Lovely Feet Newsletter - November 2009

Day of the Dead offerings

San Pedro Prison, La Paz Bolivia. People wait in line to visit loved ones in the prison.

Vida Abundante, El Alto Bolivia




EL ALTO
High above the city of La Paz where we are living is another larger city on the edge of the Altiplano called El Alto. El Alto is a dusty rundown city inhabited almost entirely of displaced Aymara people driven from the villages of the Altiplano by drought. The city is full of drugs and alcohol without a main center, characterized by large street markets. There is a very small remnant of Christians struggling to survive. Here, a small church named Vida Abundante (Abundant Life) has carved out a stronghold. Vida Abundante has about fifty members, many of them youth currently led by Pastora Claudia Murillo, a twenty-nine year old single woman. Last year Vida Abundante celebrated its 30 year anniversary.

We traveled up to Vida Abundante on November 1 where we were received with hugs and kisses and snaps of cameras. They remembered us from last year when Rhonda and I had the opportunity to play and sing with some other musicians from the states. The service on Sunday was wonderful and the young people didn’t want to leave. We were asked to return to play and sing again with their small worship group. Finally, we left to return to La Paz and Pastora Claudia came with us as did another friend and some children. We spent the rest of that day at our house eating, praying and singing. Later that afternoon another Pastor from El Alto joined us and we talked and strategized about what the needs were in El Alto. They stayed until ten that night before taking a two hour bus ride back home.

It is our hope to return to Vida Abundante in El Alto one Sunday a month and at other times as possible to encourage and participate in their service. We are praying about training the youth in drama, both short skits and longer presentations that we can perform in the streets and at churches. We also want to have a movie night once a month showing encouraging films in Spanish and feeding the people Choripan (sausage on a roll). The people here are poor and the food will attract many. Please consider this in prayer. The enemy has risen like a flood but God will raise up a standard against him. Our feet have walked in El Alto---God has given it to us…for Christ!

PRAYER NEED: The enemy will not continue to hold this city captive! The church will be encouraged and strengthened and the neighborhood would be open to see the films and their eyes would be open to the truth of Jesus.

THE LA PAZ PRISON
(San Pedro Prison)
Sunday morning is visiting time at the prison in La Paz and people line up early waiting to see their loved ones. Women line up on one side of the gate, men on the other. This past Sunday, November 8, a small group of us walked through Plaza San Pedro, across from the prison, handing out a Christian newsletter about the Peace of God, witnessing and inviting the people to church. Sam and I went to the lines at the prison. Most of the women were Aymara but they wanted to read the newsletter. We didn’t really hand it out, instead the women reached for it. We talked and joked with them as they waited for the prison gates to open. They wanted more newsletters than I had and many asked me to go in. I said that I was going to apply for entry when my Spanish was better and then they told me that there were English speaking people inside that couldn’t speak Spanish and needed a visit. They encouraged me in my Spanish as well and said it was good enough. I could feel their desire for help, for something, for someone to save them and their families. I told them that I was praying for them and their families and I could hear them say thank you throughout the line.

We will return to the prison line next Sunday to share with them what we believe God is saying and to tell them that God loves them and has a plan for them, a plan to prosper them and not to harm them, to give them hope and a future!

We left the prison to return to our church and Sam uttered his final words: Diosampiki which is Aymara for God be with you. The women laughed and smiled and some repeated Diosampiki! They were pleased and surprised to hear a young white blond man speak Aymara.
A special note about the prison: In Bolivia when a man commits a crime and is sent to prison, his entire family goes with him, wife and children. There in the prison they are subject to abuse. During the school year the children leave the prison early in the morning to go to school and return to the prison by 1 p.m. every day. Next week begins summer vacation here. The children will not be able to leave the prison for school until it begins again in February.

PRAY NEED: Pray that I (Ron) will get approval to enter the prison, to proclaim the word of God to those who speak Spanish and to those who speak English. Pray for the children, and the families for their safety and for the binding of the enemy! The gates of hell will not prevail against the church! Greater is He that is in me than he that is in the world.

THE VILLAGE
As you know our trip into the Altiplano to a remote Aymaran village in the month of October was postponed, but we have another plan. We will be traveling a little more than 2 hours into the remote areas of the Altiplano November 20 or 21 to different village that has not heard the gospel. Pastor Angel secured this visit and we are ironing out details. We will take our small drama team with us to present the story of Creation, the Fall and our victory over the enemy through Jesus, our Savior, for all who believe. We will also present three other dramas, music and proclaim the Word.

It is our hope to present the Jesus film in Aymara. We will be purchasing a projector before we go since we received a generous donation for half of the price of the projector. LovelyFeet has also purchased children’s Bible stories in Spanish to be given as gifts to the village. Currently, the Aymara offer sacrifices to Pachamama, mother earth, serving her in fear.

PRAYER NEED: Pray that the village would be open to see the Jesus film and that chains will be broken and captives set free

CULTURAL UPDATE: THE DAY OF THE DEAD
The Day of the Dead is a national holiday in Bolivia on November 1. It coincides with the Catholic day of All Saints Day but that is as far as the resemblance goes. It is a pagan holiday, characterized by families visiting cemeteries to honor their dead relatives. They bring food offerings, alcohol and toys for those who died as children. They may also make arbors of sugar cane over the grave. They believe that the dead spirits will take the “spirit” of the offerings leaving the food for the families to eat and drink and participate in a celebration of their kinship. Here, in La Paz, everything was closed. Days before the 1st, even the post office was selling bread in the shape and size of people for the offerings.

Setting Captives Free...

Friends from Vida Abundante and the Church of the Nazarene share worship time in our home.

Pastora Claudia preaching on Romans chapter 7 in Vida Abundante

Sunday, November 15, 2009

The mist and light rain was falling today as Rhonda and I walked up and down the street outside the prison meeting the women waiting in line to go inside. The lines form every Sunday regardless of rain or sunshine. Most of the women are Aymara, wearing their traditional dress, some carrying meals or breads for their family inside.
Some recognize me from the week before, they smile and utter a word or two in Aymara because they remember me butchering their language last week. They laugh at my attempt and Rhonda passes out a small newspaper entitled, “The Message of Peace.” In the United States, I remember holding out tracts and waiting to find someone who would take it; but not here. The women are reaching for it. They know it is Christian and many of them are not, but they want the paper anyway.

This prison is not like any other that we Americans understand. Here, in Bolivia, when a man commits a crime he goes to prison and so does his wife and children. During the school year the children are released from the prison to attend school and they return to the prison after classes. School ends here next week for summer vacation and I don’t know if they will have the opportunity to leave the prison walls again until February when classes return.
It is said that if a family wants a cell to themselves that they can buy it or their family outside can buy it for them. If they don’t pay for a cell then they sleep in the courtyard, but I don’t know if that is true. It is also said that cocaine is manufactured inside the prison, but again I don’t know if that is true. I know is that God loves the people inside that prison and we are praying for their safety and for revival to overtake the prison.

