top of page

Newsletter

JUNE 2022

Update on our Visa applications: We submitted our paperwork again to the Ecuadorian lawyer right before the trip. Beyond our marriage certificate, TKoG Mission certificates, and passports, we were newly informed that we need to get our apostatized birth certifications (they are ordered and to be in Texas by end of July). Since we are applying for missionary visa, the lawyer told us what our bank balance had to be at time of submission ($31k). Plus, Texas criminal background vendor, Identogo (nick named IdenToGoNoWhere), lost our fingerprints/application. We are redoing that on Monday.

 

On to our trip June 7th through 23rd and more exciting news. We flew United Airlines going thru Houston for the first time. We prefer Houston airport over Miami for a layover. United flies smaller and older planes which became a problem when we tried to board in Houston to Quito. I was told I could not carry on two items just one and had to check one. They wanted to check my computers and other devices into the airplane cargo hold. I told them no and they wanted to re-book me on another flight. We compromised and I had to take stuff out of my personal bag that could be stolen and put it into my computer bag. We made it but was the last ones on the plane (strike one).

 

We made it to Quito and stayed at the EB Hotel for the first time. This hotel is at the end of the airport road and is very nice. We connect to our Latam flight the next day to Cuenca. We stayed at a different AirBnB in a section of town for the first time. It was a bigger place but cheaper than where we normally stay.

 

Deborah caught a cold during the trip and was out for a week. This curtailed some of our meetings since they were with pastor couples.

The first Sunday I visited Pastor Carlos Nieto’s church near the airport. This is a church of about 300 members and most are under 30s. Pastor Carlos is a former rock band member and gifted in worship. The church is eight years old but the pandemic reduced the members attending from 700. His wife preached and afterwards ministered. You could sense the presence of the Holy Spirit and the peoples hunger for relationship. I went out to lunch afterwards and they asked a lot of good questions. They explained that they are focusing on New Members encounters which occur once a month on a Saturday for 12 hours. They focus on every member bringing family and friends to Sunday and these encounters. Sixty plus attend the encounters each month and about 20 get saved. They feed them on Saturday four times: breakfast, lunch, snack and dinner. The topics they cover are:

  1. The renewal process

  2. The four spiritual laws that is salvation where we show God's love for people

  3. The death of Jesus and the resurrection

  4. Healing Past Wounds

  5. Forgiveness

  6. Time with the Holy Spirit

There is a host of volunteers to make this happen. They give out Bibles to those that do not have a Protestant one. For the very poor, they also give out food donations.

 

During the week, I did get to meet with some folks.

On Friday night, we invited 3 pastors (Pastors Gonzalez, Damien and Nieto) with their families and our translator’s family (Antonio) to dinner at a local restaurant. After introductions, we had a surprise for them and Zoom called Bishop Callahan for him to introduce himself, wife and ministry. One day soon, he will meet with them face to face. After that, I preached on unity/oneness and not grieving the Holy Spirit (saying I do not need to be connected to other ministries in the city I Cor 12:21). Then we opened up for the pastor questions. The pastors fellowshipped and no one wanted to leave the restaurant.

On Saturday, we had Pastor Damian drive us around different safe sectors of the city. We drove downtown on the square where Pamela's mom is selling for the festival that weekend. We saw parts of the city that we did not know existed. He spoke on stories about the local areas. Once we have our visas, then the rental search begins.

On Sunday, we went to Pastor Damian’s church. Deborah and I nicknamed him Sean Canada Jr. It is a church over 100 meeting in a poor section of town. Most were under 30 years of age. It was Father’s day and they had special singing, dancing and speaker (me). This was the first time an American had preached in their church. It was also the first time I was invite out to lunch on the sidewalk in front of the meeting place. Seems appropriate since they love to evangelize on the street. We had lunch while people walking up the street. They would offer cooked food to everyone passing by. This also attracted the street dogs.

 

On Tuesday we began our trip home. Usually we are home within 18 hours. With the Travel Advisory Level raised to level 3- Reconsider travel to Ecuador due to civil unrest, we had to go the long way around the city to get to the airport. We flew out of Cuenca to Quito on time. Our United flight from Quito was canceled so we stayed at the EB Hotel again. We re-booked our flight but that was canceled also. So we re-booked again and that flight was canceled. We then realized that United was not going to fly out of Quito until after the strike. So we booked with Delta and made it home on Thursday. We did not believe another airline could be as bad as Spirit but United has them beat by miles!

 

It was good to be home and sleep!!!!

 

We have heard from our pastors and friends in Ecuador since then, they say they can’t find gas or groceries, nor can they go to work.

 

Please pray for Ecuador:

  1. Pray for peace for Ecuador and the strikes to end.

  2. The Cuenca pastors need to relate to one another for God to fulfill the vision for the city.

  3. We need to continue to meet and relate with the American pastors. 

  4. We need to meet the leader of the Baptist pastor network in Cuenca. This is a closed fellowship of Baptist and Alliance ministers. Pray for open doors.

  5. Considering renting a multi bedroom house on a monthly lease. This will allow us to extended time and to bring other ministers down to Cuenca.


 

Again, we want to thank you for your prayers and your donations. Please send checks to:


 

TKoG Mission

1506 Wild Rye Cir

Princeton, TX 75407

bottom of page