Saturday Post -- 18/05/13

Another week, another bout of civil action in Bolivia, this time over pensions. Actually, we’re now well into the second week, but the stakes have been raised over the past seven days as the largest union in Bolivia resorts to ever more desperate means to force a hike in public sector pensions to 100% (!). An utterly ludicrous bargaining position, yet they aren’t backing down (the government have offered 81%). The usual road blockades are in place, but this time the airports, usually the last transport hubs to fall, have been sucked into things, making international travel pretty hazardous. You can read more about the situation here.

Many, though not all, of the schools here have opted to close their doors, and ten days have now passed since the majority of Trinidad’s schoolchildren attended class. That, in turn, has taken something of a wrecking-ball to FT’s work in the local community – not simply our R.E. teaching, but also the free health checks we carry out in local schools every week.

So my workload this week has been reduced a fair bit by the lack of R.E. classes and the attendant marking (put it this way – I’ve never been more prepared for a sermon as the one I’m due to deliver next weekend) but at least I was able to teach the English classes, which are based at FT’s headquarters. This week saw the launch of the Intermediate course. So popular was the Basic course this year that there was no need to advertise the next level of classes, which will take us up to the end of the year. The vast majority of alumni from the Basic class have returned and are already getting to grips with the new format, which includes a weekly class devoted exclusively to reading a book in simple English about the Christian faith.

Amanda, meanwhile, has been (wo)manfully juggling her audiology responsibilities with pastoral work. Today alone she is teaching her Bible Explorers’ Club class before, in the evening, leading the next session on our study in Joseph with the youth group. Then tomorrow evening, with the young women’s Bible study group, she’s once again heading up the study on the Fruit of the Spirit. Looking at our weekends these days, I find it increasingly incomprehensible that, not so long ago, we didn’t take Mondays off.

A not insignificant stress-reliever has arrived in town over the last couple of days, however: the year’s first full-blown (see what I did there?) southerly wind. Temperatures have plummeted all the way down to, er, the mid-teens. We are very happy. God is good.

Prayer

• Pray for Amanda in her various teaching endeavours this weekend, that God would speak through her.
• Pray for Craig, who is visiting a large evangelical church in the centre of town on Sunday morning to promote FT's Emmaus Bible School programme.
• Remember the civil unrest in Bolivia in your prayers. Pray that common sense would prevail.
• Continued prayer would be welcome for our furlough year, that the correct path would be confirmed to us.

       Praise

• For a great start to the new Intermediate English class -- a great opportunity to share Christ with others in a simple way.
• For the cool weather this week and the relief it brings us from the heat.

¡Que Dios les bendiga!

Craig & Amanda