After we pass out some of the papers I deliver a short message about God’s love for them and how God’s plan is not to harm them but to give them hope and a future. Many of the women listen, some turn their backs (but we know they are listening) and others shout “Amen.” Rhonda finishes our visit by praying for their safety and for God’s love to break into their lives and set them free. More women reach for more papers. They share smiles with us. I think they are happy to know that somebody cares and that we can see their value. And we wave, say good-bye and say to them all, “Oramos para ti y para su familia,” “We are praying for you and your family.” Many of the women have tears in their eyes. Rhonda and I walk away to words of “Gracias,” and I wonder who was blessed more, them or me. My breath is gone and God’s presence covers me and I am the thankful one.

We are writing our own tracts each week to hand out at the prison. They are about the mini sermon that was shared the week before, so that the words are reinforced and they can take the message inside to their family. We are also taking cookies once a month to pass out to the 100 or so people that wait. I want inside the prison but I am not allowed right now. I am waiting for the paperwork to apply. Everything is a process in Bolivia. The ladies tell me that there are some English speaking people inside that don’t speak Spanish and that have no one come to visit them.

I am unable to take any pictures because the guards would frown on it. We will write more as the doors to prison are opened by the grace of God.

God be with you!

Ron, Rhonda and Sam

LOVELY FEET NEWSLETTER

LOVELY FEET MESSENGER
Newsletter October 5

ON THE ROAD TO A VILLAGE
We are very excited as we are on our way on the 17th of October to a very remote isolated Aymara village on the other side of the Andeans Mountains to bring the gospel of our God to those who have not heard. This is a large village consisting of 300 children. Pastor Angel, an Aymaran man, has opened these doors to this village. We will be teaching the children through drama, stories and puppets about creation and salvation. We have a small team of 4 young people from our church, Rhonda, Sam and myself. Pastor Angel will minister to the adults with his wife, Marisol.
We are bringing with us 300 small illustrated children’s books that we have purchased from the International Bible Society. There are five different illustrated stories that we hope the children will read and pass around to each other. This is an opportunity to change a generation of Aymara children, to set them free from bondage to Satan and Pachamama whom they serve out of fear. While there are regional differences in worship many believe that if they don’t sacrifice to Pachamama that she will exact her own sacrifice in blood.
While we don’t know what we will find in the village and we don’t know how we will be received we are going believing that God will set these people free from bondage and free to understanding that God is good and that he loves them. Please consider fasting for us this day, believing with us that chains will be broken and the love and light of God released and that God’s miraculous hand will move through the village. Watch for our film that we will be posting shortly after we return.

We have many needs for this trip. You can help us by donating on our website www.lovelyfeet.org. If you want to specifically designate your gift, send us an email and let us know. You can send your message directly to me at ron@lovelyfeet.org.

300 illustrated books $150
Toys for children $200
Transportation to/from $150
Snacks/cookies and food $200
300 New testaments $ covered

A great desire is to bring the Jesus film in the Aymara language to the villages. Most of these people have never seen movies let alone seeing it in their own language. This film could be so powerful for all these people. However, we have several obstacles that I am hoping you can help us with. We have a DVD player but the projector will cost us $700. I have found the projector here in La Paz. I have not priced any speakers but I do not expect them to cost more than $100. The biggest problem is a power source. I’m working on that. I can get a small generator but I would prefer a large battery. I found one in the states but they will not ship it here. Please keep this in prayer.

ON THE ROAD EACH MONTH
Our future plans include visiting at least one village each month. Of course there is a significant expense to that. Not every village is as large as the one we are visiting this month, but there will be continuing costs. Please consider partnering with us each month to help us with these costs and the costs of living here. We need you!

VICTORIES
Our house is sold, Praise God. Thank you all for praying for us. We are able to pay off almost all of our debts that we had in the US. Some of you may have thought we were crazy to leave our jobs and the US when we still had debts. But God said to us “the clock is ticking” in January. We heard 7 times that we were not waiting on God but that God was waiting on us and we left in faith. I’m not saying that our faith was not repeatedly challenged but we took our steps. We did not take any salary from this ministry and still have not. God simply supplied our needs and sold the house before we had to make one payment while we were in Bolivia…exactly 4 days before. SET aside all obstacles that so easily beset us! Our debt was the first of our obstacles, but God removed it. To those who are saying to yourselves that you can’t work for the church or take a missionary journey until you have so much money…stop focusing on the obstacle and seek God alone.

FAVOR AND FRIENDS
We have found much favor here in Bolivia. WE live in a boardinghouse where our hosts have basically adopted the three of us. As I am writing this I am recovering from an attack of sickness of fever and flu. Rene, the owner of our home, came into my room through the night checking on me and bringing me medicine and tea. They have become our sincere friends. We also live with three other girls, one from Japan, one from Holland and one from England. The people who live here rotate but all have been genuinely interested in the Lord and what we are doing here. We are praying for them and find it interesting that we would have the opportunity to witness to people from all parts of the world.
Our housekeeper at the boardinghouse is Aymara. Flora is one of three Christians from her village, the Isla del Sol. She never owned a Bible in her own language. I am happy to say that Lovely Feet bought her an Aymara Bible and we gave her copies of the Jesus film in her own language. Aymara people are very unemotional but Flora just about jumped up and down.
I would be lost without my neighbor and friend Abdul. Abdul has spent hours with me each week helping me through immigration. It would literally be impossible to make it without him. This has taken 20 to 40 hours of his time each week. As if that is not enough he has had us over to bar-b-que twice as well. And yet, Abdul is not a Christian. We openly talk about Jesus and about faith but he confesses to be an Atheist. He says that faith is difficult. As I love my new friend, keep him in prayer.
Our church is a small gathering, but each and every week new people appear with testimony of transformations. Rhonda has gotten the chance to play her guitar and lead in worship. Her guitar was purchased through a gift from a friend in the states.

CULTURAL UPDATE
The darkness is thick here in La Paz. We continue to learn about the devil’s strongholds and I want to keep you updated. We recently learned about the “Elephant Cemetery”. Legend has it that in Africa elephants go off to a solitary location to die when they think their life has run its course. Here in La Paz the homeless or down and out go to a secret location (it is illegal) and pay for a bucket of strong drink and a room. They are locked in this room to drink themselves to death. It is said that it can take a day or a week. Their body is then thrown into the foundation of a large building as a blood sacrifice to satisfy Pachamama. It is said that some workers will not work on the building unless there has been a sacrifice because Pachamama will exact her sacrifice on the construction worker if she does not have it another way.

