September 2006 Adventures

We ended our brief visit to the states the first week in September by spending Labor Day at Fernandina Beach, Florida, visiting with Ed’s family.  We returned to Paraguay with many thoughts about living in the United States versus living in Paraguay.  It is by far much easier to live in the states – hot water, ice makers, dishwashers, garbage disposals, garbage pickup at the curb, good roads, fast cars, how many grams is a stick of butter?, the list goes on.  However, life in Paraguay is so much simpler – pay the traffic ticket “on the spot”, drill a well without government interference, go as fast as the road will warrant and your vehicle will travel, the list goes on.  Life in the states is very insulated.  We are amazed how many team members who visit us have never seen a guinea hen; or a turkey, horse, pig, or chicken walking in their front yard; or have seen a blue or green egg.  We know how to deal with no electricity or no water for longer than a few hours, the list goes on.  

We returned to Paraguay excited about new adventures, starting with arriving with no luggage.  PTL, all our bags did arrive exactly 24 hours after we did.  We have been very fortunate in our traveling back and forth.  This is only the 2^nd time we’ve every arrived without all our bags.

Only 3 days after our arrival, a medical team from St. Matthews Methodist church in Illinois came to our North District.  A medical team requires lots of in-country support, with translators, drivers, etc.  The team of 15 including doctors, dentists, nurses, a pharmacist, and an optometrist saw over 800 patients in 4 days!  The best part is that over 47 souls were saved during this campaign!  What a blessing for all!

The people in our district really enjoy having the medical team each year.  Unfortunately, we no longer have a physician on staff to champion this ministry – we rely solely on medical teams coming to Paraguay in order to provide services for the people.  If you know anyone who has a mission heart, is interested in a life changing experience, and has a medical background, please have them contact The Mission Society, or us directly.  We need them!

The remainder of September we finished our unpacking and took care of some minor projects.  While we were gone, we had 2 pumps with troubles and plumbing problems at another church. The plumbing problem occurred when a pig got its rope wrapped around the pipe coming from the water tank, and managed to break the valve box trying to get loose – first time a pig ruined our plumbing!  We are quickly getting these fixed and hopefully will be drilling soon.

We continue to ask for your prayers for Linda’s sister Martha.  She has been undergoing chemotherapy with success – PTL.  However, she still has a long way to go fighting her renal cancer.