Small Steps. Big Faith.

As mentioned previously, our social work ministry, GAiN (Global Aid Network) has been developing a special project among Moroccan immigrant women . This year 5 different Spanish classes have been offered, serving over 100 women, in order to help them improve their language skills, improving their chances of finding a job and making their way in Spanish society. (Pictured above are some of the students from my Friday morning class.) This project was started 5 years ago by Isabel Fernández, Agape staff member with a degree in Social Work. She has worked tireless, not only to create the structure for these classes, but also to build relationships with the various city officials related to this project, as well as using her professional knowledge to help several of these women rise above their economic and cultural challenges. Soon, Isabel, along with her husband, Agape Spain´s National Director, and their 4 children, will be taking steps of faith to blaze new trails in a differen...

This year's National Staff Conference for Agape Spain, Llamados (Called) 2013,  was held April 19-21 in Platja d'Aro, Spain.  An American couple living in Argentina, Tim and Annette Gulick, designed the talks and the small group activities which made up the bulk of the conference content. They challenged us to reflect on the reality of the world we live in, the gifts and talents that each one of us possesses and the material resources that we've been given to help those in need.  The Gulicks, along with National Director Edi Souto, reminded us that we live in a broken world in which we have experienced 4 aspects of broken relationship: with God, with others, with ourselves, and with the environment. The message of hope highlighted God's plan....a path to reconciliation and healing of these broken relationships. The gathering was also a great opportunity to see many of the new staff  that have joined Agape since Janua...

According to one frontier mission’s leader in the Muslim world, one of the most important trends in missions today is the increasing number of cross-cultural missionaries sent by "second world" countries, which includes mobilizing Latin Americans to reach the Muslim world for Christ. Meet Isaac: he is the newest incorporation to the Agape Spain team. He has come to work under the supervision and direction of Osvaldo de la Espada and Vielka Sempris, helping to minister to the north African community (Moroccans, Algerians, Tunisians, Libians, Egyptians, etc.). At the end of February he was granted permission to obtain his visa for entering the country and last week he arrived. "Hi! My name is Isaac Valdés. I come from Panama. I´m 26-years-old and I am an industrial engineer. I will be connecting with the north African university students in Málaga, working on the campus and doing my best to serve the students there. My longing is for God to raise up a movement of bel...

When I first arrived in Spain, more than ten years ago, Tere Alvarez was just leaving for a year-long STINT in the U.S. At that time Agape Spain did not have an official Human Resources Department. By faith Tere set out to learn all she could to establish this crucial area for our National Office to ensure that our Spanish staff and interns would have the necessary processes and infrastructure so that they could get on with the job of taking the gospel to the nations. This month, Tere announced the decision to move on to pursue new directions in ministry and missions. Because she carried SO MANY responsibilities, as of now, there is no ONE person who could fill her shoes. However, the national direction has challenged me to take on several of her responsibilities, including payroll, hiring contracts, tracking incoming staff support and reimbursements, in addition to already coordinating the visa process for our international staff. With much trepidation, I have answered the call...

Anxiously awaiting Jesus´ arrival this Christmas with you!  Merry Christmas from Ruben, Jill and Aaron in Spain

15 women from Morocco. They all showed up this week. They are eager to learn. A few can write. Most cannot. They are so grateful for the smallest efforts. In the one hour a week I have with them on Friday mornings I want to give them all that I have. I want to give them a step up in the midst of this world economic crisis. All but one are married. All those who are married have at least 2 often 4-6 children that they are rearing. As we seek to bless these ladies, we will also be influencing scores of children. Fatima, Fatima, Yamna, Jamila, Fatima, Fatima, Latifa,  Samira, Rahma, Halima, Fatima, Hasna, Louiza, Hanán, Turiya Would you pray for them? Please pray that God would point out those who are open to hear more about Him. Please pray that He would reveal those that we can help in other areas in addition to language acquisition. What? You don´t see anyone in the classroom pictured above? The students are very shy. They have a strong aversion to cameras, especially...

image: newparentinfo.com When I arrived in Spain 12 years ago, the Agape staff family was made up of senior staff in their 40´s and 50´s and a new, younger generation of singles and young married couples. In the last 5 years, there has been an explosion of new marriages and a new generation of staff babies being born, which means full-time staff women becoming full-time staff moms. In Agape Spain, there are now more than a dozen staff moms with children between 0-3 years of age! As for any mom, their lives are changing in countless ways. Focus shifts. Sleep deprivation comes. A once-clear vision and solid schedule can be knocked out of whack. A whole new learning curve accompanies this great bundle of joy given by the Lord. These changes also affect ministry and entire ministry teams. How does a young staff mom regain direction and focus for personal life and for ministry while balancing the requirements of being a full-time mom? Agape gives staff moms the freedom to concentr...