October 2009 Letter

Dear Friends,

Wow! 2009 has almost slipped through our fingers. It’s a good thing our times are in His hands; otherwise I think I’d be frightened at how fast it goes. Retreats held, buildings constructed, crops planted, trips made…so much has happened and I want to bring you up to date on some of it. I also want to let you know that you can see more frequent updates by going to the Ayoré ministry site. This will give you an overview of the ministry as well as information on specific projects.

As you know, we had to move out of our large rented offices. Although we miss all the space, we decided against renting another full-sized place because of the cost. In March we rented a small office in a clinic, and began doing much of our primary care out of a room in our home. Initially it seemed like a setback, but we believe there are exciting things ahead, including the possibility of a national foundation to work alongside of SAM. Because of the current political situation, North American organizations are somewhat limited. A national organization could permit us to build a long dreamed-of clinic. Please join us in praying about this.

In April we were proud to participate in the inauguration of an early child development and nutrition center in the squatter’s camp of Barrio Bolivar. This began as an impossible dream, and was fulfilled thanks to the prayers, generosity and hard work of you and of our team here in Bolivia. We are still a few thousand dollars short of truly completing the project, but the children are already using it. If you are interested in seeing more, you can follow the links on the ministry site.

In May we had a great kids' retreat for a group from that same urban camp. Our team planned and worked toward a low kid to counselor ratio which worked out amazingly well.

FUA, a tiny village in the Eastern Bolivian bush, was established by Ayoré people trying to move their children away from the city dangers of prostitution and drugs. This year we were able to work with them to put down the foundation of a small chapel. In June a team from Orange Hill Baptist Church in Georgia joined us. They brought the chapel almost to completion and we hope to apply the finishing touches before December. Because of the remoteness of the village and the lack of water in the immediate area, progress is extremely slow on any project. There is much to be done in the whole area – in FUA and beyond. Please pray for us as we try follow God’s leading for us. For April of this coming year we have a “service trip” planned for the area beyond FUA toward the east, as well as continued contact with FUA and several other Ayoré camps in the region. Before a service trip we ask a community how we can best serve them in Jesus’ name. On the trip we try to follow up on the answer to that question.

July found us on tributaries of the Amazon in the Beni region, doing medical and evangelistic work along with representatives from Autumn Ridge Church in Minnesota and Grace Bible Church in North Carolina. We are planning three trips to this area next year. Two will be boat trips, but the third is planned as a medical/surgical evangelistic push based in a town called Magdalena. The purpose is to encourage the Christians there and help them reach out to the needy in the area around their town.

In September the church in the Barrio Bolivar camp celebrated its 13th anniversary. It was a joy to look at pictures of the first little tent we set up and see how the church has grown in both structure and in number of people. The church building has been refurbished with the help of a team from Trinity Presbyterian Church in Virginia. They helped finish the Sunday school room so it can be locked and kept clean. Before this, drug addicts would go in and leave behind a great deal of filth, making it almost unbearable to be in.

September was also a big month for agriculture in Poza Verde because the sunflower crop was harvested. Please pray for the men who involved in this aspect of ministry. They need extraordinary wisdom to work in a difficult cross-cultural situation, with limited funds and great needs and pressures. Placido and Ken Massey have been joined by Jason Weigner, who arrived with his wife, Jenna, under a two year commitment. Jason has a degree in environmental science and will be working on developing micro projects and “chacos”. We are also praying for another community-wide development project to touch felt needs and fulfill government requirements for use of land.

Please continue to pray for us as we strive to remain faithful to God’s calling on our lives and find out where He is working so we can join Him.

Love,
Toni for the Mercados



January 2009 Letter

Dear Friends,

Thank you for your support and prayers. It was such a pleasure to visit with some of you during this past month, though we’re sorry we missed visiting others and hope to see you next time.

This past year has been challenging for us. The Washington Post recently commented that Bolivia has repeatedly teetered on the edge of the precipice of civil war, and then stepped back at the last minute. Sometimes we have felt our very foundations being shaken by tension, frustration with limitations and uncertainty regarding the future, but Psalm 103 has reminded us that “when the foundations are shaken” God is our refuge. As of January 15, 2009 we have a new Constitution that promises to further test our commitment to trust in Him in the midst of change.

