Trying to convince himself that God doesn’t exist
We have had several interesting visitors this month. One Sunday night a man came in after service and unwilling to tell us his name. His first declaration when we invited him in was, “I DON’T BELIEVE IN GOD!!”. We were friendly and offered him some refreshments as we were having fellowship. Many times, nonbelievers will try to provoke a reaction in order to show how “intolerant” us Christians are. Not only did he find that he couldn’t draw us into any foolish reaction but that we actually also have intelligent, reasonable conversations. Throughout the encounter he kept repeating to us his affirmation of unbelief. It seemed to me as if he was trying to convince himself with all the repetition.
Hot Water
Even though it was only a couple of years ago that we had replaced it, our hot water heater began to give us problems again. It got to where we had to relight the pilot multiple times per day for the water heater to stay going. It got to the point where it would only stay lit for about 15 to 20 seconds at a time. It doesn’t take long to write this, but it took us a while to figure out that the problem was that the censor was a little too far from the pilot light and was shutting off because it thought there was no flame. The solution that we found is not elegant looking but we have been enjoying nonstop hot water for the rest of the month!
Attending a funeral in Argentina
Funerals are done differently here in Argentina than the way we are used to in the States. There are some things that are easier to adapt to and others that require more personal effort. During the month we attended our second funeral here. Both funerals were connected to different sides of one of the families that we have been ministering to on Sunday nights. Please pray for this family as they have been dealing with a lot this year.
One difference with funerals here is that they don’t prepare the body the same as it is done in the States. The funeral is like what we would consider the family visitation time. Towards the end of the visitation time since I was a pastor present during the mourning time they asked if I would read a verse and give a few short words to the family and friends present. After I shared the gospel and a prayer was said the family has a short time to say their final goodbyes to the body. Then while everyone watches a man comes by and caulks all around the lid and begins to screw down the metal liner with probably at least 60 or 70 screws. Then there is a solution that is poured into a small hole in the top and sealed. This solution is supposed to help with the breakdown of the body. At the graveside ceremony everyone watched and waited as a worker sealed the casket into a concrete cubby hole. At the very end the entire family began to applaud the departure of their loved one.
First Sunday morning service in Guiñazu
One of the families that has been coming to our Sunday night service, (the same family that suffered the recent losses described above), has expressed a desire to have a Bible study in their home. (They are currently living about 20 minutes away from our meeting place in a small suburb north of the city.) They have a lot of extended family that live in this area that they would like to reach.
Bonus Pictures
