Dear Friends and Family,
First off, I just want to thank you for keeping us in your prayers. Things are still discouraging here with covid and it doesn’t look like they’ll be improving any time soon. Please continue to pray not only for us, but also for the whole country, especially those who are sick, have lost a loved one, or are now unemployed due to the pandemic. That includes pretty much everyone. This is the sort of situation that truly only the Lord can change and redeem.
June was a pretty all-over-the-place month: between starting phase 1 then getting shut down again and back to phase 0; the potential of churches and social events being opened and allowed again to suddenly once again being prohibited; La Venta being still free of coronavirus in the beginning of the month to then by the end of it, having multiple cases. It’s sad to see the way the fear of the virus dehumanizes us-- we no longer see our neighbors as people but rather as potential threats that we ought to avoid. Even among friends and family, people prefer to stay separated and not take off the mask and definitely not forget to always have hand sanitizer at the ready. It’s heartbreaking to see the way that the enemy has accomplished his intention of dividing and isolating and using fear to cripple us. But these are things we want to break. We believe that right now, more than ever, the church needs to come together. And I’m not referring to a church denomination or building, but rather the body of Christ. There is so much darkness and fear and lies and so little hope right now in the world, we as believers have so much opportunity to be lights and share joy and hope and truth. So that’s what this month has been about: developing an intentional plan of how to really be the hands and feet of Christ in the middle of this crisis. So what we’ve started doing is to have small Bible studies and worship nights, small enough that those who participate still feel safe. And it’s been powerful. We only just started, but it’s already been such an encouragement for us and there has been such positive response, now so many people are wanting to open their homes to host small gatherings. In this way-- doing small, intimate get-togethers in different areas around the community-- our hope is to reach the whole village. Please be praying that God would continue to open doors and prepare hearts as we pursue this.
One of the highlights in June was being able to, through FSI, help to provide for the needs of a few of the families with babies here in the village. There are quite a few mothers who are unable to breastfeed due to babies with sensitive digestive systems, so we had the joy of being able to get supplements for the babies we knew about and we are currently trying to see if there are other mothers who also need that help.
Thank you all for the support, both financial and through prayer. May the Lord show each of you His favor and loving kindness even in the midst of this storm. Blessings!
Mario and Katie Velasquez
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