This blog has moved...

If you follow this blog, you've noticed it hasn't been updated for a while.  Sorry about that.

We invite you to follow new ministry updates on these blogs:

www.latteontheroad.blogspot.com  --  Ministry updates on the work of the WELS Latin American Traveling Theological Educators team (LATTE).  This blog focuses on the ministerial education that is going on in the national churches of Latin America in fellowship with WELS, including periodic updates on the Dominican Republic.

www.welsinbolivia.blogspot.com  --  Missionary Phil Strackbein and his wife Kathy were relocated from the Dominican Republic to Bolivia to assist a national church there more directly.  This blog focuses on the ministry and culture there.

Please note that the ministry here in the Dominican Republic continues through national pastors, even though their work may not be updated here.  So please keep the gospel ministry here in your prayers!  We thank God for you!

The Lord bless you with his Peace,
Missionary Wagenknecht

Encourage One Another

One of the important aspects of teaching is to encourage the student to do his best, using and developing all the talents that the Lord has given. Each student has been blessed with a unique set of abilities and brings different talents and life experiences to the classroom. As teachers, we encourage them to develop these capacities and use them to their fullest in their ministries.

In the classroom the students are encouraged to ask questions, to share experiences, doubts and concerns so they may grow in their knowledge of the Word. The teacher can encourage the student and the students encourage each other to trust in the Lord.

All of our students here in the DR are active in ministry. They spend their mornings in seminary class and dedicate their afternoons and evenings to doing ministry among their people, preaching and teaching, encouraging their members with the Word. We try to attend as many of these services as we can to listen to their sermons and classes, watching them interact with their members and discussing with them any counseling sessions they may be having.

What a blessing to watch them grow in their work, in their ability to use their talents to serve and in their ability to see opportunities to encourage others with the Word. What a blessing for us to be able to encourage them in this work.

"Encourage one other and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing".

We would also like to take this opportunity to thank all of you for the many Easter cards we have received. Mail is slow here, so the Easter cards are still coming in. Thank you for all of YOUR encouraging words. Each card reminds us of your love, of your desire to encourage us so that the saving Gospel may continue to be spread among the people here. Thank you for encouraging us!

Encouragement

One of the important aspects of teaching is to encourage the student to do his best, using the talents that the Lord has given. Each student has different abilities and life experiences that they bring to the classroom and to their work. As a teacher, we try to help each student develop these talents and learn how to use them in their ministries.

Watching the students in their own environment helps to evaluate how they are doing. The teacher is able to observe how the student interacts with the members of his group, how he is delivering his sermons and classes and ask about any counseling sessions they are carrying out with their members.

All of our students here in the DR are active in ministry. They dedicate their mornings to seminary classes and use their afternoons and evenings to study and to reach out with the gospel. Whenever possible, we attend these classes and services to better be able to encourage the students in their ministry.

What a blessing to watch them grow in the work, to watch the members grow in their trust of their leaders. "Encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing".

We would also like to take this opportunity to thank all of the people who have sent us Easter cards. Mail is slow here, so the Easter cards are still coming in. Thank you to all of you for YOUR words of encouragement. Every card reminds of your love and we thank you for all your prayers, they are deeply appreciated. Thank you for encouraging us!

Moving day...

Back in January, we discontinued the use of our WELS subsidized outreach center and seminary classroom on 27 de Febrero Avenue (the one that was broken into five times).  That meant packing up, moving out and cleaning up.  The below pictures show some of the fun we had  :-)

The two Santiago congregations that were using the outreach center for their weekly Sunday services were successful in finding new locals to use and will continue their ministries.  They took whatever evangelism and worship resources they could from our outreach center and will use them at their new locations.

The seminary will continue in a less expensive and more secure location in a third floor apartment.  We're still in the process of putting everything in its place in the new seminary classroom...

