May 2023 Report

Posted on June 4, 2023 by Anastacia Maness

Did a month go by already?

Preparing for group coming to visit us!

***Stacie and I created a travel guide filled with interesting information and tips for groups or individuals who may decide to come visit us here in Cordoba, Argentina.*** (Click on the Picture to view the PDF of the flyer.)

We are excited about having a couple of members from Victory MBC in Russelville, AR come to visit us at the end of June. Their church made an initiative to send their members to visit all of the mission points that they support. What a great way to personally take part in the great commission for a local New Testament church!

Goodbye to Gluttony

About a month ago, my wife and I radically tried something new on our diet to try to take better control of our health to fix current challenges and prevent future problems. For over a month we have cut out almost all carbs and changed our meal times to two meals per day: one meal around noon and another about 7:00 PM. (The kids are still eating normal food and normal mealtimes.) So far we have been feeling amazing and have really enjoyed the results. Health is not everything that the world thinks that it is. This world worships the body and health as did the ancient Greeks, but God would have us to maintain the bodies that he gave us so that we can work better for Him! This paragraph is not a judgment upon anybody else’s food struggles we are just sharing some of our own.

Renewing our Visa

We have begun the long process again of getting our yearly immigrations requirements finished. There was an Argentine pastor that just took his yearly trip to Buenos Aires to handle his and told us how much faster it is to go in person. With that in mind I took my son, Jonathan, and we determined that we would get a cheap ticket to BA and back and try to get it finished. We were impressed with the giant building where the “Minister of the Cults” had his office. The secretary told us however that we were in the wrong place.

She said that the office for “non Catholic” churches was across the street. We found the little tiny worn out office and was told that we could only do the renewal process online. They were friendly at least! That same day we tried to recover my wife’s package that we talked about last month. We were unsuccessful even though we spent half the day trying. The trip wasn’t a complete loss however as we had brought a suitcase full of gospel booklets and came back empty after talking with several individuals. I also had a great time with my son at the same time. We have filed our papers and are waiting to get a reply back from the minister of the cults… Update: As we were preparing this report we got our signed letter back! On to the next step!
(I think that the other pastor could renew in person because he was Argentine and not doing it for visa renewal.) All is in God’s hands and we are thankful for the many people that we were able to talk to during our couple days there!

Lizard People?

While sharing the gospel in Buenos Aires, I found a very talkative gentleman that had lots of questions about the Bible. In Argentina as in the US there are several people that watch too many Youtube conspiracy videos and read the books that they put out. In his view, all of the world rulers were Jewish, Illuminati Lizard people. Reading books is good and I read very wide, but make sure that you don’t put more weight in man’s books than in “The Book”!

“The pope used to pass by here.”

As we were in Buenos Aires, we stopped into a barber shop to get my hair cut. (Long overdue as my normal barber quit.) Barber shops are great places to share the gospel (even if they do have a strait razor to your throat) and soon we were in a great conversation about Jesus. He had asked me at one point what I thought of the current Pope Francis. I told him that I had never met the man personally. He told me that before he was pope, he used to pass by his barbershop, walking, but then added that he never did get a haircut from him.The pope used to pass by here.”

“I read the whole book.”

There is a young man that is a member of Templo Bautista that recently surrendered to the ministry. He told me the other day that he read our gospel booklet cover to cover and listened to several of the messages that the QR codes go to. In the gospel books there are resources on two main themes: Salvation and Christian obligation (what to do after you’re saved) Our gospel booklet covers all of our doctrinal statements! Pray for this young man in his ministry.

Please continue to pray that God would provide in His time, the perfect place to meet!

Thank you for your prayers and support!

~Thoughts from Stacie~

What do the Kids think about our new diet?

Since Scott already talked about how we’ve changed our way of eating for our health’s sake, I thought I would just share how this affects the rest of the family. The children are still eating basically the same although we have included more vegetables in their diet as well. For instance if we have a salad for a meal we make sure to prepare enough for them to have some as a side dish to whatever they are eating.

Several times they mentioned how much easier it has been for them to figure out what to eat since whatever has bread or rice in or on it is theirs. They also don’t have to worry about saving food for us as we fix our own separate meal each day before they fix their lunch. The kids are happy and have been learning more about health and fitness. Our eating better actually helps them make better choices as well. We also started providing more fruits and vegetables for the kids and save the ice cream and cookies for special occasions.

Hannah’s Doctors Visits

Hannah had a couple of doctor visits this month. The medical doctor we went to told us that some people are more sensitive to certain changes like standing up too fast or overheating. He said all of her lab work and everything else looks normal but she needs to make sure she doesn’t skip meals and to not stand up too fast from a sitting position. There are a couple of more tests on her heart that we are going to have done just to be completely sure but it looks like she’s fine and just needs to watch out for the activities that trigger these spells she’s had. The doctor also gave her a letter of health saying she was able to participate in any athletic activities at the gym. She and Jonathan are both wanting to start exercising more. I plan to go with them when they do start going to the gym to make sure they don’t overdo and hurt themselves.

