Bolivia 2010

Presentation

2010-09-09T13:08:00.000-07:00

If you are interested, I (Colin) will be making a presentation on Bolivia on Sunday September 12th at First Baptist of Eugene. It will be at 10 am in room #102 (The Mix, Sunday School Class).

Our team will be scheduling a group presentation on a Sunday later in September or early in October when the students are back in town............stay tuned!

Colin for the team

Re-entry

2010-09-04T07:43:00.000-07:00

Awoke this morning to find myself (Colin) in my own bed after 18 nights somewhere else. Due to the time difference between Bolivia and here, I found myself wide awake at about 4 am PST.

We all made it safely back to Portland yesterday afternoon about 3pm after 10 flights, dozens of truffe rides and multiple buses and taxis over the last2 1/2 weeks. Coming into Oregon things look both familiar and oddly strange; no honking horns, crowing roosters, swat team (ask about Miami), roads are paved, pedestrians have right of way, seat belts are both required and provided, most everyone's first language is English, toilet paper is readily available and flush-able, breakfast does not include cake, the clothing I am wearing is nothing that I have worn in the last 3 weeks and my cell phone now has reception.

It will be strange not to see the other members of the team we have traveled with on a daily and moment by moment basis. Last night many of us found it hard to say good-bye at Molly's parents house where we all dispersed to go to our various hometowns, onto what is next.

It will be fun to tell and re-tell the various stories; of happenings, observations and experiences along the way.
Ask us about our trip, we are prepared with 5 second, 5 minute and 5 hour answers! I hope that you will continue to visit this blog as I have encouraged team members to recount their experiences here as well.

Colin for the Bolivia Team.

Debriefing in Tarija

2010-08-31T09:08:00.000-07:00

Hello All!

We arrived savely in the town of Tarija yesterday after a 3 hour taxi ride from Bermejo! It was sad to say goodbye to everyone yesterday as it was so amazing to get to know them all. We will be spending another night in Tarija before flying to Santa Cruz, where we will spend another night, then fly to Miamimi for yet another night, and then finally return home. We began debriefing last night, and will be doing the same through out today and tomorrow. It was amazing to see what God is doing in Bermejo, and it is great to get to spend time reflecting on what God has been teaching us before returning to the hussle and bussle back home.

Thanks for praying for us! Please continue to pray for safety as we have much traveling left to do!

In Bermejo

2010-08-31T08:56:00.000-07:00

I met a man named Jorge in Bermejo. He was an extremely friendly and lovable man, and this story revolves around him. Jorge was very excited to meet the new missionaries from the US and was constanly making jokes about the different movie stars to which he thought we resembled. His laughter was infectious and so was his loving spirit. His friend named me Chuck Norris which was the moniker by which he called me for the duration of our wonderful stay in the small village. We worked alongside each other in the hot tropical mosquito infested sun, and always Jorge would have a smill and a laugh on his face and a dios te bendiga to be said to each one of us. He invited Matt and I fishing but we were unable to go because of the work we thought that needed to be accomplished. Later in the week he and his soon to be wife invited us over for lunch at their place, with his whole family and we had an absolute blast eating the wonderful kinds of fish he had caught from the river the day before.

I mention Jorge because our time in Bermejo has greatly changed my perspective on God´s work and what it is that our time of service here in Bolivia was meant to be. We didn´t come to dig holes for the bathroom foundation or to do a puppet ministry here. We came to forge friendships with Jorge, Will, Marcelo, and Elli. Being in Bermejo was like coming back home; we ate meals together, laughed, and told sad stories that brought us closer to what I think truly is a feeling of brotherhood and family in Christ. I will always remember the time I spent in Bermejo as a time of learning to love people and places which I would normally consider to be out of my reach. When really Jorge taught me the greatest way to love like Christ. A simple smile shared, a laugh at a common joke, a meal shared between strangers of both language and nationality, and most of all though a unifying love for Jesus and his people here on Earth.

Please continue to pray for our safety here as we are begining to travel back to the states, pray for the ministry that Marcelo and Elli lead within Bermejo, and lastly please pray for our ability to forge new family members across nations through our bond in Jesus as we keep pressing forward looking towards home.

Dios te Bendiga
-greg

Safely South

2010-08-25T20:42:00.000-07:00

Dan received a call from Jhonny mid morning to say that the team had arrived safe and sound in Bermego!

