but almost every neighborhood street is either dirt or big rocks and dirt.

Paraguay is an interesting country. It's history is something that is difficult to explain. They are a very proud people who speak two languages, and they have strong characteristics. Personally, I am enjoying living here. Is it easy? I don't know, but the people we have met so far have been very kind and accepting of us. We feel welcomed by the Paraguayan Assemblies of God. Most people have been kind to us in stores, restaurants, and the two malls here. 

I would say that God has really blessed us. Am I too naive to think that it will remain this way? I sure hope so, but I am realistic enough to know that anything can happen at any moment to change our lives. For instance; the home we are supposed to be living in, right now, had some pipes break and flood the entire house just as we were planning on moving in. Now, we are in the process of repairing the home. Is it frustrating? Sure, but we know that we are here for the long haul, and eventually, we will be moved into our home, settled in, and working hard to reach lost people in Paraguay.

Blessings to all (Bendiciones a todos),

Charley

Street in Asunción

I posted about our 4 wheel drive Speed-the-Light vehicle a few days ago. I wanted to show you a picture of the regular streets here in Asunción. Now, there are paved streets and "highways," but this is the usual street in almost all neighborhoods and side roads. It is made up of large, black rocks and dirt. Most of the time, it is not too bumpy. After a good rain, more and more huge potholes develop, and it can become tricky to navigate your way through with out breaking an axle. 

I've noticed that during a rain, there is a lot of water in certain places. I am thankful that we have a 4 wheel drive vehicle. We may not have to use it every day, but at least we know it is there for when we need to use it.

Some of our churches are on roads that need this type of vehicle just to get to the church. So, again, we want to thank the young people from the United States for providing us with an amazing vehicle to do the work here in Paraguay. Your ministry is very important to the kingdom. Because of your faithfulness, the work of reaching the lost is going strong.

Blessings,

Charley

Ministry in Caaguazú

I don't have a picture for this blog. All my camera accessories are still packed away, and the battery is dead on the camera. So, I wasn't able to take any pictures, and I wasn't able to find my charger before I left. 

This past weekend, I went to a town called Caaguazú. It is about 2 1/2 hours from Asunción and about 2 hours from Ciudad del Este on the Brazilian border. Frank Kendrick, our leader in Paraguay, had a mission's convention at a small church called Sanidad Divina. I am guessing that means Divine Healing. It is an Assemblies of God church.

I did not misspeak when I wrote "mission's convention." Yes, we did a mission's convention in Paraguay. When we arrived here, we found out that in the past 3 years Paraguay has sent two missionaries to Spain, and they are raising support for a third missionary to Tunis in North Africa. Isn't that amazing? God is moving all over the world to send missionaries all over the world. 

It was a great weekend. We had a service on Saturday night, Sunday morning and Sunday night. I understood most of what was going on, and I had the opportunity to give a short greeting and testimony on Sunday night. At the end of the service on Sunday night, Frank took up Faith Promise cards. God is so good! This little church in a poor country (the average income per month is less than $300), with the help of God, promised to give almost $100 per month in the support of missionaries. WOW! I was so honored and thrilled to see this. 

Also, 15 young people came forward to dedicate their lives to missions. Some felt a call to specific countries like China, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Iran, and others. Some felt called to help raise more money for missionaries. The mission's program in Paraguay is still very new, but God is already taking what little they have and multiplying it to send people all over the world.

If they can do it in Paraguay, than anyone can do it in the United States. If your church does not have a mission's program, start one. Even if it is just you for now, start one, and let God work miracles in your life and in your church.

Blessings,

Charley

Speed-the-Light Vehicle

I have mentioned our Speed-the Light vehicle a couple of times, and I thought you might want to see what it looks like. Here it is! It is a really nice vehicle, and we are blessed to have the use of it. Thank you to all the churches who are allowing their youth to give to Speed-the-Light(STL). We couldn't go to some of the places we have been already without our STL vehicle.

Blessings,

Charley

First Ministry Opportunity in Paraguay

God has continued to be faithful and good to us. The kids had the exciting opportunity to help out another missionary at her church. They did a song with their puppets. DC Reto was the name of the group, and the song was something like "DC Reto para los niños." At least, that's one of the lines I understood in the song.

This picture shows Cindy Lucas and her puppet, Carlitos Chocolate and the puppets that the kids are using. I forgot the names, but I am not sure that they don't change every time they use them. I will have to ask them, and the next time they do a puppet skit I will put their names in the blog.

 This picture is the road we traveled on to the church. It wasn't too long, but we thank God we have a 4 wheel drive Speed-the-Light vehicle.

This church was for a lot of kids, and it is in a very poor area near a city called Aregua. In Asuncion, there are a lot of kids who work the street washing car window, begging for money, selling anything they can get their hands on, and basically doing whatever they can to bring some money home to their parents. Usually, their parents use the money for alcohol or drugs. It is really hard to see some of these kids on the streets. Everyday now, we notice some of the kids from the church working different street corners. Many of them don't have any hope of having a different life. Please pray with us for these kids.

The other pictures are of some of the kids in the church. Most of them did not come to church with their parents. They either walked to church, or they came with some older kids. A lot of this is really difficult to see and understand, but we are learning that we cannot solve all of the problems that face these kids every day.