Mother’s Day

Here in Argentina Mother’s Day is celebrated in October. But since we are from the United States we celebrate both the U.S. Mother’s Day and Argentine. I had a good day. We spent the day at home listening to the Mother’s Day sermons online. I also took Scott and Jonathan to the airport that morning which is why I decided we would stay home instead of our normal Sunday morning routine.

Scott and Jonathan Travel to Buenos Aires

Buenos Aires is such a big, busy place. If you read our report from last month you will see that Hannah and I went to Buenos Aires the previous month to try to get a package that was stuck there in customs. Scott talks about his experience there on his page. I haven’t completely given up on that package. It’s not going anywhere I just need to keep bugging them to get it out of customs.

Fall Concerts and Recitals

We have come to the end of fall and we enjoyed getting to hear the kids perform in fall concerts. Jonathan had his concert towards the beginning of May. Hannah and Elijah had a recital in the middle of the month. Then Elisabeth and Joanna ended the month with their violin concert. They are all doing so well at their instruments. It’s fun to watch them grow and learn.

Joanna’s First Lost Tooth

Our youngest daughter Joanna had her first loose tooth. Here in Argentina instead of a tooth fairy they have a mouse called “Raton Perez” that comes and takes the teeth from under pillows. However I found it much easier to just skip the middle fairy (or mouse) and just give my kids their money immediately. I know it’s not traditional but it saves me from forgetting about it.

Homeschool Co-op Field Trip

The last Friday of each month we get together with other Homeschool families. The parents take turns teaching classes for the children and then afterwards we eat lunch together and sometimes we go on a field trip together. This year we went to an outdoor park that used to be a zoo. When it was a zoo it was sadly run down and the animals weren’t well cared for. The government had the location completely renovated. We visited it with the other homeschool families in the co-op. It was set up like a zoo but without the animals just pictures and videos. The kids did enjoy spending time with their friends at least.

Elisabeth’s Birthday

Elisabeth turned 11 years old this past month. She had a great day filled with eating out, playing games at an arcade, and ice cream. We also went to a nearby town to watch Hannah’s clarinet teacher perform in a concert at a museum. When we arrived back home Elisabeth opened her presents and we watched a movie. She seemed to really enjoy her day.

Bonus Pictures

This store in the neighborhood where we live advertises that they sell idols that don’t break! At the bottom it says that they are ideal so that your kids can know who Jesus is.

As you can see there is a lot of work to do here and the challenges are great! Pray that we might reach the people where they are and help them to know that you don’t connect to Jesus through an image!

In front of the “casa rosada”, the equivalent of our “white house”, some people have built a shack in protest demanding an audience with the president!

The sign says that they have been there for two years and three months!

Joanna made a life size “Elsa” out of a “Frozen” popcorn bucket. Something like this standing in the living room can really startle a person in the morning!

April 2023 Report

Posted on May 5, 2023 by Anastacia Maness

Packages, the mail, flat tire, sharing the gospel and doctor visits

Packages and the Argentine mail

Card and church bulletin that we received from White Oak Baptist Church in Nancy, KY

Thank you for your prayers!

Mail in Argentina is a crazy thing! Some items will come through with no problems while other things get stuck in customs or some other unknown place. During the month we received a card and church bulletin from White Oak in Nancy, KY. Words can not express what this meant to me. The card was great, but it was the inclusion of the church bulletin that really affected my heart! Someone thought to include us by adding the bulletin. It is hard to explain in words what it meant to me personally. Thank you for sharing your Sunday service with us!

On another occasion we received a package for my wife from the “Missionary Wives Assistance Corps” head up by sister Toni Shockey. Even though it took my wife about 5 trips to be able to pick up the package, it was a great blessing to get the package in the mail.

There is still another package downtown that we have not been able to retrieve. After we received a notice under our door, I took a trip down to the center the next day to try to retrieve it, when they told me to come back as the delivery man still had it. I came back again the next day with the same advice given to me. A few days later I came back and was told that I needed to declare the total value of the contents and pay the customs. As I had no clue as to the contents or the sender, the agent apparently made up a number and told me to create an online account, fill out the information and pay the fee online. (“There is no option now to pay the fee in cash”, he said in Spanish.) In the post office I created an account on my phone, filled in the information and tried to pay, and then tried to pay again, and again. He could not explain why the payment just said that it was in transit, but told me that when it was paid, then the package would be released for pickup. A few days later we tried again from the computer with different browsers but with the same errors. Not sure where we will go next on that process.

My wife will share on the next page another package experience that involved even more!

We are very thankful for everything that has been sent but please contact us before sending a package especially something that is valuable or irreplaceable!

Flat tire and sharing the gospel

We took a trip one weekend to a neighboring town to meet people, change the scenery and pass out gospel booklets in that town. While we were there we had a flat tire that we had to have repaired. Due to the need for repairing the tire, it required two special trips to get the tire fixed. On both occasions, God gave me an opportunity to share the gospel with lost sinners in need of salvation that is only in Christ Jesus!