Dan and I (Colin) spent the morning with a missionary who has been mentoring Dan and missionary pastor in a local Presbyterian church in the greater Cochabamba area. In the afternoon we packed for our early morning departure to meet the rest of the team in Bermego, tomorrow. In the evening we had dinner with a short term missionary friend of the Collins' from Canada who is working with youth in association with Canadian Baptist Missions.

The haziness from the mountain forest fires cleared a bit today and in the afternoon there were amazing views of the mountains surrounding the city. Dan says every one is anxiously awaiting the summer rains that begin next month sometime to green the place up and wash the smoke and dust away. Being in this high plain it is so awesome to realize we are already at 9,000 feet and the mountains that surround us tower still higher into the 12,000's and beyond.

Yesterday Dan and I spent the day tracking down materials for the on-going renovation of the office space that the team spent so much time and effort painting and cleaning. Nate went with us as well as a local contractor, Alex, to find someone to repair the machinery that is down at his carpentry shop. What happens with a mere phone call in the states takes hours of leg work and relationships here. Multiple businesses usually need to be found to complete a project, there are no Jerry's Home Improvement stores, Lowes or Home Depot here. Providentially we found most of what we needed at one site, including cement which seems to be scarce right now in Cochabamba. Nate also found a machinery mechanic that would meet him this morning (everyone else was telling him they could not come for weeks out).

Please pray for the majority of the team who are already in Bermego as they adjust to a much lower altitude and more of a tropical climate. Dan's mentor, Dave, said today that the town is much smaller that Cochabamba, more like the size of Cottage Grove or Canby. Pray for the 4 who will head south tomorrow to connect through Tarija and rejoin the rest by evening.

Please continue to pray for unity, health and strength as we start into the last week of our adventure here.

Colin, for the team

In Potosi!

2010-08-24T09:32:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone! We made it to Potosi today. Our bus arrived at 6am. I was so impressed by the bus, it was super nice. We are riding another tonight which most likely will not be as luxurious haha but it will be an adventure! I have been told we are in the highest city in the world right now. We are at about 14,900 feet! Which is taller, than Mt Hood or Mt Rainer! It was rather chilly this morning. We will board our next bus around 8 tonight to Tarija.

This trip has been so incredible! Thank you all for your prayers, you can tell people have been praying for us. Love you all!

Off to Potosi and points beyond

2010-08-23T17:32:00.000-07:00

Evening has come and the team has eaten dinner at the UBB Center and is packing up to head to the bus depot to catch an overnight bus to Potosi. Daryl says that this particular bus has sleeper seats with foot rests and is much more comfortable than an air plane. They will be going to about 14,000 feet by morning so pray for the adjustment to altitude. Dan and Colin along with Julianne and Sheli will join the rest of the group in Bermego on Thursday. Meanwhile the group with travel with Dan' staff: Wendy, Jhonny and Hans.

Forgot to tell you about our ride to church on Sunday, there was some sort of parade for the blessing of a new taxi service going on so the normal route was blocked. The cars were all covered with local colorful blankets with silverware, dolls and money sewed on. Dan explained that it was an offering of sorts to the local god and then they would end at the Catholic church for the priest's blessing as well. Anyhow our truffe driver took an alternate less improved route, steep enough that the mirco bus could not pull the hills so several of us got out and pushed at critical spots.

We finished the lions share of the painting, landscaping and window scraping today and Dan was very pleased and excited to have 'a months work done in a few days'. Every one really worked hard and should sleep well tonight. The office space was quickly transformed as well as the front yard.

Several asked me to note that they were unsure as to the next time they would have internet service. We will have some contact with them as the Bolivian leadership accompanying then have cell phones and there is service at points along the way

Please pray for safe and memorable travel with chances to be Christ to one another and the others we will meet along the way.

Colin for the Bolivia Team 2010

Early Morning Up-Date!!!

2010-08-23T01:27:00.000-07:00

Good morning quite early from Cochabamba! I (Colin) was wakened by the sound of barking dogs, not an unfamiliar sound in this city. Happy Birthday, Dad, by the way as it is 4 am EST I imagine that I am the first this morning.

Today the team will be returning to finish up the painting we have started at the offices Dan and his team have rented and are renovating. His team has grown from he and his wife to 13 people since we visited in 2008 and getting a space to meet can come none too soon! Tonight the team takes a bus to Potosi at about 14,000 feet in elevation so you can pray for adjustment for the extreme altitude change as we are at 8,500 to 9500 feet here. In Potosi there will be an opportunity to share the puppet ministry before heading south to Tarija and Bermego for the remainder of our visit.

