Unexpected Interuptions

Saturday evening, the weather charts had THREE hurricane/storms heading directly for Puerto Rico. A lot of panic ensued and a good number of people in our church stayed home to prepare.

Even though we had low attendence today, there was a good spirit in the service. The non-Christian brother of a member came and seemed to enjoy the service.

The funeral home down the block had a large funeral at the same time as our service and their music blasted over some big speakers for the entire neighborhood to hear. It was tough singing in competition with that, so we just had one song and went right into the sermon.

The people hung around for about an hour after the service and we enjoyed fellowship with them all.

Hurricanes on the way

Three storms looking to become hurricanes are in the North Atlantic. Ana, Bill and an unnamed one. Already I am getting calls of people not coming to church to prepare for a possible hit.

Ana looks like it will hit us head on.

Bill looks like it might just miss us to the North, but it could be trouble if it hits us.

Working with what we have...

Visiting people on an island suggests the idea and usefulness of a boat. But our island is so big (35 x 113 miles: Population 4 Million) that there is enough for us to do without visiting the more inaccessible places by boat.

We use what we have, but could use better equipment to extend our ministry.

We are happy, for example, to work with 3x5 cards and rubberbands. But being supplied with some better technology, such as an Iphone account and phone, wouldn't hurt either

The better equipped we are, the better we can serve. It can be fun being creative, but there is a lot to said for doing a quality job with the right kind of tools.

Is one more bite of ice cream really worth all this?

I just got some lab results back from my physical exam. For the most part, they look pretty good. The doctor said the EKG was perfect, BUT the blood sugar test result suggests I may be heading for the "pre-diabetic" zone, if I don't make some changes.

I like change and challenges, but...I also like those Reese's Peanut Butter Cups as well. I guess I will have to develop some new habits. We have already begun making some new patterns. Tina and I are walking more and plan to add more walks to our schedules every week.

Prov 3:25 Be not afraid of sudden fear...

I had some great news and some potentially bad news today.

The great news:

1. I spoke with a 16 year old young man named Peter today for about an hour in his home. He shared some of his problems and I shared some of my life experience and we read together what the Bible said about it all.

After reading a number of scriptures, Peter asked to accept Christ as his Savior. We prayed and he did! Peter then said he would be in church Sunday and offered to help as needed in our church.

2. There is an unemployed college age young lady named Michelle in our church that needs some financial help. I needed help advertising our upcoming VBS. I thought, well, maybe we can help each other. She came by the church today with her mother and I offered her the job of passing out advertisements 3 hours a day for the VBS.

She said "Yes."

When I left town a few hours later, I saw her and her boyfriend going door to door passing out the pamphlets. It encouraged me to see them helping us by "walking the walk" and not just "talking the talk."

The Bad news.

Peter's mother came home just after I prayed with him and told me that she had a bad day at work. She works with the Health dept and said there was a Swine Flue panic in town today. She said 300 people came in all at once for help, shots or information. Apparently, a women who works at a local restaurant might have got it, so all the town was in an uproar. Two people just died of this recently here, so they were pretty exited about it.

I was suddenly afraid how this might affect us. I thought, "Well maybe this will hurt our VBS." But then I remembered that God has asked us to sow and to serve, it is His job to grant the increase. Some other scripture came to mind: Prov 3:25 "Be not afraid of sudden fear..."

So...should we rejoice or worry? I think we should do the following:

We will visit and enable others to visit. We will prepare as well as we can. We also will come with paint, sandpaper and brushes. If the kids come, we will have a great VBS. If they don't, well, we already have seen results in our visitation and will get out those paint cans and make something happen for the good of the church one way or another.

I would love to come & help...exept for the heat and humidity.

We get a lot of questions about the heat and humidity. Here is a little Q&A on this popular topic.

Q: Is it hard to work in the tropical heat and humidity of the Caribbean?

A. Well, living in the heat of the tropics in a concrete house can really sap your energy. But we have found ways to get the job done, regardless.

