Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

I can’t believe that 2016 is already coming to an end. God has truly transformed many lives here in Ecuador.
 

Villegas

In this year God has given us many opportunities to further grow His Kingdom. A terrible earthquake hit Ecuador in April of this year, destroying multiple cities close to Santo Domingo. Through this tragic event we were able to go into another barrio, called Villegas. With the generosity of Chandler Christian Church and others that donated money, we were able to build 15 houses for this community. We now have several Peace Treaties and house churches. We had the amazing opportunity to baptize three people from Villegas who are now helping us with the farm. They are extremely knowledgeable in farming and helped us plant black pepper, corn, and maracuya.

Santa Marta

We also work in Santa Marta, sectors five and six. The church in sector six has been helping us evangelize in sector five. Through their hard work we were able to baptize 40 people who decided to give their lives to Christ. Our focus has always been on making disciples who make disciples. It is incredible to see these people grow in Christ and see them share their love of Christ with others.
 

Seed projects

We are truly becoming a part of these communities through Seed Projects, outreach activities that give the community opportunities to grow closer together and better their barrios. A major problem here is that the people are not united, but when you work together you grow bridges with one another and develop common purposes. This has helped the barrio to turn away from violence.

Christmas program

The whole church, which includes all the barrios, worked hard to raise money to buy food and put on a Christmas program. They were also able to make 1,000 candy bags that were passed out to the kids of the communities. This was a success because the church planned and organized everything and worked together to accomplish their goals. 
 

Education Center

The first year of the Education Center has been beneficial in helping several kids in their studies. We are also educating their parents on several different subjects, such as effective discipline and the importance of education. Please pray for us to raise enough money to continue the Education Center. This is changing not only the children’s lives, but also the whole concept of the importance of keeping your children in school. 

Training retreat

One of the highlights of this year was our training retreat. The purpose was to train our church on how to disciple others and our responsibility as believers in Christ to do so. This training is ongoing, and we pray that next year we will see more fruit! 
 
We are blessed to be partners with you all. Thank you for all your prayers and support!
 
Mike and Danell and the Church in Ecuador