Into The Heart of Argentina - Blog

"Once Upon A Time"

2007-11-25T01:04:00Z

Finally! With Tina’s help we have a five minute missionary presentation. THANK YOU TINA!!!

Next Phase: Full-Time Deputation

2007-09-25T14:44:00Z

This fall, more is changing than the color of the leaves!

By the end of this month, Ivan will be finished with his job at the Manor and we’ll be “doing” deputation full-time. After talking with the area director and others at the mission, as well as the elders at church, it became clear that in order to meet our goal of leaving for Argentina in February, we really need to devote more time to putting together the support team. That’s why we’ll be working at this full-time in the coming months.

To give you an idea of how that will look: Ivan will continue calling pastors in order to line up meetings and, when possible, meet one-on-one with them. We’ll still be sharing wherever God opens doors, usually – but not always – in Sunday church services. In addition, we look forward to spending extended periods of time in different churches, helping out however we can…whether that’s lending a hand with remodeling or construction projects, cleaning, or serving in some way in the ministry, we look forward to getting to know people! The goal is to continue developing a solid support team to stand behind us with faithful prayer and financial support.

Currently we are at 60%. We are so thankful for those who have joined our team by providing on-going support, committing to pray for us, or giving toward the outfit fund. Muchas gracias!

A quick recap of our busy summer…

From June through August the calendar was full. How thankful we are for not only the new churches visited, but also the churches that invited us back!

The two-week Field Preparation Seminar we attended in July helped in so many ways. Not only did they provide great instruction on what to expect and how to prepare for being on the field, we were able to get to know other missionaries getting ready to go around the world…Vanuatu, New Zealand, the Philippines, and Ecuador. Our group (see photo inset) will be leaving sometime within the coming year to our respective fields. Plus we met several dozen there for Candidate Orientation who are just starting this process of preparing to be missionaries. Their excitement was contagious!

Our son was married in August, in a sunrise ceremony on the beach in Ft. Lauderdale with just close friends and family. (Press “Photos” button on bar at top of page to see wedding pictures!) Jon and Natalie have moved to their new home in Elkhart, Indiana. Pray for them, especially as they look for a new church home.

Please continue to pray for open doors to share the ministry with churches and individuals who want to be a part of this church planting effort in the Punilla Valley, Province of Cordoba, in the heart of Argentina. It would be great to have the calendar chock full of meetings and opportunities to serve!

Thanks for standing behind us in prayer. It’s exciting to see what God is doing and we look forward to what He will accomplish in the months to come.

PROJECT NEEDIA 2012

2007-07-23T17:16:00Z

Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to reach the country of Needia for Christ. You have exactly four years and a team of up to ten, but no more.

What you need to know is this: Needia is a western European style country about the size of Belgium with a population of 1.6 million. They speak Needian, a Romance language that, in terms of learning difficulty, is equivalent to French. There are four major cities: Neediopolis, the capital, a port city, and the largest metropolitan area with a population of 600,000; Factoria, the manufacturing hub located smack dab in the middle of the country where the largest industry is iron ore and with a population of 220,000; Collegeville has a population of 200,000; and finally there is Funcitia where the tourism industry flourishes amid a population of 200,000. The literacy rate is high at 90% and they do have the Bible in their language, although it is not widely used. There is no visible Christian presence anywhere in the country.

What is your strategy? Who will you recruit for the team? Where will you begin? How will you go about reaching Needia for Christ? This message will self destruct in 10 seconds.

That was the situation posed to the missionaries this week at our Field Preparation Seminar. We’re gathered here in the Atlanta area for two weeks of instruction, training, and testing before we head out for various parts of the world in the coming year. This ‘game’ was the final piece of the first week, to see how we’d use what we’ve been learning.

A pretty intense week! We’ve had classes on everything from life long learning to designing an exit strategy to evangelism to emergency management to training national leaders to models for church planting…and so on. We go from 8:30 a.m. until 5 p.m. every day, plus you’ll usually find the missionaries continuing their discussions and brainstorming over meals and into the evening hours. The testing wasn’t too arduous and we’ve discovered that between the two of us, we have one good brain  Seriously, the tests help us understand where our strengths and weaknesses are, and point out where we’ll struggle with cultural adaptation and language acquisition.

