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Ever Hear of Churuguay? There isn’t a country named Churuguay, but that’s how you could describe the beginnings of the Free Methodist Church in the country of Uruguay. It was a combination of Chile and Uruguay. When the Chilean church was only 10 years old, it sent to Uruguay missionary Luis Muñoz, a young Chilean pastor with a heart for missions. He boarded the bus for Uruguay with a one-year commitment of financial support from the FMC in Chillán, Chile. As he began ministering in this largely atheistic country, Muñoz discovered that the naturalistic humanism taught in school didn’t help the people answer the deep questions of life. Many were hungry for spiritual answers. Muñoz oversaw the planting of FM churches at several Uruguayan sites, with a seminary and anchor church in the capital, Montevideo. Even as the Uruguayan church grew, the Chilean church remained involved, with the Chilean superintendent serving as the immediate supervisor of the Uruguayan church. Even now, the Uruguayan properties are held in the name of the Chilean FMC, as the Uruguayans work to become a fully registered church in their country. After the first year, FM World Missions began to encourage U.S. churches to assist in meeting the Uruguayan churches’ financial needs. Today the Uruguayan church ministers through several churches in Montevideo. They have an effective children’s outreach in a needy sector of the city, a radio program, and a seminary training pastors through a monthly, weeklong intensive class. In January 2006, Juan Carlos García became the first Uruguayan elder. He pastors at Paso Los Toros, a growing FM church a few hours north of Montevideo. (Their building was constructed by Uruguayans and roofed by a U.S. construction team.) Because the story of the Uruguayan church intersects with the stories of the Chilean and U.S. churches, this isn’t just a story of Uruguay, or even Churuguay — it really should be called ChUSuguay!
Day of the Hearing Impaired
The Free Methodist Church of Poá City, Brazil, recently held its first annual “Day of the Hearing Impaired.” The Dynamis Ministry to the Hearing Impaired is nearly a year old and already has approximately 15 hearing-impaired participants. Five have been baptized by Pastor Maurício Campos da Silva Junior. The Day of the Hearing Impaired was sponsored by several local businesses and covered by the regional media. Each Tuesday the church conducts services and activities for the deaf; on Sundays there is interpretation of the morning services. Soccer for Jesus
We asked someone in our church if he knew of any children’s soccer leagues here in Santiago, Chile, so that Addison and Isaac could play. He excitedly told us about the team named Cristo Salva (Christ saves). It’s a great club for the boys! They practice every Saturday morning for several hours or have a game against other teams throughout the city. It has been a wonderful opportunity for them to continue to learn Spanish, meet friends, be mentored and taught by their coaches, and learn good sportsmanship and teamwork. Their team was founded by a former professional soccer player. He is a Christian who wants to instill both good soccer skills and godly principles in young players. So … watch out when we come home for furlough in 2009! The boys may be able to show you some pretty cool Chilean soccer moves! Antigua FMC: Reaching Out
Johny Tellado is now teaching three ESL classes and reaching more people than ever. He and his wife Elizabeth are also assisting several individuals with immigration issues. Pastor Doug Ranck (pictured here with the Tellados), has visited Antigua three times, most recently to help with VBS and provide church support. Ranck (on staff at the Free Methodist Church of Santa Barbara, CA) indicates that the hope is for the Antigua FMC to become a hub for ministry training and church multiplication in the Lesser Antilles/Eastern Caribbean. “We have a good foundation — we’re in great shape for that,” says Ranck.
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