Praise God!!!!

I am so thrilled to say that Camilo Gonzalez was baptized into Christ on Sunday, September 10, 2006. What a day! I know that there are many people throughout the world who are rejoicing along with the angels in heaven!! For those of you who don't know Camilo's history, Camilo used to be an aethiest. But little by little (and I MEAN little by little) he came to believe in God and accept Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior. Please say a prayer of praise to God for the way He worked in Camilo's life. Although I couldn't be in Santiago to witness his bapitism, I feel blessed to have been able to actually witness God calling out to Camilo and showing Himself to him during my time in Chile. I can honestly say that my heart is overflowing! Praise God! Enjoy the following pictures of Camilo's baptism.





A big victory for the day was the Camilo's family came to witness the baptism! Here is a picture of Camilo surrounded by his brother, mom, and dad.


Camilo hugging his dad.


Camilo hugging his mom.

New members of church family!

Ok, although I'm not in Chile anymore, the adventures there still continue! I just wanted to update you on a couple additions to the mission team.

Caleb Allan Hatcher was born February 9, 2006, but was born into the Hatcher family on August 10, 2006. Penne and Jeff Hatcher are the proud parents! The Hatchers went through a long process in order to adopt Caleb, and are so thrilled to be new parents!! Please be in prayer for Jeff and Penne!! I know God has big plans for them as a family! Below is a picture of Caleb!


Also, Sebastian Eduardo Del Rio was born on August 12, 2006. Proud parents are Jill and Eduardo Del Rio. Jill is a former member of the mission team, and although she and Eduardo are now living in the Las Vegas area, I still consider them a part of the church family in Santiago! Please remember Jill, Eduard, and Sebastian in your prayers! Below is a picture of Jill and Sebastian just after Sebastian was born!

Chau Chile!

*Ok, I started writing this on July 27th, and am just now finishing it... Sorry about the lateness! Things have been pretty busy since I've been back in the states! I hope you enjoy my final happenings from Chile!*

As I write this I am sitting in the airport waiting for my flight. I don't know how I did it.. but I managed to fit all of my stuff in 2 big suitcases and 2 carry-ons. Saying good-bye was really hard... but being that Chile is so much a part of my life now, I have a feeling I'll see everyone again. These last few weeks in Chile have been crazy and busy! I figured in this post I would just hit some highlights of my last few weeks in Chile... because if I don't do it all at once, I'm so behind that I don't think I would ever catch up!! :) So, here goes... Enjoy! I'll try to write more on my thoughts and feelings about leaving later!



Before I left Chile, I really wanted to see the second largest city in Chile, Concepcion. Unfortunately, I picked the exact wrong day to visit. I went with Lindsey and my friend Ingrid, and we ended up being stuck in a flood! We actually ended up spending the night in our car on high ground. We were very lucky that we didn't get caught in the water. And I will definitley never forget Concepcion, Chile!! For more on the floods of Concepcion, click
here.




One of the sweetest things that has ever been done for me was the surprise "Unbirthday" party some of my friends threw for me! I was in the states this year for my birthday, and so I never got to celebrate with my friends from Chile. So, my chileans friends threw me a birthday party in July and we celebrated my 26th and 27th birthdays (because I won't be in Chile for my next birthday either). It was such a sweet thing to do and I will never forget it!!




Christmas in July!
I'm happy to say we celebrated Christmas in July yet again in Chile! A great time was had by all. We ate turkey and stuffing, mashed potatoes, green beans, cranberry sauce, and even gravy! Yum! The stuffing was a big hit, as most of the Chileans had never tried it! We had over 30 people in attendance. We ate, decorated Christmas cookies, and played "White Elephant" gift exchange. A great time was had by all.. and, as it was finals time for a lot of our college students, it was a much needed break!





My last Sunday in Santiago, the church had a going-away party for Lindsey and me (Lindsey left a week after I did). After church, we all had lunch together and anyone who wanted to was given the opportunity to say their special good-byes to Lindsey and me. Also, Lindsey and I each were able to talk in front of everyone and say our good-byes and thank-you's. The highlight of the afternoon was a slideshow put together by two of my good friends, Rodrigo and Cristian Rebolledo, which highlighted special memories Lindsey and I had made in Santiago. It was a great lunch, and I am so grateful to the Providencia Congregation for making me feel so special and loved! And it also provided Lindsey and me one last opportunity to get some of our contacts to come to church! :) The event turned into a beautiful memory for me.. and I will never forget it!

