The Harvest is Plentiful

It has now been a year since the B-Team first met in the kitchen after CCF for the purpose of going to Bolivia. We have been back in the states for five months, and we celebrated this 1 year team-anniversary this past Sunday over a hearty meal made complete with Orange Fanta. The incredible thing to realize was that the adventure hasn’t stopped yet, our time in Bolivia may have ended months ago, but our impact in Bolivia hasn’t and Bolivia’s impact on us is still being played out. When we left, our efforts had affected the lives of hundreds of kids and adults that we had the blessed opportunity to work, play, serve, and live with. Since then we have continued to get updates from Dan and his team that show us God is multiplying our labor and producing fruit. The sports camps that we took down there are spreading rapidly and are no longer confined to Bolivia, they have moved on to Uruguay and Brazil. Directly we were fortunate to impact hundreds, indirectly God is using our efforts and the faithfulness of missionaries and churches to impact thousands. I can assure you, He isn’t done.

For a year now God has been using this trip to Bolivia to grow and transform us in ways that we never anticipated, nor did we always desire. That growth is still prevalent today; we each have subtle and explicit areas of our lives that will never be the same because of how God used our time in Bolivia. Thank you for supporting and praying for us as we represented Christ this past summer. I can assure you, we aren’t done

.

Our team member and friend Javi, is going back for seven months to pick up where he left off. Javi is exceptionally talented, and has been gifted with business skills that Dan thinks will be a tremendous blessing as they ramp up the Business as Mission (BAM). Javi is leaving the life he has here, friends, family, work, and leaving for Bolivia in a little over three weeks. You probably don’t know him, but I ask that you would please consider supporting and praying for Javi, because if you know our God you can be excited for the kinds of things that He will do through someone that leaves what they have to Follow Him. I can assure you, Javi is just beginning.

Gracias

Pablo

**Below is the support letter that Javi sent out a few months ago, it has the details you need to financially support him.

Dear friends and family,                                        December 2012

This past September I had the opportunity to be part of an amazing team that went to Bolivia.  A group of 11 of us from the college ministry of First Baptist-Eugene was invited by Dan and Daryl Collins, World Venture missionaries in Bolivia, to work with them. Their heart for the Bolivian people and desire to share the gospel was what led our group down there.  I was there for three weeks and during that time was invited to return. That is what this letter is all about. My goal is to return to Bolivia this coming February for seven months.

Amazing things happened to get our team to Bolivia and I am so glad that I went. Like many people would say afterwards, it was a life-changing trip. It was for me, not only because of the experience but because I knew in my heart it was where God wanted me to be. And, one day while having an awesome cup of coffee with Dan Collins I was able to share a bit about myself with him. When we were done talking he invited me to come back and to be part of his team. Because of my years of work here in Eugene in business and marketing, he wants me to help in the "business as missions" area of his ministry. A big part of what I will be doing involves helping the carpentry shop there develop a better marketing and sales plan. I will also help oversee a short-term team of college business students. In addition, the Holzer family should arrive in January or February, and because he also has a business background, the two of us, plus a Bolivian leader, Tito, will be working on the revolving fund and on doing business conferences together.

My need now is to have people praying for me and also to find people who will provide the financial support I need. Before I can leave, I need funds for the round trip tickets, for ministry funds, for housing etc. Funds contributed, either as one-time gifts or in monthly contributions will be tax deductible and should be sent to Delta Ministries. This organization works closely with World Venture and will handle my finances. Attached is a response form that can be used and information about how to contribute on-line.

So, thanks for reading this. Please pray for me, that I will be clearly led of the Lord in this preparation process and that I will be able to go to serve in Bolivia in February. If you have questions or suggestions, please let me know.

Big Thanks,                                                               

Javi Martinez

868 South 34th Place

Springfield, OR 97478                                                                                                

Cell: 541-868-6742 Email: javimp12@gmail.com

 

Arrrriiibbbbaaa!!

Hola Amigos y Familia!

Time is flying by and I can´t even believe that we have spent a week and a half in this beautiful place. It is becoming evident to me that three weeks is not enough to explore the city of Cochabamba, much less explore a whole country. However, every day has been jam-packed with activity, new experiences and so much laughter. Dan Collins, who has been living here as a missionary for years, asked us about our high and low points of the trip, and I honestly could not think of a low point. Maybe its because I am positive by nature, but there is something to be said for the beauty of the mountains, the kindness of the people, and the hand of God in our everyday lives that has already made this trip fantastic. Instead of giving you a rundown of what we have done, (which I feel like the other team members do really well), this is an attempt at giving you the flavor, (both literally and figuratively), of our everyday experience here in Cochabamba.

