Philippians 1:21

Welcome To Brasília

2012-01-26T13:10:00.001-05:00

Well its been about two and a half weeks since we've arrived here in Brasilia and we're just getting settled down enough to write about all that has happened. These days have been a blur but the overall sensation is one of being tremendously blessed by God not only to be living here but also in so many of the small details of life.

We were greeted at the airport by a joyful group of christians singing "O happy day" and holding a huge welcome sign for us. We were overwhelmed by the joy and love that was expressed by the church that day.

After that we moved into a hotel which would become our temporary home while we looked for apartments. The disciples took care of us and encouraged us that it would probably only be four to six weeks that we'd be in the hotel. The first day we were confronted not by tropical summer heat as expected but by cool air and rain all day. We found out that we are in the middle of the rainy season and some times it rains continuously for days. That didn't stop us as we got started on the incredibly long list of things to do to get life setup here in Brazil.

Jorge Bittencourt, the brother who has been the main leader of the church here took 10 of his vacation days to take us around to look for apartments, buy furniture etc. Thank you Jorge, we could not have done it without you!!

On just the second day of being here we identified apartments, looked at a few and decided on one. Jorge told us it would still take a few weeks to get all the documents arranged. But, in just one of the many examples of God's grace on us, we were able to secure the apartment and start moving in after just one week!! We are so grateful for the place God has given us as it has ample space for our family and is located just a 10 minute walk from the University of Brasilia (UnB) campus.

One week after arriving we were able to have the privilege of receiving a visit from my old college roommate Vernon Harris and his wife Muthoni. For 6 months they are traveling around the world, taking in the sights and encouraging as many disciples as possible. I hadn't seen Vernon for over 5 year so it was crazy to meet here in Brazil. We showed them around our new home city and had a great time as they helped us move into our apartment. You can click here if you want to read more about their adventures.

The main hallway at UnB

The last thing I want to share about is the "Bate- Papo" (Bible discussion) that we've been able to participate in at UnB. The university has around 30,000 students and is recognized as one of the best in Brazil. Many students come to UnB hoping to get good government jobs. Our main focus in being here is to reach out to these students and teach them about the Gospel. Currently our group consists of Pedro, Hamilton, Ana Cristina and Kay and I. Another sister also works at the university and is able to participate some times. Yesterday we went out to invite people (our first time in portuguese) and were able to see a few students come out. By the end twelve people were talking about Jesus and their lives. It gave us a great vision for what God will do in the future at UnB.

Thanks again to everyone who has supported us and encouraged us. Please keep us in your prayers, that we may learn portuguese and that our lives can bring much glory to God here in Brazil. Até mais!!

Missionary Supporters

2012-01-14T07:28:00.003-05:00

Today I want to take a few minutes just to lift up all of those who are Missionary Supporters. There are numerous people that in the last few weeks have helped us immensely and made our departure to Brazil possible. Certainly God calls all of us who are disciples of Jesus to be involved in teaching others the Gospel, but these few have recently gone above and beyond.

I want to thank all the people who have housed us. We moved out of our house on December 18 and have since then been able to count on the hospitality and love of the following special people: Grandma and Grandpa (Jim & Dottie) Allison in Oregon, Ian & Crystal Scott in Gainesville, Colleen Parramoure, and Mike and Maritza Swabb in Orlando, Bob & Barb Owens and Denice Janis in Broward Al & Mimi Gonzalez (the best next-door neighbors ever), Ralph & Aileen Ojeda and Thomas & Tina Allison in Palm Beach. Its a bit of a scary feeling to not have a place you can call "home", but because of each of you we have felt at home even in this time of transition. THANK YOU!!

There are others who have supported us either financially or in special way through prayer and friendship. I want to thank Chris Overstreet for her special love from Gainesville, and Loni Charters, Evelyn Clayton, Cindy Whitaker and Dot Nelson for their support from Orlando. We know that you and many others wish to remain unnamed and unnoticed, but we want you to know that we could not do this without you.

Finally there is our family. While we have grown accustomed to their support through out the years, they have been so amazingly helpful in the recent times. I'm not going to name them because they know who they are, but we could not have done this without your help through the myriad of details, errands and decisions of the past few weeks. We love you and are so, so grateful for each of you.

Certainly there are many more that I have left out that have served us, loved us, encouraged us and taught us more about God. I hope that whether you have "only" said a prayer for us (maybe the biggest contribution) or sacrificed money and living space for us, you can feel a part of what God is doing in our lives and in South America. May it be as it was for our first century brothers and sisters:

All the believers were one in heart and mind. No one claimed that any of their possessions was their own, but they shared everything they had. With great power the apostles continued to testify to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus. And God’s grace was so powerfully at work in them all that there were no needy persons among them. Acts 5:32-34

2011 Year in Review

2012-01-01T20:46:00.001-05:00

As 2012 begins, now seems like a good time to remember a few things from 2011.

First of all I am so thankful to God for how he did "immeasurably more" than we could have imagined. Especially with our campus ministry in Palm Beach, God showed himself to be powerful, faithful and loving in so many ways. I rejoice for the 9 students who were added to D.O.C. and for how new leaders were raised up. I also rejoice (and will miss dearly) the family that was created in the ministry. Through good and bad and lots of fun we learned to love each other in a deeper way. Also, the first year of the G.O. Program got started in Asunción, Paraguay with 4 amazing students. I'm so grateful how God used those 7 weeks to radically impact their lives.

I'm also so grateful for the spiritual lessons that God taught me throughout the year. I think one of the main things I saw this year was that God answers prayer. Over and over he answered prayer after prayer. Some He answered the way I had hoped and others he answered in different ways. But He answered. One of the most recent answered prayers was that my mom was able to obtain her Missionary Visa to Brazil. This is a huge deal because it allows her to stay as long as she wants and not to have to worry about lots of things related to her coming with us to Brazil.

Finally, I thank God for my family. Today I got to say goodbye to my Dad, my Grandma Betty, and my aunts Susie and Dottie in Orlando. It was a nice way to begin the year and I am grateful for their support. Last week we were able to spend time with Dan and Mary, Thomas Tina and Leila, and my mom in Ellijay, Georgia (Many thanks to Al & Mimi Gonzalez and their "Casa de Luz"). It was an amazing time to enjoy nature, play games, relax and recharge spiritually. We had nightly devotionals meditating on the character of Jesus and I think that we will carry with us the lessons throughout 2012. I can't thank God enough for surrounding me with people who want to love God and love one another. And most importantly, I thank God for my amazing, beautiful and patient wife and beautiful children. It had been my dream ever since I can remember to have a John Wesley Hoyt IV and this year God gave me a son who already surpasses my dreams.

So now 2012 begins. Thank you to everyone who made 2011 a special year for me and my family. I hope that through this blog we can not only give you a glimpse of our life and the missionary adventure that we are on but also relate the joy of following Jesus together as a family.

A very special day

2011-11-20T23:14:00.000-05:00

Today was a memorable day!!

Today we had our annual All-Church service for the South Florida Church of Christ. We had great worship, an inspiring sermon and encouraging fellowship. Those things are to be expected.

One "out of the ordinary" thing that happened today was that our friends, Marcus and Amy Overstreet were appointed Evangelist and Women's Ministry Leader. This is the first appointment of this type in over 10 years in the SFCC. Years ago, growing up in the church we all aspired to be Evangelists. Over time the role has come to be seen in a different light. But today was a victorious day because Marcus and Amy were recognized for the great work they've been doing for the past 5 years here in the SFCC. We are especially proud of them, their perseverance and their focus on God in the midst of hard times. Congratulations Marcus and Amy!!

The second very special part of today was the announcement of our move to Brasília, Brazil in January 2012. Its a move we've been contemplating now for a while and we are grateful that the announcement came the same day as our friends were appointed Evangelist and WML.

In the crowd were Thomas and Tina Allison, Troy and Kim Criss, Ian and Crystal Scott, Bob Mitchell and Chris Overstreet. Each of these people have supported us and the Overstreets in amazing ways in the recent years. We are so grateful for how God brought us together in Gainesville and has since sent us out, literally to all parts of the world.

"A blessing to all nations" was the theme for today's service and it is our hope and prayer that God will allow us to truly be this wherever we go in the world.

Summer Travels

2011-05-23T21:41:00.000-05:00

So its been a while since we've been updating our blog, but I think its time to start writing again.

I'm really excited about all that this summer has in store. I have the opportunity to travel to South America not once, but TWICE!! Not having been there for over a year has made me appreciate the countries, the people and the experiences that God has given us there.

My first trip will be to Asunción, Paraguay. I'm taking four students to be interns in the church there. I will be spending two weeks, the interns six weeks. I believe that this trip will be life changing for all of us. I've never been to Paraguay, but I'm really looking forward to meeting the brothers and sisters there as well as helping the interns to have the greatest impact possible. Below is a picture of three of the four interns. You can follow their adventures at GOsouthamerica.tumblr.com.

Cristina Aguilar, Beto Figueroa, Allan Mena - GO Interns

My second trip will be a return trip to Brasília, the capital of Brazil. We first met the church there in February of last year when our family went to speak at the retreat they had during the carnaval season. We have since built a good friendship with the main couple, Jorge and Ana Cristina. I will be speaking to the church (maybe in Portuguese), spending time with the leadership and possibly visiting a handful of disciples that live outside the city in a smaller area called Goiania.

Brasília

Please pray that God will be glorified in these trips.

One Year!

2011-03-02T19:56:00.000-05:00

Today marks one year since we've posted anything on our blog. Its been quite an interesting year. There's no way to describe the emotions that we've gone through in the past year, but I can summarize the main events that have happened in our lives.

First of all, we moved from Santiago, Chile back to the United States to West Palm Beach, Florida. God orchestrated our path so that as things were needing to change in our lives and in Chile a place opened up for us here in Florida. We moved back and have been serving the Palm Beach Region of the South Florida Church of Christ.

The second major thing that happened is that we got the great news that Kay was pregnant with our second child. As time has gone by we found out that he is going to be a boy and we've decided to call him John Wesley Hoyt IV. Its a special name with family significance so we like it. John should be arriving sometime in the beginning of April.

Finally God has brought us into the position to work with campus students at Florida Atlantic University and Palm Beach State College. This has been an exciting shift and we've already enjoyed getting to know these great hearted brothers and sisters.

We dream to return to South America one day. Only God knows the path he has laid out for us. Until then, we'll continue to keep in mind Philippians 1:21: For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.

Chile Update March 2

2010-03-02T22:39:00.000-05:00

Thank you to all of our brothers and sisters around the world who are praying for the disciples and the entire country of Chile. We continue to need your prayers. Here’s an update of news from today:

Adriana was found!! Thanks so much for praying for her. Her bus stopped in a smaller city between Santiago and Concepción and she was unharmed by the earthquake.

Our list of uncontacted disciples is down to 5. Today members of the church were able to locate and talk to about ten more brothers and sisters. Thank God that little by little everyone is being found.

Christian Amestoy traveled today to Concepción. He left Santiago at 2 pm so he should be arriving right around midnight. A trip that normally takes 6 hours now takes 10 due to detours, road outages etc. He is carrying a truck full of food, water and other provisions to our brothers and sisters in Concepción. He spoke with them again today and they are all fine. They have food and water for the next 3 to 4 days.

