BIBLE SCHOOL ON GALAPAGOS ISLANDS AGRICULTURAL EDUCATION IN PERU Since 1983 Serving in over 50 countries 2nd Quarter / 2006 EDUCATION Part of the Solution
Letter from the PRESIDENT Dear Friend of Missions: Can you figure this one out? I squeezed my fat frame into one of those small chairs and desks we sat in back in elementary school. This time my feet didn t dangle and my arms didn t have any problems reaching the desk. In fact, this time my belly pressed up against the desk so hard that I could barely get my body unstuck! So I decided to stand and talk to the students. We went around the room and asked each student what they wanted to be when they grew up. One wanted to be a doctor, another an engineer, a pastor, a math teacher, an attorney. They giggled and laughed as each took their turn sharing their dreams. I was fascinated by their response. Just a few years ago many of these same children were picking through the garbage for food each day. They were dressed in rags with despair written all over their faces. Their little Nicaraguan village existence provided little hope for their future. Now they were filled with hope, dreams, vision, possibilities, laughter and life. The difference was the love of Christ that was extended to them through providing education. A little nutrition each day, a lot of prayer and Bible study, the love of Christ in their hearts and now their lives were on the positive side of the spectrum of possibilities. Each came up to me and gave me a big hug. They don t know that behind Missionary Ventures are generous sponsors like you that make it possible. They are just so grateful because they remember when they had no hope, too! After our interview, the teacher put a math problem on the board that I had no idea how to solve. One of the kids came forward to show me the solution! I may not be able to solve their 4th grade math problem, but I do know how to solve their problem of poverty and despair. Hope this magazine helps you to figure it out as well. Thanks for your partnership in the gospel. It is working. Steven G. Beam President, MVI 2
Missionary Ventures International P.O. Box 593550 Orlando, FL 32859-3550 (407) 859-7322 / (407) 856-7934 F info@mvi.org President: Steven G. Beam Vice-President at Large: Luther Meier (44) 1253-727927 / lsmeier@mvi.org Missionary Ventures Australia 107 Koonung Road North Blackburn Australia 3130 (03) 9877-9500 / (03) 9877-9488 F info@mvaustralia.org ABN 59 457 658 962 Director: Phil Plowman Missionary Ventures Canada 336 Speedvale Avenue West Guelph, Ontario Canada N1H 7M7 (519) 824-9380 / (519) 824-9452 F mvcanada@mvcanada.org Director: John Verdone Missionary Ventures Latin America JBC SJO #16105 P.O. Box 28508 Miami, FL 33102 (Costa Rica) (506)268-6919 sondra@mvlatinamerica.org Director: Sondra Livermore Missionary Ventures Great Britain Suite 3 Champness Hall Drake Street, Rochdale England OL16 1PB 44(1706)639333 / 44(1706)642333 F info@mvgb.org.uk Directors: Rob & Erika Carter Missionary Ventures South Africa P.O. Box 10093 The Falls, Benoni 1522 SA (011) 425-4378 / (011) 425-3556 F info@mvrsa.org Director: Coralie Roets Missionary Ventures USA 5528 Commerce Drive Orlando, FL 32839 (407) 859-7322 / (407) 856-7934 F info@mvusa.org Director: Glen Dubois www.mvi.org Galapagos Islands By Pastor Bob Stegemann, MVI Bible College Instructor In 1835, Charles Darwin arrived in the Galapagos Islands, 600 miles off the coast of Ecuador. From his visit there, he returned to his native country of England to write his book in 1859, The Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection. Through this and his many other writings, Charles Darwin influenced millions away from the truth of God s Word to believe in a theory. While in undergraduate studies, I too was an avid follower of Darwin. I was looking for answers to life and for truth. It wasn t until the Lord Jesus found this poor lost man that my search of truth was discovered. It was not in a theory, or in a religion or in a science that forever changed me, but in the person of Christ Jesus. He alone is the truth. Three years ago my wife Avis came into my office at church and said that the Lord had placed the Galapagos Islands on her heart. My comment was there is nothing on the islands but tortoises, iguanas, penguins, birds and rocks. I was not interested in going there, but I said we would pray about it. She did some exploring on the web and could find nothing about any Christian churches on the Galapagos Islands, only tortoises, iguanas, penguins, birds and rocks. I told you so! Two years later, we are now serving full-time as Bible teachers with MVI and on our way to teach in the Bible college in Ecuador. This is one of the two-year training centers started by our dear MVI friend, Dick Christensen. While there, Avis noticed a sign in a travel agency window advertising a trip to the Galapagos Islands. She nudged me, and I got the message. On our next trip to Ecuador, we found ourselves on the Galapagos Islands. Yes, there are many species of animals, unlike anywhere else, but there are also 28,000 people on the islands with only three known evangelical churches. We were praying and remaining open to pioneer a Bible college on the islands if this was His plan. We met with Pastor Carlos Liberio for the first time in Quito. Our good friends, Don and Mary Wolfram, MVI Field Coordinators in Ecuador, were there to help us. Don translated and we formed a relationship with Pastor Carlos who pastors Hosanna Fellowship, a great church on Santa Cruz, Galapagos. He was so excited that we were willing to come and start a college there. There is a real heart to plant other churches and to send missionaries out to the other islands. They just need the training which we can provide through MVI. The first classes began in May 2006. When I stood and looked out across the Pacific Ocean and noticed the Darwin Center across the inlet, it blessed my heart to know right in Darwin s front yard we could proclaim the truth of God s Holy Word! If you are interested in knowing more about the work in the Galapagos, please contact us at revs777@peoplepc.com. Bob Stegemann in front of the Charles Darwin Research Station on the Galapagos Islands. 3
