Arriving at the ministry at exactly 11am did not give me time to prepare; however, the ministry had another break-in and several fans were stolen along with some other items. That meant the other room- used for the services in Spanish- was unavailable. It would have reached around 100 degrees in there.
Therefore, I had to preach before the whole group and translation was provided by my wife, Loiana. She did a good job, especially since she was not planning on translating and since I had to simplify the message while preaching. It is difficult to preach with an interpreter because it interrupts the flow of the message.
All in all, the message went well- I did an extended review of the last two weeks since this was the third in a three-part series. It was pretty hot- worse than usual, because we were left with less fans.
I led worship a Capella once again, and added "Sanctuary" (or "Santuario" in Spanish) as one of the worship songs. Leading in Spanish was a challenge, but it was successful.
Finally, I met a new couple who have a little boy (about nine months old). They live in a converted bus without an air conditioner. Their generator was stolen, leaving them no way to keep the bus cool in the extreme heat. The gentleman, Mike, has a heart condition and it in poor health. Their situation broke my heart. I wished I could do something to help. He was working at SweetBay (a grocery chain) in the deli, but when he had a heart attack they fired him. Fortunately they have WIC and food stamps to keep them from starving and to keep the baby healthy, but they are in a bad situation.
Add to that the fact that another gentleman- a veteran- and his wife are being evicted because they are behind on their rent, and I was overwhelmed. The man who is behind on his rent, Edward, has been trying to work something out with unemployment and disability or to find a job that he can do without compromising his heart condition, but without success. We actually met with Edward and his wife and took time to pray with them. We shared a meal with them and we happy to finally meet his wife. She is in poor health as well. They do not have much because of the path they have been on in life- including being a military family. They were unable to have children, but would always help with children where they lived. Edward has been preaching on Thursday nights at the ministry. He had worked toward a Bachelors degree earlier.
Please, Christian brothers and sister, pray for these people and this ministry. They have not given up, but the times have been tough for them.
1 comment:
One can only hope that the stolen fans became a blessing to someone. I don't understand it. Someone breaking in to steal from someone who probably doesn't have as much. I know with Pete/Loianna leading the way God will bless this ministry. Let's pray for those who stole and those who were stolen from. God Bless You All!!!!
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