LATTE – Taking Seminary Training Across Borders

Nate and I have been tweaking our mission presentation: LATTE-Taking Seminary Training Across Borders for the past two weeks. We are endlessly thankful for the technology to be able to communicate and collaborate our efforts while we are currently in separate countries. We are organizing our content into several presentations to tailor them for each of our different audiences-elementary students, high school students, congregation members, ladies’ groups, men’s groups, and retirees.

If you happen to be in Arizona this month, or planning to attend the LWMS Convention in North Carolina in June, we would love to meet you and share the details about our life and ministry in Latin America in person!

MAY TOUR SCHEDULE – ARIZONA

Sunday, 5/13
9:30 AM WORSHIP SERVICE @ SHEPHERD OF THE VALLEY LUTHERAN CHURCH-SURPRISE, AZ
10:45 AM PRESENTATION @ SHEPHERD OF THE VALLEY LUTHERAN CHURCH-SURPRISE, AZ

Monday, 5/14
2:30 PM PRESENTATION @ PILGRIM LUTHERAN SCHOOL-MESA, AZ

Tuesday, 5/15
9:30 AM CHAPEL & PRESENTATION @ ARIZONA LUTHERAN ACADEMY-PHOENIX, AZ

Wednesday, 5/16
8:30 AM CHAPEL & PRESENTATION @ CROSS OF GLORY LUTHERAN SCHOOL-PEORIA, AZ

Thursday, 5/17
6:00 AM PRESENTATION @ EMMANUEL LUTHERAN CHURCH-TEMPE, AZ

Friday, 5/18
8:30 AM CHAPEL & PRESENTATION @ EMMANUEL LUTHERAN SCHOOL-TEMPE, AZ

Saturday, 5/19
5:00 PM POTLUCK & PRESENTATION @ ARIZONA LUTHERAN RETIREMENT CENTER-PHOENIX, AZ

Sunday, 5/20
8:00 AM WORSHIP SERVICE @ GRACE LUTHERAN CHURCH-GLENDALE, AZ
9:15 AM PRESENTATION @ GRACE LUTHERAN CHURCH-GLENDALE, AZ
10:30 AM WORSHIP SERVICE @ GRACE LUTHERAN CHURCH-GLENDALE, AZ
3:00 PM POTLUCK & PRESENTATION @ CALVARY LUTHERAN CHURCH-CHANDLER, AZ

Monday, 5/21
9:00 AM CHAPEL & PRESENTATION @ GRACE LUTHERAN SCHOOL-GLENDALE, AZ
6:30 PM WORSHIP SERVICE @ EMMANUEL LUTHERAN CHURCH-TEMPE, AZ
7:45 PM PRESENTATION @ EMMANUEL LUTHERAN CHURCH-TEMPE, AZ

Wednesday, 5/23
AM PRESENTATION @ EAST FORK LUTHERAN SCHOOL-WHITERIVER, AZ
5:30 PM POTLUCK & PRESENTATION @ OPEN BIBLE LUTHERAN CHURCH-WHITERIVER, AZ

Thursday, 5/24
TBD ACTS STUDENTS-WHITERIVER, AZ

Sunday, 5/27
11:00 AM WORSHIP SERVICE @ SANTO TOMÁS LUTHERAN CHURCH-PHOENIX, AZ
12:30 PM PRESENTATION @ SANTO TOMÁS LUTHERAN CHURCH-PHOENIX, AZ

JUNE TOUR SCHEDULE – NORTH CAROLINA

Saturday, 6/23
2:45 PM PRESENTATION @ LWMS CONVENTION-WINSTON-SALEM, NC

We hope to see you soon! 

 

Pascua de la Resurreccion

Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the entrance. So she came running to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one Jesus loved, and said, “They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we don’t know where they have put him!”

So Peter and the other disciple started for the tomb. Both were running, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. He bent over and looked in at the strips of linen lying there but did not go in.  Then Simon Peter, who was behind him, arrived and went into the tomb. He saw the strips of linen lying there,  as well as the burial cloth that had been around Jesus’ head. The cloth was folded up by itself, separate from the linen. Finally the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went inside. He saw and believed. (They still did not understand from Scripture that Jesus had to rise from the dead.)