Several doctor visits

Hannah scared us one day when she wasn’t feeling well. It started with her having an upset stomach and then her hands and arms cramped followed by a slight cramping in her legs. It took a good bit for the cramping to loosen up. She’s fainted in the past when she was dehydrated or overheated but this time was different so we took her immediately to the hospital. The doctors ran quite a few tests and found her healthy but recommended she see a couple of specialists. The general consensus is that she probably went too long between meals and needs to be careful to eat and drink enough. She’s been doing a lot better since she’s been taking better care of herself. We will update in our next report on the outcome of her visits with the specialists.

Please continue to pray that God would provide in His time, the perfect place to meet!
Thank you for your prayers and support!

~Thoughts from Stacie~

Troubles with Customs

Way back before Scott had his short trip to the States, I ordered some tea and a few other items from a reputable company that said it delivered to Argentina. I realized shipping would be expensive and I would most likely have to pay customs on the items since but I thought since I was using a delivery company it would at least arrive in my town and I could deal with customs here. I watched the tracking and saw it arrived at the delivery company in Buenos Aires but got stuck in customs. So they cannot deliver it to Cordoba. I could either abandon the package or go to Buenos Aires directly. Well, I’m a little too stubborn to just abandon the package that easily.

Trip to Buenos Aires

We had too much going on with our schedule for a family trip so I decided this would make a nice opportunity to go on a mother/daughter trip with Hannah. This will probably be Hannah’s last year here in Argentina and I thought we could make it a bit of a sight seeing adventure while also getting my package. We found a good price for two way plane tickets to BA and I made a 2 night reservation at the hotel there. We tried to get the package but there seems to be some kind of process the delivery company has to go through and I have to pay the customs fee all because I bought “too much” tea. If it had been a non-food item it would have been a simpler thing. Even though we weren’t able to bring home the package, we had fun sightseeing and it was nice having a stress free plane ride.

Easter Shopping

We have a tradition of buying new dress clothes to wear for Easter Sunday. After Hannah and I got back to Cordoba from our short trip, we decided to divide and conquer. Scott took the boys suit shopping and I took the girls dress shopping. We had to go to different stores because there really isn’t one store that sells it all. We found Hannah’s skirt and blouse at one store, and then Joanna’s and Elisabeth’s dresses at another store.

Scott found the boys suits and him a new suit coat at another store. Then finally I went out and found myself a new black dress. We would normally do more pastels for Easter but since Easter is in the fall here we went for more fall/winter colors since we’re going into winter.

Hannah’s Scare

The day after we went shopping Hannah woke up with her stomach feeling funny. The evening before we had soup for supper. She didn’t feel well so she was afraid to eat but she drank quite a bit of water because she has had problems passing out from not drinking enough and standing up too fast. She threw up a little but hadn’t eaten breakfast so we thought she should try some crackers and see if that would help her stomach.

As she went to pick up a cracker her hand started cramping followed by the other hand. Then the cramping progressed up her arm. We weren’t sure what was going on but decided it was best to get her to the private hospital in our neighborhood. Scott went and got the car from the garage while I tried to calm her down. She was conscious the whole time so the doctors don’t believe it was a seizure. All of the tests they ran on her heart and all came back normal so they think this happened because she went too long without eating. They are probably right but to be on the safe side we decided to go ahead and make the appointments with the specialist and other doctors. We’ll update next month on how those tests go.

Easter Sunday

Easter Sunday we attended the services of Templo Bautista. It was nice having new clothes to wear to church. We don’t buy dress clothes often but this time of year is a good time to do so. The venders understand a little better when you’re shopping is “extravagant” for a special occasion.

Weekend Get-a-way

We feel a lot of stress sometimes as missionaries. I think Scott and I feel it more than the children. There are certain “symptoms” that come on us emotionally that we have to catch. When the signs of stress start showing Scott and I talk about where we need to go and start planning a weekend away from our norm to reset. Only a couple of nights away somehow puts us back into a better state of mind and encourages us as we move forward with what God has for us here. It also gives us opportunities to meet people outside of town and share the gospel with them. There is always the possibility that the Lord could open more doors outside our normal city life.

The Phone Call

While we were in another town we received a call from Malvinas Argentinas. Someone had an accident and they were needing money. Another problem we have as Americans is people seeing us as the solution to all their financial problems. The call greatly confused us as we still care about them however they had made it clear before that they had no desire to communicate with us at all. But thankfully we were out of town when they called so they would have to wait for us to get home the next day. That gave us time to think about how to handle the situation. They managed to resolve their financial problem within the family and we didn’t have to have the hard conversation that it looked like we were about to have.

Bonus Pictures

One of the normal strange sights that you will see in Cordoba, Argentina!

Thankful to be able to be a blessing to a sister here in Argentina by repairing and recovering her worn out hymnal!

A hymnal is something that is not easily replaceable as most hymnals in Argentina are spiral bound with only the words. They are not normally available for sale with the music included. To have her book brought to a better than new condition was something that she did not know was possible.

