Here it comes...

Please continue to pray for Congreso details as it is quickly approaching. We're working on videos, still don't have many details about the sound equipment, and are still awaiting confirmation on the band members.

Additionally, please pray for buses for Congreso. So far we have only hit roadblocks in trying to get one from the school, but we're pursuing the permission we're missing from higher up the chain of authority. Please pray for favor and that we would speak with wisdom and clarity. Also, please pray for all cities since they have also been having similar trouble securing a free bus from their respective universities.

Thank God for the retreat and the details he's worked out this far. The stage is going to be a whole lot easier than I imagined, and the dramas have come together too. Retreat went really well; hopefully I'll have a chance to write more about that in an update in the coming days.

Also, thank God for his financial provision. Through a quick call to my monthly supporters he has already raised enough money for us to send 17 students to Congreso 100% free. Additionally, a letter that Gustavo (one of the guys I'm discipling) wrote has so far seen the fruit of bringing in enough money for him to pay his own registration, the registration of another, and halfway toward a third person (and he still has yet to receive from a few potential donors that have said they're planning to help him!).

Details

This week is one of details. Thursday I'll be going to look at a stage for Congreso and going out to the site to make some measurements so that we have a better idea of what we're working with. We also have a retreat this weekend, so there are lots of transportation, food, content, and logistic details to work out. Please pray that Congreso details like the band, the stage, the emcees, the skits, etc continue to be worked out. Please pray for our retreat, that the details all come together, and that it would be a time for students to grow together in community and be "transformed" (the theme of the retreat).

You can also thank God for our safe travel. We got to the airport in Quito only to find out that the second leg of our journey was canceled. However, the airline lined things up and took responsibility, so we got home a mere 7 hours later than anticipated. That let us be back with enough time to prepare for the finance meeting the next day which went really well. As I worked on preparing a little talk about the biblical basis for raising funds for ministry, I came across Acts 18:1-5 and was excited to see how both "tent-making" and partnership methods of providing for needs during ministry appeared in the same passage. Overall, I definitely think the meeting went well.

Fund raising meeting & Travel

Please pray for a fund-raising meeting we are going to have Thursday. The goal is to help students learn about how they can raise funds for Congreso. My part to prepare is the biblical basis both for the "tent-making" or part time work approach to raising funds for ministry as well as the partnership approach of asking people to be a partner in the ministry by giving/providing for the financial needs. Please pray for students to come, that they would get a good idea of what Congreso is, what the biblical basis for support raising is, and practical advice/pointers/starting points on how to do it.

Also prayers about our visa renewal trip would be appreciated too. Thank God for the time of rest we've had (I'm actually writing in Quito, Ecuador now), and pray for safe travel tomorrow (Wednesday) morning and rest to recover from the traveling tomorrow afternoon.