New encounters

We’re having a wonderful time here. It’s been a time of all sorts of new connections and encounters. After recharging our batteries at Joe and Ramona’s cottage, we decided to rent a car again for our trip down south. Apart from a week of teaching at the mission school, we had no idea how this month would unfold, but several encounters seemed to be on the horizon. And a rental car gives us a bit more flexibility. Of course, this was right up Arjan’s alley. With a grin and a car under our butts, we drove through the rolling countryside of Paraguay again. It reminds us of our vacations to the South of France.

The mission school in Coronel Bogado was our destination. Here, we had the privilege of teaching 11 eager students for a week. The topics we covered were our identity in Christ and sharing the good news.
When Christians discover how loved they are by God, that God has done everything to set us free, and that they belong to God’s royal family, they open up like a flower. And they begin to walk in the destiny God has for them. Then sharing the good news isn’t so hard anymore, because who wouldn’t want to belong to this family!
One of the assignments was to make a 3-minute video in which the students shared how they came to Jesus. It was quite a challenge for them, because Paraguayans aren’t as outgoing as Brazilians. But the videos turned out beautifully.

The following week, the next teacher was unable to teach for a day, so we were asked if we would be willing to fill in. Of course! We didn’t have any other commitments anyway.
This time, we chose as our topic Jesus’ command to heal the sick. At the end of the lesson, there were a few students who wanted to be healed.
Now it was the others’ turn to put what they had learned into practice. Again, it was scary for them. But they had learned to simply do their part in obedience, and God does the rest. Right there, one student was healed of a knee problem and two others of a painful shoulder. The students who had prayed were amazed, because it was the first time they had seen a healing happen through their hands. God confirmed His Word with miracles and signs.

And we were truly spoiled here. We stayed in a cottage on the grounds, reserved specifically for teachers. And every day, our lunch was brought to us. Melli, the wife of Pastor David, is a chef and loved to bless us abundantly. God takes care of His own!
The fact that you share the cottage with a few bats and frogs doesn’t dampen the fun.

But to stay on the topic of new encounters, we also had a special one. In the middle of the night in the bathroom, a tarantula greeted a sleepy Amanda. You know, one of those beautiful black hairy spiders the size of a hand. At the zoo, it’s quite beautiful behind glass, but not on the floor of your bathroom. Suddenly, a visit to the bathroom can wait a little while. But Arjan was the big hero, and with a plastic container and some paper, he caught the unwelcome visitor and very graciously put it outside the door.

The table in our little house has a nice story behind it, too. This table was brought here by Australian missionaries and was eventually donated to the mission school. But long ago, the parents of these missionaries had Corrie ten Boom as a guest, and she had breakfast at this table. Haha, and now two other Dutchies have had breakfast at it.

For those who don’t know Corrie ten Boom, she was imprisoned in a concentration camp for hiding Jews. And afterwards, God sent her out into the world to share His message of love and forgiveness.
If you’re looking for something to do, you can watch the movie here. Or pay a visit to the Corrie ten Boom House in Haarlem.

So this certainly seems to be a time of connection. Through all sorts of channels, we’ve made new connections with all kinds of wonderful people. And more encounters are still on the horizon.