Enjoyed getting to preach to the men’s fellowship in Colombia by Zoom!

March 2023 Report

Posted on April 2, 2023 by Anastacia Maness

February 2023 Report

Posted on March 11, 2023 by Anastacia Maness

January 2023 Report

Posted on February 2, 2023 by Anastacia Maness

December 2022

Posted on January 5, 2023 by Anastacia Maness

At the beginning of the month we had the last concert that Hannah, Jonathan and Elijah were in. We prepared gift bags that had several treats and gospel booklets in them. It was great getting to share the gospel with several that day!

Dirty Ice

We had been buying bags of ice from the store next to our house because of the heat. After about a week of using the Ice for our water, we noticed that there was a lot of nasty floaties in the water when the ice melted. We are not sure if that was a contributing factor in us getting sick or not.

Two Weeks of Sickness

During the middle of this month we had sickness that even shut down our midweek service for a week as I was sick at the same time as the family where we are meeting. I was sick for the first week and as I was getting better Stacie became sick. Thankfully as I write this we all are better and are diligent in His service.

A Short Rest

We had planned since last month to rent a house outside of town for a couple of days. The time that we went fell at the time that I was recovering from the sickness and Stacie was starting with it. The change of scenery was a blessing for the kids, even if only for a few days! Cordoba has been very hot lately, over 100º and in the house it gets very hot some days. Where we went had a nice breeze blowing throughout the day as it was on a lake in the mountains.

Cursed by False Prophets but Blessed by God

Continue to pray for the next door neighbor where we are meeting. She had a meeting at her home where she called her false prophet pastors to pronounce a curse upon us and on our Bible study on Wednesday night and upon the family where we are meeting. About this same time four of the people in their family became sick and it looked like we would not be able to have our special Christmas outreach. This took place on the Friday before Christmas. We prayed! They prayed and read scripture! The next day I received a phone call from them letting me know that they were all feeling better the next morning and they all wanted to still have the meeting that evening and not let Satan have the victory

We spent the rest of the day getting things ready and had the best meeting ever! We even prepared a gift basket for the lady next door that had been so vile to them and to us! Jesus had the victory for the evening!

The sky is falling! The sky is falling!

Thankfully my kids are hard headed! towards the end of the month the plaster fell from the ceiling on into the middle of the dinning room table while the kids were eating lunch. The roof as already been fixed at the time that I am writing this but you never know what each day will include.

Thoughts from Stacie

End of Year Band Concert and Last Violin Class for the Year

The beginning of December we had all of our end of year concerts and parties with the band and violin classes we are taking. Scott and the older three children had an end of year concert and the younger girls and I had our final violin class for the year. We made our last class special by having the rest of the family bring their instruments and we played Christmas songs with our violin teacher.

Weekend Getaway at the Lake House

Even though Scott still had a cough we decided to go ahead and escape the big city and head to the lake house. The last time we visited the lake house was about three years ago. It was good to get out of the dusty city and enjoy some fresh air. It was beautiful weather and Scott started feeling better. Then I started coming down with the same symptoms he had. Getting sick was not in our plans for the month.

Soccer – Argentina won the World Cup

Most of December was filled with excitement as Argentina competed for the FIFA World Championship. Soccer is super important in the culture here. It’s bigger than the Super Bowl in the U.S. People here practically worship their favorite players and when Argentina won it was like all the problems of the world were solved in that final victory.

Soccer – Argentina won the World Cup

Christmas Shopping

We want to thank all the churches that sent us special Christmas offerings. We were able to not only buy gifts for our children but it also helped us to take them out Christmas shopping as well. Letting them shop for each other and us has been a tradition that we all love. It’s fun to see what each one picks out for everyone. Then they also get to go out and buy gifts for us. The special offerings helped us be able to give them enough money to buy gifts they knew everyone would truly enjoy. It is also fun for us to see how much older they are getting in their gift selections.

A Christmas Blessing

We almost thought we weren’t going to be able to have the special Christmas Eve celebration when several people from our Bible Study in Malvinas Argentinas fell sick. The Friday before Christmas we found out about those who were sick and also heard the sad story of the neighbor who had the elders from her church come curse the Bible Study and the home where we’ve been meeting.

Scott asked the ones who were having problems with their neighbor to read Nehemiah who went through a similar situation while repairing the temple. That night I prayed for special Christmas blessing for our brothers and sisters in Malvinas Argentinas asking God to bless them more than the others wanted them cursed. The next day as we were preparing the baskets to deliver to the families we received the news that they were all feeling better and wanted to continue with the plans for the Christmas Eve celebration.

Happy New Year!

We ended 2022 with thirteen in attendance in our Wednesday night Bible Study. We discussed goals and the possibilities for the New Year. In 2023 we would love to find a better place to meet and to add another service on Sundays. Please continue to pray that the Lord opens the doors as we continue to seek His will.

Bonus Pictures

One Sunday the church in Cordoba where we visit asked Scott to translate for some special guests from the U.S.

It was Bro. Victor’s first time to have someone translate his sermon.

