Grace Missions Blog

Wow!  We had a great day today!  We started the day with a ladies’ devotion led by Kittie Camp.  Several ladies shared how much they appreciated her devotion and what a wonderful job she did of sharing.  I could hear them from downstairs as they were having too much fun upstairs.  That’s a good thing as they fellowshipped together in the Word.  The men were led by Bro. Gerald Whitmore and he did a wonderful job of sharing on the parable of the fig tree.  Great devotion.

After our devotions, we headed to The Rivers of Living Water Evangelical Church (English translation so I’m told) where Pastor Walter Aju ministers.  We walked in and the graciousness of the church people was overwhelming.  We hugged, shook hands, hugged again, shook hands again…you get the picture.  The music was wonderful.  Pastor Walter came and asked me to preach.  I really wasn’t ready to preach but, from my youth, I’ve been taught that a man of God must always be ready to give account of what the Lord has done for him.   We were blessed as the church had an American born gentleman in the congregation who graciously offered to translate.  So on the spur of the moment, I preached and he interpreted.  What a fantastic opportunity, though I buffeted myself inside for not doing what I felt was a better job of sharing.   Mike, the translator, did a wonderful job trying to translate my yankee, southern, & midwestern slaughtering of the English language.  Bless him Lord as I fear he will never be the same again!

After the service, we went to Las Antorchas and had a great meal.  We asked Pastor Walter and his family, as well as Mike, to join us for lunch.  Lunch was excellent as always and the owner, Philippe Rambert, was very kind and gracious.  Then it was off to the market to shop till they dropped.

A van load came back to the house as they did not want to shop (Can you believe it?).  Yours truly was one of them!

I (Bro. Jerry) am sitting in the worship area of the mission house, alone, as I type this blog.  I can hear several of the folks getting ready for bed.  We arrived about 9:30p.m. and Bro. Kerry and Willie were right behind us.  It is now 1:21a.m. Sunday morning and all is well.  The day was a good day considering so many things could have gone wrong but did not.  O, rest assured that we had our share of challenges and I must admit that none of them seemed to deter this group.  This is going to be a real interesting and, I believe, a very pivotal week in the ministry of Martin Bluff Baptist Church. 

Pray for Beverly Small and her sister, Faye Craven, as they wait in New Orleans until Monday to get a renewed passport for Beverly.  Her passport was not expired but it went through Katrina and was damaged  beyond use.  They elected to stay behind and try to get this matter taken care of so that both of them could join yet a third sister on the trip who is already here at the mission house.

Tomorrow should be a special day as Kittie Camp, whose husband this building was dedicated after, will be sharing with the ladies while Gerald Whitmore will share with the men.  Then it’s  off to a Spanish speaking worship serivice and on to the restaurant and shopping.  I think Tena has BIG plans tomorrow but I hope not.

All of our folks are well and are very anxious to see and do. 

We have so much to be thankful for.  The bus driver, John, was a great driver, we had a heaven sent lady, Tammy, at the check in counter to help us at AA., we made it safely here despite my driving, and we have already had a good few moments together.

More hopefully tomorrow,

Bro. Jerry

Line change – isn’t that a hockey term?  (Help me Mark!)  At any rate, the team being led by Bro. Johnny Tucker is leaving the L.G. Camp, Jr. Mission House this morning and our next GRACE team being led by Bro. Jerry Hovel is headed for the Camp house.  Pray for these teams as they travel today. 

Bro. Jerry has plans to post daily updates on this GRACE blog.  I don’t know whether that will happen beginning today or tomorrow but it is supposed to happen.  Stayed tuned! 

Lisa, the girls, Garrett Borja and I had the latest scheduled return time as our plane landed in Mobile at 10:25PM.  As far as I know, the folks in Texas, Tennessee, and South Carolina all arrived home safely – to God be the glory!  I hope to summarize at some point this weekend.  Thanks for your prayers! 

I feel that we had an excellent last day of ministry.  We changed our normal routine as we went to Pastores for our morning devotion so that our team could meet Estuardo.  It seemed to be good for Estuardo and his family that we were there.  One of the ladies from South Carolina, Donna Payne, is a nurse and she checked Estuardo because of bed sores.  I thank God for her kindness to him and his family.  That was an excellent time of ministry. 

Our team then went to El Durazno to dedicate the 15 houses.  One team poured cement in the final house while the other 14 were being dedicated.  A couple of other teams put the fronts on three others and all of the houses were completely finished – glory to God! 

The team did a Burger King stop and then came back to the mission house where they mowed the lawn, washed vehicles, and got ready to go home.  We had a share time last night and that was a sweet time especially as those first timers shared what God has done in their lives this week. 

