Académique Documents
Professionnel Documents
Culture Documents
oiiAiu Li::};
A M I
G 0
to
Tui. 576298
l-'01{V:AUUllir, AGICNTC;
ARGENTIWA
Jerry Viilliams
liox /lO
We are so happy to be able to 'share this letter with you, and trust that the Lord will fill your hearts with the same blessings that we have been able to experience personally. God has been so good to us - and still is
today!
praised.
CHILEAN MINISTRY
The big blessing in the ministry so far this year has been the ministry with the youth of the churches in Santiago. Miguel organized and directed one week of summer youth camp during January 8-l4. Although the original intention was to operate two different age groups, there wasn't enough
was the second year that the youth were able to attend a summer camp just for youth. Last year, the attendance was around liO youth, but they only
had to pay 200 pesos to attned.
response from the younger group, so the two weeks were combined. This
tained the enrollment fee of 1000 poses and youth sacrificed and made the effort to attend camp. The fee covered all the expenses of the camp
from Santiago to the campgrounds which we paid to keep their cost down. Although, no call for public decisions was made at camp, we know of five youi^ people who later shared with their preachers here in Santiago of
(food, game materials, class materials, posters, etc.) except for the bus
Miguel invited
a missionary, Stephen Bond, who works in another area of Chile on the coastline, to share with the young people about their need to be involved
in missions.
display of unity. For the first time in many years a number of leaders were together working jointly toward a common cause and functioning as
a unified body.
send an offering of 350 pesos back with Stephen in the name of the youth from Santiago. Perhaps one of the greatest results of the camp was the
The staff included five missionaries and seven Chileans.
Praise Gcjd who makes us one!
the young people but they gave when they had nothing and were able to
Also, this same spirit of unity was noted among the young people who began to see each other as fellow Christians and not just as a young person from
another church in Santiago.
As a result of their experience at camp, the youth were very anxious to Miguel planned a fall kick-off for the youth of "antiago (yes, we are
toVs the opportunity to get together again soon. Some of them have already been visiting each other, enjoying this communion which began at camp.
entering the fall season) for this Friday. March 9th. VJhen the announce ment was made of the all-day retreat to be held before school starts the
location of the event was kept a secret. Even though, it was a secret, over 100 youth signed up for the service in the morning at a large park, followed by time for planning together activities for the youth this
park, which is adjacent to the park.
coming year.^ Then, after our picnic lunch, we will go to the amusement
another praise service before returning home. We are really looking for ward to tfusday, because of the admission price, -because of taking a large group Miguel was able to get a discount price so all the young people will be able to attend the retreat by taking their picnic lunch
and 100 pesos.
in good working condition so the churcher^ can continue to use it. Pray that the price will be low and that the job be done efficiently. Also,
pray about the possibility of purchasing new films. ue will be checking out prices and let you know later if you would like to accept purchasing a film as a project.
One of the other responsibilities of Miguel is administrating the office building which belongs to the mission, conimonly known as Seminario. Thanksto his effective administration, all the back bills have been paid on the building and the maintenance of the building has improved. Even though the building is presently partly occupied by groups from another church, plans are in progress to transform the building into a medical clinic. Fellow missionary Roger Kinsey returned from furlough in the U.S. in January with new that he had spoken with F.A.I.'i.E. (Fellowship of Associates of Medical Evangelism). They have offered their help to aid our mission in establishing a clinic in Santiago. Roger had previously set up a clinic in a very poor area of Santiago where he had started a
church, but due to a number of ^roblemr., the clinic was forced to close.
We are very positive about the possibility of setting up the clinic in Seminario with help from F.A.K.iH. and look forward to their coming visit within the next two weeks. Tvliguel is working in conjunction with Roger in deciding on the use of the rooms in this building and the painting that needs to be done, etc. May Cod bless this needed ministry among the brethren, but more importantly, for evangelistic purposes.
ARGENTINA
we don't know
anything. However, very positive steps have been taken toward the reali zation of this ministry in Argentina. The most important step is that at a recent missionary team meeting in Santiago, f.'iguel shared his desire that"the work in Argentina be carried out under the auspices of the Chilean leadership - both Chilean preachers and U.'^. missionaries - who have several years of experience and knowledge to offer to a new work. This kind of relationship between the two countries within the church would be so helpful and unifying expecially in light of the recent political developments between Chile and Argentina which are very positive.