1.       THE CITY: Cochabamba rightly boasts the nickname “City of the Eternal Spring”. It has been cool and crisp every morning and sunny and warm every afternoon-- truly spring-like weather even though it is the middle of winter. We are surrounded by mountains that rise above the city skyline as a reminder that we can only badly replicate God´s artistry and grandness. At night, the hills are positively alive with light, and it looks like the sky and the ground have been switched so that the stars illuminate the earth instead of the heavens. I know I make it sound like it’s wonderland, and in some ways it is, but there is a lot of need here as well.

 The streets are full of campesinos (people from the country), that are desperately trying to make ends meet, schools are full of children that need extra attention, and the government is corrupt and infrastructure broken. Public parks are well taken care of, but streets are fair game for trash and all manner of waste. This is a place where beauty out of chaos is evident in everything. The boganvilla flourishes because the sewer is broken, Spanish and Quechua and Ayamara are spoken everywhere as modernization and globalization mix capitalism and poverty with tradition and changing social norms. The flavor of the city is hard to pin down, but it smells like empanadas and smoke. The energy of traffic and constant motion is slowed by the Bolivian concept of “being on time”, “Buenos dias” spoken through smiles, and the smell of citrus wafting out of corner fruit stands.

2.       THE PEOPLE: Place without relationship is practically meaningless. As much as I enjoy the city itself, it’s the people that have made my experience here. I came here expecting to serve, and in a lot of ways, we are serving both God and the community here, but we are treated with such warmth and hospitality, I often feel more like they are serving us. I am learning that saying thank you is better expressed as an action than as a sentiment. One example of this was after we finished he sports camp at Arca de Noe, the four Spanish speakers on the team did a training presentation for the Tias and others. The director of the school, Janet, invited us to her house for lunch, as a thank you and also as a way of inviting us into her family and her life. In addition to all the glorious food, we enjoyed great company and lots of laughter. We really didn´t want to leave, and in true Bolivian fashion, they begged us to stay, but we had to join the rest of the team for the evening. We left feeling full, physically and emotionally, which is a testament to Janet´s ability to make us understand her gratefulness.

One of the most consistently present individuals is Jhonny, our Bolivian go-to for everything. He is our tour guide, our friend, and the one who knows what to do when we run out of water. He manages to be both a seminary professor and a pastor while raising three children. He is one of many that make me feel entirely inadequate- in the most inspirational way. His wife runs a Compassion International school and his daughter Avril, who is five, continues to make us laugh with her silly games, constant jabber and infectious laughter. His mother-in-law, Celia is surprisingly full of vim and vigor for her age. She has about ten times as many wrinkles as teeth, but is always full of spunk and witty commentary. She also cooks us the BEST food, and makes sure that we are constantly fed.

3.       On that note, THE FOOD is absolutely delicious. We eat so well its ridiculous. The biggest meal of the day is lunch, so we have fresh bread and fruit for breakfast, and then try our best to wear ourselves out playing with kids or working at the carpentry shop before we have lunch. Almuerzo (lunch) consists of soup and then a second plate, which is always piled high with some delicious combination of meat and potatoes or pasta or rice. It is culturally rude to leave any food on your plate, so we happily eat as much as possible and give the rest to the guys on the team, who we´ve deemed the “heavy hitters” for their ability to scarf down double what the rest of us can eat. Dinner is usually much lighter, and eaten late. We are incredibly blessed to have Celia cooking lunch for us, and we have the privilege of going to an open air market to buy bread and fruit every other day.

4.       LESSONS: I am learning something new every day, which, in some ways, is what short-term missions trips are designed for. I honestly wasn´t sure what to expect. I am not particularly comfortable with the word “Mission” and I was not sure if I would find a Bible-toting, dooms-day preachers or normal individuals with a heart for God when I arrived. Dan and Darryl Collins, as well as all the Bolivians who work with them are definitely the latter. Missions are not about conversion, not about numbers and not about saving face by reporting to a church. Missions are about showing the love of God, recognizing the WHOLE person, the WHOLE family, the WHOLE community, not just a spiritual component. If nothing else, this trip has opened my eyes to what missionary work really looks like: it involves doing everything to the best of your abilities, with a selfless heart in whatever capacity God asks you to serve, whether that be spending the morning playing soccer with preschoolers, or the afternoon listening to a friend in need of a good chat.

 There are a few things that have stuck to my everyday mindset that I have learned in my very short time here:

BE GRATEFUL in action and in words. This is something Bolvians are especially good at. They show their heart by exhibiting undeserved generosity and hospitality.

