September 2016 - Back to School!

 As the fall season starts up here, Kathy and I are happy to be going 'back to school' along with the Awa children! :-) We have been invited to help in the Palm community school, teaching English and computers. Although there has been opposition to our participation (because we are 'outsiders'), God worked through a government requirement to teach English in the 2nd grade to open this door of opportunity. Raúl, the 2nd grade teacher, and school director Teacher Andrew are especially happy to have us come each week. It is a blessing to us to be able to walk among the 250+ Awa people that call this area their home.

And...exciting things are happening in this same community! In a meeting that we did NOT attend, the believers asked for permission from the people to build a church (calling it 'God's House of Prayer', avoiding the use of the word 'church' which has some negative connotations) and received the approval of the group. Paulino and sister Gloria are spearheading getting the church lots ready for building. Their goal is to have a simple building ready for hosting the Awa Conference in April of 2017. They are so excited! This is an occasion calling for much sensitivity on our part--this project is best done by the believers' initiative. Pray for wisdom to know how much we should be involved. Over the years, God has opened different doors of opportunity here, and at times we have taught the kids or held monthly services, but more recently the community had not wanted Bible teaching to be held in the school buildings. Any gathering here easily means 50+ may show up, with the rainy weather calling for some overhead roof needed...making it difficult to do much over the last two years. Kathy and I will immensely enjoy spending time in this community each week with 'front row seats' to the action!

In February we helped Paulino's daughter Sandra and husband Jaime celebrate their wedding. Just a few months later, we shared with you a prayer request for their baby Lizeth, who was not developing normally and seemed to be blind. The Shaubs were able to help Sandra and Jaime make three long, complicated trips to a children's hospital in Quito where it was determined that Sandra had had an infection (toxoplasmosis) while being pregnant with Lizeth. The doctor said that calcification on the optic nerve is the cause of Lizeth's blindness. There is hope that Lizeth could continue to develop at a slower pace, and that she may even regain some sight. Because they were some of the first believers willing to stand up in front of their whole community and celebrate their wedding in God's eyes, it was hard to see them so quickly face this trial! But Jaime and Sandra have handled this situation with faith in God and much patience, and we have seen God use it to pull them together as a couple. They would appreciate your prayers for little Lizeth's continuing recovery and development.

Some added notes for prayer and praise:

• Gloria's husband Guillermo continues to struggle with his health. His digestive issues seem to have been resolved, but he still has little strength. He continues to desire to follow God in the midst of this trial, although he has many discouraging days.
•  
  
  The Liebenzell Mission Ecuador team is experiencing some growing pains! Over this last year we have added Walther Pullugando & family, a new pastor for the Cotacachi church, as well as ordaining two other young men for ministry. Several new churches wish to partner with us in the coming year or so. Such growth creates new needs for leadership, training, and fellowship, along with other changes in our organization. We'd appreciate prayer for wisdom as these challenges are faced.
• Kimberly is hanging in there at NTBI in Wisconsin, adapting to school life. She is working part-time, which along with her studies keeps her quite busy! Thanks for continued prayers for her.
• PRAISE God that the land issues in Rio Verde have been resolved! The partitioning off between Paulino's brothers and sisters is finished. Whew! We are happy to see the end of the conflicts that this issue fostered. At one time we had hoped to buy the land where we are settled for the church. Paulino's sister Cecilia is the new owner of our section, and while she does not want to sell the land, she has been content to just charge us a small monthly rent, which works out well.

In His grip...and confident that He is able,
Kevin and Kathy

<For a printable version click here>

A Sad Story

Jose Luis showed up in our dooryard one day a few weeks ago, holding a handful of medical exam results. His eyes were sad as he explained that his mom, Maria Angela, was dying. As Kevin read over the papers with Luis, the seriousness of Maria's sickness became clear. Maria had had a cancerous tumor in  her stomach, which had been blocking the passage of food for many weeks. She had first gone to the herbal healers, who had given her purges and natural cures, but to no avail. By the time one of her sons took her to the medical health center, she was dying. The doctors removed the tumor, along with her stomach, and in the process found her body was full of cancer. Maria was sent home to spend her last days---and that was when Jose Luis showed up at our door.

