Year-End 2015

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Hello Friends!

Greetings from the Isle of Enchantment, Puerto Rico! I’m here for a 7-week mission, but first a bit about the moving trip from Maryland to my home base in Colorado. I took a little over a week with stops to visit friends and family, including people I hadn’t seen for many years. 

I enjoyed Sabbath days with the Milton Seventh Day Baptist Church (Wisconsin) and the North Loup SDBs (Nebraska). I was especially glad to visit some of the people who helped me grow in the faith as a youth; Francie Van Horn and Rev. Mynor and Marian Soper. I also made a brief stop at Rez Connection on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation to catch up with the Marks Family; yet another example of godly people who have influenced me for good. I’m so thankful for all of them.

North Loup, Nebraska, SDB Church

Milton Seventh Day Baptist (where I was baptized, age 12)

Rev. Mynor and Marian Soper

On October 24 in Boulder, Colorado, my son, Paul, married Aimée Joy Woodard. It was a beautiful ceremony followed by a great celebratory supper. They chose to be barefooted for the ceremony (Paul loves to run barefoot, Aimée is a dancer) and included washing each other’s feet to demonstrate their commitment to care for one another. They are a wonderful couple, ready to serve the Lord in Navigator’s ministry at the CU Boulder Campus. I’m very excited to have a new daughter in the family and look forward to spending time with them during Christmas break.

Scenic overlook in Aguadilla

On Monday following the wedding it was off to Puerto Rico with pastors Judith and Joel Houts. They invited me here to help with gathering the documents needed to request membership in the SDB General Conference. The temperatures are in the 80s every day and low 70s at night. Rough, huh? Just keep in mind it comes with high humidity (sweat, sweat). The scenery is beautiful with lush forests, abundant flowers and sandy beaches. 

Trinitaria (Bougainvillea)

We’re an hour away from the shore (and two hours west of San Juan) up in the mountains in the city of San Sebastián. Well, actually on a hilltop above the city in a community called Hoyamala. The church sits on the main road with good visibility. 

Pastora Judith Houts

Pastora Judith is a native of Puerto Rico but lived in the U.S. for many years. She returned a few years ago to care for her mother before she passed away. God led the Houts to people who responded to the gospel message and a new church was born.

Puerto Rico is a U.S. territory and many people speak some English but Spanish is the primary language. The longer I’m here the better I can speak it but comprehension of rapid-fire speech is a challenge. As a missionary I’m often asked to pray aloud, which I’m glad to do but it takes some thinking to put the right sentences together. (Ever heard of the subjunctive tense?) About the time I get the hang of it, someone chimes in with “Sí, Señor!” or “Amen!” and I’m so startled I lose my next thought. I manage to recover but it makes me laugh inside.

Fridays are Talent Night and people share testimonies, poems, Scripture, a teaching, and various talents. I brought my guitar and have contributed a few songs that I learned in my missionary days in Honduras (1980s). 

The church has cement walls and a tile floor like most buildings here, where termites can be a problem for wood structures. It was previously a small grocery store and they’ve made it attractive inside and out. The music worship team is terrific, led by Marizta and her husband, Adrian. I especially enjoy the praise songs in Spanish with a Caribbean rhythm.  (Search YouTube, “Paseate Nazareno, Faba Marin”.) We have many tambourines and maracas going during the singing time!

Café Sabatino

The church is actively reaching out to the community in many ways. One is the "Café Sabatino", coffee offered to people who wander by on Sabbath morning before church (as in 7:30 am). The price is “just a smile” (Solo una Sonrisa). 

 


 
 





They also host a monthly meal for the needy of the community (same price). In November we served over 20 meals.  I enjoy hearing about people’s lives and answering questions. One man asked what we believed about the second coming of Christ and we started reading passages in the Bible about that. He asked if I had ever read the Bible cover to cover and I was glad for the YouVersion daily Bible reading plans (smart phone app). I’ve read through the Bible 3 times in three years – good stuff!

I’m staying with the Houts in the lower level of their home. The gate at the front of the house says “Agape” (the Greek word for God’s love, also their ministry name). The house is on a hillside. Below my level is the patio where I have access to a 5’x6’ kitchen just right for one. 

 

I have a small refrigerator and cook with a two-burner propane gas stove. Works great! 

 

Behind the house are 1.5 acres of fenced land where they hold summer camp for the youth (that little patio kitchen puts out a lot of food for the campers). They made a cross from a small standing tree and have other creative structures. 

 

Pastor Joel Houts at the camp cross

On a tour of the land, Pastor Joel showed me how he harvests the avocados from 15’ up in the trees using a long pole with a wire basket on the end. I’ve been enjoying those avocados, along with grapefruit from their trees, and bananas! 

I watched Pao (church member and caretaker) push down a small tree to collect the bananas. A banana tree is really a large stalk that blooms and bears fruit just once. It also produces a new shoot before dying, so they harvest the bananas and remove the old tree to make room for the new one.

Not oak leaves - Pana leaves

I’ve taken a few walks along the side roads but it’s a little tricky as they are only slightly wider than a single lane. The houses (or the cement footers for fences) sit right against the road, so very little shoulder space. Every time two cars meet they have to squeeze by using the gutters. It was probably easier in the early days with only horse traffic. :)

Farmer's Market featuring "Bacalao" - dried codfish

I’ve been happy NOT to drive, accepting rides when I need to get somewhere, like a weekly trip to town with resident missionary, Ruth Russell, to get groceries and go to the Post Office. She’s also taken me to the Farmer’s Market where more traditional fare is found - like native fruits, root vegetables and hand-woven baskets.

 To do my work on the church documents I use a small table on the lower level, under stairs and next to the door to the side yard (where I often hear a chorus of wild chickens next door). So far I’ve helped consolidate their statement of belief, updated the English version of the Covenant, and translated the existing Constitution into English from Spanish. Next up is adding By Laws to cover additional church processes.

I enjoyed helping with a visit to a local nursing home (another outreach of the church), singing with the residents and giving a short salvation message. 

One of the highlights for me each week is meeting with an older brother named Adam to teach basic Christian beliefs in preparation for baptism. His home is a small cement structure with a hammock on the porch. He made me a type of coconut candy that I liked despite not being a fan of coconut! (“Where He leads me I will follow, what He feeds me I will swallow.”)

I hope you all enjoyed a happy Thanksgiving. The Houts celebrated with a traditional turkey dinner along with Puerto Rican rice with gandules (small beans aka “pigeon peas” and they grow in the back yard, too). I enjoyed meeting members of their extended family. We closed the day with a small campfire, toasting marshmallows and singing camp songs with guitar accompaniment.

I’m very thankful for God’s many blessings, including all of you for your friendship, prayers and donations. Year-end gifts are much appreciated and can be made out to the SDB Missionary Society, 19 Hillside Ave, Ashaway RI, 02804. Email: Office@sdbmissions.org, Phone: 401-596-4326. (Or mail it to me directly, but it would not be tax-deductible.)

I return to Colorado on December 14 and look forward to some down time. In mid-January I’ll load up the car again and drive to the Seattle area to serve the new Spanish-speaking church under the leadership of Pastor Ben and Marcela Figueroa. Please pray for safe travel and for God’s provision for housing (it’s on the expensive side there). Also pray for these new church plants as they seek to love their communities and grow new believers. 

Merry Christmas to you all!  Feliz Navidad!

View from our neighborhood along one of my walking routes