Q: Why not just use air-conditioning?

A: I wish we could. But in Puerto Rico, all the electricity comes from gas fed turbine generators, and is VERY expensive. One small room air conditioner all the time can raise the electric bill $200 a month. At our current support level, the cost of cooling the house is just too much

Q: How do you cope with the heat then?

A: We do have some strategies to keep tolerably cool. We have lots of fans and two small air conditioners for the bedrooms. When the heat and humidity get really unbearable, Tina goes into the smallest bedroom, sets the air conditioner to about 78, puts the Algebra books on the bed and homeschools Sarah and Krisitn in there.

We drink a lot of ice filled drinks. I mix diet Sprite and grapefruit juice or get some Crystal Lite Ice Tea mixes. Peach Tea and Green Tea/Mango are my favorites.

Some days it is too hot to study at home, so we might go to the food court of a mall for a break in the heat of the afternoon and study or do things there.

Keeping things dry is a challenge. Many things, like flour or pancake mix go into the frig so the heat and moisture won't hatch out weevils.

Q: Is it always so hot?

A: No, usually it is plenty warm here, but there are a few month where we begin thinking of the beach or some games involving water. When it gets REALLY hot, games like this begin sounding like a good idea.

Here is a game I learned from our camp councilors:

Water Balloon Relay:

Fill a kiddie pool with water and different color water balloons. Put an empy can under a plastic chair with slats in it.

1. Bob for a water balloon.
2. Run to a chair.
3. Sit on water balloon
4. Run back and tag a team member
4. Continue until one team fills the can and wins the relay.

Sweet Fellowship for a Sweet 4th of July

We are hosting a BBQ for the 4th of July for a few fellow church planters and some Puerto Rican pastors.

We do something like this once a month to encourage new pastors. But I think we get as much or more out of it than they do. When things get discouraging in a new work, there is nothing like hearing good reports regarding a church that was planted from a pastor whom we helped succeed.

But meetings like this also mean cleaning the bbq grill, spring cleaning the house, painting, decorating and yard work. Between visitation, VBS and fellowship preparations, we are getting quite a workout. I guess I shouldn't complain. At least being active in the ministry saves us the cost of a Gym membership!

You never know what you might end up doing in a day...

Usually I preach Sundays and know what to expect. Today was different.

This Sunday, I gave one of our deacons an opportunity to preach in the morning service. I thought I would sit and enjoy his sermon. Before he began, my wife Tina called me aside.

She said, "There are a few small kids in church today. How about you telling them a story during Wilfredos' sermon?"

I felt a pang of nervousness, because although I am bilingual, I usually go to church well prepared to speak in Spanish. I thought I would keep it simple, so I took the kids over to a table in the back of the church and thought to get out some coloring books and chat with them.

A little girl named Joyce looked at me and said, "Pastor, I don't want to color! We want you to tell us a story!"

Well, how can you argue with that? I took an illustrated Bible and told them the story of Creation all the way to the Tower of Babel. I had a story book on Naaman being healed by Elijah. They smiled and nodded their heads all the way through the lesson time. I really enjoyed their interest and smiles.

After that, I thought to have a time of fellowship and a snack with our people. But just then, I got a phone call from a member who lives close to the church, a Mr. Soto.

Mr. Soto said, "Pastor I am in pain...come to my house."

I told Tina to inform the church and I just ran over, thinking he might be in trouble. He was OK, but in pain from a tumor that is to be removed tomorrow. He wanted his pastor to pray with him. I stayed and prayed and comforted him.

I came back and almost everyone had left...and had eaten all the sandwiches! Before leaving, I opened some mail and found a bill for over $200 for water. That is ridiculously high down here. So my deacon Luis and I looked for, found and uncovered the water meter outside the church. I read him the meter numbers and he wrote them down. We plan to check the numbers again Wednesday night to see if they change. If so, then we know we have a leak somewhere.