Now we are looking forward to a little down time this weekend before resuming our studies on Monday morning. We appreciate your prayers for us during this time, and for safety in our travels (have any of you ever had to drive in Atlanta traffic?!).

And if you have any strategy suggestions for Project Needia 2012, let us know!

Pre-Field Training Coming Up

2007-07-11T15:47:00Z

We have a target date for moving to Argentina: February of next year!

That’s in eight months – and there’s a lot to be done in such a short time!

Ivan’s busy calling pastors and lining up meetings where we can share our passion and vision for ministry in Argentina. We had a handful of meetings this spring but look forward to many more this summer and coming fall!

Right now we have almost every Sunday this summer scheduled, except for two weeks in July when we attend Pre-Field. This is for all missionaries who plan to leave for the field within the coming year. We’ll spend two weeks learning more about cultural adaptation, language acquisition, practical and logistical issues, and other things that are important to being effective in cross-cultural ministry. We are currently working our way through a reading list of five books with really good information.

As one of the author says, “If you have the right attitude and can use the right skills to creatively interact with cultural differences, you will…leave a positive, lasting impact for the kingdom of God.” We definitely want to leave a positive, lasting impact for the kingdom of God, so all the reading and pre-field training is important.

So we have a very busy summer and we appreciate your prayers! For safety, strength and stamina! For our walk with God. That God would bring together the right churches and individuals that will form our support team. It has been exciting to see how those already on the team have become so engaged in the ministry in Argentina, supporting us with much more than financial help, but with prayer and encouragement and enthusiasm.

We are more excited as our move gets closer! As you know, we traveled to South America this winter. It was a hectic, but productive five weeks: attending the annual missionary field conference in Uruguay, spending time with Tito and Adriana Ramirez, meeting my language tutor, pricing household goods needed to set up housekeeping, taking a survey trip up the Punilla Valley… You get the idea. We’ve posted a few of the photos from our trip at: http://flickr.com/photos/hoytsonlinecom/

And the Lord is blessing in the work there. In a recent e-mail our co-workers, Tito and Adriana, wrote about one lady who has been coming to the Bible studies for some time. During a recent meeting she heard the gospel message again and said: “I understand all this, and I believe it with my heart, but I never told the Lord; I need to do it now!” We look forward to seeing this happen over and over again.

It will be challenging. We often see things differently than those in other cultures. In fact, one comment often heard around the world is “What do you Americans do with all the time you save?” Sometimes we wonder ourselves. But we know what we will do with the time we have — we will spend it in the urgent and important work of extending God’s work in the world. And we will spend some of it thanking you for your care, and prayer, for us.

Time to pack the bags!

2007-02-12T00:25:00Z

It’s almost time to start packing our bags! No, we’re not quite ready to move to Argentina, but we ARE ready for an extended trip there. On February 20th we fly out of Detroit, heading first to Miami and then Buenos Aires. It’s just a hop, skip and a jump from there over to Uruguay where we’ll attend the annual field conference for all the BMW missionaries in South America. A great chance to get to meet everyone!

The remaining month we’ll be in the province of Cordoba, in the interior of Argentina. We have a lot we want to accomplish! A highlight on the schedule is a survey trip up the Punilla Valley, where we’ll get to see firsthand the needs and opportunities in each of the twelve towns throughout the valley. In Carlos Paz where our co-workers live, we’ll stay with the language tutor that the Ramirez’ have lined up for me. So besides having a chance to practice what I’ve learned, I will get additional instruction. And the tutor can advise us on what I should be doing for language study during our remaining time in the U.S., until we are ready to move to Argentina.

We plan to take lots of photos and video footage that we can then incorporate into a presentation DVD to use on deputation. And of course we’ll be able to meet people, hear stories, and have experiences that will help us better understand the ministry needs in that part of Argentina.

