PARAGUAY MISSION - MONTHLY REPORT SUMMARY

Missionaries: Troy and Andrea Spradlin

Mission Field: Asunción, Paraguay
Date/No. of Report: September, 2010 / Vol. 2 No.9

CONGREGATIONAL DEVELOPMENT AND INVOLVEMENT

Name of congregation Avenida Sacramento Iglesia de Cristo
Address Avenida Sacramento 650, c/ Espaňa - Asunción, Paraguay
Year established September 2004
Present number of members 31 Family Units (58 Baptized)

Average Bible classes attendance:

• Sunday – 45
• Midweek - 11
• Other - 8

Worship attendance:
• Sunday – 67 (5th); 46 (12th);
62 (19th); 58 (26th)

Iglesia de Cristo en Asuncion, Paraguay

Recent Bible classes:
• Our study this month is in 1 Corinthians. The Paraguayan men are leading the Bible study classes. We
will follow this study with 2 Corinthians.

Recent preaching engagements:

• I am beginning to prepare sermons and lessons for preaching in Spanish. I have been praying to be
ready by November. (Our plans include one year of language study before entering the work entirely).
• I prepared a video lesson that was played at Margaret St. church of Christ for “Mission Sunday.” It can
be viewed at: http://il.youtube.com/user/MissionParaguay

Recent congregational developments:

• Men's Business Meetings – The men are planning a big “Groundbreaking Day” for construction to start
and also coincide with a new education campaign: “Edificaré Mi Iglesia” (“I will build My Church” -
Matt. 16:18). We hope to teach the importance of the Great Commission, methods of personal
evangelism, and introduce tools (like the Searching for Truth material) to help us spread the gospel.
• The study on “Elders in the Church” is underway and going well. However, one of the men is currently
traveling out of the country, we have suspended classes until his return.

Recent conversions/identifications/restorations:
• Alicia Gonzalez, (restored), has been a member of the Iglesia de Cristo for
several years and was one of the first conversions from the church plant in
2004. She had fallen away recently, but, has decided to place the Lord first in
her life once again. We rejoice that she has returned to her first love and pray
that she will be strengthened in her new commitment.
Contacts made and resulting studies:
• Our ESL students: Dr. Pablo Avalos, Ramon “Sixto” Vega, Elin Caceras, Viviana Castro, Hector
Dávalos, and Dafne Hassan – some of these have turned into Bible studies. Please pray that they may
result in conversions.
• Dr. Pablo Avalos came to us via a clinic visit. Andrea had a bad cold, so we went to the clinic to see a
doctor. When he discovered that we taught English using the Bible, he asked if he could come. He has
now attended two classes.
• Ramon Paredes - a contact with whom Perry Hardin is studying.
• Luz Saniomiego – a contact with whom Chris Fry is studying.

Visitation:
• Andrea and I have begun hosting visits in our home. We have invited the
Pedro Vera family, the Alcides Adorno family, and Elin Caceras to come
have dinner with us. Each visit has helped us to develop stronger
relationships with our members and contacts.
• Blanca Acosta Family – Chris, Perry, and I went to visit Blanca after her
baby daughter, Evelyn, received several burns from falling into a pot of
boiling water. The baby received treatment and is doing much better.
Blanca Acosta with Evelyn
Meeting/efforts with fellow missionaries:
• “Annual Review Meeting” - we sat down to analyze the previous year's achievements and various
attempts in order to gauge our progress. We also organized and developed a list of “ministry jobs” that
are necessary within the church. Many of these jobs are handled by the missionaries. However, several
are already being lead by Paraguayans. Our plan is to “mentor” more members into leading the areas
of work and ministry until each one is covered.
• We followed several days of meetings with our annual team retreat by going to a small resort just
outside of town called, “Los Lagos.” There, we enjoyed a few days of relaxation and fellowship to help
recharge us a little bit.

Evangelistic efforts:
• A few of our more advanced ESL students are studying the “Searching for Truth” DVD/book.
• Free Bible study is continued to be offered to the general public.

Special activities of the month:

• Sept 5 - “Friends and Family Day” for our Sixth Anniversary Service
• Sept 2 - Historical Moment. After several years of hard work, intense
preparation, and much prayer, the church in Paraguay now owns its first
property. On September 2nd, we carried the remaining funds to the
"Escribania" office to complete the purchase. Ike Yegros and Perry
Hardin signed the papers for the deed. We are now submitting plans for
the remodeling project and hope to have a special ground breaking day
sometime in late November. God has answered our prayers! Now let's
pray that the facility will be a useful tool for leading many to Christ and
the Truth of His Word! Signing for the Deed

Mission plans for the near future:

• Developing an evangelism plan for the upcoming year
• To submit plans for the new facility/re-construction to the municipality for approval

Steps toward mission goals:

• Working toward installing elders
• Developing goals with and mentoring the members of the congregation
 PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT AND INVOLVEMENT

Personal HIGHLIGHT of the Month: Several of our students from the “Learn English Using the Bible”
campaign have turned into Bible studies!! We are using the Searching for Truth DVD and book to help them
learn more English, yet, every lesson has turned into a Bible study. We begin by talking about the English
words they don't understand, but soon, they start to ask, “But, why ____ ?” Oh, how exciting it is to take them
to the Bible in order to answer their question or explain the reason for something! The students are not only
coming to learn English, but now they want to know more about God's Word. Half of the class is an English
lesson, then the rest is a “What saith the Lord?” lesson!

Personal study:
• Expository study of 1 Corinthians
• Read The Epistles of Clement to the Corinthians. This was for research in our study of Corinthians, and
for better knowledge of the historical claims made by the Catholic church regarding Clement as being
the second pope.

Culture and language study:

• I have continued to participate in and lead some parts of our worship services in Spanish. This month, I
lead our Spanish song service, (for my first time).
• We still study Spanish 3 hours per day, 5 days a week. I now have my own personal teacher for three
days a week and Andrea has her own. Next month, I hope to add a few more hours of Spanish study in
the afternoon.
• Continuing to take Guarani language classes, twice a week. “Mba'eichapa!”

Family activities:
• We have begun inviting guests over to our house for dinner and
fellowship. This is helping us build stronger relationships.
• Planning a trip to Buenos Aires for our 15 year anniversary.

Recent Developments:
• Attending the weekly “Minister's Meeting.”

Government requirements:
• Our “gestor” tells us that everything is in order for our residency
paperwork and, at his point, we are only waiting final approval. He
hopes to have our cards in about 20 days.
The Alcides Adorno Family
Plans for the near future:
• Continue teaching Bible classes in ESL program
• Leading Spanish song services
• Continue language studies and learning the culture
• Travel to Buenos Aires

Notes:
• Andrea's cakes have become quite “famous” in Paraguay.
When she stated that she was finished making cakes for a
little while because it would be some time before the next
missionary kid's birthday, someone told her, “Well, we have
lot's of Paraguayan kids who want a cake by Andrea!” Here
is a picture of the one she made for Josiah's birthday.