Welcome to the Family Nicolas & Felipe!

Nicolas & Felipe are 2 brothers who studied the bible with John and Tyler. Their father, Nicolas, started coming to English class about a year ago, which led to him and his wife, Toyita, going to Marriage Encounter. Shortly after Marriage Encounter, Nicolas and Toyita began stuying the bible with Kelley Grant, and then their children followed their example. Nicolas Sr. has a history with the church and was baptized when he was younger, and Toyita is still thinking about being baptized. This is a beautiful family and all of them have such servant hearts! I know they will do so much for the church here. Please be praying for Nicolas and Felipe and their parents!

University Retreat!

The second weekend in June, we interns and 6 chileans headed outside of Santiago for a retreat. Although the retreat only lasted for a little more than 24 hours, it was a wonderful experience!! I truly feel that all of us who went feel closer to one another now, and that was the whole point for going! We headed out Saturday morning and started the weekend with a devotional talk on prayer given by Claudio. Then we spent time praying in partners for the weekend and for our group. In the afternoon we did some team building activities, and then listened to a talk given by one of the chuch members, Sebastian. A former drug addict, Sebastian came to talk to us about how his life was changed by Christ. It was very moving. On Sunday morning we worshipped together and Rodrigo talked to us about the importance of praising God with our church family. All in all, it was a great experience! I believe we all grew in our faith and grew in our friendship with each other. Enjoy some pictures from the retreat, and be sure to check out the other interns blogs (links on the side of the page) for even more photos!!


Rodrigo and Perla were partners for a trust activity in which one person had to guide another on a walk to the soccer fields.


Our 6 Chileans who came on the retreat (and Tyler). From left to right: Tyler (intern), Rodrigo, Perla, Claudio, Raquel, Cristian, & Camilo.


A group of us hanging out during some down time!


See how many fingers Camilo is holding up?? That's how many cinnamon rolls he ate! He's holding the empty pan.


A group shot of everyone on the retreat! And it was cold! Can you tell by our coats and hats??


Three of my favorite Chileans in the whole world: Camilo, Cristian, and Rodrigo!


A huge blessing on the retreat was the presence of Raquel! She has become such a good friend to me and it was great to have her there. Raquel recently expressed that she wanted to be a member of our church, and therefore this retreat was great to help her really become part of the group.

Chile, Chile, Lindo...

So.. what's been happening in your cities?? These pictures are just a glimpse of what went on here in Santiago for about 3 weeks. High School students all over the city went on strike, protesting the fact that the government had not kept promises to reform education. Recently the issue was more or less resolved, as the President made promises of more money for education. If you'd like to read more about the strikes here, just go to any news webpage and type in Santiago, Chile.

Inaugural Service and Voces Concert

*Sorry for the lateness of this post!!!*
The biggest thing that happened during the month of March was our Inaugural service on March 19th. It was such a special day, and the place was PACKED with visitors (Chilean and North American… we even had a friend come that we met in Peru!). Normal church attendance is usually between 100 -120, but on inauguration day we filled the building with 360 people! We had a great service, full of singing, a sermon on the good news, and even a baptism at the end!

After the service we had a reception where people could mingle and talk with visitors, and the interns were in charge of serving food and drinks (a.k.a. we were the waiters). After the reception a concert was performed by Voces (a group that sings Acappella songs, but in Spanish). The concert was a big success, as many people stayed for it. Many of the Chileans had never been exposed to Christian music, and they all really seemed to enjoy themselves.

I WOULD LIKE TO SAY A SPECIAL THANK YOU TO ALL OF YOU WHO DONATED MONEY FOR THE VOCES CONCERT! IT WAS A HUGE SUCCESS! THE FRIDAY BEFORE OUR INAUGURAL SERVICE, VOCES PERFORMED A CONCERT IN THE PLAZA IN FRONT OF OUR CHURCH, AND AS A RESULT 2 UNIVERSITY STUDENTS, PERLA AND FRANCISCO, CAME TO THE INAUGURAL SERVICE AND HAVE BEEN COMING TO CHURCH EVER SINCE! EACH OF THEM ARE NOW INVOLVED IN A BIBLE STUDY! PRAISE GOD!