Then the disciples went back to their homes, but Mary stood outside the tomb crying. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb and saw two angels in white, seated where Jesus’ body had been, one at the head and the other at the foot. They asked her, “Woman, why are you crying?”  “They have taken my Lord away,” she said, “and I don’t know where they have put him.” At this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not realize that it was Jesus. “Woman,” he said, “why are you crying? Who is it you are looking for? Thinking he was the gardener, she said, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will get him.”

Jesus said to her, “Mary.” She turned toward him and cried out in Aramaic, “Rabboni!” (which means Teacher). Jesus said, “Do not hold on to me, for I have not yet returned to the Father. Go instead to my brothers and tell them, ‘I am returning to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’”

Mary Magdalene went to the disciples with the news: “I have seen the Lord!” And she told them that he had said these things to her.

On the evening of that first day of the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!” After he said this, he showed them his hands and side. The disciples were overjoyed when they saw the Lord.

 Again Jesus said, “Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.” And with that he breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive anyone his sins, they are forgiven; if you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven.”

Now Thomas (called Didymus), one of the Twelve, was not with the disciples when Jesus came. So the other disciples told him, “We have seen the Lord!” But he said to them, “Unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe it.”

 A week later his disciples were in the house again, and Thomas was with them. Though the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!” Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe.”

 Thomas said to him, “My Lord and my God!” Then Jesus told him, “Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”

Jesus did many other miraculous signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in this book. But these are written that you maybelieve that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.  — John 20

 

Viernes Santo

The Death of Jesus (Matthew 27:45-66)

45 From the sixth hour until the ninth hour darkness came over all the land.

46 About the ninth hour Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?”–which means, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”

47 When some of those standing there heard this, they said, “He’s calling Elijah.” 48 Immediately one of them ran and got a sponge. He filled it with wine vinegar, put it on a stick, and offered it to Jesus to drink. 49 The rest said, “Now leave him alone. Let’s see if Elijah comes to save him.”

50 And when Jesus had cried out again in a loud voice, he gave up his spirit.  51 At that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. The earth shook and the rocks split. 52 The tombs broke open and the bodies of many holy people who had died were raised to life. 53 They came out of the tombs, and after Jesus’ resurrection they went into the holy city and appeared to many people.

54 When the centurion and those with him who were guarding Jesus saw the earthquake and all that had happened, they were terrified, and exclaimed, “Surely he was the Son of God!”  55 Many women were there, watching from a distance. They had followed Jesus from Galilee to care for his needs.

56 Among them were Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James and Joses, and the mother of Zebedee’s sons.

The Burial of Jesus

57 As evening approached, there came a rich man from Arimathea, named Joseph, who had himself become a disciple of Jesus. 58 Going to Pilate, he asked for Jesus’ body, and Pilate ordered that it be given to him. 59 Joseph took the body, wrapped it in a clean linen cloth, 60 and placed it in his own new tomb that he had cut out of the rock. He rolled a big stone in front of the entrance to the tomb and went away.

61 Mary Magdalene and the other Mary were sitting there opposite the tomb.

The Guard at the Tomb

62 The next day, the one after Preparation Day, the chief priests and the Pharisees went to Pilate.63 “Sir,” they said, “we remember that while he was still alive that deceiver said, ‘After three days I will rise again.’

64 So give the order for the tomb to be made secure until the third day. Otherwise, his disciples may come and steal the body and tell the people that he has been raised from the dead. This last deception will be worse than the first.”
65 “Take a guard,” Pilate answered. “Go, make the tomb as secure as you know how.”

66 So they went and made the tomb secure by putting a seal on the stone and posting the guard.

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The Crucifixion (Mark 15:21-32)

21 A certain man from Cyrene, Simon, the father of Alexander and Rufus, was passing by on his way in from the country, and they forced him to carry the cross. 22 They brought Jesus to the place called Golgotha (which means The Place of the Skull). 23 Then they offered him wine mixed with myrrh, but he did not take it.

24 And they crucified him. Dividing up his clothes, they cast lots to see what each would get.  25 It was the third hour when they crucified him. 26 The written notice of the charge against him read: The King of the Jews. 27 They crucified two robbers with him, one on his right and one on his left. 29 Those who passed by hurled insults at him, shaking their heads and saying, “So! You who are going to destroy the temple and build it in three days, 30 come down from the cross and save yourself!”