In both Santiago and Concepción the situation has become more dangerous. In various neighborhoods in Santiago armed bands are threatening to loot homes that have been damaged by the quake. Some disciples have had to work together with their neighbors to protect their homes. Also in Concepción the looting has gotten worse. Supermarkets and other stores have been attacked and looted. Also vehicles that have entered Concepción have been attacked.

Please continue to pray for the disciples in all three churches. Pray also for Christian and that he may have a safe and encouraging trip to Concepción. Pray also for Claudio and Leslie, another couple that is traveling to Concepción to locate and help their family.

If you or your church wishes to donate financially to help in the recovery you can donate at www.HOPEww.org or you can contact me directly, John.Hoyt3@gmail.com.

Chile Update March 1

2010-03-01T18:02:00.001-05:00

God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, though the Earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea…The LORD Almighty is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress.

Truly God has been our refuge and strength in these difficult times and we have witnessed how his has protected us as his children. Here is a report on the conditions of the churches in Chile.

Santiago - Of about 200 members in the church, only 15 are still unaccounted for. We have been calling and trying to communicate, but there are still many parts of the city without electricity or phone service. Although the cell phones are working, the service is not constant. There is special concern for one of the sisters, Adriana, who was traveling to Concepción in a bus on Saturday morning when the quake struck. Please pray for her as there is no news of her yet.

As we’ve talked with the disciples, there have been no major injuries. Most of the damage has been to the houses and apartments. A handful of disciples’ houses have suffered severe damage such as walls collapsing, large cracks etc. Two apartments of disciples have been declared unlivable, one because of structural damage and the other due to flooding.

In Santiago, the general situation is calm. In some neighborhoods there has been looting of supermarkets and homes. As far as we know, no disciples have been directly affected by these events. Stores continue operating as well as most other businesses.

Viña del Mar – All of the disciples are safe and accounted for. None have suffered injuries. One couple’s apartment suffered severe damage. They spent two nights with family and are coming today to Santiago to seek housing with other family members. Viña is very close to Valparaiso, one of the older cities in Chile. The buildings there suffered a lot of damage due to the weak construction and age.

Concepción – Almost 300 miles south of Santiago, this is the region of Chile that has suffered the most. The earthquake struck about 70 miles to the north of the city and has affected the entire region. Our church there has 13 disciples and as of today we have confirmation that all are ok. One young couple with a baby spent two nights on a nearby hill without water or light, but have now been united with the rest of the disciples. 10 of the 13 are staying together in one household. Tomorrow, Christian Amestoy, one of the leaders from Santiago and the founding minister of the church in Concepción, will travel there to bring food, water and other supplies to the disciples. I will write another update as soon as possible with information from his trip.

Needs - Right now the greatest need is prayer. Although the situation has been devastating in the south of Chile, God has protected us in so many ways. In the next few days as more needs surface we will continue to communicate them. Please pray for the safety of all the disciples. Pray for Adriana to be located and for communication to be restored with the rest of the disciples. Finally please pray for us to be the light of the world in these dark moments.

Thank you to all those who have sent emails, Facebook messages, phone calls etc. We greatly appreciate your concern and support.

Indescribable!

2010-02-17T14:06:00.000-05:00

Video from our trip to Patagonia, Chile with Dan, Mary and Rita

A little bit about our lives...

2010-02-04T20:48:00.005-05:00

Recently Justin, an 11 year-old from the U.S. asked me the following questions and I thought the answers might be interesting to post:

What is your church like? Why did you become a missionary? What is life like in Chile?

Our church is made up of about 200 members. About one hundred of those are married couples. The other hundred are singles, campus students and teens. My wife and I lead the campus ministry. We have about 20 students. It is a great church that is very devoted to God.. The people are very hard working and are faithful to God. They have a great sense of respect for God and his will. We meet together on Sundays and Wednesdays. With the campus group we get together on Friday nights to have devotionals. Every one speaks Spanish. The church is made up of people who live all over Santiago, some travel more than one hour (in bus) to come to services.

I became a missionary because God put it on my heart and then opened the door for me to do it. I started studying Spanish my freshman year of high school and I had become a christian right before that. That same year I got to travel to Brazil and be part of a conference with our church. The next year I went to Mexico City also with our church. Both of those experiences opened my eyes to what God was doing all over the world. As I studied Spanish the desire grew in my heart to help in Latin America. My wife and I actually met on that trip I took to Mexico City and we both had the desire to be missionaries. As we dated in college and then got married it had always been a dream of ours. We expressed this dream to friends and leaders in our church in the U.S. and one day one of the ministers asked us if we'd be willing to move to South America to help the churches. After a lot of prayer and seeking advice we said yes. God brought us down to Santiago, Chile in July of 2007 and we've been living a great adventure since then.

Life in Chile is great. Santiago is the capital and the biggest city with over 6 million people. We live in the very center, near the downtown business district. There's a lot of smog and traffic, but that's normal for a big city. Chileans are warm, friendly people. The love to talk especially if they can do it over a cup of coffee or a meal. We've adapted to the chilean eating schedule. In the morning we have coffee or tea with a sandwich of some kind (ham & cheese, butter & jelly etc). At lunch (around 2pm) we have a big meal (sorta like dinner in the US) of something like spaghetti, rice and meat, soup or chicken. The food here is not spicy. They eat a lot of vegetables with their lunch. Then in the evening the normal meal is "once", coffee or tea with a pastry or sandwich.

Life here is a little more simple, not so much technology and very few people have cars. In the church about 25 of the 200 have cars. We walk or take the bus or the subway everywhere. We've learned a lot about the chilean people in our time here and they've also taught us a lot about ourselves. Relationships here are more important than tasks. People are almost always late to any kind of gathering.

We thank God every day for the opportunity He's given us to live our dreams.

Fun time with family and friends

2009-10-28T15:27:00.006-05:00

We had a great time visiting with family and friends during our September trip back to the States. Here a couple of highlight pictures.

2009-10-13T13:01:00.001-05:00

After I looked things over, I stood up and said to the nobles, the officials and the rest of the people, "Don't be afraid of them. Remember the Lord, who is great and awesome, and fight for your brothers, your sons and your daughters, your wives and your homes." Neh 4:14

Have you ever felt like you need to make a change in your life, but don't know how? Recently here in Santiago a few brothers have been talking about that very question. One brother decided he wanted to do something radical and he invited a few people to go along with him. The challenge: 52 days of meeting at 6 am to study the book of Nehemiah and pray together. As of today, we've made it to day 13 and God is already working in amazing ways.

Each morning we hear from God's word, pray in small groups and decide on two challenges for the day. For some the challenge has been to call and encourage another brother. For others, to dedicate more time to their families. And for others to share what God has done in their life with someone who doesn’t know God. For me, two big challenges have surfaced. One is to be a champion of unity in the church. I've come to see that many times for me and others, we tend to back away from telling the difficult truth and let disunity exist in the body of Christ. I've decided to face some of my fears and fight to bring God's children together no matter how hard it may be. The second challenge is to believe again in the incredible power of God. God has worked in many ways here in Santiago, but I've seen that my faith in God has not been where it needs to be. Through excepting these challenges and praying with the brothers, God has been working to fill my heart with faith again.

We've only come a quarter of the way, but already I can tell that God is moving and Satan is counter-attacking. Please pray for us and the God's mighty hand will be made known and have great impact on the church, the lost and the entire country of Chile.

For pictures and more information including the daily devotionals (in Spanish), check out http://levantandolamuralla.blogspot.com

And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord's glory, are being transformed into his likeness (2 Cor 3:18)

2009-09-24T14:48:00.006-05:00

We are just getting back from a great trip in the States visiting family and friends, enjoying great food and even participating in some very memorable events. As soon as we got in to Florida, we spent some time with John's family and it was wonderful. Rita offered to keep Maya with her as we flew quickly out to Denver for a church leadership conference for a few days. Then we drove down to South Florida to see my family and then back up to Orlando for two days of great rest at the beach. We finished off the trip with an incredible reunion in Gainesville celebrating 10 years since we went on the mission team in 1999.

What I wanted to do is share a few of the lessons the I took away from the conference and the time in Florida...

Do not let fear drive me, "perfect love drives our fear!" If my fears are driving me than the Spirit is not.

(It is difficult for me to not act or react out of fear, mainly fear of what others think of me or even of what I think of myself. Love is so motivating and truly drives out insecurity and fear, not only loving others but also knowing God's love for me.)

Pray hard, step up, be determined...let the Spirit work in my to make me indignant about unrighteousness

(We had a very inspiring and yet convicting time with some of our spiritual mentors John and Sylvia Reus. These are some of the things that John challenged us with.)

"NRM" - Never Resign on Monday!

(Danesh George from India did a great lesson and shared this as a little side point to ministers. Sometimes we are just tired and the week before was rough. Monday isn't the right time to bring everything in to question :)

We are vulnerable when our unity is not a priority...a perfect example of unity/harmony is God, Jesus and the Holy Spirit (not competitive, always in sync)

(Peter Garcia from LA was incredibly open and honest about the difficulties that come about when we are not fighting for unity. Then Arturo from Mexico talked about how the Trinity is a great example to study in order to learn about cooperation and unity)

Pray always, pray in every meeting...build a prayer culture

(One of the biggest challenges that I think I have seen in church building is maintaining a God-centered church and Christianity. It is so easy for things to veer ever so slightly in a humanistic direction. We must keep God/Jesus/the Spirit as the center and focus of all we do)

Jesus' best story was his last story...the stories of the past are great, but am I going to stop there or will I keep living my faith?

Jesus has loved me faithfully, genuinely, consistently, graciously, sacrificially, deeply, patiently and unconditionally...let his love compel me (2 Cor 5:14) compel- holds me tightly together, constrains me, forces me into action

So, these are a few of the lessons that I took away from our trip. There are many more, but I figure we shouldn't try to fix everything all at once. I pray that God will mold us continually and use all of these lessons to make us more like his Son.

Here is the link to the pictures from our trip picasaweb.google.com/kayhoyt/September09Trip

2009-09-19T17:14:00.001-05:00

I just saw a report of the ILC in Denver and it had a small clip of Kay sharing. I thought you all might like to check it out. You can see it at ICOC Hot News or just click here. Here is the link to the the online streaming of the classes at the conference dtoday.tv You have to click the menu button and look for the "Women's Program Friday Sept 4". Her sharing starts at about 02:12.

Todo El Mundo Sabrá

2009-08-18T18:59:00.011-05:00

David said to the Philistine, "You come against me with sword and spear and javelin, but I come against you in the name of the LORD Almighty, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. This day the LORD will hand you over to me, and I'll strike you down and cut off your head. Today I will give the carcasses of the Philistine army to the birds of the air and the beasts of the earth, and the whole world will know that there is a God in Israel. All those gathered here will know that it is not by sword or spear that the LORD saves; for the battle is the LORD's, and he will give all of you into our hands." 1 Samuel 17:45-47

This scripture was the theme of this year's ICMC (International Campus Ministry Conference). In the past, one conference was held in one city each year with the focus of building strong ministries and inspiring campus students. This year conferences were held in 20 cities around the globe and Santiago had the privilege of being the host of the conference for South America.

