Dear friends of FEISA
- Our country
Please pray for our new President, Horacio Cartes, and his government who started their term of office on August 15th. They face many challenges such as how to deal with illegal activities, how to relate to the country´s powerful neighbours, and how to deal with aggressive movements and ideologies in Paraguay. They have made a hopeful start with many younger ministers, chosen for their ability rather than for political affiliation. Pray that education may be a priority amongst their concerns.
2. Recent activities
In July, our good friend David Orritt came with all his Mission Paraguay team to serve our nation in many different ways. He visited us with many donations for the Toy Library.
Thank you so much to all who contributed and helped in any way!
With David and his team in July, we took much happiness and many toys and games with the Toy Library to needy children from different Anglican Churches in Remansito, San Juan, el Mirador and San Lorenzo. We sent you a special report with photos of these visits. We are especially grateful to Ann Varley and St. Peter’s Church, Oundle, for all their support of this ministry.
We would appreciate your prayers as we re-organize the Toy Library team. Our Christian worldview sees all the needs of the children, whether they be educational, social, emotional or spiritual, and includes their evangelization, and we want to train the new team accordingly.
On August 16th each year, we celebrate Children’s Day. It’s actually the day when we remember a tragic battle during the War of the Triple Alliance between Brazil, Argentina and Uruguay against Paraguay (1864 – 1870). On that day, many young Paraguayan children disguised as soldiers were killed, and we now mark that date by holding children’s parties all over the country.
In FEISA we celebrated the day by taking our Toy Library to a church group in a satellite city of Asuncion called Limpio, as you will see in these photos.
- Academic Activities
The Third Year students have started their teaching practices in private preschools for children of 4 and 5 years of age. On September 4th and 5th, they went on a journey of 470 km into the Paraguayan Chaco where they experienced very different educational realities amongst the indigenous communities. They also visited schools in the Mennonite communities and an institution catering for children with different kinds of disabilities. Once again they became aware of the great educational needs of children living in remote country areas and of just how much can be achieved with God’s help and a willingness to serve. We’d like to send you photos of this visit in our next Prayer Letter.
- Future activities
On September 21st we celebrate Youth Day, and we are planning to hold a time of games and a biblical message with our First and Second Year Students as the Third Years will be busy with their final teaching practice.
We have also received an invitation from another faculty of the Evangelical University to join them at a camp where there will be times of sports and games and also a sharing of God’s Word. Many students decide to become followers of Jesus at such camps.
To cover the students’ costs we are trying to raise funds. If you would like to cover the cost of a student from a very needy background for the camp, you could send a cheque for £15 to our Treasurer, Colin Voutt, 164 Bradford Road, Combe Down, Bath BA2 5BZ
Thank you all so much for your continued prayers and support. They are vital to the success of our ministry.
- A hopeful start for the new President and government
- David Orritt and the Mission Paraguay team’s contributions
- Visits with David’s team to the different diocesan churches
- FEISA’s Children’s Day celebration in Limpio
- Experiences gained by the Third Year students in the Paraguayan Chaco
- Wisdom for President Cartes and his government
- Attention to the many educational needs of the country
- Reorganization and training of the Toy Library team
- Successful completion of the Third Year students’ final teaching practices
- Blessing on the combined Evangelical University camp
- Provision for all students to attend the camp
Ana