Yesterday we attended services at Luce de Christo, Jhonny's home church (he is our Bolivian host pastor and spends each day with us as he did in 2008). It was the 30th anniversary celebration of the church and we were greeted warmly. Jhonny's daughter, much to his surprise, was baptized and joined the church. This had an obvious emotional affect on her father!

Later we went to El Christo and some of the group ran to the top, while others climbed the 100's of stairs to the summit, the remainder of the group took the gondolas to see the fabulous views of Cochabamba from this huge statue of Christ. Daniel and his three kids, Naomi, Ben and Rachel joined us for the trip as well as Jhonny's 3 year old daughter April.

You may have noticed that our departure for the south was postponed by a day. Why? "Because we are in Bolivia". We have learned that plans and schedules here are more in mud than in concrete and in very soft mud to boot!

Our days have been full. Friday night we led an english worship service in Dan and Daryl's home sharing the Lord's supper and time in God's word with them. Saw many expressions of joy, sorrow and love on the faces of those present as they rarely get to corporately worship in their heart language here in Bolivia. Saturday night the CCF Students joined local college age adults in presenting the gospel through puppets and testimony in the local plaza. There were some that made professions of faith and were invited to attend local churches represented. We try hard to come along side the nationals here to encourage and assist them. Dan said this event was an example of the kind of partnerships with short term teams he is looking for. It stretches our own team and the Bolivian youth as well.

One day we visited the carpentry shop that Nate is heading up. Here they build various pieces of furniture for Christian and secular groups assisting the poor. He takes guys off the street involved in drugs, glue sniffing or alcohol and trains them in a trade, presents the gospel daily and gives them an opportunity to move on to a productive career as their skills and experience are in great demand locally. Please pray as some of his shop equipment is in need of maintenance and repair, such help here is hard to find and weeks out when available. He is currently helping at the office remodel as his shop is shut down until repairs have been made and he can find a new shop foreman who is a national. Visit his sight by Googling "Following the Master Carpenter". He has an amazing ministry here.

Health wise things are pretty good. A few stomach issues for some team members. Adjustments to altitude still going on, some bug bites, and bruises from playing a lot of 'slug-bug' (there are a multitude of VW Bugs here!). The dry climate and heights cause some nose bleeds from time to time, but nothing drastic.

One morning the team here took us to La Concha, a huge open market that sells everything from clothes to local religious paraphernalia. It has its overwhelming sights, smells and sounds and overall is a interesting place to visit while here and an easy place to get lost in. Dan and Daryl are excellent local guides so our excursion ended with as many team members as we started with.

Colin and Greg met with Dan's team for the afternoon on Saturday, while the rest of the team rehearsed puppetry, to take them through their DISC test results. It was fun to see the team's 'aha' moments as they better understood their fellow team members strengths, challenges, communication styles, motivating factors and stress-styles. Dan's team has grown fast and with growth comes new opportunities to learn about yourself and those you work with.

Well, in the midst off all this we are having a lot of fun. Mario our Truffe (micro-bus) driver must think we are a bit crazy, but he seems to laugh with and at us as he ferries us about each day. This is a great team and great relationships are continuing as well as being established. Julianne and Sheli Null have joined us from the Virginia's and Carolina's and it has been seamless. Wendy our short term team host is terrific as well. She and Jhonny have put hours in before our arrival and spend at least 12-16 hours with us each day!

Safe and Sound

2010-08-21T15:19:00.000-07:00

Hola de Cochabamba!

This trip has been incredible so far. We have met many different missionaries that are living here in Bolivia. We have been painting and scraping windows in the World Venture office. We have had a few people feel a little bit under the weather, but God is good and faithful and will get us through. Tonight, we are going to do a puppet show for kids in the park and possibly play volleyball. Everyone speaks in Spanish, so I don´t know what´s going on half the time, but it is still amazing. We had a worship and communion night at the Collins´house last night.

Please keep us in your prayers as we are going to be taking our 24 hour bus ride starting tomorrow evening. God Bless!

We Made It!!!

