The weather has been foul. We had forty-eight hours of rain when the temperatures plummeted. Yesterday I went out to get warm.
Today we are back to five degrees. There is no central heating in Paraguay so here I am
keeping warm Paraguay style!
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
Winter hols!
So much for school holidays. We have cancelled our trip to Argentina and the Falls. It is warmer and cheaper to stay home.
The weather has been foul. We had forty-eight hours of rain when the temperatures plummeted. Yesterday I went out to get warm.
Today we are back to five degrees. There is no central heating in Paraguay so here I am
keeping warm Paraguay style!
The weather has been foul. We had forty-eight hours of rain when the temperatures plummeted. Yesterday I went out to get warm.
Today we are back to five degrees. There is no central heating in Paraguay so here I am
keeping warm Paraguay style!
Tuesday, July 13, 2010
Nostalgia
It has been lovely having the Trew family back with us. It has reminded us just how much we miss them. I lent them my guitar and they have made themselves useful. They have played for two services in the English-speaking church.
Last week we had an English staff sausage barbecue at Mags' and Gwen's house. This was to say goodbye to Lara-Clare Bordeaux and to welcome the Trews. It was a lovely balmy evening and we enjoyed a time of fellowship in the garden.
(you can just see me if you look hard..... or at least my foot with the black sandal... Ha!ha!)
Sunday, July 11, 2010
Sharing God's Love
Today we had a visitor to the cathedral. Dr. John Forde was visiting from the United States where he has been a Bible College Principal. He spoke simply to us (through interpreter Pablo, from Bolivia) about accepting God's Grace and not trying to do things in our own strength. It was a word that I am sure hit home with many of us there.
Each time he said, "No but I am with you; that is all you need. My power shows up best in weak people." Now I am glad to boast how weak I am; I am glad to be a living demonstration of Christ's power, instead of showing off my own power and abilities. 2 Cor v.9
2 new faces in the congregation today were Mauricio (left)
and Bieto. They come from the Chacarita and a background of addictions. They are hungry for God's love and they enjoyed being with us in San Andres
After church we gathered for a sale of homemade food that we had all contributed.
Each time he said, "No but I am with you; that is all you need. My power shows up best in weak people." Now I am glad to boast how weak I am; I am glad to be a living demonstration of Christ's power, instead of showing off my own power and abilities. 2 Cor v.9
2 new faces in the congregation today were Mauricio (left)
and Bieto. They come from the Chacarita and a background of addictions. They are hungry for God's love and they enjoyed being with us in San Andres
After church we gathered for a sale of homemade food that we had all contributed.
Adriana collects the money to help the sick in our church to afford medicines.
Members of the Cathedral and the English church enjoy coffee, chat and lunch after the services.
Dr. John Forde and his wife Joan talk with Pablo (from Bolivia) in the beautiful sunshine.
Our humble friend Lorenzo busies himself at the grill cooking wonderful sausages for us all.
Dr. John Forde and his wife Joan talk with Pablo (from Bolivia) in the beautiful sunshine.
Our humble friend Lorenzo busies himself at the grill cooking wonderful sausages for us all.
Natasha wonders what to choose to eat. There was a good choice.
Wednesday, July 7, 2010
Much Loved!
A week or so ago the ninth grade visited a local university to see how they breed fish. They returned to school with two rabbits which were living cooped up in the Laboratory here.
Today some enterprising youngsters were seen measuring and cutting chicken wire to make an enclosure fo
r the rabbits to live in on the secondary patio during the holidays.
Today some enterprising youngsters were seen measuring and cutting chicken wire to make an enclosure fo
r the rabbits to live in on the secondary patio during the holidays.
Monday, July 5, 2010
Footie fundraiser
Last week the ninth grade ran a very successful inter schools football competition over three days after school hours. It was for first and second graders taking part from several schools. The aim was to raise funds for a sofa for a local children´s home. They are now well on the way towards their target.
It was a wel
l-supported, fun event and there were good, sporting attitudes between the participating teams.
Sunday, July 4, 2010
A special time
This morning I set off to church as usual on a Sunday. I was in good spirit because the weather is so beautiful just now.
I had toyed with the idea of going to the English chapel this week because the Trew family were going to be leading the music. In the end I felt convicted to go to the Cathedral as usual.
We had a lovely service and Pastor Ronnie talked about storing up riches in heaven and not here on earth. It was a lesson that I had shared with his daughter's class on Friday in school, prior to reading them a story about a treasure hunt.
Today it was gift Sunday when we give two offerings. (We do this once a month). One is to help those in the church with needs.
As I sat down, from the corner of my eye I saw a new face. She was a very poor-looking indigenous lady. She looked very sad and lonely, so I decided to talk to her after the service.
When the service ended I looked for her but she had gone. I then decided to go home for lunch. As I left the church I literally bumped into her. I stopped and asked her where she was from. Before I knew it I found myself inviting her for lunch and rather hesitantly she accepted. This was an unusual event for me as it is not usually safe to invite total strangers home, here in Paraguay. One has to be careful.