Recruits, Roger and Janice v^uarton, are presently raising support and looking toward a departure date in September, 1985 They are very anxious to be a part of the work in Argentina, just as v/e are, so remember them in your prayers. We believe that the Lord will provide visas for all of us in His perfect time. The delay in obtaining our visas might be,
because Miguel is Chilean and Debbie is a U.^. citizen, or because of other factors of pure bureacracy, but we knov/ that the Lord wants this
of missionaries. Their desire ic also to work in Argentina, but they will be observing and participating in different ministries here in Chile,
5.
tI
Tel. 5762 98
KOliWAlilJlilO
Kansas. It
61933
Permit No. 16
6l9':53
'jopUn. MO 61.801
M..rch2^^
All His saints are in thy hand. Deut. 33:3 We're in His hand, that mighty hand, that flung a universe in space . . . That guides
the sun and moon and stars, and holds the
3'
in addition to making a survey trip to Argentina. Jeff still has two years to receive his degree from Ozark, but this experience will help them definitely decide regarding their plans following graduation.
FURLOUGH
Due to the expiration date of Miguel's re-entry visa from the U.S., we must return to the U.S. before August 23rd. Then any time after September
16th Miguel can apply for his U.S. citizenship, which besides our personal'
but we will need more special offerings to help us with the purchase of our plane tickets in August which will cost approximately $2500.QO. Please send your offerings for our tickets to our forwarding agent and explain to her what they are for so they can be deposited in our travel
fund. ThanksI
reasons will benefit us in two ways: 1) not having to travel to the U.S. eve^ two years which is an incredible expense to the churches, and
The missionaries here in Santiago have decided to rent two booths at the
The convention
Haute, Indiana(where we will live with Debbie's parent^ by stopping at Bible colleges and churches along the way sharing about the work in
Chile and recruiting new workers for Argentina.
We will be in contact by letter soon with our supporters to arran^ dates to meet with you and share personally what has happened in our lives. During the past year we have been discouraged, but my, how the Lord
has encouraged us and given us such fruitful ministries. And we still
getting a church established there who will honor and glorify the Lord.
OUR FAMILY
look forward to being able to live in Argentina and work with others in
gifts, and boxes of goodies. You made our Christmas special to know that we are loved and remembered. The .Friday before Christmas Debbie
fell down and cracked her foot or sprained her ankle. The doctors weren't
sure since they couldn't take an x-ray because she is pregnant. She had a walking cast on for a month which slowed her down a bit, but she
still got around, Debbie's mom came for a visit - she arrived on New Year's Eve, Miguel's birthday, and we were able to be with her until she returned to the U.S. on February 3rd. We had a wonderful visit with her and we were able to take a 9-day vacation down south so she
too, and how her baby moves.
SPECIAL RECOGNITION
could see another part of the country. Debbie's pregnancy is continuing well and everything is normal. Andrea talks about the baby in her tummy
There are so many special people in our lives and we would like to take
the time to say "thank you" and "we love you". Our forwarding agent. Donna Williams, who often does the impossible to keep things moving and
keep you all informed; the elders at the North Terre Haute Christian
Church who have counsellled and encouraged us during difficult times; all of our suppprtijig ^churches and groups v/ho love us-enough to remember us - not only with monetary gifts; our prayer support partners who faithfully pray for us and share with us; and all persons who have expressed their love toward us in specials ways 'WE LOVE YOU IN THE
LOVE OF THE LORD.
very tasty anymore, and the missionary kids are back in school. Mext week we change our clocks back, and soon fall v/ill officially be here. V/e rejoice vjith
OJar/Tv
Qur hea/'is
of (xA
^ AvcIua
G 0 S
Ca:!il|.a
'
ARGENTINA
i'OHWAIilJiiK; AOi-JWl'i::
'r^L. Cm 7)
April,
3, 1984
I hope you're finding God's love overflowing in your lives. 102 participated in the activities.
The latest news from Debbie is.... "The youth retreat last Friday was
because the four young people elected were each from different churches. Miguel had made no such stipulations. You should have seen the kids in the amusement park. I would say 90% of them had never been before. They ran from ride to ride and were like 6 year olds, their first time
in the park. ^,We enjoyed watching them much more than riding the rides ourselves. It was really an experience watching the joy on their faces.
