December 3, 2002

From heaven the Lord looks down and sees all mankind, from his dwelling place he watches all who live on earth—he who forms the hearts of all, who considers everything they do.
(Psalm 33:13-15)

Dear Ones, Family in Christ,

This is again the time of the year when we are reminded of the constant presence of our Lord and his always-present interest for us, our hearts, and what we do with these hearts that he has given us.

This year has been quite a challenge in the context of Argentina! After having started the year with the people taking the streets saying basta! ("enough!") to the inability of the government and the rampant corruption, five presidents took office in a week's time. The last, President Duhalde, has lasted until now, and we suppose he'll last until April 2003 when elections need to take place.

The people have seen many of their dreams disappear as their incomes were slashed by a factor of three due to the devaluation of the Argentine peso in relationship to the U.S. dollar, the lack of work, and the constant increase of prices but not of salaries. More than 50 percent of Argentina's population now lives below poverty level and a part of it lives in extreme poverty (the new word in Spanish is: indigentes).

One of our responses has been to pour our energy into the ministry of discipling and empowering young adults who come here from the U.S. (The PC(USA)'s Young Adult Volunteer program.) They arrived three months ago to serve with several of our partner churches and Christian organizations and are therefore multiplying our hands and hearts. Being through into this new context is not easy for them, but it is rewarding.

I quote from a letter written by one of these young adults, Liz Kenyon:

I find myself in a strange and wonderful place here both physically and spiritually. So many of the things that had stood between God and me have been stripped away here, so much of the pride, the desire to be respected, liked. With limited communication abilities and abundant cultural ignorance I seem to have little control over my life here, and I love it. I find joy in every moment, since that is all I know. Where I will be or what I will be doing in the next moment is a bit of a mystery, even what is happening in the moment is generally a mystery as I walk through this world of "Castellano" (Argentine Spanish). Looking back on the Old Testament stories, God sent many of his prophets and leaders packing before they were given much responsibility. Moses to the desert, Jonah to the belly of a whale, Joseph, Abraham, Jacob, Ruth. The list goes on. I am not expecting God to turn me into a great prophet when I return to the States, but I am beginning to understand what a valuable tool travel can be for God to draw us closer to him.

We feel the same way Liz does, as we continue to walk in the land where God has sent us, Argentina. We have lately been more involved into what is called social-pastoral work. In our local church we are part of a team responding to the pressing needs of the very poor. We opened the doors of the church to get to know each other better, pray, read, and understand better God's word, share clothes and food and respond to the needs when they are presented to the church.

Our daughters are growing: Camila has just turned 7 and Laura 11. We rejoice in them being a special gift from the Lord to us. When we lose our smiles they are the ones that make us laugh again, when we feel we are lowering our arms, they show us that there is hope. Their joy, hope, and faith are a real sign of "Emmanuel," God with us.

It is with grateful hearts that we thank you at this time for your support shown in many different ways: with your prayers, letters, cards, e-mails, packages, with your thoughts, phone calls, and even visits. We rejoice knowing that part of you is with us and us with you as we serve our ever-present Lord and ask his blessings upon all of you.

Yours in Christ's service,

Juan, Manuela, Laura, and Camila

The 2003 Mission Yearbook for Prayer & Study, page 257