After months of planning, the weekend finally arrived and God did miracles. Eighteen students from outside Chile joined with our ministry here for a weekend full of classes and fellowship. Altogether, seven different nations were represented from North, Central and South America. Truly it was an international conference.

Friday started with the class "Todo el mundo sabrá (The whole world will know). We saw how God's vision from Genesis to Revelation has always been for people of all nations to know him. Then we went out to five different campus to invite students to the class in the evening by Dr. John Oakes.

With only a week of inviting, God brought over 110 people to hear the class entitled "Evidence: God and Science". Dr. Oakes shared from his over 20 years of experience as a chemistry and physics professor with us about how numerous scientific findings support the Bible and show it to be a credible document that deserves further study.

Saturday was the marathon day of fellowship. In the morning we went up to the top of the San Cristobal hill in the center of Santiago and had a devotional with John Oakes. Later we had a barbecue in one of the picnic areas on the hill. In the evening we participated in Dr. Oakes' class entitled "The Bible: From Men or From God". After the class we went to the house of a family in the church and spent the rest of the night in fellowship, eating and dancing.

Sunday brought the conference to a close with two powerful classes by John Oakes about Church History and the book of Daniel. After eating lunch and a few closing comments, it was time to say goodbye. As we left, it was obvious that God had been working in our midst: friendships had been formed, convictions strengthened and dreams renewed.

Click here to see a video recap of the weekend.

On Campus

2009-07-27T09:37:00.004-05:00

This is the Catholic University - San Joaquín campus where we have had many a Bible talk. It is a gorgeous campus and has more than 20,000 students. According to most, it is the best university in Chile (competing along side Universidad de Chile).

Fruits and Veggies

2009-07-09T20:11:00.003-05:00

I know it might seem petty, but I love the little fruit stand by our house. My favorite fruits produced in Chile are apples, grapes and as for vegetables, the carrots and avocados are incredible.

Maya with her Papi

2009-06-30T18:46:00.007-05:00

Here is a little Maya video. She is getting so big. She has a very adventurous spirit and loves to climb, just like her dad. They make a good team.

Video Blog 3 - El Cerro (The Hill)

2009-06-17T19:38:00.004-05:00

Here we have Kay and an exchange student, Jenny, from the States on the San Cristobal Hill looking out over Santiago and the Andes Mountains.

Video Blog 2

2009-06-06T18:19:00.003-05:00

Here's another video about our life here in Chile. This one gives a view of our (second) apartment.

Video Blogging

2009-06-03T15:33:00.006-05:00

So Kay had a great idea recently: video blogging. To give our friends and family a glimpse of our life here in Santiago, she's been making short, one minute or so videos about various aspects of our daily existence. Hopefully they give you a feel for what we're living and inspire you to dream your own missionary dreams. We'll be posting them here every so often so keep checking back.

Video Blog 1 - Going to church on Sunday.

Fall in Santiago

2009-05-06T14:06:00.007-05:00

The month of April is part of the fall here in Santiago. It’s a great month, the leaves are changing color, the temperature is cooling off and school is in full swing. During the month of April, a number of good things were happening here.

First, I had the privilege of preaching a number of times for the church. I actually preached five times in the month including Sunday services and midweeks. I got to talk about incredible subjects such as the power of the resurrection, how the love of Christ compels us, Christ's humble plan for the church, and how Christ cares for his church. I feel amazed and humbled at the fact that God uses me and my gringo Spanish to make his word known. It is truly miraculous!

Secondly, Maya did her first ever school presentation. In her class, the subject was the family. Each student had to bring a poster with photos of his or her family and then present their family to the class. Kay, being the creative and artistic genius that she is, did a fabulous job creating the poster for Maya. Maya took it to school and according to the Tias (teachers), did a great job presenting her family to the class. We were very proud of her.

Finally, at the end of the month, a brother from Boston came to visit us. Hector Morales along with his wife Miriam, leads the Spanish region of the Boston Church. He came to visit to get to know us and to do an evaluation of our work in connection with our project with the Beam Fund. To explain, we are supported by a number of different sources including personal donors, contributions from our sister churches in Florida (Florida Missions Council) and from the Beam Missions Fund. The BMF was created in 2007 with an endowment by a wealthy brother for the purpose of supporting short-term, overseas mission projects. We made a proposal and won support from the BMF. Hector's visit was a terrific time of encouragement, exchange of ministry ideas and inspiration. He and I went to Concepción (a smaller city 6 hours south of Santiago) to visit the church there as well. And last Sunday, he preached for the church here in Santiago.

So, along with celebrating birthdays, leading Bible Talks and devotionals, playing fútbol and watching Maya grow, it was a busy month. Now we just have to see what God has in store for May!

Three Months!

2009-03-26T10:44:00.017-05:00

Its been over three months since our last blog update; wow how quickly the time passes by! It would be great to give details of all that's happened, but we just don't have space nor time. Here's a quick review of the major events of January, February and March.

January -

We had a great time visiting with family in the States. They loved up on us and gave us great food and even better company. It was a very refreshing time for us.

Giam got restored. He moved here from Panama in October and after intensely studying the scriptures and repenting in many ways, he was restored in his relationship with God and the church.

We moved across the street to a new apartment in Santiago. Its quiet and peaceful.

The campus ministry led the service in Santiago, songs and all. Kay even participated in the chorus.

February - Viña del Mar.

We spent most of the month at the coast with the small mission church of about 15 disciples. It was a great experience for us.

Our camera got doused with water and sand one day while we were at the beach :(

Campus Retreat at Laguna Verde (which we don't have pictures of, but it was a great retreat).

March

Kay went on an emergency trip to Oregon to visit her Grandfather whose health was failing.

He is doing better, and Kay was able to spend memorable time with her family.

Back to normal life in Santiago.

El Vallecito - Camping in Chile

2008-12-22T09:02:00.009-05:00

My soul finds rest in God alone; my salvation comes from him.

He alone is my rock and my salvation;

he is my fortress, I will never be shaken. Psalm 62:1-2

In November and December we took two different groups of students to a place known as "El Vallecito" or the little valley. Its a place just outside the city, on the way to the higher mountains. Its a great place because its fairly easy to get to, relatively deserted and free!

Our focus with these trips was to get away from the busyness of life in the city, enjoy nature and reconnect with God. Each time we spent various times together reading the scriptures, praying, singing and talking about spiritual topics such as God's love, things we learned in 2008 etc.

I thank God for all of the incredibly beautiful places He has created on this earth and that we can get away, take a deep breath and find our rest in Him.

Spring Time in Santiago

2008-12-03T08:48:00.011-05:00

Then the church throughout Judea, Galilee and Samaria enjoyed a time of peace. It was strengthened; and encouraged by the Holy Spirit, it grew in numbers, living in the fear of the Lord. Acts 9:31

We were able to do lots of fun things in the spring month of November here in Santiago. It has been beautiful outside making park services and outdoor fun activities almost weekly events. The campus ministry got together for a park service one Sunday and heard a great communion lesson by Juan Pablo, one of the great young students in our ministry. Hector, another student preached a great message about being aware of Satan's schemes that helped all of us tremendously.

We have been having some great bible discussions on campus this semester. One of them takes place at the Catholic University which has been ranked as the most prestigious university in Chile. It has been a great semester as we have really seen God move in the times we have met together. Especially encouraging is Maria Paz being baptized a few months ago and two other students now studying the bible on the campus.

We have also been able to enjoy celebrating a few birthday parties with great friends in the last few weeks. It is always such and joy to get friends together. Here are a few pics of some good times...
On a side note, check out John's other blog for some of his recent studies about trusting in God (lapalabrapoderosa.blogspot.com).

The Edge - International Leadership Conference

2008-10-24T10:43:00.013-05:00

From October 5-15, I had the opportunity

to make a trip to the other side of the world to attend the 2008 International Leadership Conference of the ICOC in Kiev, Ukraine. It was an amazing trip for many reasons: very long, very inspirational, very memorable.

My trip took me from Santiago to Atlanta to Paris to Vilnius to Kiev and back. I got to spend a day in Paris on the way there and on the way back. At the conference I was able to see a number of old friends as well as hear many inspiring and convicting classes. On the way back I got to spend time with a good friend, Jon Sherwood while in Atlanta.

All

in all it was a trip I'll never forget. I praise God for the way that he is working all over the world to help our brotherhood of churches grow and mature. The news of baptisms, growth, learning and advancing through faith called me higher and encouraged me to keep working with God to preach the Word and stay on the Edge with Jesus.

Below are a few pictures and some quotes from classes that really impacted me.

Preachers should comfort the afflicted and afflict the com

fortable - G.Ferguson

Having one main leader provides the clear voice of inspiration that churches need - G. Ferguson

United leadership takes time, effort and pain - G. Ferguson

Harmony and Unity are God's will (Psalm 133) - T. Singh

Passion is essential. Everybody has passion and they are just looking for where to put it - S. Wooten

There is a certain joy that is lost when we are not giving away the love of the cross - S. Wooten

What can you do to help build ligaments (Eph. 4)? J. Renton

The church does not grow through compromise - M. Fontenot

When prophets repent, the fire rains down - M. Fontenot

Campus ministry requires lots of hard work - M. Taliaferro

Young people need six meaningful adult relationships - J. Porter

Good parenting can overcome a bad church situation - A. Hill

It takes time to invest in the family but it yields fruit that will last - D. Pocta

When you decide to get well, humility and decision are what is needed - D. Arthur

Do you expect the lordship of Jesus in the life of every disciple? B. Williams

Expectations will not increase without confrontation - B. Williams

Fear is not a weakness, it is a sin - M. Alhinn

There is only one message of the cross where two opposing ideas come together - A. Fleming

Good News

2008-10-04T18:59:00.009-05:00

For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future..."Jer 29:11

It is always good for our hearts to think about the ways that God is working in people's lives, the miracles he is doing and how people are growing. In the last couple of months we have seen some encouraging things happen here in Santiago in the lives of some of our friends.

We were privileged to be able to participate in two engagements of close friends. Jose and Priscila are a great encouragement to the church and we are so excited for them as they plan to marry in January. Priscila's mother and entire family came to their engagement party and left deeply impacted by the love that was showered on her daughter. Her mother decided that she would come to church with Priscila the next day and is looking forward to coming to our Women's Day in November.

Jose Miguel and Veronica

got engaged in September and

at their engagement expressed intense gratitude for what God has done in their lives up until this point. Jose Miguel first came to the church over 10 years ago now and studied the bible multiple times before making his final decision this year to make Jesus Lord. He introduced Veronica to the church and to the scriptures as he studied the bible and they were baptized on the same day! Now, a year later, they are celebrating the relationship that they are building with God as the center.

Also we were able to see some great friends, Juan Guillermo and María-Paz begin dating. After meeting almost 9 years ago, Juan Guillermo shared his faith with his good friend Mari for over a year. She was humbled before the word and incredibly grateful that her long time friend showed her the way to a relationship with God. We are so excited for them to now be dating and watch how God has great plans for our lives when we surrender to his will.

Some more great news is that John was able to see a great friend, Agustin, be baptized into Christ! In January, Agustin began to think deeply about studying the bible and in March he started slowly to look in to the scriptures. He had very little belief in God's word and Jesus at the time and has studied diligently with the brothers ever since. His faith has grown and we have watched Agustin be transformed, understanding and believing in Jesus for the first time in his life.

