Seasoned Greetings

Seasoned greetings, and our warmest wishes to all! May your holidays be as hot as ours! (We are currently in Mexico with the in-laws, and I felt like sharing the chilies.)

Another year at the Bolivia Industrial School is history. It had more than it’s share of challenges and trials, which is probably why God sent us back this year. I have a lot of growing to do and I only hope I learned the lessons that I was supposed to.

“I want to be part of your church”

A few years ago we were praying for a sewing teacher when I met Carmina Mendoza, a seamstress from Guayara. From the first, I was impressed by her kindness and Christian character. When I mentioned we were looking for a sewing teacher to volunteer once a week, she agreed immediately. She has faithfully donated her time and talent to teach our sewing classes ever since. 

Over the years we visited often with Carmina and became good friends. Early on she asked us to pray for her son and her nephew, who were lost in the things of the world. She was so excited when her son began to listen to Nuevo Tiempo, the Adventist Television station.  So you can imagine our surprise when we discovered that, though a fervent Bible believer, Carmina herself was not part of any church family. When she gave her reasons, we didn’t argue, but we were able to share a few things as there was opportunity, including some books and DVD’s. Some time later, Carmina’s son joined the Adventist church. We continued to pray for her nephew who was in the process of rehabilitating from drug addiction.

This last September, Carmina surprised us when she asked my wife “What do I need to do to be baptized? I want to be part of your church.” We are thrilled to report that a few weeks ago she was baptized in the school creek. To God be the glory!

Sister Carmina at her baptism

The Bolivia Industrial School Finally Begins to get more Industrial

 This year saw the establishment of the school bakery thanks to the initiative of Jerry Cardoza and some funds from an internationally backed program for developing rural businesses in Bolivia. Their representative for our region loved the idea of a school bakery business and went to great pains to make sure our project was approved for financing. Jerry had a couple of the boys present the proposal to the board and they were really impressed. As a result the bakery was able to acquire an industrial-sized convection oven, mixer, and dough cutter, which have turned the endeavor into a viable source of income. Now what is needed is a place to set up shop. So far, the bakery is operating out of Jerry and Jenny’s living room. (See pictures below). Some more teachers would help too, as Jerry had so many classes he was only able to bake three times a week, and that often early in the morning or late at night. The bread sells well in town. People love the whole grain bread, granola, and banana, fig and corn bread muffins. There is not the like to be found in all of northern Bolivia, as all the other local product is strictly white bread. 

The new bake shop

Convection oven

Forming

Weighing the dough

Hot buns

Bakery Expo. The kids took advantage to distribute some bread of life as well.

Product lineup: Includes multigrain whole wheat bread, banana, fig and cornbread muffins, and chocolate cake. 

Miraculous Deliverance

Several months ago, due to new national land-reform legislation, our school was declared property of the state. Our appeals to the local and provincial INRA officials were decisively rejected, and our last resort was to petition at the national level and await divine intervention.

            God provided just the right lawyer to defend our case in the capital: an expert in real-estate law and former employee of INRA, the government land agency. He quickly found enough problems with the actions of the agency to build a compelling case. The judge ruled in our favor, and ordered INRA to desist. The national INRA officials reprimanded departmental INRA in order to save the agency from complete embarrassment.

As David Gates put it, “They don’t care if their people steal land, as long as they can do it without getting called out and embarrassing the agency.”

Unfortunately, the big-shot lawyer who took our case was of a similar spirit of his INRA brethren, and charged $10,000 for his services. But before that discouraging news even reached us, a sister from LaPaz payed the fee in full! I don’t even know who she is or how she found out about the case, but I know God put it in her heart to help. Our God is a mighty defender. We have nothing to fear as long as we are in his keeping. Thank you all who have kept this situation before the Lord in prayer.

A Prisoner's Prayer

“God, if You send mamá to see me this next visitor’s day, I will give my life to you.” Marcelo prayed. He knew that a visit from mamá would be nothing short of a miracle after the way things had gone. She had visited regularly when he was first booked on a murder charge nearly nine years ago, but then his cellmates introduced him to drugs. Soon he wasted away into a thin, pathetic wreck of a man, and all of mamá’s pleas to change had been in vain. His constantly schemed new ways to get money or anything else he could from her to trade for drugs, and finally she told him she was done visiting. And who could blame her? Marcelo, however, only sunk deeper into his addictions, vainly seeking relief from the crushing load of guilt and despair.

Then one Saturday afternoon, he heard music in the prison courtyard, very different from the constant blare of the rock and rap radio stations. Looking out from his cell, he saw a small group of inmates gathered around a table with several nicely dressed young men, and a funny looking foreigner playing the accordion. Marcelo joined the group, and enjoyed the songs. The Bible study that followed spoke to his soul, and he resolved to attend again in the future.

As Marcelo’s mind began to crave the truth more each day, his body’s craving for drugs faded away. A few months later, Marcelo was convinced that he needed to be baptized, but something seemed to hold him back. Did God really care about him, an accused murderer locked away in the steamy filth of a Bolivian provincial jail?

Finally, he resolved to make a deal with God, and that was when he prayed the prayer. Well, it was more of a test actually. Did God even want him? Would He even listen to his prayer? To make sure God would get his message, he enlisted the help of Whaddy, one of our seniors who was baptized himself just about a year ago, and who leads the prison Bible study group this year (some of you may remember him as Whaddy Wycliff from one of last year’s stories). Whaddy shared Marcelo’s request with us later that same afternoon, and we all knelt in prayer.