Tuesday evening, we had the first meeting of the officers.
X ox*
them arrived here on time.^ That is a miracle for Chileans. They are taking their responsibilities quite seriously which is what we hoped
Remember also Jeff and Mary Brown, as they leave for their
All four of
Continue to pray for Miguel, Debbie, and Andrea as they are serving
9^^
internship in Chile.
plans to go in 1985.
^Jl^iJUjLCUnrnyQ
Donna iAfilliams
51
r 1 I uiiAKl
/IW
0 3
C:'i I "1 a 1 58
Ctirruu Wiaipu
'
T.iU 5?62 98
N A
l.'OKV.'AlilJi DC. ACiilN'l':::
A R G E N 'i' I
Ml*, ami i:r:i. .lorry Williams l.-.uLt! 1, I'.ox 4 0 r>;tn:;M , 11. 10^'^ ToL. (;n7)
June,
1984
Grace to you
and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us
in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places..." (Ephesians lil-3). We thank ^od for your faithfulness, His mercy, and this change to write you about what He has been doing in our
lives.
Since our last newsletter we have sponsored three activities for theyoung people from the Santiago churches with a high number in atten
dance and more important, an increasing degree in cooperation and participation from the different youth groups and church leaders. In March, 102 young people and their adult leaders shared in a day's activities at an amusement park where they elected an executive com mittee of young people to plan and carry out activities for the fol lowing year. After enjoying the'rides, the young people listened to the exhortation of one of the ChUean preachers to be the "light of the world'' and testify to those who surround them when they begin
from the dead. Seventy-eight attended from 10 p.m. Friday (and stayed awake!) until 8 a.m. Saturday when we ate breakfast together before going home. May 21st, a Chilean holiday, we had an all-day. gathering with'classes, singing and preaching, as well as haves. Unfortunately,
it rained but there were still 96 who braved the elements to be to gether in Christian fellowship and praise God together.
and song vigil where we examined the scriptures which covered the events from the Triumphal Entry through the resurrection of Jesus
FILM MINISTRY
movies were shown five different times in three churches to a total of 290 people (including a small percentage of children). Fifteen
persons accepted the Lord as Lord of their lives and a number of
missionary was able to repair some of the films which were literally in pieces. As a result of this repair work, the film ministry has returned to be a ministry to the brethren. During April and May,
contacts were made with persons interested in learning more.
SEMINARIO
The name we use to refer to the office building which belongs to the
church is Seminario - because the name of the street where it is located is called Seminario. Miquel*s duties as mission administra
Thanks
property taxes for the last two years. The government official advised the accountant that the money will be returned the end of this year and the amount will exceed $2000. This was one of our
goals to leave the building without any financial obligations so the Chileans could administrate it without financial help from
missionaries.
U.S.
The past few months have also been spent in preparing the building
We will be providing evangelistic literature to place in the waiting area and hope to formulate a plan of follow-up for non-Christian
patients.
The clinic
ship potential.
teaching the first and second courses to combined groups of students from three different churches. Miguel has also been invited to preach on five occasions during April and May and has taught a numpreaching and teaching, Miguel also drives and accompanies a Chilean preacher to purchase staples and vegetables for the soup kitchen which his church operates. Each month Miguel helps, once or twice a month, to make sure the soup kitchen continues to operate and feed the 80-100 persons who eat there daily. Debbie has also taught a two-week teacher training'course, a young girls* group,
Der or times to different young people's groups. In addition to
Miguel is
Jeff and Mary Brown arrived safe and sound, thanks to the Lord, and
Since their arrival they have been in the homes of four missionary families and one Chilean preacher's home. They came well prepared from Ozark Bible College, thanks to professors and other persons
spend some time with them.
arrived! After nearly a year of correspondence we Other in person at Santiago's International Airport.
Latin American lifestyle. We ask you to pray for them, especially Mary, since they just found out r.^ay 8th that they are going to be
parents around Christmas. Last week Mary was quite sick but is feeling better now.^ They will be with us until August l8th when they return to Joplin for Jeff's senior year at O.B.C.
living
in Joplin who spoke with them about the Chilean work and
FAMILY
Andrea's birthday one day early, on May 12th, a Haturabouther birthday and practised holding up
Andrea's cousins. <Je had a houseful with spilled 1 crumbs over, and a joyful little girl who had waited so long for herall birthday.
mother could help me with Andrea when the baby arrived, and 3)our
back of Miguel s mother's house. ;Je decided to do that for three reasons: l)our rental contract expired the end of May, 2)Miimel's
^^"Sings would already be stored for when we have to leave onH we re still trying to find first in our new home on May 17th and a night place for everything!
