Just wanted to let all of you Covenanters know that Kim is the author of the Devotionals for this week’s Covenant Home Altar. Just in case you had it and hadn’t looked at the devotions for this week. I think she did a great job, but I may be a little biased. Blessings, Joel
Banos, Shell & Puyo
Happy New Year everyone!
We decided that since we didn’t go to visit family in the States and no one was coming here over the Holidays that we would take a mini family vacation right after the New Year before getting busy with another year of ministry. This last year was a good but long year for us with many ups and downs and so it was nice to spend some time as a family just enjoying some of the beautiful places in Ecuador (which there are many). We decided to spend our time in the Banos, Shell & Puyo area of the country. These three towns/cities are located on the edge of the jungle and have many fun and exciting things to do. Here’s some pictures so you can get an idea of our vacation. God bless!
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Banos means "baths" in Spanish which shows how it is named after the hot springs that are located throughout the area. It is also known for the many waterfalls which can be found in the area. This is the closest waterfall to where we were staying. We could walk to it and could see it every morning when we went up to the roof of our hostal for breakfast.
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Volcano Tungarahua is the most active volcano in Ecuador. This was the first time we've seen an active volcano with smoke billowing out of it.
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We did a lot of hiking in Banos. We're still sore!!! Here's the picture from a Banos overlook we climbed to. Very beautiful!
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We also visited Shell which was the original mission outpost for missionaries as the would travel into the jungle. You may know the stories of Jim Elliot and Nate Saint who were two of the five missionaries martyred by Natives back in the 50's. This is the original house that Nate Saint built which is now a museum dedicated to their memory.
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Also in the Shell area was this jungle tree house where you could climb to the top and overlook all the other trees in the jungle. It was amazing!!
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We also visited Puyo which is an outpost for trips into the jungle. While there, we took a jungle tour where we got the opportunity to see all kinds of different plants and insects and learn about how the indigenous live in the jungle. This was one plant called the "Monkey Tail." Can you guess why it was called that?
- One of our coolest experiences of our entire time was visiting a monkey refuge where the monkeys were free to come right up to you and play with you. Here’s Simeon petting the Alpha monkey.
New Year’s 2011
On New Year’s eve, we experienced a very different celebration here in Ecuador. The traditions are quite different here, but fun. We had a great time learning and experiencing this with our friends the Burbanos. 1-2 days before New Year’s eve, we began to see paper mache dolls representing the old year. On New year’s eve, starting in the afternoon, ‘the widows’ of the old year come into the streets, stopping cars and asking for money. These ‘widows’ are typically men dressed up as women. We would like to say that this money is used for something good, but the ‘widows’ use it for alcohol. At midnight, to represent the new year coming in, people burn the doll representing the year past.
Additionally, we went down to a street in the tourist district to see large paper mache dolls that were in a contest with other businesses. People were very dressed up, similar to Halloween. It was quite the sight. It was very fun to experience this. Here are some pics to show you a little more what we saw.
Christmas 2011
Christmas 2011 looked quite different from last year. This was our first Christmas in Ecuador without family or friends around which was difficult, probably more so for me (Kim). I really enjoy the changes in seasons, snow, Christmas lights, Starbucks Peppermint Mochas and so on. I also really enjoy family. I love different traditions on both sides of the family-special food, opening gifts together, Christmas eve services etc. So, although this Christmas was different for us, we had a few traditions of our own. On Christmas eve, we made a seafood dinner (like Joel’s side of the family), including homemade eggnog by Joel. We went to a Christmas eve service close to our apartment and sang Christmas carols in English and Spanish. We read the Christmas story together and then let Simeon open 2 gifts while his cousins opened their gifts over Skype. Christmas day we had breakfast together and then opened gifts and stockings and just had a relaxing day together as a family.
I have grown up around missionaries, but didn’t exactly understand what that meant until this year. It reminds me to remind you-our blog readers-to pray for those missionaries you know. Being away from family is not easy-especially during the Holidays. However, as a missionary, I can say, there is no other place we would rather be than in the center of God’s will-where He wants us. This year, that was in Ecuador, and we hope there will be many more years here with special family traditions.
Blessings to you all as this year comes to an end and we celebrate a new one coming!
Personal Prayer Request
We just wanted to offer up a non-ministry related prayer request of a personal nature. We still have a small home in Marion, IN which we own and have been hoping to rent out while here in Ecuador. It has been vacant for over a year now with no tenants. We have a Rental Manager who has been trying to get it rented out but has been unsuccessful in doing so. We just wanted to offer it up for prayer as personal finances are bit pinched right now we could use the additional income instead of having a financial drain with the home. We are hoping by sharing this prayer request with you all, your prayers will help us get over this hump and help our manager to find some tenants. Thank you so very much for your prayers!