Blessings to all,

Charley

Anniversary Celebration

On our first Sunday night in Paraguay, we had the honor to attend the 36th anniversary of Emanuel Assembly in Barrio Republicano (a neighborhood called Republican). I say it was an honor because we were invited to attend and be a part of the celebration. On the far left is the pastor's wife, then Pastor Fleitas, the worship leader and his wife. I don't know all their names, but I am learning. 

Less than four months ago, they almost shut the church down because there were only four people in the church (two of them the pastor and his wife). Now, the General Secretary of the Assemblies of God in Paraguay is pastoring the church. They had about fifty people there that night for the celebration. It was nice to be a part of it.

Chaz made a new friend in the pastor. His name is Carlos Fleitas, and he is really nice (short, but nice). Chaz watched as he was drinking some tereré. This is the country where this herb drink was found and first started. They love Yerba (the herb that is in the drink), and they claim that it helps them through the heat. Anyway, the pastor asked Chaz if he wanted some, and Chaz said yes. In fact, Chaz loves the stuff. So, the pastor was curious and asked us if it was okay to give Chaz some. We said it was okay, and Chaz drank a couple of glasses. Now, Carlos and Chaz are friends. They are known as Carlos and Carlitos. He always asks about Chaz when we see him. I need to take Chaz up to the General Council's office and let them visit one day. 

We are learning more and more each day about Spanish, life in Paraguay, customs and culture, and many other things. Every Sunday, for at least a while, we will be attending different churches to meet more pastors. The more relationships we build, the more effective our ministry will be. Please pray for God's continued protection and help. Right now, there is an outbreak of Yellow Fever across the entire country. They are vaccinated as many people as they can, as quick as they can. The government hospitals have been given about 5 million doses of the vaccine from the U.S, France, Brazil, Venezuela, and other countries, but they don't have anywhere near 5 million new needles. We talked about getting the vaccination, but we don't want to run the risk of them re-using a needle on one of us. We might end up getting an incurable disease. Yellow Fever can be deadly, but I would rather take my chances with that than other diseases.

God is good, and He has brought us here for a purpose. We are learning every day about His unfailing love and patience with us. He has helped us with so many things that we feel so blessed to be a part of the ongoing work of the Gospel in Paraguay.

Blessings to all,

Charley

We Have Arrived!

It has been over a month since I posted our last blog, and I am sorry. We have been very busy preparing to travel to Paraguay.

A little update: On December 13th, we graduated from language school in Costa Rica. On Dec. 17th, we traveled to the States to spend some time with family before heading to Paraguay. On January 9th, Sherry and I flew to Ft. Lauderdale, Florida to attend some training for a new part of our ministry. We will be the directors of "Heaven's Gates and Hell's Flames" in Paraguay. HGHF is a Reality Ministries production that presents the Gospel in a unique and life-changing drama. It is really an amazing ministry, and we are honored to be a part of the Reality Ministries team. 

On January 17th, Sherry and I flew and drove to Moultrie, GA to attend another training session. We went to a church called Lakeside Assembly of God. If you are ever in the Moultrie, GA area, you need to go to this exciting, vibrant, and spirit-filled church. They are amazing people, and we are proud to know them. That weekend we were there, we went through an entire production and training (in English). Now, we take all of our training, in English, and try to do it all here in Paraguay, in Spanish. Please pray for us!

Then, on January 23rd, Sherry and I flew back to California to finish packing up our things. We loaded up the vehicles with 15 suitcases and 6 carry-ons, and the entire family boarded the plane in Los Angeles on Monday, January 28th at 2 p.m. Pacific time. We flew to Miami, then to Santiago, Chile, then to Asuncion, Paraguay. We arrived in Paraguay at 4:00 p.m. Paraguay time (which is 11:00 a.m. Pacific time). It was long, but we made it.

Almost the entire group of missionaries from Paraguay were at the airport to pick us up. It was so good to see them, and they seemed excited to see us. We jumped in our new Speed-the-Light vehicle and headed to our first stopping place. We are staying in one of the mission owned apartments until some repairs our finished on our new, 4 bedroom house in Paraguay. It is a lovely home! Sherry and the kids were able to choose what colors they wanted all the rooms painted, and I even have room for an office. I am as excited as they are.

We are adjusting well. We have been all over Asuncion trying to find the best deals on a refrigerator, stove, microwave, beds, living room furniture, dining table, chairs, desks, washer/dryer (maybe), and all the dishes, cups, glasses, silverware, etc. The house is completely empty except for a few shelves and cabinets. So, we will need to purchase everything. 

We also have been donated a lot of equipment from the Reality Ministries team to be used for the drama. This is all sitting in North Carolina while we wait for some funds to come in to help us ship it to Paraguay. Please pray with us concerning our funds. We were not expecting to ship a container to Paraguay, and this unexpected shipment is not cheap. Please pray for financial help with this rather large, unexpected expense. Also, while you pray, ask God what you can do to help.

God is good, and He has brought us this far. I know He will take care of all the other details.

Blessings to all! We love and miss you!

Come see us!

Charley