TRANSFORMING A NATION Missionary Ventures has taken on the challenge of improving the level and opportunity for education in this country and to do it based upon the principles of God through integral Christian education. Students at Monte Hermon Christian School located just outside Managua, Nicaragua. By Eric & Marilyn Loftsgard, Field Coordinators in Nicaragua Nicaragua, a country with about 2.5 million children between the ages of four and seventeen. About one million of those kids are not in school. Nicaragua is a country with a history of literature and poetry, yet the majority of the 1.5 million children in school don't make it past the fourth grade. Nicaragua, a country of so many contrasts: of rich and poor and of privileged and powerless. Only 1% of the graduates who took the entrance exam into college passed this year. Not only are physical buildings needed for all those children who are not in school, we need to improve what is happening within the schools! There are approximately 40,000 teachers in Nicaragua - 18,000 of those are empirical - they have not had any training to become a teacher. This is where God has planted us and shown us, as well as many Nicaraguan pastors, the tremendous opportunity we have to change lives through Christian education and ultimately to transform a nation for Him. Missionary Ventures has taken on the challenge of improving the level and opportunity for education in this country and to do it based upon the principles of God through integral Christian education. We are very excited about what God is doing and that we have been given the privilege to support what is happening inside the classroom. Here are some of the highlights of what MVI is doing in conjunction with the Nehemiah Center (a collaborative ministry located in Managua where many missions organizations are working together to train and empower Nicaraguans to transform their nation). 4
Hosting monthly seminars to teach Christian teachers and administrators. Currently about seventy-five teachers faithfully gather to spend a morning each month in continuing education. Sponsoring and expanding the school improvement program (pre-accreditation process). Twenty schools have now completed this program with its emphasis on self-evaluation and goal setting. Daniel Aragon of Monte Hermon Christian School (and director of the Christian Education division of the Nehemiah Center) heads this program. Another twenty schools began this program in January. Organizing a committee of degreed Christian teachers to develop a Spanish Christian curriculum that will be approved by the Nicaraguan Department of Education, using common textbooks currently available to all the schools but incorporating Christian values and worldview throughout. Collaborating with a local Christian university to develop a two-tiered Christian education degree program. Future teachers will be able to earn a two-year Associates Degree in Education that will transfer towards a four-year Bachelors Degree in Christian Education. Nothing like this exists in Nicaragua. Facilitating a Master's Degree program in Christian Education and sponsoring twenty Christian Nicaraguan educators with scholarships to participate. We pray these trained educators will in turn teach in the bachelors program mentioned above. Supporting and growing ACECEN (Association of Nicaraguan Christian Schools). Over fifty schools are now members. Continuing to add and improve libraries. Most of the schools don't have any sort of library. Until MVI was able to purchase them, the schools we worked with didn't have a globe or a dictionary - just one set of governmentissued textbooks for each teacher (none for the children). We hope to facilitate the compilation of a master list of Spanish books that would make up a library and work toward filling it and training the schools on its use. Continuing to add and set up computer labs. establishing and equipping science labs. This is not a short list or a complete one! There is much to do, and we are excited with the team God has put together. We are not the only ones with this passion and are so thankful for the Nehemiah Center and the missionaries collaborating together to further Christian Education and Development in Nicaragua for His Glory and by His Grace. Students at Faro de Luz (Lighthouse) Christian School located in Los Brasiles. Daniel and Darling Aragon, founders of Monte Hermon Christian School, head of the Christian Education Division of the Nehemiah Center, and participants in the Master's Program in Christian Education. 5
