Giving joy to the heart...

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...

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.

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

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

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