Good and uplifting news

From Global Lutheran Outreach missionaries James and Liisa Tino (Serving in Santiago, Chile)

A lot has happened since the last time we sent a newsletter! We have a lot of ground to cover, so in this edition we are going to provide several “ministry snapshots”. Hope you enjoy them!

Return to In-Person Worship

All Saints’ Day (November 1) marked the return to in-person worship for our mission in the Providencia municipality of Santiago. We celebrated “Reformation Day” and tried out our new outdoor setting for worship. The 34 souls in attendance rejoiced at the opportunity to draw near to the Lord’s table and be strengthened by Word and Sacrament.

House of Refuge

We praise God that the ministry towards Venezuelan immigrants continues. New people have moved in. Others have moved out. Also at our ministry site, we have our Resale Shop which is open about two days a week. Not only is this a way to help those in need, but the hope is it will generate some cash to help fund the ministry center.

New Immigrant Residents

Andrius and Dexire have been in Chile since October 2019 when the social protests began. The social and economic unrest, combined with winter temperatures and corona virus, brought them to our house of refuge seeking a safe place to live with their 4 year old son, Carlos.

Laura also arrived in Chile in 2019. She is an early education teacher, but with schools only opened virtually, has not been able to find a job in her field. She is an energetic young woman who is struggling to make a new life in a new country.

Temporary Chapel Project

The original “chapel” (a converted garage) on the church property has been “re-purposed” during the coronavirus “Where should we hold worship services?”, was the question as Santiago began to move out of the quarantine stage. Well, immediately a few more patio tents were purchased and the space between buildings was cleaned up for outdoor worship. Next, we need to construct a “temporary” chapel – “temporary”, because this property is rented and hopefully we will one day be able to relocate onto our own land and take our chapel with us! The chapel will cost approximately $5,000. If you would like to donate to the project, click here to make your contribution to the Santiago Immigrant Ministry project.

New Members!

Juan Carlos and Luis Marcos were received as members by adult confirmation on November 15! They had the unique experience of studying confirmation with pastor Jim via zoom during COVID-19 quarantine! Veronica also completed her confirmation instruction. However, she has been battling cancer and thus is unable to circulate in public. The family would also like to baptize their daughter Florencia. Her confirmation day and also witnessing her daughter wrapped in the grace of her Heavenly Father in baptism will be a very special moment.

Medicine for Venezuela Project completes 3rd Year of Operation          

Thousands of people have benefited from this incredible project of mercy over the last 3 years. Currently we are packing and preparing to send about 60,000 pills which will be distributed to people in desperate need via our 21 sister congregations throughout Venezuela.

Unfortunately, this may be our last shipment since our funding has run out. If you feel God is calling you to help support the continuation of this project, you can make a donation HERE. Each shipment costs about $15,000!

Family and Furlough

We were blessed with the opportunity to finally see family during the months of September and October. The weeks were full of masked and socially-distanced celebrations: a wedding, anniversaries, birthdays, family get-togethers…even Liisa’s dad’s 80th birthday! What a blessing it was to see our grandchildren and all of our kids…EXCEPT Ben, who was not able to leave Guatemala.

Support Corner

The pandemic has been hard on everyone, missionaries included! Travel restrictions and limitations placed on gatherings such as worship and fellowship times have made traditional missionary visits to supporting congregations and individuals both impractical and inadvisable. Additionally, many partners have been forced to make the difficult decision to discontinue financial support for their missionaries. We move ahead in faith, knowing that God is faithful and is able to do those things that – humanly speaking – are impossible!

Click here to read the latest newsletter from the Tino!

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Heavy Flooding in Cambodia

From Global Lutheran Outreach missionaries Joe and Viya Stoltenow (Serving in Cambodia):

September and October have been trying months here in Cambodia as we experienced particularly heavy monsoon season which has caused massive flooding all over the country. In Battambang the Stung Sanke River flooded and many villages were completely underwater. Fortunately most of the flooding is now gone but many of our students were affected by the flooding and had to leave their homes until the flooding receded. This also caused many families to lose their possessions and even a few to lose their jobs, crippling what little income they had.