So..from a surprise lesson, to a surprise phone call, visit and prayer time, to a surprise water/financial emergency...all goes to show that you just never know what you will face in a day, when you are in the ministry! But, in each situation, we found that we had or were given what was needed to succeed. Amen!

Staycation?

Just finished teaching Summer School for two weeks..and now for our vacation.

We are painting the eaves, moving furniture, redoing the yard, visiting shut-ins, and generally catching up...

...so I guess we are taking, not a "vacation" but a "staycation" where we stay put and regroup for next months VBS, mission team arrvial and further ministries.

Big Plans for the Summer...

By faith we are making some big plan for this Summer..

Pastor Scott Florida from Michigan is bringing about 15 members of his youth group to help us down here in Puerto Rico. We hope to keep them all busy doing things that will enhance the work of missions here and will give the youth group an enthusiasm for missions that can be caught by others back home.

We have in mind: Painting the church, sanding and painting the fencing and protective iron work around the church and our Bible college, visiting an orphanage, holding a "Super-Saturday" one day VBS blitz, taking them out to pass out tracts and of course, visiting a beach, eating some Puerto Rican favorite food, seeing some sights and doing some shopping in Old San Juan.

One thing I like about visitors is that it gives us an excuse to have some fun down here! We sometimes go years without visiting a beach, etc.. So it is fun for us to revisit and show others some of the neat things on our mission field.

We are looking forward to a great time of ministry this Summer.

Please pray it will be so!

(Jas 4:15 For that ye ought to say, If the Lord will, we shall live, and do this, or that.)

ALMOST everybody is happy...

I will be giving final exams for the next two days. Most of the students are happy with their grades...but for the rest, well at least it's Summer, so take a break and better luck next year.

I took the twins to the Mall today, just for some family time together, so they could have a break from homeschooling.

Tina should be coming back in a week. That will make it a month she has been gone. Her absence sure has been felt in our church, the college cafeteria and in our home.

Hurry on home Honey! We all miss you.

PS. Here is a song about a man missing his wife that I like, sung by a very talented street musician:

It's Mother's Day in Puerto Rico too.

We had a good Mother's day today in our missionary church up in the mountain region. What really pleased me is that everybody did a little something and that it all came together for a great Sunday.

Our Deacons' brother, Manuel, has been attending for about 2 months now, and he surprised me by showing up with a strawberry cheese cake and a box of red roses. He said, "This is something I got for the mothers of the church today." He brought a boom box and a CD of Mothers' day songs that was actually good and was pleased when we thanked him for contributing something to make the day more special for everyone.

A college girl brought an acrostic poem that spelled "Madre" and we read it during our announcement time. Her older sister bought the gifts for me. We called on kids to come and pass them out to the mothers. A woman and her two adult daughters decorated the church. Another family brought rice, beans and turkey for a luncheon. Almost everyone got to do something. It made for a good service and a lot of good feelings.

Hannibal Smith of the old "A Team" series used to say: "I love it when a plan comes together." I agree. But it is even better when we have a day when the church members make the plans and it all works out. Today was one of those good days.


PS. My mother passed away and Tina is still in Florida with our new grand-daughter, so Mother's Day in our home today is pretty low key. I did enjoy listening some Mom's day humour: here is a video of all the advice your Mother gives you in a day condensed to 2 min. 55 seconds and sung to the "William Tell Overture"

Final Exam Week. Are We Having Fun Yet?

School: Final Exam week.

Students may think I am mean, but they leave and I have to grade all of those papers! I am REALLY looking forward to the end of this school year. Then all I have to do is church planting, evangelism, mission team coordinating, Vacation Bible School...well, at least we will have some variety, if not a vacation this summer.

Church: Mothers Day

I am planning Mother's Day for our church, but without Tina here, it is challenging. It is dangerous to send a man on a mission to buy gifts for ladies. Believing this, I delegated the gift buying to a woman in our church. We are having a small catered luncheon, so the ladies won't have to pretend they like what the men make for them. Sometimes days like these do more for our church growth than our door to door visiting, so please pray all will go well.

