A Good Rest?

We always get asked after our Home Ministry Assignment (HMA) if we had a good rest. If you ask most missionaries, they will tell you that HMA is not a time for rest... It is usually more stressful than living in your country of ministry because of the disruption and constant visiting that HMA requires. Personally, I get a lot more rest sitting on a beach in Ecuador with good friends. So how would I characterize our HMA?

"Crazy" is the first word that comes to mind. It was a crazy summer for many reasons, including Ruth and I spending 6 of our 12 weeks in different places. For 4 of those, we were in different continents. We also drove from Indiana, to California, and back again, which is crazy any time. Finally, Ruth was studying for much of the summer, taking the second level of classwork toward her certification as an educational therapist.

"Ministry" is the second word that comes to mind. I had the opportunity to speak or teach in the Spanish service and/or Sunday school classes at Church of the Open Door (COD) all summer long. Ruth participated in the Spanish Women's Bible Study. We spoke at a missions dinner at COD along with several other missionaries. Daniel and I played basketball with the high school boys on Mondays and the men on Tuesdays, and Daniel played indoor soccer on Thurs nights with the Spanish ministry, all of which were outreach ministries to the community. Daniel had the opportunity to translate for a High school outreach trip to Mexico. While there, he was asked to play piano for the high school worship team and for the Idrafoje (I'D RAther FOllow JEsus) camp for 3rd thru 5th graders. What a privilege to be able to minister to those who support us day in and day out, month in and month out!

"Social" is the last word that comes to mind. Even with the craziness we did get to see many people. We were able to see people in both Indiana and California. We hosted a supporter desert in Indiana. We met many new people at COD. We met with many supporters in California, Colorado and Kansas. We spent several days at the Grand Canyon with Ruth's family and we returned to Indiana in time for a family reunion on Doug's side of the family. We also got to spend some great time with other missionary families from COD.

So was our HMA restful? No... Was it a good HMA? Yes... It was a time to remember all of the great people who stand with us in ministry. It was a time to thank many of them personally. It was a time to share with new acquaintances about what God is doing in Latin America. It was a time to give back to many of those who give to us every day, month, year. So thanks... Thanks for standing with us. Thanks for praying for us. Thanks for supporting our ministry. Thanks for being part of the team...

Doug & Ruth

(If you want to be part of the team, write to us...)

The ALAS Satellite Radio Ministry

As promised, I want to talk a little bit today about what the ALAS Satellite network is, and maybe what it isn't. First of all, it is not a satellite network that you can listen to directly on your car radio. The ALAS network depends on local radio stations to broadcast our programs. This is unlike the satellite networks in the USA and Europe where listeners can buy a satellite radio receiver and listen directly to the network. We currently have just over 100 affiliate radio stations who use our programs as a regular part of their broadcast day.

So who are these local radio stations anyway? Well they are mostly little Christian stations that are run by small churches or small groups of believers who have a heart to reach their communities for Christ and see radio as a strategic tool in accomplishing that goal. They are scattered all over Latin America, the USA and even Spain. Some are in very remote, mountain villages where internet technology cannot reach them. Oh, we have a few affiliates who are large stations located in some of the largest cities of Central and South America, but that is the exception, not the rule.

These stations have a problem though. They don't have a lot of money. Oh they have lots of vision, but lack the resources to realize that vision. It's expensive to produce quality radio programs and either they don't have believers who are trained in radio to help them, or they can't afford to hire the talent they need to effectively reach their community. That's where we come in. We provide a 24 hour satellite feed that these stations can use whenever they wish throughout the day or night. Many will play the ALAS network all night long or even all weekend long. That helps them focus the limited resources that they have on their local "prime time" audiences.

HCJB Global does a lot to promote Christian radio around the world. We help believers start their own stations through Radio Planting. We help them prepare their staff by providing Radio Training so that the talent they do have can maximize their impact. Then we also help them by providing quality Christian programming that makes them sound professional all day long until they have the resources to do that themselves.

Doug

To Him Who Has, More Will Be Given

Do you remember that verse from the parable of the talents? I do. And just when I thought that I was going to get to concentrate on new media projects again, I was given more things to do. :-) Oh I am still in charge of New Media. In fact, things are beginning to really take off on some of our new media initiatives and we are starting some new projects as well. We now have over 7,000 people who follow our local radio Facebook page (Facebook.com/HCJBLaVozDeLosAndes). Another 4,500 people follow our Guayaquil radio station (Facebook.com/HCJB2). In all, I am overseeing something like 8 Facebook pages, all aimed at different audiences.