Orlando Team
Here’s some pictures from our time with the very quick Orlando Team right before Christmas:
Back to the Jungle
Tomorrow, Tuesday, the 20th, I (Joel) will be heading back out to the Lumbaqui jungle area of the country. The team from Orlando that was here in August is returning to hold a memorial service for Joshua Kim (pictured here) who lost his life during that the trip. I’ll be heading out with them to help with translation and however else I can help. Please pray that we will have a safe trip and that this will be a special time for Joshua’s family and friends as they celebrate his life.
When Helping Hurts: Chapter 7
This is chapter is all about Short-Term Mission (STM) teams, mission teams sent from the U.S. and other developed countries to go and help in developing countries. I have to say it is good I (Joel) read this chapter a second time. After reading it the first time, I was about to throw the book in the trash. Up to this point, I have very much appreciated the opinions and ideas presented in the book and, even if I haven’t agreed with every detail exactly, I have felt that the book was offering a very good critique of international community development. After reading this chapter the first time, I felt like they had taken things a step too far in that it seemed to me that they were saying that there is pretty much nothing good that comes out of mission teams and that we should pretty much abort such ministries, though they never said it like that directly of course. Now, having this idea as to what the book was presenting was very difficult for me. And I have to be honest here and share a little bit of who Kim and I are to understand where we are coming from. Kim and I are both products of Short-Term Missions. We are both here as missionaries because we both had been involved in STM teams in the past. In addition to this, I have led 5 different STM teams in the past. Currently, though neither of us are directly ministering through STM teams, we help with them quite a bit. We know how much the National Church and the individual churches benefit from and appreciate very much the ministry of the teams as well as the relationships they have formed with individual churches in the States. So, this is all of our “baggage” that we bring to the table when reading this chapter.
But like I said in starting out, it’s good I read the chapter a second time. The second time in reading the chapter I was able to move past my emotions of anger and frustration and read the chapter for what it was: a strong critique of Short-Term Missions. This, in the end, is a good thing. We always need to be analyzing and critiquing the things we do and the ministries we are part of to make sure that what we are doing is good. I do still feel that I don’t agree with the great the lack of benefits that come out of Short-Term Missions as I have benefited greatly personally, I have known many people in churches in the States who have benefited greatly and I have met many folks here in Ecuador who have all benefited greatly as well as the relationships that I have formed with our partner churches in my previous trips that testify to how much they have benefited.
With all of that said, I would like to point out some of the strengths of the chapter in its critique of Short-Term Missions.
I agree with the idea that one of the main difficulties that comes into play in STM teams is the cultural differences. One of the biggest differences between the two cultures is the concept of time. Those of us from the States often feel that time is available resource that we are always losing and need take advantage of every second that we have. Thus, sayings like “get the most out of every minute” and “time is money” are sayings that describe our cultural concept of time very well. The cultures that teams from the U.S. visit often have a different concept of time. They see it as a resource that there is always more of. We can always find more time to do that but we won’t always have this time to form and deepen relationships. Relationships and time together is the most important as opposed to the task that needs to be completed. There is also a large difference between the two cultures as how they view themselves. In the U.S. we are very individualistic and always put importance on the individual as opposed to other cultures which places so much emphasis on the well being of the community.
The other big thing that I would like to share is that we often have the idea that when we go out from the States we are going to save the world and help the poor and hurting people. There is a certain level of superiority that comes with that. I think it’s better that teams go with the idea that they are going to learn and partner in ministry. I can tell you because I live here in Ecuador: God is here! He is alive and at work in Ecuador. You don’t have to bring Jesus here because he is already here. I see His Kingdom growing and alive in the ministries of the National Church and local churches. The book gave a great explanation of what kind of mentality and attitude we need to have with our STM teams.
There is a lot more that can be unpacked from this chapter that is very helpful in critiquing how we should go about doing STM teams but I will leave that up to each of you to discover in your own reading.
Santo Domingo Wedding (Take 2)
Yesterday (Dec 17), we made another trip to Santo Domingo for our 2nd wedding since we’ve been here. This wedding was for Ruben and Omparo’s 2nd daughter, Mayra. This was quite an experience for us since we were asked to be the godparents for Mayra’s fiance, Javier. We didn’t exactly know what this would entail, and kind of found out the responsibilities as they came up during the wedding. Our names were announced as part of the ‘party’ that walked down the aisle before the bride. We were asked to sit up front-with the parents of the bride and groom (although we sat on the wrong side). Joel was asked (with the other godfather) to help place a rope around the couple before they were pronounced husband and wife. Joel (and luckily the other godfather) didn’t exactly know what to do, but it all worked out. Toward the end of the service, we the godparents as well as the parents were asked to come up and pray for the couple. This was a very special time and it meant a lot for us to be involved. Joel was asked in advance to say a few words and found out before he was getting ready to give his words that it would be a toast! HA! No pressure! All in all, it was quite an experience, but one we very much enjoyed and were honored to be a part of. We were able to meet Javier’s family (includying 12 + brothers and sisters) as well as his father (we know his mother from working in the kitchen at the camp). Please pray for us as we take on the responsibility of godparents (even though a little later in life). We hope God can use us to be an encouraging and uplifting force in their life as they embark on this new adventure together.