DO NOT SAY NO TO GOD- this is a struggle, but I am already in over my head in blessings and joy, simply because I said yes to this trip.

The mission statement of Emprendimiento Mundial expresses the most impactful lesson thus far: DO EVERYTHING WITH EXCELLENCE. Everything I do should be done to the best of my ability, giving the best of myself and my time and resources, every day. That is what service should look like.

Sending you all love, blue skies, and abrazos,

Kelsey

Arc de Noe

Serving at Arc de Noe was an amazing experience. Though we only had three days with the Tias and Ninos we got to know the kids and throughly enjoyed our time there. The kids were simply fantastic! They participated in every aspect of camp from the songs to the drills, and focused their attention when it was time for the sports story and bible story. Our goal after day one was to put the Tias into a more leadership role and by the last day they had it down.

The vision of these camps is to equip Bolivians with the tools they need to run them on their own and I feel we did just that. The Tias at Arc de Noe were attentive and enthusiastic, and their close relationships with the kids helps even more. The materials we used and passed on were great as well. The kids learn a new lesson each day which is repeated in both the sports story and bible story.

I definitely feel like these camps will be a home run in Dan terms :)

Coming to Bolivia I knew pretty much no Spanish, but after three days at Arc de Noe I learned several helpful phrases and continue to learn more everyday. I thought my limited Spanish would inhibit me when working with the kids but to my surprise it didn't really. A smile goes a long way!

My favorite memory from camp was on the morning of our last day when Brando, one of the kids, arrived. After saying good morning to him he bent in and kissed me on the cheek which is custom in Bolivia. It made my whole day and whenever I think back to it I'll definitely smile :D


<3Allie

Carpentry Shop!

As a team we have been working along side Alex who is the director of the Master Carpenter ministry. We have been working in the carpentry shop doing various tasks-sanding, sawing, puttying, gluing and most of all getting covered with saw dust! 

I think this has probably been one of my favorite parts of being here, just getting to work with your hands in itself is so satisfying but to work with your hands in order to create something that will help further the kingdom of God is even better.

No one can describe how the ministry works better than Alex himself so I encourage you to watch this brief video to get an idea of the wonderful ministry we have been blessed to be a part of.

~Becca

"Welcome to Bolivia"

Hola Friends and Family!

The group of five has made it safely to Cochabamba, Bolivia!

    We started out our almost 40 hours of travel on the best note possible...Dancing to music at 5:30 am on the way to the airport! We tried to get Javi (the only guy out of the five of us) to join us in the amazing car dancing consisting mostly of the best car moves possible...fist pumps and head bobs!

   The first couple flights went very smoothly-even the 9 hour flight, which was actually very nice because we each got our own little TV screen that allowed us to watch movies and play games. I ended up playing a language learning game where I learned the two most important questions possible "Donde este el bano" and "Le llevara neustra fotografia?"  By the time we disembarked from the 9 hour flight into Lima it was about Midnight and we had a ten hour lay over until our next fight. We were all pretty exhausted and tried to sleep on chair beds (make shift beds out of three airport chairs "super comfortable") which I think succeeded in giving each of us about 2-4 hours of sleep.

Towards the end of our lay over in Lima we actually saw the contestants from the show  The Amazing Race disembark and even though I have never watched the show a day in my life I thought it was pretty cool. By the last flight of the night, from Santa Cruz to Cochabamba, it was about 37 hours since the beginning of the trip and we had dissolved into extreme excitement to get there, slight delirium and complete silliness.

 

We arrived in Cochabamba (WITH all of our luggage PTL) and Paul greets us "Welcome...ok we have to hurry Megan has been stung by a scorpion and we need to hurry and get the car back so we can take her to the hospital."......Welcome to Bolivia.... She ended up being ok, it apparently wasn't a super poisonous kind and she was able to just get a shot for it. The short story of what had happened was while she was taking her laundry off of the line it stung her but she didn't see what it was so she just assumed it was a bee but she didn't see any stinger in her finger which was confusing. So while she was putting her clothes away in her room she saw a scorpion run across her clothing...mystery solved.

We have spent a couple days in Cochabamba now and there are a lot of things that I did not really expect. It is interesting to see that there are so many areas where there will be a super nice building right next to a really run down building. There are also a lot more American products than I expected, Coca Cola is everywhere!! Also in the higher end areas there is also a lot more of a western influence in the dress than I would have expected. I also didn't expect to see as many dogs as we have, I mean I expected to see some but they are EVERYWHERE! The Catholic church is also very prominent here and there are a lot of big beautiful Catholic churches. One really cool experience was going to the market to buy food for both breakfast and dinner, it was fun to see all the different types of food and all the many many kinds of potatoes. It was challenging to be able to get what you wanted when you have very limited spanish but I was able to successfully order four onions :)

~Becca

World (Ad)Venture

Part 1

After a month, here is a collection of things that have happened that you should probably hear from us first hand when we return.

