I can't even remember why we couldn't write a blog post two weeks ago. I think Edwin, from Langham, had arrived on the Friday night and the entire Langham group had come over to meet with him that evening, and then Craig, Edwin and everyone else had their normal Langham meeting at 6 am the next morning. Oh yes...then Edwin, Craig, Sam and I drove all the way out to the camp site to see how the buildings were holding up. After that visit Craig and I decided that we wouldn't be staying at the camp site every night, but driving back and forth. Essentially, the buildings weren't holding up that well. Sunday morning, Louis from LatinLink arrived for an overnight with us as new LatinLink members and we had a nice day out with him on Monday as we shared fish at the river. Unfortunately, Sam came down with a virus, so I took my mobile pharmacy and digital thermometer with me to the river and kept checking his temperature as it steadily went up and up and up. I managed to keep my panic internal as I didn't want to come across as a slightly unhinged person in front of the head of LatinLink Bolivia, but it was a struggle and I'm sure I was not very participative in the lunch conversation. We did see the Doctor after lunch, which helped my mental state, but were essentially told to keep doing what we were doing. I don't even know what I did during that work week, except that I worked and then there was camp prep. Thursday afternoon, Melissa again had to watch Sam, so that Craig could teach his English class and so I could do all the camp shopping with Mariana. Mariana and I then proceeded to blow our 'camp materials' budget and spend double than what we had thought things would cost. Next year, instead of picking a random number for that part of the budget, we should actually cost things out. Might be a good idea.
The night before camp started was the Foundation Anniversary Dinner, which was my job to organise. The food was awesome, the cake was even better, Craig lost at 20 questions, but Elias won in 12, we heard testimonies of how God is using people in their jobs at FT and where the gospel was clearly shared to all the staff. It was a lot better than last year, but I'm still thinking about how to make it even better next year. Our big problem is that the FT anniversary dinner is always going to be right before camp, which makes life a bit difficult. But regardless, HAPPY 12TH ANNIVERSARY FT! My office is the hottest room in the building, but I still love you.
 |
| Craig won't like these photos because they are not centred and cropped properly. Shame he's in Cochabamba, isn't it? |
 |
| The blue runs like crazy - hand wash only! Also, Craig ordered his shirt a size smaller than normal because he wanted to look studdly. |
Last year there were 20 campers and about 10 leaders. This year we decided to go nuts and open the camp up to all ages and other churches, because we like to inflict pain on ourselves like that. We had 100 people in total. I kept looking at Mariana in the office every morning and saying, "We're crazy." And when I was hauling 300 Pilfruits (the equivalent of a juice box, but in a small bag) to my car I definitely thought I was crazy. But despite feeling like we'd bitten off more than we could chew, camp went really well. Everything went smoothly, no major injuries or illnesses, everyone participated and had a great time. We were excited to see some families come that are connected to our church, but not regular attenders, some of whom we knew weren't believers. We were so excited by the opportunity to come alongside them and share Christ and show them what Christian fellowship can be like.
Our speaker was Jurgen Schulz from La Paz, but actually from Victoria, British Columbia, but originally from Germany. He and his wife have been missionaries with MSC Canada in Bolivia for 39 years, and he flew out from La Paz to spend the weekend teaching us about grace. He spoke from various parables in the New Testament, but returned to the Prodigal Son over and over again. He was so clear that everyone was able to understand what he was saying; it was so exciting to have a speaker that everyone was enjoying. The campsite turned out to be a bit rustic for him as well, so he drove back and forth with us and stayed in our guest room every night. I fell asleep during all of the return trips, but I know Craig enjoyed discussing a wide range of topics with Jurgen. It was a huge blessing to have him with us.
The only downside about camp was that my team came in last and Craig's team came in second last, so neither of us got the large chocolate bar to take home at the end. *Sigh* Well, there's always next year.
On behalf of all the leaders of the JV group, we would like to thank everyone who supported camp this year. We were overwhelmed by the response and at one point I actually thought we wouldn't be able to spend it all. Do not worry, having to double our materials budget went a long way to using up money that I thought was going to be excess. Mariana and I spent the three weeks before camp looking at each other and saying, "We're not going to have a enough", "We're going to have so much extra", "We're definitely not going to have enough", etc. We learnt that organising a camp for 100 people is expensive, but we also saw God's provision through you because he sent us EXACTLY what we needed.
I have no idea where Craig has kept the pictures from camp, so I'll ask him to post some next week when it is most definitely his turn to write the blog.
