Republic of Bolivia

oN sCHOOL dAYS AT THE EZEKIEL PROJECT, WE TAKE TURNS COMPILING INFORMATION ABOUT DIFFERENT COUNTRIES

Fast Facts about Bolivia*

Geography: Landlocked and mountainous. One third of the country is tropical lowlands and rain forests.

Capital: La Paz which has a population of 1,458, 000

Population:

2000: 8,328,665

2025: 13,131,183

Peoples:

European– 5.1%

Mestizo– 30.5%

Amerindian– 63.9%

Major Religions:

Christian 93.91%

Baha’I 3.2%

Major Languages:

Spanish

Aymara

Quechua

Breakdown of “Christianity”:

Protestant– 9.39%

Independent– 2.61

Catholic– 84.05%

Marginal– 1.8%

Note: while Catholisim claims the state religion, with 60% of Bolivians being baptized into the church,

many of these people are Christo-pagan, including the Quecha and Aymara.

Economy:

Income: $380 (3% USA)

Approximately 50% of the world’s cocaine is grown in Bolivia.

Growing cocaine and coco are the major economic activities.

Recent News:

Right now there is political upheaval in Bolivia. Missionaries are faced with the decisions to leave the work they are doing or risk danger to them and their families. Be praying for wisdom and peace from the Lord in making these decisions.

The Lord at Work in Bolivia*

· The Catholic Church is on the rocks and losing its stronghold.

· Over 30 protestant seminaries and Bible schools in Bolivia.

· Religious freedom and separation of church and state have not yet been fully resolved, but there

is an open door for the gospel.

· 1st assembly was founded in 1915. There are now 350.

· According to the missionary prayer handbook, there are 20 national workers.

Missionaries in Bolivia

Brad and Karen Hallock– Karleen, Sabrina, and Jesse

Andres Segovia

Gabe and Kari Meiers– Kaleb, Selah, and Esperanza

Dave and Ruth Sommer– Joanna

Prayer Highlights

· Spiritual growth of believers.

· Many nationals will become saved and reach their own country men with the gospel

· Wisdom for missionaries, that they will be disciplined and use their time for the glory of God.

The story of God’s unspeakable grace will be prevalent

* All information is taken from The Missionary Prayer Handbook and Operation World

Simple Pleasures

This morning I went to a local farmer's market for the second time. I have grown to love the place. Its just a tent in the middle of a parking lot and different tables set up containing produce from a farm near by. They bring in the produce daily, so its fresh and the variety of fruits and vegetables change each time you go. The workers there are nice, and the lady who served me today was just a dear. Plus, they are much less pricey than the grocery store. Very reasonable. I walked out today with apples, plumbs, tomatoes, a green pepper and a red onion and $10 less in my pocket. Unfortunately, the close at the end of October, so I only have a few more weeks to take advantage of them.

Earlier this afternoon, Andrew called me to quote the AWANA verses he has been working on for tonight. He did a great job. Word perfect, in fact! I was extremely encouraged by the words he spoke and the progression of the thought.
Romans 3:10 "As, it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one:"
Psalms 130:3 "If thou, Lord, shouldest mark iniquities, O Lord, who shall stand?"
Romans 6:23 "For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord."
II Corinthians 9:15 "Thanks be to God for his unspeakable gift."
By the time he got to the last verse, I was struck by the simplicity of it. What a wonderful, or to borrow the word of Paul, "unspeakable", gift we have been given by God! Its time to take pleasure in it.

IF

IF today is the day of salvation, if tomorrow may never come and if life is equally uncertain, how can we eat, drink and be merry when those who live with us, work with us, walk with us and love us are unprepared for eternity because they are unprepared for time?

IF Jesus called His disciples to be fishers of men, who gave us the right to be satisfied with making fish tackle or pointing the way to the fishing banks instead of going ourselves to cast out the net until it be filled?