SAVE THE DATE
Prayer and Fasting for October 17 as we go to the village. We will update you with photos and film.

WE LOVE YOU AND ARE PRAYING FOR YOU. Ron, Rhonda and Sam.
Check out our website at www.lovelyfeet.org

Week 3 in the promised land

"Rhonda and Flora"
"The prison. People line up very early on Sunday mornings to get in for a visit"
"Rhonda playing and singing at church"

We have been here just over two weeks and already it has been an incredible journey with God´s hand on every part of our lives. Ok, so you might not think it is God when twice thieves have attempted to rob me...that´s right, twice in two weeks (don´t tell my mother, she worries enough) but God was with me both times. The first time my bag was cut with a knife from behind...the thieves made off with 6 altitude sickness pills, funny, huh? The second time someone threw dirt on my neck in a crowded market to distract me while three men tried to crowd me and I caught one of their hands in my pocket. I pulled it out and yelled at them and they left...empty handed. Ok, so how is this an opportunity for ministry? I am thinking that I will photocopy money and let it hang out of my pocket...on the backside of the money I will put the gospel starting with The thief comes to kill and destroy but God comes to bring life and that life more abundantly. I am working on it...keep you posted.

There have been so many great connections made. I made very close friends with Abdul, the husband of the woman who runs are language school. He has spent many many days with me taking me back and forth to immigration and the police department and the consularia in order to secure our Visas for a year. A few days ago the consularia turned us down because our sponsoring church is not internationally registered. Abdul was upset, walked out of the consularia, raised his fist in the air and proclaimed, ¨Ok, now its personnel¨ We went back to immigration and found a way to stay as a volunteer instead of a missionary. God is with us! Of course I still have to fill out a million pieces of paper and get approval by the police and a doctor as well. Keep praying.

This weekend, Abdul and Alix had us over for a bbq. I ate meat, more meat, with meat for dessert. It was wonderful! They have taken us under their wings, helping Sam get into an ecological school as well. They are awesome folks, though they do not share our Christian views, it doesn´t matter to them.

We are making closer friends with everyone in our boardinghouse and we share many conversations including those about the Lord. Flora is the housekeeper of our boarding house. She is Aymara and SHE IS a Christian. She says that she is one of only three from her village. She did not own a bible in her own language so it was our pleasure to give her one from Lovely Feet. She was thrilled and said a most interesting thing when she received it. She said that her children would enjoy it very much along with her. Her children are teenagers. Isn´t that an interesting response? How many americans would say, Oh, my children will be so happy to receive a bible? (Picture of Rhonda and Flora above)

This weekend we visited her village. It is huge. There are hundreds of people, maybe a thousand, but only 3 Christians!

Rhonda blessed our church service this weekend by playing and singing praise songs. Our church of about 30 people does not have live music...or didn´t until now. It was a beautiful service. (picture of Rhonda above)
As far as our own adjustments, there are many. We wash clothes by hand, but what a great view we have while we wash looking over the city. I told Rhonda that I knew what I wanted for Christmas...a wringer...you know the old fashioned clothes wringer, it would really save my hands and my forearms. I think I am developing Popeye arms from all the wringing!

Of course, we don´t have a car here, but taxi´s are cheap. Mostly, we walk up and down streets that have 45 degree angles at times. It is very tiring but we are getting better. I walk nearly 5 miles a day.

God is moving so greatly, so quickly but there is so much to do and so many needs here. We are preparing to go back into a village in the Altiplano in a month or so to minister to the children while Pastor Angel ministers to the adults. This takes alot of preparation and finances. But it is the biggest reason why we are here. We are hoping to be able to take a projector to show the Jesus film to the Aymara, but it won´t be this trip unless God does huge things (which he certainly can). We need a projector and player and an energy source. That´s the tough part. I know of an energy source but we can´t get it to this country at this time. I will update details later.

Another matter for prayer is that by the first of the year or soon after I am hoping to approach the prison about being able to visit. The prison is a very sad sight with people waiting outside in long lines to be allowed to visit. The need is great, but so is the opportunity. (see picture above)

Please keep praying. YOur prayers are making a great difference. WE see the hand of God on things every single day. We love you, Ron and Rhonda.

WE ARE IN BOLIVIA

It has been a long and winding road but we are in Bolivia. (Ok, its a reference to Beatles song...believe it or not here in La Paz there is a place that has Beatles Karaoke...who would have guessed it). All glory to God. Rhonda and I and many of you have been praying for this for the last 3 to 4 years and now God has brought it to pass. There has been many obstacles thrown in front of us but God has taken us through!

We are living in a boarding house with a woman named Gloria and her husband Rene and their daughter Andrea and also with a young woman from Holland and another from Japan. We have our own room and SAm has his own room. This is home for the next 10 weeks!

When we flew into La Paz at 6am on the 3rd of September all of the mountains surrounding the city were covered in snow. It was a beautiful site through very tired eyes. It does not snow in the city which is a good thing because the streets are very very steep in all directions. We reached our new home and quickly began taking measures to fight the effects of the altitude. WE have been doing well but it is very exhausting to walk to the places we need to be.

As many of you know I was hoping for a shower in our home. Well I am glad to report we have one that we share and it even has hot water....sometimes. The house does not have heat but we sleep under several layers of wool blankets and we do stay warm. The food has been good too with soup twice a day with the meal. So, things are better than we hoped.

We began our classes in Spanish and Aymara and that is taking alot of brain power. Sam is taking off with both languages. The main man we are working with is Pastor Angel. He met us at the airport and has already begun working with us for our VISA extension. This is a lot of work with many steps. PLEASE friends, partners and all readers of this blog, pray that we have favor and that our paperwork goes through.

Unexpectedly, we have already begun sharing the gospel. I say unexpectedly because last night the young lady from Holland and her sister began asking me questions about the Christian life. I didn´t think that I would come to Bolivia to share the love of God with people from Holland. It was a lengthy conversation that ended with them saying that I had given them something to think about. They said they had really never heard the gospel before. It was a blessed hour. Keep them in your prayers, too.

Rhonda is great, leading Sam and I with her knowledge of Spanish. She is just as charming in Spanish as she is in English. Everyone loves to talk to her. WE love all of you and we will continue to update as we can. Pictures to come soon, too.

KEEP READING AND PRAYING Diosampiki (God bless you in Aymara)

To Bolivia and beyond...

Hello dear friends,

Well the next leg of our adventure begins one week from today. We leave for La Paz from Chicago O’Hare on September 2nd and arrive early the next morning. We are very busy with the final details of getting our VISA’s approved, packing and a host of other last minute things.