It will be helpful to see what household items are readily available at reasonable prices in Argentina. Ivan keeps joking that it will be hard for me to fit all my books into the two suitcases per person allowed by the airlines, but in reality we know we will have to take some things. We’d just rather not take anything we don’t have to when we move, keeping our shipping container to the smallest possible size.

Aside from all the “practical” items on the agenda, we also look forward to just spending time with people — old friends that Ivan knew while growing up in Argentina and new friends we’ll make during our travels.

Throughout it all, we rest in the assurance that God is directing our steps and that folks back home are praying…for our safety and good travel connections (we’ll be using a lot of public transport on this trip), for daily strength, for opportunities to accomplish all we hope to, for open doors to share the gospel, and for God’s clear direction in it all. It is such an encouragement and blessing to know we have so many faithful prayer partners supporting us here in the U.S. THANK YOU!

We’ll return to the U.S. on March 28th.

Some very exciting news to share: Our support level has risen to almost 55%!!! In just the last few months we’ve heard from a couple of churches and a number of individuals who are joining the team. Praise the Lord! As mentioned in the last prayer letter, we’re asking God for full support by the end of this year.

Since cutting back to part-time at work last fall, Ivan has more time to call and visit pastors. Each month we send and hand out quite a few information packets to those he’s contacted. We know pastors receive letters from many missionaries every week asking to present their ministries, and they can’t invite them all. Please pray with us that in the coming months God will provide many open doors for us to share our vision and passion for ministry in Argentina.

We’re not sure what kind of internet connection will be available during this trip. We will take our laptop and, when we have the chance, send an e-mail update to those in our e-mail address book. If you received this prayer letter through regular mail, it means we don’t have a current and accurate e-mail address for you. So if you’d like to get the e-mail updates, please e-mail us with your information. Send it to me at kimberlyhoyt@yahoo.com and I’ll make sure you get added to the address book.

Again, thank you for your continuing prayers and support. We look forward to sharing what God does on this trip!!!

Big Changes!

2006-10-03T22:06:00Z

Big changes at the Hoyt house! Ivan moved from full-time to part-time work at the Manor last month.This will free up time needed to be more focused and purposeful about deputation. It will allow us to contact more pastors each week, fill up the calendar with as many meetings as possible, travel farther to churches as needed, and get to the field sooner rather than later.

We would LOVE to be in Argentina by the end of next year (2007).

Will you pray with us?

That God will provide many opportunities to share about the ministry in Argentina.
That God will enlarge our Team to include those churches and individuals that He has already chosen.
That Kim will continue to improve in Spanish as she takes a class at a nearby college.

While it could be viewed as stepping out on a limb, we see it a little differently. Because our God is so great, it is more like were going from a limb to the more sturdy tree trunk that is secure and solid. How exciting!!!

A huge benefit to deputation taking longer than planned is the many friendships we’ve made and been able to develop. We feel like we’re really getting to know the folks on our Team! What a joy and privilege it has been to help out at a VBS in one supporting church, provide pulpit supply in a few others, and just hang out with people sharing meals or playing games.

Over the summer we were able to participate in the “4Jonesville” program that our church initiated to reach out in our community. What fun to share a picnic dinner in the park downtown each Wednesday evening, meeting new people and making new friends! Afterwards Ivan assisted in a class on remote controlled airplanes taught by one of the older men in our church. And our home was open for anyone who wanted to come and pray throughout the afternoon and evening (4-8 p.m.). It’s also been nice to have time with our kids. We’ve been able to get together with Jon and his fiancé, Natalie, on a regular basis to discuss matters relating to marriage and relationships. We were able to visit our daughter this Spring and see the Word of Life production Jesus, Behold the Man (Tina played Pilate’s wife). And we went back to see her graduate from the one-year Bible Institute program in early August.

Recently we heard from someone who is committing to support us at $100/month, and although we haven’t been notified officially, a pastor we saw last week indicated his church is ready to take on some of our support as well. So the support level is edging up!

We have appreciated all those who have prayed for us, supported us in different ways, and encouraged us with calls or e-mails. Thank you! And please keep it up! The task is too big to do on our own; we need the prayers of God’s people to be effective here and now, and later on the field.