First time to preach in a gaucho poncho! It was a cool evening and our host passed us out coats to keep us warm!

Preparing Christmas gift baskets for people in our neighborhood and for our Christmas outreach!

November 2022

Posted on December 9, 2022 by Anastacia Maness

She that goeth forth and weepeth!

One of the ladies in our Wednesday night Bible study has been going up and down the streets in her neighborhood and inviting her neighbors. She would share with the people that she met, (bearing the precious seed), and weep and pray over the lost souls in her community! She truly has a heart like Jeremiah (Mine eye affecteth mine heart… Lm 3:51) It is a blessing to be able to encourage such people with the Word of God! After only three months of meeting we have been running 14 in attendance consistently. (Seven in my family and seven besides!)

May all of our hearts look to His promise and be soul winners!

She chose to be with us on Wednesday night!

Last month we shared about the lady that lived next door to the family where we are meeting and how the false prophets in the neighborhood had pressured her to not spend time with us since we we Baptists! We noticed that at one point in the month she stopped leaving in the middle of the service to appease the other pastor. She decided to spend the whole Wednesday service with us! Please pray for her as she has a lot of physical pain in her legs, especially now that the weather is so hot!

Bible Lesson for the kids!

Another thing that we did was to reorganize our Wednesday night meeting to have a short kid’s Bible lesson before the preaching. It is hard to describe the neighborhood where we are reaching out, but there are several kids that do not go to school and are not able to read that many times have never seen what a Biblical family is supposed to look like as they have never had it modeled for them in their homes! Please pray for the Lord to give us the wisdom and strength to reach out to win souls for Him!Another thing that we did was to reorganize our Wednesday night meeting to have a short kid’s Bible lesson before the preaching. It is hard to describe the neighborhood where we are reaching out, but there are several kids that do not go to school and are not able to read that many times have never seen what a Biblical family is supposed to look like as they have never had it modeled for them in their homes! Please pray for the Lord to give us the wisdom and strength to reach out to win souls for Him!

Thoughts from Stacie

Jonathan’s 15th Birthday

On the 4th of November we celebrated Jonathan’s Birthday. We surprised him by taking him and his siblings to the Super Park. The Super Park is a small local theme park with rides and activities for kids. It has been several years since we’ve been. They’ve all grown so much since our last visit there.

Women’s Conference

That following Saturday, November 5th, I took Hannah and two other ladies from our mission point in Malvinas Argentinas to a Ladies Bible Conference in the southern part of the city. We had a wonderful time of fellowship and encouragement.

Children’s Bible Lesson

Also this month I started teaching a children’s Bible Lesson on Wednesday nights when we have our worship and Bible Study services. There is a little boy named Samuel that has been coming to our Bible Studies with his mom. He is a little too independent four year old that has never been in any school setting and has never heard about Jesus and the Bible before coming to our meetings.

We all felt like we needed to do something special for him. It’s been a process teaching him to stay and listen to a lesson and to not run off with my illustrations. We are seeing progress with him though as we continue to show him the love of Christ.

Decorating for Christmas

It’s going into summer here as we approach the Christmas season. We had a cold front come through the Monday before Thanksgiving and so we decided that was the perfect day to put up the Christmas tree and stockings. It doesn’t change the temperature but having the Christmas lights glowing makes things feel a little more festive even as we enter the hot days of summer.

Thanksgiving Dinner with Friends

For Thanksgiving we were invited to the home of another missionary family in the country. We joined several other families. Argentina doesn’t exactly stop for Thanksgiving.

We managed to cook some good food to share at the Thanksgiving dinner and really enjoyed getting to spend time with other English speaking friends. After the dinner we surprised our children by taking them to hear a string quartet in concert.

Last Homeschool Co-op for this Year

Our last meeting with the other homeschoolers was held in a different location a little outside of the city. A family in the co-op owns some property with a camp style building that is used throughout the year for group events. They invited the group to their campground where there were rooms that we could teach our classes in. We all had good classes and enjoyed the fellowship afterwards. All the children were also given certificates for participating in the co-op.

End of Year Concert and Band Recital

The school year has been winding down as we approach the summer break. Yes, it still sounds strange to be approaching summer break in November. After four years here in Argentina we are finally starting to get used to the school year ending and vacations beginning in December.

Summer begins in December and ends in February. All the normal school activities and other classes will begin again in March. We are getting better at planning a vacation during this time of year. In July when the United States are in the middle of summer break, we will be experiencing a two week winter break.

Bonus Pictures

***Getting to help a brother build some on their building!***

October 2022 Report

Posted on November 7, 2022 by Anastacia Maness

One Lady Saved! Praise the Lord!

This last month has been very busy. During the beginning of the month there were several fires outside of the city which brought smoke into the city. Between the smoke and the crazy weather changes we had more sickness (congestion, runny noses, lost voice). Even with problems, the Lord has continued to bless. On the 12th during our Wednesday night Bible study, a lady had visited us with her two children. That evening I taught on John 14 about Jesus and the way of salvation. After the service she prayed to be saved! Please pray for her and her children. There are many difficulties in her life that the Lord is helping her to work through.