We are incredibly grateful to our  friends and supporters who helped our students and their families by sending with donations last month. With those funds we were able to provide extra food to the families who lost their jobs and/or possessions. The kids are very thankful to both their sponsors and to their Savior Jesus. We are happy to say that all the families are back in their homes and that the rainy season has come to an end.Our center continues to revert back to our more normal pre-Covid schedule despite our neighborhood being underwater (our building is fortunately raised up and only our yard was flooded). Our students love being back at school and are very happy to get to stay at our center longer into the afternoon.

Stoltenow Family Update

We’re coming to America! The US Embassy in Phnom Penh recently reopened its visa renewal services and we were able to get Viya’s visa renewed! So look out for Joe, Viya, and Ray coming on November 14th! This trip has multiple objectives for us such as attending Joe’s sister Anna’s wedding, meeting our new neice, and visiting as many of our sponsors and churches as possible.

Life has otherwise been more of the same for Viya, Ray, and I here in Battambang. Raymond continues to grow healthy and strong and has even begun making friends with the students at Ray of Hope.

Student Spotlight

Brerm Bprey (Khmer for “Happy Kid”)

Brem Bprey is nine years old and began his enrollment at Ray of Hope just over two years ago. He lives with his mother, father, and baby brother in a small house near in a slum just north of the public hospital here in Battambang.

At Ray of Hope, Brem is very popular thanks to his almost constant upbeat attitude and boyish charm. His favorite food is Khmer BBQ’d chicken, which is fortunate for him as it’s our go-to party food here at Ray of Hope. Brem is also enjoys painting, drawing, and watching super hero movies on Fridays. His favorite Bible story is Sampson. It has been an amazing experience to watch Brem grow and learn about his savior Jesus Christ.

Click here to read more details and the latest newsletter from the Stoltenow!

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I made it!

From Global Lutheran Outreach missionarie Joshua Wareham (Serving in Jos, Nigeria)

I made it. I’m here! Here I am! I made it to Nigeria! It seemed like I would never make it to Hillcrest. I was thinking, “Well, I gave it a good shot. Maybe next year I’ll make it out there. It was a long trip. I flew 6,224 miles…Wow, this is the farthest from home I have ever been, but I could not be more ecstatic to be here to serve the community in Christ’s name.

So far since I have been here, I have been quarantined to my apartment and been teaching online. I have seen a little bit of Nigeria on the drive to Hillcrest and some of Jos when I went to get my COVID test. The country is beautiful, and I am ready to learn more about it once I am allowed to leave my apartment. I have been warmly welcomed by everyone here and am starting to settle into my new apartment here. The apartment Hillcrest has provided, and it is fantastic. It has no A/C or heater, but what is wonderful about it, is I don’t need them. The temperature here is terrific! I have been here for a week now, and I haven’t closed my windows. Its not too hot and not too cold. If I want to wear a hoodie, I turn on my fan.

This was my second Nigerian meal. I had this for lunch. This is pounded yam with beef and red sauce. It was absolutely delicious. The pounded yam was a playdough consistency and texture with a tomato and beef based sauce with various spices. That is the best way I can describe it. It was delicious.

Plans

“Is today the day that the embassies will open?” – I remember thinking this everyday for the past few months, checking the embassy’s website almost every day. I thought it would never open. I prayed and prayed. After feeling like I had exhausted myself with this prayer, I said, “God, this wanting the embassies to open is just making me miserable, please help me to focus on teaching and being with the people around me. Remind me that you are in control and you will send me when you know I am ready.”

My stress about going to Nigeria quickly faded, and I was able to focus on what was important. A few days later I got a call from Samson, he was helping me with the visa process, he said, “Josh, the embassy in Atlanta is taking visa application; submit yours.”

I did all of the paper work and set up a date to submit it to the embassy. I was the going to the office the following Monday. I went and submitted my paper work; everything went perfectly and then I was told, “You will get your visa in about three weeks.”

This meant that I had time to say goodbye and be with my family and friends for a little longer. It was great. I had plenty of time to do what I needed before leaving. Well, Friday of the same week came, and I get a call, “Your visa is ready for pickup.”

The Lord blessed me with many blessings before I left. He gave me extra time with my family, extra time to prepare, extra time to reflect on His word, extra time for many other things. With this extra time he gave me, I was able to come here in confidence knowing that Christ has a plan, and He will follow through with His plan when He is ready. One week to get a visa and then the next to fly out is nothing but a miracle. Thanks be to God.