First, the VISA’s; we found out last week that we would not be able to stay for a year if we entered the country with a tourist VISA. We thought we could apply for all the paperwork we needed once we got to La Paz but this is not the case. You see, once you enter the country with one type of VISA (i.e. Tourist) it cannot be changed to another kind of VISA (i.e. work, student, specific purpose, etc). So we had to send our Passports and other important documents to Miami to get the Specific Purpose Visa. It took some time to get the stuff back and it made us nervous to send our passports, money orders, invitation letters, shot records etc in the mail. But when we got the paperwork returned we found that we had been denied. This was very discouraging. We called the other Consulate in Washington DC and they spoke much better English so we were able to understand what was needed. So, on Monday this week we sent our paperwork again but this time to DC. Please pray it is returned promptly AND that it is approved. We leave TN on Friday. If we do not have the paperwork back by then we will have to drive to DC before going to Chicago. This would be time consuming AND expensive.

The packing has been very difficult. We each can only bring two bags of 50lbs each. We are not able to bring extra bags and pay a fee, 2 is all we get. It is very difficult to pack a whole years worth of living in 2 suitcases. We have clothes, school books and ministry materials to take. It seems that we are constantly picking away at what we have to reduce it.

It has been getting harder emotionally as we say good-bye to loved ones. I know that we will be back in a year but still, it is hard. One highlight is that we were invited to the home of the Mathis’s. They are the family who now have Cocoa. It was such a blessing to see how happy and healthy and loved she is. They are such a wonderful family and it gives me great joy to see Cocoa become part of their family. Figaro is still with Ma in Chicago so we will be able to say good-bye to him too.
The house has not sold yet but we are trusting in our God. We have prayed and determined that nothing will stand in the way of the calling that God has placed in our hearts and minds. “let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith”. We have signed over Power of Attorney to a dear friend who will be able to negotiate and sign papers on our behalf.

We have been in contact with our friends in Bolivia and are already planning a trip to the Altiplano to minister to the Aymara. God is truly putting things in position for our travel, our arrival and His ministry to the Aymara.

We love you all and will continue to be in prayer for you. Please pray in agreement with us for open doors to share the freedom in Christ to the people of Bolivia. We will try to update the blog once a week to share with you what God is doing and how He is blessing us.

Please pray for these needs;
3- 1 Year Visa’s $1,050 each year for 2-3years
Truck/Van/Jeep to reach the villages $4,000-$6,000
Transport and house engineer to dig well $300-$500 per trip from Santa Cruz
Supplies to dig well $200 per well
Housing for Haynes family $250 per month
AT&T Prepaid minutes for Bolivian Cell Phone $30 per calling card
Food, gasoline, insurance, licenses, taxes etc Currently unknown
Village gifts, gas, transportation $100-$200 per village
Partners $25 per month

Thank you
“I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now” Phil 1:3-4

Missionaries:
Mark & Bev Chandler
Elaine Wilburn
Brian & Mary Chamberlin

Churches:
Light for the Nations Church of God
Living Word Church
Centerpoint Baptist Church
Flint Springs Cumberland Presbyterian
Abundant Life Church
Shiloh Baptist Church
The Rock Church
Prince of Peace Lutheran Church
Straightway Baptist Church
Steelville 1st Assembly of God
Tennessee Valley Community Church
Good Shepherd Lutheran Church
Celebration Baptist Church
Immanuel Lutheran Church

The Oregon Trail

Dear Friends,

We just flew in from Portland Oregon and "boy are our arms tired"...hahahaha.

We had a great time with Ryan, Brad, Chase and the whole gang! We flew out to Oregon on Thursday. Friday was a day of rest and then Saturday was Ryan's graduation. What a great day! We were so proud to see her graduate. She and the other chemistry grads spelled out Chemistry on the top of their hats using the periodic table of elements. It was so cool!

You may be wondering why Chase is singing Indiana Jones...he has the game for his DS and it is his favorite. Chase is ALWAYS humming. I am telling you, he has perfect pitch. He should be in the Vienna Boys Choir! We really enjoyed hearing him hum, listening to him read and watching him play. :::Sigh::: he is growing so fast.

After the graduation we had a party at Ryan and Brad's new house. We loved the house. It is so comfortable and beautiful! On Sunday we went to church and then to downtown Portland. In Portland we went to Powell’s the biggest used bookstore in the state. It was so big you had to have a map to get around. WE LOVED IT!

At Powell’s, I got this great book by Steve Saint called “The Great Omission.” Really, a great book. I already finished it. Steve Saint is the son of Missionary Nate Saint who was martyred in Ecuador in 1956 along with 4 other men (Jim Elliott and others). It is a great book about missions and empowering indigenous people by providing them with opportunity to spread the Gospel to their own people group. Also Saint has started a company that gives access to modern technology to indigenous people groups. He has built a small "electric parachute" that can be flown very simply. This allows the native people to travel around the rain forest of the Amazon to reach others, to take in supplies, to fly people out to medical doctors and clinics. They have also engineered a portable dentist drill and chair that is small enough to wear as a back pack and weighs only 60lbs. Check out his website at http://www.itecusa.org/projects.html The programs that ITEC has are teaching the native people to minister and serve their own people. It is really amazing! In fact that is the whole idea of this business is to put modern technology in a usable way in the hands of native people. This technology has not been thrust upon them, rather they have asked "how can we learn these skills so that we can fix our own teeth? We want to learn to fly so we can easily get to our other tribes to minister to the sick and share the story of God.” This technology allows the native people to keep their autonomy and dignity by being self sufficient and not having to depend on missionaries or the "white-man".

Monday was Ron's birthday. Thank you all for your phone calls and Facebook notes. It really meant a lot that you remembered Ron on this day. This was another great day! :) Ron and Brad laid some trim for the wood floor Brad had put in. It really put the finishing touches on the house. It looks so good! Ryan made a really yummy lasagna for dinner. We all ate too much and laughed a lot.

Tuesday was a sad day...we had to leave. It was such a blessing to be able to travel to Oregon to be with Ryan and her family. Thank you all for your prayers, the trip was well worth it.

Sam was not able to go so he held down the fort in St. Louis finishing his school work for the year and taking care of Cocoa.

We are now in preparation mode. We are preparing to hit the open road for New Mexico. There is a lot of packing, praying and planning to be done.

Please continue to pray for the sale of our house. Please pray that God will use us to share His love everyday...right now, right here.

We will be sending out one more newsletter before we leave for Bolivia. If you would like to receive the newsletter by email, send us an email at info@lovelyfeet.org and type SUBSCRIBE in the subject line.

God bless you all!
Ron, Rhonda and Sam

Dog Gone...

Dear friends...

Sorry we haven’t written for a while, we have not had much access to Internet.

