Dear co-laborers in Christ’s harvest field,

Greetings from Coffee Country – for the last time ’til October!

Resurrection Celebration
The last Sunday in March Sheri and I left Pereira after the weekly meeting of the church and drove to Medellin where we stayed with her folks and I did some necessary paperwork for the church there.  We then headed up to Guatape Reservoir to the Stringers’ property to get ready for the rest of the week.  On Wednesday evening a bus full of members of the church in Pereira arrived, right at dark and as the rain started to fall as we unpacked the bus.  A bit of excitement was had when the bus went to a neighboring farm to park – and almost went down the hill into the reservoir as the driver could not see clearly in the dark and rain.  

The next afternoon we were able to get it unstuck and safely ensconced in the parking spot.  In the meantime everyone was enjoying the chance to be out of the city and amongst the beauties of God’s creation.  The next few days were spent in fellowship during the day and a time of praise and worship and Bible study in the evenings.  Everyone pitched in and things went smoothly.  Each evening we looked at different aspects of Jesus’ sacrifice for our sins. 

On Saturday we were able to take the bus to view a natural phenomenon, a large monolith called “El Peñol”, followed by a time of sight seeing in the nearby town of Guatape.  On Resurrection Sunday we gathered dark and early to celebrate that our Lord and Savior arose from the dead with a special Communion service followed by breakfast and packing the bus to return to Pereira.  Sheri and I had a good trip home in the car and the bus followed.  Everyone arrived overjoyed at the time of fellowship and discipleship and relaxation that had been our blessing to participate in.  

National Association of Christian Churches
The leaders of most of our churches around Colombia met in Bogotá around the middle of the month to discuss the proposed bylaw changes for our association.  We discussed both the part that identifies our fellowship to the Colombian government and the part that regulates how we work and cooperate together.  Both parts were amended slightly from the draft and then unanimously approved.  We have now sent the documents to the appropriate government oversight agency and should receive a reply by the end of June, the Good Lord willing.

Local Leaders
During my visits to Bogotá on business it is not easy to prepare sermons and teaching plans. Thankfully, the guys in Pereira stepped up to take over these duties.  This has been good practice for them as they will be taking over all preaching and teaching opportunities while we are in the U.S. this summer. What a joy to see our men step up and do their part for the growth of the church!

Home Service Plans
Yes, in just two weeks we should be arriving in Tulsa to begin our time of Home Service as we report to you, our friends and supporters, and to visit family as well.  It’s hard to believe that three years have passed since our last visit to the U.S., but the pictures of the grandkids don’t lie – they have grown tremendously in the interval since we last saw them!

We will be visiting churches in Missouri, Kansas, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Colorado and Washington between the end of May and the middle of September.  We still have some open speaking spots if you know of any congregation (or individual or family) interested in hearing about what the Lord has been doing through our ministry in Colombia. We are also looking forward to spending time with our relatives and friends as time allows.

Transportation
Last month we received a phone call from long time friends, wanting to know what our plans were on transportation.  They offered us the use of one of their cars while we are in the U.S. – Praise the Lord!  Transportation is one of our biggest needs and can be problematical to set up.  Thank you to all who have been praying for this need. We know that Lord will also supply for the rest of our needs while we travel.

In Christ,

Paul and Sheri 

--   South American Christian Mission "... to prepare the saints..." Ephesians 4:12 www.sacm.net www.paulmoreland.com