**Please pray for Wanda who is seated in the center as she prayed to be saved the day that the picture was taken!**

“Have nothing to do with them! They’re Baptists!”

This is what one of the false prophets in town said about us to the elderly lady that has been visiting with us for several weeks. There are very many prosperity “gospel” pastors here in Argentina that want people to come to their church so that they can demand offerings. If people turn to the true Lord, their means of income is being diminished. Ravening wolves will always eventually show themselves for who they are! For a couple of weeks she did not come to our Bible study, following the command of this “pastor”. They start at 8:00 and we have been starting at 6:00. For the two weeks that she was staying away, she was hearing us sing and play praises to the Lord and us teaching, not demanding their money and she longed to be with us! She determined for now to be with us at 6:00 and then go to the other to not rock the boat. Pray for her as she struggles through making important decisions. She is in a position to hear our message and theirs and to compare them! Spiritual slavery is very common here, where people willingly put themselves into bondage of a religious system of works to either try to earn salvation or to work to try to keep it.

Thank you, Lord, for holding the security of my salvation in Your strong hand!

There is so much more that I could share about the work in Malvinas, if there was more space to tell! I could tell you about how excited they were when I brought a wooden stamp to stamp their address on the back of the tracks! I could tell you about his oldest son who has already visited for two Wednesdays in a row and has enjoyed coming! Many, many, many more blessings!

God is truly good!

**Please pray for Hugo! We have been picking him up each Sunday Morning to hear the gospel!**

**This last month I had finished the book that I was writing for the Homeschool Coop class. It is a book that would give the beginner everything they need to get started with chess.**
**More importantly, the book uses chess to touch on several Biblical lessons for life!**

Thoughts from Stacie

Birthday Party

We were invited to a Birthday party by a family in our Homeschool Co-op. I took Elijah, Elisabeth, and Joanna to the party. While we were there one of the mothers asked me what the differences were between us and one of the other churches near us. I had a good conversation with her and later sent her the PDF of our Gospel of John Books. She and her husband are very interested in learning all they can. Sometimes the problem isn’t the desire to learn more but the lack of information available to them. One thing we find is there are people that study the Bible and might agree with us but there is a shortage of churches teaching the truth about what a New Testament church really is.

Independent Baptist Church Organization Service

We were blessed to be able to visit an organization service of an Independent Baptist church in the province of Ojo de Agua. Scott, Hannah, and Jonathan were invited to play with the other musicians during the worship service. We were blessed by the service and happy to see a small group become a self-supporting church with a national pastor. There are so many towns, cities, and provinces in Argentina without any gospel presence. There is so much work to be done.

Día de las Madres – Mother’s Day

The following Friday, Templo Bautista, the Independent Baptist Church we’ve been visiting on Sunday Mornings hosted a Mothers’ Day dinner. I brought Eufemia with me to the dinner. (Eufemia is the wife of Juan. On Wednesday Evenings we are meeting in their home in Malvinas Argentinas.) She really enjoyed getting to meet other Christian mothers.

Female Driver

There are a lot of women in Argentina that don’t drive. Of course as an American I surprise them a lot by being a fairly confident driver. I picked Eufemia up in Malvinas and drove to the church where the Mothers’ Day dinner was held. It was about a 20 minute drive. Once we were inside the building I looked in my purse and realized I didn’t have my wallet. I immediately messaged Scott because I didn’t have any of my important documents nor my driver’s license. We left the church and I took her the “back way” to my house where I knew there weren’t police guards set up. Scott was waiting for us with my wallet and he rode with us back to Malvinas. Eufemia really enjoyed sharing the story about my driving and how confident I was. We had a good laugh about my avoiding check-points which is a very Argentine thing to do.

Homeschool Co-op

Scott taught the chess class again and I taught the younger children’s sewing class again this month. The mother I visited with at the Birthday party earlier in the month brought her children to the co-op for the first time. Her husband also came with them and that gave me the opportunity to share a physical copy of our Gospel of John books with her and for Scott to get to visit with her husband.

More Books and Bibles

We have been giving away a lot of Gospel books and Bibles. We gave several Bibles away in Malvinas Argentina to various visitors this month. We are having to be careful how we give Bibles out.

The culture here is very opportunistic. It’s so ingrained in people to look for a good deal that they might take advantage of our generosity. So we’re having to be real careful how we give things away. Our method is to be super generous with gospel tracts and the gospel of Johns which are our cheapest options. Then if someone asks for a Bible we give them a New Testament. Then the full Bibles are given to those who we feel are genuinely seeking to learn more about God.

Bonus Pictures

We took the kids out to eat the last Sunday in October. When Joanna saw this advertisement with a bacon cheeseburger taller than her we had to get a picture!

September 2022

Posted on October 6, 2022 by Anastacia Maness

The devil hits hard, but God hits harder!