It is a sad day. We have been struggling about what to do with our dog Figaro. At first we thought of course he would come to Bolivia with us...he is part of the family. But as we began our travels we found that he was having a hard time with it. He is a stay-at-home kind of dog. He likes to relax and sit on the couch. He likes lots of hugs and lots of petting and even some kisses. He was a not a very happy dog on the road. Also, he picked up this habit of barking that really was becoming a problem. Everywhere we traveled it seemed that he was in the way of our hosts. So after much prayer and buckets of tears, we took Figaro to Chicago to live with Ron’s mom. As you can see from the picture, Ma and Figaro are pretty happy about this new arrangement. However, we cried all the way back to St. Louis. We know this is best for Figaro, and good for Ma too, she needs the company.

Many of you have commented how hard it must be to give up our house, our stuff, our jobs...nope, not hard. Giving up our doggy...HARD. So please pray for us and for our little Figaro. He is a little depressed and not eating too well but he'll snap out of it. He really loves Ma!

This whole situation has made me consider the words of Jesus ""If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me." When I have thought about this verse in the past I wasn’t really seeing the "deny himself" as active, as an action. The writer of Hebrews says that we must "throw off everything that hinders". I love Figaro, but he was becoming an obstacle to the work God has called us too. I want to follow Jesus, I do not always want to deny myself, and it is not pleasant sometimes throwing off things in our lives to walk the Jesus Way. But, this is what we are called to; this is what I am called to do. Figaro is a good little doggy. We will miss him so much. But we know that we have done the right thing, we know that God will bless him and Ma and us too.

Recently we had an awesome opportunity to visit with some college friends that I (Rhonda) haven’t seen in 23 years. It was such a great time catching up and seeing what everyone was doing now…how we have changed and how we haven’t. We had such a great time. I hope it doesn’t take 23 years for me to see them all again. We laughed and joked and ate. It was so fun. I thank God for the opportunity to see them all and share the afternoon.

We spent a great week in Nebraska with Nathan. We visited with him, we relaxed, we prayed, we studied Spanish and we played our guitars. WOW, it was a much needed break for all the rush rush rush. We have been so blessed by our pop-up camper. Ron Moore and the Moore family...YOU ROCK! Thanks for the blessing.

Our next stop is Oregon. Our daughter Ryan is graduating from College so we will be spending about 4 or 5 days with her, Brad and our grandson Chase. YIPEEE! We are so excited! After we return from Oregon we will be traveling to Gallup New Mexico to work with some missionary friends Mark & Bev Chandler.

PLEASE PRAY!!!
>The house needs to be sold!
>God's provision
>Safety as we travel
>for our faith to increase
>the enemy IS defeated in all his attacks against us

Please know we are praying for all of you as well. We miss you and we love you!

Ron, Rhonda and Sam

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

Well it has been a week of warfare for the Lovely Feet team! Sorry for the delay in posting.

Rhonda had great fun playing trumpet with her brother Rich at Brass Ensemble at Immanuel Lutheran church in St. Charles MO. (Picture 1)

While here in St Louis we were blessed to be a part of a small group Bible Study that was a great encouragement to us. This is sweet group of brothers and sisters from Southwest Christian Church (http://www.swccmo.org/ ) (Picture 2)

The week started off with an amazing MIRACLE! We have been praying for the son of some friends of ours. He had a grand mal seizure. He has had many many tests trying to determine the cause. We have all been waiting for the results of these tests for some weeks. The prognosis was extremely grim. However, the family stood in faith praying against this prognosis and believing that God would heal. Our friend called us on the boys birthday with the news that the tests came back completely NORMAL…there was no sign of the two dark spots on his brain that has showed up on prior tests. We praise God our healer for this great miracle!

Then the enemy showed up! The enemy has been working overtime to discourage and depress us. We have different ways that we confront this battle. Ron has determined to rush the gates of the enemy by smacking him over the head with Youtube and Tangle videos. He has posted three of them. One is a take off on the new movie Twilight that all the kids are talking about. Another is Ron turning his face into a puppet and the last is Ron preaching the defeat of Satan in every book of the New Testament.

Rhonda has been spending a lot of time reading her Bible, praying and listening to praise and worship music with a little guitar practice on the side. (and helping Ron get his videos ready for posting).

We have been fasting and praying for direction and next steps. We have contacted over 100 ministries for open doors to minister…but doors have not opened. We were not sure why? We thought we had a plan. We thought that we were doing what God wanted. We thought…we…we? Could it be that “we” were being distracted by plans we had made or tried to make instead of hearing from God? We were becoming discouraged and frustrated until we realized that this discouragement and frustration were obstacles to the next steps that God had for us. We were allowing the enemy to distract us with the “why’s” of “the plan” not working. The Lord opened our eyes and we confessed to Him our short-sightedness. We confessed that these frustrations were not going to be a vehicle to share the Gospel with the Aymara or with anyone else and we laid all those emotions and frustrations down at the feet of Jesus. Whew! What a relief! How freeing!

Later that very night we had the opportunity to talk with some missionaries in New Mexico. Mark & Bev Chandler minister to the Navajo Nation. They contacted us some months ago by email (Lance & Michelle shared with a friend about us who shared with Mark and Bev). We had emailed back and forth a couple of times and finally got on the phone together. They shared their calling with us and guess what…? It was so very similar to ours. Isn’t God cool? We shared on the phone for over and hour. At the end of the conversation we prayed together but not before Mark and Bev invited us to New Mexico to share in the work of the Lord with the Navajo. WOW! How amazing is our God? What a glorious wonderful opportunity.

The Navajo are First Nations people just like the Aymara. I (Rhonda) just finished an AMAZING book that I highly recommend to all. It is by Richard Twiss a brother from the Lakota/Sioux. It is called One Church, Many Tribes. (http://store.fastcommerce.com/WiconiResources/prod-ff808081175e96dc01176560dfb87a2a.html) God has given us such a burden for the First Nations people. While there are many differences from the Navajo to the Lakota/Sioux to the Aymara there are many similarities amongst these First Nations people (“a term denoting original habitation by sovereign people or nations”). We hope and pray that God will continue to lift the veil from our eyes about worshiping Him in Spirit and truth and not following after the traditions of man. It seems that “Form” and “Substance” are reoccurring themes that keep coming up regarding our Worship of our Father God. Anyway, read this book! So it is amazing that here I was reading this book and then “coincidently” we talk with Mark and Bev who invite to come and minister with them to the Navajo.

We are greatly encouraged and excited about this opportunity. Please partner with us in prayer about this.

This weekend we will be spending time with family at Rhonda’s cousin’s daughter’s High School graduation on Friday. Saturday is a time for old High School friends. On Sunday we will be attending the Baptism of Chriss and Tony’s son Will. Later on Sunday we go to Rich’s (Rhonda’s Brother) for a BBQ with Lynda. (Rhonda’s step-mom).