Planning activities like this reminds me of Pascal's Prayer: “Lord, help me to do great things as though they were little, since I do them with Your power; and little things as though they were great, since I do them in Your name.”

Family: Anniversary

It's our 26th Anniversary! BUT...Tina is not here! Come home soon! I love her so much. Besides, I can't find my other sock!

PS: We did talk on the phone. I sent her some Chocolate Covered Strawberries and we shared some videos like this one.

Warning: May contain Sunlight and Sweetness.

No Swine Flu in Puerto Rico, but...

Dear People Who Plan on Visiting Us in Puerto Rico this Year,

There are NO cases of Swine Flu here. Puerto Rico is a lot further from Mexico than most of the US.

However, don't get overconfident, please take SOME precautions. Pack some Mosquito Repellent, Sun Tan lotion and whatever you usually need.

If you forget something, don't panic. We have WalMart, Walgreens and most of the other US type stores and we use the US dollar, so you can get what you need here.

Looking Forward to Your Visit,

Pastor Steve
OverLookedFields.com

New Arrival

Our Big News

Our big news! We are grandparents!

HANNAH FAITH KENNEDY was born at 8:35am in Pensacola, FL.

She is 7 lb. 2.8 oz and has long black hair. Mother Rachel and new Grandma Tina doing fine.

This Little Light of Mine...

This frog just tried to eat a lightning bug, like he was supposed to do. He followed the light, partook and felt a nice warm glow inside. Maybe it is a deep spiritual metaphor, or maybe it just means people leave their Christmas lights out way too long!

No Guts, No Glory

What does it take to succeed as a missionary in Puerto Rico? I would like to say it is intellegence and skill. But mostly it is getting outside and meeting new people.

It can be pretty scary sometimes to just walk up to someone and share the gospel, especially when you anticipate a negative response. But if you don't have the guts, they won't get to glory!

I was inspired by the nerve of some street musicians, who risk (and get) ridicule, but keep at it. My favorite is Grandpa Elliot. It just goes to show you, that even an old guy can get a message across, if he has the guts to do it.

PS. Our anniversary is coming up (May 7th). Grandpa Elliot and other street musicians do a great version of "Stand by Me" a favorite song of Tina and I when we were dating.

Six countries for lunch

We don't have to go far to have a missions conference at our Bible college. Here are five of my students having a little informal fellowship. These five come from five different countries. Add a teacher from the USA and we can have a mini-missions conference every time we have coffee together!

These are just 5 of the 40 or so students we have this semester. They are great guys and give us hope for the future of missions. The future looks bright with quality students like these in our classes.

Please pray for them. They need about $500 a month for room, board, books and tuition. This is a bargain by today's standards, but still pretty steep for many of them.

From left to right:

Ricardo - St Lucia. Trilingual. Christian ed major, talented cook.
Goal: Christian business man. Hopes to have a 5 star restaurant

Dave - Born in Paraguay, raised in Nebraska. Great at personal evangelism. Mechanic also.
Goal: Missions

Bairo - Colombia. Talented preacher.
Goal: Missions

Roque - Puerto Rico. Father is a pastor and licensed psychologist.
Goal: Christian School teacher.

Irving - Born in Peru, raised in Spain.
Goal: Pastoral training AND Secondary Education. Great with Youth groups.

College Kids Having Fun

College kids are under a lot of stress, so it's nice to have some fun once in a while. We have a couple of "crazy days" during the year to help them have that fun. We had an "Animal day" and a "Super Hero" dress up day this last school year.

The kids loved it and it really boosted their morale. The French call it "Esprit de corps," but we just call it "cheering up the students." Whatever you call it, even Bible college kids need some fun once in a while! I'm glad they had a good time.

Odd Compliment

This week has been busy. It started with a funeral and sharing the Gospel with some people and ended with a field trip with my daughters. In between, I taught at our Bible College, taught some High School, and wrote a sermon. I also did the glamorous missionary work of picking beer bottles and trash out of the churches' flower bed, all the while being careful to not to encounter hypodermic needles that are found all to often on the ground.