Because of the aforementioned changes and limitations, we were unable to make some trips and hold certain events we had planned, but welcomed other unexpected opportunities. For example, we had the chance to step out in faith and start building a nutrition and early child development center in the squatters´ camp of Barrio Bolívar. A generous donation provided about half of what we needed even though we had grossly underestimated what it would actually take to build this. Through the center, children five and under are already (even though the building is not complete) receiving a daily solid meal and several snacks as well as help with hygiene and educational activities. Most of these children would receive neither adequate care nor food were it not for this place. The Barrio Bolivar camp is an urban camp. Because of limitations in traveling outside the city, we were spending more time there and God put this on our hearts. Please take some time to visit the Ayoré ministry site. To learn more about this particular project click here.

During our time in the States a fellow missionary, Ken Massey, did an amazing job of keeping things going with the Poza Verde agricultural project – no easy task. More hectares have been cleaned and planted. These will bring us closer to the government requirements for social use of land and help avoid expropriation. Please pray for the new crops of corn and soy – that they would grow and be a blessing to the people and that God would continue to provide the funds necessary to keep the project going. If you have questions about specifics regarding this project, please feel free to contact us and put “Agricultural project” in the subject line.

There are so many plans and projects for 2009: a small church building for one of the Ayoré communities, camps for boys and girls, Bible studies, a new medical office (we had to move out of the one we’d been using for the past five years), river trips, research regarding a possible purchase of land for camps, exciting things, sad things…I could go on and on. Please pray for each of the items I mentioned and I will try to write again soon and update you on what’s gone on and give you new things to pray about. Please pray with us, also, regarding our vehicle situation. When we returned to Bolivia, our old clunker joined a large segment of the Bolivian population by going on strike. A kind fellow missionary has temporarily lent us hers, but the situation is a concern. Please pray that God will either heal and renew our vehicle or provide another one.

Thank you again for everything you do for us.

Love,
Toni for the Mercados

July 2008 Letter

Dear Friends,


Twenty-three people, ages four to past sixty, three languages, innumerable church and mission backgrounds, on a forty-five by fourteen foot boat, stopping in eleven communities along three rivers. Lots of numbers, but far from dry and boring!

In our last letter we mentioned trips to the Beni. Covered in jungle and crisscrossed by rivers, it is one of nine departments that compose Bolivia. Over the past few years, it has been hard hit by flooding and this past year was especially bad. Even before the flooding we had been drawn to the area and by its needs – Placido makes several trips a year - but now the need is even greater. We try to make one trip a year with a larger group and our last trip was this past May. This is where all the numbers come in.


Considering the differences, the close quarters and the conditions, we had amazingly few skirmishes or mishaps. We did have two scares. First, the boat we were supposed to use sunk before we got on it (the timing was, of course, fortunate). Then, once on the river in the replacement boat, we hit “Something.” To the children’s great joy, the crew and the old men in the next village said it was a giant “beast” said to live in that bend of the river. The more cynical on our team insisted it must have been a submerged log. If you judge by movies, the cynics are the first to be eaten in this sort of situation! We did see several anacondas swimming in the river and one, especially, was quite big enough to cure me of any desire to swim. We also ate caiman tail, which tells me that there are some of those around, as well. However, no one was eaten, although some were a bit jumpy after this.


At any rate, there was some excitement because whatever we hit severely damaged the propeller and we began to drift aimlessly. One of the brave crewmembers jumped in the river, broke off the damaged blade and we struggled into the next community to replace the propeller. Fortunately we had a spare one.

Some of the communities had churches, others were unchurched and in still others there were a few isolated Believers whose faces lit up when they joined us in some favorite old choruses. We offered ourselves in service, in keeping with II Corinthians 4:5, “For we do not preach ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, and ourselves as your servants for Jesus sake.” Sometimes this meant giving an antibiotic, pulling a tooth, or performing minor surgery. Sometimes it meant playing with the kids or listening to and praying for someone who had recently lost a loved one. Other times it meant showing a movie for the enjoyment of the whole community or taking down pertinent information for our survey of the area. Once it meant helping some women move a huge log into a position more accessible for clothes washing in the river. The most important thing is not checking off an item on our agenda, but listening to the felt need expressed by the people and working to meet that need in Jesus name.