Bret Hart led the final day of the baseball clinic and it went well too.  Eli Eliciero shared his personal testimony and the boys listened intently.  Those boys have enjoyed the past three afternoons.  I appreciate Bret and the others who have taken the time to invest in these young lives.

Josh Caldwell got a good report yesterday in that he has no cancer anywhere else in his body.  The type cancer he has is the same that Lance Armstrong battled.  Chemotherapy is effective in treating this type cancer.  Continue to pray for Josh. 

It is my understanding that the service for Jack Leasure went well.  Thanks for each person who attended the visitation and/or service.  Thanks to Bro. Jerry for leading the service. 

It is almost 3:00AM and I am about to take our South Carolina brothers & sisters to the airport as they have the early flight home.  I will return and the rest of us will leave the mission house at 8:30AM.  

Thanks for your prayers and I ask that you continue to pray for us as we travel home today.  We have had an awesome trip!  God is good! 

We had a great Wednesday.  Pastor Danny Sinquefield did a great job of bringing us the Word from Psalm 46:10 – 11.  The four pastors have done an excellent job of ministering to us through the Word each morning on this trip.  Awesome! 

Lynne Garcia, Alma Rodriguez, Deidra, and Rita Arriola went to Panimaquin yesterday to lead a women’s conference.  (I sent Soy along as a body guard)  From all reports, they have an excellent time of ministry. 

Pastor Abel Garcia and Pastor Terry Rainey led a team back to the seminary to paint.  Yes, Pastor Rainey actually painted in spite of his severe pain!  I honestly don’t know if they finished or not but I do know they had a good day.

The rest of our folks went back to build.  The last two houses were built and three more received cement.  Once again, the rains came and didn’t allow them to cement the final house.  That will get done today. 

Bret Hart led the second day of the baseball clinic.  The rains kept them inside for most of the day but they had a good time.  I am praying that the rains will hold off today so they can have the entire clinic outside. 

We went to another village and distributed clothes and food to 100 families.  That was a precious time.  Pastor Abel has really done a good job of helping lead that ministry.  The Lord blessed by holding the rain until we could get finished as we were outside. 

No new happenings with Josh Caldwell.  Pastor Travis – Pastor Terry appreciates your kind offer but said he has several pastor friends in the immediate area who are ministering for him. 

My thoughts were with the Leasure family last night and that will be true today also.  Pray for that service that will take place at 10:00AM. 

Pray that we will have a great final day of ministry! 

As you can see, this entry is coming on Wednesday morning as opposed to Tuesday night.  Here is a recap of yesterday’s happenings – our day began with a Bible study led by Pastor Terry Rainey.  Great word from the Word! 

A team went to Amor del Nino to visit with Steve & Shyrel Osborn and then stopped back by Casa Aleluya for a self guided tour.  They had a good day. 

Another team went back to El Durazno and continued the building process.  Four more houses were constructed bringing that total to 13 and four more received cement bringing that total to 11.  This team was joined by Jack, Ryan, & Ashly Ciak from Casa Aleluya along with a gentleman from Arkansas, Stan Harris.  They were a great help.  That team finished the day in a torrential downpour and left the building site soaked from top to bottom.  (I thought of Pastor Byron and the folks from 1st Lacombe as they faced those types of rains daily during their recent trip)

Bret Hart led a team to the seminary where they conducted the first day of a baseball clinic.  The rains forced them inside and kept the numbers low but they had a good day.  Pastor Danny Sinquefield presented a devotional as some of these boys are not Christians. 

We then hosted 45 boys from Vencedores.  The rain and subsequent wet surroundings kept them inside but it was a good time nonetheless.  Those boys devoured 22 pizzas and brownies in just a few minutes.  They love to come the the White House! 

Bro. Jose Angel Samol is the President of the National Baptist Convention for all of Guatemala.  He drove from Guatemala City to the mission house last night for a visit.  We had a good time visiting with him in trying to determine how we can help the churches of his convention.  I think God may be opening the door for some future ministry efforts between Bro. Jose and Pastor Danny. 

The word came yesterday that Josh Caldwell does have cancer.  I appreciate Pastor Terry Rainey being here but his heart is really in that hospital room with Josh.  I am not sure what the next step in this process is and I also do not know the type of cancer.  Pray for Josh! 

Chris Chow uploaded a few more pictures last night.  I also noticed that the other Chinese Chris back in Alabama uploaded some from last week’s trip.  I appreciate these guys doing this. 

Pray for the Leasure family as they have the visitation tonight.  Remember, no services in the auditorium this morning or tonight.  All other classes, Bible studies, etc. remain as scheduled. 

Pray for us that we will finish strong! 

This post is actually a recap of Monday’s happenings.  (I may post again tonight about today’s activities)  Our Monday began with a Bible study led by Pastor Eddie Burdette.  He encouraged us to get in the Word and to stay in the Word! 

