tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-190122782008-05-07T16:48:50.687-05:00sjmnoreply@blogger.comBlogger29125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19012278.post-33379547926224358082008-04-01T23:15:00.004-05:002008-04-01T23:49:16.963-05:00

As a boy I always hoped for a day or two off of school in the middle of winter for the snow that fell. Those were the coveted "Snow Days"--days off of school because the amount of snow that fell made is difficult to get to school. Here in Ecuador, we have experienced "Political Protest Days" or "Transportation Strike Days", but today we had a "Snow... Err... Precipitation Day" and will have

sjmnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19012278.post-6252714203499675282008-02-24T15:06:00.003-05:002008-04-03T22:18:53.122-05:00

[Oops, this never got published, but it's still relevant.] Well, we have finished the Community Development course which Pauli helped organize. It was a good time to remind us that God cares about each and every on of us and us as a whole person--that we aren't disjoint people and God cares about us as a whole and not just the spiritual part of a person. Please pray that the things learned in

sjmnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19012278.post-73926856909960222702008-01-30T19:58:00.000-05:002008-01-30T23:23:54.344-05:00

We had a nice family Christmas and it was interesting trying to keep the focus on God's gift to us in Jesus in the midst of the empasis on Santa Claus and consumerism all around us. It is nice to hear that some of the favorite stories of Keilah and Kendra are the ones about "baby Jesus". The New Year is always an interesting time here in Ecuador where the tradition is unique. Here it is the

sjmnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19012278.post-66601437306585692972007-12-21T19:15:00.000-05:002007-12-22T16:33:22.719-05:00

We've been busy probably just like most of you this season. As we look back to the last update, we want to detail a few things to bring you up-to-date. This Fall has been a very busy one as Steve has added responsibilities on top of his main job in the Information Technology/Systems department. Academia Cristiana del Aire (web page in Spanish) Steve has been teaching two 3-hour classes on

sjmnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19012278.post-40280467523177443102007-10-09T21:15:00.000-05:002007-10-15T01:23:08.001-05:00

Thinking back on September, it was an interesting month when we were asking where God was leading us. Steve works in the Information Systems Department (ISD), but had three different departments asking him to consider teaching for them. First, in talking with the Community Development Department, he was asked to consider some Bible courses and to help with the training of the communities in

sjmnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19012278.post-11001703526535954692007-10-05T22:14:00.000-05:002007-10-05T22:57:59.752-05:00

Well, as many of you can see I didn't get my September update done. I'll try to post a quick review of what would have been in the September update and in the next post get the October post up. In August, soon after Steve's parents left, we took the car on a trip to the beach for a week with Magui's (one of Pauli's sisters) family. The car did pretty well, but the trip did show up a couple more

sjmnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19012278.post-71512311151035471912007-08-04T19:51:00.000-05:002007-08-04T21:41:31.041-05:00

Well, we've asked you to pray with us for a car for a while and we've finally bought one. It was a little more than we had first thought of paying, but can get a little loan to finance the rest. (If you feel like contributing to this part of the car, please let us know.) It has been a long process, but we feel that God has provided the right car for us. We had at first thought of buying a car

sjmnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19012278.post-77425721941288533522007-07-05T21:10:00.000-05:002007-07-05T22:13:57.197-05:00

Well, here we are in July already and it seems like there has been a great exodus around here. Within HCJB here in Quito, several have left as the print shop is closing down and the photography department is moving to Colorado Springs. In the Information Systems department, one employee's position was transferred to another department, one employee left HCJB over the employee situation, and one

sjmnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19012278.post-42522933046234365852007-06-05T22:20:00.000-05:002007-06-05T22:40:48.104-05:00

Well, it seems like we haven't moved forward that much or that things are coming back around again. First we had a lightening storm that blew out some of the network infrastructure and a few parts in some of the computers. We fixed that and a couple of days later another lightening storm came through and blew out a couple of other things. Second, we try to upgrade a server to a new version and

sjmnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19012278.post-90254672529818111332007-05-07T22:08:00.000-05:002007-05-09T22:57:03.835-05:00

Well, we want to thank you all for your prayers for the situation with the employees. Things seem to have calmed down and passed over. Please do pray for those employees who left HCJB and for their hearts--that they could seek God and his heart and not let bitterness take a foothold. Pauli now has a lady that comes in to help around the house in the mornings here. Her name is Maira (Myra).

sjmnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19012278.post-32443946350512326922007-04-10T11:03:00.000-05:002007-04-10T11:06:58.792-05:00

Thanks for your continued prayers on behalf of HCJB Global in Ecuador. In recent days, the Employees’ Association elected new leadership, which has been officially recognized and legalized by the Ecuadorian governmental Work Inspection office here in Quito. Mission leadership has begun dialogues with this new group, and sessions are planned in the near future to resolve concerns. Be assured that

sjmnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19012278.post-51767194944965039912007-03-21T16:14:00.000-05:002007-03-21T16:14:52.057-05:00

HCJB Global employs hundreds of Ecuadorian staff who have worked alongside our missionary staff in the media and healthcare ministries throughout Ecuador for many years. In February 2007, leaders of the Employee Association of HCJB in Quito, Ecuador presented a demand for a collective labor contract. The proposed contract places the future of the mission in Ecuador at significant risk. In

sjmnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19012278.post-46475071276590543172007-03-20T16:33:00.000-05:002007-03-20T16:51:11.424-05:00