Click here to read the latest newsletter from Josh!

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Welcome!

From Global Lutheran Outreach missionarie Ben Tino (Serving in Zacapa, Guatemala):

I hope you enjoy this brief update on the latest events with me. My week mainly consists of private lessons, (now two new students, ukelele and flute!) and a few odd projects I am working on. In regards to the pandemic, Guatemala no longer has nationwide curfew, restaurants and most other gathering locations are now open, and the virtual school year is coming to an end! We thank God for all He has done thus far, and for His continued care over everyone.

Remembering Pastor Gerardo

I start this letter off with sad news. This past week one of the former Pastors of Zacapa was called to his heavenly home after battling a severe illness for many years. Pastor Gerardo retired from his pastoral duties in the church a few years before I got to Zacapa. He passed away on October 6th in his home, surrounded by his wife, children and grandchildren, and the funeral was held the next morning in our church. He was 74.

The videos continue!

If you had not noticed in my previous newsletters, I have been recording my music students these last several months playing church songs and posting them on youtube.com and Facebook for all to watch. It has been a way to keep my students learning and motivated during these times of isolation. You can watch them below by clicking on the links.

Video of choir singing on Independence day, click HERE.

Video of sunday school songs medley, click HERE.

Stayed tuned for the next video coming out on October 31st, Reformation Day!

My dog

I still have my dog, Jenga. In my free time you can find us at the church. While I practice different instruments she attentively listens.

Click here to read the latest newsletter from Ben!

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A house of prayer for all the nations

From Global Lutheran Outreach missionaries The Ernst’s (Serving in La Caramuca, Venezuela)

José Miguel Albarran Pumar was baptized on on August 16, 2020, the 10th Sunday after Trinity. Since 2005, 23 people have been baptized at our mission. Of those baptized, 11 have received their first communion here.

Distribution of food from LeadaChild

That same Sunday we distributed foodstuffs to 27 families, thanks to support from LeadaChild, a mission society based in Olathe, Kansas and dedicated to supporting Christian education around the world. We have received financial support from LeadaChild since 2006. In the past, we have distributed donations from LeadaChild as “scholarships” for students in our preschool and Luz Maria’s afterschool tutoring sessions. That is to say, as cash for the families to buy school supplies, clothing and food. This time around we purchased food items in bulk, in order to get better value for our rapidly devaluing Venezuelan currency. Dividing the currency among the families would mean each household would get less than if we bought the food in one purchase. We were able to do this because of the automobile that we purchased with other donations this past year. Thanks to the car, we drove to the food distribution point and brought the food back to the mission.

Nury de Milian

On Saturday, August 8, we participated in a Zoom videoconference with Nury de Millian, LeadaChild director for Latin America. We listened to presentations on how to reopen Christian schools during the pandemic, testimony from a COVID-19 survivor, and advice from the Rev. Abdiel Orozco Aguirre, the pastor of Castillo Fuerte (Mighty Fortress) Lutheran Church in Guatemala City, Guatemala, and a immunohematologist.

Luz Maria and Phil Frusti

I had heard of the Jorns’ mission work in the 1980s, when I was a member of St. John’s Lutheran Church, Topeka, Kansas, the congregation in which Edie was raised. Luz Maria and I were privileged to meet Jim and Edie in 2006. Last fall we met Dr. Philip J. Frusti, the current executive director of LeadaChild, in the Dominican Republic. Dr. Frusti, a Lutheran teacher and former school principal, graduated from Concordia University, Ann Arbor, Michigan.

Pray for recovery

We praise the Lord that Yepci Santana, Luz Maria’s daughter, is recovering from COVID-19 in Lima, Peru. Other members of Luz Maria’s family, with who we have not had face-to-face contact are recovering as well. Also in Peru, Kalen Yolanda Incata Fernández, wife of Martin Osmel Soliz Bernal, a pastor with the LCMS Mission in Lima, was diagnosed with COVID-19 after giving birth to her first child.

Click here to read the latest newsletter from the Ernst’s

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Being the Church in Action!

From Global Lutheran Outreach missionaries Jim and Liisa Tino (Serving in Santiago, Chile)

JOIN US IN PRAISING GOD for completion of several projects despite the challenges of Covid-19 restrictions! The apartment over the garage at the back of the mission property is complete. It is a cute studio apartment with an open living space and a good-sized laundry/bathroom combo.