2010-08-18T14:57:00.000-07:00

After driving to Portland, taking four planes, and a few taxi rides we finally made it to Cochabamba. It took us a total of 34hrs to get here, and though we all may be a bit exhausted it feels so good to be here. Thank you so much for your prayers. We definitely felt God´s hand of protection over us the entire journey. It was one of the smoothest and easiest travel experiences I have ever had.
I am not sure how much internet access we will have from here on out, but we will do our best to keep you updated. We are staying at the Bolivian Baptist Union in Cochabamba and we plan on spending the next few days helping Dan and Darryl fix up their new office/ministry center.
Our plan is to head out to Bermejo on Sunday. Please continue to keep us in your prayers.

Our Last Night in the States....

2010-08-16T19:16:00.000-07:00

After summer break our team is once again united!!! We are spending our last night before leaving for Bolivia in Independence, OR. We are staying at the household of the wonderful Mack (Molly's) family. They fed us an amazingly deliscious dinner and fresh peach pie, and are kindly driving us up to Portland bright and early at 5am tomorrow morning.
It has been a blessing to start our trip by uniting in worship and studying the Word of God together. We are about to practice our puppets and then fall fast asleep.
Our flight leaves at 8:30 out of PDX and we have a lot of close connections to make. So please be keeping us in your prayers. Thanks again for your support!

1 Week Away!!!

2010-08-10T23:29:00.000-07:00

Wow how time flies! I can't believe at this time next week we will be en route flying from Miami down to Bolivia. As we approach our departure and throughout the trip our team is going through a spiritual journal. Each day we are focusing on a set of verses that will help us get our focus in the right place. If you would like to journal along with us I have added the journal verses from now until we return.
starting with today's date-
8-10 1 Chron 16:23-33
8-11- Eph 6:19-20
8-12- 2 Tim 2:20-22
8-13- Psalm 91
8-14- 2 Thes 2:13-17
8-15- Col 1:9-14
8-16- Rom 15:5-6
8-17- (Fly out of Portland) John 14:12-14
8-18- 1 Chron 29:10-18
8-19- 1 Peter 5:8-11
8-20- 1 Cor 12:12-26
8-21- Mark 10:35-45
8-22- Acts 18:18-23
8-23- Eph 4:1-6
8-24- Prov 10:19-21, 16:19-24
8-25- Hebrews 13:7
8-26 John 4:34-38
8-27 Rom 5:3-5 1
8-28 Cor 1:26-31
8-29 Matt 9:35-38
8-30 Rom 8:18, 28:30
8-31 Psalm 95
9-1 John 17:1-8
9-2 John 17:9-19
9-3 (arrive back in Portland) John 17:20-26
9-4 (debrief) Heb 3:5-6
9-5 (debrief) Psalm 90
9-5 (debrief) 2 Cor 5:9-10

Thank you for your support and continued prayers!

Here is a bit more about our team...

2010-08-09T11:06:00.000-07:00

Watch this Video to get to know our team a bit better---

BOLIVIA TEAM 2010

Success!!!

2010-05-21T12:46:00.000-07:00

Thank you all for your prayers and support over this past week. Last Friday we had our garage sale and dance party fund raisers. They were both really fun and the Lord used both of these events to bless us with a little over $700 in total. The weather couldn't have been better last Friday and the dance was not only used to minister to students involved with CCF, but it even blessed the security guards that worked at the event. The women guard told us she had never had so much fun at any party, and that she would be glad to work any CCF event in the future! God can use anything to show His glory and love.
Here are some pictures from the day!
Our dance was jungle themed!!

Working hard or hardly working??? You be the judge.

Fundraisers!!!

2010-05-12T09:23:00.000-07:00

This Friday the 14th we are having two of our biggest fund raisers.

First we have a garage sale-

Date:
Friday, May 14, 2010
Time:
8:00am - 3:00pm
Street:
1558 Bogart Ln

Then that evening we are having a dance party

Jungle Jam!!!

Friday, May 14, 2010
Time:
9:00-12:00am

Location:
The AO House
1332 Kincaid St
Eugene, OR

Cost $3.00

So please feel free to join in the fun, and even if you can't make it please keep these events in your prayers!

Team Meetings.

2010-05-07T09:04:00.000-07:00

This term we have been meeting every other week to help unite us as a team. This past week we met for dinner and planned out our future fundraisers. Also, we are studying 1 John as a team. Our prayer for this trip, from what we studied this week would be that we "abide in Him" and that we have confidence in His Spirit, to speak and live out the Truth with all those we come into contact with.

The Team.

2010-05-03T09:17:00.001-07:00

This is our team starting in the left upper corner and working across-

Emily McMahon, Brielle Adams, Kristi Mueller, Molly Mack & Bethany Jennings

Lower Left- Matt Jones, Greg Peterson & Colin Halstead

Hopefully this will help you put names to faces. Thank You for your continued prayer and support.