Pastor Abel Garcia led a team of seven to the seminary to finish the paint job that our team started last week.  They did that and moved on to an apartment.  A team will go back tomorrow to tackle another house. 

We had a slower day on the house building side.  We got two more cemented and three others constructed.  However, Mike Borja led a team that completely finished everything that has been built up to this point so five houses are completely finished. 

We quit at 2:00PM in order to get ready for a night of village ministry.  We drove about one hour to a village and distributed food and clothes to 100 families.  That was a good night of ministry! 

Josh Caldwell saw the oncologist yesterday morning and they put him in the hospital.  I don’t think surgery is an option at this point in time.  However, the chest x-ray and the bone marrow scan came back good.  I honestly don’t know enough to give you the details but do know that Josh continues to need our prayers. 

My world was shaken a bit twice yesterday morning.  First, I received word of Jack Leasure’s passing (read the Pastor’s blog today).  Then, I called Mario & Amuy Monroy only to find out that they were basically be “deported” from the country back to Panama.  It is a long story but suffice it to say that the government would not grant them an extension on their visas.  They came for a brief visit last night and we prayed for them.  They left Guatemala this morning at 6:00AM.  They may get back into Guatemala on a tourist visa for 90 days but there is a strong possibility their daughter will not be allowed back in.  Crazy stuff!  Pray for Mario & Amuy! 

Again, I hope to update tonight.  We have a busy Tuesday ahead of us.  God is continuing to bless us with great weather.  Kim French, those rags you sent down have been great for washing the vehicles – thanks!

This is actually my second post with the title of Sunday, 7/6/08, but the first one was actually from yesterday.  It is now 9:30PM and we just finished having an evening service featuring the music ministry of Rita Arriola and the preaching ministry of Pastor Terry Rainey.  The South Carolina folks are busy preparing materials for tomorrow night’s village ministry.  Others are playing games, the kitchen clean up crew just finished, and some folks have gone to bed in order to be ready for tomorrow’s activities. 

We had a great Sunday.  Pastor Abel Garcia shared a great word with us this morning during our Bible study time.  It was a wonderful way to begin the day!

Pastor Danny Sinquefield, Pastor Abel Garcia, Pastor Eddie Burdette, and Pastor Terry Rainey preached in four of the local CAM churches this morning.  They all had a great time and did a great job.  I appreciate Tico Vargas, seminary president, setting all of this up for us. 

The meal at Las Antorchas was awesome.  Philippe Rambert always takes good care of our teams.  We were in shortly before noon and out around 12:30PM.  Great service, great food, and great fellowship! 

The shopping was – I don’t know as I came back to the mission house to pray for three hours! 

Chris Chow is a young man from Faith Baptist in Bartlett, TN and he has uploaded some pictures to our photo gallery.  They are under the GRACE 2008 section.  Chris is a computer genius!  Ironically, he is Chinese!  I really appreciate his kind spirit and willingness to help this computer illiterate pastor! 

I had posted the other day that Josh Caldwell was having surgery tomorrow.  That was in error.  Actually, he is meeting with an oncologist to determine a course of action.  My prayer is that the oncologist will not find anything wrong with Josh due to a divine healing by our heavenly Father. 

I continue to read the blog entries by our summer missionary.  Please keep her in your prayers! 

Pastor Eddie Burdette will share the Word with us in the morning.  We will be building houses, painting at the seminary, and doing village ministry in the late afternoon.  Pray for us. 

Sherry, Lynne & Abel are not following your instructions! 

What a wonderful first day for this team!  We didn’t begin our morning devotion until 8:00AM and it lasted a couple of hours.  Pastor Terry Rainey led the musical worship and then Pastor Danny Sinquefield brought a great message from the Word.  He used Acts 11 as his text and spoke about the church in Antioch.  Good stuff! 

We got to our building site around 10:30AM or so and had three teams.  We built five houses with four of them receiving concrete.  These folks did a great job of working and the first timers took to the house building like a duck takes to water.  The rain came about 4:30PM and eventually forced us to call it a day. 

The cooking crew did a nice job as we came home to a wonderful meal.  The downside to this wonderful meal was that I had kitchen duty and it was about a 2 1/2 hours ordeal.  Folks should eat on paper towels the first night of each trip!  Donald Pannell (a huge Ole Miss fan) was great and he stayed to the very end and did an outstanding job! 

Today we are sending Pastor Abel, Pastor Danny, Pastor Eddie, and Pastor Terry to four churches to preach.  Tonight, we will have a service in the upper room. 

We will do the usual Sunday thing with lunch at Las Antorchas followed by shopping.  We will be praying for our respective churches as they meet today.  Pray for us!