This month has been a whirlwind of activity and blessing! This month we began having regular meetings in the home of a couple that lives in the next town over that want to see a scriptural church planted in their town! As we have been laboring this month with this family, the devil has been very active trying to discourage them as they step out in faith to see what the Lord will do! In the last month they have had multiple problems crashing upon them like waves of the ocean including a motorcycle accident, a broken arm, two family members being robbed at separate times in the month and a nephew dying among other things.

During the majority of this month my family suffered from sickness, allergies and losing my voice. God has been seeing them and us through all of these things and in the midst of it all blessing them with joy in the middle of the trials! Please pray fervently for them that God gives them strength to face and overcome the many trials!

“God Sent Your Family to Our House!”

On Sunday evenings, my wife and I have been meeting with this family and looking at the scriptures together. Last Sunday as we were sharing our whole story about how the Lord moved us to Argentina, they suddenly realized the full impact of what the Lord is doing in their home. Juan, the man of the house, looked at me and said, “God brought you from so far away directly to my house!” It was that evening that they realized that their willingness to follow God’s will was a greater blessing to us than even our presence was to them! May God continue to knit our hearts together as we serve Him!

My Family Asked to Play Music During a Professional Soccer Game

I am surprised sometimes at the opportunities that the Lord gives us to serve Him! I received a phone call this month from an Argentine friend that I would love to see come to know the Lord! He invited my self and three of my kids to play with their band during the Belgrano soccer game. I had always heard that Argentine soccer games were crazy but had never experienced it before. They had gathered 68 musicians to play during this event. You can get some idea at the energy by looking at the pictures. My prayer is that God may use us to be at the right place at the right time to win somebody to the Lord.

We were there for several hours but decided to leave early. It turns out God had more plans for us that evening! When the trolley bus came by the driver saw the four of our smiling faces and was instantly cheered. She told me later that she had been sad that day grieving the loss of a loved one when we entered her bus at just that moment. At her request we played songs, mostly hymns, for the rest of the ride. Before we left she gave us her information to be added to the list when I send out messages from the Bible each week on the podcast! Please continue to pray for her and for the ones in the band that we would like to reach with the gospel!

The first time in my life to play before 35,000 people during a wild sporting event! Please pray for these two guys in the picture with us. I see both of them each week and would love to see them both saved!

Thoughts from Stacie

Students’ Day

There are quite a few holidays here in Argentina. Some are national holidays and others are just celebrated days. This month’s big celebration was Student’s Day. Joanna’s and Elisabeth’s violin school had a party for their students. The girls dressed up as princesses and had a lot of fun with their friends.

Colds, Allergies, and a Stomach Bug

September is the start of Spring here in Argentina and as the weather appeared to be warming up we were still hit hard with all sorts of sicknesses. With seven of us in the house it seemed like we were going to be sick forever.It started with colds and then just as we seemed to be on the mend we got hit with a stomach virus. Then as trees were starting to bloom in our neighborhood we got hit with allergies. As we talked to people we found out we weren’t the only family that had problems with sickness this month. We tried to take care of ourselves and had to miss a few activities that we would have normally been a part of.

Bible Month – The Gift of God’s Word

We were asked by the family with whom we are meeting each week, if we had a Large Print Bible for their neighbor who has trouble reading small print Bibles. We went to the Bible Book Store here in the city and found her a Giant print Bible. She was really happy to be able to see the words for herself. We have also seen a large interest in the Gospel of John books that Scott put together. It’s been amazing seeing how many people have shown a great interest in these books. Quite a few have even asked for more books so they can share them with their friends. Pray for the people that receive the Gospel’s of John and other resources we’ve been giving away. God’s word does not return void! Please continue to pray that souls might be saved.

Homeschool Co-op

Each month we meet with other homeschool families from around the Cordoba Province for a homeschool co-operative. There were a couple new students in our classes this month. Scott is teaching a chess class and has been working hard putting together a book not only as a teaching tool for his class but it will make a nice ministry tool as well as he is incorporating spiritual and life lessons throughout the book. Books and tracts that share the gospel through different topics can be a very effective way to share the gospel. People are more apt to read something that looks interesting to them. I am teaching a “simple” sewing class for the younger children in the co-op. This class is a bit more chaotic as I have about 14 children ages 8 and under. The co-op has been good for our own children and also it’s been good getting to encourage other homeschooling families through it.

Bonus Pictures

June 2022 Report

Posted on July 9, 2022 by Anastacia Maness

Safely Back in Argentina!

We are so thankful for all of your prayers as we traveled. I really believe that your prayers made the difference going back! At the check in booth for the airline, the Lord gave us a person to check us in that was from a large military family that grew up all over the world. What a blessing to have a kind hearted, understanding person to check you in. We are so thankful that there was no extra charge for our 7 extra checked luggage!

When we arrived at the gate we still had more bags than allowed to carry on but the airline needed people to voluntary check their luggage, which brought our number down to just a few backpacks and bags that we were carrying on to the plane.

When we arrived in Cordoba, we were able to go through immigrations and customs without any problem at all! There are so many things we could talk about during our trip that would require a book, such as our daughter striking up a conversation with a couple while we were waiting to board the plane in Chile or getting to share the gospel with the delivery driver on the way back from the airport. God is good in all things and He will richly bless us with opportunities to share His message!

