January/February 2026
Baby Mabel
The highlight of January was the birth of our granddaughter Mabel Moon Burt, born in Missouri on January 14th. It was a blessing it was to be with our daughter Kimberly and Zach for the birth of their first child. We felt God’s presence with us, even in the timing of Mabel’s birth: we flew from Ecuador on Kimberly’s due date, and Mabel was born five days later!Return to Rainy Season!
Arriving back in Ecuador early in February right at the height of rainy season, we saw what 36 inches of rain can do in one month! Landslides and road washouts met us as we returned to AwaLand. And yet again, God’s timing was perfect….we made it through this landslide about a minute after the road was opened while the cars in front of us had waited most of the night. Thank You, Lord!Back in the swing of things….
Coming back to green mountains and warm temperatures was rather nice. :-) After cleaning some of the mold from our house (shut up for a month in the wettest season of the year!) we have happily jumped back into the Awa ministry. Here are a few of the ministry items we are focusing on in 2026:
• Sunday teaching: We continue to teach through the book of Acts, encour-aging the group of believers to grow in maturity as we study the account of the early church. We are especially hoping to put an emphasis on the topic of prayer this year.
• King of Glory course….
Another group of 35 middle school children are go-ing through the course. Kathy and coworker Chrissy Shaub are teaching 4 different classes each Sunday as well as make-up lessons on Tuesdays and Fridays. We pray the children understand and take to heart what they are hearing.• Steven and Gwen Anderson continue to move forward in their Spanish study and in their plans to join us in the Awa ministry in the future. This week we helped them to reach an agreement on the land where they will build their future home here in AwaLand. Pray for their progress in Spanish learning, and also for the birth of their fourth child in April.
• Gloria
continues to joyfully help in teaching the younger children’s class in Palmira; she goes over the weekly lesson with us each Friday. Many have asked about her health…she continues to struggle with her arm (after the infection and hospitalization back in December). Her hands are also stiff and she struggles to write or to cook. Please pray for Gloria’s continued healing.• OT translation is on hold at the moment as our coworkers the Shaubs will be travelling in the coming weeks. Pray for guidance as we make plans to begin working with the translation team again soon. We’ll keep you post-ed.
In His grip,
