Missions Event: Sinergia 2012 in Honduras

Please pray for the following missions event in Honduras.  This is a mobilization conference that will include the south of Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador.  I am coordinating the event asisting a newly formed missionary agency.  This is the sixth annual Sinergia conference, in 2013 it will be in El Salvador (my field also!).  There will be a great emphasis on prayer during the conference by our intercessory network, Una Sola Voz. Please pray for everyone involved.  Pray that it will truly reflect the spirit of "sinergia." 

Definition: Synergy comes from the Greek word synergia, meaning joint work and cooperative action. Synergy is when the result is greater than the sum of the parts. Synergy is created when things (or people) work in concert together to create an outcome that is in some way of more value than the total of what the individual inputs is.

Isn't synergy a fabulous word!!

If you want to do synergy with us... just let me know!

@SloanGloria

Trying to stay more in touch with you...

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Una Sola Voz (One Voice)

"Fill up and complete my joy by living in harmony and being of the same mind and one in purpose, having the same love, being in full accord and of one harmonious mind and intention."  Philippians 2:2 The Amplified Bible

One of my most important roles as a mobilizer is to lead us all in intentional prayer for the nations and for those who are reaching them... 

God has led me to develop a network of missionary intercession in the countries I serve, although it is actually overflowing way beyond Honduras, El Salvador and Nicaragua!  This has been quite a journey for me. As I began to share about this vision in the churches I visited, I wasn’t sure how it would unfold.  My invitation to the Body of Christ was simply to pray together for the unreached people groups using a guide that was published by the IMB Mobilization Team, “52 Semanas de Oración por los No Alcanzados” (52 Weeks of Prayer for the Unreached).  As I shared and people responded, God began to shape this effort into what it is today and to give us the vision into what it could become in the future.  It was like building a plane in the air! (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M3hge6Bx-4w).

As I laid on my bed one night trying to sense the direction God was leading our prayer network to go, He brought to my mind Philippians 2:2, and I heard Him use Paul’s words, “I want my people to fill up and complete my joy, I want them to have one purpose, be of one spirit, have the same love, being in full accord and of one harmonious mind and intention… I am tired of hearing so many voices each one pulling in their own direction, for their own purposes… I want to hear ONLY ONE VOICE!”  God’s words to me that night would make more sense to you if you had seen the way I found the Body of Christ in these countries I serve.  There is great division and competition even within the same denominations; especially, in the area of missions.  Just yesterday I had a long conversation with the president of a Baptist group in Honduras of a little more than 500 churches.  He said, “This is my fourth and last year to have this office.  I have tried to bring us together, but I have failed.”  He was encouraged to hear about “Una Sola Voz”, and was so eager to share it with the pastors of his denomination in an upcoming national meeting.  “Maybe we will finish well after all”, he said. This intercessory effort is bringing some hope of unity among us in our region.  God knew this.  So, the goal of our network is to unify the Body of Christ in intercessory prayer for the nations.

I am so amazed at what God has done and continues to do.  I ask you to pray for us as we strive to come together to reach the nations.  Even though Una Sola Voz is only in Spanish, please check our website and think of us, www.unasolavozporlasnaciones.blogspot.com.  Maybe if you subscribe to it, even if you do not understand the words, you will be reminded to pray for us when you receive a blog in your inbox.  Our prayer guide is in Facebook (52 Semanas de Oración por los No Alcanzados) and you can follow us in Twitter:@1SolaVoz.  So, connect with us once in a while as we continually connect to the One who is Faithful and True!

His Guiding Hand

There are so many new things in my life, that my prayer has been to feel Him close leading me as I plunge into new waters.  Such has been my Lord’s faithfulness to do just that!  I cannot begin to tell you how many times He has arranged encounters and opportunities that have proven to be key in my mobilization ministry and that have given me a specific direction to follow.   Let me try to explain how I feel… It is not the feeling of following my Master, but walking side by side with my Friend.  I guess this is the aspect of Himself He knows I need during this time of transition.  I can almost feel His hand on my back as He tells me, “Let’s walk this way… now stop… go here… don’t go there… talk to this person…” I am so amazed!  I know I shouldn’t be after so many years of walking with Him, but I love the way He manages to bring awe to my life over and over again!

Through these divine appointments, totally not seeking them myself, it is that I am now the new National Mobilization Coordinator for COMIBAM Honduras, which is a well-known and respected international missions organization in Latin America.  I will serve with the Honduras chapter, but this position opens doors for me in the other countries where I have to work.  I already received an invitation to be in the El Salvador’s COMIBAM meeting in January and in May with all the chapters of Central America in Costa Rica.

Just to make sure you remember, my ministry now is the one to encourage, educate, equip and empower the Body of Christ in Honduras, El Salvador and Nicaragua to fulfill the Great Commission unto the ends of the earth.  In other words, I assist the churches in these countries in the task of sending their own missionaries to the unreached peoples of the world.  I love my job!!  Thank you all for making it possible!!

It is such a wonderful thing to experience God’s loving and firm hand as He guides your steps.  He does this not because I am a missionary (this is WHAT I do), but because I am His child (this is WHO I am).  If you are His child too, I encourage you to appreciate what He does in your life every day lovingly guiding you… Follow His lead!  If you are not sure you are a child of God, send me a note… I would love to talk to you to dissipate all doubts.

Taquile Island and the Puno Quechuas (Day Three)

I finally made it Taquile Island, home of a group of Puno Quechuas, the best weavers around!  In this island, weaving and cooking are chores for both men and women alike.  Taquile has about 2,000 people living in it.  There is one leader for every one hundred.  All of them profess a form of religion which is a mix between the Catholic church and the anismistic worship of their ancestors... they have not been presented with any other choice. 

There are several arches along the main roads of Taquile.  This is the first one.  It had taken us about three and half hours to get there by boat, and from this first arch, we had to walk for almost one hour.  The altitude and the steep hills made it a challenging hike, but it certainly was worth the effort!

This picture was taken in the main square. Even though we were able to see the outside of their Catholic/animistic temple (it had a lock and chain on the door), we were not allowed to go near their ritual sites where they practice an even more pure form of the Inca religion.  Some animal sacrifices are still performed.  They do believe that there is a higher god whom they call the Creator (Viracocha), even more powerful than Inti, the Sun god and any other gods. They just don't know yet that this Creator, left a book that is ment to show them how to have a personal relationship with Him...

The Puno Quechua carry heavy loads on their backs as they get supplies from the main land.  There are close to 500 steps in the island and many steep hills.  The physical loads are in plain sight, but their spiritual needs are as real as the loads on their backs.  The following are prayer requests for the Puno Quechua...

 

• Pray that the Puno Quechua will have the opportunity to hear the truth of the Word of God, and that they will realize that the God of the Bible is the Creator, and that they will trust and worship Him alone.
• Pray that God will burden some of His children around the world to pray for the Puno Quechua.
• Pray that God will give His children creativity and wisdom to share the Truth with the Puno Quechua in such a way that it will be received gladly.
• Pray that the eyes of the Puno Quechua will be open to the Truth, and they will be able to see the Devil's deception behind their animistic practices.
• Pray that as the Puno Quechua come to know Christ, they will use their uniqueness in culture, color, dance, music and art to express worship, thanksgiving and love to their one-and-only God, the Creator of the universe and the Savior of their souls!