Although the due date v;as June 6th, our son decided to come early.
Stephen Samuel was born on Iway 2?th, five day:: after our interns arrived. 'jJe woke them up at 5 a.m. to tell them vje were going to the hospital, ''tephen v;ei/?;hed u lb. 11 oz. and was ^9 centimeters
long (you can figure that one out!), and war. born at 8:^0 a.m. r.unday morning. His birth waij special because iMiguol v.afj in the delivery room with me this time and v/itnesriod our son's entry into this world. He has a headfull of red hair and tv;o "mamaf:" - Andrea has adopted him as her very own.
PRAYER REQUESTS
1.
involved. Fortunately, our car was and is still driveable and none of us were .injured. We are trying to settle out of court to get them to pay for our car repair wo please pray that they will pay the entire sum without having to take legal action. 2. July 9th-llth will be the dates for the first national youth convention. This is being held during the first week of winter vacation from school and we are inviting young people from all
the churches from the north to the south of Chile. yJe will be
studying the book of James so pray for receptive hearts to this study and a rich time of fello.vshixj and a .jood attendance of
youth from outside of Santiago.
3. Later in July v/e v/ill be traveling to usorno and '^an Carlos, towns in the southern part of Chile, to participate in revivals for youth and shov/ Christian movies. .lIso we will be traveling to Argentina with Jeff and iv.ary to visit with loaders of other
churches there.
After their internship, Jeff and iV'ary Brov/n v/lll be making a decision regarding their miiilstry after Jeff's graduation from Ozark in Kay 1985i lease pray ft)r them and tho's.e who counsel them. IVe need workers in South America especially in those countries where there are no Christian chui-ch iiii.'sionaries. Pray that their internship will be a positive experience, irregardless of their final decision.
5. /Je will be traveling to the 'J. ". on .iugust 21st (iviiguel's re entry visa expires August 2^4-th). During our furlough v;e will need access to .a car. Please pray that the Lord will provide us with a vehicle to use duriiig the tiine in the U.S. We anti cipate returning to South America in January or February, depend ing on Iwiguel's citzenship process.
P.S. Thank you for contributioii.- to our travel lurid. provided tickets for us aL a reduced cost. ri'L! The Lord
If you desireto have us visit your coiii/ri'gation or Chris.tian groip while on furlough, lot us. know by v/i.-itin>;, us before
August 10th at:
Casilla 1^0
Maipu,
Ci'iiie
(Cl2) ^166-1910
Ta
LORD, make me a channel of Thy peace That where there is hatred, I ma^ bring hue,
That That That That That That That where there where there where there where there where there where there where there
is wrong, J may bring the spirit of forgiveness. is discord, / may bring harmony, is error, I may bring truth, is doubt, I may bring faith, is despair, I may bring hope, are shadows, I may bring light, is sadness, I may bring joi;.
Lord, grant that 1 may seek rather To comfortthan to be comforted; To understandthan to be understood;
To lovethan to be loved;
For it is by giving that one receives; It is by self-forgetting that one finds; It is by forgiving that one is forgiven;
Non-Proflt Org.
U.S. Postage
PAID
to
Kansas, IL 61933
Permit No. 16
Missions Office
IIH N. Main
A/yi.
to
ARGENTINA '85
Vol. 1, No. 1 November, 1984
God opened the door! We are pleased and grateful to announce that permission has been granted to enter the yet unreached country of Argentina by the Christian Churches/Churches of Christ. Thanks to your prayers and God's faithfulness our nearly two-year wait has come to an
end.