We went to visit Maria and her husband Carlos every day for several weeks. Although she was just skin and bones, the first few days Maria Angela could still talk. We sat beside her and talked about the days, several years back, when Maria had joined us for church on Sunday for several months. "After awhile, I just got busy, and quit coming," Maria told us sadly. Some days we read over different portions of Scripture with her, verses like John 3:16 and also Matthew 11:28, one of our favorite verses..."Come to Me, all ye that are weary and heavy laden, and I will give you rest..." Maria, and sometimes her young daughters and husband, would listen, although it was hard to tell how much they understood.  We prayed for the family each day before we left. One day we took Maria a mattress to lie on, as her bones were hurting as she laid on the boards of the plain bed frame.

How hard it was to watch this 44 yr old mom of 12 children just waste away, basically starving to death! And even harder to see the hopelessness of the family! Although they stoically (like all good Awa) tried to hide their emotions, their eyes betrayed their sadness. Death holds much 'sting' for those who have no hope in the Resurrection.

Maria died about noon on Friday, July 29th. The family and many neighbors and relatives spent the night around her body in the coffin consoling themselves the only way they know how to---drowning their sorrow by drinking. By the time we joined them early the next morning, Maria's relatives were crying and wailing, many of them too drunk to be able to think or walk. As we loaded the casket into our truck, to take them to the burial ground, we were reminded of the reason God has us here---to hold out the Hope that  God has for the Awa...the Hope of something beyond the death of our human bodies.

Since Maria's death, two of her youngest children (Ana, about 11 years old, and Raul, 9 or 10), along with several of her grandchildren, have been coming to join us on Sundays. We would like to visit Carlos and his older sons, especially Luis, and share the Bible lessons with them---but so far have found them either not at home or drunk. Luis is recovering from 7 stitches on his head from a drunken fight with his brother-in-law Jorge Patricio---just another reminder of what it is like to live in hopelessness.

The Joy of Knowing God

This is a sad story...and it is contrasted in our hearts with the joy we have had over the last few weeks in having our daughters Kimberly, and Keilah and husband Jeremy, visit us. Kimberly came from a summer working at Whispering Winds Bible Camp, and Keilah and Jeremy joined us from New Hampshire, where they have been working and taking part in our home church. What a blessing that our kids know the Lord! As we shared in the fun of their visit and days of vacation with them, and said farewell to them at the airport this last weekend, we are confident that God is with them, teaching and guiding them along their way. What a joy! and what a contrast to the world that Carlos and his children wake up to each day.

Thanks for your prayers for the Awa! One way in which we have seen God answering those prayers is in the life of Milton. One day Milton mentioned to me that he wanted to join us for church the following Sunday, explaining that he was hungry to hear God's word. Sure enough, on Sunday July 24th Milton walked into church. Although he was visibly nervous, and his head was hanging low, we saw some neat things happen that day---first with Gloria's husband Guillermo patting the empty seat beside him, saying to Milton, "Come and sit here!" Later on Meregildo prayed, stating his thoughts outloud..."Father God, we have all done wrong, and You have forgiven us, because of Jesus paying for our sins." Gloria, Milton's sister, also told us, "God says in His word that we should forgive our brother, and that's what I am choosing to do, because God tells us to." It has been a slow journey to this point, with many Sundays of Bible teaching...but God is bringing forth fruit.

There is still a long way to go...Milton has not been back to church since. Paulino, the older brother, was still very cold toward Milton and has mostly just ignored him. Rumors continue to fly each week...that Milton is back walking in sin, looking to renew his relationship with his sister-in-law. We find it very difficult to separate truth from lie---and there are many days we fight with discouragement. Satan is not ready to let this valley go without a good fight! We appreciate your prayers! We have seen our own power-less-ness in being able to change hearts...or to plant a church... BUT God has proved Himself able to do those exact things---and He begins His quiet work in the hearts and minds of His children.

In HIS grip,
Kevin & Kathy
 

PS Check out Kimberly's end of summer letter! Click HERE

For a printable version of this email letter Click HERE

Medical Caravan!

