Nathan and I have been
married for 20 years, and by
meeting him I was introduced
to one of the most beautiful
American traditions:
Thanksgiving.
Being a missionary family in
Venezuela, Thanksgiving has
very little to do with food (some
ingredients are impossible to
find), nor is it accompanied by
the autumn colors or the
pumpkin-style atmosphere.
(Venezuela has a summer
climate all year round with
rainy weather in some months.)
And Thanksgiving was
definitely not associated with
Black Friday (in an economy of
socialist revolution that has
experienced terrible
hyperinflation).
Celebrating Thanksgiving
allows us to gather as a family
and eat with gratitude what
God has provided (at times the
provision arrived in a box that
was sent out of love months in
advance). But the most special
thing always was sitting in the
living room of my in-laws'
house to sing and bear witness
to the goodness of God in the
moments of the year when we
saw His hands of protection--in
the moments when we did not
understand the reason for the
situation, but we chose to trust
in the promises of God.
Thanksgiving was also a time to
recognize how God had used
others to build our lives and
strengthen our faith.
There are so many reasons we
can and should give thanks.
After having traveled for eight
weeks to visit churches to
present the ministry in
Venezuela for the first time and
visiting churches that for years
have been our companions in
prayer, we are so grateful for
generous supporters in our time
of needs. We are also grateful
for all of our friends who
regularly write us, call us, and
affirm that everything we do
from the heart for the Lord’s
work is not in vain.
We want to invite you to watch
the video report of the year
2023, with which we want to
thank God for the work that He
has been doing in the souls in
Venezuela. We hope you will
praise God for how He has
worked in the hearts of pastors,
leaders, and servants who are
consecrated to a life of
sacrificial service. And we are
especially grateful for what God
is doing in our family by giving
us, by His grace, the privilege
of seeing our children use their
gifts, talents, and willing hearts
to love God and love others
until the end of our lives, in a
nation in which there is still so
much need for the gospel and
the freedom that only Christ
can give.
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