Journey of Ministry


This past weekend a team from Waterloo Ontario arrived.  Like the other teams, some have been coming every year for several years while others have been here a time or 2  and many are here for the 1st time.  They are like family to us as Dave Bast, who comes yearly, is now on the board of Children of Hope. The fellowship has been spiritually nourishing for us as we all share in the work, activities, meals and devotions together. I will be posting about their ministry here but wanted to post a link to a blog they are doing along this journey so you can follow that from their perspective on a daily basis.

http://www.wennykpandevida2010.blogspot.com/

More Help


Another team from the Morden/Winkler area of Manitoba have been here for 2 weeks ministering through work projects.  A few of the team's members have been coming every year for about 10 years, having seen Pan de Vida built literally from the ground up.  One couple came 2 weeks prior to the team to get a longer break from the Manitoba winter and help in the daily activities of Pan de Vida.  There were also some team members that came this year that had been on prior trips and we were blessed to have some coming for the 1st time.
The weather has been very unusual for this time of year.  The 1st four days of the trip, it rained day and night.  This delayed the outdoor projects but the team was able to clean and paint from top to bottom the kitchen, dining area, all bathrooms in the boys and girls’ dorm and the kitchen and dining area of the visitor’s dorm.  Also the last volunteer apartment was  painted, cleaned and windows were made and installed bringing it almost to completion.  One team member brought some baby items and was able to do an outreach to a couple of girls in the surrounding community who are expecting very soon. 
 Once the rain stopped and the ground dried up some, the team continued with the ongoing project of the pavers behind the kitchen area.   Also, due to the amount of rain, our newly installed septic system suffered great damage.  The mud around the tanks and pumps washed out and in short, it was nothing but a mess.  The on-site volunteers worked around the clock during the rain to keep as much as possible saved and pumping all the excess they could to prevent further problems.  Once the rain stopped and the ground dried some, the team has worked on trying to get a temporary tank installed while plans continue to be done to repair the system.
As always, in 2 weeks so much has been done and we are blessed to have people who want to come and work so hard to improve the facilities.  The kids were also treated to a pizza party and fireworks.  Nothing like ending the trip with a bang!!
Proverbs 16:9  A man's heart plans his ways, But the LORD directs his steps.
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Evangelism


The leaders of The Levi Youth Group started 2010 off with a series focusing on Evangelism.  Most of the kids of Pan de Vida have been here for many years and under The Word of God.  They attend Sunday School, 2 church services a week and have prayer meeting and devotional nights.  With many of the youth having a personal relationship with Christ, the leaders felt it is now time for them to learn more about sharing their faith.  For the next few months, they will focus on stirring that desire and providing them with tools to do so.
The 1st meeting focused on Jesus' Great commission to all believers, not just "missionaries abroad".  No matter who we are, where we are, or what profession we are in, all of us are on a mission field.  The next meeting then focused on the 4 spiritual laws using "The Bridge" diagram to bring those 4 points together.  The youth will also be memorizing key scriptures over the series that can be used in any evangelical situation.
This is very new to the kids as they will be stretched to be bold in their faith especially with people they do not know. Pan de Vida is a home that orphaned, abandoned, abused kids come and are provided with opportunities they may have never been offered otherwise.  In the beginning the focus was to present God to them and pray each one would receive salvation through a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.  God has blessed us all in so many ways and now as the kids get older, we realize how important it is to make disciples of these kids.  Prepare them to go into the world as ambassadors for Christ.  We can see His hand in this as many share their testimonies and are excited to serve such a great God.