IF Jesus Himself went seeking the lost, if Paul the Apostle was in agony because of his kinsmen, according to the flesh, who knew not Christ, why should we not consider it worthwhile to go out after the lost until they are found?

IF I wish to be approved at the last, then let me remember that no intellectual superiority, no eloquence in preaching, no absorption in the business, no shrinking temperament or no spirit of timidity can take the place of or be an excuse for my not making an honest, sincere, prayerful effort to win others to Christ.

-J. Wilbur Chapman, taken from Fishing for Men, by Richard A. Seymour

Fellowship and Football, Fawns and Frisbee

Drew back in August pre-broken arm and following bright orange cast.

Yesterday Calvary Bible Chapel gathered for its annual picnic. Without a doubt, being gathered around food for relaxation holds the best memories with my chapel family here. On these occasions, at least one game of ultimate frisbee is always in order. We played twice yesterday. My team won the first time and then after changing up teams, my new team lost....I am not to found of losing, but it could be worse. Besides, its all for fun anyways, right?
The Schroeders neighbors have started to raise dear to breed. (If you have never heard of that before, do not worry, you are not the only one!) So they have this huge concentration-camp looking pen in their back feild. The onwer invited some of us over to see them. We fed them pears, petted them, and one thought that I made a great salt lick. Pretty sweet, right? I mean, can you so that you have ever petted a dear outside a petting zoo? Well, a live one?!
Some other news that I do not care to much about but used as bragging rights yesterday; the Atlanta Falcons triumphed over the Detroit Lions. Yup. Made me pretty proud.

Flips

There have been many flips in my life and the life of my family recently. I had a grand time with them when I went back to Georgia for a couple of weeks at the beginning of August. If I had to rate them, this was probably the best trip back. Many times, it seems like there is always so much to do, to pack into the few short days that I am back in Augusta. And that list of things to do, people see, places to go, never gets fully accomplished. This time I just enjoyed the time I had. Especially with the siblings. My mom always told me and Ashlyn when we would fight, "Friends may come and go, but sisters are forever." My siblings, especially the youngest ones, change so much each time I come back. They change physically, emotionally, they have new thoughts and ideas, new experiences and friends to share....most of these things totally unpredictable. So, I have learned to try and keep up while I can. :)
One day we went to this amazing bouncy place...I have no idea what the name is. The whole place is blown up items you can play on....a slide, a moon walk, an obstacle course, and a few other things. Its pretty cheap and people over eighteen get in for free :) The afternoon we went we were the only ones there is it was especially fun. [As a side note, if you are not a competitive person, or do not like being around competitive people, do not spend too much time with my family, with the exception of Caroline....she a sweetheart. We are SUPER competitive and love it.] The picture above is Sarah doing a slip on the moon-walk thing. It took a few times, but this one was really impressive.
Another flip happened in our family this past weekend. Drew was on a go-kart out at a friends house and it flipped....right onto his arm. Yup. Broken. Luckily, or maybe not so luckily, depending on your perspective, he broke the arm that he does not write with. He seems to be having a good attitude about it, but tends to be in pain when it comes time for doing the not-so-fun tasks in life. Imagine that. I am hoping to get a picture of him with his orange cast, and will share it if I do.
Another flip has been a bit of a role reversal for me and my mom. For years, about 12 of them, she was in charge of my education. She was always there to answer my questions and help me with any problems that I had. Now, however, she is enrolled in a distance learning course offered by the Ezekiel Project. One of my jobs here is to handle a bit of the administrative things that go on with that. So, I give her tests, send her books, answer her questions, and am available if she ever needs help. Its a bit strange, but I love it and enjoy seeing her get excited about learning.
So things change, people change, and that means roles and relationships flip around, and sometimes that is not easy, especially when I have to change, but its a part of life and a part of growing. So if things have been flipping, keep it up.

Two of the Loveliest Ladies I Know

My sisters! They take comfort in the fact that "Charm is deceitful, and beauty is FLEETING, but the woman who fears the Lord, she shall be praised."