We love you all and pray for you...

“And pray for us, too, that God may open a door for our message, so that we may proclaim the mystery of Christ …that [we] may proclaim it clearly, as [we] should.” Col 4:3,4

Diosampiki,
Ron, Rhonda and Sam

Ron and Sam's videos

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3PS2igMFL3k Twilight

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ttthQKJ360k Ron's puppet face

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nd0ZjETb8cw Satan's defeat part 1

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4JIPBOZ5b1E Satan's defeat part 2

Greetings Brothers and Sisters,

And so begins another week on the great adventure God has called us to!

We had a great week! We spent most of the week catching up on rest, reading, studying and spending time with Lord and our friends. Tony and Chriss are such a blessing to us!

Wednesday night we went to an awesome Bible Study. Frankly I (Rhonda) was not having a good day. I needed to get into the Word...I needed me some Jesus, some Word and some fellowship with believers! I was like junkie I needed it so bad! As usual, the Lord blessed beyond measure. My nephew Jake invited us to the adult Bible Study of Southwest Christian Church. Sam and Jake went to youth and Ron and showed up at Pastor Loren's house. Pastor Loren and Julie Copp welcomed us in like they had known us for a hundred years. Brother Eric lead the Bible Study and we just had the best time learning and sharing about the Lord. Brother Eric asked first where/when we remembered experiencing God's presence in a real and tangible way. It was a really interesting opening. Everyone had a different story to share and only one actually shared an experience that happened in Church.

So what about you? Where have you experienced God in your life where you KNOW that you know that you know He was there with you, touching you? Respond to this Blog with your answer. I will compile them anonymously and post them. We need to look for God everyone. God says to us “I love those who love me, and those who seek me find me.” Let’s encourage one another with our word of testimony!

So, we had a GREAT time with the brothers at Southwest Christian Church (http://www.swccmo.org ). We plan to return this Wednesday night and Lord willing, attend this Sunday.

Sam had a tremendous opportunity this past weekend. He was able to attend a youth rally called FM419. This name is based on Matthew 4:19 Jesus said, "Come and Follow Me and I will make you fishers of men." Matthew 4:19. ”Youth [have]…a weekend of high-energy music and life-changing training. [Youth] Get down to the basics of what [they] believe, find power to live what [they] say, and learn how to share [their] faith with others” ( http://link.brightcove.com/services/player/bcpid1137883230?bctid=18737868001 ) The band “The Afters” were there. They sing “Never going back to Okay”. Sam and his two cousins went and they had a great time. Ron took some video footage after the event asking Kids who Jesus was to them. Look forward to a short U-Tube of this footage. It is pretty cool! Sam was blessed by the event and I believe it gave him a better comfort level in sharing his faith. Of course the enemy has been at him a little. He is a little blue…missing his friends…his life is so different. PLEASE pray for Sam. Call him, email him…encourage him. (sam@lovelyfeet.org)

Saturday afternoon we got a call that someone was interested in seeing the house. We were so happy. I told the girl on the phone that of course they could come and look at the house and that they should invite all their friends to come too. (she thought I was a little crazy…huh…imagine). You may have heard that the sale of the home fell through. We were disappointed but we know God is sovereign and that He has something else in mind. We know that He has a better house suited for the Johnson’s and a buyer who is looking for exactly what our house has to offer. Please partner in prayer with us about this. God will bring the buyer in His time.

Yesterday we had a GREAT day. Of course it was Mothers Day and that was great. Sam got me the most beautiful pair of earrings. They are silver doves. I LOVE THEM! I heard from all of the other 5 kids as well and basically felt like I must be the best Mom ever. Thanks kids! I love you all so much!!! (especially you…you are my favorite…you know who you are…)

The pictures posted above are from Immanuel Lutheran Church in St. Charles MO. My brother Rich was able to work with his Pastor in giving us the opportunity to share about God’s work in Bolivia. We were given 5 minutes to share (you all know Ron…this was HARD…but he was able to say what God had him to say in 6 ½ minutes…a new record for Mr. Haynes!). We had so many people stop at the table and ask questions. Someone wanted to know when they could come to Bolivia and help in God’s work there. We were so blessed! To see the interest and compassion in these dear brothers and sisters was so amazing!!!

For dinner Chriss spear-headed the kids efforts and we had a great time visiting, eating, visiting, eating and visiting.

We leave you with this blessing…

“The LORD bless you and keep you; the LORD make his face shine upon you and be gracious to you; the LORD turn his face toward you and give you peace.”
We love you all!

Diosampiki,

Ron, Rhonda and Sam

Meet me in St. Louis...

Dear Brothers,

Greetings from St. Louis MO! (and surrounding areas)

We arrived in St. Louis late Friday night (May Day). We brought with us the blessing given us by Brother Ron Moore, a pop-up camper. Bullet (our truck) had no problem pulling the pop-up. In fact we got much much better gas mileage! We are very thankful to God for this blessing. You would be surprised how much it holds. We were thinking we would have to leave a lot of our things behind in Chicago but were so grateful to find that almost everything fit! We had to leave two things behind...Rhonda's Bike and Ron's bass guitar. However, one other blessing is that Ron's brother Buddy let him borrow his bass guitar which is much smaller and lighter. Therefore Ron does have a bass, just not "his" bass. So we are thankful. Also we were able to bring Ron and Sam's bikes so if Rhonda wants a bike to ride she does have access.

We had a great day on Saturday. We went to Rhonda's brother's praise band practice; Rhonda even got to sing a long. It was a great time of worship and fun. Rich introduced Rhonda to everyone adding that she was going on a "mission trip" to Bolivia. Rhonda had to point out that her dear brother was still in a little bit of denial about the whole thing. Rhonda pointed out that we are MOVING to South America not taking a short term mission trip. Rich grinned and we all had a bit of a laugh at his expense. It is hard for a big brother.

Sunday we were so blessed to minister in two churches in Steelville MO. Steelville is about an hour and a half from St. Louis. We left early Sunday morning for Center Point Baptist Church. The Pastor, Matt Cook, is married to Rhonda's cousin Sharon. The congregation was so welcoming! They treated us just like family. Well I guess we kind of are...Rhonda's aunt and uncle have been members of this church for about 300 years so, we felt right at home. Ron preached an anointed message and we praised and thanked the Lord. We talked afterward with several people. Rhonda shared with some really cool teens who were very interested to hear more about the mission. One girl Hannah Banana is home-schooled and seemed especially interested. We thank God that He is moving in the hearts of our youth and preparing them for their calling.

After church we had a great lunch and visit with Rhonda's family. We all shared stories of times past. Later Uncle Terry took us over to the Meramac Baptist Assoc Camp Grounds and showed us around. We are hoping to take the pop-up down there and park for a week or so to rest and spend sometime together as a family and with the Lord.

