SAMS Prayer line

22nd July 2008
Chile, Paraguay, PRAY, Spain

SAMS Prayer Line for week beginning Tuesday 22 July

The winter holidays are over for the staff and students of St Andrew’s School and the FEISA Teacher Training College in Asunción, Paraguay. Please pray for them in this first week back, and especially for the 1st and 3rd year students at FEISA who are on teaching practice. Pray they will bring God’s light and love into the schools where they do their placements.

Stuart & Kathryn Broughton are SAMS Associate Mission Partners serving the Portuguese-speaking communities in Sydney, Australia. Kathryn is currently in the UK helping translate for spouses at the Lambeth Conference, and asks our prayer for mental agility and strength and a true sense of God’s peace and love.

Next Tuesday sees the end of an era as Terry & Pancha Barratt arrive back in the UK from Chile after a lifetime in South America. They are coming to help care for Terry’s elderly parents, former SAMS missionaries Tony & Peggy. They will, however, be continuing the theological extension work of SEAN, of which Terry is International Director. As we give thanks for their wonderful service, let’s pray for their journey and resettlement, and remember the indigenous Pehuenche church in southern Chile, flourishing under new leadership supported by the training programmes carried out by Terry and Pancha.

Also next Tuesday Sue Woodcock returns to Sabadell in Spain after 3 weeks here, and around the same time Felipe Yáñez arrives from Málaga to join Sarah and the boys for the rest of their time here, including visits to link churches.

Following representation at the Lambeth Conference on Friday, the SAMS stand moves to New Wine on Saturday, for one week at Newark and two weeks at Shepton Mallet. Pray for the witness of the stand and those who staff it.

Finally, please continue to remember events going on overseas through this week:

the 25th anniversary of Anglican ministry in Villa el Salvador, Lima, Peru with Juan Carlos & Penny Marcés
– the training week for Wichi youth group leaders in Northern Argentina with René Pereira
– the 6-day course on HIV/AIDS in the Paraguayan Chaco with Beryl Baker for indigenous health auxiliaries

SAMS Prayer line

15th July 2008
Argentina, Brazil, Peru, PRAY

SAMS Prayer Line for the week commencing Tuesday 15 July

Please continue to remember the Hawksbee family. Derek, former SAMS missionary and GB staff member, has been diagnosed with bone cancer in his spine; as yet a realistic prognosis is not possible. Derek’s wife is Betty and their son Chris has flown in from mission work in Paraguay; please keep them all in prayer.

Tomorrow the Rowe family return to Spain after 3 weeks in the UK. Uphold Jonathan, Hilary, Elizabeth and Benjamin in travel and settling back to life in El Escorial, and continue to bring to God Hilary’s longstanding back problem.

Two important events are coming up in northeast Brazil this weekend. First, a seminar on urban mission is hosted at Living Waters Church in Olinda where Ian & Siméa Meldrum minister. There will be speakers from other churches and groups and it’s a big step forward to get town people to this slum area. And secondly, a children’s camp is held at Mission Esperança in Recife where Ruth & Efraim Hollingdale Vilella serve; it will be attended by 40 youngsters from 6-10 years-old who live in the nearby slum. Please remember these events in prayer.

Next week is the 25th anniversary of the Anglican ministry in the neighbourhood of Villa el Salvador in Lima, Peru. Pray for the witness and impact of the events and for the ongoing ministry of Juan Carlos & Penny Marcés at the church of Jesús el Salvador.

René Pereira in Northern Argentina asks us to pray for a training week starting on Tuesday (22nd) in Misión Chaqueña for leaders of youth groups among the Wichi people. The emphasis is on vision building and holistic mission. Many young Wichi are succumbing to the temptations of substance abuse.

Also next week a 6-day course on HIV/AIDS is held in the Paraguayan Chaco for indigenous health auxiliaries. Pray for this and for Beryl Baker who trains these workers.

Finally, keep in prayer the impact of the SAMS stand at the Lambeth Conference next Monday (21st) and Friday (25th).

SAMS Prayer line

8th July 2008
Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, PRAY

Pat Blanchard arrives in the UK tomorrow having just undergone an operation in Lima, Peru. Pray that this month-long private visit she’s making will be beneficial in every way. Pat will be at New Wine in Shepton Mallet later in the month.

This is the season of winter camps in South America. Josias de Souza and the church of Espirito Santo in Recife, Brazil, join with the local Baptist church in two children’s camps from tomorrow until the 19th. And from next Monday (14th) for one week a young people’s camp is held in Juárez in Northern Argentina, drawing people from different parts of the diocese and organised by René Pereira and Pastor Narciso. Pray God’s rich blessing on these important events.

This is a poignant time for the Somervell family as Tony, Chris and their 3 teenage children leave Paraguay on Friday (11th) after many years’ service there. Pray for them as they travel, adjust to the UK and face issues of schooling and future employment. Praise God for his faithfulness, past, present and future.

Arriving in Paraguay on Thursday (10th) is the first group of short term volunteers under the ‘Mission Paraguay’ banner. Pray their 3 weeks alongside the Paraguayan church and people in practical projects and children and young people’s work will be mutually enriching. Uphold too organisers David Orritt, Penny Metcalfe and Caroline Gilmour-White.

Finally, on Saturday afternoon (12th) a prayer ministry and healing retreat is held in Recife, Brazil; 6 ladies from Mission Esperança will receive ministry to help prepare them to minister to others. Ruth & Efraim Hollingdale Vilella ask us to remember this important event in our prayers.

