THE BIG “CHILE MISSION MINISTRY” WHY

Thomas said to him, “Lord, we don’t know where you are going, so how can we know the way?”  Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.  –John 14: 5-6

First, some BIG GRATITUDES:

1.  Abraham’s pick-up truck is back in use after its clutch repair, making it possible to drive to Concepción (roughly one hour away) to pick up their new large 1,200 liter (almost 300 gallons) water storage tank (shown below) and the built-in oven to be installed in their kitchen.  In addition, through the truck repair they have several new relationships with neighboring people. TYL!!
2. Luís, their closest neighbor (seen eating a meal in Abraham’s & Catalina’s home), is helping Abraham clear a path large enough for a truck to gain access to the lake area for the future removal of the six telephone poles that are presently in an area designated for a future lake.  We need to augment the power and have them more centrally located.                                                                                                                   
3. We have heard back from the Chilean family interested in being part of the development of the camp property.  A missionary friend from Texas living in Chile has approached his main home church to consider supporting them, and some families are interested in doing so.  He is inviting them to visit us in Chile this October to see the camp property and also meet Juan Carlos and his family.  It’s not too early to pray about this.
4. We’ve been making good progress on readying our Indiana furlough house for sale, including arranging for the installation of a new furnace and central air, to be done in Oct. or early Nov.  TYL!!

The title of this month’s Prayer & Gratitudes letter is tied to some alarming statistics about Chileans’ religious affiliations.  We arrived in Santiago in Nov. 1993, after one year of studying Spanish in Costa Rica.  Here is what we found:

 1994   Roman Catholics made up roughly 77% of the population (13,350,000, with 5,200,000 living in Santiago).  13.5% of the population professed to be Protestants, heavily weighted amongst poor and low-income believers.  (Mormons are included as Protestant believers.)  7% of Chileans described themselves as atheists or indifferent to religion.

2006   Roman Catholics = 70% of the population (16,350,000, with roughly 6,000,000 living in Santiago).  Protestants = 14%.  Unaffiliated = 12%, with 94% of Chileans believing in the existence of God.

2019   Roman Catholics = 45% of the population (19,000,000, with roughly 6,800,000 living in Santiago).  Protestants = 18%.  Unaffiliated = 32%, with 1/3 of Chileans now doubting the existence of God.  Mormons now the 2^nd largest non-Catholic denomination.

God’s ministries through Chile Mission continue to evolve, including the development of the camp & retreat center in middle Chile.  We have always been focused on children and families and on rehabilitating of those with additions, and we also now know first-hand that camps and retreats are very effective in planting seeds and transforming lives.  Again, thank you so much for your prayers for us and for Chile Mission—they ABSOLUTELY DO make a difference!!

With regard to our Santiago mission property, we continue to pray both for Cesar’s & Camila’s transition to southern Chile at the end of September and for God’s provision of who will replace them.  In addition, we are looking to expand the use of the mission property by more Christian ministries.  We’ve been blessed to provide office space for the APEM prolife pregnancy center these past two years, and we are now in communication with a Foundation that works with autistic children and their families.  They are looking for office space and area to meet with and work with children.  We will be meeting with them in Sept. or early Oct.  Thank you for praying this possibility forward with us.

Lastly, we continue praying for the health of Chileans during this time of battling covid19.  Several main cities in the country in addition to Santiago are under total lock-down—letting each person leave their home with gov’t permission twice a week for three hours each time. Chile is third in the world in the number of cases (their population is around 60^th), after Qatar and Bahrain, with 18.5 cases per 1,000 (the USA has 14 cases per 1,000).  Some easing of the severe restrictions are now just being put in place, while other areas are becoming more restrictive.  At present, when we fly back to Chile on Sept. 4^th, we may very well be quarantined for 14 days.

Praising, praying, and fasting with you in our one and only “WAY, TRUTH, & LIFE” JESUS,

Jack & Janine