Small Steps. Big Faith.

This year God has been so gracious to provide additional laborers for the gospel in Spain. Last week, at our New Staff Training outside of Málaga, Spain, we welcomed (pictured around the table, left to right)   Loida Fernández  (with daughter  Meghan),  Aitor de la Cámara , LDHR Director Rex Winn, Esther Morales , LDHR Director Gema Álvarez, Evelyn, Oliver, Rut Fuentes (childcare) and Pau Abad .  Aitor and Loida will be launching the prayer and discipleship ministry 24/7 in Madrid, which has its origins in England. Esther will be joining the Operations Team in the National Office in Valencia; and Pau will join the Global Aid Network team in Valencia. Rex, Gema and I each shared a variety of topics with our new staff from the history of Ágape, to our mission and values as well as practical policies for new employees. Natan de Souza, director of the Fuente del Peregrino, met with us by skype. He shared about the importance of maintaining o...

We are soooo grateful for each new staff member that the Lord sends our way, As we receive them, we believe it is very important to give them a good foundation, training and feedback as they take steps to build their personal ministries. So, those "trainers" must also be challenged, inspired, equipped and encouraged to take up that responsibility of leading the new staff member through this 2-year training program. So, in early March, together with New Staff Training (NST) Director, Donna Cannella, we hosted a Trainers' Training time in Barcelona with Isaac Valdés, Sam Pérez and Mariona Mirón. The topics included adult learning, how to coach others and specifics related to the training material.

"Come to me all who are heavy-laden and I will give you rest, for my burden is easy and my yoke is light." -Jesus As we seek to make Jesus known throughout Spain, we trust the Lord and pour ourselves out, especially as leaders; but it is equally important to take time to rest and replenish.  This can be especially challenging for ministry directors who not only carry personal ministry responsibilities, but also responsibilities as team leader and as a local and national leader of ministry.  In mid-February our LDHR team teamed up with our national leadership team to encourage our national leaders to take a time out.  20 national leaders came together to a mountain hotel to escape the demands of ministry for 48 hours. Get a glimpse of the great group of Spanish leaders that participated in this Directors' Retreat. The purose of this retreat was to connect with fellow leaders, develop a community among them, encourage them to reflect on how to fan into f...

Hello dear friends! In just one week Aaron and I will travel to Malaga for a weekend retreat-style gathering from Sept. 8-10, where we will join my LDHR teammates, Rex Winn and Gema Alvarez to help to welcome and orient our 2 newest candidates for full-time staff: MAURICO and MATU, all of whom, coincidentally, are from Latin America, specifically México and Argentina. I wanted to request extra prayer support over the next week that the Lord would orchestrate all the details for our time together. Would you be able to commit to pray daily over the next 10 days?  Please let me know! Below are some specific prayer requests... We would like to invote you to pray for a key event that is coming up right around the corner. From Sept 8-10, in Coín, near Málaga, Spain, the LDHR (Leadership Development and Human Resources) team will lead a training time for our most recent new staff. We are aware that in the midst of a job well done, it is truly God who prepares the people that He has c...

In July, God brought a new member to our Agape team for the 2017-2018 school year, intern Alejandro Bo, from Alicante. With Alejandro's arrival, God also gave a new challenge for me.... I had participated in new staff orientatons on various occasons previously, but this was my first time to organize and host an event like this. Since Alejandro lives closer to Barcelona than to Málaga,  where the directors of the LDHR team are, the decision was made to hold the Intern Orientaton in Barcelona. (Of course, since it was just one new member, the responsibility of this orientaton event was lighter than if there had been 20, although 20 new staff is what we are dreaming about and praying for in the upcoming years!) Working side-by-side with me was my fellow LDHR member, Donna Cannella. Donna is gifted as a detail person and a public speaker. Her perspective, clarity and thoroughness brought great balance to this time of welcome, preparation and orientation for Alejandro. At the l...

These smiling faces represent the best and the brightest of our new generation of staff. For the last 2 years they have been practicing the ins and outs of field ministry...but at the same time, carving out time for study and reflection and discussion with a staff mentor to ensure a solid foundation for the long haul. We believe that the condition of the hearts of our staff is priority number one and from a healthy heart that depends on the Lord a healthy, fruitful ministry will flow. Servant Leadership, Restoring God's Justice in a Broken World and Coaching were 3 of the New Staff Training topics that we covered during our time together. Together with New Staff Training director, Donna Cannella, we planned and prayed for months that the Lord would use this time to bring blessing and effective closure to this inicial season of staff life for these precious new staff. Their feedback about the weekend was encouraging. When asked, "What will you take away from this w...

100+ staff and volunteers descended on the Catholic retreat center outside of Madrid for 4 days of learning, celebrating and fellowship. Ruben and Aaron and I all attended. The theme, Raices, (or Roots) focused us on the importance of our spiritual health, reminding us to dig our spiritual roots deeply into Jesus and His truth. Also there were special sessions for practicing creative times alone with God through writing, music, nature, painting, etc. Back before Christmas, the conference directors had asked for new ideas that could be incorporated into our staff conference. I suggested a special dinner to honor the staff and help them remember how valuable they are. Of course, what usually happens if a leader likes your suggestion, he or she asks you to make it happen. So, I responded to the challenge of hosting a special dinner, a gala, to honor our staff. Much of the preparation was done ahead of time at home. With Ruben's help and then many extra hands chipping in ...