Domenico and Corali Loturco are renting this space while serving as the new coordinators of the Immigrant Ministry! Continue reading to find out more:

FOOD  BANK…We continue using donations of money and food items to put together “food baskets”. Many people contact us weekly and schedule a time to come and pick up a bag of groceries. People also have access to our “Resale Shop” where we have clothing and household items for purchase at very low prices. As quarantine is lowered, we hope to open to the public.

OLLA COMUNITARIA

Although this name literally means, “Community Soup Pot”, the concept is more like a Soup Kitchen. Through donations, we purchase ingredients to make a delicious hot meal. Domenico directs the volunteers at church in the cooking, and then we take our kettles and distribute hot food to people downtown.

HOUSE OF REFUGE

We continue to welcome more people into the house we have at Amapolas. We have room for about 3 more immigrants. This community is a place to find security, support and hope as we share God’s Word as well as His love.

Travel Plans – YES!

We have been given the green light to travel to the United States!  Because things are “not quite” back to normal in the US, we decided to adjust our plans and will NOT be visiting congregations.  Rather than our scheduled furlough, this will be a shorter “vacation trip” – mainly to see family. We plan to reschedule our 3-month furlough for 2021. We are thankful that our “substitutes”, Rev. Paul and Barb Brink, have agreed to adjust their plans as well, and they look forward to coming to Chile sometime next year to fill in for us when we go on furlough.

Click here to read the latest newsletter from the Tino!

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Back Together again!

From Global Lutheran Outreach missionaries Tim and Beth (Serving in Africa)

Well the isolation updates are officially over!! I was finally able to get back to Guinea and home to my sweet last week. It was not an easy or uneventful trip, and we’ll be writing more about that in our upcoming newsletter…cancelled flight, long drive, almost not making it over the border…all the ingredients of a great thriller novel. Isn’t that the story of us? God’s hand was on me every step of the way. You know, we often try and avoid trouble and pain, and so we should. But when it comes, what better way for God to show off Who He is and what He can do?? Then it’s up to us to give Him all the glory and praise, strengthening our brothers and sisters through our experiences. I definitely feel like God had a message through all this: “I am in control best when the situation looks out of control!”

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Coronavirs crowns health care crisis

From Global Lutheran Outreach missionaries The Ernst’s (Serving in La Caramuca, Venezuela)

During the last week in July, we received and distributed another shipment of medications from Global Lutheran Outreach and the Confessional Lutheran Church of Chile.

The medicine is purchased in Chile with the cooperation of a local pharmacy and packaged by volunteers (many of them expatriate Venezuelans) at the Lutheran mission congregation in Providencia, Santiago, Chile. Requests for medicine are coordinated through Lutheran congregations in Venezuela.

As of Sunday, August 2, 2020, the number of COVID-19 cases in Venezuela had surpassed 20,000, with Caracas replacing the western city of Maracaibo as the epicenter of infection. But even before the COVID-19 crisis, Venezuela was in the middle of a health care crisis. Hospitals have closed or are operating at a fraction of their capacity, many without regular access to electricity or water. The public health infrastructure is so weak that in 2019, Venezuela had the world’s steepest rise in malaria cases. Venezuela is ranked among the least prepared countries to respond to a pandemic, as it lacks basic supplies needed to prevent infection and treat illness.

Food and medicine both are in short supply. But even when both are available, hyperinflation (more than 50% per month) and rising unemployment mean Venezuelans often have to choose between the two. Thanks be to God, the coronavirus has not reached La Caramuca yet, and we still are in the least restricted zone for COVID-19. However, members of our mission and our community suffer from such infirmities as schizophrenia; bipolar disorder; osteoarthritis; lupus; severe generalized arthrosis; toxoplasmosis; and epilepsy. Thanks to our partnership wih Global Lutheran Outreach, they have been able to receive the medications that they need.

A delayed diploma

In July 2020, I, David, marked 17 years since my arrival in Venezuela for three years of service as a long-term volunteer for Lutheran Church – Missouri Synod (LCMS) World Missions. I had hoped to celebrate this milestone by traveling to the Dominican Republic to receive my Specific Ministry Program (SMP) certificate from Concordia The Reformer Seminary, but, of course, that trip was cancelled.