31 In the same way the chief priests and the teachers of the law mocked him among themselves. “He saved others,” they said, “but he can’t save himself!

32 Let this Christ, this King of Israel, come down now from the cross, that we may see and believe.” Those crucified with him also heaped insults on him.

The Death of Jesus

33 At the sixth hour darkness came over the whole land until the ninth hour.

34 And at the ninth hour Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?”–which means, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”

35 When some of those standing near heard this, they said, “Listen, he’s calling Elijah.”

36 One man ran, filled a sponge with wine vinegar, put it on a stick, and offered it to Jesus to drink. “Now leave him alone. Let’s see if Elijah comes to take him down,” he said.

37 With a loud cry, Jesus breathed his last.  38 The curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom.

39 And when the centurion, who stood there in front of Jesus, heard his cry and saw how he died, he said, “Surely this man was the Son of God!” 40 Some women were watching from a distance. Among them were Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James the younger and of Joses, and Salome.

41 In Galilee these women had followed him and cared for his needs. Many other women who had come up with him to Jerusalem were also there.

The Burial of Jesus

42 It was Preparation Day (that is, the day before the Sabbath). So as evening approached, 43 Joseph of Arimathea, a prominent member of the Council, who was himself waiting for the kingdom of God, went boldly to Pilate and asked for Jesus’ body. 44 Pilate was surprised to hear that he was already dead. Summoning the centurion, he asked him if Jesus had already died.45 When he learned from the centurion that it was so, he gave the body to Joseph. 46 So Joseph bought some linen cloth, took down the body, wrapped it in the linen, and placed it in a tomb cut out of rock. Then he rolled a stone against the entrance of the tomb.

47 Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joses saw where he was laid.

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The Crucifixion (Luke 23:26-56)

26 As they led him away, they seized Simon from Cyrene, who was on his way in from the country, and put the cross on him and made him carry it behind Jesus. 27 A large number of people followed him, including women who mourned and wailed for him. 28 Jesus turned and said to them, “Daughters of Jerusalem, do not weep for me; weep for yourselves and for your children.2 9 For the time will come when you will say, ‘Blessed are the barren women, the wombs that never bore and the breasts that never nursed!’

30 Then “ ‘they will say to the mountains, “Fall on us!” and to the hills, “Cover us!” ’31 For if men do these things when the tree is green, what will happen when it is dry?”

32 Two other men, both criminals, were also led out with him to be executed. 33 When they came to the place called the Skull, there they crucified him, along with the criminals–one on his right, the other on his left.

34 Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.” And they divided up his clothes by casting lots.

35 The people stood watching, and the rulers even sneered at him. They said, “He saved others; let him save himself if he is the Christ of God, the Chosen One.” 36 The soldiers also came up and mocked him. They offered him wine vinegar 37 and said, “If you are the king of the Jews, save yourself.” 38 There was a written notice above him, which read: This is the King of the Jews.

39 One of the criminals who hung there hurled insults at him: “Aren’t you the Christ? Save yourself and us!”
40 But the other criminal rebuked him. “Don’t you fear God,” he said, “since you are under the same sentence? 41 We are punished justly, for we are getting what our deeds deserve. But this man has done nothing wrong.” 42 Then he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.” 43 Jesus answered him, “I tell you the truth, today you will be with me in paradise.”

Jesus’ Death

44 It was now about the sixth hour, and darkness came over the whole land until the ninth hour, 45 for the sun stopped shining. And the curtain of the temple was torn in two.

46 Jesus called out with a loud voice, “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit.” When he had said this, he breathed his last.  47 The centurion, seeing what had happened, praised God and said, “Surely this was a righteous man.” 48 When all the people who had gathered to witness this sight saw what took place, they beat their breasts and went away. 49 But all those who knew him, including the women who had followed him from Galilee, stood at a distance, watching these things.