He Always Provides.

2010-04-28T16:20:00.000-07:00

Hello all Bolivia Supporters!

My name is Kristi and I am a member of the team heading down to Bolivia this summer. I just thought I'd share what's been going on in my life lately, especially how God has been moving and working in me.

First of all, I'm a freshman here at UO and this is my first mission trip. As you may know, the concept of going on a mission trip is pretty foreign to me. By foreign, I mean that when I first started this journey I had no idea where to start. Realizing that I was called to Bolivia was something that was extremely surprising to me and new. However, I knew I was being called and so I began to follow God about it.

About four months into this journey (of planning for August :) ), I had been struggling with fully relying on the Lord. As you may know, collecting money for a mission trip can be extremely stressful. I found myself in this boat. And as deadlines for money began to approach, my stress level continued to rise.

By no means was I anywhere close to having enough funds raised for the deadline. So, I began to think and meditate on why this was happening. Doubt was the first thing that came to my mind. I began to ask myself if I was really being called to this trip. Also it was brought to my attention that maybe this was His way of saying no to me. I began to question whether or not I had heard His call for me correctly.

Raising funds became something that I was always thinking about, even dreaming about and still I continued to doubt. While venting to my roommates one day, they finally asked me if I had fully put my trust in the Lord. They asked me if I believed that He provides. It was then I realized that I needed to center myself with God and fully trust that He would provide.

After a long weekend, I let my other teammates know exactly how I was feeling and we began to pray that God would provide for me. That He would give me a clear answer if I had heard His call correctly or not.

In the midst of prayer, I found a verse that really spoke true to what I was experiencing.

"Don't fret or worry. Instead of worrying, Pray. Let petitions and praises shape your worries into prayers, letting God's wholeness, everything coming together for good, will come and settle you down. It's wonderful what happens when Christ displaces worry at the center of your life". -Philippians 4:6-7

And so, it is wonderful what He does. A few days later while talking with a loved one, she expressed that she would be able to support me with funds that would meet my first deadline. This was totally a GOD thing! :)

It is in moments like this where God is so real and so powerful, it amazes me. It also is a bold moment in where He shows his love for us and the ability that He always provides.

It also amazes me how God unites people, especially like you reading this blog :) I want to thank you again for being a part of this journey with my team-mates and I. I'll end this post in prayer.

Awesome God, I thank you for everything You do. I thank you that you always provide. I pray that as this journey proceeds, that you would continue to prepare the hearts of my team-mates and I as well as provide the necessary funds. We love you so much Lord. Help us to more fully trust within You and let everything we do be for Your glory. Amen :)

Past Fundraisers

2010-04-27T10:23:00.000-07:00

So far we have had two very successful fundraisers. The first of which was the CCF (Christian Collegiate Fellowship) Talent show. We had around 200 people attend this event and it was amazing to see the myriad of talents. If you want to see what you missed the night was recorded and all of the acts can be viewed on this sight
http://www.youtube.com/user/DuckFanatic181#p/u/11/Guu6jj6uXsM

Our second fundraiser was and International line Dancing night. We turned our dining room into a dance floor, and thanks to our friend Sam, a former dance professor at the UO, we learned folk dances from all around the world. It was a lot of fun and we had a good turn out for that as well (about 30 people). Here are a few pics of the night.

The Trip!

2010-04-20T11:12:00.000-07:00

Hello Friends and Family,
As you may or may not know a group of 8 of us are responding to the calling that the Lord has placed on our hearts and we are headed off to Bolivia. We leave on the 17th of August and will return on the 3rd of September. We will be working along side Dan and Daryl Collins who are currently serving the Lord in Cochabamba, Bolivia. In addition to encouraging them in their ministry we will be heading further south to Bermejo, Tarija (a rural town directly on the border of Argentina). There we are planning on partnering with a local family who has been working to plant a church for the past two years. We will be putting on daily VBS type programs, including puppet shows, singing and crafts. As well as helping them erect a church building as well as work on their home.
We would love for you to partner with us in prayer, not only during the trip, but as we prepare for this exciting journey. In the months prior to leaving we will be putting on a number of fundraisers as well as preparing our hearts by studying the bible together. We would ask that you not only keep our team in prayer, but also those in Bolivia who are currently sharing the great news of Christ Jesus.