John Has a Meeting with the Mayor

Last week we started a new program in conjunction with the city of Cuenca. They are going to donate $500 a month to help feed the children who are enrolled in our Compassion International program, five days a week. It will be operating as an official "Nutrition Center", as well as the normal activities, which include help with their homework Bible studies, and regular health care.

Above: the mayor of Cuenca, Marcelo Cabrera, Dr. Marlo Palacios, Rene Osorio, John Guido making it all official.

We have been working with Compassion for 14 years, since we worked in Riobamba. Our program in Cuenca has 140 children enrolled. We have student who has who has passed through his entire school career and now is in college. Daniel is continuing his higher education with the help of Compassion. It's a wonderful way to help underprivileged children successfully get their education while experiencing the practical expression of the love of Jesus.

The audience was made up of city officials, leaders of the Verbo church, interested members of the community and the church and parents of the children. You can see the official police band behind the crowd, on hand to perform during the ceremony.

First Sunday Meeting in Azogues

Yesterday was an exciting day for our church. We have been working with a group from the nearby town of Azogues for over a year now- they have had an active home church, and when it grew to around 40 people we began looking for a location to start Sunday services. As you can see in this slide show, there is an enthusiastic core group who worked very hard to prepare the building, and they were rewarded with lots of new visitors! There were over 100 in attendance, and we are looking forward to seeing much growth. Boris Ordoñez and Raúl Bonifaz will lead the new church.

Once more, God is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen. Ephesians 3:20-21

Making the News

Yesterday the families of the three boys who were killed in a bus accident on August 26, along with friends and supporters had a march in downtown Cuenca, protesting the president of Ecuador's veto of a bill before the congress that would have reformed public transportation laws. It was covered in both of the local papers, El Mercurio, and El Tiempo.

We have been working closely with the families, who want to use their loss to actually make a change in the laws and the Ecuadorian government. This was the first public manifestation. They are planning a large press conference, and are hoping to involve people from all over the country who have suffered because of this type of accident. That should just about include everybody! It certainly makes you think every time you are on the road . . .

In lieu of a "newsletter"

Hi there! Well, after having some trouble with our old newsletter format . . . can't get the website to open! We decided to try this out. Seems we can jot a quick note and keep you up to date and perhaps improve our recently abysmal communications.

It has been a busy fall. We had a visit from our dear daughter, and our two grand babies, here are Emily and Katrina playing in a fountain in Guayaquil. That was followed by a visit from the leaders of the Verbo church in Nicaragua; followed by a surgery team to Gualaquiza, where we have a young church plant; followed by a visit by a couple of great pastors from New Hampshire and Scotland; followed by a two week medical team to Manta and Cuenca; followed by a visit from the leaders of the Verbo church in Loja . . . are you getting the idea?

Right now John is in Machala for some meetings with the leaderhip in that province. He'll be joined tomorrow by some of the leaders from Cuenca, and present a seminar on Leadership with alumni from the Haggai Institute. We have several men who have studied a month either in Hawaii, or Singapore at the Haggai Institute, and they are excited to share what they learned. He'll be bringing home 5 house guests on Saturday- all members of the leadership council in our church plant in El Guabo.