Jesus’ Burial

50 Now there was a man named Joseph, a member of the Council, a good and upright man, 51 who had not consented to their decision and action. He came from the Judean town of Arimathea and he was waiting for the kingdom of God. 52 Going to Pilate, he asked for Jesus’ body. 53 Then he took it down, wrapped it in linen cloth and placed it in a tomb cut in the rock, one in which no one had yet been laid.

54 It was Preparation Day, and the Sabbath was about to begin. 55 The women who had come with Jesus from Galilee followed Joseph and saw the tomb and how his body was laid in it.

56 Then they went home and prepared spices and perfumes. But they rested on the Sabbath in obedience to the commandment.

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The Crucifixion (John 19:17-23)

17 Carrying his own cross, he went out to the place of the Skull (which in Aramaic is called Golgotha).

18 Here they crucified him, and with him two others–one on each side and Jesus in the middle. 19 Pilate had a notice prepared and fastened to the cross. It read: Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews.20 Many of the Jews read this sign, for the place where Jesus was crucified was near the city, and the sign was written in Aramaic, Latin and Greek.

21 The chief priests of the Jews protested to Pilate, “Do not write ‘The King of the Jews,’ but that this man claimed to be king of the Jews.” 22 Pilate answered, “What I have written, I have written.”

23 When the soldiers crucified Jesus, they took his clothes, dividing them into four shares, one for each of them, with the undergarment remaining. This garment was seamless, woven in one piece from top to bottom.

24 “Let’s not tear it,” they said to one another. “Let’s decide by lot who will get it.” This happened that the scripture might be fulfilled which said, “They divided my garments among them and cast lots for my clothing.” So this is what the soldiers did.
25 Near the cross of Jesus stood his mother, his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene. 26 When Jesus saw his mother there, and the disciple whom he loved standing nearby, he said to his mother, “Dear woman, here is your son,” 27 and to the disciple, “Here is your mother.” From that time on, this disciple took her into his home.

The Death of Jesus

28 Later, knowing that all was now completed, and so that the Scripture would be fulfilled, Jesus said, “I am thirsty.” 29 A jar of wine vinegar was there, so they soaked a sponge in it, put the sponge on a stalk of the hyssop plant, and lifted it to Jesus’ lips.

30 When he had received the drink, Jesus said, “It is finished.” With that, he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.

31 Now it was the day of Preparation, and the next day was to be a special Sabbath. Because the Jews did not want the bodies left on the crosses during the Sabbath, they asked Pilate to have the legs broken and the bodies taken down. 32 The soldiers therefore came and broke the legs of the first man who had been crucified with Jesus, and then those of the other. 33 But when they came to Jesus and found that he was already dead, they did not break his legs. 34 Instead, one of the soldiers pierced Jesus’ side with a spear, bringing a sudden flow of blood and water. 35 The man who saw it has given testimony, and his testimony is true. He knows that he tells the truth, and he testifies so that you also may believe. 36 These things happened so that the scripture would be fulfilled: “Not one of his bones will be broken,” 37 and, as another scripture says, “They will look on the one they have pierced.”

The Burial of Jesus

38 Later, Joseph of Arimathea asked Pilate for the body of Jesus. Now Joseph was a disciple of Jesus, but secretly because he feared the Jews. With Pilate’s permission, he came and took the body away. 39 He was accompanied by Nicodemus, the man who earlier had visited Jesus at night. Nicodemus brought a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about seventy‑five pounds. 40 Taking Jesus’ body, the two of them wrapped it, with the spices, in strips of linen. This was in accordance with Jewish burial customs. 41 At the place where Jesus was crucified, there was a garden, and in the garden a new tomb, in which no one had ever been laid.

42 Because it was the Jewish day of Preparation and since the tomb was nearby, they laid Jesus there.

Text provided by http://www.youversion.com.

 

Jueves Santo

Then came the day of Unleavened Bread on which the Passover lamb had to be sacrificed. Jesus sent Peter and John, saying, “Go and make preparations for us to eat the Passover.”

“Where do you want us to prepare for it?” they asked.

He replied, “As you enter the city, a man carrying a jar of water will meet you. Follow him to the house that he enters, and say to the owner of the house, ‘The Teacher asks: Where is the guest room, where I may eat the Passover with my disciples?’ He will show you a large upper room, all furnished. Make preparations there.”

