Details are coming together to host work teams in 2015! The architect is drawing up the plans and submitting them to the municipality next week; the complex where our teams will stay is giving us an excellent rate; and we are gathering quotes for the building particulars. One challenge we are facing is what to do about parking. We can easily rent space nearby in order to get our plans approved, but we are also considering other long-term solutions. Please pray for wisdom in these decisions.
With an average attendance of 95, the new building continues to be full. The next steps are to get plans drawn and approved, plus the foundation poured. Please pray that the Lord would lead and provide for this next phase. Last month, we told you about the possibility of purchasing a steel building, but it fell through because it had already been sold. It did, however, open our eyes to the idea of looking for something similar.
We are excited about hosting various mission teams to work on the new building in early 2015. Of course, you don’t have to be on a team–we welcome help at any time and at any stage of the project! If you or your church is interested in being involved, please let us know.
August 10 we had our first service in the new building. The Lord blessed with a full house those first two weeks! So, out came the sledgehammers again! We took out a bathroom and the office to fit 30 more chairs. We now have a little more elbow room. (Click here for current pictures.)
The next steps are to get plans drawn and approved, plus the foundation poured. However, we have a unique opportunity to purchase a dismantled steel building. This structure would allow us to erect a two-story-high roof over the construction site. We are currently negotiating the purchase price and are estimating a cost between $8,000 and $12,000 for the purchase and transport to our property. We currently have $5,000 to use toward this project! Please pray that the Lord would lead and provide for this next phase.
After that, we would like to host mission teams to work on the new building in early 2015. Of course, you don’t have to be on a team–we welcome help at any time and at any stage of the project!
Last week, in the midst of our home church’s missions conference, our daughter said, “If home is where the heart is, then I must have a lot of hearts!” That pretty much sums up our sentiments! It was so encouraging to be among family at Hillsdale Baptist in Tampa, Florida where the folks are excited about missions and missionaries.
The children and adults gave a very generous combined offering toward the Pilar land fund, bringing the total to $85,200. Praise the Lord! Only $34,800 more to buy the property! Wouldn’t it be exciting to have the funds in hand to make that purchase as soon as we get back to Argentina in January?
If you would like to be a part of giving to this project, please send your donation to Baptist World Mission, with “Greenwood Land Fund” in the memo line.
Sunday morning James preached on Proverbs 16:1-9 (click here for sermon).
1 The preparations of the heart in man, and the answer of the tongue, is from the Lord.
2 All the ways of a man are clean in his own eyes; but the Lord weigheth the spirits.
3 Commit thy works unto the Lord, and thy thoughts shall be established.
4 The Lord hath made all things for himself: yea, even the wicked for the day of evil.
5 Every one that is proud in heart is an abomination to the Lord: though hand join in hand, he shall not be unpunished.
6 By mercy and truth iniquity is purged: and by the fear of the Lord men depart from evil.
7 When a man’s ways please the Lord, he maketh even his enemies to be at peace with him.
8 Better is a little with righteousness than great revenues without right.
9 A man’s heart deviseth his way: but the Lord directeth his steps.
When we have the proper perspective of God, the proper position will be prostrate before Him.
“…there is a proper posture involved in fearing the Lord. Those who in scripture are described as fearing the Lord are always found prostrate before a Holy God. When we see ourselves for who we really are we discover the greatness of God and worship Him accordingly. You will never hate your sin until you learn to reverence the Savior.”
The previous (8/25) message on the first two verses is here.
Another “first” for our church plant – missions. As a church, we have been putting 10% of the general fund aside for missions. We have actually had the opportunity to help with two projects–a building project for a sister work and a national pastor who needed car repairs. This month, a young Argentine man from a sister work presented his desire to go to China as a missionary. Our church people voted to help him by paying for almost 75% of his airfare to take a survey trip!
