Greeting Iglesia del Pacto La Victoria in their Sunday worship service

This past weekend we had the pleasure of visiting La Victoria Covenant Church in Manta, Ecuador. This is one of the largest cities in the country and one of the hardest hit places from the earthquake that occurred last April 16th in the coastal region. We have been collaborating with the church and working as a liaison with Covenant World Relief in the USA as they launch a large, long-term recovery project in the area called, “Buen Samaritano” or, Good Samaritan.

We enjoyed joining their worship service on Sunday morning and then meeting with the project committee members afterwards to hear about their planning progress and encourage them as they look towards launching very soon. The vision of the Buen Samaritano project is to assist their neighbors in their goals to open micro businesses as a way to help them recover economically from their devastation after the disaster. With the focus on two specific under-resourced neighborhoods, funding, supplies, training, and follow-up will be offered to families who dream of opening a beauty salon, a mini-market, a bakery, an auto parts shop, a motorcycle taxi business, etc. The project committee members include experts in various fields including legal advisors for necessities such as permits and licenses. We were impressed with the thorough research and organization that has gone into the planning and preparation phase and are confident they are well equipped to begin the implementation.

Meeting with the “Buen Samaritano” (Good Samaritan) project team

As we approach the one year anniversary of the catastrophic earthquake this Sunday, please keep Iglesia La Victoria and the Buen Samaritano project in your prayers. La Victoria is literally translated as “The Victory” church, and it is clear that the body of Christ in Manta is claiming victory and offering hope in Jesus’ name.

You can donate to Covenant World Relief Ecuador Disaster Relief fund here:

http://www.covchurch.org/relief/projects/disasters/ecuador-relief/