Update #2

August 5, 2011

A caravan of a small bus and three cars left Puerto Ordaz early on Friday to go to The Good Shepherd Lutheran Church in La Morrocoya. The team was heading to this small mission church to put on a VBS on their annual Children’s Day celebration. The rural church is very modest – no bathrooms or even an altar.

About 50 children plus 12 adults attended the VBS and celebration. Adults from teens and adults from a Lutheran church in Sierra Caroni (where we had two days of VBS earlier in the week) also joined the Children’s celebration. The day included Bible stories, crafts, puppet shows and songs. The youth from Sierra Caroni put on one of the two puppet shows.

The team stopped at an outdoor barbeque café for a late lunch on the way back to Puerto Ordaz. We participated in a youth encounter Friday evening where 25 youth from the Puerto Ordaz area were attending. Dale and Luz facilitated a session on spiritual mentoring.

We were back in our quarters after 9 and were heading to bed by 11 after a team meeting and devotions.

Saturday, August 6, 2011

Although today was a scheduled rest day for the team we were up early to enjoy some of the sights and sounds of Venezuela. We had breakfast out and headed to Llovizna’s National Park to enjoy a brief walk and a view of the waterfalls. We spent a brief time shopping – looking for some of the local crafts to bring home to family and friends. After an afternoon rest we headed back into the city to enjoy a special dinner out.

Sunday will be our last full day with the churches in Venezuela.  We are planning to attend services at three churches – Fuente de Vida in the morning, Lutheran Church of the Reformed in the afternoon and an evening service in San Felix.

Update #1

Monday, August 1^st

After an overnight flight from Houston, the team reached Caracas early Monday morning. Our in-country guide and trip planner Olga was there waiting for us as we cleared customs. After a brief reunion and introductions we gathered our luggage and walked to the in-country terminal. We grabbed a quick breakfast before boarding our next flight to Puerto Ordaz in eastern Venezuela.

After a brief rest we held an evening  seminar for members of the Lutheran church in Puerto Ordaz – it was well attended and the participation of all who attended was great. While our accommodations are spartan we were all ready to get to bed after a very long day.

Tuesday and Wednesday, August 2^nd and 3^rd

The team traveled one hour to a Lutheran church in rural Venezuela where we had 65-70 children attend VBS. After lessons and crafts with the children in the morning we held a class for adults in the afternoon on Philippians as well as conflict resolution.  The children sang songs and danced at a closing ceremony – a real demonstration of the love that flows among the members of the church. What a joy it was for us to be a part of this church family!

Thursday and Friday, August 4^th and 5^th

For the past 9 months members of a local Lutheran church have been praying for signs of encouragement after their pastor left to start a non-denominational church.  They believe that the team from Woodbury has been an answer to their prayers and were so grateful that we came to spend time with them and to teach both the children and the adults. We again held morning VBS for the children and afternoon classes for the adults.

The area has been without electricity for the past two days making it difficult for the women of the church to prepare meals. However, even without power the food has been so good – we have had a marvelous opportunity to enjoy some of the native foods prepared for us. No power means no air conditioning so sleeping has been difficult but the team remains strong – bolstered not only by the prayers back home but also by the love of their brothers and sisters in Venezuela.