Even more amazing is the spirit of the people. In the business meeting to decide on how to help this future missionary, the church folks publicly expressed their thankfulness that God sent them a missionary, and that they wanted to give because of all God has given them for the building through local churches in the States. That is only a work God can do in their hearts! Isn’t it neat to realize that the impact of your giving goes beyond dollars and cents?
We were privileged to host our home pastor Travis Smith for a visit in June. Of course, he’s read and heard our reports and seen pictures of the ministry in Pilar, but this was his first opportunity to meet the very special people who make up our church. It was an extremely encouraging visit for our family to have quality time with him, and for our church people to get to meet the pastor of our sending church.
Jaden, Lauren and Josiah are furiously finishing up home schooling, so they can be free of their studies while on furlough. Please pray for them as they transition to life in the States. Plans are coming together for housing, renting a vehicle and reporting to churches. Pray for us as we wrap up details here and fly to the States on July 30. As our roots grow deeper in Argentina, it becomes increasingly more difficult to pull away for months at a time for furlough. At the same time, we anticipate the much-needed rest and fellowship in supporting churches.
Time is quickly running out for us to close a deal and move to a new property before our furlough in August! On top of that, our rent is being raised 20%! Considering the devaluation of the peso, our church cannot pay rent and efficiently save for property too. Real estate prices are always in dollars (because of its stability). When the church first started saving, every peso given was worth 30 cents. Now every peso is worth 13 cents!
For all these reasons, as well as the fact that our building is maxed out, we must make a move very soon. Please pray for guidance in making an offer and that the property owners will accept our terms.
A little over a year ago we formally presented the church’s vision to buy property in Pilar, asking for church folks to commit to give monthly toward the project. (See post here.) At that time, they had already given almost U.S. $5,000 and since then, have given more than another U.S. $9,000. Now, through the generous offerings from our supporters in the States as well, we are getting VERY close to making an offer on the property!
This past week, we had another banquet to renew our vision for and commitment toward the land fund. Please pray for God to continue to bless the sacrifices of His people!
If you have questions about this project regarding the purchase process, financial statements or the future construction phase, please do not hesitate to contact us.
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Here in the southern hemisphere, July is the coldest month of the year. (Nothing like the heat wave our friends in the Southeast experienced!) We normally take a break from extra church activities because so many church people are sick and/or it’s a hardship to just get to church walking or on a bus in the cold. With all of our newly-found “free time,” we had a great time hosting various church members in our home on Sunday afternoons throughout the month. |
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The first Sunday in August, we start up discipleship classes again. We’ve added a new class for the children and changed the time to Sunday evenings, so that it will be a more cohesive ministry. The men will continue their study in The Training of the Twelve, and the women will begin a study based on the Lies Women Believe and the Truth that Sets them Free. |
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An immense THANK YOU to Fairview Baptist in Decatur, Alabama, and Tucson Baptist Temple in Tucson, Arizona, and an individual for their generous gifts this month toward the property fund. Church folks continue to give to the land fund as well. They have given over $16,000 US! However, as the Argentine peso devalues, it takes even more pesos to equate to one US dollar. Please pray with us specifically that God would provide $100,000 more, and that we would be able to make this purchase by October. |
38 supporters x $3,500 = GOAL!“God’s work, done God’s way, will never lack God’s supply.”-J. Hudson Taylor |
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Doing business ethically in Argentina is not for the faint of heart! Government restrictions are getting tighter every day regarding the way financial transactions are handled. See the latest in The Economist: http://www.economist.com/node/21556273?fb_ref=scn%2Ffb_ec%2Fthe_blue_dollar&fb_source=timeline.
By faith, we are moving forward with the first steps of the negotiations process on the property. However, our initial offer was rejected. Please pray we can meet with owners face to face and discuss the price, terms, and conditions of the purchase.
We are so excited to finally have identified a potential property for the church! To date, the Argentine nationals have given 15,000 US dollars! Combined with love offerings from our supporters in the States, we have $26,000 in hand. If every one of our 38 supporters were each to commit to give $3,500, we would have the total funds necessary for acquisition and improvement.