Since 2015 I have taken online courses offered through the Dominican seminary in cooperation with Concordia Theological Seminary, Fort Wayne, Indiana, and the Lutheran Church of Venezuela’s Juan de Frias Theological Institute. The curriculum, Formación Pastoral Hispanoamérica, was developed by the Fort Wayne Seminary as part of the Specific Ministry Program for training bilingual pastors in the United States has been adapted for use in Latin American nations. I have completed the requirements of the four-year program as part of my commitment to continuing education as a pastor. Someday I hope to have that document to hang on my wall.

Click here to read the latest newsletter from the Ernst’s

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Peace and Blessings in the Midst of Chaos!

From Global Lutheran Outreach missionaries Dixon and Christy Gbeanquoi (Serving in Tanzania):

Some Progress on our Finances
We are so grateful to many of you who have helped us raise $3,300 of the $6,500 we need. We know how hard-hit everyone is due to COVID-19, but thank you and you and you for all your support.

We still have a balance of $3,200 to take us to the end of this year. Please visit: wwww.globallutheranoutreach.com/blog/gbeanquoi to make your contribution to our ministry or you can see instructions at the bottom of this page.

In the Midst of our Challenges We still have Something to Celebrate
We took time to Celebrate Milcah’s 5th Birthday on June 29th. It was a very wonderful day to see how fast and tall our beautiful daughter is growing. We did the cutting of the cake on Sunday afternoon with few families and friends.

Youth End of Year Celebration in our Diocese and Congregation
One of the activities the youth had planned was to educate some youths on self-sustenance, since many youths who either finished High School and are waiting admission into colleges and universities are ideal and have no personal source of income. They decided to learn how to make liquid soap that is use for deep cleaning, especially now that we are plague with COVID-19. It was also a wonderful day to see the youths conducting worship service and having the opportunity to listen to the youth as they preach.

Progress on Replacing our Plastic Chairs to Benches
We are thankful that members in our congregation can raise money locally to replace the plastics chairs to wooden benches. Looking at the benches in the church, you can see that we have come a long way and indeed our congregation is growing very fast and there are possibilities that we might be looking to expanding the building to accommodate more people, or we might result to having two(2) services on a given day to accommodate everyone.

Our Son’s Baptism and the Bishop’s Visit to our Congregation
Our son Uri was born in February and when we got to the month of March, everywhere was in chaos due to the Corona virus and Tanzania. We decided to wait until there was a bit of calm before we can begin the process of Holy Baptism for Uri. We also requested the assistance of the bishop to do the baptism we scheduled 9th of August. We had Three(3) children and Two(2) adults baptized that day. The bishop used the occasion to also officially opened the Children’s Sunday School building that is about 85% completed and we are making gradual progress on completing the building fully.

Click here to read the latest newsletter from the Gbeanquoi!

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In times of stress, listen to good music!

From Global Lutheran Outreach missionarie Ben Tino (Serving in Zacapa, Guatemala) write:

The above picture is of some of the musicians from the church here in Zacapa that participated with me the last 2 months in our online musical offerings I mentioned in my previous newsletter. They are all students of mine, and have greatly developed in their musical ability since my time as their teacher. I hope this picture brings as much joy to you as it does to me.

Click here to watch all the videos that we made!

More still learning!

Hopefully as the COVID hype relaxes, more students will resume music lessons. I continue to teach a handful of lessons each week, and use my gift of music to share with them God’s love, even in their homes.

(Pictured left is me with my student Manuel, serenading his mother with the trumpet on Mother’s Day.)

Instruments needed!

As a musician and a music teacher, I am always looking out for instruments to purchase, or to receive as a gift. Here in Zacapa, I make my rounds at a few secondhand stores where every once in a while they will have instruments.

Recently, I came across a trumpet with its case and a set of bongo drums. As a trumpeter, I can tell you that it is in good condition and is priced at $57.00. It’s a very good price, and another trumpet means another trumpet student! The bongos sound and feel solid, and are priced at $130.00. Bongos would be a great addition to my percussion selection which I constantly use with the younger kids and older students that want to play drums.

If you would like to support my ministry by making a specific donation to purchase an instrument I would be thrilled to receive your gift! Your donation will be greatly appreciated by me and all the future students who will benefit from it. Do you want to donate? Click here!

Click here to read the latest newsletter from Ben!

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