The Lord bless you with his Peace,

NW

World Missions shifts resources to reach more people with the gospel

The following quote is from President Mark Schroeder's "Together" e-newsletter to the WELS, November 3, 2008:

The Board for World Missions (BWM) continually discusses and plans how best to use the resources available for foreign mission work. The BWM has often stated that these decisions should be made for "strategic" rather than for financial reasons. In other words, the board is always looking for ways to get the gospel to as many people as possible. It also strives to plant mission churches that will be able to flourish independently after WELS missionaries leave. Sometimes this approach requires shifting missionary manpower and funding from one field to another—not because the funding for World Missions has been reduced, but because the opportunities in one field may appear to be more abundant than in another. Certainly, all of these decisions involve the prayerful use of sanctified human judgment.

In its October meeting, the BWM considered new opportunities such as those in Asia, as well as factors "on the ground" in several existing mission fields. The board made a decision to reallocate some of their resources. Support for mission work in Bulgaria and Albania will be reduced; two missionary positions in Latin America (a missionary in the Dominican Republic and one of the positions in the Latin American Traveling Theological Educators team) will also be vacated. The financial resources that had been allocated for these areas have been reallocated to other promising mission efforts in eastern and southern Asia. In addition, the BWM will continue to work with people in the reduced fields to help them adjust to the new circumstances and to make sure that the spiritual needs of our fellow Christians continue to be met.

What does this mean for our WELS mission in the Dominican Republic?

As President Schroeder explains, as faithful stewards of the offerings of God's people, the Board for World Missions is called on to direct its resources to areas where it appears the Lord is opening the door to share the gospel with the greatest number of people.  Our WELS mission in the Dominican Republic is being suspended in order to redirect manpower and funding to other also promising mission fields.

Since October, the DR mission team has been working toward a smooth transition to turn the work completely over to the Dominican and Haitian congregations.  This means:

• the WELS Kingdom Worker sponsored EFL program ended in December.  Volunteer Vanessa King returned to continue her studies at Martin Luther College.  Volunteer Julie Majerus accepted reassignment to the EFL program in Mexico.
• 
  
• DR Missionary Shiloh Monday accepted a stateside Call to pastor St. Mark Lutheran Church in Salina, Kansas.  He and his family left the field on December 20.
• 
  
• LATTE Missionary and DR field coordinator Nathan Wagenknecht (that's me) accepted redeployment to assist the seminary program in Brazil.  I will remain in the DR until my Brazilian visa is approved.
• 
  
• LATTE Missionary Philip Strackbein and his wife Kathy will remain in the DR for another 2 or 3 years to finish the seminary education of our current four students.
• 
  
• As of December 1, all five congregations are being pastored by Dominican or Haitian men and will continue their gospel ministry.

While it is certainly sad for those of us who have or will be leaving to say farewell we REJOICE that the Gospel seed has been planted and cultivated here in the DR for the past 15 years.

We TRUST in the Lord that he will bless the preaching of his Word through the local congregations who remain and will faithfully continue their ministries.

We PRAY that the Lord bless the many souls in other mission fields who will be better served as resources are redirected their direction.  May Christ's saving name be proclaimed and glorified throughout the world!

The Lord bless you with his Peace,

NW

Alexander Torres Paulino

Alexander Torres was born on May 21, 1975, in the town of Moca, Dominican Republic.  He was baptized and grew up in the Roman Catholic church, but at the age of 24 he joined a non-denominational Evangelical church with Calvinistic teachings.

Towards the end of 2004 and into 2005, Alex met some of our WELS missionaries through a mutual friend named Javier Guzman.  Even though Javier did not agree with Biblical, Lutheran doctrine, he introduced Alex to the missionaries, and they started studying together.  At first, Alex had a hard time accepting certain doctrines--he himself especially mentions infant Baptism--but he was impressed that the missionary's response was always to say: "Let's see what the Bible says about that..."

Alex credits "God's great, great mercy" for leading him finally to put his own human reason aside and submit to God and his revealed Word.  He joined the Lutheran church in October 2005 and immediately started studying in our Bible Institute and Seminary.

He brings with him a wide range of work experiences including:  credit assessor, auditor, sales manager and collection agent.  He is also quite an entrepreneur, having started his own factory of disinfectant cleaners, a washing machine rental agency, car rental agency, and a handcraft shop.  His knowledge of the business world serves him well as he interacts with his community and serves Cordero de Dios (Lamb of God) Lutheran Church in Moca.