-Took a 10 hour bus ride to Santa Cruz with only 1 pit-stop.

-Had a taxi die in the middle of the unlit cementary at 10pm at night.

-Stared down and scared off an angry pit bull.

-Handled 250 kids in a sports camp on just a basketball size court.

-Packed 22 people into a van.

-Navigated South America´s largest black market.

-Accomplished a scavenger hunt around the city of Cochabamba (1 million) during our first week.

-´Successfully´ drank water from the faucet.

-Played strip futbol with the locals.

-Led a young adults church group.

 

There is more but the brain is a little foggy.

Jordan pre and post departure

A post from Jordan, sent just before he and Erika left, and then a second post from just after they landed, Enjoy!!

Tomorrow morning on July 16^th at 8am Erika and I will be getting on to our first of many flights beginning our journey to Bolivia. This means that three days from now we will be at the top of Mt. Chacaltaya (17,000 ft) being stuck with needles and riding a stationary bike as long and as hard as we possibly can. The weird part about it is that I couldn’t be more excited for that! The research project that Erika and I are a part of studies the body’s acclimation to high altitudes and how long it holds on to that acclimation. For this we will be moved between two areas at very different altitudes over the course of a little more than 3 weeks. Through this we will have a ton of down time. In fact the schedule has at least 16 days that say hang out in ___ not counting the days that we only have something that might take 2-3 hours. This is truly God’s doing because it gives Erika and I the perfect opportunity to prepare ourselves for when we meet up with the rest of the group in August for work with the Collins. This down time gives us the chance to read His word and pray constantly as well trusting in him that there will be no complications with the test or illnesses.

            All week as I was telling people that I was leaving on Monday I constantly got the question “Are you ready?” And every time I said something to the effect of “I hope so” or “I think so” but the closer I get to leaving I realize that I’m not ready. That’s okay though because the is absolutely no way I could be ready for all of the amazing things God will do on this trip and all of the opportunities that I will get on this trip to learn more and more about myself and my Savior. So with that said I’m ready to be surprised by God’s awesome plan for my life and this trip.

            -Jordan Egbert

Hey so I just wanted to let you know that we got here safe and Bolivia
is BEAUTIFUL! were in Coroico right now and tomorrow we will be
heading up to Mt Chacaltaya (17000ft) tomorrow at 530 am to do 2 days
of testing then we head down to LA Paz for 2days then back up to the
Mt. for another 13 days. we only have internet in Coroico at a
internet cafe and in La Paz at our hotel but when were at the Mt. we
dont have any. God has already been blessing us and teaching us so
much even though its only been 2 full days! our flight situation got
really interesting when on our first flight they over booked it and I
didn´t have a seat. well they got me a seat eventually and we thought
everything was good until they called us up and told us we were
getting moved to another flight that goes to miami thru Dallas. they
got it all changed and we were going to have an hour and a half
layover in Dallas but when we got to the other flight it got delayed
an hour and they told us we were only going to have a half an hour to
get to our next flight. The whole time we were a little nervous but
trying to leave it in God´s hands then near the end of the flight we
were told that the winds weren´t quite cooperating and it had taken us
an extra 30 minutes! So as soon as our flight was open we made it over
to our other gate as fast as possible and they told us it had already
taken off. The immediately told us that another flight that was
originally supposed to leave at 230 was now leaving 455 which put us
in an hour and a half before our flight form Miami to La Paz. So we
got over to that gate and they like every other flight we were on we
asked them if we could get our seats together and like every other
flight they looked and had no problem as well as getting us the exit
row which has extra leg room! That flight got off even a little early
but when we were getting in to miami there was a lightening storm and
we had to circle around for 30 min waiting to land. We got in and went
over to the gate that the flight was supposed to leave from but they
informed us that it had been moved down a few gates and we had no
trouble finding it or getting on. that flight when off without a hitch
as well as getting our visa and customs. But of course God had
something planned and while looking for our bags Erika couldn´t find
hers which apparently has happened a few times to our group and she is
having to wait until today for them to send it up to us in Coroico.
The awesome thing is that she hasn´t needed anything form that bag
yet! we went on a hike yesterday and it was amazing! so beautiful and
green awesome where we are! Thank you so much for your prayers and I
can´t wait for what God has planned next!

-Jordan Egbert