“Lord, you know Marcelo’s heart. You know just what he needs. Please let him know that you hear him and you want him as your son. Convince him, Lord. If sending his mom to see him tomorrow will do that, please put it in her heart…” we prayed.

The next Sabbath when Whaddy and his group returned from the jail, he was anxious to know what had happened.

“Did your mom come to see you?” he asked.

“No,” Marcelo replied. “But God gave me an even greater miracle! My aunt came to see me. I had no idea she was here! She lives in Spain.  Most amazing of all, she talked to me about God, and encouraged me to give my life to him. Mom wouldn’t have done that. I know that God sent her as an answer to my prayer, and I want to give my life to him. When can I be baptized?”

Over the next few weeks, I had the privilege of helping Whaddy coordinate the baptism with the local pastor and with prison officials. Marcelo is now a free man in Christ Jesus, and you can see the new life and hope shining in his face. Please keep him and the jail ministry and our other outreach projects in your prayers.
P.S. We still have no final word not the land problem. Our appeal was denied at the state level, and our legal representative is appealing at the national level. Please keep that in your prayers as well. We know it is in God's hands. 

Localized rainstorm

“Ask ye of the LORD rain in the time of the latter rain; [so] the LORD shall make bright clouds, and give them showers of rain, to every one grass in the field.” Zechariah 10:1

It is dry season here, and we’ve been watering by hand. It’s not such a daunting task when there are dozens of students here to help out, but during vacation this July, it took four people hauling water with the tractor nearly all day to keep the gardens and fields alive.

And so we began to pray for rain. We prayed, and prayed and prayed again. For over a week we prayed. We prayed at morning worship, before meals, and kneeling in the shade beside the tractor after emptying the 500-liter tank for the 5^th time in a morning.  Still, the hot dry weather continued. But so did our prayers. Then, around noontime one hot, clear day, we heard thunder. Big cumulus began to accumulate, and a brisk breeze brought them into position directly overhead. Thick drops began to fall, and steadily increased to a downpour. The sun shone through from the clear horizon, west to east, painting the precious showers golden. We rushed outside to play and breathe deep the clean smell of rain.

The cloudburst lasted for almost an hour, enough to penetrate the dry ground to a good depth. Later, I asked our friends in nearby Yata how long it had rained there.

“About fifteen minutes” they replied. On the other side of the school, the highway to Guayaramerín was practically dry.

The next day the brown fields on campus were already sprouting green. God is certainly abundant in mercy to His children! This singular answer to prayer reminds me that God will certainly fulfill His promise to send His Holy Spirit in abundance when we seek Him diligently. I pray that I will be found beneath the cloud, not on the dry side of the cloudburst.

More grace, but the story is not over yet!

            Over the last few days, we have felt the hand of our good Lord active as we have juggled classes and activities, covered for absent teachers, and gathered documents to file in protest of INRA’s decision to declare all of our land property of the state. Thank you so much for your prayers.

Through a set of providential recommendations, Jerry found a good lawyer who is a former INRA employee and an expert on land issues. He was very kind and sympathetic and charged us less than $100 to write a memorandum, give counsel, and revise a portfolio of evidence to contest INRA’s decision. The deadline to file was Wednesday. Some of the papers we needed to present were letters of certification from the community of Yata, the mayor of Guayaramerin, and the district office of education, all of which took time and a lot of running around.

Meanwhile, we filled in for Jerry’s classes, and at the beginning of every period, I prayed with the students.

“Oh Lord, please give Jerry special wisdom and efficiency as he works to get all of the needed documents in time! Give him special grace in the eyes of the government officials!” we prayed.

My grandma wrote to me, and encouraged us to trust God no matter what. “He will give you the grace you need for this trial.” She then told me about two other mission schools, one in Mongolia and the other in Thailand that were both recently shut down by the government. The school in Thailand was given only a few days to vacate, and they only made it because of their alumni who showed up to help. 

By Wednesday afternoon Jerry had everything together, but still needed to go through the portfolio with the lawyer to make sure everything was impeccable. Meanwhile, the INRA official waited patiently. Office closing time came and went, and still the official waited. Finally he got tired of waiting.

“You guys finish up and leave me the folders here and I will sign them in the morning” he promised. Jerry and the lawyer continued working until after 11 o’clock that night. The next morning I went with Jerry to the office. We wanted to see the papers signed with our own eyes, and make sure that the portfolio of originals would be sent to the central offices in Trinidad. Before leaving, we picked two big papayas, one for the lawyer and one for the official. The lawyer was especially impressed that the fruit was grown at the school, and made sure the official knew it.

 “I never do this” the official explained as he signed and stamped each folder of documents. “But I believe you are doing good work at your school and I want to help you out.”

Praise the Lord for direct answers to prayer! As Jerry continued to converse with the official, it turned out he even has relatives who are currently students with us! We truly thank God for His mercy.

The story, however, is far from over. We don’t know yet if the authorities in Trinidad will accept our appeal. If not, we can try again at the national level in La Paz. That appeal process has already been started as well just in case. We appreciate your continued prayers. We were also thankful to discover that even if our appeals are rejected, the order to confiscate our land will not go into effect until next year, so we would at least be able to finish this school year and have a chance to vacate the land without undue pressure.