Alex is married to Sandra, and they have three children: Joseph, Alexandra and Alejandra.  (It is common in the DR for parents to simply combine their names when naming their children.)  Sandra and both daughters suffer severe asthma, so we pray the Lord keep them in good health.

"Lord of the Harvest, thank you for providing Alex and his family as gifts to your church.  Bless his service to your people."

The Lord bless you with his peace,

NW

Helve Robert

Helve Robert was born in Cabo-Haitiano, Haiti on March 13, 1972.  After studying Communication in school, he worked for a while at a radio station and also taught French Grammar and Speech at an elementary school in Haiti for two years.  Helve then decided to change professions and spent four years in medical school.  In 2006, however, before finishing medical school, he decided to change again, this time deciding to study in our Lutheran seminary here in the DR in preparation for serving as a pastor some day back in Haiti.

Although Helve was baptized in the Roman Catholic church as a child, he grew up in the Baptist church.  It was in early 2005 that one of his fellow medical students--a friend of Rona Abraham who was pastor of the Haitian congregation and studying in our seminary--invited him to attend a Sunday service.  Soon thereafter he grew in his faith and understanding of the Gospel through a Bible Information Class.  He was convinced we were teaching the truth and joined the Haitian congregation.

Helve is an active member of the congregation and studied in our Bible Institute, desiring to serve more.  He graduated from the B.I. in Feb 2006 and has been studying in our seminary ever since.

Helve was married, but sadly his wife abandoned him and their infant daughter Ester shortly after Ester was born.  We ask for your prayers that the Lord give Helve the wisdom and strength he needs to fulfill his duties as a single father and seminary student.

We praise the Lord for giving Helve as a gift to his church and pray that he bless Helve's family and ministry.

The Lord bless you with his peace,

NW

Freddy Antonio Aquino

Freddy Antonio Aquino (nickname "Charlie") was born in Bayaguana, Dominican Republic on September 27, 1979. He has had a variety of jobs over the years, working in a rice mill, farming and cattle, house painter, mechanic, and in the "zona franca" free trade zone manufacturing. Beyond his high school education, he has taken courses in Human Relations, Public Speaking, and Cell Phone Repair.

Freddy attended the Pentecostal church for much of his life and came into contact with the Lutheran church in what the world would consider a "chance encounter". In 2003 he was just waiting at a bus stop in the city of La Romana. Julio Corporan, pastor of the Lutheran church in San Pedro de Macoris, was waiting at the same bus stop for the same bus. Julio started talking with Freddy about the Lutheran Church, and Freddy became interested. He actually went to Julio's house and watched a video called "Spiritual Identification". From there he moved on to Bible Instruction Class and became a member by the end of the year.

Freddy has served his congregation by teaching Bible studies, preaching and evangelizing. He studied in our Bible Institute in order to serve better, and has been studying full time in the seminary since 2006.

"Charlie" is married to Elizabet, and they have a four-year-old son, Freili.

We thank God for Freddy, Elizabet and Freili; and pray that he bless Freddy's ministry.

The Lord bless you with his peace,
NW

Obed Bazin

Over the next few weeks, I hope to introduce you to our Seminary and Bible Institute students here in the DR. We start with Obed Bazin:

Obed was born in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, on September 19, 1977. He studied Economic Sciences in college, but moved to the DR before finishing. In Santiago, he worked in the "zona franca" (free trade zone) where he sewed polo shirts for a clothing manufacturer.

In May 2003, a friend of his told him about English classes that our mission was offering, and he decided to participate. The teachers (who were WELS Kingdom Worker volunteers) invited him to attend church services. He liked the doctrine he heard and decided to join the congregation.

As a member of the Haitian congregation, he attended church and Bible studies, and participated in evangelism efforts. He started studying Bible Institute courses and then graduated from the BI in August 2005. He has been studying in our seminary ever since and should graduate in 2009 or early 2010.

We thank God for Obed and his service.

