Update from Efrain Baldiviezo

Recent Events

October - December 2022

These last months of the year passed very quickly; the students of the Biblical Faculty did the last modules and took advantage of the last weeks to conclude their time of Christian service in the local churches. In October we made a couple of trips to Villamontes, the first to celebrate the birthday of my wife Janeth's mother, and the second trip trying to fix the air conditioning of the vehicle. They have already done the job several times and still have not solved it. Unfortunately, this time, despite disassembling a large part of the system, they did not fix the problem.

We also had an evangelism workshop in the month of October, the same one that concluded with personal evangelism practices. A good number of brothers participated, among them students of the Biblical Faculty. Those last two weeks were very busy, as we had a kids club concentration, and the following Saturday the graduation of the students of the Biblical Faculty. In those days there were also problems in the country and some roads were blocked, so the students returned to their homes with some difficulty, but thanks to the Lord they all reached their destinations.

We continue to support the brothers from Santa Rosa, although due to the country's problems we could not go with the planned frequency.

The technical school had good progress with Professor Arturo, who teaches small engines, and after that we concluded the semester with the subject of electronic injection and electronic diagnosis. We were able to advance the theoretical part and also the practical part with some vehicles that came to take some exams with the scanner. In the end we lacked a little time because due to the problems that occurred in the country, the education management advanced the closure. In addition to that there were some problems with the qualifications of the students in various specialties, including automotive mechanics, so the certificates did not come out.

17 automotive mechanics students passed the course, and that is a good number.

At the end of the year we were having dental care for Janeth, and this is going to last a few months. We also plan to travel to Tarija to see relatives and do some medical check-ups for Abigail.

January - March 2023

We begin this new year in the city of Tarija, visiting our relatives and brothers in the churches of Calle Bolivar and Nueva Jerusalén. We celebrated Misiel's birthday on January 4 and Janeth's on January 15, it was a nice family time. We also took advantage of doing Abigail's medical check-up and now she is trying another treatment for her respiratory tract. We have seen improvement and she can now play sports although not yet normally. Her crises are also affected by the weather so we will see how she responds in the coming months. We are still concerned about her state of health.

During our visit we were invited to participate and preach in a baptism that the Bolivar street church did. Three people were baptized; we enjoyed this time next to a small river.

When we returned from Tarija, we attended the wake of one of my uncles and there was an opportunity to share the gospel. My brother Javier was able to preach at the funeral. We prayed for the conversion of family and friends who were there.

Once in Camiri, we enrolled our girls in school, and they were happy as they desired to see their classmates again. Thanks to the Lord they quickly adapted to the modality of education. We pray for their spiritual life and personal relationship with the Lord.

We participated in the golden wedding of Marcos and Carol Mattix, it was a beautiful time of memories and blessing.

In the month of February, we had a spiritual retreat at a church in Ipati de Ivo. We went for three weekends to prepare the place, place water lines, electricity and some other improvements.

A week before, Abigail and Josías got sick with Dengue which hit them hard. Then Janeth also got sick, and they were in poor health during the retreat. Thanks to the Lord they recovered well without major complications. Upon returning from the retreat, Misiel became ill, and after a month it was my turn to become ill. Thanks to the Lord we have recovered well.

The Technical School began a new year. We started with few students, but more students appeared and currently we have 18 students. In the school workshop we are working on the project of converting a wagon into a pickup. We are doing this work with Ader, a former student.

This weekend we went to Santa Rosa. The night before it had rained hard, and a bridge collapsed. We tried to go another way, but we couldn't due to a fallen tree and a lot of mud. We arrived walking and it was a pleasure to find the brothers and share the meeting with them.

The Biblical Faculty started with 12 students and today they finished their second module.

Student Reports

Leodan

October - December 2022
I am very grateful for the support you give to Leodan, a student. He maintains his spirit of service, is a good student and worker. He also really likes to serve in the church. He supports the Youth Ministry and every 15 days we support a church in Boyuibe, a town 60 km from Camiri.

In these months there was a job that was presented, to make a structure for the roof of the bathrooms next to the chapel of the Biblical Faculty, I was in charge of the job and together with Leodan we did the cutting, welding and assembly. Leodan after that did a job for a missionary who needed benches to take to a Guarani community.

Leodan likes welding and in recent months he has shown interest in electronics, especially in the automotive area. He plans to take other specialty courses in this field next year in Camiri.

January - March 2023
Although Leodan has now finished his studies at the Technical School, I would like to tell you a little about what he has experienced in these months.

When we returned from Tarija, we heard the news that Leodan would move to the city of Santa Cruz for an instruction program at Etnos, a missionary training centre to reach ethnic groups. We were surprised by the news because his plans were different at the end of last year. He wanted to study electronics and continue serving the church in Camiri.

He is currently in Santa Cruz, continuing his studies at Etnos. In the morning he has classes, they cook their lunch, and in the afternoon they do sports and their homework as well. He told us that he is fine, despite the fact that he became ill with Dengue, and it hit him hard with some complications. On weekends they attend meetings in a church in Santa Cruz.

Prayer
1) That the Lord would guide his steps in life
2) For the salvation of his parents and his siblings. He had a contact to share the gospel with them, but his family still does not accept it.
3) For the health of his mother, her Parkinson's is more noticeable.
4) For his plans to study and serve in the church in San Miguel and Camiri 

Prayer and Praise Points

1) For our family and the ministries we support
2) For my wife's dental health
3) For the full recovery of Abigail's lungs
4) The problems in the country
5) For the salvation of the students of the Technical School and job opportunities for them.
6) For a good year for Biblical Faculty 
7) For the Technical School certificates in 2022, which have not yet been completed in Santa Cruz