In February we enjoyed a visit from Dr. Chris Matthews, Liebenzell USA’s
new general director, and Mike Branch, the overseas director. We
enjoyed getting to know them better, as well as being able to hear
firsthand their vision for expanding and growing the USA branch of
Liebenzell Mission. Thanks to Renatto Abrego, the videographer Chris and
Mike brought along, we now have an abundance of pictures and even some
short videos to share!
Here is a link to hear about their trip from their perspective: On Location in Ecuador.pdf
The
months of January through March we often have our heaviest rainfall.
This year Rainy Season is living up to its name! Muddy boots lined up on
the porch tell the story of muddy roads and trails. The cicadas are out
in full force, with their shrill voices making a constant background
buzzing along with the sound of raindrops on the roof. Washouts and
landslides in our area have brought the need for community ‘mingas’
(workdays), shoveling out obstructions, cleaning out ditches, and
throwing rocks into the crevices carved out by running water. All that
rain has also made transportation challenging as you can see in the
picture! As you can imagine, the bus has temporarily suspended its route
up our way. At the same time the bananas, papaya, coffee, and yucca
plants as well as the squash growing in our yard all love soaking up
that moisture! And the 
mountains
are vibrantly green around us--God has truly blessed us with a
beautiful place to live even in the midst of all that moisture!
For the Awa children, March brings the excitement of finding the ‘ittal’
ants….many of the children arrive at Sunday School with their pockets
full of these tasty treats! Little Mindy and big brother Deyvid were
excited to show us their ‘find’ this last Sunday. 😊
Awa Conference planning time….
March
is our month for planning for the annual Awa Conference (this year
April 2-4). Last year’s conference and baptism were cancelled due to
covid restrictions, but happily, this year it seems quite feasible!
Thanks for praying with us as we prepare for this time together with the
Awa church. Ten or eleven of the believers are considering baptism,
although for most of them taking this public step of faith seems quite
intimidating. During this last year we have seen many of these young
believers going through a testing of their faith through many difficult
situations that have come up. Pray with us that God would uphold each of
them in their faith and give them the boldness needed to keep taking
each step forward. We pray for these young believers as Paul prayed for
the Corinthians: “He will also keep you firm to the end, so that you
will be blameless on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is faithful,
who has called you into fellowship with his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.”
(1 Cor. 1:8-9 NIV)Will you pray with us specifically for two of these young believers, our close neighbors Christian and Ana Patricia? They have been suffering through a hard time of trial and testing. (If you’d like to know more of their story, here is a link: the longer version)
Thank you so much for your prayers and partnership with us in the work here! May God bless each of you as celebrate the renewal of spring in the coming weeks, along with the joy of remembering Jesus’ resurrection.
In HIS grip,
Kevin & Kathy
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