Enjoying an afternoon with Carlos and Angela

There are so many things we were looking forward to when we moved back to Colombia, one of them was meeting new people and having time to spend with other couples and families. We have been blessed in this respect and God continues to bring new people into our lives. We were especially moved by how God’s timing was perfect in one particular situation. It was a Saturday evening and we were attending the worship service at one of the local Covenant Churches and we were waiting outside before it started spending time talking with people as they arrived. As we were there, who should come walking up the sidewalk but one of our friends who we hadn’t heard much from since we left Colombia. His name is Carlos and we got to spend some significant time with him when we were in Colombia 5 years ago. We knew that he had been through some hard things personally in the past years and had pretty much walked away from the church. So many times we’d think about Carlos and pray for him, wondering where he was and what he was up to.

So, you can imagine our surprise when he came walking up! He gave us big hugs and introduced us to his wife. When I asked if they had been attending the church he answered that they hadn’t and it was one of their first times back at a church. We were able to sit with them and later exchanged phone numbers.

A week ago we had them over for coffee and had a great time catching up and getting to know Carlos’s wife, Angela. Both of them are working with children teaching chess. Angela is actually a professional chess player and has traveled significantly as a delegate for Colombia. They both shared with us that just as it had been for us, for them it was God’s perfect timing that we were at the same church at the same time. They shared how they have felt drawn by God into a relationship with Jesus and back into the community of the church. Angela is very new in her faith and said she would love to grow more and is very open to spending time together – talking, praying, learning more from the Bible. Please pray for this couple as they journey in faith together. Pray that the church would come around them and support them. Pray that we would walk beside them with grace and love and that God would work in their lives in mighty ways.