October 2023

Sowing Generously and Reaping Abundantly

Reading in 2 Corinthians chapter 9, Paul reminds the people that “he who sows sparingly and grudgingly will also reap sparingly and grudgingly….” (Amplified),  but that the one who sows generously and in order to bring a blessing, will also reap a generous harvest.
 
We find these verses to be a good reminder that we do want to use God’s precious “seed” to generously scatter abroad here among the Awa! Please pray with us that God will bring about that abundant crop of righteousness and blessing in the lives of many here in these mountains.
 
God provides opportunities and fertile soil on many levels:

• Teaching God’s word of truth on Sundays. Going through the life of Joseph has been such a clear and practical way to sow God’s truth, especially into the young lives of the youth and the children. We’ve been happy to see good understanding and responses each Sunday! The children are showing a better aptitude to learn new concepts (God didn’t forget Joseph, but instead He had a plan for Joseph’s life!) and it is a joy to hear young men like Jeison and Christian really tracking with Joseph’s responses in the face of temptation.
• Practical community help. Two Saturdays in September we hosted a large group of Paulino’s extended family here at the Outpost. Some unfriendly neighbors had set fire to their gate and made ugly threats; the family was wanting to discuss the issue together and come up with a solution that would help to resolve the problem. I helped with the meeting when possible, (and entertained a passel of kids!) while Kathy cooked big lunches to feed the hungry crew. We were blessed to see the way the family, many of whom are believers, work together to come up with a good solution, and we pray it will be carried out in a way that honors God.
• Godly counsel and encouragement one on one as we live and interact in these Awa communities. God provides many openings on a daily basis! Young mother Graciela recently came to visit Kathy, talking about the recent sightings of dead Awa and evil spirits that are bringing fear to many. What a blessing to be able to remind her that God’s presence in us is the best cure for such fear! On another occasion, Miguel was clearing jungle trees and had a big limb hit him on the head and knock him unconscious. I spent that afternoon and evening driving him to the emergency room at the hospital in Ibarra. Although Miguel, a baptized believer, has not been walking with God, he did recognize God’s grace in saving his life. I was thankful for another opportunity to not only show care and compassion for him, but to also remind him how important it is to be in a right relationship with God.

Pray for us, that our ‘sowing’ would not be marked by a grudging sparseness 😊
but rather by a generosity and a bringing of blessing to the Awa people!
 
We thank God for:

• For each of you! Many of you remind us of your support and prayers. You are a blessing!

• A peaceful election day this last month, electing Daniel Noboa as the youngest president in the history of Ecuador.
• His perfect plan for the ages, even as we see the turmoil and groaning of the world around us, especially in the recent invasion of Israel and the continuing war, as well as the earthquake in Afghanistan.
• His abundant grace given to us so that we are well-supplied to pour out to others. (2 Cor. 9:8)

 

We love seeing the big grins on these little faces! These four little cousins are regulars in Kathy’s Sunday School class in Palmira.
 
In His grip,