Newsletter Archive

Borthwick Colombia Report
December 2002

We realize that December is a time when you can be deluged with end-of-year
newsletters and emails, but because we solicited specific prayer for Paul's
December 2-7 trip to Colombia, we wanted to report back on answers to
prayer.  (For those readers who also attend Grace Chapel, you may hear
references to this trip in Pastor Bryan Wilkerson's Christmas sermon on
December 22.)

TEN HIGHLIGHTS/ANSWERS TO PRAYER:

1) TEAMWORK.  Bryan Wilkerson, the Senior Pastor of Grace Chapel, and Paul
both thank God for physical health and the ability to minister as a team.
We spoke on facing difficult times.  Bryan covered "The Church in Difficult
Times" and Paul spoke on "The Leader in Difficult Times."

2) TRANSLATION.  We thank God for Nick Woodbury (missionary with Latin
America Mission, and Grace Chapel supported missionary) who served
excellently as our translator through an exhausting schedule.  He had to
translate not only our messages, but also our personal conversations. 

3) SAFETY.  We thank God for safety.  In a country with an estimated 3,600
kidnappings per year, this is no small answer to prayer - at least for us.
Nick Woodbury estimated that 80% of the 500+ pastors and wives who attended
had been directly affected by the violence in Colombia - in the families,
their churches, or their cities.  (Two events underscored the violence.  A
car bomb went off in Bogotá several days after we flew through there.  Even
closer -- Nick reported that on December 8th, the day after we left
Sincelejo, a bomb was set off in the Sincelejo jail in an effort to free a
guerilla leader.  The guerilla leader was killed in the escape attempt.)

4) CONNECTING.  Ubaldo Restan, the director of the Pastors Training Program
and the Colombian leader who had invited us, affirmed us for "connecting"
with the people.  The question & answer sessions showed that Nick had
translated well and that these leaders understood what we were trying to
communicate. 

5) SHOWING UP. In each question and answer session, someone would ask, "But
weren't you afraid to come to Colombia?"    Although we'd love our sermons
to be the thing these leaders remember, I think the pastors and wives were
encouraged - simply because we showed up.    Thank God for wives and
families that released us to go!

6) RECIPROCAL MINISTRY.  God encouraged us!  The inspiration of these men
and women - especially as they described what they endure in order to
preach the Gospel - really lifted our spirits.  Both Bryan and Paul agreed
that they encouraged us more than we could encourage them.  The hugging and
greetings at the conclusion of the week lasted almost as long as the final
service. 

7) WISDOM.  God gave us grace to try to respond to the burning questions of
ministry for them - questions that we had never received before.  How do
you reply to questions like: "What do you do when your life is threatened?"
or "How many times should you receive a threat on your life before you
move?" or "If a person wants to give money to the church from his profits
from growing coca (the plant from which cocaine is derived), should you
receive it?"

8) HEROES.  We got to meet with true missionary heroes like 78-year-old
Victor Landero, who has lived with Indian people in the Choco district of
Colombia since the seventies.  (Victor is the subject of David Howard's
book, THE VICTOR.)  We met Victor's son and daughter-in-law who are
carrying on the work, and we had a chance to pray with Gregorio (Victor's
brother) and Norice Landero, the founders of the Pastoral Training
Institute, just before Norice went for surgery in Bogotá.

9) RELATIONSHIP.  We thank God that together, Bryan and Paul were able
affirm the relationship of Grace Chapel to the Pastoral Training Institute,
and we laid some foundations for increased involvement in the future - both
from Grace Chapel and from Development Associates International.

10) WORSHIP.  Finally, we thank God for the experience of worshipping with
these folks.  Out of the pains and risks and violence of the places where
many of them serve comes heart-felt, yearning-for-God worship.  Bryan
observed that we were carried into the presence of God even we understood
little of the language.  We both felt that the people's worship was akin to
Paul & Silas singing for joy - in spite of the prison!

God is powerfully at work in Colombia - even to the point of using the
Christians to help negotiate the peace between warring factions.  We count
it a privilege that we could go and encourage these faithful saints.  Thank
you for going with us by your prayers!

Merry Christmas

Paul