Wednesday, October 6, 2010

Kekchi Pastors' Meeting

Today I had the privilege to attend the regular monthly meeting of Pastors with the Petén Kekchi Baptist Association. The place was packed. The main reason I was going was to be there for José.
Last month a former pastor, who was removed from his position because of sin but still holds a lot of clout and influence, was going around talking about José. He called José a murderer because of the accident and told many of the pastors that they should stop supporting José and kick him out of the association. It is obvious that he wanted to take the focus off of himself, but his talking led the pastors to decide that they needed to vote about whether or not to keep José. They were asked to have each family in the church vote and today they would give the results.

José just wants to keep working as a missionary, yet after the attacks are over from the outside (the village and family of the boy) then the attacks started from the inside. As the meeting started 10 different churches handed in special love offerings their churches had taken up for José. They had not only voted in his favor, but sent the offerings as an encouragement to him. The votes came back at 1081 for José, with 355 against. They asked me to come and pray for him and say something to the pastors. I prayed that now Satan's voice would be silence so that José could continue to reach his people with the Gospel.
(pastors giving José the offerings)

At another time I was also able to announce our next pastor's training which will be December 7th-9th.

Here are some other things (the only ones I could understand) that happened at the meeting:

-A mission in La Libertad asked the association for help building a Pastor's house. They wanted to build one so that then maybe the association would send them a pastor so they could be a church and no longer a mission. The Association sent 30 pieces of sheet metal roofing to help in the construction but they have no pastor to send.

-They removed a pastor who had borrowed Q8,000 from the Association and not paid it back. Upon further investigation it was found that he owes Q32,000 total to several different places. He was asked to step down and get a job so that he can pay everybody back. They are looking for a replacement pastor for his church but there is none available.

-Domingo gave a report that he and José last month preached in 12 missions, 1 Campo Blanco (White Field- a village with no church or mission), and reported to 5 churches. How's that for a busy month?! He also told me that a family wants to accept Christ in Esquipulas but they could not get there because of the rain.
(this much rain)

-A man came from a town far away with a request for his mother who has cancer but can't afford treatment. They don't have land to sell so he is going around place to place trying to raise the money needed. After present the need the pastors gave a spontaneous offering (everybody just started getting up and leaving money on the table at the front.) They gave the man Q406 (more than a week's pay for most here in Petén.) What was amazing to me is that this man isn't even Kekchi nor does he speak it, yet the pastors still let him present his need and then responded to it.

I hope you saw what I did. Several times pastors were needed and there wasn't a man for the job. This reaffirms the urgent need for a Pastor's Institute here where men can be trained for the ministry.

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