September 2024
“But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear.”
1 Peter 3:15
“Although with bitter tears, The sower bears his seed, When harvest time appears, He shall be glad indeed; For they that in the sowing weep, Shall yet in joy and gladness reap.”
(From Psalm 126, The Psalter, 1912)
In response to a question about his view of the world today in regards to the next generation’s future and needs, our son Isaiah recently wrote:
The fascination with the immediate, an unthinking enamourment with the efficient at the expense of tomorrow, the surrender of everything that makes the future bright for the sake of avoiding a little inconvenience in the present is exactly the kind of easy, lazy, and utterly disastrous attitude that has landed us and our culture in the predicament we are currently in. That said, I believe there is a bright side and a purpose in everything, so rather than seeing this thoughtlessness as an impediment, I see in it an amazing opportunity – the future is always shaped and governed by those who care for it. In a world where so many ignore the future and intentionally focus on the immediate present to the complete loss of their long- sighted vision, the few who can say, I will live my life today in such a way that in two hundred years the world will be the way I wish it were today are absolutely the ones who are going to have the world their way; those who say, I will, for the sake of that world, bear what I have to bear, sacrifice what I have to sacrifice, not chase the present, immediate pleasure but believe that shortcuts are always cheats. (Which is not to say I do not believe in efficiency, but only that the kind of shortcut which is incurring a debt of future misery through present ease is the most foolish thing in the world.) And ultimately, that means that there is no way to such a future without the hard part, without the recognition that we are sinful, lost, rebellious creatures in need of a Saviour to pay the price we could never pay for our sins, a Saviour who demands that our lives, wills, and desires should be surrendered to Him and tells us to count the cost and to take up our cross and follow Him. That is the Victor’s Way, because He is the Victor.
Dear Ones,
Greetings once again in the Name of the Lord our Savior! The quote by Isaiah sums up what we desire to see in the next generation here in Chile and beyond. To that end, we invest a lot of time in the families and young people that the Lord brings our way.
Thank you all for your prayers for the men, women, and children who are faithfully attending our Mission of Grace church and for our outreach.
JULY
Anna & Sarah returned in early July with Julianna (daughter of Jessica and Elijah Medina) and with their friends Mercy & Evangeline from PA. The young people had many spiritual and edifying conversations and an intense week of English & Music classes. We praise the Lord that Reuben and his two children participated and many visitors were in attendance at the final recital. Both Mercy and Evangeline made valiant efforts to learn as much Spanish as they could while here and they were a sweet blessing to all the church.
Thank you for your prayers for our son Josiah who is currently an assistant teacher for 1st and 2nd grade at a Christian school in Santiago as he emphasizes Bible & memory work with the students. We praise the Lord for his trip to Arica to help in the Bjurs’ winter camp program July 12-20. Please pray for a new friend, José Tomás, who accompanied him and was helped in his walk with the Lord through the experience, and for the other young people who participated.
We held a Friday night Bible Study for young people in our home, which we would like to have monthly, but we have not been able to hold another yet, as Paul has been under a lot of pressure with other responsibilities. Our friends Victor & Connie, a young couple, attended, also Isadora, Dilan, and three of Josiah’s friends from the part of town where he visits when he is home, besides those from our church. Please pray with us that the Lord Jesus will bless with the salvation of souls and growth in grace using these evangelistic Bible studies with some of the young people we have come to know in Santa Clara and Bulnes. We also hope to begin membership classes and make progress from a mission work towards a constituted church. Please pray the Lord will provide the elders needed.
AUGUST
August went by in a flash with a lot of dental visits, repairs, a couple trips to the mountains, and visits from afar. The first outing was our second church snow trip to the volcano Antuco. This time we were able to get to a beautiful lake as well as enjoy an afternoon of good fun and fellowship. The second involved a visit with our new friends the Valenzuelas, giving several classes at their co-op, and our children’s first ski outing in Chile, which we shared with our hosts. Paul gave a rapid overview of the Pentateuch to the older children, and presented some quotations from “The Crisis of our Time” by John Robbins in a brief consideration of Irrationalism contrasted with Scriptural Absolutism, while Anna, Sarah and Isaiah gave the younger children some lessons in Literature, Art and Logic.
Paul has been preaching through the early chapters of Genesis and Romans now, going over the third commandment with the children in the afternoon Bible class and through the Psalms on Wed. evenings. We have also had Jocelyn over again, and were recently able to host Reuben and his family for an evening meal. Please pray for them. In September now, our friend Ismael is
teaching 10 of our excited young people how to weld! Please pray for their safety, and for Ismael & his family.
PLEASE ALSO PRAY FOR:
• Joaquín and his work (currently working for the municipality), as the door did not open up for him for the audio/visual internship in SC that seemed like it could be a good opportunity for him to develop his abilities in that area of special interest to him. Please pray that the Lord would lead, guide and provide for him with respect to the next steps he should take now that he finished high school at the end of last year.
• our health (Paul & Cheryl) “. . . God is the strength of my heart, and my portion for ever” Psalm 73:26
• the young people we know in the area and possible future Bible studies with them
• a place to store twenty long pews that are being given to us, and a larger meeting place
• the accomplishment of maintenance, repairs and finishing work needed for our home and property
• unity, spiritual growth in the church and grace for current transitions
• two families that have expressed some interest in possibly moving into the area
• the Lord’s provision of godly, well-qualified elders for the future
• a good deep well, a good company to drill it, and from which to purchase the needed equipment; and good electrical help to set up our generator so that we may make use of it when needed.
• Elías and the Medina family; Janet & her family; Rosita’s health & our neighbors; good work provisions for the men of our church; Cheryl & Paul’s extended family in the U.S. and Colombia
• Julio’s further ministerial preparation, for his parents & sister Johanna, Doña Estrella (their believing neighbor), and his aunt Nancy (needs another knee operation)
As always, thank you very much for your prayers and support!
Joyfully,
Paul and Cheryl Durand and family
P.S. The Durands’ children Isaiah, Josiah, Anna and Sarah would like to help with two VBS programs in Guatemala in early December. Their assistance would be a blessing to fellow missionary Hal Ricker and family. Remember, Isaiah and Josiah did this last year. If you would like to donate toward their expenses, please indicate such on your gift to the IBPFM. In particular, Anna would not be able to go without support. Thank you.