Meet Julio and Maria
Church Planters: Julio and Maria
This couple is out on the front lines with a willingness to sow the seed of the gospel into hardened ground, like the very poor village of Boayaku. This village is quite isolated and small. The community has been in a great deal of need for years, both spiritually and physically.
About five months ago, Maria’s 26-year old nephew was visiting the main market town about 1½ hours from Boayacu. He was stabbed to death there, leaving his family in Boayacu stunned and grieving. Julio and Maria came from their town to the family during this time to minister the hope of the gospel to them. The father began to listen and think about all of this. He later commented, “It seems that ever since the message about faith in God came to us, help has also started to come to our village.”
Our goal is to train up and be a support to Church Planters here in Ecuador. One way we can be of help is to send teams in to targeted areas and be a physical blessing to the community as well as to sow seeds of the gospel. In Boayaku our project was to build some small dams in two key locations and then bring water lines to tilapia farms (that the government had provided) so that there could be a continual source of water throughout the year. It was very dirty and strenuous work. The team also hosted a children’s program every afternoon, sharing the good news of Jesus Christ in creative ways. At night, we walked through the creation story and led to Jesus, sharing God’s plan of salvation. At the end of the week, three families told Julio that they wanted him to come and teach them more about the bible…”We need this, it can help bring change to us.”
While we were there we noted some definite strongholds, and were able to see what Julio and Maria are up against. On the day of our arrival, the majority of the village was at a funeral for a young woman that had poisoned herself due to living with an abusive husband. Following the funeral, we watched a couple of the shamans (witch doctors) from that same village come down to the river Ainzu and perform ritualistic “cleansings.” This involves cleansing the person with soap, then leaves, then cigarette smoke, and finally whiskey. Witchcraft and animism prevail in the indigenous villages of this region.
The following day a Catholic priest came out from Puyo to let the little community of Boayacu know that they wanted to build a new chapel there. The existing “chapel” is a very run down affair and gets a visit from the local priest once a year. I kept thinking that it was not a mistake that while we were there sharing the gospel, a priest would decide to show up and talk about putting up a chapel. Maria was so upset when her sister came and asked her to give the “okay” to the priest. “NO! All it means is that there will be more drunkenness in the village!” (Catholicism is not the same here as in the states. Most do not understand the doctrine and beliefs and just mix the stories of saints with their own animistic belief system, and use all the Catholic festivals as an excuse to get dead-in-the-streets drunk). These conversations were all taking place while I was working with the team to get the dams built and the hoses to the fish farms. I looked like a big muddy mess. I guess Maria used my “dirt” to make a point to her family, “Look at the difference…the priest over there is nice and clean wanting us to build a building, the pastor over there is all sweaty and working to make our community better!” One time where my stinky, sweaty body was actually used to glorify God!
This area will continue to need a lot of prayer. The local shaman, Patricio, is head of one of the three families that wants to study the word. He pulled out a small new testament that he received as a youth and told me he still reads it, but wants someone to come and teach him and the village how to walk in the way of God.
Pray for Julio and Maria as they pursue planting a church in the village of Boayaku. Pray against the influences of animism and dark Catholicism in this small village. Pray for the families of Patricio, Franklin, and Rodrigo as they begin to receive the word of God!
How can you help us?
- Donate toward Church Planting (for example, it will cost Julio and Maria $120/month to travel weekly back and forth to Boayaku from the area where they are already planting a church)
- Bring a team down to help with our Church Planting efforts (sandi@compassionconnection.net)
- Join us in PRAYER! And let us know that you are praying!
Click on “comment” and let us know how you are going to be – or already are – a part of our team!
More pictures and journal entries from the visiting team.