The Lord bless you with his peace,
NW

Robbed again

As you can see from the title of this post, our church in downtown Santiago was broken into again. I can't go into too many details right now, but here’s a quick summary:

(1) Thursday night/Friday morn (May 22/23) – thieves bent back a zinc (tin) roofing sheet and came down through the ceiling tile in the back third of the church (only front two thirds has cement roof). They took the CPU of a computer and a DVD player (I hope they watch the Communicating Christ DVD that was in it.) On Friday, we filed police report and cleaned up the broken ceiling tiles, replaced tin sheet and secured it as best we could.

(2) Saturday night/Sunday morn (May 24/25) – thieves broke in again, this time they completely removed the burglar bars at the women’s bathroom (we see now they were poorly installed) and forced open the louvre window. This time they cleaned us out: 29” TV, water cooler, the rest of the computer (monitor, speakers, etc), window a/c unit, wall fans, Missionary Monday’s tool set, even a 3 liter bottle of communion wine! By God’s grace we had removed the congregation’s cash on hand lock box after the Friday morning break in, so they didn't get that.

After a delayed Haitian service on Sunday, I attempted to file a police report, but was told to come back on Monday. Obed, one of our Haitian seminary students, and I replaced the burglar bars (temporarily) with cement, and cleaned up except for four items that had obvious fingerprints. Following EFL classes and the Spanish service in the afternoon we removed anything we thought the thieves might come back for (used batteries, three fans that remained, etc).

Mon morning we planned for a “work day” at church to improve security, only to arrive and find out that during the night they had broken into the veterinary office below us and took their computer and some equipment! Within a few minutes after we got there, news people started arriving. Freddy and I were interviewed. I even got to speak live on the radio with Jose Gutierrez, a well known news and commentary program here in Santiago with a large audience.

The police “CSI” team arrived and after they finished taking fingerprints, we cleaned, fixed the roof better and cut back tree branches to open up visibility. Still in the morning I went to file our police report from Sunday, only to be told to come back in the afternoon. I went back in the afternoon (an hour before they told me to return), and after waiting two hours, was told to come back the next morning!

So on Tuesday I went early to file the police report that we couldn’t finish Sunday or Monday because their computers were down. After close to three hours of paperwork and waiting in lines, the case was put on a list to be assigned an investigator. I finally went to church, hoping to get in at least an hour of seminary classes. Immediately when I arrived at church, however, some of the neighbor businessmen came over and said they knew where our stuff was.

Since our case was still waiting for an officer to be assigned to it, we had to return to the police station personally to inform them. They “immediately” assigned us an officer who took his time waiting for a partner – then he told me that they didn’t have a vehicle!!! “Can you drive us?” they asked. “What if you take someone into custody?" I responded. “Well, we’ll put him in the cargo area...” (I have a jeep-style vehicle.) Next thing I knew, Freddy (one of our sem students) and I were driving around these two officers to do their investigation. So much for teaching any seminary classes...

After asking around and driving to different places looking for information, we are 99% sure that the next door neighbors to the church either are responsible for the break-ins or at least bought the stolen merchandise from the thieves, to resell it later. But we have no confidence that the police will do anything about it--unless we decide to "wet their hand" (mojar la mano), give the police a cash incentive to act. (What we take for granted in the US!)

But God is good. We wait to see what the Lord has in store for us. Your prayers are requested!
Believe it or not, that is the *SHORT* version!

With you, declaring God’s praises!
NW

[By the way, in the third and fourth pictures above, you're supposed to notice what *isn't* there -- no TV on the TV cart, no air conditioner unit in the window...]

Hosanna, Loud Hosanna

Yes, this post dates back to Palm Sunday (March 16). The following is a video of the seminary students singing "Cabalga Majestuoso" which is equivalent to the hymn "Hosanna, Loud Hosanna", found as hymn 130 in Christian Worship: A Lutheran Hymnal. (You may purchase a copy through Northwestern Publishing House at this link -- and no, I was not paid for that plug :-)

[By the way, the first stanza was recorded from behind the students. In the second stanza, you see their faces from the front.] I hope you enjoy it!



The Lord bless you with his peace,
NW

Christmas at the seminary

December 18 marked the last day of seminary activities for 2007. We had finished classes on Monday the 17th, so the 18th was set aside for worship and fellowship. The pictures below are from the seminary Christmas service and the fellowship afterwards.