They left and found things just as Jesus had told them. So they prepared the Passover.

When the hour came, Jesus and his apostles reclined at the table.  And he said to them, “I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer. For I tell you, I will not eat it again until it finds fulfillment in the kingdom of God.”

After taking the cup, he gave thanks and said, “Take this and divide it among you. For I tell you I will not drink again of the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes.”

 And he took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body given for you; do this in remembrance of me.”

 In the same way, after the supper he took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you. But the hand of him who is going to betray me is with mine on the table. The Son of Man will go as it has been decreed, but woe to that man who betrays him.”  They began to question among themselves which of them it might be who would do this.  — Luke 22:7-23

 

Carnaval

The pre-Lenten celebration of Carnaval – Carnival is common throughout Latin American culture.  It was brought over from Europe as part of an old Roman Catholic tradition of clearing your house out of rich foods (especially meat) before fasting during Lent.  (It probably comes from the Italian word Carnevale — Apokries in Greek — which means “farewell to meat”.)  From what Nate and I see today, it has lost most of its religious meaning and become a mainly secular celebration.

Our first experience with Carnaval was in the Dominican Republic (DR). DR is known to be the first place in the Americas to observe Carnaval, with more local influence over the years. The weekends of February are set aside for the Carnaval festivities with large parades, unique masks, dancers, performers, and bladders (rubber inflated balloons on a string that kids and adults walk around with to whack those unsuspecting in an effort to rid you of bad luck from the devil). Each city and town puts its own twist on their celebration. The final days of their Carnaval also celebrate the country’s independence, February 27.

Brazil is the most well-known country for its Carnaval held every year in Rio de Janeiro and celebrated throughout the country.

Our colleagues the Strackbeins live in La Paz, Bolivia. They recently shared details about Carnaval celebrations in Bolivia.

As Nate and I are still learning much about the culture in Mexico, we were surprised to see children participating in Carnaval this year on the eve prior to Ash Wednesday.  The plaza of a neighboring city was full of children, parents, teens, and even some university students. Some of the children were wearing costumes; we saw Minnie Mouse, a princess, and Spiderman. Vendors lined the streets selling snacks, paper flowers, clowns, and bags of eggs. The eggs were hollowed out and refilled with confetti.  Children bought the bags of eggs and then ran around the plaza, smashing the eggs on their classmates’ heads.  You can imagine there was a lot of activity going on — we just tried to avoid getting hit with an egg.

 

Meeting a New Friend

During our trip in São Paulo, SP; we met with a young woman named Haley.

A few years ago, Haley served as an English as a Foreign Language (EFL) teacher with our mission in Gravataí, RS, Brazil.  She now lives in the downtown area of São Paulo and teaches music at an International school while working on her Doctorate.

After a delicious lunch at an all-natural buffet, Haley gave our group some insight as she shared some of her experiences living in this big city.  She also shared her opinions about outreach and evangelism in São Paulo.

I have a special connection to Haley, as her sister Polly was my roommate and EFL co-worker in the Dominican Republic (DR) for a year.  This was the first time Haley and I met face to face.

Polly, Julia, & EFL Students in DR (2008)

Haley & Julia in Brazil (2011)

 

Welcome to America – Day 15

Family and Friends.

In between fellowship activities-conferences, conventions, presentations, worship services, and meetings, Nate and I spent quality time with members from both of our families and many good friends.

We spent a day with both of Nate’s brothers’ families in Zumbrota, Minnesota at a family farm. The day consisted of getting caught in a storm with 87 mph straight winds, family reunion, 65th birthday of our sister-in-law’s mom, lunch with sundae-bar, games of croquet, playing with kitties, feeding the goats, watching the geese and chickens, playing DS, and catching up on family news.

In Campbellsport, Wisconsin, we hosted an open house at my parents’ home on a Saturday afternoon.  75 relatives, friends, congregation members, and co-workers stopped in for a visit.  Nate and I ended our stateside visit in Door Country with my parents.

In between the family visits, we spent time with friends — missionaries, school classmates, fellow church members, participants in our wedding, and a few new faces too!  We tried to capture a special photo of each one, but some managed to slip by the camera.

Thank each and every one of you for your love and support.