Central America Visit Report by P. Abraham Kim

by WMD   04-25-2015   0 reads

Thank you for your prayers for the Mexico and Central America Bible conferences on April 2-5, 2015.  God blessed 14 UBF chapters' conference in Mexico with 368 attendees. Many students testified to Jesus' grace through tearful testimonies. God also blessed the Central America conference with 120 attendees from seven countries. I thank Dr. Joseph and Maria Ahn who labored much for this conference. I also thank the delegates from North America and Korea who attended and served these conferences through their prayers. New York chapter sent four delegates to both conferences to support Latin American mission. Among them, M. Abraham Lee studied Spanish for a year and prayed in Spanish fluently.

After the conferences, M. Elias Park, the Latin America UBF coordinator, M. Sarah and I visited five countries in Central America. Guatemala UBF raised Shep. Edwar Ti as the new director. This is the second leadership transfer to native leaders in Latin America after Venezuela. All Guatemalan UBF leaders promised to work with him joyfully.  Edwar and Sylvia are expecting their first child in their late thirties. Please pray for the safe delivery of their baby and the new work in Guatemala through their leadership. M. Josue Ham together with M. Anna Ham will continue to serve that country and Central America as Central America and Caribbean UBF coordinator. 

Honduras, where M. David Kang survived a gunshot wound from robbers in 2013, is known as the most dangerous and poorest country in Central America. It was also the hottest nation among the countries I visited. M. David and Elizabeth Kang support themselves by operating an accessories shop at a supermarket. They transport students to the Sunday worship service in their rented house, located six miles away from the main campus due to security and financial reasons. They are praying for a Bible House near the campus.

In Nicaragua, M. Juan and Rebecca Kim prepared a beautiful worship service on the lakeshore for the baptism of a brother and two sisters.  As I delivered a message from Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount, I felt as if we were beside the Lake Galilee. Through the study of Acts 28, M. Juan and Rebecca decided to raise disciples. Please pray for raising ancestors of faith and house churches through their ministry of the word and prayers.

Costa Rica is known as the Switzerland of Central America because of her beautiful landscape and relatively peaceful atmosphere without an army. M. Pablo and Lydia Park are holding worship services at their rented apartment. They are praying to raise ancestors of faith. They are struggling to be self-supporting.

I was moved by the life and commitment of these missionaries in the midst of insecurity and poverty. Please pray for them and visit them as opportunities come. Winter and early spring is the best time to visit. They also welcome short-term missionaries who can teach English.

In Belize, silver missionaries Moses and Sarah Chang, from Washington D.C. UBF, are serving a beautiful ministry in the heat of the city seated just above sea-level. About ten students came to an evening meeting to hear my message on Matthew 6:33. The electricity went out, so we met in candle lights. Their eyes brightly shined in the darkness. They are beautiful, handsome and lovely. But many of those lovely young men and women don’t have their fathers. Their fathers left them after they were born. I saw this as the basic problem of Central America. I urged each of the students to make a promise with God to marry one man and one woman for life to become the lights of Belizean people. Please pray that the young people in Central America may live by the truth and blessedness of marriage through the gospel. Let’s pray that God may use UBF ministries to give a new hope to young people in Central America.  M. Moses and Sarah Chang looked very happy and strong in health even though they are nearly seventy years old.

Latin America UBF is praying to send missionaries to Cuba, Jamaica, Haiti and Trinidad & Tobago. There are many English-speaking Caribbean countries which are waiting for UBF missionaries. Let’s pray that North America may send missionaries to these countries. I’d like to recommend some of you to consider going to these countries as silver missionaries for a happier and more fruitful life like M. Moses and Sarah Chang. 

Let’s continue to pray that North America may send out missionaries to the ends of the world. Let’s pray for the evangelization of all of the major cities and campuses of the world in our generation.  

 

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