Our trip began in Santiago. Chile, Thursday evening when we boarded a plane to take us to Mendoza, Argentina. It was impossible to travel by land because the mountain
Missionaries:
Terre Haute, IN 47805 (812) 466-1910 Forwarding Agent: Mrs, Kay Cottrell
c/o North Terre iHaute Christian Church 3133 Park Avenue
Saturday, after locating the same inexpensive hotel where we had stayed last year, Miguel contacted Stephen Teel, the missionary with the non-instrumental Church of Christ, who resides in Buenos Aires. Laterthat afternoon we took a tour of the city and on Sunday afternoon we went to a real gaucho fiesta. {The gaucho is Argentina's version of the cowboy.) While Debbie, Mary, and the children
(812) 466-3733
That evening we were invited to a family's home in the suburbs of Buenos Aires for dinner. Victor Rios and his wife are Chileans who have resided in Argentina for over ten years and are friends of Miguel's family. There were two blessings that evening. Miguel explained our predicament to Victor regarding our entry into the country and inability to obtain visas. He assured us that we would have no problems with the immigration department. Why? Victor rents a house from a prominent senator whose best friend is head of the immigration office and has done favors for Victor in the past. However, we would still have the problem of obtaining permission to establish
churches.
The second blessing was totally unexpected. One of Victor's three teenaged children and his wife had been converted to a pentecostal church last year from catholicism. The daughter was quite apt at finding scripture references, but unfortunately nearly each one was used out of its context or in other improper ways. Miguel and Jeff tried to reason with her for several hours that evening. Her older sister's boyfriend listened with much interest often commenting that what Miguel was explaining was his idea of Christianity. Twice during the evening he told us that if we went to Buenos Aires he
would be our first member!
Tuesday, August 7th, we went to the government office where permission is granted to missionaries. Miguel entered with hope and a prayer. The men in charge of the office were newly appointed to their jobs by the administration of President Alfonsin who took over last December. The dialogue went something like this:
"We want to enter Argentina as missionaries and begin new congregations. We're from the independent Christian Churches."
"Then you will have to obtain a letter of sponsorship from a church already legally
established."
"That's what we were told last year and we have tried without success. You must
understand how difficult it is to obtain such a letter from another church offer
ing to be legally responsible for someone from another group." "Since you've been trying to get a visa for so long, we will let you come in without that letter. But we will only give permission to you and your wife. You will have two years to convert 15-20 Argentines who will sign a charter to establish legal
status for your church in Argentina." "But there is another couple planning to come to Argentina to work with us next year. What about them?" "For anyone else to enter the country before you have established your legal status you must have a letter from another church."
We were so happy when Miguel came out and told us the good news! The official gave Miguel all theformsnecessary to apply for legal status and said that upon returning we had to 1) rent a house in Argentina, and 2) report to his office and to the immigration office to notify them of our whereabouts and intentions.
Now, our trip Isn't over yet . . . We returned to Mendoza by bus and met with the Baptist pastor who has been such an encouragement to us in the past. During our last visit to Argentina in October, 1983, this pastor had told us of a missionary from England who might be able to provide us with the letter of sponsorship. However, at that time he was on furlough. Now he was back In Mendoza and after getting his name, address, and phone number, Miguel made an appointment with him for Saturday morning. Brother James was quite a character! This English missionary had resided in Argentina 45 years as a missionary with the Plymouth Brethren which is one of the largest churches in Argentina. Although the Plymouth Brethren have one legal status for their churches throughout the country, this missionary had obtained a legal permit for his own congregation in Mendoza. So he can provide us with a letter without consulting a governing body. He said he will give Miguel an answer when we return to Argentina after corresponding with Miguel while we are on furlough.
Praise God! Join us in thanking Him for the doors that have opened and pray with us that Christians throughout the U.S. will support this new mission field with their life service, prayers, and financial support. Will you go? Will you send someone? The Amigos and the Roger Quartons have decided to begin the Argentine work in Buenos Aires, the 11th largest city in the world. We reached this decision based on the large population, as well as the prospects we already have, and the paperwork to be done to get the mission started. Contact us to learn more about this new field!!
PETITIONS
CMSICH
Recruits to Argentina
MH51C
Increased support (more expenses, schooling for Andrea, etc.) Miguel to obtain U.S. citizenship
(breast abscess)
BLESSINGS
Learning and fellowship at the Missionary
Convention
Chilean leaders who accepted many of Miguel's responsibilities Seeing family and friends!
Forwarding agent and husband.
Knoxvitle, TN 37901
ORReCTION REQUESTED
Knoxvilla. TN
37901
Permit *374
00051660
001
AM
#
Joplin
MO 64801