-J. Hudson Taylor
I don’t know about you, but I thought I would never get to write this… We found property!! Yes, that is correct; we have found a piece of property for sale that would be ideal for our church. The lot is 10,763 square feet (about ¼ acre) with a house large enough that we could initially use for the church, and then expand it later. So, we could basically move right in, making modifications as we go. It is in a very accessible location by bus or car. They are asking $120,000, which is about $96,000 more than we have right now. Please pray for the Lord to provide the remaining funds.
Click here to view “Investment in Eternity” video
If you have questions about the land fund project, you can read more details here. If the Lord would have you to give toward this need, you can send a check to Baptist World Mission marked “Greenwood Church Land Fund.” If you would like to give a smaller amount each month instead of a one-time gift, Baptist World Mission has simplified that process with automated giving: http://baptistworldmission.org/automated-giving.html.
Stateside: We wrapped up a short furlough in February with basically a zero net support gain, maintaining approximately a 91% support average. We held 23 meetings in those 20 weeks, 4 of which were for new support.
Evangelism: We held special evangelistic meetings throughout the year for the church’s one year anniversary, a sacred music concert, monthly ladies’ meetings, monthly youth meetings, and our first missions conference. For evangelism training, we taught the Netcasters course on Wednesday nights. Several folks have made salvation decisions in these meetings and on visitation. Everyone who shows interest receives follow-up by either the pastor or a church member, but only a handful have shown lasting fruit so far.
Discipleship: Our discipleship program continues to be the church’s primary strength. We held two semesters of Sunday discipleship and Saturday youth discipleship as well as 10 weeks of one-on-one with various new believers. The church body has faced several difficulties from within and without. Praise God for wisdom and patience in dealing with these situations.
Training Nationals: There are three men in James’ Thursday night deacons’ training. They have studied three leadership books and have been involved in visitation and new believers’ discipleship. The church will vote on the deacon candidates in January. We are still praying for a pastoral candidate.
Church Building: In September we began a second service to accommodate for growth. Between the two services, the church is averaging 85 in attendance. The Argentines have given almost 50% of the total $20,000 raised for the purchase of property. We continue to search for land in the city center and are also talking with the owners of our current location about the possibility of buying.
Following God’s leading, our goals for 2012 are:
· Begin Saturday morning evangelism door-to-door within a 3 mile radius of the church
· Continue small group and one-on-one discipleship
· After the deacons are voted in, continue leadership training as well as visitation times
· Continue to raise funds for the purchase of church property.
· A national pastor to take over this church plant
· Wisdom and funds to purchase church property – our rental contract expires in June!
· Spiritual growth and unity within the church body
· Spiritual and physical protection of and provision for our family
We continue to search for property, but everything we have found so far is either too small or way out of our league financially. Please keep praying for God to show us His will in this matter. To this date, the Argentine church folks have given over $9,665 which is almost 50% of the grand total of $20,520 presently on hand!!
If you have questions about this project, you can read more details here. If the Lord would have you to give toward this need, you can send a check to Baptist World Mission marked “Greenwood Church Land Fund.” If you would like to give a smaller amount each month instead of a one-time gift, Baptist World Mission has simplified that process with automated giving: http://baptistworldmission.org/automated-giving.html.
| Link to:“Investment in Eternity” video |
To this date, the Argentine church folks have given a phenomenal amount of over $8,011! A few supporting churches have already given toward this need, making a grand total of $18,865 presently in hand. We are actively searching for property in the city center. We know the Lord will provide the right property at the right time. If you have questions about this project, you can read more details here. |
| Relying on God’s provision, our goal is to raise $100,000 for the property before June 2012. Would you pray and ask God how you can be involved? If the Lord would have you to give toward this need, you can send a check to Baptist World Mission marked “Greenwood Church Land Fund.” If you would like to give a smaller amount each month instead of a one-time gift, Baptist World Mission has simplified that process with automated giving: http://baptistworldmission.org/automated-giving.html. | |
The Greenwood Family 