Chayahuita women in full native dress with Susan Holowecky, MVI Field Coordinator in Peru. Transforming Tribes in the Amazon By Susan Holowecky, Field Coordinator in Peru The Chayahuita native tribe lives in Alto Amazonas, the third poorest province in all of Peru. It s one of the poorest because the growing population can no longer be sustained by their traditional practices of fishing, hunting, and gathering. The game has been driven back into the dense jungle, and destructive fishing practices have decimated the fish supply. The tribe now largely subsists on an alcoholic yucca beverage, thinking that because it fills their stomachs, it meets their dietary needs. The poverty, illiteracy, and superstition have combined to cause an early death rate, high infant mortality, and malnutrition rates in the children of up to eighty percent of the population. To help these precious children, approximately five years ago we opened a feeding center in one of the villages and began to see marked improvements in the children. Malnourishment levels dropped from about seventy-eight percent to thirty percent. Although we were happy to see these results, it was only one village, and good as they are, feeding programs do not provide the long-term answer. In response, we began an agricultural development project and eventually purchased a model farm. Today, we teach young Chayahuita boys modern farming techniques and have small animal husbandry projects they can take back to their villages. We find that the youth are most flexible and open to change. Through written classes and hands-on training, they are learning what constitutes a nutritious diet and how to grow or raise what is necessary to provide it. Most important of all, we are discipling them in the Word of God and giving them vision for the future. Consider helping us by supporting and praying for this ministry as we strive to help an impoverished people group - who were created in God's image - grow into all that He has for them. 6
Short-term team member Ann Hatley, veterinarian, gives a class on animal parasites to native students. Part of our program includes teaching practical skills such as milking cows. Education is vital in transforming villages into healthy, vibrant and developing communities. It brings hope and breaks the cycle of poverty and despair for not only the families we are reaching but their future generations. Know that your sponsorship for education, whether it be for Christian elementary and high schools, agricultural education or Bible schools, makes a big difference in the lives of whole communities and impacts their nation politically, physically and spiritually. Contact MVI to find out how you can become an education sponsor. [info@mvi.org or 407-859-7322] 7
Graduation day in Pskov, Russia. Starting the school day in Volgograd, Russia. N e w L i f e Bible Colleges By Norm & Connie Flagg, Field Coordinators in Russia All of the Christian world rejoiced in 1990 Pastor Igor Inkin, Light of Awakening as Communism fell, Church in Barnaul, Russia and the doors to eastern Europe opened. The great focal point was Russia. It seemed every church, denomination, and missionary group went to Russia to hold evangelistic crusades. And we rejoiced in the glorious reports thousands saved, even hundreds of thousand saved! But evangelists go home. Now who shepherds the people? Some pastors sprang up. Men whose fathers and grandfathers had led the underground church during the Communist years and many of the new believers felt God s call on their lives, but had no idea of how or where to begin. Into this picture came Luther and Sandy Meier (MVI Vice-President at Large) sent by God to oversee some of the new Russian churches - among them Emmanuel Church in Pskov pastored by Nikolai Zalutsky. Seeing the great need for training, and with the help of Missionary Ventures, a group of interested people visited Pskov in July of 1994. There was discussion of a two or three year seminary, but it became clear that what was needed was an intensive, one-year, Word oriented, purposeful and practical curriculum. One that would include actual ministry practice as well as more than five hundred classroom hours. Thus New Life Bible College in Pskov was born in September 1994 under the direction of Norman and Connie Flagg. This train- 8
ing center continues to operate under local leadership and has graduated more than 350 qualified leaders in the past twelve years. In 2002 New Life Bible College in Volgograd began in cooperation with Grace of Jesus Christ Church with Pastor Alexey Rudenky. This college continues preparing leaders - now more than one hundred since Spring 2006. Preparations are currently in progress for a third college in Barnaul, Altay Territory, Siberia. The growing church in this city has a vision for planting sixty new churches and thus a great need for trained leaders. Please, pray as we seek to send out more trained pastors across Russia and Asia. Tenth anniversary celebration for the Bible school in Pskov, Russia. Electrifying Kingdom Building Investments By Bo Cooksey, MVI Resources Director Mark Mazur knows the value of education and training. The son of a retired college professor, he is the leader of the largest union electrical contracting company in Tampa Bay, FL. The term electrical contracting conjures up the critical need for intensive education and training. Needless to say, Mark makes sure his company invests heavily in education and training to insure his employees' safety and his company s competitive advantage. Mark has made another type of investment in education. If you ve never visited a Christian school in a Central American country, you ve missed an eye-opener. Air conditioning is non-existent, and safe, reliable electrical wiring and lighting are often luxuries. Mark recently organized a short-term team trip of business associates and friends to spend a week with Jim and Nancy Coons, MVI Field Coordinators in Belize. The team s primary purpose was to make electrical improvements and repairs to Christian schools partnering with MVI in Belize. Mark s investment is paying off. Hundreds of children and their teachers in some Christian schools in Belize now have reliable, bright, safe lighting as a result of the team s efforts. Mark is also making a difference in MVI s ability to invest in soul-reaching endeavors such as feeding centers, child sponsorships and Native American youth outreach, to name a few. Mark is organizing MVI s second annual Benefit Golf Tournament scheduled in Tampa, FL for October 16. If you have an interest in being a sponsor or participant in this fun and worthwhile event, be sure to contact me at 407-859-7322 or bcooksey@mvi.org. Help electrify the kingdom through your investment. If the opportunity presents itself for you to participate in a missions trip, don t miss it. The experience that MVI allowed me to have gave me a great education about other people, other cultures and myself. Our experience in Belize and what I learned from the other team members and MVI Field Coordinators makes me want to be a better person. I am looking forward to my next missions trip! Mark Mazur 9
