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Workshop in Quichua church Print E-mail
Tuesday, 30 June 2009 14:33

This past weekend, Arlene and I were privileged to do the Sunday shool workshop in a Quichua church located in the village of Paltapamba, a few kilometers from the city of Guaranda. Guaranda is about a 5 hour drive from Quito. Our invitation to this church was through the Mission to the World (MTW) team here in Ecuador with whom we have a very good relationship with. Two of their Ecuadorian workers, Segundo Andrango and Cecilia Balareso accompanied us. It was a joy to be with them and to minister to this great group of indigenous Christians.



The church building from an overlooking hill

The workshop went very well though we had to adjust ourselves somewhat in our teaching style as most of the older members are illiterate. Some even had a hard time understanding Spanish so others in the group often were explaining things to them as we taught. Because of this, we also needed to keep our teaching simple, using as many illustrations as possible so that they understand the teaching. Arlene and I were convinced during our time there that we have a lot to learn about the culture of the Quichuas, especially if we want to minister effectively to them. However those who were there said they really appreciated us coming and want us to come back at some time soon. We actually believe that our commentaries will be of much use to them as they will learn the stories of the Bible in chronological order.

The Quichuas listening intently to Arlene teaching

We were also able to have opportunities to socialize with them as we had several meals with them, moments of free time and Arlene even went into the kitchen to help the ladies with the dishes!! Erin came with us and enjoyed playing with the children and making new friends.



Enjoying a delicious meal together!

Erin and her new friends!

Hats in the window sill

One of the lovely things to see was that the men and women removed their traditional hats during the workshops and put them in the window sills of the church. I thought it made an interesting picture also.

These are the women who helped clean up the dishes and the kitchen after the meal. Celcilia, the Ecuadorian MTW missionary who came with us is in the back, standing on a stair.

These men are the leaders of the church. The man on the right is Segundo who is the Quichuan missionary from MTW who came with us.

Please pray for this church that has many needs. They do not have a pastor and only one elder. The other men help out with running the church. They have expressed a desire to have the MTW team do teaching on church leadership there so plans are in the making to do this. We also plan to return in a few months to do more training of Sunday school teachers and help with more organization of their Sunday school program.
 
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