I enjoyed seeing the children on our team accept without complaint the rustic conditions – cold bucket baths, “whatever we could fish or gather” for food and hammocks for beds. This is one way to center down and discover the difference between “needs” and “wants”. I frankly look forward to it and am grateful that my kids are exposed to it.



Upon returning from that trip, it was back to business in our free clinic, “El Refugio” as we prepared for a team from Orange Hill Baptist Church. With them we went to the Ayoré village of Poza Verde and surrounding areas, including a refugee camp made up of flood evacuees. We worked with women and children, while the men focused on the men and boys, especially the 12 to 17 year olds, at risk for drugs and delinquency. They spent time in Bible study and in work discipleship, struggling to teach responsible forest management skills and model Christ’s love and concern for these guys and their communities. Once again, giving of ourselves in service was very important and I wish I had the space to tell you about all the beautiful things that happened that week!

This weekend we leave for another week in Poza Verde for the church anniversary and then for a few days with a team from East Cobb Presbyterian Church. We will be working on several community development and church projects with them.

For those of you who read our last prayer letter… Although Maria died without the aid of pain medication, as did the elderly woman forcibly removed from the hospital by her daughters, Rodani is doing great. Some friends from Oklahoma are sponsoring his transportation to the hospital since he needs to go every day when not hospitalized and his home is far away. Please continue to pray for his healing.

Also, please remember in your prayers:
• Our Ayoré co-workers, especially Benial with his continual health problems, and those who were discipled by the McCalls - now back in the States after their two-year commitment
• Those who have lost their homes to flooding in the Beni and in Santa Cruz
• Erabi, the teacher in Poza Verde, who recently put his faith in Christ after many years
• The Ayoré boys – that they will feel the love of Christ through Placido and the Ayoré men who are holding different retreats and camps with them throughout the year
• The newly established national association of Indigenous Christian leaders – some of our people were able to go to the first meeting and are excited about it

Our family is scheduled to go North for a short US assignment. We plan on leaving Bolivia at the very beginning of January and travel for about 6 weeks. We are determined to visit as many of you as would like to see us or would like us to visit your church or small group. We know that some have not seen us since 2000! If you would like a visit, please contact us!

We’ll let you know how God works!

Love,
Toni for the Mercados

March 2008 Letter

Dear Friends,


You may have noticed in the news (although Bolivia doesn’t seem to make it into the international news much, even when it should) that we have been buffeted first by drought and now by rain and flooding. Estimates say that over 50,000 people are displaced in Eastern Bolivia and have lost everything. The Ayoré did not stand to lose much, materially speaking, although one village was temporarily evacuated. Even they, however, have lost crops and we have, in a sense, lost the time and money invested in the micro projects with them. This was particularly discouraging because the crops were moved to a new area considered safe from the flooding because it escaped last year’s flood. This is one more indication that perhaps we should be looking more toward a conservation project which rolls with nature’s punches rather than a major agricultural project which attempts to control nature. Our other area of focus, the Beni, is totally flooded, and we are wondering how this will affect our ministry there during this year.


The hardest thing for us over the past few months has not actually been physical, but what we perceive as an increase in spiritual warfare. We have become more aware of the cruelty and reality of Evil. We have seen many more people turning to witchdoctors. Entire families have left villages because of fear of being “hexed” or because they have been accused of doing the “hexing”. There have been violent fights over this. It affects the church, but it also affects the medical work.

One woman we had hospitalized with an extremely infected leg was suddenly removed from the hospital without our knowledge and without the hospital’s approval. We later found she had been taken to one of the urban squatters’ camps and was being visited daily by a witchdoctor from a different tribal group. Her leg had improved during her time in the hospital and she had received a shot of long acting penicillin upon leaving. This had, apparently, continued to help her, but the family attributed the improvement to the witchcraft. They claimed that she had been cursed and that had been her problem all along. The saddest thing is that this woman is the wife of one of the oldest believers, who came to Christ back before our time. The daughters also profess to be Christians.