Muchas gracias!

Ivan & Kim Hoyt

Missionary Appointees to Argentina

Biblical Ministries Worldwide

e-mail: ihoyt@biblicalministries.org

Christmas 2005

2005-12-24T15:00:00Z

For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger. And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men. Luke 2:11-14

Every family has its own Christmas traditions. We bake a birthday cake for Jesus. We try to downplay the whole commercial part by exchanging gifts a week or so later. Our church purposes to focus on this special day by celebrating the four Sundays of Advent leading up to a very solemn and worshipful Christmas Eve service. Do these things really matter? For our family they have helped to keep our focus on why we celebrate. It is our prayer that this Christmas would be a blessed time for you and yours, because of the very special gift that God has given in the Person of His Son, Jesus.

Like many of you, this has been a year of ups and downs for us, a year of being stretched and challenged, and blessed. Always God shows Himself worthy of our complete trust. Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.

After more than a year of visiting churches, our support is edging up. With several churches plus a few couples and individuals on our support team at this time, we are currently at 25%. Over 15% came in within just the last three months. Praise the Lord! We’re also thrilled with the very special gift of a fully assembled Betty Lukens large deluxe flannelgraph set from Child Evangelism Fellowship in Warsaw, Indiana. What a blessing this will be for the children’s ministry in Argentina!

In addition to working full-time at the Manor and traveling weekends for deputation, Ivan continues to have a number of responsibilities as associate pastor at Countryside Bible Church. We’re getting ready to make some changes there as we shift from group oriented ministries to a more individual focus because that’s what we’ll be doing in Argentina, dealing with people one-on-one. Being involved in a church plant will initially be very different than being part of an existing, already vibrant church community.

Kim just finished Spanish 201 and is gearing up for 202 next semester. The language is still a struggle for her, but Ivan is more involved this year and that helps tremendously. She is certainly motivated, since she’d like to be as fluent as possible when we arrive in Argentina!

We are so grateful for the many wonderful people God has brought into our lives. You are special!!! Thanks for your part in our lives and ministry.

Feliz Navidad!

Ivan & Kim Hoyt

Appointees to Argentina with Biblical Ministries Worldwide

Marriage -- Tragedy or Triumph?

2005-11-11T14:55:00Z

I was struck by the disparity between three non-fiction books I’ve read recently. Two tell of horrific experiences, and yet I would consider the endings, while not necessarily happy, certainly uplifting and encouraging. The other is one of the most profoundly sad books I have ever read.

“Refined By Fire” by Brian and Mel Birdwell tells the story of Brian’s near death on 9/11 after the Pentagon was hit and his subsequent long recovery that has included over thirty operations. Through it all, Mel was right there by his side.

At the end of the book Brian writes: â€œWhile we would never have chosen this path, the Lord allowed us to have this experience, and we’re responding as faithful followers of Jesus.

And Mel continues, When people ask me, “Was it worth it?” I easily and without hesitation answer, “Absolutely.” Even through all that pain, I learned a lesson about God’s sovereignty. It has deepened my faith and my relationship with God; It has also been an opportunity for Matt [their son] to see what putting feet to your faith means and to see the truth of what God can do in your life.

Gracia and Martin Burnham, held for over a year by Islamic terrorists in the Philippines, were kept on the march most of the time with little food or shelter. During a rescue attempt, Martin was killed and Gracia wounded. She now lives in Kansas with their children.

“In The Presence of My Enemies” is her story and at the end she writes, I am determined to keep serving the Lord with gladness as Martin emphasized that last rainy afternoon we spent together. What happened to Martin and me was no one’s fault except that of sinful human beings, the kind we came to the Philippines to help. This ordeal went with the territory. I refuse to let this dampen my joy or detract from the love that God means to flourish in my heart.