From Germany (Low German language): I am a truck driver, and I am on the road five days a week on a 540-mile trip. This job can become pretty lonely. Some time ago I got Internet access, and as I looked for Low German contacts I found your website. What a blessing to listen to my mother tongue broadcast from the other side of the world! Even better are the contents of the programs. Now I record

sjmnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19012278.post-65613962897910717502007-03-15T14:01:00.000-05:002007-03-15T21:44:24.001-05:00

First off, we need to say that we appreciate your prayers and concern even while we haven't been in communication this past month. A lot has happened. We did post some new photos of the Community Development course that was given soon after we arrived back in January (see in new window), the one day training session given to the Information Systems Department (ISD) where Steve did much of the

sjmnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19012278.post-79441438449158679722007-03-13T16:55:00.000-05:002007-03-13T16:57:31.334-05:00

Well, after a little while, we have finally gotten a connection to Internet in the house, so in the next few days we'll post a few items to bring everyone up-to-date with the news. Keep watching...

sjmnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19012278.post-12843641612668127042007-02-07T17:06:00.001-05:002007-02-07T17:06:54.198-05:00

The first week of February is already gone. Wow. Well, we're somewhere between transitioning to Ecuador and getting settled in. While we came back to the same place, which made things easier, we still feel up in the air in some respects like not having a car, not yet having a local bank account, and such. Kendra seems to be doing better in the transition as, for her it's mostly all new and

sjmnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19012278.post-53216042067900790662007-01-30T16:32:00.000-05:002007-01-30T17:04:36.795-05:00

Well, as you can tell, it hasn't been easy keeping you updated. We arrived, unpacked most of our stuff and Steve had to go back to work. Since then things have been pretty busy. Our Internet connection still isn't up. Hopefully this week Steve will have some time to look into that, but until then he needs to stay late at work to write or try to connect to some weak wireless signals from some

sjmnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19012278.post-39533139912037164852007-01-18T16:52:00.000-05:002007-01-18T22:56:06.780-05:00

We've arrived in Ecuador, but haven't had a good connection to the Internet yet I'm sitting on the balcony right now connected to another person's wireless connection as I write this. It's also raining here. If you want to see where I'm sitting click here (a satellite image on Google Maps). The transition has been going pretty well, but Kendra seems to have been affected the worst. Keilah

sjmnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19012278.post-1168445063386186142007-01-10T10:55:00.000-05:002007-01-10T11:04:23.740-05:00

Well, we're packed up (mostly) and getting ready to leave this afternoon. Please keep us in prayer for our travels with the kids, carry-on suitcases, car seats, etc. as we board the different planes, for the connections between flights to go smoothly, for help as we take all our mountain of luggage through customs in Ecuador, and for the kids to not get too tired or contrary during the 17-18

sjmnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19012278.post-1168105497793956302007-01-06T12:36:00.000-05:002007-01-06T12:44:57.803-05:00

Just a quick update to keep people up-to-date. We received all the papers we needed for Kyle on Wednesday and are now in packing mode (frantic?). We leave for Quito on Wednesday afternoon and arrive there Thursday afternoon. Please pray for our trip with the 8+ suitcases and four carry-ons will go smoothly. Well, back to packing...

sjmnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19012278.post-1166678693964442692006-12-21T00:11:00.000-05:002006-12-21T00:24:53.973-05:00

Well, we've started the process of going back to Ecuador. After our first garage sale, we had to pack up the stuff that didn't sell and move everything to Steve's parents' place. Wednesday we moved out of the apartment and Thursday cleaned it up and turned in the keys by noon. The rest of Thursday and Friday were spent getting ready for the next garage sale that Steve's parents were having on

sjmnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19012278.post-1165669181848238622006-12-09T07:59:00.000-05:002006-12-09T08:14:50.626-05:00

Well, this morning we are stepping closer to going back to Ecuador. We are having a garage sale to start getting rid of the stuff that we accumulated while here in the United States. This past week we had the pleasure of having one of Pauli's sisters from Ecuador visit us here in Arizona. It was a good time, but we didn't plan enough time to show her around and get ready for the garage sale.

sjmnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19012278.post-1164691663419983862006-11-27T23:12:00.000-05:002006-11-28T00:32:09.990-05:00

Well, today was a busy, though slow day. How does that happen? You ask. Well, I'll tell you. We started out this morning getting a photograph of Kyle for his passport. In the midst of taking the picture, printing out the passport application, and getting things ready for Keilah and Kendra to stay with Steve's mom; the regional manager over the radio station in Sierra Vista called asking what

sjmnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19012278.post-1164409821477833672006-11-24T18:03:00.000-05:002006-11-26T19:45:16.403-05:00

Thanksgiving is a wonderful idea (more than just the day before all the Christmas sales start!) that we should be thinking about throughout the year. When in Ecuador, we don't have a chance to really celebrate as it's not something from the history of that part of the world. Yesterday we spent our Thanksgiving holiday with Steve's parents and his sister's family came over for dinner too. We

sjmnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19012278.post-1163610365542469612006-11-15T11:55:00.000-05:002006-11-15T12:06:05.553-05:00

Our family officially expanded to five members at 1:18pm on November 13th. Baby Kyle weighed in at seven pounds eleven ounces and 20 inches long. He and his mommy are doing well. You can see photos here.

sjmnoreply@blogger.com