Fun time with family and friends

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

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)

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

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

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

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

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

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)

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

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

Video Blogging

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

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!

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.