Do I miss my husband? Absolutely. But no amount of pining is going to bring him back. I choose instead to rejoice in his memory and to keep it alive in my kids. The special people God gives us along the way make us stronger to face the trials of an ugly world. Obviously, I never expected to face something of this magnitude. But I thank the Lord for helping me to endure it. I honor the legacy of a wise and godly man who kept me going, trail and trail, gun battle after gun battle. And I resolve the keep living in the embrace of God’s gladness and love for as long as He gives me breath.

Between these two books I read “With or Without You: A Journey Through Love and Divorce.” Nothing particularly bad happened to the couple in this book, but somehow they could not deal with the issues that did come up in their relationship, and they are now divorced. It’s a raw account of the physical, mental, emotional and spiritual turmoil that results from a disintegrating marriage. About a quarter of the way into the book I came across a paragraph that jumped out at me. At the end of the book I knew that paragraph encapsulated the reason for their divorce:

God never factored into our relationship enough. We never seemed to move past our own selfishness to see something someone bigger than ourselves. We should have been stuck together with God’s glue, as the U2 song Staring at the Sun says, but we were only stuck together by a marriage certificate and rings on our left hands. God was never the foundation of our relationship. He was only a nice add-on that we sometimes took off the shelf when it seemed convenient or needed.

All this caused me to reflect on marriage.

My first lessons in biblical marriage were given by the pastor and wife of our little mission church, who happened to be a great example of opposites attract, he was a type A personality and extremely gregarious while she was a quiet, private kind of person. Once I asked how they’d ever gotten together since they were so different. I don’t recall his exact words but the gist of it was, If a couple is just alike, one of them is redundant. God meant for couples to complement each other, not duplicate each other. Another time I was sitting and visiting with his wife and asked if he didn’t just make her crazy sometimes, and had she ever thought about divorcing him? Without missing a beat, she said, Divorce? No. Murder yes. But divorce is not an option. I was drinking a Coke at the time, and do you know how painful it is to snort soda through your nose?!

The bottom line in any relationship is whether God is factored into it. For the Birdwells and the Burnhams, God was the foundation for their relationship and that made all the difference. That’s why I found their stories so uplifting and encouraging.

And why I found the other book so profoundly sad.

Missions Conferences

2005-09-20T13:53:00Z

We love Missions Conferences! We were so encouraged by the Missions Conference this past week that was hosted by eight churches north of Grand Rapids. There was a greater opportunity to get to know the people and other missionaries and we just had a wonderful time of fellowship!

Ivan and I were invited to participate by the Langston Church and Ivan really enjoyed being able to speak Spanish with Pastor Tom, a former missionary in Bolivia, and the other missionaries almost all were from Spanish speaking countries!

On their way to Mexico are Dan and MeLinda Nelson, both MKs from Central America so already fluent in the language. They’re going with the Baptist General Conference.
Ryan and Gretchen Rought will be heading to Costa Rica with ABWE where theyâ€™ll be involved in training and ministering to the police force. Ryan has served in the military and is currently on the police force here in Michigan and God has opened this very unique door of ministry for them.
And Dick and Angie Ludy have been in Mexico for many years with Biblical Ministries Wordlwide. They’re currently working in Guadalajara.

We also met one of the staff from Alpha Crisis Center, a multi-branch pro-life pregnancy center in the Grand Rapids area. It was such a blessing to hear about the different ministries and how God is working in lives around the world.

A couple in the Langston church allowed us to use their lake cottage for the week, and it was so peaceful there. It was overall just a great time of having our batteries recharged as we are well into year two of deputation now.

I was especially thankful for the Conference as it came at a very opportune time, right after I helped Tina get settled at college down in Florida. This separation is much harder on dad and mom than on daughter! (Although she misses us, too.) We’re excited for her, for the opportunity to really study the Word of God this year and to be involved in a variety of ministries.

Tina was chosen to be on the drama team so will be doing a lot of traveling to schools and churches. Once we know her schedule, I’ll post it so you can see if sheâ€™ll be near you! She’ll also be in the big Christmas and Easter productions that Word of Life Bible Institute in Florida puts on each year. And the last week of September she’ll be going with about 30 other students and staff to help with hurricane relief. They’ll be helping clean up and rebuild a church that was destroyed in Gulfport. WOLBI Florida is sending teams over several weeks to help with this project.