We are not the only missionaries fighting this kind of thing. Last week, we were asked by other missionaries to intervene in a medical crisis they were facing. A young girl from an extremely closed, rural religious group had knocked over a kerosene lantern in a bathroom full of gallons of gasoline. It all blew up and she has what used to be called 2nd and 3rd degree burns (now called AB and B) over 95% of her body. She is only 10 years old. Her name is Maria. She was initially taken to the children’s hospital, where conditions are less than ideal, but where at least she was receiving treatment for pain and infection. Our team was called to see what could be done. We found that little could be done besides buying medication and helping with expenses. The other missionaries were very will to do this. Last week, under orders of the religious leaders and late at night to avoid resistance, her family removed her from the hospital and took her away to die. The religious leaders had decided that she just needs to die. The missionaries that work with these people managed to track her down and asked Placido to go and at least administer pain medication. When he returned he said he felt sick. He could hear the little girl crying in pain inside the house but the family absolutely refused to let him help. They said the leaders had told them that if they allowed her to receive medicine, she would not go to heaven when she died.

How can people be so cruel and stubborn and how can we go on working with them? I don’t really know. But I have clung to the words of an old hymn during these past few months:

This is my Father’s world,
Oh! Let me ne’er forget
That though the wrong seems oft so strong
God is the Ruler yet.
This is my Father’s world
Why should my heart be sad?
The Lord is King
Let the heavens ring
God reigns, let the earth be glad.

Although it’s hard to believe sometimes, God is reigning. He is Sovereign. He is good. One of the other verses of the same hymn says, “Jesus who died will be satisfied.” Oh! I hope so. I believe so. Please pray for us. Pray for wisdom as we seek change in people’s heart of hearts. Pray for Maria. Pray for the village people who live in fear. Pray for Rodani, who is 8, has leukemia and who has a chance of living. Pray for the medical and evangelistic trips in March to the Beni (Lord and water levels permitting). Pray for Benial, the Ayoré missionary, who is once again in the hospital with lung and heart issues. Pray for his wife who told me she doesn’t know if she can go on being faithful to God if Benial is taken. Pray for faithful Dr. Sandra who just left for the States for two to five years of further specialization and intends to return to ministry. Pray for our team – that we might be faithful daily, keep doing the next right thing and cling to God’s sovereignty while not losing sight of our individual responsibility.

September 2007 Letter

Dear Friends,

I don’t want you to believe that missionary life is back-to-back exciting moments, but as I look over our prayer letters the boring details don’t seem to make it into them, do they? Just so you know, these are the high points, with many stodgy moments in between.

Among other things…

I experienced God’s protection on a dangerous stretch of back-road. To make a long story short, there was lots of deep dust and low visibility. Suddenly, out of the powdery haze, two huge trucks appeared, barreling down on us, apparently racing each other! I thought I had nowhere to go. The sand-like dust piled up on the shoulders prevented me from going there and a small, but dangerous drop-off would have rolled my vehicle. I do not remember reacting. I do remember the feeling that I was not in control of the wheel, but that Someone was. The next thing I knew, we were somehow driving through that deep, fine powder, balancing on the edge of the drop-off, and then back on the road with zero visibility and the two trucks long gone. I kept driving and there was total silence in the car until one of my passengers, a visitor from the States, said, “Now I know why I had to sign a release form!”

Speaking of visitors, we had two great teams in June and July. The first came with Charles McCall’s parents and helped in construction, medicine, optometry, dentistry and a children’s retreat. Because of them, the Barrio Bolivar children’s Sunday school class now has protection from the weather. The second team came from Orange Hill Baptist and worked in construction, children’s ministry, a women’s retreat and a men’s breakfast meeting. We are especially grateful to them for benches in the Poza Verde church and for progress on the plumbing of the Poza Verde mission house.