We have seen how a Christcentered education not only equips children with a means to better their circumstances, but more importantly, it provides the children real hope and purpose by knowing Jesus Christ as their Savior. BUILDING SCHOOLS BUILDING LIVES By Becky Ramirez, MVI Donor It s the sparkle in the students eyes the smiles on their faces not to mention the pride and joy apparent in an entire community that comprise some of the reasons we appreciate the opportunity to be involved in the building of Christian schools in Central America. For many years, my husband Gus and I have had a strong interest in quality education and a love for Jesus Christ. However, the impact of combining the two has been an incredible experience inspiring us to "continue forth" to share this joy with others and instill a desire in others to support and witness the love of Jesus Christ at work in Christian communities. Natural disasters and corrupt governments have often left Central American countries in a state of poverty and oppression. Governments have only dedicated a minimal amount of their national budgets to education, and shortages and deficiencies of every sort personnel, teaching materials, texts, and infrastructure abound. Often there are no desks in the public schools, and frequently, due to lack of pay, the teachers don t even show up! In order to accommodate the number of children, many schools run two shifts. Functional libraries don t usually exist, and computer and science labs are virtually non-existent. Most schools have no dictionaries or globes, and only a set of government-issued textbooks for each teacher are provided (none for the children). In many instances, outhouses are the norm, and they often only have means of providing minimal hygiene. 10
Gus Ramirez at a school opening in Guatemala. Such are the circumstances we have witnessed during many of our visits to schools in Central America. However, with MVI s help, we have been privileged to work with Christ-centered leaders, helping to financially leverage the indigenous community s sweat equity to help acquire land, build classrooms, develop curriculum and support the training of Christian educators who can be "agents of transformation". We have seen how a Christ-centered education not only equips children with a means to better their circumstances, but more importantly, provides the children real hope and purpose by knowing Jesus Christ as their Savior. Probably our greatest joy in this endeavor has been the fellowship we have experienced and the blessings we have obtained by partnering with MVI Field Coordinators, MVI Staff, and Christians in the various communities who have exemplified true servant hearts. We are thankful for the opportunities to meet these Christian brothers and sisters and see and experience God s work being accomplished through our joint efforts. It is our hope that in the process of helping to build a large number of Christian schools in Central America, a critical mass of educated Christians will become a formidable economic, moral, and even more importantly, a Spiritfilled force in Central America that can spread the Gospel and provide Christian leadership these countries so desperately need. We are thankful for the opportunities to meet these Christian brothers and sisters and see and experience God s work being accomplished through our joint efforts. Back row (L to R): Gus Ramirez, Vince Martin, Steve Beam, Jim Knight and Becky Ramirez along with teachers and students in Nicaragua. 11
Train a child in the ways of the Lord and when he grows up, he will not depart from it. Proverbs 22:6 The words "instruct and train" are synonymous with "educate". To educate implies to transform, to change, but when this transformation is accompanied by God's word, it is more effective and far-reaching (transcendental). To educate in the fear and love of God is to properly equip each student to develop effectively. Lack of education stunts the social, economic and political growth of a person. Without education there can be no progress, no development. We should note that developed countries are those that have invested in education. We have been investing in education in different towns throughout Guatemala for twenty-two years. Today we can see the impact of our work in the lives of the people who have been educated in Missionary Ventures schools. They aspire to better jobs and have more opportunities. The most notable testament is that 7,000 children have come to know the Lord Jesus Christ as their personal Savior in these schools. Missionary Ventures investment has an incredible impact in these peoples' lives. Thank you for investing in education! Gilberto and Ruth Noriega, Field Associates in Guatemala P.O. Box 593550 Orlando, FL 32859-3550 ADDRESS SERVICE REQUESTED Non-Profit Organization U.S. POSTAGE PAID Orlando, FL Permit No. 1979