Please pray for stamina and strength for Tina. She had another mild case of mono right before leaving for college and her blood sugar was quite low, too. She’s working hard to eat right and get enough rest, and is feeling much better now.

Summer 2005 Prayer Letter

2005-08-11T13:49:00Z

Dear Friends:

When you’re a child, summer stretches before you endlessly, with the promise of long, lazy days and no set schedule. Now most of us would be happy for a day like that occasionally! But as a child of God our days are spent seeing Him at work as He comforts those who are discouraged or sad, brings joy in the middle of trouble, and guides those we love. He fills our days and that’s a good thing!

It was great traveling with Tito Ramirez during the month of May, visiting six of his supporting churches as he gave updates on the work in Carlos Paz and introduced us as his future teammates. What a blessing!

In June the schedule included visits to three churches here in Michigan and a week at mission headquarters for Synergy. That’s when any BMW missionary who is in the U.S. can gather for a time of fellowship, brainstorming, learning and just plain fun. How encouraging and energizing! Plus there was time to see Ivan’s brother, Lynn, and some of his family who moved to Atlanta last year.

Besides visiting several churches in July, Ivan also preached at our home church. And he performed the wedding for one of the young ladies who was in the youth group when Ivan was youth pastor. That was a joy!

If you’re in the tri-state area (Michigan, Indiana or Ohio) and would like us to come and share with you, your family, small group or church, please call! We love to share our vision for ministry in Argentina with anyone who will sit still long enough! Now available is an 8-minute video from the Ramirez about the ongoing work in Carlos Paz so just ask if you’re interested in receiving a copy.

Please continue to pray that God will connect us with churches and individuals to partner in this ministry. How exciting to hear from several individuals recently who want to get behind us with their prayers and financial support! It would be great to get commitments even from those who don’t plan to start the support until we’re ready to leave for the field.

Some wonderful things are happening in our family these days! Our son Jon was recently saved. What an amazing blessing to see him growing in the Lord; there have been some huge turnarounds in his life. Praise God for the saving grace of Jesus! And Tina thoroughly enjoyed her short-term missions trip to Uganda. She’s still assimilating all the experiences, especially working in the clinic at Kasana Children’s Center. It has made her consider a degree in nursing!

Jon has developed a website where prayer needs can be updated, as well as news about what is happening. The website address is: <hoytsonline> Please check it out! In addition to our prayer letters and periodic updates, the site will feature photos, our biographical sheet, the strategy sheet for the work in Carlos Paz, and a few other things. We really appreciate all of Jon’s hard work! Many hours went into the project. More photos and information will be added as we have time.

Current prayer needs: 1) that God would connect us with churches and individuals who would support us; and 2) for Kim as she continues to study Spanish on her own this summer. Have a wonderful summer and hopefully an occasional lazy day!

Acts 19, Moose Tracks and Tango

2005-08-03T13:45:00Z

Yesterday after work I dedicated to preparing for Bible study since it was the only block of time I had. My leaning towards doing made me feel a bit guilty that I wasn’t helping with the work project at the ladies burned down house. It turns out that about 60 people showed up, three trucks and a loader. God blessed the effort, the project was completed and I stayed home and was blessed by His Word.

Acts 19 an exciting chapter in an exciting book that hits the highlights of God’s work in the establishment of the Church in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria and the ends of the earth. Ephesus in Asia Minor is the focus. Paul starts by asking some disciples (of John) a very revealing question: “Did you receive the Spirit when you believed?” By their response he immediatly knew their status. They had repented (Baptism of John) but lacked some pieces just like Apollos had (ch 18:18-27). Paul fills in the blanks for them intellectually and God did the rest. They believed, were baptized, received the Spirit and it was manifested to them through speaking in tongues and prophecy. Another example to the unbelieving Jews of God’s inclusion of the Gentiles, authentication of the messengers and formost of Jesus as Christ / Messiah.