It is refreshing to watch God's hand move in each of our lives and the lives of those around us!

Trust in the LORD and do good;
dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture.
Delight yourself in the LORD
and he will give you the desires of your heart.
Commit your way to the LORD;
trust in him and he will do this:
He will make your righteousness shine like the dawn,
the justice of your cause like the noonday sun.
Psalm 37:3-6

Maya is 2!

2008-09-22T14:21:00.016-05:00

On Tuesday, September 9th, Maya turned a big 2 years old! We had a great week of fun and celebration.

To celebrate Chile's Fiestas Patrias (18th of September), Maya danced the cueca with her classmates from "The Happy House", her little school.

The next day we returned to share the joy of Maya's birthday with her amiguitos. Kay made an amazing 3 layer cake that everybody enjoyed.

Finally, when we got home we got to unwrapping the gifts. From Daddy, Maya got some new shoes. From Mommy, a toy stroller to take her baby dolls around. And from both Grandmas some new clothes!

Speaking words in Spanish and English, learning new things everyday, jumping, running and playing; we're so proud of our big 2 year old! Happy Birthday Maya!

Trip to Concepción

2008-09-16T21:20:00.005-05:00

We had a great time a couple of weeks ago traveling south to Concepción to visit the small church there. In April, we sent out from Santiago an incredible couple, Patricio and Daisy, to the small mission church. They are working part time for the church and are doing an incredible job there. Carolina was baptized about a month ago and has brought joy and encouragement to the group. We are so proud of Pato and Daisy and the church. It is so great to know that they are fighting "with all his energy"(Col 1:28) for Concepción.

Let us rejoice and be glad in his salvation!

2008-08-14T14:34:00.010-05:00

Surely this is our God; we trusted in him, and he saved us. This is the Lord, we trusted in him; let us rejoice and be glad in his salvation.

Isaiah 25:9

This week there are angels rejoicing in heaven and many rejoicing with them here on earth because two incredible campus students have decided to make Jesus Lord of their lives.

On Wednesday night the campus ministry piled in to our living room to share this special moment with María Paz. God has taken her through many intense times in her life up until this point in order to draw her to him. Over a year ago, María Paz started thinking about God as one of the brothers in the campus shared with her about his life. She began to study the bible with some of the sisters but very shortly after, decided to step away from the challenge of living her life for Christ. Almost six months later, God drew her back as her older brother was in a life-threatening accident. He survived and has recovered well, but her heart was changed completely through it. She decided to begin studying the bible again and didn't slow down for two months. On Wednesday she shared with intense gratitude and brokenness before God and the brothers and sisters. It was encouraging also to have her mother, her cousin and her best friend there with us on her special day.

Thursday night the fun continued as we piled in the campus students once again to be apart of Alejandra's baptism. God has worked similarly in her life as she first visited the church in 2006 and studied the bible last year but walked away not wanting to give up everything to follow God. A few months ago she came walking in to church alone, scared that no one would accept her. Her heart for God has been a light for the ministry. He has carried her through some rough times and left her convinced that there is nothing more worth living for than God. In the process of studying the bible this year her mother suddenly became very ill and has been in the hospital now for nearly a month. She has undergone multiple surgeries on her intestines and is recovering slowly. Alejandra has been forced to look to God and learn about faith, about believing in what she does not see. Thursday night was a time of great joy and rejoicing for her and for all of us who have fought alongside her.

God has brought two girls from opposite sides of Santiago to know the wonders of his love and the joy we find in his amazing grace. This is the Lord, we trusted in him; let us rejoice and be glad in his salvation. Isaiah 25:9

Thank You Florida!!!

2008-07-30T13:47:00.005-05:00

We want to say thank you to all the churches in Florida who have constantly and unconditionally given to the churches in the Southern Cone of South America. This VIDEO is a thank you specifically from the Spanish speaking churches in the Southern Cone to each of our sister congregations. We are forever indebted to you for your generosity spiritually, emotionally, physically and financially. You have watched out for us, discipled us, prayed for us, sent us missionaries and have been a great example for us in the Lord. From Argentina, Uruguay, Chile and Bolivia: THANK YOU!

Los Tigres Blancos

2008-07-15T21:19:00.012-05:00

Fútbol. Soccer. Whatever you call it I knew when we decided to come to South America that I was going to have to learn how to play sooner or later. Here in Chile, they are not into fútbol as much as perhaps in other countries, but that doesn't mean they don't love it. I hadn't actually had the opportunity to play until June came around and the church had it's first tournament.

So I decided that I'd go ahead and play with the teens figuring that being on a young team probably wouldn't be too bad. We were called the Tigres Blancos (White Tigers) and I was totally mistaken. We played on Sundays after church, five games in total. The first Sunday I was sick, but I went along to watch and take some pictures. It didn't appear that hard and I was optimistic. To make a long story short, we lost all five games - 13-3, 17-3, 9-4, 8-4, 5-4.

It wasn't pretty, but I was encouraged by a few things.

We stuck together as a team and got better. After every game there was talk of quitting, but we fought through difficulties and not so great attitudes and kept going. The last two games we were actually winning for the majority of the game but couldn't pull it out.
We had fun. Having fun is super important in life. It can be so easy to be boring and serious, but we ended up having a great time. I'm sure that we could have had even more fun if we would have won, but we're saving that for next time.
I (sorta) learned how to play. We were playing "baby" (fútbol), a version that is played on a shorter court, kinda like a tennis court. I'm not great, or even good, but I did grow in my understanding and feel like it was an important learning experience for my development as a missionary! And I even got a medal for participation. Amazing!
Now I'm just looking forward to the next opportunity we have to jugar la pelota. ¡Vamos Tigres Blancos!

This last picture is of the winning team, Los Pinoguachos receiving their trophy.

For they refreshed my spirit...1 Co 16:18

2008-07-07T12:56:00.007-05:00

In May we were able to go back to the States for the first time in almost a year and spend time with our incredible family and friends. The Churches in South Florida, Orlando and Gainesville welcomed us home with open arms and loved up on us completely. It was a great time for us as a family to enjoy so many wonderful memories being made. We were able to celebrate our 5 year anniversary in Orlando where we were married. Also, a highlight of our trip was being able to participate in the HOPE Global Summit in Washington D.C. We feel so refreshed and are very grateful for the time we spent back home.

Let us fix our eyes on Jesus…

2008-06-24T18:10:00.002-05:00

Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Hebrews 12:2

Last week over 40 disciples from nine cities and five different countries came together with the brothers and sisters in Santiago to participate in the 2008 Southern Cone Discipleship Conference. We spent an incredible 5 days together studying God's word, praying, fellowshipping and eating all with the focus of fixing our eyes on Jesus. I'm not sure, but it seemed like a glimpse of the multi-national fellowship of Acts 2.

On Wednesday, we began with a typical Chilean lunch of Pastel de Choclo and empanadas while we got to know each other and shared about the various situations in our churches.

On Thursday and Friday morning we met together for a devotional time and then discipling groups. Norberto Dorantes, the leader of the church in Buenos Aires, Argentina led our thoughts on Thursday morning to the power of Jesus through the scriptures. My heart swelled with admiration as I listened to my brother who has to work part-time to support his family while still leading the church closer to God. Thursday evening Martin Bentley preached an encouraging and challenging message calling us to fix our eyes on Jesus and repent of our sins.

On Friday, Leo Santana from Santa Cruz, Bolivia gave an inspirational devo about the intensity of Jesus' prayer life and challenged us to follow Jesus' example. Each day we spent the late morning in discipling groups discussing the devo, sharing scriptures, confessing sins and encouraging one another. Having attended a similar time for leaders a year and a half ago, I could see how much God has done to work in the hearts of each church leader and to bond the churches closer in unity.

Friday afternoon we ate lunch together at the Mercado Central and then went up to the top of the hill in the middle of Santiago, Cerro San Cristobal. It was a special moment for me as I was able to see how God had answered my prayer of four years ago to be able to live in South America and help the churches here. At the top of the hill I was able to share my heart with dear friends, participate in unity-building talks and dream about the future of the church.

Saturday was a special treat for the Santiago Church as we were able to participate in a day-full of classes given by the brothers and sisters who had come from other churches, especially the US. Classes were given about marriage, finances, excellence in the workplace, dating relationships, parenting and more. During the lunch break, the fellowship was buzzing with reactions from the classes and hearts eager to change. In one day, it seemed as if the church had received an injection of maturity, wisdom, zeal and faith. Many thanks to all who shared and taught.

We finished the conference with a powerful and uplifting time of worship. Christian Amestoy reminded us that Jesus is the way, the truth and the life that we are all searching for. Truly it was a time of renewed faith, renewed dreams and renewed unity. Although the churches in South America have suffered a lot in the recent years, it is obvious that God is not finished with us, but instead wants to call us higher each and every day as we fix our eyes on Jesus.

18 Anniversary - Santiago

2008-05-22T10:45:00.007-05:00

April was a special month in Chile as we celebrated the 18th Anniversary of the church in Santiago. In 1990, a group of disciples from Buenos Aires crossed over the Andes Mountains and planted themselves in Santiago, a city that boasts a population of over 6 million. They came with great dreams and great faith that someday there would be disciples all over Chile. Today there are churches in Viña del Mar and in Concepción working together with the church in Santiago. We continue to dream for Chile and the 12 other regions yet to be reached.

To celebrate what God has done, we decided to invite one of the former leaders of the church in Santiago along with his wife, Josué and Veronica Ortega. With incredible generosity, they offered their hearts and ears and experience to the church. For a week they poured out love and vision to the staff in daily meetings. They taught on subjects such as personal walk with God, church-building, leadership strategy and development and many other important topics. We had special workshops for the men one evening and for the women the next that inspired and challenged the church to have greater faith. Josué was also our guest speaker for an evangelistic event that was held Saturday evening. He spoke about finding direction and purpose in our lives through our relationship with God. Josué and Veronica wrapped their arms around us and injected all of us with much needed vision and faith.

Our Sunday morning celebration service was filled with emotion and gratitude. One of the heroes among us is a sister named Teresa who was the first woman baptized here in Santiago. She was able to share with the church about how God has been faithful to her in good times and in bad. The church stood and clapped for her with great appreciation for her example of faith in God and for her devotion to his peopleWe also watched a video that went through each of the 18 years of our history. One of the great surprises for the congregation was a message in the video from John and Sylvia Reus who are living in Miami now and formerly led the church in Santiago. We also saw special messages from Edson and Teresa in La Paz, Bolivia and Norberto and Yanina in Buenos Aires, Argentina encouraging the disciples in Chile.

A special gift from God that day was to watch a teen be baptized into Christ, Emmanuel Sowicz. God had been preparing him for this day for a few months and the brothers shared enthusiastically about the incredible change they had seen in him from the inside out. The church laughed as Emmanuel challenged the friends visiting church that day to study the bible and discover the reason for the huge smile on his face.

The celebration was closed as we sang "Feliz Cumpleaños" to the church and blew out candles on a cake for hundreds. It was a great day of reflecting with gratitude on what God has done and looking forward with faith to what God will do in the years to come.

