EXCELENTE

Good participation.  Deep questions.  Great trip.  That's how I would describe the latest trip to Algorrobo, Panama.  Algorrobo is a village in the mountains of Chiriqui, Panama.  We began our pastoral training ministry there in 2010 in partnership with E3 Partners, and the Vega family.  The Vegas have been working among the Gnobe indians for several years and it's a joy to partner with them in the work of equipping this indigenous tribe to reach their own people with the gospel.  We will be training pastors and leaders in this village three times per year.  For me, it's a fun trip - no electricity, very remote.  There is water - but for us, it's not potable - AND it's VERY cold when taking a shower. So... during our 4 days in the village, I took one (frigid) shower - the other days, I took a "Wipie Bath" which is refreshing if you have Wet Wipes with a Citrus odor.  Not bad.  We had some up close experiences with two scorpions - but thankfully no one was stung.

Culturally, the Gnobe people are very timid and hesitant to initiate conversation or speak in public.  That's one of the first things you notice when you spend time with them.  However, those cultural barriers were broken down and our students were open and active and the questions they asked demonstrated a deep desire to learn and a deep understanding of what we were teaching.  The course we taught was Reading The Bible For Understanding and Impact, which is a course on the various genres (types of literature) in the Bible and how to read and interpret them appropriately.  My favorite word for the week was EXCELENTE - excelente pregunta (question); excelente respuesta (answer). Please continue to pray for these wonderful people as they eagerly receive training and embrace the responsibility to take the gospel "further up the mountain" to those who have yet to hear the good news that Jesus is the Savior.

Below are some pictures from the trip...

JIM TEACHING
I mentioned there is no electricity in the village...
We use a gas generator for power.

STEFÁN FELIZ-KENT
Stefan is a pastor in Costa Rica who has become an integral/invaluable part of our Bible Institute Ministry.
What a blessing to have gifted men share the joy of equipping others. 

What a joy to wake each morning and find the Gnobe students already studying their materials and full of questions.

The man in the middle is a Gnobe man named Benjamin.  He has attended all our training events.
The man with the Arkansas cap is Reid Pfifer, the worship pastor of Crosspoint Church in Cleveland, OH.
Crosspoint is providing financial support for this Bible Institute
and it was a joy to work with Reid and the Senior Pastor, Todd Calaway, who joined us on this trip.

This is Pastor Simon's horse.  
He slept outside the building where we slept each night and made lots of noise.