• CD player and keyboard ready for Christmas carols and hymns.

The service was an adaptation of the popular "Nine Lessons and Carols", but with an addition: one of the shepherds from Bethlehem came to share his eyewitness account of not only Christ's birth, but also his future ministry as it culminated in the ultimate show of love -- Christ giving himself over to death as payment for our sins. What an amazing Christmas present God has given us!

• Fellowship following the service.

The LORD bless you with His peace,
NW

CSI: Santiago

As promised, part 2 of the Santiago church robbery. (Be sure to read the first part by clicking here or by scrolling down if you haven't read it yet).

There seminarian Freddy and I are, looking at the broken locks, scanning the room to figure out what is missing. A thousand thoughts a minute. What to do? First things first. Freddy calls 911 to report the burglary.

Wonder of wonders! A police car actually shows up! --The Dominican police force is *not* known for its reliability.-- The officer looks the building over, then tells us we have to go to the station to file the report. He'll meet us there.

By now the other seminarians have arrived, so they can watch the building as Freddy and I go to the police station. Once we find the right office, Freddy and I wait about 20 minutes for the officer in charge to show up. We tell him about the robbery. He calls for the "scientific investigation" team to accompany us back to the church to investigate the scene, then he will write out the report. We wait 10 minutes for them to show up. The investigation team tells the officer who called them that he has to fill out the report first before they go. They argue for a few minutes about what comes first, the report or the investigation. We wait another 20 minutes as the officer takes out a grade school writing tablet (I think it had "Dora the Explorer" on the front) and writes out a rather general report by hand. There is a computer in the room, but it is being used as a big CD player... --The Dominican police force is not known for its efficiency.--

Finally the report is written and we can lead the CSI team to the church. The "scientific investigation" consists of digital photos and dusting the doors for fingerprints. Since this isn't TV, they don't find a case solving fingerprint on the first try--nor do they solve the case in 43 minutes (60 with commercials)--but they do find one they think is "promising". Freddy and I are both fingerprinted so that they can rule our fingerprints out. We'll see if they get a "hit" on the fingerprint they found, but I'm not holding my breath.

By the time the CSI team finishes and leaves, it is our normal break time, so the seminary students go for a quick snack before starting to clean up. Right next door to the church, behind the fruit stand where the guys get their snack, is a run down house that has been abandoned for almost half a year now. Julio says, "Let's look around to see if the thieves left anything there." Can you guess what happens next?

While I'm still in the church starting to put things away, I hear Freddy call out "Professor Natan! Natan! Venga!" (Prof Nathan. Come here!) The thieves DID leave something behind! There behind some stairs is our window air conditioner unit. They had obviously placed it there planning to come back for it later.

Again, we see the little blessings the Lord showed us. He allowed us to recover the most expensive of the six items that had been stolen! We were even able to joke about--now the thieves are going to call the police to complain that we stole back what they had rightfully stolen from us! :-)

It was a long day, but after cleaning the church, buying and installing a new lock for the door, a new (much stronger) padlock for the gate, making copies of the new keys for everyone, etc. I finally go home. The story, however, would continue the next day......

Santiago church robbed

"Keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come. But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what time of night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into. So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him."

Jesus' words in Matthew 24: 42-44 became more vivid this past Tuesday morning as I arrived at our ministry center in Santiago at about 7:30 am to get ready for seminary classes. I unlocked the padlock and took off the chain from the gate along the street thinking it was another normal weekday morning. My heart sank as I arrived at the top of the stairs to see the gate to our front porch wide open and the front door ajar. Everything became slow motion for a moment as I saw that both door locks had been pried open and were now lying on the door mat in pieces. All I remember thinking was: "Oh, no..."

Seminarian Freddy had hitched a ride with me that morning, so we went in together to check out the damage, expecting the worst. The thieves had gone through the entire building opening cabinets, dumping out boxes, breaking into a locked storage room looking for anything of value.

They wound up dismounting and taking a window air conditioner unit, an inverter (battery backup system for the building), DVD player, radio/CD player, computer speakers and a wall fan.