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Special


This past week was exceptionally special for us.  Our daughter Nicki,  and her boyfriend Ben who live in Tennessee were planning a visit to Pan de Vida in January and a couple, Sarah and Andre,  from Nova Scotia  that attend our home church were stirred by God to do a mission trip. It turns out that they are friends and graduated high school together and then coordinated the trip so that they could form a small team and be here the same dates.  The way that the project worked out was evidence to how God had planned it that way to begin with. 
The 20 men from Manitoba had prepped the area for the pavers to be laid and had gotten a section done.  When this team arrived, they were able to continue with the project.  The area they had was the one that had more of the detail work as it went along the wall and  around the corner of the fruit and vegetable room.  Also due to it being an area that the water  and donation trucks need to drive, it meant that the foundation needed to be compacted with a machine.  They quickly created a system and were able to get much accomplished. 
Every Wednesday, Pan de Vida goes to a local market to ask for donations of fruits and vegetables that the vendors no longer want.  Many times they will give good things as well.  Being a small team, they were all able to go.  It allowed them to see how this venture is done and also spend time on the back of the donation truck with several of the older kids.
In addition to the project, they spent countless hours playing with the kids.  A few of the boys had “trompos” which are spin tops.  They are masters and loved showing off their talent.  The team then bought all the boys a top and everyone was in on it at the end.  The kids loved the attention they were getting and we were very impressed how they got to know the boys and remembered almost everyone’s name.  This is what it is all about.  Touching the hearts of the kids to let them know that they are important and God loves them and He shows it through the hearts of others.
It was also a very encouraging time for us as they came and were able to see the ministry of Pan de Vida.  We had a wonderful time of fellowship and were able to take them out to show them some of the culture and they also experienced much of the street food. 
We hope that this is the 1st trip of many and that next time more will come along.  They worked very hard and never complained as they were doing it for the Lord. They taught me so much this week about servanthood and fun fellowship!
Philippians 2:13 for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose.
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What do you get?


What do you get when you bring 20 men from the Morden/Winkler area of Manitoba to Pan de Vida?  You gets LOTS of work done.  All of the men are skilled in one area or another and as mentioned in Church tonight, they have been into every nook and cranny of Pan de Vida.

As the men prepared to come, plans were being made on this end for the men to work a specific project on a proposed place for the boys who need to move from the current rental property.  Well, turns out God had different plans and at the last minute the project was scraped and another had to be organized the day of arrival. The weather here has been as cold as 0C(32F) and the highs were averaging 15C(62F) and with some rain on top of that, it delayed some of the materials being ready and delivered.  This did not discourage them because they have gone through the whole facility doing all kinds of projects.

A new ramp has been installed outside the entrance to the church, some clotheslines put under the awning for an area to hang small items when it is rainy season, a new metal grate has been made to cover the drainage ditch, a retaining wall around the church entrance patio, a new drain from the kitchen to a "holding tank", weeds cleaned from the playground, broken water lines in showers repaired, computers in the school all revamped, door frames and doors made for the last volunteer apartment and much much more.  Just as everyone at Pan de Vida is learning that they are jacks of all trades, everyone is approaching them to fix this and that.

The electrician and plumber have worked constantly in their fields.  They had to install wiring for some newly donated, industrial appliances for the kitchen.  The back hoe dug up some wiring while prepping the area to be paved and he fixed that.  The plumber fixed a glitch with the water pumps in addition to several drains, taps and other maintenance.  They also did lots of work to the current boys home to help them get by until they move.

In addition to this, the team also had the blessing to go to The Otomi House in Amealco and be a part of a Samaritan's Purse shoebox distribution.  They have been blogging while here, so I will give you the link to follow it.  I try to capture the events the best I can but I am sure you will be more blessed to read from their personal experience.  Also, due to lack of adequate internet service, I am unable to get pictures uploaded onto Xanga.  Facebook was gracious and accepted the attempt, so I made a photo album and will share that link with you as well.

The men still have 2 days left and I am sure they will make a huge dent into the massive paving project in progress.  For those of us that live here, it has been a true blessing to have them come with so much zeal to work on the things that help us function better.  It isn't just the physical things either.  They have encouraged us so much in their passion for the kids.  They have spent lots of times interacting and playing with the kids and showing them the love of Christ through them.

The Men of Hope Blog http://menofhope2010.blogspot.com

Pictures link http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=188464&id=511160411&l=5457b1e52a

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