Wednesday, March 20, 2013

Update 2013

I know! I know! I am really terrible at updating my blog!! However I can promise that exciting things are happening and even greater things are coming!! Please forgive me for my lack of blogging and add me on Facebook to see more updates!  You can also e-mail at diaz.leah@gmail.com with any questions or just to keep in touch! I love hearing from each of you personally! This month I will be announcing a new ministry starting here in Cuenca!! God has placed a huge burden on my heart and the details are coming together! I ask for your prayers as everything comes together. I also ask that you consider partnering with me financially. As I approach the 2 year mark out of the country, I am working on raising my budget a bit so I can extend my work here in ecuador. If interested in making a one time donation or becoming a monthly sponsor, please click HERE.

Thank you for your love, prayers, and support. I am beyond grateful for each of you! So, until I can announce the ministry God has placed in my heart, please read Unsion Ministries latest newsletter below!! What an awesome month we have had!! Also e-mail me if you would like to be a part of Unsion's mailing list!! What a privilege it is to serve such a great ministry!

 At the end of February, a medical team from the United States accompanied us on a seven-hour trek on horseback into the Cajas villages of the Andes mountains to visit a small community called Patul.  This journey was most interesting and physically challenging (even for those of us who managed not to fall off our horses!)  Yet the response we received from the villagers more than made up for the arduous travel we endured along the way.  

During the few hours we spent in this rural, mountainous village, we had the opportunity to provide basic community health - corrective lenses, health and dietary information, hand-washing and water-purifying techniques, and basic
Patul
Enjoying some time with the people of Patul
first-aid - to a community with little-to-no access to healthcare.  As we tended to their physical needs the best we could with the little resources we had, we were able to share the Gospel with them as well.  The people received the good news of Christ with great joy, and they asked us to come back as soon as possible!  We look forward to returning at the end of this month to celebrate the very first Christian service in the village of Patul!  We have prayed tirelessly for opportunities to share the Gospel with the many communities outside of Cuenca, and God is faithfully opening the doors for us.  In addition to celebrations and discipleship training, we will continue to provide medical attention and counseling to the people of Patul.

We look forward to discipling this community and training them to be "fishers of men" for their friends and families in surrounding communities.  I am still amazed to watch God at work as individuals find a relationship with Him through His word and as the Holy Spirit empowers them to be disciples and disciple-makers.  I realize now more than ever that we are merely instruments of His grace, love, and power.  

To update you on our ministry in Cuenca, hundreds of individuals are contacting UnsiĆ³n's counseling center, Un Buen Consejo, every month.  The testimonies we receive each week are a constant source of encouragement.  One young lady by the name of Lucia recently wrote to us, saying, "I have come to understand what God's word is saying, and because of this I am seeing so many changes in my life. Thank you for bringing us the word of God!" We are humbled by such testimonies!! 

Blessings,
Bill McDonald and Unsion Team


Patul2
A glimpse of our ride into Patul
Patul3
Our new friend in Patul, excited for his new glasses and improved eyesigh