Despite the feeling of being "violated", we thank God as we recognize that He was still protecting us and our resources:

• Noone was injured.
• Everything they took is replaceable.
• The thieves took computer speakers, but not the computer itself.
• They took the DVD player, but not the TV it was hooked up to.
  
• One of the few boxes the thieves did *not* look in was the one containing a small lockbox with the congregation's offerings.
• They left a mess, but did not vandalize or break anything other than locks.

I wasn't expecting thieves to break in on Monday night. What a vivid reminder that the Son of Man can come at any time also, even when we least expect him!!!

We are trying to prepare ourselves to prevent the thieves from returning--stronger locks on the doors, a security system, possibly a night watchman. What amazing grace that God himself prepares us through the Gospel to actually welcome his Son's return!!! Jesus has saved me from my sins. I am forgiven. I am ready for Jesus to return.

[ There is more to the story, even with a few unexpected twists. But you'll have to wait a day or two until I can write more... ]

The Lord bless you with His peace,
NW

Where shall I serve, O Lord?

Rona Abraham is our first seminary graduate in the Dominican Republic. (Read other posts about Rona by clicking here.) He graduated in July and was so excited about returning to his home country of Haiti to share the life-saving Gospel with so many who are still lost in sin and unbelief. But...

...Rona may not be able to carry out his plans. He intended to return to Haiti and start a "tent ministry" -- sharing the Gospel while supporting himself with a secular job. With his seminary diploma giving him the title of "licenciado" (equivalent to a bachelor's degree), he planned to get a job as a teacher. But...

...He recently found out that since our seminary is not yet registered as an "institution of higher education" with the Dominican government, his degree is not recognized. Without a degree, he cannot get a job. Without a job, he cannot support himself in Haiti. So...

...In the DR, we are looking into the requirements to register our seminary so that we can confer degrees that will be recognized and accepted. In the meantime, we ask for your prayers:

• that the Lord would bless our efforts to register the seminary
  
• that the Lord would guide Rona to know where and how He wants him to serve
• that the Lord would direct us as we consider other alternatives

James reminds us to say, "If it is the Lord's will" when we make our plans for the future (James 4:15). We know that all things are in His hands -- His good and gracious hands! We, therefore, trust Him to bless Rona's ministry wherever that may be.

(The above was first posted at our sister blog "LATTE on the Road". For more information about our LATTE travels in other countries, click here.)

The Lord bless you with His peace,
NW

One point of comparison

As one of the professors in our Dominican seminary, I thank the Lord every time I get to see the students progress in their understanding of Scripture and grow in their faith. This week I got to see some evidence of that growth once again.

One of the classes I teach is called "Hermeneutics" in which we study how to interpret the Bible. The number one rule is really to let the Bible interpret itself, in other words, let the Bible speak for itself. The Bible says what it means, and means what it says.

This week we discussed how the Bible often uses illustrations and comparisons to teach a spiritual truth. Figures of speech are common in literature, in teaching, even in our daily conversations. So it should be no shock that they are common in the Bible too, to help us understand. When we make comparisons, we really intend only one point of comparison; we don't intend the person we're talking with to go off and make comparisons for every little detail. For example, if I say my nephew is growing like a weed, you understand that I mean he's growing very fast. That's the one point of comparison. Anything beyond that--that he has green skin, prickly stickers, or roots growing out of his feet--is going too far.

That applies to illustrations and comparisons in the Bible too. We used the parable of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:25-37) as an example. It is not uncommon to hear people explain the parable, saying that mankind is the man who was beaten up, robbed and left for dead, the devil is the robber, Jesus is the Good Samaritan who treats our wounds with oil and wine (Jesus' blood), etc. While those are interesting ideas, that's not the point of the story!

Looking at the situation when Jesus told the story, we see that Jesus told it to point out to the teacher of the law that he had *not* loved his neighbor as himself, as he had just claimed. Jesus is showing him how far he had fallen short by not showing mercy to others as the Good Samaritan did in the story. That's the one point of comparison. Anything beyond that is going too far.