Sunday evening we were invited to Straightway Baptist also in Steelville. How awesome to be invited by Christian brothers and sisters we haven’t even met! God is good all the time! Pastor Mike and the whole congregation invited us in with open arms. We had the best time singing some old time favorites and then Pastor Mike turned the pulpit over to Ron. WOW, Ron was on FIRE! He preached from Mark 2 and shared about the Aymara. The Lord really moved. The congregation was so generous in every respect. One brother spoke up and made a motion to for the church to make a donation to the mission to the Aymara and it was quickly seconded and past. Another brother was ready to sign up to come and minister and work on a short time mission trip. This brother (Brad) wanted to plan a trip and bring his 13 year old daughter. We hope to spend more time with Pastor Mike and his wife as well as Rhonda’s family while there camping.

It was such an encouragement to see these two bodies of believers so on fire for the Gospel! We were greatly blessed! We pray that they were blessed by our sharing as well.

Today we wait to hear if the deal will go through on our home sale. There have been a few hic-ups but we know that God is sovereign and faithful and that He will sell our home at the right time to the right people and the He will greatly bless us and the buyers in the process. We are so thankful for our new friend and Real Estate agent Karen Miller. She and Jessica Smith have worked so hard for us. We feel more like they are friends than agents. We are thankful to God for them and for our new friendship.

Please be in prayer for the final steps of selling our home. Also please continue to pray that God will open doors for us to minister. We are overwhelmed by the church’s desire to hear more about the Aymara. It is amazing how the people want to know more and help more to spread the Gospel. We trust God to open doors that no man can shut and to direct our paths.

Thank you, thank you for all your prayers for us. We feel them and God answers them!

Diosampiki!
Ron, Rhonda and Sam

On the road in Chicago!

Dear Brothers,

Here we are in Chicago. What an adventure!

After days and hours and hours and days of work on the house (Nate & Kelly’s house now) we departed Chattanooga on Friday at 9pm. That’s right 9 PM! We were pulling a 28’ Camper and it was late and we were running on faith, coffee and excitement! We made it over Mounteagle with MUCH prayer (Rhonda white-knuckled hanging onto the door)! We then made it down Mounteagle with more prayer. We were praising and thanking the Lord for His provision and protection! We were determined to drive further.

At about 2:30 in the morning somewhere in the middle of Kentucky, Sam noticed something flapping on the roof of the camper. We got out to take a look at the roof to see what was flapping and found the "what" was the shredded pieces of the roof that had come off was what was flapping. We drove a little further to Paducah Kentucky and parked in Wal-Mart for the night…or at least for the rest of the night.

By morning (a few hours later) we prayerfully determined that we needed to leave the camper behind and head on to Chicago. Ron was due to preach at Abundant Life Church in Wilmington IL that next morning. We knew that the enemy was trying to keep us from getting there so we were more determined than ever to GET THERE! The devils a liar! We called brother Rob (owner of the camper) and he agreed it was best for us to go on and he graciously agreed to come and pick up the camper in Paducah.

We had to unload all of our personal items from the camper and on to a U-Haul tag-a-long. Finally we were ready to leave Paducah at about 4 in the afternoon. We had to get rid of some of the food we had packed and we had and noticed a couple of homeless kids (16 or 17yrs) near the Interstate. We walked over and offered them the food. Their names are Creeper and Sassy. They are a young couple on their way to Mt Sterling IL. We asked if we could pray for them. Creeper’s only prayer request was for the Sassy and the baby in her tummy. Creeper doesn’t know the Lord but he did allow us to lay hands on him and pray for him, Sassy and the baby. We didn’t have room to offer them a ride and fortunately they had a place to stay for the night. Please join us as we continue to pray for them, their salvation and safety.

We arrived late to Chicago on Saturday night and made it to Abundant Life without too much ado. We had a wonderful time of worship! This body of believers was so sweet and welcoming to us. Ron preached a great message (he is my favorite preacher) and many were moved by the Spirit. One sad thing…we missed the Lord in one area. A woman spoke up asking for prayer for depression. I was greatly moved by her request. I felt the nudge of the Holy Spirit to go and lay hands on her right then and pray for her. I found out later that both Ron and I felt this urging at that moment. Sadly, we did not respond to this prompting. We prayed for her when we got home and with great sorrow repented to God for not responding to His voice. Please pray that we are not only sensitive to the voice of God but also RESPONSIVE!

After the service we had lunch with Pastor Greg when a brother (also named Ron) called to say that he had a pop-up camper that we would be welcome to use and we could come over right then to take a look at it. We drove the short distance to Coal City and found the camper to be really nice and perfect for our needs…in some ways even better than the travel trailer. The pop-up weighs less and will be much better on gas mileage. We thanked Ron and told him we wanted to go home and ask the Lord about it.

We called the members of our board and asked them to pray about it as well. We are so thankful to God that He has provided for us. We all prayed and felt the Lord urging us to accept Brother Ron’s generous offer. Today Ron is working with Brother Ron on the finishing touches to get the camper road-ready. I cannot express our joy. We are so humbled by the love we have been shown and by all the prayers you have all offered up on our behalf.

Today we received an email from a brother Mike and a sister Peggy in Steelville MO sharing that they had been praying for us in Sunday School past. As you can tell, their prayers were heard! WOW, people we do not even know are praying for us. They have invited us to come and share about the Lord’s work in Bolivia next Sunday night. We are so blessed! We of course responded with thanks for the prayers and excitement over the opportunity to share.

For those of you who may doubt how much the enemy hates us and how much our Father loves us…let me tell you this last thing. Today I (Rhonda) went up to Starbucks to check email and update this Blog. When I went to boot up the computer the entire monitor was white with stripes of colors…like a rainbow. I heard Windows boot up but could not see anything on the monitor. I began to pray against this attack of the enemy pleading for God to intervene in this situation. You all know we can do without a laptop but it really is a blessing to have for so many reasons. I laid my hands on the computer as I prayed and I rebooted. After the reboot there was no change. I still saw a white screen with rainbow stripes. As I continued to pray slowly stripe by stripe I began to see fade away and my Windows desktop appear until all was restored. For you computer experts you may tell me something about heat or cold or electrical connections but I know that the enemy was defeated once again in an attempt to steal our peace and rob us of gifts given by our Father. All I can say is “Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us, to Him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.” and Amen…so say we all!

Love to all,
Ron, Rhonda and Sam

And they're off...

Dear Friends,

We are amazed at how awesome our God is!! Tomorrow we pack up the computer so this was our last chance to touch base until we are ON THE ROAD!

