New Church Plant In Paraguay...

New Church Plant in the city of Ñemby, Paraguay!
God was glorified once again in Paraguay this past month! This time with the announcement and beginning of a new congregation of the Lord’s church in the city of Ñemby. A group of members from the Avenida Sacramento congregation, who all live in Ñemby, held a special meeting on June 27 in the home of the Martinez family to make decisions regarding the idea of planting a church in that city. They decided that they all felt ready to begin holding services this month so they would ask the brethren at Avenida Sacramento for assistance. On July 7, 2013 there were 50 people from among the new congregation and their two sister congregations who met to worship together and encourage these brethren in their new effort. Praise our Lord!

Brother Eliezer Perez is doing a find job in his second month as a missionary to Ñemby. He has produced a a detailed report of the work (in Spanish) which is available at: NEMBY INFORME 

Baptized! María Belen Norguera. 
She is the life-long friend of our sister in Christ, Natalia Mendoza. She had been studying with Natalia off and on for several years and had always noticed something different and good in her. So, she finally asked Natalia about her faith. After studying the need for baptism in order to be saved, she decided she needed to obey the Gospel call … and she didn’t want to wait any longer! She was SO happy when she came up out of the baptismal waters. We sang and prayed and simply rejoiced with her in her wonderful decision. Natalia is now going to be studying some new convert lessons with her. Praise Him! 

ASUNCIÓN BIBLE ACADEMY UPDATE
The students are currently in their second quarter of studies and it is becoming obvious this is a little more difficult task than they first imagined. The studies are now more focused and demanding, but the students are showing great improvement in their study skills and understanding of God’s word. 

This past month, the students participated in another evangelistic campaign, working alongside a short term mission team from Palm Beach Lakes church of Christ. Working in the city of Ñemby, once again, they generated more than a dozen good contacts and held several Bible studies. Their enthusiasm and work ethic in evangelizing was rather impressive. It is really heart warming to see their zeal to spread God’s saving message to the lost. Please keep them in your prayers.

Ramón is 27 years old and is a native Paraguayan who is also fluent in the Guarani language. His current grade point average is 82.7 and his favorite subject so far has been the study of Genesis. The following is a thank you letter from Ramon. 

“Hello! My name is Ramon Paredes.”

“I am [currently] studying at the Asuncion Bible Academy. I want to give thanks to all of you, my brothers in Christ, who are supporting us so that we may be here to study without having to worry about anything, but just dedicate time to be well prepared in order to work in the kingdom of our God. [So that we may also] be well prepared to give an answer to anyone who asks about the hope that is in us (1 Peter 3:15), as well as, to know the will of God, that He does not want any to perish but for all to be in reach of salvation.

Thank you for your continued support of us so that the kingdom of God may continue to grow while we are [striving to] bring more souls to Christ.

May God bless you!”

Palm Beach Lakes Mission Group Comes To Paraguay!
A mission group from Palm Beach Lakes (FL) came to Paraguay from June 28 thru July 7 to work with the church here. They assisted us with our evangelism campaign in Ñemby, brought some lessons to share, and completed service projects. The purpose was to gain new contacts for the upcoming church plant. The effort resulted in more than a half dozen Bible studies being held and about 20 new, promising  contacts made. Since the campaign, we have had visitors come to services and more Bible studies conducted. Those we had join us were, Marie Hackshaw, Gwen Lyons, Phil and Mary Porter, Adam Seal, and Giselle Smith. The mission team did a wonderful job and greatly encouraged our brethren here in Paraguay.

One of their activities was a benevolence project at the house of our sister in Christ, Mirta Vera. We painted, cleaned, and made several repairs in order to help her. She cares for two adopted children and her 90-yearold mother. She was so happy and thankful! 

Ruben Pacheco
Andrea received some terrible news on July 14th from her family back in Florida, that her 18-year-old nephew, Ruben Pacheco, had been in a deadly car accident. At the moment, he was on life support. Several very gracious brethren provided funds for Andrea to be able to return to the USA in order to be with her family. We can’t say thank you enough for your care and concern. Sadly, Ruben passed away the following day and the family held a memorial service for him on Saturday the 20th. He was a registered organ donor and through this gift he was able to give life and relief to at least 8 other people. The family is still struggling with the loss and we ask you for your prayers.

Bible Studies / Visitation / Other Activities:

  • I starting up the study of Revelation again with our sister Elvira Dominguez. She has brought her friend, Susana Paredes, to study with us, as well. So the study has resulted in a rather interesting and challenging evangelistic effort.
  • We spent the “4th of July” with the Yegros family while the mission group from Palm Beach Lakes was here. There was BBQ, fireworks, Americans, and the US flag. What more could one ask for a US holiday on foreign soil?
  • We took several brethren from Palm Beach Lakes over to visit our sister in Christ, Odila Uriola. She is the widow of one of the first missionaries to Paraguay back in the 1970’s. One can still witness the fruit of their labor because several of our members that we have today are converts from that effort years ago. The congregation at “Centro” was also a result of their work. We are very thankful for her example! 

PRAYER REQUESTS
You can help the church in Paraguay by adding the following to you prayers:

  • For continued leadership development among the men of the church in Paraguay
  • Spiritual development of members
  • Our current Bible study contacts and that God may provide others
  • For the students and faculty of the Asuncion Bible Academy
  • For the members of the new church plant in Ñemby
  • Improvement of Andrea's health
  • Safe travels throughout our work week
  • Continued improvement in Spanish speaking skills 

Cultural or language discovery:
Most Paraguayan bathrooms (that have running water) have electrical showerheads in them called a “calefón,” or “ducha electrica.” Cold water passes through the showerhead which is heated by an electrical element inside. To an American, it is rather unnerving to step into a shower with standing water and visible (sometimes bare) electrical wires. No wonder they have been dubbed as "widow makers!"

We have these in our house also but Andrea says, “Sure it’s a little scary, but at least I never run out of hot water!”

There's always a bright side!

Troy and Andrea Spradlin

To see Troy’s report with pictures and additional links, please click here.

Posted on August 4, 2013 .