Patricio and Daisy sent to Concepción

2008-04-09T11:48:00.008-05:00

Wednesday, March 26th, the Santiago Church sent off Patricio and Daisy, who will be leading our sister church in Concepción, Chile. For the last few months, Pato and Daisy have been traveling to Concepción to help and encourage the brothers and sisters there. Daisy used her vacation time and traveled by herself, moved by the need for more people to help study the bible with friends who had been visiting the church. God put in the hearts of this incredible couple to move to the southern part of Chile, leaving behind work and other personal goals to serve the Lord in this way. Patricio stepped down from his work as an IT Engineer and Daisy who recently received her degree in Nursing, turned down a great job, to be able to go where our Lord was sending them.Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, "Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?" And I said, "Here am I. Send me!" (Isaiah 6:8)

Patricio and Daisy have responded to the call of the Lord. We are so grateful for their hearts to love God and be guided by him. They are an example for us to follow. Our hearts and prayers are with them and the church in Concepción.

"To An Unknown God"

2008-04-09T11:47:00.004-05:00

2000 years ago Paul spoke in Athens to a group of philosophers and thinkers with incredible pose. He saw their statue in the city with the inscription "to an unknown god" and announced to this group of learned men that this was the God that he would proclaim. The God that created the world and everything in it had sent Jesus and had raised him up from death. It is one of the most powerful sermons that we have in the scriptures.

In light of Paul's message, we decided in Santiago to have a special event for campus students to really examine who God truly is. The weeks leading up to the "conferencia" the campus students spoke to thousands of students about how they view God and if they were interested in finding out about the God of the Bible. It was an incredible, faith-building month. Many of those invited came to hear a great message by Luis Fernando Herrera. They heard testimonies by some of the disciples and were able watch a video about how people view God on the campuses in Santiago.

We are praising God for the power of his word and for those that he brought to the event. There are many who are studying the bible and digging deeper and we are anxious to watch God continue to work in their hearts and lives.

Dr. Douglas Jacoby visits Chile

2008-03-29T19:07:00.003-05:00

Challenging. Deep. Refreshing. Inspiring. These are words that disciples in Santiago, Chile used to describe the visit of Dr. Douglas Jacoby. In just four days we learned principles of parenting, strategies for studying the Bible, and the truth about the Holy Spirit. He also spent many hours teaching the staff and answering their questions.

On Sunday March 12, the church heard two classes on the Holy Spirit. The first session focused on the basics of the Holy Spirit, including how a person receives the Spirit and how the Spirit works in our lives. The second session dealt with common misunderstandings and false doctrines surrounding the Spirit. For some, the classes brought added clarity, while for others the teaching brought new perspectives that clashed with previous understandings. For all it was a challenge to think more deeply. Many friends and visitors were present and afterwards the fellowship was abuzz with conversations and questions. The Wednesday class on Bible study strategies called all of us to go deeper into the Word. One of the most convicting moments was when Douglas asked the church how many had read the entire Bible. A number of hands went up, while many realized their need to read the Old Testament as well as the New. A number of brothers and sisters started that week with the goal to read the whole Bible. At the end of the class we saw the strategies applied as we examined a few scriptures regarding lukewarmness, division and church discipline. Our convictions were strengthened by the call to love our brothers while dealing firmly and biblically with sin. The disciples were very grateful for the input, and surrounded our guest speaker in the fellowship to ask him even more questions.

A special part of the trip was having Douglas' son James here as well. On Sunday morning James spent time with the teen ministry, encouraging them to remain true to their convictions. All in all we are very grateful for how God inspired us and taught us so that through God's word we might be "thoroughly equipped for every good work."

Giving joy to the heart...

2008-03-06T14:42:00.006-05:00

The law of the LORD is perfect,

reviving the soul.

The statutes of the LORD are trustworthy,

making wise the simple.

The precepts of the LORD are right,

giving joy to the heart.

The commands of the LORD are radiant,

giving light to the eyes.

The fear of the LORD is pure,

enduring forever.

The ordinances of the LORD are sure

and altogether righteous.

They are more precious than gold,

than much pure gold;

they are sweeter than honey,

than honey from the comb.

By them is your servant warned;

in keeping them there is great reward.

Psalm 19:7-11

Need revival? Missing some joy in your life? Want to be more radiant? Lacking wisdom? Want something more valuable than gold?

All of us at times find ourselves discouraged, perplexed, feeling empty and needing direction. And there's no better place to look for the solution than in God's Word. In the past two months God has been reviving my soul and giving joy to my heart through his word.

For Christmas, I received a new Bible from my mom. Its called "The Bible in 90 Days". It's a regular, large print, New International Version Bible, but what makes it special is that it includes a plan to read the whole Bible in 3 months. That may sound really overwhelming to some, but I decided I wanted to take the challenge. I started on Christmas and by reading 12 pages a day, my goal is to finish the Bible before April.

It has been utterly amazing to read so much of the Bible in such a short time. I read the entire New Testament in less than a month and have already read a great portion of the Old Testament. God has opened my eyes and refreshed my soul through this reading.

I'm a huge fan of studying in detail, taking time to really sink our hearts into a portion of scripture and things like that. On the other hand, reading so much of the Bible so quickly has really reminded me of the incredible love that God has had for us for thousands of years. I've also been amazed to find so many connections between the OT and the NT. For many years, I didn't connect much between the OT and the NT. Through these past two plus months, I've seen how consistent God was and how his heart to save people has never changed.

For anyone reading this, whether you've only read a little bit or have been a Bible student for years, I want to encourage you to keep reading! If your Bible study is stale and you don't feel like learning much, change something! Read more or less or in a different version or a different language. Whatever it takes, don't forget that the Word of God is "more precious than gold" and truly "sweeter than honey".

And the Lord added to their number...

2008-02-12T20:22:00.001-05:00

It is an indescribable feeling watching someone come to know the wonderful and fulfilling and purposeful life that we have in Christ. To hear those words, "Jesus is Lord!" and here in Chile, "Jesús es mi Señor y Salvador!" It almost makes your heart jump, remembering the day you made that confession and said with faith that you believe Jesus is the Son of the Living God.

In the last few weeks here in Santiago, we have been able to be apart of some incredible spiritual transformations. Sergio is the brother of one of the disciples here. He came a year ago to spend time with his sister and began to study the Bible. After a short time of studying he went back to Argentina. A few months later, he received a book of basic Bible studies. He did all the studies and realized his need for God. He came to Santiago again in January with the hope of being baptized. After a few times with the disciples here, he made the decision to follow Jesus. Like the Ethiopian Eunuch of Acts 8, "he went on his way rejoicing" back to San Luis, Argentina. You can check out a video of his baptism here.

Two Sundays ago, three of the disciples here in Chile had the honor of baptizing their mother, Laura. Five years ago, Frann was baptized, and began praying for her family to know the same joy that had changed her life. Not long after her sister was baptized, followed shortly by her little brother. They have fought and prayed together for the last 2 years for their mother to begin to reach out to God. There were many tears on Sunday as they shared about the miracle that God has done in uniting their family.

Last Wednesday, Marisol was able to baptize her 16 year old daughter, Thiare (video). It was such a special day for Thiare as she was also celebrating her physical birthday. She has already started studying the bible with her younger sister Stephanie who is 14.

This past Sunday, we were able to watch Walter and Carmen, a married couple, be baptized into Christ. Walter shared with the church in tears that he was broken before the cross. It was such a great victory to watch them start over as a family with God.

In the same way, I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents. Luke 15:10

A woman who fears the LORD is to be praised.

2008-02-05T20:19:00.001-05:00

I want to lift up some one very special to me: my mom. My mom came and spent almost a month with us during December and January and it was a super meaningful time to me, to our family and to the church here in Santiago.

Most people go visit their families over the holidays. That's normal. Going to another continent, to a country where the people speak a different language and going with a heart to serve is something very different. My mom came not only visit us but also to give her heart to the church.

In the weeks she was here, mom gave three classes for the "Aguilas" women's group and spent a number of hours with various other women in the church encouraging, teaching the scriptures and counseling people in various ways. She made a huge impact on the church and many people have already asked us when she'll be coming back. We love the church here in Santiago and it encouraged me so much to see how God used my mom, even in the midst of difficult times, to inspire and challenge the disciples here.

Mom, you're an example of faith, perseverance and servitude. Your life never ceases to call me higher. Thanks for letting God use you in so many ways.

Holidays in Santiago

2008-01-13T17:07:00.001-05:00

This year we celebrated a very special holiday time with our family. Even though they live thousands of miles away, they made the trip down to Santiago just to spend time with us. It was a blast! Thomas & Tina with their daughter Leila came from Ft. Lauderdale, Rita Hoyt came from Orlando and Dan & Mary came all the way from Kabul, Afghanistan.

We spent a fun-filled week showing them around Santiago and giving them a taste of our life here in Chile. To start off, on Sunday, they spoke at the church here. Thomas met with the Chemical Recovery ministry before service and encouraged that group with a few lessons from his life. Dan and Mary shared about their work in Afghanistan and then Dan preached a great sermon about staying firm in our convictions until the end. After service, Dan, Mary and Rita had a lunch with parents of teens while Tina and Kay gave a class for the Campus sisters. God really used the family to encourage, inspire and call the church higher.

On Monday we spent time together, toured the city and then celebrated Kay's birthday with some ice cream from Bravissimo.

Tuesday we climbed Cerro San Cristóbal and had a picnic. Tuesday evening we celebrated Christmas and shared gifts from all around the world.

On Wednesday we had a special Chilean lunch, Pastel de Choclo, spent time with Christian and Luz who lead the church here and then went to midweek. Thomas shared a few thoughts with the campus and teens while Dan and Mary did split classes for the married men and women.

Thursday we went to Viña del Mar and the family was able to see the Pacific Ocean. We celebrated Leila's one year birthday by taking her to a clinic to see if she had an ear infection.

Friday brought the week to a close with a lunch at Jorge Ivan & Maria Lucia's house. They have become great friends of ours and housed my mom for a week.

Sending the family off at the airport was difficult, but we had savored every moment and enjoyed a holiday time that we will never forget. Thanks to our family for coming to visit us, participating in our lives and giving us the best Christmas present ever: you!

To our brothers and sisters in Florida

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We want to wish you all a Happy New Year from Santiago, Chile. First we wanted to thank each and every one of you for every prayer that you have prayed for us and for the churches here in Chile. Thank you for the emails and calls and cards we have received since we moved here. Thank you for sacrificing financially for missions, not only for Chile, but for all of South America. There is an indescribable amount of spiritual need and we are so grateful that you are sacrificing to meet these needs.

Although the church here in Santiago has met its share of challenges this year, we are watching God transform us and we have seen many victories in the past few months. We have been encouraged to watch a teen and three campus students be baptized. The church has had some incredible victories through our chemical recovery ministry and we have seen 5 people graduate in the recent months. One family in the church was able to adopt a baby boy and we had our first wedding in our small mission church, Viña del Mar. We want to ask for your prayers for the church in Concepción because the couple that was leading the group there is now leading here in Santiago. Please pray that God will strengthen the brothers and sisters there. We personally have been growing in God's grace and watching him work in our lives here. We are speaking Spanish now relatively fluently and learning to serve God and his church in South America. You can also pray for a woman that Kay has been able to reach out to named Laura. She has been diagnosed with terminal cancer and is eager to learn about God's word.

