Easter is past and life gets back to normal.
We have just finished an incredible week in Valladolid. It was Semana Santa (Holy week). Our city is very conservative and it was on display last week. We have many Catholic churches and inside of them they have images of Jesus, Mary and various saints. During holy week these are brought out and paraded through the city. Thousands of people fill the streets to get glimpses of these statues. They are focused and sober, paying homage to these depictions of the life of Christ.
The people carrying these life-sized idols many times are covered with robes and barefooted. They wear KKK style hoods to hide their identity. This is a sign of penance and humility. We heard some say that they prepare all year for these parades.
From our point of view our hearts are heavy. The Catholic Church has blinded the minds of our people and they follow ignorantly. Satan smiles as a depiction of our Lord and Savior is paraded through the streets beaten, bruised and nailed to a cross. The images of him are always depicted in agony and defeat while Mary is beautifully adorned.
We are encouraged! I know the above sounds dark and difficult, but we serve a RISEN Savior. The power of the resurrection is flowing through us into the streets of Valladolid. God has given us many opportunities to share His light and glory! We believe that it is only a matter of time before people begin to see that their church does not provide the hope that is in us! We love our people! We have even befriended and are praying for priests within the C.C. We have been asking God to give us an Apollos! In Acts 18:24 this guy shows up and is described as eloquent and mighty in the scriptures. He was a Jew that only had part of the story. Pauls disciples take him aside and give him the rest of the story. He reminds me of a priest in the C.C. Pray with us that God would lead us into the path of an Apollos!
We would like to plan an event for next Easter to take advantage this week. We were thinking that possibly a street drama team could come and help us. If you know of a church or group that might be interested pass on their details to me and we can start planning.
Each of our team members has begun meaningful relationships with Spaniards. These are exciting times! We have started the process of inviting people to read Gods word. I told you before about our language teacher Alberto and my challenge to him to read the bible. A few weeks ago he told me he started reading it! Please pray that God would speak to him.
Marvin and Heidi are making friends and sharing the gospel with families in their apartment building. Pray for Ana and Luis. She is now reading the gospel of John.
Luke has joined a choir and has had numerous opportunities to share his faith. Pray for Miguel who has taken to Luke and is curious about his faith.
Ally and I are still learning Spanish and enjoying the challenge. We meet each Friday afternoon with several ladies all who want to learn English. We meet for coffee and exchange language. We can’t wait until our language ability is sufficient to share our faith. Pray for Anabel, Isabel and Valle.
We also meet every Wednesday night at local café/bar for a Bible study. We ask that you pray with us as we invite people to join us. Sarah, one of the ladies in Luke’s choir has said she would join us.
Brian Villarias has arrived in Valladolid to join our team. Brian comes from Washington State. He was previously involved with the Traveling Team and World Vision. Pray for his quick cultural adjustment and language learning. We are seven now and still await the arrival of Justin and Amy. Pray for their support to come in soon.
Thank you again for all your prayers and support. We are blessed to have you all on our team!
It’s all for Him,
Steve & Ally
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