God-Given Opportunities

As soon as we came back from the family trip to Mexico, there was a renewed closeness for our family of 9. Honestly, those first few days were extremely hard and there were many tears shed. Over these past few weeks, on our family WhatsApp chat, there have been so many discussion of how great it would have been to be quarantined together. We have dreamed what this would look like, thinking about Inti’s “payasadas” (clowning around), Nico and his very “blonde” moments, Gustavo making breakfast every morning, Erick eating all of the food, and Mayumi singing and dancing with everyone. But we definitely wouldn’t have any more food left if we had everyone here! But we can still dream!

One huge answer to prayer came from some deep conversations that we had with each of the kids, which was sharing how we want them to feel free to seek counseling as they have come from really traumatic childhood experiences. That has been one of our biggest regrets, as we only pursued counseling for one of our kids, and we want to cover any cost of it. Thankfully, Gustavo followed up on it after returning to Queretaro and found an amazing, Christian psychologist (Thank you so much, Paul, Denise, and Ryan!!!), which really are hard to find in Latin America. He was able to have his first session and he felt comfortable to share so much. She spoke truth into his life and also offered to continue to seeing him free of charge!!! God is so incredibly good! He also went back with a desire to start having daily devotionals and so we started the first week through the YouVersion app together. He has continued to be able to read and discover more over the past few weeks.

As many of you have seen in past updates, we do the training for the Briarcrest Christian School’s short-term missions trips to Ecuador (this year there were 3!). We have been involved with this since 2010, receiving their first trip to Ecuador and taking them to the jungle. Now, ten years later, we still love being able to walk alongside them, giving them insight into the reason to go on a missions trip (bring glory to God), when their mission trip begins (when they came to Christ), information on Ecuadorian culture (just because it’s different doesn’t mean it’s wrong…different is beautiful!), and a few more sessions. Sadly, the last training on debriefing after the trip was cut short by school closures and their trip to Ecuador was cancelled for the year due to border closures. We know that it was heartbreaking for the young men and women going on these trips, but it was great to see their hearts during these training sessions and see God working heavily in and through them.

In February, we were able to leave for a weekend to go to Ohio! Our nephew, Nicolás, had been born at the end of last year and we hadn’t been able to meet him. So we took advantage of President’s Day and drove 10 hours north. It was such a beautiful time to spend with Ximena’s brother and sister-in-law as well as her parents. It actually started to snow the day before we got there, so we were able to see snow and go sledding in their backyard as well. We didn’t know that a few weeks later, we wouldn’t be able to visit them in person, so it really was a perfect time in retrospect. Nico is so handsome and such a sweet baby. We miss everyone already!

In some ways, we were already thinking this update would be somewhat “boring,” as there were no major ministry events happening. Richard did not travel at the beginning of the year as he usually does, because he was deep in the throes of planning for the Orphanos Training Retreat and Missionary Kid Camp for May, which has since been postponed. In some ways, it was a blessing, as he was not stuck in a country with border closures or quarantines. For our family, this is the 22nd day of self-quarantine, as we had been following this internationally and decided to stay at home sooner, due to Ximena’s respiratory issues. We had been able to buy groceries then, although afterwards the stores were completely empty…and we do have toilet paper!!! But as a close group of friends at GBC shared their desire this past summer for us to slow down and spend family time, we are! Your prayers have been so evident and we are grateful for some rest and close time together.

Thankfully, most everything that we both do can be done from a computer! We are so blessed that our CEO allows us to work from home and so we haven't had to be at the office. Ximena has continued to process all of the online donations and having meetings with our Orphanos partners who have questions (Richard snuck the picture below at one of her late-night meetings with partners in Central Asia). Donations have definitely declined, so please pray for Ximena as she feels for each one of our partners when a donor cancels their donation. Richard has continued to have regular video calls with our missionaries, walking through each one as they experience this worldwide crisis different ways. With the retreat being postponed, it has also allowed him to work on some of the back-burner projects, like health plans, onboarding processes, and risk assessments.

We are one of those “weird families” that really likes to spend time together, sometimes a little too much. It did get a little overwhelming in the beginning when it was raining for a week straight and we couldn’t be outside at all…we started to feel cooped up. But now that the sun is shining and it’s warming up, it has been so beautiful to even be able to go for walks at lunchtime. As a couple, we have been used to working in close quarters ever since we were married, so we are used to being together 24/7. So overall, we are doing good! It is overwhelming at times, when we receive calls from friends who are losing friends from the virus. It is also difficult to know how to help and love on our neighbors, especially since we are all a little more cautious.

One really fun and sweet times a few days ago was a “Drive-by Birthday Party” that one of our friends did for their son. Ximena and the kids broke out a Happy Birthday sign, Leilani’s karaoke machine, and some music. They drove by and we were all able to sing to him and shout “Feliz Cumpleaños” from 6 feet away! You really do see how much you miss those close friendships and just being able to give hugs, but we know the time will come.

Many of you asked if we could include more prayer requests from our kids, so here we go!

· Gustavo: He works at a food market in Queretaro, so he is being worked to death right now, from super early in the morning until late at night. Please pray for health, especially as his body is worn out, and for his emotions as the physical strain always affects him.

· Mayumi: That the number of cases of Coronavirus in Guayaquil (Ecuador) will go down and that the people will understand the gravity of the situation and do their part. Adrian (her boyfriend) and Mayumi are feeling a little sick and they just want to get back to their home (about 4 hours away). Everyone is under quarantine in Guayaquil and no one can leave until the end of April.

· Inti: He has been going through a time of depression, since being back in Ecuador. His knee-jerk reaction is to push everyone away and isolate himself. We have been able to work through some of those lies going through his head. A lot of it is all the hormones as an 18-year-old as well, but pray that truth will win.

· Erick: For his grandfather, as he is stubborn and won't use a mask or gloves, although he is still healthy up to this point. Also, for his studies, as he is going to be doing online university for at least a month.

· Santi/Lani: They love each other too much! Seriously, they want to be together 24/7 and talking non-stop, which isn’t the best for our sanity sometimes. Pray that they will continue to learn how to control their emotions and attitudes, looking out for the best interest of others. Santi has some difficulty with selfishness and Lani with wanting to gain approval and praise from others.

· Richard/Ximena: Please pray that we would be more intentional with our family devotional time. Over the past few weeks, we have gotten used to praying and singing, but keeping that time short, instead of taking the time to dive into the Bible. We are both doing a lot of home projects in our spare time, which make our bodies hurt…we might still be really young, but it sure doesn’t feel like that at night! Also, that God would give us wisdom and clear words to share with those whom we talk to, being able to calm fears and share the gospel with them. We were able to have a very clear "God conversation" with a couple in Guayaquil, where the husband seemed to be a little open to Christ through the difficult financial situation they are facing. We are hoping for more conversations like that!