We want to you to know that we are constantly inspired by your faith and by the miracles that God is doing with each of you. You can be sure that although we are thousands of miles away, your faith is having a mighty impact.

And finally,

May the God of peace, who through the blood of the eternal covenant brought back from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great Shepherd of the sheep, equip you with everything good for doing his will, and may he work in us what is pleasing to him, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen. (Hebrews 13:20-21)

With all of our love,

John, Kay and Maya Hoyt

Times of Rejoicing for the Cardona Family

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Delight yourself in the LORD and he will give you the desires of your heart. Ps 37:4

The Cardona family has been a rock for the church here in Santiago for years. They have given their hearts and served the church in more ways than we know. This last year for their family has been one of miracles and answered prayers. Sometimes it feels like God knows just the right time to answer the prayers we have prayed for years. Over a month ago, Jorge Ivan and Maria Lucia were able to baptize their oldest daughter, Mariana (15). There are very few things I can think of that are more special than baptizing your child. Jorge Ivan said that it was one of the best days of his life. Only a little while later, they received a call from an adoption agency with news that there was a little boy ready for them to take home. As a family, they have prayed earnestly and dreamed for that moment. A few Sundays ago we were able to hear a welcome at church from the Cardona family with their new son, Juan Pablo (11mos). Maria Lucia shared in tears that God has truly given her the desires of her heart.

Special Missions Offering

2007-11-19T11:07:00.000-05:00

From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work. - Ephesians 4:16

This past Wednesday, November 14th, the church here in Santiago took up a Special Offering. The leadership had recognized the need for extra financial support in September and decided to have this special offering to help meet the needs in Santiago and in the mission churches of Concepción and Viña del Mar. With only a short time to prepare, the disciples here gave with all of their hearts and raised almost 2,400,000 Pesos which is about $4700. That might not seem like much to disciples in first-world churches, but it's a big sacrifice for the Chilean disciples.

We were especially proud of the Teen and Campus ministries who put together an event called "La Velada Primavera". It was an evening of entertainment, food and fun with all the proceeds going to the special offering. Some of the teens worked in the kitchen preparing home-made juices, sandwiches, pizzas and snacks while others served the food and collected money. The campus students and a few other disciples worked to put together various types of entertainment. I played the part of Don Jeronimo in a short comedic sketch called "Médico a puros palos". Altogether it was an enjoyable night for many disciples that resulted in an offering to help advance God's kingdom.

Other than the offering, another source of encouragement has been our newly added sister, Diana Arrue. Diana is the daughter of Italo, a brother who has been a disciple for a number of years in Santiago. Diana had studied the Bible a number of times before this summer, but in the midst of the recent difficulties in the church, God was really working on her heart. She studied almost every week with Kay and some of the other campus girls and was baptized on October 14. Since then she has been a dedicated member of the campus ministry.

God continues to work in amazing ways even while we are surrounded by trials and temptations. I personally have been very encouraged by my recent studies of Mark and Isaiah. So much so, that I've started another blog, La Palabra Poderosa to share some of the things I'm learning. My Spanish is a work in progress, so please be gracious.

Please keep us in your prayers as we close out 2007 and continue to seek God's will in 2008.

A little strengthening action

2007-11-12T20:59:00.001-05:00

After spending some time in Antioch, Paul set out from there and traveled from place to place throughout the region of Galatia and Phrygia, strengthening all the disciples. Acts 18:23

We have had the chance this past month to travel to both Montevideo, Uruguay and Concepción, Chile to strengthen the brothers and sisters there. It is an answer to many prayers that we are able to be down here in South America and live a small portion of what Paul was able to live. Honestly it was a time of strengthening for us also. It is sobering to visit small churches that are struggling to stay together and keep their faith burning strong. It is hard to see the needs so great and feel like there is no way to meet them all.

We traveled to Montevideo in the beginning of October and spent a great week with the six disciples that are there. It was incredible to spend time with Pablo and Rosa, who are leading the group, and strengthen our friendship. We have made a commitment to each other to talk every week and it has been great so far. We are really praying that God will inject faith into the group even though it is so small. While we were there, Kay was able to meet a girl who wanted to study the bible. It was a small reminder that there are people everywhere searching for God, we just need to find them and bring them to him.

This last week we spent time in Concepción, which is a city about six hours by bus from Santiago . There is a group there of 12 disciples, two of which were baptized in the last couple of months. It is a young church that was planted this year from Santiago. We have recently begun a "Member Missionary" training program here in Santiago that will be sending groups to Concepción and Viña del Mar starting in December. We will be doing a 4-week training course and then begin sending out small groups every month to encourage our smaller sister congregations. Right now, we have about 25 disciples training with us for these projects and they are fired up about giving and serving and traveling, by their own means, to help these brothers and sisters.

We were able to spend time with the disciples in both Montevideo and Concepción talking about faith and praying for God's hand to protect them from the attacks of Satan. There is so much work to be done and so many prayers to be prayed. But we know that God is working, and we are confident in his promise that they will be "more than conquerors through him who loved us." (Romans 8:37)

You went where?!

2007-10-21T19:22:00.000-05:00

Afghanistan - May 2007

In May of this year we were able to take one of the most amazing trips we could have imagined taking. With one suitcase for the three of us, we got on a plane to Kabul, Afghanistan to visit my parents, Dan and Mary Allison. We had thought about going and tried to plan it earlier, but this was the time that worked for all of us. Our minds raced to imagine what we might see or even the dangers we might face, especially bringing a six month old with us. On the way, we had an overnight layover in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, and then flew into Kabul the next morning.

We got off the plane and entered into another world altogether. Every woman, and there were not very many at the airport, had her head covered and showed no skin on the rest of her body. The men were serious and businesslike. The women and men didn't interact much. As we walked into the customs area, a man pulled me up to the front of the line with Maya and left John at the back of the line. I admit it was a little scary, but I waited for him on the other side while he went through the line. Maya was, of course, dazzling everyone and calling attention with her bright blue eyes. After the luggage arrived we walked out of the airport to meet my parents and Fayaz, who works with them in the HOPE office.

The air in Kabul is orange if you can imagine it. There is dust everywhere and you can't help but think of the time when Jesus lived because it is at least closer to what he might have seen. The day we arrived, President Karzai had also been traveling and so we saw a good number of military officers and military vehicles around the airport. We arrived at the HOPE compound in the heat of the day and for the first time met the staff my parents have come to love so dearly. They greeted us with as much warmth as they could muster. Afghans are not generally affectionate, but in there eyes you could see how glad they were to have us visiting.

We got acquainted with the offices, the rooms where the international staff live and the room where everyone comes together to eat. It was incredible to finally see and feel what my pare

nts had been living for the past year and a half. In the subsequent days, we were able to visit a few different parts of the city, including the Malalai Emergency facility that HOPE Worldwide is constructing and a women's prison where HOPE WW plans to provide some vocational training. In the afternoons, we were able to jo

in the staff, along with some of the orphan children that they care for, in some friendly games of volleyball.

One of the highlights of the trip was traveling with nearly the entire HOPE staff to a mountain that jets out into the center of Kabul. Rumor has it that the wall lining the top of this mountain was built by Alexander the Great thousands of years ago. We climbed for a couple of hours until we reached the peak and could see the entire city. It was breathtaking!

During our time there, we were able to see and hear about the grants that they are applying for and get a picture of all of the ways that HOPE is planning to serve in Kabul and the rest of Afghanistan in the years to come. Often times when we hear of Afghanistan, all we hear about is violence and we get a sense that there is no hope for the country. What they never put on the news is the hundreds of organizations that are there risking their lives to rebuild it. It was so obvious to us that there truly are beacons of light in Kabul and people that are trying desperately to bring hope to a hurting people. We are so grateful that we were able to take the trip to see my parents, their home and their work. It is an experience we will never forget.

HOPE in Santiago

2007-10-09T09:26:00.000-05:00

Defend the cause of the weak and fatherless; maintain the rights of the poor and oppressed. Rescue the weak and needy; deliver them from the hand of the wicked. Psalm 82:3-4

But he answered, "You give them something to eat." Mark 6:37

God's heart has been and will always be a heart of compassion, sympathy and mercy towards those who are in need. Jesus himself demonstrated this when he fed the 5,000.

Within the church here in Santiago, we have a small ministry of HOPE. The group is made up of disciples who have deep desire to help the poor and needy. Right now the ministry has two projects that happen every weekend. On Saturday mornings, a group goes out to the central market to give food to the many homeless people who gather there. Another group goes on Sunday afternoons to a home for orphans to spend time with the children there.

I've started going on Saturday mornings and it is has been an incredible experience for me. Many of the disciples wake up before 7 am on Saturday to make it to the location by 8 am so that we can prepare the sandwiches and coffee for the people who are waiting. Although at first it seemed like a sacrifice to wake up early and go out in the cold, it has become one of my favorite times of the week.

Each week I get to spend an hour talking with and listening to people who have very different lives than mine, but who's souls are in need of the very same things: love, encouragement and hope. Sometimes I can share a scripture with them, sometimes I just listen. But every time I walk away amazed by God's grace and the hope that we can find in Him.

On September 15th to celebrate the "Fiestas Patrias", we brought empanadas and music. Also, some disciples who dance the tradional "Cueca" came and performed. It was inspiring to see the transformation that occured with a little music and dancing. The men and women who usually appear discouraged and sad about life, became joyful and alive. I realized then how a small amount of love and thought could really make a positive impact. If you want to see more photos of that day, click here to see the photo album.

I've decided that every saturday that I am able, I will go to serve those who are in need. I know that it will help my heart to be more like Christ and to be more grateful for all that God has done in my life. I pray and believe that at the same time God will bring hope to those who are hurting here in Santiago and everywhere in the world.

Plans to give you a hope and a future

2007-09-19T18:58:00.000-05:00

(Missionaries from Viña del Mar, Concepción y Rancagua)

Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God. Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.
Romans 5:1-5

This weekend was an incredible time of hope for the disciples in Santiago, Chile as we enjoyed a reunion of all the disciples in Chile. We shared our homes, our hearts and God's word with our brothers and sisters from Rancagua, Viña del Mar and Concepción. This is a special week in Chile as the country celebrates its independence. Friday night we worshiped together and heard a great lesson about loving one another with a deep love. Most of the visiting disciples arrived on Saturday and we learned about the great faith we can have in God from Cristian Escobar. An encouraging time of fellowship was enjoyed by all. We also had a focused time of praise and worship to God where we sang almost every song arm in arm with one another.

Sunday was an amazing service followed by a family lunch and an Independence Day party. The church stayed late in the afternoon to fellowship, eat together and dance the Cueca. The focus of the service was Romans 5 and the hope that we have in Christ. I was privileged to speak for communion about the hope we have through the incredible sacrifice of Jesus. Christian Amestoy preached a lesson from Romans 5 that challenged us to stand firm in the hope that we have. In all that we have been through in the church here recently, we are confident that suffering will produce perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope.