After the US teams left, it was back to regular business for our local team. As I mentioned in our last prayer letter, we are all asking ourselves about the next steps we should take. Consensus seems to have been reached on the need for a general, tribal-wide Ayoré Church Council made up of those who have been to Bible school and who are active in ministry. In the first official council meeting – which Plácido and a New Tribes national missionary were privileged to attend - they concluded that it is their responsibility to care for the wellbeing of the Ayoré church in general by ensuring solid Biblical teaching, providing a connection between the village churches for fellowship and accountability, and identifying and encouraging future ministers. I know this sounds basic and, honestly, we’ve been suggesting something like this for years, as have other missionaries. In fact, attempts have been made in the past. Now it seems to be strongly on their hearts as they feel the same urgency we do with all that is going on in terms of this difficult government. Please pray for unity between missions and villages and for the nitty-gritty details of how to carry out the stated responsibilities. One of their first efforts will be a youth retreat on the 29^th and 30^th of September. Pray for patience and understanding as we try to refrain from “doing it our way”.

The women’s Bible studies have been fun lately. One went particularly well and afterward we sat around and sang with the guitar because a lady named Maria wanted to, even though the meeting was over. I headed home with a warm, happy feeling about the whole time. Early the next morning we were rudely awakened by the phone – Maria had died at dawn, probably from a ruptured brain aneurism. I’m so glad I had that last time with her. And I’m so glad she was one of those who got things right with God after the last women’s retreat.

Plácido and José are sad to be back in Santa Cruz after having been out in the Beni along with other members of our team, including my sister, Sunny – an honorary team member. Although they enjoyed the trip, others less hardy (or wiser) might not have qualified it as a good time. First of all, they had to rebuild the bottom of the boat they had rented sight unseen (there were no other options and they’d been assured that it was fine). Then, a Flinstones-type number had to be performed, complete with people running alongside the riverbank pulling the boat with ropes while the captain tried to jumpstart it. Those of you who receive my mother’s prayer letters know that she would never pass up a chance like this to draw a cartoon but, unfortunately, I am not so talented. I will have to let you use your imagination. This worked a couple of times and they were able to visit several communities with medical and dental care as well as the Jesus film. Finally, however, the motor gave up for good and the water level inside the boat was slowly rising. They reluctantly decided to postpone a visit to one last village and returned to base camp. This meant, however, that they were not in the right place to be picked up by the mission plane, which was to take them to their vehicles for the return trip to Santa Cruz. In the end, SAMAIR came to the rescue and all’s well that ends well. Those who went seem excited and motivated about this new step for our team. One trip is being planned for June and another for July to finish the survey phase. After that, Plácido hopes to make a concrete proposal and launch a plan of action for our participation in meeting the needs of that area of Bolivia. Please pray for wisdom in this and also for river worthy boats for the trips.

Toni for the Mercados

Beni 2007 Update

Placido and some of the other members of our team, including my sister Sunny (an honorary member), just returned from a trip to the Beni. The Beni is a department (state) in Bolivia that is predominantly rural and jungle. Most of the travel in this area is done by small plane or by boat on the numerous rivers and tributaries that crisscross its green expanse.

Several years ago, God began to lay this area on Placido´s heart. Whether by coincidence or by divine appointment, everything he seemed to pick up to read mentioned the Beni and the needs of the people there. Then, through a meeting and subsequent friendship with Enoel Suarez, a native of the Beni, Placido was able to travel there and meet some people and see first-hand some of the needs.

Since then, Placido has made several trips taking medical supplies and teams that offer dental and medical help as well as programs for the children and the Jesus film. SAM has approved a series of trips made with the purpose of surveying a certain area of the Beni to evaluate the needs and how we as a mission can impact them without being redundant to any other missions currently working in that department.

As a result of the trips made thus far, we believe that one of the greatest needs in terms of Christian work is to offer on-site Bible training to Believers already living in the Beni and to enable them to more effectively reach out to more remote communities where there are no Believers. The trips with teams are fulfilling the second objective and we hope that as a next step in the Beni project we will be able to take teachers with us from Santa Cruz to offer Bible school modules during longer trips.