However, about 3 weeks ago I was also asked to oversee 2 other ministries, ALAS and SERVIR. ALAS is our satellite radio network that began in 1994. We use it to feed over 100 radio outlets around Latin America, the USA and Spain. Many of our affiliates are small stations who can't afford to produce their own programming. So we help them out by providing a radio stream that they can jump into and out of as needed. Many of them use our network to play all night long or most of the weekend. By sending them quality programs, they also sound better on the air then they would otherwise.

The other ministry is call SERVIR. Servir is a Spanish word which means "service". It is actually a play on words in Spanish because SERVIR really is sort of an acronym for International Radio Services (SERVicios International de Radio). SERVIR works with partners who want to produce radio programs for Latin America and distribute them throughout the region. Some of our current partners include, The Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, FamilyLife Today, Mission Network News, Hope for the Heart, and "Let My People Think" with Ravi Zacharias. We do translations in Spanish and Quichua at the moment although we have partners who are interested in us helping them do programs into Portugese and German as well.

I will share a little more about each of these ministries in upcoming posts. Suffice it say right now that I am feeling pretty overwhelmed with the new responsibilities as I try to get up to speed on what each are is doing and then move it forward. I am really enjoying the challenge though. We have great teams in each of these areas who are carrying most of the work and I am having a ball pointing them in the right directions and giving each team a little push now and then to keep them going.

Doug

Misión Compartida 2010

The very next weekend after the Extreme Response Christmas party and the Quito Day concerts, we jumped right into the annual fundraiser/share-a-thon/open house for our two local radio stations. Radio HCJB in Quito ran their share-a-thon from Friday thru Sunday while HCJB-2 in Guayaquil ran theirs from Thurs thru Sunday.

Here in Quito we open the doors to the radio station while at the same time inviting them to give to the station. And they do come. This year we estimate that 5,700 people passed through our gates. They come to see their favorite producer. They come to leave their donation. They come to express their appreciation for the ministry our producers have had in their lives. This is a time of sharing together.

Listeners can pledge their donation by calling us or they can come to the station and leave their donation with us. Then they can enter our "live studio" to see how radio is made from behind the scenes. Much of our music is also performed "live" during the event. Many listeners will come to see their favorite musical group in person. This year we invited the group "Blest" from the USA as well as several local groups from Ecuador.

The children can be dropped off in the "Children's tent" where a local church volunteers to entertain them with face painting, coloring, games and presentations where clowns teach the kids about Jesus. We also have inflatable trampolines for the kids when the presentations are not going on.

Misión Compartida is about connection. It is about connecting with our listeners. It is about our listeners connecting with us. It is about financial support for the station. It is about sharing in the mission of reaching Ecuador and the world with the good news about Jesus Christ. This year our listeners pledged over $215,000 for the station. Unbelievable? History shows that here in Quito, our listeners will likely give more than they have pledged. This is a testimony to the work our producers do on the air. Our listeners give out of gratitude for the ministry they receive every day over the airwaves. That is why we are so excited about the ministry of HCJB in Latin America. Thanks for being a part of that ministry through your prayers and support of our family in so many ways.

Doug & Ruth

Quito Day Concerts

The same weekend that Extreme Response was doing their big Christmas party, Radio Station HCJB was presenting their Quito Day Concerts in honor of the anniversary of the founding of the city of Quito. This is an annual event and HCJB has been taking advantage of the celebration to present the gospel for many years. We have done this through song, dance, and video.

I was part of the welcoming team on Sunday which greeted people at the door of the Sucre Theater and helped them find their way to their seats. Ruth and the family came for the second of the three concerts that day. Saturday also had three presentations.

We were told this year that the rules of the theater had changed and that the city no longer allowed religious activities in the theater. This put a bit of a damper on how strongly we could present the gospel, but as we talked to theater officials, it became apparent that most of what we wanted to do was not considered "religious". That was refreshing, as we see these concerts as an outreach to the community more than anything. Not looking "religious" is a good thing.

Two or More, a Christian, Latin rock style music group from the USA joined us for the concerts. The 3 brothers who form the core of the group were born in Southern Caligornia to Ecuadorian parents. The 70 member choir sang a mixture of music including some traditional Ecuadorian songs that honor the city of Quito. The gospel message was woven through the dialog of the 3 hosts whose humor kept the crowds entertained throughout the presentation, culminating in Jesus being the real present of Christmas and the real reason we celebrate Christmas.

The concerts were sold out the first day that tickets went on sale. This has happened several times in the last few years. We also have the opportunity, a few days later, to present some of our music to several government Ministers at the Ecuadorian Presidential Palace. We pray that each year we can present a clear message of Jesus Christ to those attending and help them remember that Jesus' birth is the real reason we celebrate Christmas.

Doug