We saw an incredible victory also, having Delia restored in her walk with God. She shared with the church in tears of gratitude for God's mercy in her life. During the service we had a special video with good news from different parts of the world and also pictures of the many souls God has brought to himself in Chile. It is incredible to look at the miracles that God is doing in our lives and in the lives of those around the world. Before the communion, we sang "Amazing Grace" in Spanish, in French and in English. The words of the song profoundly impacted the church as we meditated on the grace that God has given us in saving our souls. With this hope, we can walk in confidence that it "was grace that brought me safe thus far, and grace will lead me home."

Feliz Cumpleaños Maya!

2007-09-09T20:24:00.000-05:00

On Saturday, Sept. 8th we had a grand Minnie Mouse Celebration for Maya's first birthday! Some of her new friends came to play and share a great time together. Maya has been received with such warmth here in Santiago. Her first year has certainly been eventful. The first few weeks of her life she shared her home with Uncle Jonathan and three of her cousins. Since then she has traveled the world. When Maya was 4 months old she traveled to Chile, Argentina and Uruguay with Mom and Dad. At 6 months she went to visit Grandma and Grandpa Allison in Afghanistan. And now here in Santiago, Chile she is doing great. Maya has a way of drawing people to her that is almost magical. We are so grateful to have such a special little girl. We can't wait to see what the next years have

in store for her.

A very special visit

2007-08-28T19:25:00.001-05:00

On Monday, August 6, Chase Mackintosh arrived in Santiago for a very interesting two weeks with us. Chase came with the group of disciples that came to Chile from Gainesville, FL in June, 2006. He made a huge impact last year and had a great desire to come back. So when we decided to come move to Santiago, he told us he was coming.

The entire time he was here, he was a great encouragement to us. A few days after Chase arrived, Raúl Moreno called the church to follow him in joining the Portland Movement. Chase joined us and the disciples in many hours of Bible study, prayer and discussion. We wrestled together over many scriptures as we tried to understand God's will in this very difficult decision. As we prayed and read, it became very clear that God is completely opposed to division within His body. A few of the scriptures that really helped us were:

Ephesians 4:3Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. 4There is one body and one Spirit—just as you were called to one hope when you were called— 5one Lord, one faith, one baptism; 6one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.

1 Corinthians 1:10I appeal to you, brothers, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree with one another so that there may be no divisions among you and that you may be perfectly united in mind and thought.

Colossians 1:17He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. 18And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy.

Later on, Martin & Carmen Bentley, John & Silvia Reus and Terry Folker came to Santiago to help advise us and direct the church toward Jesus in this difficult time. On Saturday, Aug. 10 we met with the church for almost 5 hours in an attempt to help clear up confusion, answer people's questions and mostly examine the Scriptures. On Sunday, Aug. 11 we had an incredible worship service in which Chase sung "Solo Puedo Imaginarme". The song, a Spanish translation of "I Can Only Imagine", helped the church focus on overcoming our current trials and being with Jesus forever. Personally, I don't know if I've ever been so encouraged by a song as I was that Sunday.

Sunday afternoon we met together and again on Monday morning. It was a weekend filled with every emotion possible. Chase was there through it all, doing his very best to share his heart and encourage the disciples to remain faithful to the Scriptures.

During the following week Chase made special times to spend with some of the teens as well as other disciples that he wanted to encourage. Each night he'd come back to our apartment and share with us about his times and his victories in Spanish.

As the two weeks came to an end, a few things became clear to me. First, that the church here is filled with incredible disciples who love God, love His Scriptures, love one another and love the lost.There are now about 260 brothers and sisters worshiping together in the Iglesia Internacional de Cristo de Santiago. (For a more detailed description of the recent events, see Martin Bentley's letter here.) Second, our efforts for unity must be greater than ever. Chase's presence here alone was a great statement about the unity of the churches. It takes money, time, sacrifice and great amounts of patience to achieve unity, but it is totally worth it. Third, we need each other so much. God knew all that would happen in the two weeks that Chase was here and he knew that we needed a great friend to help us out.

Chase, we thank you and each and every disciple in Florida and all over the world who loves us and the churches in South America. Thank you for your sacrifice and friendship. Please keep praying for us and never stop fighting for unity.

Weather in Santiago

2007-08-16T15:30:00.000-05:00

There's been a whole lot going on here in Santiago in the past month or so, and I don't have time to write about it right now, but there is something I wanted to share quickly, especially for all of our friends in the northern hemisphere.

This picture was taken on July 28 at around 5 pm. We were spending time at the Cardona's house and as we looked outside we realized that it was snowing. It's not like we've never seen snow before, but snow in the middle of July is not what we're used to. This year has seen the coldest temperatures here in Santiago since 1942. So we decided we had to take a picture so that all of our friends who are sweating through the summer in the US could see what we're experiencing.

Not only that, but just one week ago it actually snowed in downtown Santiago. That's something that has not happened in over 30 years. After church on Wednesday night we were walking home and it was snowing!! Of course it didn't stay too long, but it was pretty amazing while it lasted.

These are historic times here in Santiago, Chile and we're grateful that God has seen fit for us to be here to experience them.

Week 1 in Santiago

2007-07-10T16:16:00.000-05:00

We arrived in Santiago, Chile just one week ago and what a week its been!

Last Tuesday when we arrived, Raul and Lynda welcomed us with open arms. They gave us their bedroom and have taken great care of us. They lead the church here in Santiago and have become good friends in the past 4 years as we have visited. They have two children, Felipe who is two years old and Isabella who is 6 months old. Isabella and Felipe have been having a great time playing with Maya.

The first thing that Raul and I did was to go to the Cerro San Cristóbal and pray. The Cerro is the tallest hill in the middle of Santiago and it offers a great view of the city. After that we got right to work. Kay and I were both able to be in Bible Studies each day.

Kay was involved in a study with a Brazilian woman named Rigianni. Even though the study was in Portuguese, Kay was able to understand most of the conversation and even contribute a few times. After studying Wednesday through Saturday, Rigianni got baptized on Sunday! Rigianni is in the middle of Lynda and Kay in the photo above.

I was able to be in studies with two different people. First, I was in the Cross study with a campus student named Nicolás on Wednesday. He is a very hard worker with a soft heart for God. After hearing about the sacrifice of Jesus, he knew he wanted to be a disciple. Later on in the week I studied with Francisco. He has been coming to church for a while and is still learning about God. On Sunday, Nico was baptized at church and we are hoping that Francisco can get baptized some time soon.

On Friday, the teens and campus students got together and welcomed us with a Chilean-style party. We ate completos (hot dogs with tomatoes, avocados and mayo) and torta (cake). We also played a number of games together to get to know each other. Already we feel loved by the group and we look forward to seeing what God is going to do.

Please keep praying for us, especially that we can keep warm. Most of the buildings don't have heat and with the temperature staying around the 40s we have to wear almost all of our winter clothes every day. But all in all we're having a great time and learning a lot.

An Acts 8 Story

2007-06-21T13:47:00.000-05:00

A few weeks ago we went down to Sarasota, FL to be a part of a very special occasion - Joe Bruno's wedding. It was a long time coming, but it was an amazing event. The wedding was held on the beautiful white sands of Sarasota right as the sun was setting over the Gulf of Mexico. Here's a picture of Joseph and Sam Bruno right after they were pronounced husband and wife.

So, Saturday, June 9th was a great day because of the wedding. But little did we know that God had a great surprise in store for June 10th.

In Acts 8, we read the story of Philip and the Ethiopian. Philip is directed by the Holy Spirit to run up to a chariot. As he does, he meets the rider, explains the good news about Jesus and then baptizes the Ethiopian and goes on his way.

On Saturday while I was preparing for the wedding with Bruno, one of our friends Caroline Sofarelli asked Kay if she could come and study the Bible with her mom Tina. Tina lives in Alaska and was only down for that week to spend time with Caroline. Since we were going to be there anyways and Kay had helped Caroline become a Christian, Kay gladly said yes. After about three hours of studying the Bible with Kay and Caroline, Tina saw her need for God and decided she wanted to be baptized. Kay encouraged her to think and pray about it some more and call us in the morning.

Sunday morning we got up and Caroline called us to tell us that her mom wanted to get baptized. So we drove just a little north of Sarasota to another great beach. We met Tony and Caroline along with Tina. After a brief time of talking and sharing scriptures, Tina confessed Jesus as Lord of her life and was baptized.

Now Tina is back in Alaska worshiping God and rejoicing in her new found salvation. Praise be to God!

Our new adventure

2007-06-16T13:33:00.000-05:00

So, its been a long time since we've updated our blog. That's because a lot has been happening and a lot has changed.

The short version goes like this. In the last two months, we've sold almost all of our posessions, visited two new countries and significantly changed direction in our missionary adventure.

Since telling three stories at once is a bit too confusing, I'll start with the change of direction with our life plans.

Proverbs 16: 9 In his heart a man plans his course, but the LORD determines his steps.

Our plan for the past 10 months has been to move to Montevideo, Uruguay to help reinvigorate the struggling church there. However, all along God has been working to accomplish His will and as we've recently discovered His will is a little different than what we had been planning. And that's actually really great.

After seeking advice of many wise and spiritual men, and after praying a lot, we along with others decided that right now was not the best time for us to go to Montevideo. Instead we will be going to Santiago, Chile. For a number of different reasons, we feel good about starting our missionary adventure in Chile instead of Uruguay. We've visited Santiago 4 times in the past 4 years and we have many dear friends there. We'll be able to learn spanish with the support of a large church. Also we'll be able to help raise up leaders that can help plant more churches all over the southern cone.

And so the question comes, What about Montevideo? We still have dreams for what the church can be in Montevideo and we believe that God is working right now to make great things happen. There is already a couple that has been leading in Chile that is being prepared to go to Montevideo sometime within the next year. Our hope is that for the next few months we can visit the group that is already in Montevideo and encourage them until this other couple can move there permanently. We have continued to be in contact with our friends in Montevideo and they are faithful that God is and will provide for them.

So, on July 2nd we'll take a few suitcases, board a plane and begin our new adventure in South America!

Finally an update!

2007-03-11T20:29:00.000-05:00

Alright, so our big church traveling tour has ended. It has been great, but it has also been a whirlwind. Here's where we've been so far in 2007:

January 10-15 Santiago, Chile for South American Church Leaders Retreat.
January 15-17 Buenos Aires, Argentina visiting the church there.
January 18-25 Montevideo, Uruguay scouting the land for when we move there this summer.

If you want to know more about this trip, I wrote a much longer summary on our website: SaveUruguay.googlepages.com. It's called Scouting Trip Report.

After we came back to the US, we've been speaking all around Florida about Montevideo. Here's where we've been:

Jan 31 - Jacksonville Church of Christ
Feb 4 - Tampa Bay Church
Feb 6 - South Miami (South Florida Church of Christ)
Feb 7 - North Miami (SFCoC)
Feb 11 - Broward and West Miami (Spanish)
Feb 18 - Fort Myers/Naples Church
Feb 23-25 - Tampa for Family Dynamics Facilitator Training seminar
March 4 - Orlando Church of Christ
March 7 - The church at Shiloh Farm (Tallahassee)
March 11 - Capitol City Church of Christ (Tallahassee)

Our last speaking engagement (that we know of) will be for our home church, the Gainesville Christian Church on April 1.