This piece generated a good discussion at Bible study and a great deal of the time was dedicated to a discussion about the purpose or function of tongues in the context of Acts and the subsequent change in the epistles up to the present day. The more I study His Word the more I see this pattern. The great need for tongues at the beginning and the subsequent cessation in the Biblical account.

We only got through verse 7. But ended with Pastor sharing that he himself would love having an occasional “postcard” (a supernatural manifestation)from God confirming His direction, activity and presence. Wouldn’t we all? However, His inspired Word is sufficient and we are called to “Trust and Obey”. We sang the first verse and the chorus then had a sweet time of prayer.

Had a nice time afterwards talking, looking into the water heater element problem and topped it all off with a scoop of ice cream at Moscow General Store along with John and Loretta. Sweet fellowship and Moose Tracks. I appreciate my church family more now that we’ve had to be away so much visiting other churches. There’s no place like home.

On the way home Tina called and wondered if I wanted to play Settlers with Al, Jon and her. We played one game and Tina soundly beat us. I must get faster at doing this. I’ve discovered a website that has new Argentine Tango selections every day. This post has been a “two time through the selections” one. I hopefully I’ll get better at it and make it in one lap.

March Prayer Letter

2005-03-31T18:30:00Z

Dear Friends and Family:

Living in Michigan has its ups and downs, especially when it comes to the weather! This last week began with summer-like conditions; the sun was shining and the thermometer edged past 80. But it ended with below freezing temperatures and snow.

Preparing for full-time missionary service has its ups and downs, too. We were really excited when God provided a way for Kim to resign from her job at the bank in February. Now thereâ€™s adequate time to study Spanish, help Ivan with church and pastor communications, as well as be more available for ministry opportunities.

Another blessing is the contact weâ€™ve had with churches around Michigan over the winter and into the spring. What an encouragement to see vibrant, thriving congregations seeking to reach their communities and the world with the Gospel! Involvement in a recent missions conference at Decatur Bible Church helped re-charge our batteries, by spending time with other missionaries and hearing their stories, and by having more time to get to know the folks in Decatur.

Tito Ramirez is in the U.S. on a “mini” furlough and Ivan will travel a couple of weekends in May with him. It may work for Kim to go along, too. Itâ€™s great to have this opportunity to spend more time with a dear teammate. The rest of the Ramirez family remained in Argentina to carry on the work already begun in Carlos Paz.

But on the flip side… Kim really struggles at times with learning the language. Did you know there are 14 verb tenses in Spanish? And with six forms in each tense, that means you can conjugate each and every verb 84 different ways!!! And just the sheer volume of new vocabulary words can be overwhelming.

Ivan struggles to keep up with all of his responsibilitiesâ€¦traveling almost every weekend, working full-time, being on the pastoral staff at Countryside Bible Church… This is not to complain, but to ask you to pray for us. Daily we need Godâ€™s grace and strength, as we prepare, and later when we are in Argentina. We cannot emphasize enough the need for faithful prayer partners!

And please keep praying that God would connect us with churches and individuals that have a real desire to see churches planted in Argentinaâ€¦who want to see their missionaries as more than faces on a prayer cardâ€¦who seek a partnership with a reciprocal prayer relationship, frequent communications, and mutual accountability.

This spring marks the end of a journey for us. We began home schooling in 1986. Jon home schooled all the way through high school and then went to Hillsdale College, where he graduated last year. Now we are graduating Tina from high school on May 7th. Itâ€™s a little earlier than most graduations because she will be traveling to Uganda in early June on a short-term missions trip. And in the fall Tina will attend Word of Life Bible Institute in Hudson, Florida. So we prepare to let go of our little girl, who has grown into a lovely young woman who seeks after God. What a blessing she has been! Thanks for your prayers â€“ each of you has been an encouragement and blessing. May God continue to use you in the lives of those around you and throughout the world, as you remain faithful.

During a break at the mission conference in Decatur, Ivan and Chris Green relax outside. Chris is a missionary appointee with BMW to the deaf community. Chris is profoundly deaf himself.

Some of the folks who get together every week for Sunday worship in Carlos Paz, Argentina.