Mankind was beaten up by the devil and left for dead in our sins? Yes. But that's not the point of this parable. Jesus has loved us, shown us his amazing mercy, and saved us by washing away our sins with his blood? Yes. But that's not the point of this parable. These truths are found in *other* parts of Scripture, often using *other* parables and illustrations.

After using a few other examples to apply the same principle, I got to see the light turn on. The men started applying this "one point of comparison" principle on their own, even correcting each other as loving brothers when they noticed someone was going beyond the simple, obvious point of comparison.

I thank the Holy Spirit for leading us to see and understand that the Bible says what it means, and means what it says, with simple, straightforward language.

The Lord bless you with his Peace,
NW

First seminary graduation, part II

This past Sunday, July 22, we celebrated the first seminary graduation for the DR field. Join us in thanking the Lord for providing for and protecting Rona Abraham during his years of seminary training. I encourage you to click on the label "Rona" at the end of this post to see other posts about him (or simply click here).

In contrast to many seminaries that exist today simply as "schools of religion", our seminary exists for the sole purpose of training men to serve in the public ministry of the church -- just as the Apostle Paul wrote to his coworker Timothy, "The things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable men who will also be qualified to teach others" (2 Timothy 2:2).

We celebrate the Lord's goodness in supplying his church with these "reliable men who are also qualified to teach others." Please join us in praying for:

• … God’s blessings on Rona’s future ministry in Haiti.
• … our five other seminarians – Obed, Julio, Freddy, Helve, Alex -- who will be returning to class on Aug 6.
• … more workers in the Lord’s harvest field (Matthew 9:37,38).

The Lord bless you with his Peace,
NW

Back from teaching trip

God is good.

He granted me safe travels during a ten day teaching trip to another country. I'm grateful for the opportunity to work with other pastors and study the book of Galatians with them, translating and interpreting it on the basis of the original Greek. Martin Luther compared the book of Galatians to his wife, saying "I am married to it!" Such was his love for the pure gospel the book teaches -- that God declares us "Not guilty!" purely because of the merits of Christ; thus we are FREE IN CHRIST.

Please pray for Pastors Frank, Catalino, Vladimir, Carlos, their families and their ministries. Despite the many man-made obstacles they face where they serve, the Lord is blessing the preaching of his Word. We pray he guards, protects and encourages them at all times.

The Lord bless you with his Peace,
NW

First Seminary Graduate

Thanks be to God for being with Rona Abraham, our soon-to-be first seminary graduate here in the DR. We ask the Lord to bless him as he plans to return to Haiti this summer to share the Gospel with his fellow Haitians. His planned departure, however, leaves a vacancy in the Haitian congregation here in Santiago where he was serving as a student-pastor.

To fill the vacancy, the Haitian congregation met and called Helve Robert, another Haitian seminary student, to serve as their shepherd. We praise God for providing this gift to the church, another humble servant who will lead God's people to see Jesus their Savior. Please join us in praying for the Lord's blessings on Student-Pastor Helve's ministry.

The Lord bless you with his Peace,
NW

PS -- My apologies for not updating last week :-( I'll spare you my list of excuses :-)))

Seminary Fellowship Day

LATTE professors are working in Santiago training six future leaders for the church in the Dominican Republic and Haiti. The men study seminary courses every weekday and also participate in church and evangelism activities.

Several times a year we plan Fellowship Days in which the students, teachers and their families spend some time together – playing, eating, and sharing their faith.

The day begins with a short devotion in which everyone joins their hearts and voices in praise to God for all His blessings. The devotion is followed by an activity of interest to all which is related to the work of the church.

After this activity, the group breaks up for games and fun. The children enjoy stories, puzzles and games. The favorite game for the men is dominoes. The women are learning different board games. This is a great time to strengthen the bonds of friendship between our families and become more united in our goal of growing up in Christ.

Three cultures - Dominican, Haitian, American – all coming together to serve the Lord and extend His gospel to all nations. People from three countries, three cultures, three languages all one in Christ, united to serve Him.

The Lord bless you with his Peace,
NW

(Submitted by Kathy Strackbein. Thanks, Kathy!)