We've done much bumping and bouncing up and down our road over the last few weeks! The potholes seem to have grown deeper (compliments of the rainy season). :-) However, we ARE thankful for the road, even with all the bumps! This year---for the first time---the road allowed the annual medical caravan to go all the way to the community of Palmira. Wow! Just a year ago it was still a good hike! Of course, the medical crew had to put up with a good amount of jouncing to get there; and a downpour mid-afternoon turned the dry road into a slippery slide by the end of the day, but they made it! Many Awa, some of whom live still several hours'  hike beyond Palmira, commented to us how appreciative they were that the doctors had finally come so much closer to where they live!

This month has brought several different Awa with health needs to our doorstep:

• Over the last month we've been trying to help Gloria's husband Guillermo with some health needs, as he has been sick for most of the last year. Many tests have been inconclusive.
• Gilberto and his family came to the caravan suffering with a sickness (perhaps tuberculosis). Many family members are coughing, thin, and weak. Over the next few weeks, we'd like to try to help them get some tests done and hopefully figure out what is going on.
• Sandra and Jaime's baby Liseth has an appointment in Quito on July 12th. Liseth seems to be blind, along with other problems. Please pray with us for Jaime and Sandra as they face this trial, and that the specialist would know how to help Liseth.

I spent several Fridays in June helping at the school in Palmira, teaching the children how to type on the computers. Often we are happy to just have a reason to spend time with the folks in this community! Kathy and I have now been invited by the school director to come each week in the fall in order to continue to teach typing and to tutor students who are struggling. We are happy to have this 'crack' opening in the door! Our desire continues to be to make use of the two lots that were given us in this community for a center of sharing Christ's love. We'd appreciate your prayers that God would open that door in His timing.

Back in Rio Verde we are encouraged to see the believers moving toward a better understanding of how to forgive and restore Milton to the group. At the same time, Milton seems to be returning to spending time with his sister-in-law, under the pretext of visiting his little son Benjamin (now 10 months old). This has deeply saddened both us and his wife and children. It has now been well over a year that Milton has walked alone and kept away from the group of believers, and that has been very difficult for him. Please pray with us as we seek to disciple Milton's wife Delia, look for opportunities to talk with Milton himself, and also work to call the sister-in-law (who has been quite unhappy) back into walking with God. Many days our hearts are heavy over this situation.

Kimberly is enjoying her summer at Whispering Winds Bible Camp! The camp had a record number of campers the first week, and Kimberly said her first week working as a counselor went well, although her voice was hoarse from cheering her team on! Here is a link to Kimberly's camp letter, for those who are interested. We are really happy to have Kimberly, as well as our daughter Keilah and husband Jeremy come to visit us the end of July!

In HIS grip,
Kevin & Kathy

<For a printable version click here>

Visitors!

Wow! We've just finished up several busy (but very good!) weeks, and are thankful for a few days to catch up with all that we've let 'slide'. We apologize for the emails that we haven't answered...please rest assured that you are not forgotten. :-) I suppose many of you may feel the same, with the school year closing up and the advent of summer!

Over the last few weeks we have so much to be thankful for:

•    Kimberly finished up her senior year, took her SAT test in Quito, and applied to study at New Tribes Bible Institute (Wisconsin).  She also packed, said her farewells, and headed out to Missouri to work at Whispering Winds Bible Camp over the summer. She'll be back for a quick 3 weeks at the end of the summer. We are proud of Kimberly for finishing up well and pray that God will be her Strength as she faces all of the adjustments that lie ahead.

•    Four students from Liberty University (our son Kenny, his girlfriend Sophia, Ben, and Reid) joined us for a 10-day adventure. I'm not sure it's legal to pack so much into a short-term trip :-) but somehow we managed to fit an outreach day at each of two local schools; much hard work receiving loads of sand and gravel; a project of mixing and pouring cement to replace some of our rotting-out house support posts; two more house-shaking earthquakes;  many hearty meals together; and much fun and laughter! Adding four college students to our five resident young people equaled many willing hands to help. We are thankful for God's safety over us in all that we did (especially for His hand in holding up our house as the two earthquakes hit just after we had knocked out our three end house pillars, and had the house temporarily up on wooden blocks as we poured the new cement pillars.)

•    And God's amazing grace in having the privilege to continue ministering to the Awa even in the midst of the busy days. 

