Venezuela in August

Dan and Nancy Dunn left today for Venezuela where Dan will preach in Puerto Ordaz this weekend before going to Barquisimeto on Monday for the August session of Seminary classes. The Dean travels down on Friday when he will meet Jim Ogan. Jim will be teaching the Book of Acts next week in the seminary. Warren and Jane Lathem will travel to Venezuela on Sunday and then to Barquisimeto on Monday where Warren and Dan will team-teach a course on Global Mission. Boake Moore will travel to Barquisimeto on Wednesday to discuss the construction of the Wesley Seminary and make important connections with attorneys, contactors, suppliers, etc.

Our missionary friends have rented a house in Barquisimeto and will move into it in September. He will be the Field Director for Venezuela Now, Inc. in Venezuela as well as the Dean of the Wesley Seminary. She will serve as the treasurer/accountant for Venezuela Now in Venezuela, the Wesley Association of Venezuela and the Wesley Seminary.

Doug and Kathleen will be visiting and praying about their future involvement in the work God is doing through the United Methodist Church of Venezuela.

On Friday and Saturday of next week, after seminary is finished, the United Methodist pastors and families will remain in Barquisimeto for a time of Christian Conferencing. Their primary task will be editing and, hopefully, adopting a Discipline to govern the life of the UMC in Venezuela. The pastors have a draft of the document and are coming to seminary prepared to make necessary changes. Then our hope is that we will have our first official annual conference in January and organize the church in accordance with the approved Discipline.

On Sunday, Warren will preach at Ondas de Paz and Lugar Altissimo United Methodist Churches. Dan and Nancy will fly back to the US on Sunday afternoon. Then on Monday and Tuesday we will be working on construction plans for the seminary and helping our friends secure some of the things they will need to move into the country. We will hold a pastor's conference in Maracay on August 22 then travel to Colonia Tovar for a night of rest. On Friday we will fly to Punto Fijo where we will have another Pastors' Conference on Saturday and Warren will preach on Sunday.

We return to the US on August 29th, exhausted but praising God for all he did before our eyes. In addition to all of the above, there will be several other preaching opportunities, times of holy conversations, the delivery of a sound system to one pastor, shoes for another pastor's children and financial support for a couple of other pastors. Often tears will be shed, both of gratitude for all of God's blessings and sadness over parting.

Please pray for:
Safe traveling mercies;
The good health of all involved;
A great, transformational week of seminary classes with about 65 students;
The "Discipline" discussions and edits;
Blessings for all the preachers as they preach God's word;
The Pastors' Conferences, especially holy unction for Warren's teaching in these sessions;
Doug and Kathleen's first visit to Venezuela to be transformational;
Boake Moore to find the right contacts and information needed to proceed with the seminary construction as soon as funding comes forward.

Most importantly, pray that we will see many people come to faith in Christ, the Church built up in the faith and pastors encouraged.

If you still have time to pray for more, pray for workers in this ripe harvest field. And pray about how you can help with this ministry with a nation at risk, the most secular nation in South America.


Future Site of Wesley Seminary

The Work of Pastor Cheo Gomez

Drive as far as you can go in the Bolivar State in Venezuela before entering the Gran Savanna, stop in Tumeremo and meet pastor Cheo and Monica Gomez. You will be impressed with their passion for Christ, effectiveness in reaching the lost and love for God's people. You will immediately fall in love with this wonderful couple and their children. You will discover one of the great heroes of the faith, Cheo's mother (pictured with her beautiful parrot). You will visit the Pan de Vida (Bread of Life) United Methodist Church and take a tour of the surrounding communites where Pastor Cheo has planted additional mission congregations in Guasipati and Chuponal.

As you talk to Pastor Cheo, you will discover his passion for eduaction as well as the Gospel. He is a student in the Wesley Seminary of Venezuela in Barquisemeto. He travels by overnight bus to the seminary 5 times a year - an 18 hour ride each way. He is also in the process of building a Christian School in Tumeremo. He is praying for a partner US congregation who will work with him in the constrcution of the school and the churches in the surrounding communities.

As you get to know this family, you will discover one of the reasons we are so passionate about the work in Venezuela. They are attractive, intelligent, talented, passionate, faithful people serving in very difficult circumstances. There is no predictable salary. They are isolated in a frontier town. They serve with no expectation of security or pension. Yet they give and serve and sacrifice joyfully. Their faith is contagious.

Not too long ago the Tucker First UMC led by Pastor Dr. Tom Pilgrim, sent a mission team to Tumeremo to work with Pastor Cheo (See previous post). They fell in love with this pastor, his family and the people of Pan de Vida UMC.

Would you like to help? There is plenty of opportunity and you can make a difference. See the face of Christ and follow the will of God. God may just be calling you to Venezuela. Contact us if you desire more information: wlathem@aslangroup.com. We welcome your inquiries.