Dear co-laborers in God’s harvest field,
From here in the heart of Coffee Country, we send you greetings!
Already a fourth of 2016 has passed into history! Time marches on relentlessly as we strive to use that time wisely for the Lord.
Holy Week
One of the greatest “holidays” in Colombia is what is known as “Semana Santa” – Holy Week. Maundy Thursday and Good Friday are national holidays here and many people have time off starting Wednesday at noon and many others manage to take off the whole week, something that was even easier this year as that Monday was St Joseph’s Day, another official holiday here. As a result, large numbers of Colombians traveled all over the country to take advantage of the break from work and school. We were blessed to have Gloria, one of “our girls”, visit her sister Lucy here in Pereira and we got to see our “grandkids” (her two sons) for the first time in almost four years. My how they have grown! She has kept us alive in their memories and they hugged us like they’d never let us go.
Special Dinner
On Maundy Thursday we served a special meal at our home. We roasted a turkey that we got on sale and people brought side dishes. We invited everyone who was at church on Palm Sunday and we had a good turnout from those who were still in town. There was a blessed time of fellowship as we enjoyed the meal and time together with the knowledge that the next day no one had to get up early. In fact, our last guests left just before midnight.
Movie night
We showed the movie “Virtuous” to a group of 27 people. Each month we try find a good Christian movie to share with others as a way of outreach. This time we even managed to reach one of our neighbors who has been curious about the church but a bit shy as he has a drinking problem, which builds barriers in his own mind. Sheri saw him watching the movie from the window and invited him to come in and join us from the comfort of the chairs. He’s been invited before, but this time he did join us! We pray that the message from the movie will help to penetrate the walls he’s built and open a door so that the light of the gospel can shine in. He left as soon as the movie was over, but stopped to say “Thank you!” as he was returning to his home with a bottle of beer in his hand. He has mentioned before how he enjoys hearing the music and the church service from his home across the street.
Couples Ministry
Each month we have an evening to minister to couples. This time is open not just to those from the church, but also to anyone who wishes to improve their relationship and marriage. This month we had a very good group and we continued talking about some of the issues we’d addressed in February as well as other topics, all based on various scriptures that talk about family relationships in the New Testament. These times allow us to give a different perspective to the couples who participate, showing them how a marriage can work much better than when the world’s twisted ideas are allowed to reign.
David Soliday
Some of you know David Solliday. He retired to Colombia with his Colombian wife and was quite ill at the end of last year. Please continue to pray with us for his health as he has not fully recovered after his stay at the hospital.
Drought over?
March brought with it more rain, a welcome relief from the unusual dry spell that has afflicted this region. Many of the coffee farmers have been adversely effected by the lack of precipitation. The rains have brought cooler weather and have caused the greenness of the landscape to be renewed. We have indeed received “showers of blessing”.
Thank you!
Thank you to each one of you who lift us up in prayer. Thank you for being an integral and important part of the work we are doing here. Thank you to each of you who also participates in our ministry through monetary support. All of you are vital to the ongoing work here in Pereira. We praise God for each of you.
In Christ,
Paul and Sheri Moreland
-- South American Christian Mission "... to prepare the saints..." Ephesians 4:12 www.sacm.net www.paulmoreland.com