We walked down the hill chatting and she told me that her name is Fermina and she had come from Makxawaya in the Chaco for a medical appointment at the Central Clinic on Tuesday. She had had to hitch a lift down last Thursday on a truck as she had no busfare. Since then she had been waiting for Tuesday to come around, with nowhere to go. She was staying quite nearby in some sort of hostel known by the Indians.
We arrived at my flat and I welcomed her in. She was a lovely lady and we chatted easily about ourselves and our respective lives and how the Lord had helped us. She knew Beryl Baker, a nurse in the Chaco and she spoke fondly of our last Bishop and his wife. I could see that she was a bit on edge so I made some terere (a herbal drink) and we sat talking whilst the lunch cooked. I felt so humbled by her presence.
After lunch she was not sure whether to go but again I felt that she should not be pushed away so I invited her to stay a while. I gave her a year book of daily readings in Spanish and she immediately wanted to read them all!!!
She carefully took out a pair of spectacles but it was soon apparent that she could not see the print. Suddenly she asked to use my specs. I told her that I had some old ones so she could try those, but I explained that they are variofocals so they may not be of use.
As she put them on it was like seeing a light switch go on. A big beaming, toothless smile spread over her face and she gazed around the room and then at the pages. Soon she was engrossed in them and she then dragged her Bible out of her bag. Her "Bible " was a New Testament in Enxtet language. (The Old Testament is currently in the process of being translated.) We were soon sharing the Word, she from her Enxtet Bible, I had my English Living Bible, with its notes and we were communicating in Spanish. We had a lovely time together and prayed before she left. I walked her to a familiar street and we parted. I felt that I had been privileged to meet her.
God is Good!
I had toyed with the idea of going to the English chapel this week because the Trew family were going to be leading the music. In the end I felt convicted to go to the Cathedral as usual.
We had a lovely service and Pastor Ronnie talked about storing up riches in heaven and not here on earth. It was a lesson that I had shared with his daughter's class on Friday in school, prior to reading them a story about a treasure hunt.
Today it was gift Sunday when we give two offerings. (We do this once a month). One is to help those in the church with needs.
As I sat down, from the corner of my eye I saw a new face. She was a very poor-looking indigenous lady. She looked very sad and lonely, so I decided to talk to her after the service.
When the service ended I looked for her but she had gone. I then decided to go home for lunch. As I left the church I literally bumped into her. I stopped and asked her where she was from. Before I knew it I found myself inviting her for lunch and rather hesitantly she accepted. This was an unusual event for me as it is not usually safe to invite total strangers home, here in Paraguay. One has to be careful.
We walked down the hill chatting and she told me that her name is Fermina and she had come from Makxawaya in the Chaco for a medical appointment at the Central Clinic on Tuesday. She had had to hitch a lift down last Thursday on a truck as she had no busfare. Since then she had been waiting for Tuesday to come around, with nowhere to go. She was staying quite nearby in some sort of hostel known by the Indians.
We arrived at my flat and I welcomed her in. She was a lovely lady and we chatted easily about ourselves and our respective lives and how the Lord had helped us. She knew Beryl Baker, a nurse in the Chaco and she spoke fondly of our last Bishop and his wife. I could see that she was a bit on edge so I made some terere (a herbal drink) and we sat talking whilst the lunch cooked. I felt so humbled by her presence.
After lunch she was not sure whether to go but again I felt that she should not be pushed away so I invited her to stay a while. I gave her a year book of daily readings in Spanish and she immediately wanted to read them all!!!
She carefully took out a pair of spectacles but it was soon apparent that she could not see the print. Suddenly she asked to use my specs. I told her that I had some old ones so she could try those, but I explained that they are variofocals so they may not be of use.
As she put them on it was like seeing a light switch go on. A big beaming, toothless smile spread over her face and she gazed around the room and then at the pages. Soon she was engrossed in them and she then dragged her Bible out of her bag. Her "Bible " was a New Testament in Enxtet language. (The Old Testament is currently in the process of being translated.) We were soon sharing the Word, she from her Enxtet Bible, I had my English Living Bible, with its notes and we were communicating in Spanish. We had a lovely time together and prayed before she left. I walked her to a familiar street and we parted. I felt that I had been privileged to meet her.
God is Good!
Well done Paraguay!
The Trew family arrived from Northern Ireland yesterday for a two week summer holiday with us in our winter. In fact the weather is wonderful at the moment, with sunshine and a lovely breeze.
We gathered chez Mags and Gwen to watch the Paraguay v. Spain match. Paraguay may have been beaten but we were still proud of the way that they played. They have succeeded in uniting a nation which had been in the doldrums and they brought a spark and a smile to the people.
THANKS Paraguay!
We gathered chez Mags and Gwen to watch the Paraguay v. Spain match. Paraguay may have been beaten but we were still proud of the way that they played. They have succeeded in uniting a nation which had been in the doldrums and they brought a spark and a smile to the people.
THANKS Paraguay!
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