Everyone wants to start the year off right. This is a new year and with the new year can come new goals that we set for ourselves. Health goals are always a big one. Perhaps goals in our work. Whatever goals you may set for 2017, I encourage you to consider the One, True God. What does God desire for my life in 2017? That is a great question. Some things we know, others we may not. For instance, I firmly believe God’s will for every soul is to believe on Jesus. Some don’t believe this… but I do. I think there is Scripture that leads me to believe this (1 Timothy 2:3-4 is a good example). But God’s will does not end in our salvation, it begins with our salvation. God also desires us to advance the Gospel. God desires us to be students of His Word. We see an excellent example in Jesus who often quoted and referred to the Old Testament Scriptures. If it was important for Jesus, it should be important to us. God’s will is for us to help others. In context to the local church, I am referring to discipleship (2 Timothy 2:2). God desires us to help others as we live out the Christian life. I am a firm believer that every Christian should disciple and be discipled. It is not a “calling”, it is a “command”. There are many other areas that can be addressed (like raising our children for Jesus among many other areas), but I think you get the point. Out of our goals and resolutions for 2017, please consider most of all, “What does God desire for my life in 2017?” It may just change your year, and I believe it will change it for the better.

What are some of our goals? I have several. Some goals are ministry goals (more coming up about this on this Friday’s update), others concern my family. Lily (my oldest daughter, 10 years old) and I are reading through the Bible together this year. She is reading in English and I am reading in Spanish (it will be a “first” for us both). We have already had some sweet discussions about what we are reading. I am excited about this. Obviously, becoming more fluent in Spanish is a big one. Really, most (if not all) of my goals revolve around glorifying Jesus. I am trying to practice what I preach.

Whatever goals you have, I encourage you to consider what God’s desires are for your life. Life is really not about us. It is all about Jesus. Enjoy and make the most of 2017!

We are in the last week of 2016. This is the time where we look back and reflect on the year. 2016 has brought a lot of changes. There are so many things to be thankful to God for. For example, we started 2016 off living in the United States and we end this year living in Argentina. We completed deputation in 2 years and have now completed language school! We started 2016 off barely able to speak Spanish and we end the year almost fluent. There are so many things I am thinking back on through this year. Here are just a few tings that come to my mind as I look back on 2016…

• God has been faithful! I know this is obvious and it is a beautiful thing to see first hand in your own life. Every step we have taken God has proven Himself. I believe God will be faithful through 2017 as we step out even more!
• Worrying about things was a waste. I worry at times…and when I worry, I worry a lot! Worry hurts the “worrier”. It takes away any happiness or contentment. It keeps you from enjoying the “here and now”. It obviously hurts your faith in God as well! I look back on the worries I have had in 2016 and I think, “Why did I worry?” If I will just remember that God is in control and that I am His servant, everything will be okay. There is no use in worrying. It really doesn’t change anything and if it does, it doesn’t change anything for the better!
• 2016 has been a foundational year. This year has been a foundation for our ministry here in Argentina. We moved down to Argentina, we have learned (and are still learning) Spanish. We are continuing on. While it has been foundational for future ministry, it has not been easy. It is difficult to be the different one. It is even more difficult to be the different one and not being able to understand anyone. It may not have been easy, but it has been very enjoyable! For a long time I could not understand almost anyone. The man who picked me up at the airport says we spoke more with our hands than with words that day. Even so, we have had a blast! I have preached and have messed up everything I was trying to say. People have laughed at me for saying something incorrectly, and I have responded by laughing with them! We have enjoyed this time so much and I think this kind of attitude has helped us grow.

There are many other things that could be said. These are just a few things that come to my mind as I think about 2016. So what about 2017? When we look back on this year, it is natural to think about what you would like to do in the coming year. That is for another blog post and it will be coming soon…

This is our first Christmas in Argentina. We are excited to be here and are learning more about the Christmas season from an Argentine perspective. Over the past month, I have been asked several questions about the Christmas season here in Argentina. This post will answer a few of those questions…

What is the weather like?  This post is being released on the first day of Summer. It is hot and humid here. Yesterday, the temperature was around 85º F. It is hot, the sun doesn’t set until well after 8:00 PM and I am loving it!

Do people decorate their houses? While we really don’t see houses decorated on the outside (with very few exceptions), people do have Christmas Tree’s in there homes. They are all artificial trees and are decorated on December 08 in celebration of the immaculate conception of Mary (a subject for another post. Click Here).

How is Christmas celebrated? I am told that Christmas Eve is celebrated more than Christmas Day. There will be music, fireworks, presents, more fireworks, and of course food. The climax of the night is at 12 midnight. At that point the fireworks start and continue for a long time. People will stay up as late as 3:00 AM in celebrating Christmas! Christmas Day is a time to sleep in and maybe have a lunch with the family. It is basically all over after that lunch.

What are some traditional foods during the Christmas season? I love Gingerbread, but you won’t really find that here. Think of a summer activity. Fruit salad is popular. An asado (grilled steaks and other meats) is popular but that is popular throughout the year. They have a sweet bread called “panettone” that we see in the super markets. We will be trying it out in a few days.

What does the church do for Christmas? I can really only speak for the church we have been attending. Lighthouse Baptist Church had a Christmas Program on Sunday night. It went very well with a number of people visiting. The church looks pretty with a few decorations up.

So there you have it. Christmas in Argentina is very different from what we have experienced in our lives. We have enjoyed it thus far and we are looking forward to Christmas Eve! Merry Christmas!

Last week we had a holiday in Argentina (actually we had two). I was talking to a man who warned me about the upcoming day. We are new here and without any knowledge we will go out to the grocery store, bakery, butcher shop (where I practice my Spanish), and some or all of them will be closed for the day. We have learned that Argentina has it’s own holidays. This can be frustrating when you are trying to accomplish certain tasks (like learning a language) but it does happen. Some holidays are like the holidays we have in the States. We have Mother’s Day here in October, Labor Day here in May, and of course Christmas and Easter. But Argentina also has unique holidays. The holiday last week was to recognize the “immaculate conception”. The immaculate conception that was “celebrated” was the “immaculate conception of Mary”. Many believe that Mary was somehow conceived naturally but kept “immaculate” by God, thereby not ever having sin in her life. Where in the Bible does it say that Mary was conceived of a virgen? The answer is nowhere. This is not a Biblical belief. I don’t understand this. In fact, I first thought the day of the immaculate conception was to celebrate Jesus’ virgen birth (a common mistake according to an article I read on the subject). Mary was a wonderful woman, but not God and not equal to Jesus. As I have had the opportunity to witness to others, this is something I have heard, that Jesus and Mary are equal. Again, there is no Bible principle to back this up. To the contrary, there is Luke 11:27-28, which seems to take the focus off of Mary and on to keeping Jesus’ commandments.

In closing to this very short blog, I would like to encourage you to search the Scriptures. I can think back on many things I use to believe because “someone told me” but upon reading the Bible, I found out I was wrong. Read the Bible. Spend time in studying God’s Word. You don’t have to be a Bible College graduate, a Pastor, or a Theologian to study God’s Word. I was told some time ago, “Have Bible to back up the things that you believe.” I think that is good advice. Don’t just believe what you believe, but know why you believe it and where God teaches us it in His Word!