The very next day we had guests arrive from Cochabamba, Andy and Moira Irvine, who are there with SIM for two years. We have shamelessly used them for a place to stay when we've been in Cochabamba recently, having only met them for the first time in July, having bumped into Andy at the Santa Cruz airport where he declared, "Hey, I've seen you guys on a fridge before." Because they're from Edinburgh and know the same peeps we know. So, it was their turn to come see us and experience Trinidad. We tried to make it as interesting as possible for them in the 2 days they were here, so we spent an afternoon at the laguna and then went to the river for fish the next day and did some pink dolphin spotting on a riverboat. And as all good times should, we ended with two rounds of Bonanza and a group screening (minus Craig, but plus Melissa) of Dirty Dancing...because nobody puts Baby in the corner. Moira is pretty talented with a camera; please enjoy her handiwork below.
Craig is in Cochabamba just now at the annual Langham conference, and I spent all day yesterday in interviews as we're looking for Mariana's replacement in FT. It was sad to meet these people and know that we couldn't hire them all. They are all in need of work as so many business and government positions are making cuts. We haven't made a final decision yet...guess what I'll be doing next week?!?! Stay tuned for updates in the hunt for 'the Mariana 2.0'.
Prayer:
Praise:
¡Que Dios les bendiga!
Craig, Amanda & Sam
Our speaker was Jurgen Schulz from La Paz, but actually from Victoria, British Columbia, but originally from Germany. He and his wife have been missionaries with MSC Canada in Bolivia for 39 years, and he flew out from La Paz to spend the weekend teaching us about grace. He spoke from various parables in the New Testament, but returned to the Prodigal Son over and over again. He was so clear that everyone was able to understand what he was saying; it was so exciting to have a speaker that everyone was enjoying. The campsite turned out to be a bit rustic for him as well, so he drove back and forth with us and stayed in our guest room every night. I fell asleep during all of the return trips, but I know Craig enjoyed discussing a wide range of topics with Jurgen. It was a huge blessing to have him with us.
The only downside about camp was that my team came in last and Craig's team came in second last, so neither of us got the large chocolate bar to take home at the end. *Sigh* Well, there's always next year.
On behalf of all the leaders of the JV group, we would like to thank everyone who supported camp this year. We were overwhelmed by the response and at one point I actually thought we wouldn't be able to spend it all. Do not worry, having to double our materials budget went a long way to using up money that I thought was going to be excess. Mariana and I spent the three weeks before camp looking at each other and saying, "We're not going to have a enough", "We're going to have so much extra", "We're definitely not going to have enough", etc. We learnt that organising a camp for 100 people is expensive, but we also saw God's provision through you because he sent us EXACTLY what we needed.
I have no idea where Craig has kept the pictures from camp, so I'll ask him to post some next week when it is most definitely his turn to write the blog.
The very next day we had guests arrive from Cochabamba, Andy and Moira Irvine, who are there with SIM for two years. We have shamelessly used them for a place to stay when we've been in Cochabamba recently, having only met them for the first time in July, having bumped into Andy at the Santa Cruz airport where he declared, "Hey, I've seen you guys on a fridge before." Because they're from Edinburgh and know the same peeps we know. So, it was their turn to come see us and experience Trinidad. We tried to make it as interesting as possible for them in the 2 days they were here, so we spent an afternoon at the laguna and then went to the river for fish the next day and did some pink dolphin spotting on a riverboat. And as all good times should, we ended with two rounds of Bonanza and a group screening (minus Craig, but plus Melissa) of Dirty Dancing...because nobody puts Baby in the corner. Moira is pretty talented with a camera; please enjoy her handiwork below.
 |
| Ya, my Mom spent the whole boat ride making sure I didn't fling myself off the side, but I had fun. |
Prayer:
- For Craig during this conference and for his safe return Monday morning.
- We sent off the initial application for Sam's UK visa and we have an interview date for the 21st of November, please pray that the visa is granted without any problems.
- For the FT Board as they decide who to hire.
- For Melissa as she is travelling in Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay this week.
- For Sam as he bounces back from a cold.
Praise:
- For a wonderful camp full of God's provision and blessing.
- For getting to meet and know Jurgen.
- For a great two days with Andy and Moira (we probably won't see them again for awhile).
- For all the people who've helped look after Sam when we've needed the support.
¡Que Dios les bendiga!
Craig, Amanda & Sam
Buy Fireworks for Sale UK Choose from loud rockets, multisport fireworks, or single ignition fireworks. Contact us for a price match.
ReplyDeleteFireworks for Sale UK