Snapshot of the Summer

Dear Friends, Family, and Prayer Warriors,
Thank you again for partnering with me this summer to serve in Ecuador. I am thankful to testify to God’s goodness this summer. I appreciate your financial support, prayers, e-mails, and encouragement as I served as a host for short-term mission teams. God provided more than enough funds for my summer so that I was able to give financially to YouthWorld.
As I served as a short-term host, here is a brief summary what we did in ministry:
I served in Shandia, a jungle community, where Jim Elliot use to reside. We helped build a road for a future retreat center for pastors and a camp for kids. We partnered with the village in a church service sharing testimonies, a sermon, and we led vacation Bible school.
I served in Puyo, a jungle city, at Kairos Baptist Church, where we painted their sanctuary, helped clear out a field, painted a mural, played soccer, and participated in a church service with their youth group.
I served at Santos Pamba, a school in a Quechua (the indigenous population) neighborhood in the south of Quito. We built a fence together, built stairs, fixed some of their electrical problems, played with their kids, and participated together with them in church services. I spent time with the other hosts with women of the church in the kitchen laughing and sharing stories.
I served at La Roca, Youth World’s newest ministry, a skate ministry in Calderon, Ecuador. We attended a church service and hung out during a skate competition. Our team lacquered ramps and painted school classrooms.
I served at a soup kitchen called Pan de Vida where we served breakfast and lunch to the children. We ran a soccer camp for the kids with a devotion and singing beforehand. For the soccer camp, our team organized drills and games that would reinforce the spiritual lesson. We also helped with painting, organizing donations, and washing doors.
Our teams visited Casa Gabriel, a leadership program for former street boys. We shared testimonies and played soccer together.
The highlight of my summer was seeing God’s work in the jungle community of Shandia. I had the privilege of meeting with Mariano, the spiritual leader of the community. Mariano showed me the garden of the school where they grow bananas, pineapples, and other various plants. I was encouraged by how he uses the garden to teach life lessons to the children. It was also a blessing to translate with him during church; as I translated from English to Spanish, he would translate from Spanish to the native language of Quechua. God is truly working in ends of the earth.
I have grown through many practical experiences this summer. I learned the importance of taking care of myself, I handled team money, and I had many opportunities in church services to translate from English to Spanish. God taught me significant spiritual lessons of greater dependence on him, the importance of enjoying the process of any given activity, and the necessity of prayer in difficult times.
God is doing a great work in Ecuador through YouthWorld. Please continue to join me in prayer for YouthWorld. I would also ask you to join with me in prayer specifically for three Ecuadorian leaders of the ministries: Pastor Pedro Pablo of Santos Pamba, Brother Mariano of Shandia, and Pastor Ramiro of Argelia Alta.
Thank you for your friendship, prayers, and support.

In Christ,

Chris