We are super grateful that God allowed us to do all of these things and share with all of these people. At every church we have received an incredible welcome and so many people wishing us well and saying they will pray for us. I am reminded of the scripture in Luke 12 when I think about this time in our lives:

From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked. Luke 12:48

I feel like God has entrusted us with so much by letting us go to speak at so many churches and share about our mission. I know that we are unworthly, but we are very grateful to be God's servants. I feel like God accomplished a lot in these trips. It seems that at least 3 things happened:

1. Relationships were built.
We were able to become much better friends with various leaders and members in all of the churches. I'm sure that these relationships will be invaluable in the future. Who knows where God will take us, but it will always help to have good relationships with people in many churches.

2. The heart for missions was stirred.
All throughout the state, it seems that there is a re-awakening about missions going on. Each church is at a different place, but I think that our visits spurred each church to consider their committment to missions both overseas and at home. Hopefully also, more people will begin to dream to be used by God in this way. Certainly not everyone is meant for overseas missionary work, but I believe that many more in our churches can dream this way than are right now.

3. Sacrifice was encouraged.
As we shared about a church of seven people, some of whom have a very difficult time making it to church because of the $.70 bus ride, people were encouraged to sacrifice. We, here in the United States are so rich. I believe that greed/love for money might be the sin that condemns more Americans to hell than any other. I'm not trying to judge people in our culture, but I know that our brothers and sisters all over the world are living on very small incomes while we are going more and more in debt and acumulating more and more earthly treasures. I think there are many more sermons that need to be preached about materialism in our churches here, but I believe that many were encouraged to sacrifice more. I know that I need to pray more to be more sacrificial "so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified from the prize".

So, I am very grateful to God for the opportunity to share His Word in so many places. Now we're going to get some rest and get ready to make the most of our last 4 months living in the US.

Not much blogging

2007-02-06T13:31:00.000-05:00

Wow, well we haven't posted anything in a while. Life has been crazy these past few months. Most of our updates are on the SaveUruguay website. If you want to see what we're up to, you can check us out there.

Four Baptisms!

2006-11-20T11:22:00.000-05:00

Life is great isn't it? Sometimes things are really challenging, but once you make it through the difficult times, the victories can be so sweet.

Yesterday was an amazing day at the Gainesville Christian Church. We had our annual "I thank God for you" service. It was a great service from beginning to end. After the sermon we were able to see four people get baptized! Kay and I were able to participate by baptizing our good friends Tony and Caroline Sofarelli. We actually met Tony and Caroline back in about February through Nick Molino. We got to know them through the spring semester and studied the Bible with them a few times. Then, they left for the summer. When they returned for the Fall semester, they shared that they really wanted to have us over for dinner. It took a while but we finally found time on September 8th. They cooked us Halibut from Alaska and it was great. As the evening ended, Kay began to feel some pains that ended up being the beginnings of labor. So, Tony and Caroline have a special place in our lives as the last dinner before Maya arrived.
God really changed their hearts as they studied His word. They have truly become great discples who desire to help many others come to know God.

Also Maya has continued to grow. She is getting happier every day. And we continue to take pictures of her. She was able to meet her great Aunt Kay and great Aunt Judy (my mom's sisters) for the first time yesterday also. Of course they loved her!

God is really great in the way he blesses us and takes care of us. Its hard to imagine all that he wants to do through us and with us. We look forward to the finale of 2006 and a very exciting 2007!

October 06

2006-11-02T15:20:00.000-05:00

October 2006, what a month! I thought that September was crazy, but October has only been more crazy. But maybe that's just an "in the moment" perspective. But, now that its over, October was a great month.

First, things with Uruguay got firmed up. There were some moments of reconsideration. There were some suggestions that made us think about Brazil, but after many talks and much prayer, we're still going to Uruguay. We never questioned our decision to go to South America, but it was just a question of where the best place to go would be. Now that those things are sorted out, we are fired up at the opportunity to go to Montevideo and help the church there. I'm looking forwar to January because I'll probably be able to travel down to MV, scout out the city and meet the disciples there. Now, we're just working on raising the money and recruiting some people to go with us. I know that God is going to provide all that we need.

Maya has continued to grow. As of the 31st, she was almos 10 lbs. Its amazing to watch her grow each week. Recently her eyebrows and eyelashes have gotten a lot longer. We created a google slideshow of Maya pictures. You can see it by clicking here.

Kay is doing great as a mother. I'm so greatful to have an incredibly dedicated and hardworking wife to parent Maya. I'm amazed a how much work it is to take care of Maya and I am grateful to be able to share the responsibilty with Kay.

Also in October, I celebrated my 26th birthday. Kay surprised me and took me to SilverSprings in Ocala for my birthday. We had a great time seeing giraffes, bears, panthers, alligators and other amazing animals. God has blessed me in incredible ways that I'll never be worthy of.

Finally, we had a retreat with the Campus ministry. At the retreat a good friend of mine, Mitchell got baptized in the ocean. A week later another good friend, Handley got baptized. Both of these guys have been studying the Bible for a while and have really grown in amazing ways. I'm proud of both of them for taking the step of faith to get baptized. You can see Handley at the center of the picture.

Hopefully November will be a little slower of a month. But who knows? We certainly have life to the FULL!!

How Quickly Things Change

2006-10-02T15:57:00.000-05:00

Wow, its October 2nd. I can't believe how quickly this past three weeks has gone by. Maya arrived on September 9th and things have been a blur since then. My parents came up to Gainesville to hang out with us and help us get adjusted. Mom was able to stay a few extra days. Then on Sept 18th Dan & Mary came into town from Afghanistan. They were a terriffic help as we tried to figure out our life with a newborn.

For the first few days, Maya slept in our room with us. But she started making a lot of noise at night so we decided to put her in her own room. Since then we've been sleeping (a little bit) better. She is quickly getting used to sleeping in her own bed.

Our time with Dan and Mary was great. We spent most of it hanging out at home and watching the baby. Its amazing how long you can stare at a little baby. Maya has a really cute wake up routine that we watched every day. We also got to go to a movie and hang out at the mall with her. Yesterday, Oct. 1 was her (and Kay's) first Sunday at church. Even though she was only 3 weeks old we decided to take her because Dan was preaching. Its not too often that Kay gets to hear her Dad preach. He did an amazing job talking about pouring our lives out for God. Dan and Mary are definitely examples of that as the live in Afghanistan. Their work with HOPE Worldwide is growing week by week. There working on initiating some new projects all overAfghanistan. If you want to check out their blog you can see it at http://hopeafghanistanblog.blogspot.com/
He challenged us all to be willing to face our fears, fight against worldliness and dream great dreams for God.

We are continuing to pray for next year and for the small church in Montevideo. If you want to learn about the country of Uruguay you should check out this blog: http://fromuruguay.blogspot.com/
. It has some great info about Uruguay.

Another great thing that has been going on is a Colossians class I've been teaching for the Campus Ministry. Each Thursday night we have our midweek service for the Gainesville Christian Church and the whole campus ministry has been working our way through Colossians. I love the way that Christ is Supreme and held up high above any other "gods." This upcoming Thursday we'll be studying Colossians 3 and talking about how to "put to death" whatever is worldly and "put on" Christ. We've had discussion after every class and I think people have really been enjoying it.

Well, its time to go hang out with Maya. We'll put some more pictures up soon.

Maya is Here!!

2006-09-11T13:27:00.000-05:00

She's here!!

On Saturday, September 9th at 11:41 am Maya Cheyenne Hoyt came into the world. It was a most amazing time. I'm so proud of Kay. She did an amazing job giving birth to our awesome daughter.

Maya is beautiful in every way. Just today, we came home from the hospital. Its really hard to believe that from now on Maya will be with us. The Hoyt family has just added another member. Here's a few pictures.

Approaching the big day...

2006-08-23T11:20:00.000-05:00

Thirty six weeks, six days and only a very little while longer until our daughter Maya arrives. I can't believe that its approaching this soon.

Yesterday, we got the crib and the bassinet for Maya. As we moved them into the baby room in our house, it only got more real. Soon, we'll not just have a baby room but a baby!!

God is really good in how he takes care of us. Even though we've been through a lot this year, God has been with us every step through our families, our brothers and sisters in Christ and especially His word. Today I read in Genesis 19 about God's compassion on Lot as the angels of the Lord were about to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah. In vs 16 it says "But he [Lot] hesitated, so because of the Lord's compassion for him, the men grabbed his hand, his wife's hand and the hands of his two daughters. And they brought him out and left him outside the city." Just like Lot, so many times I've hesitated at God's leading. Yet, he still decides to take me by the hand and guide me to where I need to go. God is so compassionate!!

So, we'll keep praying and preparing as we look forward to the day that Maya arrives.

Our Adventure to Uruguay

2006-08-16T15:34:00.000-05:00

On Sunday, July 23rd, it was announced at the Florida Discipleship Conference that in the Summer of 2007 we would be going to Montevideo, Uruguay with a mission team to help the small group of Christians there. In this post, I want to share the story of how we've made this huge decision for our lives.

From the beginnings of our friendship in Mexico City in 1997, Kay and I have both wanted to do great things for God. Part of her childhood included three years spent in India with her parents as missionaries there. I have always had a fascination with Latin America.

When we got married we talked about possibly one day being missionaries. At that point we were just starting out with our marriage and our career in the ministry. In 2004 we were able to take a small group of teenagers from our ministry in South Florida to visit our sister church in Santiago, Chile. We had an incredible time there and began to fall in love with the church there. We were able to return again with a different group in 2005. Both times our friendships with the brothers and sisters there grew deeper and our hearts grew more for South America.

In May of this year we were planning for our third trip to Santiago, this time with a group of campus students and some married disciples from Gainesville. To help us prepare for our trip, Martin Bentley who is the Missions Evangelist for the Florida Missions Council came to Gainesville. After our midweek church service on May 18, Martin asked if we could spend some time together.

After a few minutes of chatting, he expressed that there was something he wanted to talk about. At that point he began to explain that there was a small group of hurting Christians in the capital city of Uruguay. He asked if we would like to go there with a group of disciples and begin leading that church and helping those brothers and sisters.

To make a long story short, we began praying alot. Kay and I discussed all the various aspects of us going from her health to the baby to whether it was really the right time in our lives.

After about two months of praying, some fasting and getting much advice, we decided that this is what we wanted to do. We feel very humbled that we would even be considered for such an opportunity. Though it will mean a lot of sacrifice, we believe that God will work in amazing ways and we pray that he will use us to help the small group already in Montevideo and many, many more who do not yet know about the Gospel.

Though we are young, we feel that God has prepared us in many ways for this task. I speak some Spanish and Kay is learning quickly. We've both been to South America a few times now and feel a special love in our heart for the people there.

We are most likely going to leave in the Summer next year. Please be praying for us.

A New Day

2006-08-14T15:07:00.000-05:00

Hey, this is the first post to this blog. I wanted to start a blog so that we (John, Kay and Maya) can update our friends and family about our adventures in life. Hopefully this blog can be an inspiration to anyone who reads it.

I've called the Blog - Philippians 1:21 because that is the scripture I have tatooed on my left shoulder. It says "For to me, to live is Christ. To die is gain." I want to use every day living as Christ would have lived. I hope that this blog can share those thoughts and convictions with you.