The COVID Crisis:
Recently our world has been turned upside down with COVID-19. I don’t think there is a person that has not been affected by it in some way. Here in Bolivia, we started out with a dusk to dawn curfew so things were pretty normal during the day. Then on the 21st of March, the government declared a full quarantine, where we are not allowed to leave our homes, or drive, until the 15th of April. The only exception is that one person, from each household, can leave one day a week, according to their ID card, for supplies. Also as a measure to prevent more cases from entering the country the government has canceled all domestic and international flights. As you can imagine, this has affected us in many ways.
Pastor’s Training:
We were right in the middle of our yearly pastor’s training when the announcement was made. We had close to fifteen pastor’s and students that were attending and learning biblical principals for counseling. We were sad that the classes had to be cut short, but glad that Bro. Bill Hill and those teaching were able to make it back to the US.
Land Purchase:
We are also in the middle of finalizing the paper work on the land that we are purchasing in Quillacollo, for the church there. We are at the last step before we can get blueprints approved and start building. Every thing has been put on hold until things are back to normal. We are hoping to get the church moved over soon.
Furlough Planning:
One of the most concerning things about our situation is that we are getting very close to the date for our return to the US for our furlough. We already have our tickets purchased, but have not been able to work on getting things ready for our departure. We have to make repairs and paint our house to turn it back over to the owners. We are in the middle of trying to get everything organized in the churches before we leave and we were right in the middle of scheduling meeting with both new and supporting churches, when all this happened. All of that has been put on hold until things are back to normal.
Church Services:
Obviously, we have not been able to meet for services, so we have been recording our messages and posting them on facebook and youtube so that everyone can continue to hear the Word of God and grow in their spiritual lives. On a positive note, this has been good for the other churches because it has given them more opportunities to teach and even learn how to use technology to reach more people.
Through all this, we have been trusting the Lord and making the most of our situation to be able to work on ministry project from home and spend valuable time with family. Our biggest concern and prayer at this time is that things will actually reopen on the 15th of April, as the date set by the government. That would give us a couple of weeks before we leave to get things in order. If the date is extended, we will most likely have to change our tickets and reschedule our trip back to the US.
Prayer Requests:
1. Pray for our people and churches during this time.
2. Pray that things will return to normal on the 15th so we can make preparations.
3. Pray for our upcoming furlough, that we will be able to schedule our meetings.
4. Pray that all that is going on will give us new opportunities to share the gospel.