All in all it was a great day for our Christian family. And, as a result of all of the visitors, several new bible studies have begun. We are truly blessed to have this new building and had so much fun celebrating that together in our inaugural service.


Voces performing for the church on Sunday afternoon


The crowd watching the concert. In the front few rows are my friends, and English students, Raquel, Carl, Ingrid, Francisca, and Matias. Also, can you spot my dad? ;)


John Mann, an intern, serving trays of food to our guests.


I met Alan (in the Voces T-shirt) during my trip to Peru, and was able to witness his baptism. He traveled all the way from Lima to be with us on our Inauguration day! He is pictured here with some boys from our University group.

Rafting!

March was a month full of visitors here in Santiago (with it being Spring Break in the U.S. and the church holding it's Inaugural Service). My parents and my friends, Kristin and Melissa, all came down to visit. You can see a few of the photos from their visits by clicking on the "My Pictures" link. Another intern here in Santiago, Lindsey Peterson, had her brother come and visit for about 3 weeks. While he was here, we traveled about 10 hours south to the city of Pucón for a weekend. If any of you come to Chile.. I definitely recommend visiting this small town! It's very touristy, but a lot of fun. And one of the most fun things we did was go rafting! I would seriously say it comes in #2 of the most fun I've had in Chile (#1 being the soccer game between Chile and Bolivia). So, here are some pics... enjoy!

Matt, Lindsey, and Me in our wetsuits, ready to raft!


In the raft.. ready to go!


So much fun!


What a ride!

A Month of Baptisms!

In the last month 5 people have put on Christ in baptism at the Iglesia de Cristo in Santiago. Needless to say it has been a great month! It all started with Jose Ramon.... Jose Ramon is a recovering drug addict who has been in contact with our church for quite a while. In January he started studying with Kelley Grant and decided he wanted to commit his life to the Lord. He was baptized at the end of February and has been on fire for God ever since! The next Sunday he brought 4 friends and his 3 children to church with him! His friend Sebastian, who came with him to church that day soon started to study the bible as well. Sebastian was so amazed but what he studied in the bible with Kelley that he started studying everyday... sometimes twice a day! As a recovering drug addict himself, Sebastian was overwhelmed by the thought of being forgiven and starting a new life with Jesus. He was so attracted to that thought.. that when he asked Kelley to baptize him, he wanted Kelley to hold him under the water for a while... so that he would really feel he was leaving his old life of sin behind and raising up to a new life... free of sin and full of God's grace! When Sebastian came out of the water he was so excited and held both arms in the air.. like he knew he had won the victory! It was a great moment.. one that I will always remember! There are just the stories of two of the baptisms that took place, but please be in prayer for all of the people that were baptized this month... Jose Ramon, Sebastian, Roberto, Carito, & Ricardo. Enjoy the pictures below.. and pictures of the inaugural service are soon to come!

Here is a picture of Jose Ramon's Baptism


Here is Roberto & Carito.. a married couple who wanted to start their new life with Christ together. They have already started working hard for the church congregation here. Roberto prepared all of the food for the inaugural service!


And here is a picture right after Sebastian was baptized. It is a moment I will never forget!!

Coca Cola Sign
Originally uploaded by JWorley28.

Here's a picture of Lindsey and I in front of a Coca Cola sign that, translated, says, "The hotter it is, the less clothes people wear." We thought it was funny. :)

Summer Fun!

Well, summer is coming to a close here in Santiago. Most of the schools start back up next week, everyone is back from vacation, and the hot weather is starting to cool off. I know most of the time I put pictures up of events, but this time I decided to just put some photos up of us having fun and enjoying the summer time!! I hope you enjoy! :)

Mendoza Gang
Originally uploaded by JWorley28.

One of the highlights of our summer was taking a trip to Mendoza, Argentina for a couple of days with some of the Univesity students. Pictured here from left to right is me, Cristian, Lindsey, and Kani.