Today, Sunday, I preached about Christ being with us in our ordinary days. After the service I went to shake hands with a church member and he said, "Hey, give me a hug. That was a great sermon!" I usually don't expect an after sermon hug, so that was a new one for me.

On the way home my wife said, "I only got 3 hours sleep last night because of a sewing project. But your sermon was so interesting, it woke me up and kept me awake all the way to the end!"

Well, if you get hugs and can keep your wife awake during your sermon, that means you had a good day. They come by once in a while. I'm sure glad they do.

Getting More Then Expected

We had a good service Sunday. Among the 31 people in the service were a couple I had been visiting for years and finally came. Not only that, they came back for the next service. When I introduced the couple to the congregation, they spoke up and said they planned on being with us on a regular basis!

There was a surprise waiting for me after the service. One of our lady members asked to speak to me after the church service. She is an older woman who cleans the church Saturdays, and recently we decided to give her some financial help. I expected her to talk to me about some financial need. Instead she gave me something.

She said, "You were with my father when he died. I found this when I was cleaning out his things. I would like you to have it." She handed me a small guitar case. Inside was a Puerto Rican Cuatro, an island instrument that is like a cross between a guitar and a mandolin.

I was stunned. I have wanted one of these unusual instruments for years, but could never afford one. And here was a woman we were helping, who in turn gave a totally unexpected gift. I went home smiling that Sunday!

Working and seeing results is great. But getting a nice surprise once in a while isn't bad either!

My Half of the Orange

In Spanish "my better half" is expressed by "Mi media naranja" or "my other half of the orange." It sounds odd, but oranges are sweet, nice looking, smell good and people squeeze them...I probably should stop here.

My "media naranja" Tina is really doing wonders at keeping things going down here in Puerto Rico. I am able to work as a church planter and teacher because she works to keep our home, cooks at our Bible college, plays piano and clarinet in the church, all while homeschooling our two daughters and taking care of me.

Wow. How does she do it? Maybe it's all that chocolate I keep in the refrigerator. Whatever it is, she is doing it and do it all well.

BUT she is going to go to Pensacola, Florida for FOUR weeks to be with our daughter Rachel when our first grand-baby arrives, about the first week of May. I am happy she can go and enjoy this time, but permit me to feel a little sorry for myself thinking of a month missing that important half.

In the meantime, we will be preparing for a visiting team of teens from Alpine Baptist Church so I will have that, Tina's return and grand baby pictures to look forward to! OK I feel better now!

Please pray for Rachel's delivery, expenses, Tina's trip, and the expanding ministry here in the months ahead.

Tina Cornered by Charging Iguana!

My wife Tina was in the kitchen at the college preparing a meal while the students were in chapel. A good sized iguana lizard, about 4 feet long, chose that moment to wander onto our small Bible college campus. When chapel was over, the students headed to the cafeteria for lunch and scared the iguana. It ran into the kitchen, straight towards Tina, cornering her by the sink.

Terrified, she ran out of the kitchen screaming. She had to run toward the charging iguana, to reach the only exit. The students came in and some tried to catch it. The iguana scrambled behind the stove and up onto the pots and pans shelf, rattling and banging them around as it tried to hide itself.

The surprises were not over yet! Some of our tough looking guys were standing on chairs. One of my female students came in calmly and got a sports jacket from someone and headed over to the kitchen. This girl is about 5 feet even, if that. She is so quiet that after a semester teaching her, I am not sure what her voice sounds like. This same girl threw the coat over this hideous, sharp clawed, spiney-backed, whip-tailed thing and carried it outside like it was nothing!

You know, you think you know about people, but you just never know!

Well, everybody had a good laugh and Tina got back into the kitchen and we got the kids fed. We considered adding Iguana to the menu (Puerto Ricans have been known to barbeque the tails) but Tina said we had had enough iguana for one day and had to draw the line somewhere!