Hey everyone!  We have been hanging out in Quito a little longer than expected because today Bela has some nasty diareah, and food was just going right through her.  We went to the doctor to have her looked at (only $8 !) and he did not see anything wrong, but wants to do a stool sample to be sure.  She has gotten some medicine, and lots of pedalyte.  So far she seems to be doing better but pray for her and for me ( I hate seeing my baby in pain).  We appreciate it.

It is the rainy season here in Ecuador, and near the mountains here, there have been numerous mudslides and flooding. As a result, mountain provinces have delayed the start of school until April 28th, as some schools are under water, or covered with mud. That makes sense. Then there’s La Concordia.
La Concordia, which sits on the border of Esmeraldes and Pichincha, is sort of a political no-mans-land. Classes here at Luz del Evangelio have been in progress since April 2nd, and things have been going smoothly. Yesterday, the principal of the school, and my good friend, Sandro got a call from the government stating that if the school stays open it would have to pay a hefty fine. When asked why this was, the government representative stated it was because of the mudslides and flooding. When Sandro informed him that we were in the coastal region, and in no danger of flooding, the representative stated that it didn’t matter, since some of the schools were closing, all of them had to close.

To our understanding, since Luz del Evangelio is a private school, technically the government cannot tell us when to be opened and when to be closed, they just have to regulate the number of hours and days we are open. Oh well, at least the kids are excited for a vacation.

This Friday, our family will be taking a trip up to Quito for a few days to get some things for the computer lab, and to plan out some things with our friends Manuel and Elvia regarding our ministry service that we will be participating in Quito in June. It’s a 5 hour bus ride each way, so please pray for safe travels!

P.S. A note about photos… We are uploading photos as we can… the Internet here is unreliable, and very slow. Remember that the Photos Page has more than what we put in the posts!

Thanks all! God Bless You!

Everyone knows what they say about Johnny and an overacheiving work ethic.
Thursdays have become our rest day, as Saturday and Sunday we are usually busy with ministry activities. It works out well to, as Veronica Mason doesn’t have to teach on Thursdays… With 9 0 degree weather and a sweltering “Winter” sun as they say here, the local pools have become a refreshing break in the week.

This week I have been getting closer to the things needed for our computer lab. Our Prayer Team is hard at work helping find some hardware that we need sent down. I’ll write a little bit more about that later.

Other than that things are going very well, and we are starting to see God guide us to ministries that he could really utilize us in. I won’t say much more now, but continue to pray the God grants us clear vision for our next steps.

So today I experienced the normal way to travel in Ecuador if there aren’t enough seats in the back of the car / truck, putting a mattress in the truckbed (Which is usually optional) and riding to your destination! (Photo Comming soon!) So I was in enjoying it a whole bunch the fresh air, talking to a friend (all in Spanish!), and looking at all the scenery . It wasn’t until later when someone asked why I was so red and then I realized sitting in the back of the truck I got sun burnt…. Ouch.

The trip we took today was to the bigger city called Santo Domingo, its across the equator, and about 45 min away form La Concordia. It’s where most people do their shopping. Rob needed to find prices on what it would take to build a server down here for the school so that they can back students up!( Any questions he can explain better) I was just getting stuff for our bathroom and for Bela!

Thank you all for your prayers it’s great stop think when I am just sitting quietly knowing so many people are praying for us! God bless you all!

We have been in Ecuador for 1 week now, and in La Concordia for about 5 days, and things are going great!

Yesterday, we finished settling into our room, so now it looks more like a family’s room, and less like a hotel room.
We have had a bit of sickness while adjusting to the daily 85 degree weather, and hot sun, but our bodies are starting to acclimate to the changes…

Bela has had alot of fun visiting with the Mason’s kids, and being passed around all the Ecuadorians who love her big blue eyes. She has already picked a few favorite Ecuadorian Tia y Tios (aunts and uncles) who she immediately reaches for upon seeing them.

This week I have been working at the school “Luz del Evangelio” preparing the computer lab. I have to say, it is in worse condition than I thought. I spent the first few days repairing several computers that have not been functioning. I also will need to buy some parts to make a server computer, as well as some other equipment.

This Saturday I will be traveling to Santo Domingo, a large city about 45 min away to purchase the parts needed for the server, and to repair the various machines around the lab. This task will take a bit longer than I had originally thought… Please pray for guidance and grace.

All in all things are going very well so far. Kirstie is learning TONS of Spanish, and is able to communicate more and more every day. Bela is happy as a clam, and Rob is neck-deep in computer troubles…
We are working to get the site back up as soon as we can.. it doesn’t look pretty right now, but at least you can read whats going on, and see some PHOTOS!

Thanks all so much for your prayers and your support! Keep coming back for more info!

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