Dear friends, brothers, and sisters in our Lord, Jesus Christ;

By the Grace of our Lord, we sent a team to Colombia and Ecuador in March of this year. The team consisted of Constantin Lupancu, George Ieremciuc, Hamas Munoz, and several other Romanians. The purpose of the trip was to work in the prisons of Colombia and to build two schoolrooms in the jungle of Ecuador.

COLOMBIA

In Colombia, our host was brother Hames Munoz, a former resident of Colombia living in the United States. He prepared the arrangements for the mission to Bogota, Colombia. Even in a time of turmoil and rumors of wars, we had decided to go to Colombia though Ecuador was being threatened by Venezuela.

The team visited several churches, some in very poor and dangerous areas, but because of the turmoil in the country, they were only able to visit one prison, La Modela. The team took comfort in the Scripture in Mt. 24:6

“You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed…”

At one point,the entire team purchased goods and distributed them to the poor people attending the church Christiana Cuadrangular.

One night, Brother Constantin conducted a prison-training seminar. They had in attendance about 35 church members and each received a certificate of completion from Chaplains for Christ International.

On Thursday, March 13, the team was finally granted access to La Modelo Prison, one of the biggest prisons in Colombia. The team brought 200 Bibles to pass to the inmates of the prison. They were able to minister in two courtyards to many inmates. The response was great. Many inmates received the message of peace and hope from the Word of God. Prayers of repentance and rededication to Jesus Christ were made in response to the Gospel message.

ECUADOR

On Friday, March 14, our team departed Colombia to Ecuador and arrived in Quito, Ecuador. Our host, Timothy Anderson, with one of his friends from Teen Challenge waited for us and welcomed us. In the afternoon, they ministered to Teen Challenge Chapel near Quito. On Saturday, March 15, they ministered in Quito Jail #3 and the CDP Jail. The team also ministered in several churches. In the afternoon, they left Quito for the jungle.

On Monday, they flew to the jungle village called Kuakash and began to build two school buildings there. At night they had an evangelistic service in the jungle and six people from the Shuar indigenous community received Christ as their personal Saviour and Lord.

On Tuesday, March 18, they continued with the project of buildings and in the afternoon they finished the project. At night they had another evangelism service, and to make sure that everyone would come, they walked into the jungle and visited every hut and invited all of them. God moved that night and many were touched by God’s sweet presence. In the jungle there was joyful noise of praises, worship, and fervent prayer for the Holy Spirit to fill their lives. Despite their hard lifestyle they encouraged them to seek God’s presence everyday and He will fulfill their needs according to His riches. Eight people decided to be baptized. One local man initially had a very furious expression on his face but when the Gospel was preached and he received it, the Holy Spirit’s power transformed his life and his face manifested a joyful, gleaming, shining, and radiating light. “But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord.” (2 Corinthians 3:18).

On Wednesday, March 19, the team eight people in the of the rivers of the Amazon. “Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. Amen.” (Matthew 28:19-20).

On Thursday, March 20, they a had a free day and they visited the earth’s equator.

The brothers and friends from Ecuador send there greetings to us in the U.S. with (2 Corinthians 14-17) -

“14. But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumph in Christ, and manifests through us the sweet aroma of the knowledge of Him in every place. 15. For we are a fragrance of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing; 16. to the one an aroma from death to death, to the other an aroma from life to life And who is adequate for these things? 17. For we are not like many, peddling the word of God, but as from sincerity, but as from God, we speak in Christ in the sight of God.” All the Glory and all the Praise be to God only who led us and helped us to fulfill His purpose. Please keep in your prayers the men and women who are sentenced for many years in the Prisons of Ecuador and Colombia. Pray also for the Shuar Indians in the Amazon that God will keep them strong in His faith.

(Note: additional pictures of the Ecuador Amazon trip below)

Chaplain Rob Brown

Chaplains for Christ International