Praise the Lord we have sold our house. But wait...it gets better! We found out today that the couple buying our house are members at First Lutheran Chattanooga. In fact, Nate is the Director of Christian Education at 1st and he knows many of our Good Shepherd Lutheran friends. Before we ever met, we were praying for Nate and Kelli. We began to pray in January for the family that God would lead to make this their home. We prayed that they would feel the love and comfort here, that they would feel the presence of our Father. Wow, why are we so surprised when God answers our prayers?

So today I (Rhonda) was in the bedroom when the people came to measure for the new carpet for the new owners. We had not met the new owners but we knew their names. So I am in the bedroom making a DVD on the computer when I see Stephanie Henze walk by my room. I was like "Stephanie?" and she was like "Rhonda what are you doing here? Is this your house?" of course I said yes and then she asked if I knew that Nate had bought the house. I told her I knew that a guy named Nathan bought the house but that I did not know him. She introduced us (Ron and I and Sam) to Nate. What a great guy! He has such a passion for the Lord it is wonderful to see!

He asked if we would be interested in sharing about our mission at 1st when we come back to TN in July. Of course...YES! God is so funny. I know He is up there grinning at His handiwork. My friends, He is not slow in keeping His promises. He has answered every prayer!

We have been greatly blessed by our dear friends Rob & LeAnn for the loan of the camper. Ron and Rob have been working and working (with some help from Brian) to make all things ready. The camper is already beginning to feel like home. Sam was sitting in her (I think of our camper as a her...weird? maybe...so what) anyway, so Sam was sitting there and said "Ok, I'm home".

Cocoa and Figaro seem to really like it as well. We have added a special brake for the trailer to the truck that will make things safer. Tomorrow we put the final touches and sanitize the water system and she is ready to go! We have named our truck Bullet but not sure about the Camper girl yet....maybe we will just call her lil' sis cause she is a tag-a-long...get it?

Please continue to be in prayer for us. There are still challenges and obstacles to be overcome. We have an older truck and an older camper…”Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the LORD our God.”!

Our first stop on the US Tour is Abundant Life Church in Wilmington IL. We are so blessed to be able to share with Ron’s great friend Pastor Greg Linkous. We will be there for about a week then we are off to Steelville MO. For those of you who don’t know…take Highway “Farty-Far” (44) to Cuba and turn left. That is Steelville. There, we will be sharing at Center Point Baptist with Pastor Matt Cook and his lovely, sweet, wonderful wife (and my cousin) Sharon.

From there we will spend some time with family in St. Louis with hopes of God opening doors there for us to share His great work in Bolivia.

We love you all and feel your prayers. We know God hears as we see His hand moving in our lives.

Pray on Faithful Warrior Friends!

Love,

Ron, Rhonda and Sam

No foolin'!

Hey everybody! We are making our way to the promised land---Bolivia??? Yes, Bolivia. Step by step God is taking us there as a response to the desire of our hearts and the need of the Bolivian people. So where are we along the route??? Well, we now have the truck to pull the camper! We listed our cars for sale, sold one and traded the other for....you guessed it, a truck. We have been blessed with a wonderful Dodge Ram truck as an even swap for our Pontiac Grand Prix. And we are loving the truck.

It has a towing package on it...which we needed! And another friend of ours put on new brakes including the rotors so that it would be ready to stop as well as pull the camper.

Our house is still for sale! We have had many people come to look at it but we are still waiting for the "ka CHING!!!" money offer! So, to all who are reading this---stop right here and ask God to sell it, then rebuke the enemy from trying to prevent it. You wouldn't believe what the enemy has done---it is laughable! TWICE, that's right TWICE, we have had realtors come to the house to the show the house and then tell us the door know wouldn't open! There is NOTHING wrong with the door now! It's perfect---there is absolutely no reason it would not open. IT's a brand new doorknob! Everytime I get home I take the key and turn it, and the door opens!!! It's never been stuck! So, the night before last I anointed the door knob with oil, prayed over everydoor and then left. This time: no complaints about the door!

WE are also trying to open the doors for the churches to have us come in order to hear the message, learn about the Aymara and support this mission with prayers and finances! Again, pray for open doors! Our scheduling is currently sparse but is picking up steam!

Check back with us soon. WE ARE LEAVING SOMETIME AFTER APRIL 15 AND BEFORE APRIL 25. Send us YOUR prayer requests at ron@lovelyfeet.org or rhonda@lovelyfeet.org.

We Got Wheels...and a bed

As you know we have been praying for a camper, a truck, the house to sell, and financial supporters and prayer supporters for our ministry to Bolivia. Now, you might ask why we need a camper and truck....are we driving to Bolivia??? No! But we are driving through the United States until the end of September meeting pastors, preaching on the street, and ministering in churches to raise support and partners for the mission in Bolivia. The three of us have to live somewhere while we are driving across the U.S. And about a month ago God dropped it in our spirits to get a camper and a truck. So, I began a search, finding a few trucks here and there and a few campers that seemed the right fit. But, without any finances I simply said to God, "Hey, this looks good, don't you think?" And I also reminded God that the clock is ticking (more about that in a minute).

So, two days ago I get a message from my friends that they have a camper that we could use. I said, wow, how generous but I need it the whole summer until September and he said, "I said you could use it as long as you need it. Come by and look at it." So, we did and its even more than what we had been asking God for. It has a bunk bed for Sam...under my plan Sam was sleeping on the floor (just kidding...no angry letters please). Sam would have slept on the couch that converts to a bed. Now he has a place that is his. God is more than we could even ask or think.

As for the clock ticking....In November I was asked how our ministry development was going and I answered with , "I'm just waiting on God." In December friends started delivering messages to me from the pulpit and in sermons saying God is waiting on YOU! During the first week of January I received a word of prayer from my own Son saying the same thing---the sixth time! Another said that I would hear it again. A few days later, I heard it a seventh and then I heard another word from a friend who said, God wants me to tell you this and it doesn't make sense to me, but he says, "The clock is ticking!" Then she asked if I knew what that meant. ----only too well! So God and I have had this thing since then. He reminds me and I remind Him, "the clock is ticking!" Now we are at work everyday getting everything ready and receiving more and more ideas about the ministry. We are locking in arrangements in Bolivia as well. STAY TUNED GOD FANS, SAME GOD TIME, SAME GOD BLOG! (I'm feeling kinda Batmanish, Supermanish...ummm, God's manish? I hope so) {Ok, for you young people the Batman TV show used to say Stay tuned, Same bat time, same bat channel----sheesh, it loses something when you have to explain it!} - RON-

We love you all and thank you for your prayers and support. We are going to try and keep you posted on what is going on with us via this Blog. God is doing such amazing things so quickly that we have a hard time keeping up. Please please please keep us in your prayers. -RHONDA-