Car Maintenance, Plumbing, and Catching Up

Our house was like a tomb when we came back after being gone for 8 months! Nothing had moved except for an accumulation of dusts! (It is amazing how a house that is completely shut up here can acquire so much dust!) We had so much to take care of during this first month back from paying bills to fixing what needed to be replaced.

Our car was right where we left it in the parking garage with about a 16th of an inch of dust on it. The young man at the parking garage helped us jump start the vehicle and our landlord gave us good quality, reasonably priced places to go for car maintenance. We put a new battery in the car and had a full service done.

We had several plumbing issues in the house when we turned the water back on that needed to be dealt with immediately. Our landlord had given us leave to hire whoever we would like. I contacted a friend of ours that I helped a year ago when he needed business cards designed. Pray for him! He is a saved man, but has not been to any church with his family in a year. He was interested in us letting him know when we were going to have a dedicated place for having services. We are praying for the place that the Lord will give us for that purpose!

Three Days in the Immigration Office

One of the things that had to be done within our first two months here was to report to immigration and bring ourselves and all of our documentation to get our information cards made. It took three days in a row but we have it all done! Please pray that we all get our cards in the mail this time!

We have been in the immigration office so much during the last four years that we know the process well enough to give instructions to other foreigners who were coming for the first time. We joked about the fact that our five year old has spent over a month of her life collectively in that office! Amazingly, as of sending this report, we have received 6 out of 7 of our cards in the mail one week later!

Gospel of John Booklets and New Testaments Well Received!

Before we came back to the US, we took delivery of 1,000 Gospel of John booklets that we prepared and had printed. We were also given a large number of pocket New Testaments to bring back to Argentina with us! Since we have been back, we have already given away many copies to individuals!

It is great to have resources like these to put into peoples hands and to let them know that they are holding a portion of God’s Word, His message to us! Pray that the Lord continues to use this booklet to open doors to share his glorious Gospel!

Thoughts from Stacie

Slowly Getting Back in the Swing of Things
When we arrived back to our home in Argentina, we were determined to get back to daily life slowly. We didn’t want to get overwhelmed Of course we had a lot of cleaning to do the first few days and the plumbing in both the kitchen and bathroom was leaking.

So for us starting slow meant cleaning up and calling a plumber. We also had to get our car running again. Of course by the end of just that one week back, we felt like a whole month had passed.

Resuming Band and Violin Lessons
Then the following week we got violin classes resumed. Elisabeth, Joanna, and I have been taking violin lessons. We were having our classes virtually while we were in the States. The girls were very excited to get back to in person classes and group classes with other children.

Scott and the older kids also were excited to return to band and seeing their friends. The band has a class for adults and the instructor allows the children of the parents in that class to join them. Music is something our children enjoy and we as parents can encourage them in.

Visiting Our Language Instructor and Her New Baby
I messaged our friend and language teacher, Romi, when we arrived back in Argentina. She invited Scott and I to come to her house to see her new baby. She named her baby Elías which is Elijah in Spanish. She liked our Elijah’s friendly and laid back personality when she met him and she liked his name.

We thought it was really sweet that she named her son after ours. Since she invited us to her home we told her we wanted her to come visit us as well. So maybe in a few weeks we will have her and her family come visit us.

Shopping and Paying Bills
Shopping can be a lot of work when you have to think in two currencies. Whether it’s going to the shoe store to buy winter shoes for the children or shopping at the supermarket we have to think about not only how many pesos we must bring with us but we also have to think about how much it is in dollars as well.

Sharing Electricity
Paying bills can be tricky as well. We went to pay what we thought was the only electric bills we had one day and a few days later our electricity was cut off. It turned out we had missed a bill we didn’t realize was still due. Our landlord that lives behind us loaned us electricity by giving us a cord we could plug into our house like a generator. The next day our electricity was back on but a couple days later our neighbor’s electricity was cut off and we returned the favor and had the house plugged in for his house to receive electricity. Thankfully his was up and running again after a couple of days. It was just interesting having a cord going through our bathroom for several days.

Broken Water Line

It’s almost seems unreal but when our electricity came back on the following day our water ran out. A line was broken down the road from us and they had cut the water to the houses on the street until it was fixed. Thankfully it wasn’t off for more than a day. There is a tank that fills up on our roof so we don’t always know when the water is off until our tank runs out of water. When the water came back on we were a little nervous of using too much water until we were sure that the water pressure was back in full.

Everyday life can be rather unpredictable sometimes.

Celebrating Joshua’s Birthday from a Distance

Our eldest son, Joshua, celebrated his 24th Birthday on June 27th. It’s hard not being able to be there to celebrate in person but we sent him a video of us singing “Happy Birthday” to him and we sent some money for him and Ruth, our oldest daughter, to go out and celebrate his birthday together. Ruth sent us a picture of Joshua wearing a new hat he got for his birthday.