Last Saturday Joshua and I packed our bags (we sure do that a lot!) and headed to Ibarra, a town 3 hours north of Quito. As a part of the Pastoral Council Josh has the blessing of being a part of such exciting events as the dedication of a new church building and the installation of a new pastor. Yes, we attended 2 different church services, it was a full Sunday! I was finally able to join him and it was a joy to hear him preach and a gift to participate in these monumental days with our brothers and sisters here.
Bethel Church in Ibarra outgrew their old place and is currently holding church services in their new, still- under-construction church home. Each week they raise money and add what they can. They joked that the Bethel Christians are the tannest in town due to the open air nature of the services! Note the hats and umbrellas to ward off the hot sun.
Franklin (Bethel Church’s pastor) introduced Josh as “Made in the United States, assembled in Colombia and perfected in Ecuador.” Josh preached for the dedication of the church’s new location
Aníval and Marlene served as missionaries in Spain for a term and have returned to Ecuador and will be pastoring the other Covenant Church in Ibarra.
They would appreciate your prayers! For adjustment back to Ecuador, for a smooth transition as they live in a new town, new house and serve at a new church.
Chicken soup was served after the service at the second church, I got the bowl with the chicken head! (Yes I did eat some of it (not much meat there) and yes it did turn my stomach)
Ibarra is a beautiful town with slightly warmer weather than Quito, it was lovely.
Due to the earthquakes destroying the normal route to Quito our trip home from Ibarra took 4 long hours. But at least the scenery was charming!