This was a month of farewells! Along with Kimberly, we said goodbye to Eli Nelson, the young fellow from our church who stayed with us for the last ten months. We sent Eli off hobbling with eight stitches on the back of his leg, from an accident with a big rock! Another farewell was to Noelle Wagner, our niece who visited the Shaubs over the last two months. Noelle loves birds and enjoyed checking out our great variety of tropical wildlife.

Now our house feels rather empty, with just Kathy and I here. We are thankful for the confidence we have that God is with our kids in the USA, and also for the opportunity we have to take part in their lives through prayer. What a blessing it has been to have our kids with us over the last twenty-plus years--homeschooling here with us, and serving the Lord together as a family! Now we are entering a new phase of life--we pray that God will use us in new ways as parents from afar, and as His servants in the lives of the Awa!

Please pray for the many challenges facing the country of Ecuador. After the earthquake, there have now been over 1,500 aftershocks. The two earthquakes on May 18th were felt across the whole country. Reconstruction is very difficult, and some of the coastal towns will probably not be rebuilt. Many of the coastal inhabitants are living with great fear, as geologists are predicting that the aftershocks will continue.  Many fear that an even bigger earthquake is imminent. Ecuador is also in a time of economic recession; and, like the USA, Ecuador has upcoming elections in 2017, adding some political chaos to the burden the country is facing.

Thanks for your prayers!
In HIS grip,
Kevin & Kathy

 <FOR A PRINTABLE VERSION CLICK HERE>

April Earthquakes

The ground has been shaking here over the last two weeks! Saturday evening, April 16th, a major earthquake hit the western coast of Ecuador, flattening the little town of Pedernales and damaging several neighboring areas. Here at our mountain home, about 120 miles away, we felt the quake quite strongly, and our house was a mess by the end of the shaking as things fell off our shelves and water sloshed everywhere! But we were fine; we spent the rest of the evening cleaning up and looking for news about where the quake was centered. It's sobering to think (as you try to save a few glass dishes from breaking), that somewhere houses are likely falling and people are perhaps trapped and dying. It wasn't until the next morning that we began to hear about the extent of the damage to little towns such as Pedernales. There have been many (over 1000) aftershocks since, many of which we have felt here.

The Liebenzell church in Ibarra has joined other evangelical churches here in the country to send a relief team, taking groceries and other supplies to share and helping to build temporary shelters for the people to live in. Many other organizations have arrived to help, and the Ecuadorian government is coordinating efforts to help the folks rebuild. It's neat to see the Ecuadorian churches pull together in compassion, sharing supplies, finances, work teams, and even those who just go to stand beside those who are suffering. Our friend Pancho told us, "As soon as I heard about the damage, I knew I just had to go and do whatever I could." Pancho helped to dig through the rubble, looking for survivors, a job made difficult by the continuing aftershocks. "Some folks said we were really brave, but I don't think any of us felt brave...we were all afraid to go into the fallen buildings. We just had to believe that God was in control and keep working without worrying too much."

If you would personally like to make a donation to the relief effort, Liebenzell USA has set up an account to channel funds this way. You can find out more at this link:

http://liebenzellmission.org/give/the-bread-fund/

Meanwhile here in our area, the Awa are all fine, although wondering what God is up to..."Is He perhaps punishing our country?" one Awa asked us. These are moments for good conversations! God continues to work in the hearts of the people here. We've had many rainy Sundays, and the roads have been muddy, but the people keep coming Sunday mornings...the other day we realized that attendance has been rising as we have averaged close to 50 each Sunday. But numbers are just...numbers. What makes our hearts rejoice is hearing how God is working in individual hearts. A week ago Gloria shared with us that her brother Milton had asked for her forgiveness for the wrong he had done, and she told him that she was forgiving him, because she knew that God had forgiven him, and she wanted to do likewise. (This in contrast to a year ago, when Gloria and Paulino said they would never forgive their brother for the sin he had committed.) How grateful we are to our amazing God, the great changer of hearts!