SAMS Prayer line

3rd July 2008
Argentina, Chile, Paraguay, PRAY

The latest SAMS GB prayer line:

Please pray for a special meeting of the church of Gómez Carreño in Chile this Saturday. Pastor Danny Morrison remains on sick leave and Daniel & Ellelein Kirk ask prayer that God will guide this church gathering and lead the congregation forward during this difficult period. Pray too for God’s healing of Danny and remember his wife Ary too.

A number of folk are travelling to the UK this week:

Retired bishop David & Rachel Leake return tomorrow from a three-month visit to Northern Argentina to assist the Toba New Testament translation project.

Sarah Yáñez and sons Samuel and Aaron also arrive tomorrow from Spain for two months, the first with her parents, the second, after husband Felipe’s arrival, visiting link churches.

Also from Spain comes Sue Woodcock on a 3-week visit, arriving Tuesday (8th).
That same day Bishop Tito & Miriam Zavala arrive back here for church visits and the Lambeth Conference.

Please remember these people in your prayers.

Finally, the staff and students of St Andrew’s and the Annexe schools in Asunción, Paraguay, are winding down for the two-week winter holiday starting on Monday (7th). Pray for a time of much-needed refreshment prior to the long term ahead until Christmas, and safety for those travelling.

La Caldera team commissioning

3rd July 2008
Argentina, BTN, La Caldera

SAMS Ireland la Caldera 2008 teamSAMS Ireland La Caldera 2008 teamLast night saw the commissioning for the BTN team from Down and Dromore Diocese. About seventy family and friends gathered in Holywood Parish Halls for a fantastic service to share what the team will be doing, pray for them and for Bishop Harold to commission the them. There was a lovely atmosphere and everyone is looking forward to going out to strengthen links between the Dioceses and serve the church there by improving their retreat centre. They leave for Argentina tomorrow, please keep them in your prayers.

Follow their progress in their blog.


Worship from last night

ps. Updates might slow for a while as the editor of this web-site is on the trip.

Drumglass-Fivemiletown team fund-raise for South America

30th June 2008
Argentina, BTN, Go

SaltaThe Drumglass Parish team are getting excited as the time draws nearer for departure to Argentina. We travel to Argentina on July 24th returning August 15th.

Harold Armstrong, Nigel Millar, Margaret Jackson and Kate Shrestha will join 3 other ladies from Fivemiletown to make up a team travelling to Salta to help with the Red Box Project there. We are all looking forward to meeting Cecilia again.

Over the past few months there have been many fundraising events in the Paris. There was a 6 hour Dance-a-thon resulting in tired feet for many and Nigel ran the Belfast Marathon in May in blistering conditions but still completed the run in good time. A more relaxed event of selling cakes and drinking coffee filled a Saturday morning at the beginning of June and a fun night with a Treasure Hunt and BBQ is planned for the end of June in Dungannon Park. All events to date have been really well supported by the Parish.

Two members of the Team have travelled abroad before, however not to South America and all are looking forward to this new experience. We also look forward to seeing how the Church in Salta fellowship together and trust God can use us in some way to serve there.

Teams leave for Argentina

27th June 2008
Argentina, BTN, Volunteers

A number of SAMS Ireland Beyond the Norm teams are leaving for South America this week. The team from Lisburn Cathedral leave for Argentina today, and the Down and Dromore Diocese team leave next Friday.

Here is a report from their last team meeting on Sunday.

DDYC-SAMS Ireland team to La Caldera, SaltaThe DDYC SAMS Ireland team to La Caldera met for their final briefing last Sunday. We now have details of the work on the retreat centre, church services, kids clubs and Irish fun night that we wil be involved in. Everyone is really looking forward to it all. The team are a really talented bunch and we’re really looking forward to this trip.

Last week in Argentina there were farmer’s blockades protesting over export taxes that they led to food shortages in Salta! The protests are thankfully now over and we hope there will be no problems.

Next Wednesday we have a commissioning service with the Bishop Harold Millar. He is keen that the historic link between Down and Dromore Diocese will be restored with this trip. The service is at 7pm in Holywood Parish church.

You can follow this teams progress on their blog.

Prayer line

25th June 2008
Peru, PRAY, Spain

TestersPaul & Sarah Tester in Peru ask prayer for the young people of San Patricio Mission in the Lima neighbourhood of Ventanilla. Paul and another leader, Juan Carlos, are taking a group of them away for a Youth Alpha Retreat this weekend. Paul & Sarah write: “Alpha has been a way to start a youth ministry at the mission; we are praying for the young people to encounter God in a real and lasting way and to choose to follow Christ for their whole life.”

Events in the Diocese of Spain this weekend include a Pastors’ Conference on Friday and Saturday (27/28) in Madrid and a Youth Retreat from Sunday to Tuesday (29-1st) in Reus in the northeast. Please pray these will bring great blessing to the church in Spain.

Let’s continue to remember the 6 bishops from the Southern Cone (Venables, Zavala, Godfrey, Lyons, Cavalcanti, Apeleo) gathered at the GAFCON meetings in Jerusalem. Bishop Robinson Cavalcanti has with him a number of clergy from the Diocese of Recife, including Marcus Throup, so please remember that delegation in your prayers.

Farmers lift blockade in Argentina

24th June 2008
Argentina, PRAY

Farmer's protests in ArgentinaSome good news from Argentina. Recent farmers’ blockades of main roads in Argentina have been lifted after the government agreed to debate tax levies on soy production. The protests had led to food shortages in some areas which would have made life difficult for some of the SAMS Ireland summer teams heading out soon.

Read more on the story from the BBC.

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