We recently shared about Paulino's daughter Sandra and husband Jaime and their wedding. Sandra and Jaime were just told that their daughter Liseth, 8 months old, will possibly need a surgery to correct a skull problem (because of her soft-spot fusing together too early). Liseth also has trouble focusing her eyes and seems to be developing slowly. She will have to be taken to Quito for an appointment with a specialist, in order to begin the process; this is a very scary scenario for Sandra and Jaime. We have promised to help as much as we can. They would appreciate your prayers as they face this trial.


In HIS grip,
Kevin & Kathy

*Photo of Earthquake damage from our co-worker Rainer Kroger's trip to Pedernales

<for a printable copy of this letter click here>

Awa Conference 2016

Greetings from Ecuador!

Despite a wet and rainy start to our 19th Annual Easter Awa Conference, we were amazed with the strong 100 plus attendance each day! The road -- and our trucks--facilitated in transportation this year. (In fact after the conference I had to replace a broken leaf spring from slight overloading...) Praise the Lord with us for the following:

• Great weather for the three days after the initial rainy start
• So many Awa who came--over 100 each day and at least 120 on Sunday (65 kids!)
• Enough food (very important for the Awa)
• Many open hearts as they took in the teaching--believers and new listeners alike

We taught through the passion and resurrection of Jesus focusing on how He loved all those around Him even while suffering great personal agony and physical weakness. He loved us all the way to His death to save us from eternal death.

Following is a picture collage of our time together! (click photo to see bigger)

 

If you are hankering for more details :-) just type (or click) the following link into your web browser for a longer account of the conference written by Chrissy Shaub: http://tinyurl.com/zds9w5k

For those of you praying for Pricilla, she seems to be doing OK, but has had her ups and downs. We haven't been able to see her personally our last few trips to Ibarra, but her aunt who stayed with her just the other night said she is hanging in there. Please continue to pray that we can connect with her, and that the Lord will draw her to Himself through these trials.

Thank you very much for your prayers and support! Looking ahead, April looks to be a quieter month overall. Kimberly is busy finishing up her senior year; we will also be preparing for a visit from a group from Liberty University in May...including our son Kenny! Yay! 

In HIS grip,
Kevin & Kathy 

<For a printable version click here>

A wedding!

What a privilege it was for us to take part in our first Awa church wedding after 20 years of ministry here in Ecuador! The morning of February 7th found us trekking towards Palmira where the festivities were to take place. We had a carload of neighbors joining us for the service. Several times along the way we pulled a little pickup truck, filled with family coming to the wedding, out of the mud. Thank the Lord for good tires and a 4x4! Another praise was the way the Lord provided a beautiful day in the midst of much rain.

Sandra and Jaime had made a marriage commitment several years ago in the traditional Awa way. This commitment was very much a covenant 'til death do us part' agreement made in a meeting of Jaime and Sandra with both of their parents--the correct way to 'get together' in Awa culture. Even back at that time they had shared their desire to eventually have an official government wedding at the civil registry and a 'church' wedding. So even as they started their family together they saved and planned. Finally in these last few months they had enough money to get the paperwork done, buy a dress and a suit, as well as food for the big event. The main course of the wedding meal was a bull they had raised themselves!

It was fun planning with them what things they wanted in the ceremony, and Kevin worked with several people to translate vows into Awapit.  One thing Jaime specifically requested was a skit on the family--not necessarily our favorite thing to do--but something the Awa really seem to love!  

Later, reflecting on the day, we were struck by the Lord's grace in giving us a chance to stand before the Awa communities here and uphold the real meaning of marriage just a year after the Awa church's testimony was so damaged by the infidelity that took place while we were on furlough. God works in wondrous ways.

One note of urgent prayer: A month ago we got a call from Linda, one of Paulino's sisters who lives in the city. Her daughter Prisila was going through a difficult situation and was hurting herself; Linda was at her wit's end and wanted to know if we could talk with her. Kathy visited Prisila then and gave her a Bible and had a good talk. Two weeks later, when we went back to visit Prisila, we found her in the hospital as she had tried to commit suicide by drinking poison. The Lord gave us the opportunity to visit her there in the hospital, and again at her home after she was released. Prisila is a beautiful 16 yr. old with so much life in front of her---we'd appreciate your prayers that she would allow God to bring peace and hope into her life again, and for us to have wisdom as we talk with her.

Thank you for your prayers!
In HIS grip,
Kevin & Kathy

For more pictures click here