This is a video about the Cofan Tribe.

One of our dorm daughters is in this video.
(Yes... The one preparing the delicious armadillo!)


We don't want to say much. We are just so thankful that we get to be part of God's story in her life. We are blessed to live under the same roof.

So blessed to serve here!

If you are on facebook or any social media, you probably have heard of THIS video and how it has gone viral all over the web.
I saw this video a few weeks ago and I really enjoyed it. It highlights the GOSPEL as God’s master plan to bring sinful/messed up sinners into a relationship with Him. It shows that salvation it’s God’s doing and not our own. It even talks about sanctification and growth based on the gospel and that our efforts are “just behavior modification”.
However, as the video has continued to get more hits and more people keep watching and sharing it, something keeps screaming at me every time. Something that is dear to my heart and changed the way I see “my” relationship with Jesus. 
See, God did something crazy in my heart during the Summer of 1998.  For the first time (after years of translating for short-term missions teams and participating on religious activities) the Gospel grabbed my heart. My new faith was so real that it seemed so against everything I had experienced in “church”. I pushed as far as possible from any form of “organized” religion. The idea of “I love GOD but I don’t love the church” became my trademark phrase and something that I was proud off. Through years with touring, working with various Christian artists and ministries, I became the poster child of that movement that encouraged grouping any sort of organized religion as evil and anti-gospel/ anti-Jesus. Religion was evil!Jesus was good!! Religion and Jesus were on two completely opposite sides of the spectrum.
So, I really love the video yet I am cautious that the artist doesn’t really define practically what religion means. On a society in which individualism is encouraged and it's seen as a virtue, it's dangerous to not define what is religion or paint it as all bad. He does say... "don't get me wrong I love the church" but with the same statement he is equating "religion" with the Church (God's vehicle for His Glory, his bride, ..)
Now with the excuse of religion being bad, we continue to feed a so called Christianity that is missing KEY components such as real accountability, community, confession, discipline and like 40 one-anothers in the Bible that are meant to be experienced in that context.
This specially hits home and breaks my heart as time after time , I continue to see beloved friends that pushed this message (or pushed this message with me) walking away from the faith. They have cut themselves from any sort of anchor, accountability and safeguard and in the name of Jesus are walking against many things that He loves. Finally, I had to post something because that individualism has been exported through missions and it’s so present in my beloved city of Quito with lonely-ranger, maverick Christians that love Jesus, yet are missing God’s main ingredient for His Mission. 
Back to my story... A few years later, the Lord hit me with one of the biggest lessons I have ever learned. Right before going to college, God showed me how I had thrown the baby out with the bath water. By not defining the “religion” that I was against, I was hating and defaming one of the most powerful agents that God had designed for growth in my life and to accomplish what I wanted to see the most... To see people come to know HIM. I realized that if I loved Jesus.. I had to love what Jesus loved.
My prayer is for us to stop believing that false dichotomy. To stop fighting and focusing on NOT BEING RELIGIOUS, but to pursue wholeheartedly BEING THE CHURCH THAT CHRIST DIED FOR.  For us to continue to seek that organic, deep rich relationship with our Lord, yet not seeing it as antithetical with our responsibility with our covenant church family. May our love and commitment to Christ and to one-another ignite a passion for His Glory… may that passion lived out biblically and practically in community shine brightly the hope of the GOSPEL light on a dying world that is begging for something authentic. 

Now if you still want to watch more videos.. this should be the needed Extra Credit (and better rhymes too :)
http://youtu.be/AuuWPYQo3qg
Dear friends.

Happy New Year!!
I am up late finishing up some last details for my workshop tomorrow at a local Bible Institute, so just wanted to send you a quick email to update you and give you some prayer requests for January.  Please pray for us as we get a month that is heavy with Teaching and Training Opportunities.

January 13th,20th, 27th. Maris will be doing short workshops on Biblical Counseling for our core planting team.
January 1st. Kick off for our series on First Principles of the Faith. Preaching on "Good resolutions vs God resolutions"
January 7th. Teaching a workshop at IBCI (Bible Institute) on Servant Leadership.
January 8th. Teaching the kids class (La Fuentecita) and presenting a short "distinctive" on giving.
January 15th. Preaching on Baptism.
January 20nd Seminar and Introduction for the "Truth Project" more on this soon.
January 22th Preaching on Cultivating our Relationships.
January 28th  Officiating the wedding of our great friends Gustavo (Brazil) and Amy (USA)


Discipleship Opportunities. Maris continues to meet with her Wednesday night girls and I am so excited to see how those relationships have been deepening. She has also been approached by a really influential 11th grader and they have been having some great times together. Please continue to pray for those opportunities as well as her relationship with many of our ladies in the church. She is pretty awesome... (non married single bros... marry well!!) ahah. Anyways, on my part I wanted to ask for your prayers as I have started a book study (Don't waste your life) with a group of guys from church. I am hoping that his would become an accountability group (idea that somehow is totally unheard of after 100 years of missionary history in Ecuador) Please pray as this is a group that I have been spending time in the gym and through conversations they seem to have a great desire to pass that superficial level of relationships.

Alliance Academy (Academics). We will be finishing the semester in two weeks. Please pray for more opportunities to love on the kids. Please also pray for the great amount of work (reports, write ups, report cards, observations, testing) that are part of closing a Semester and how to do that with excellence as we manage our various responsabilities.

Alliance Academy (Dorm parents). We got news a few days ago that one of our kids is leaving the country in two weeks. It has been a heavy issue in our hearts as he is a great kid, but is really close to "religion".  He is not a believer and has had a really hard time adapting to the country, the school and his life in Ecuador. We are sad to think that he is leaving and we ask you to join us on continuing to pray for his salvation and God's plan for his life. Please also pray for thoughts of discouragement of "did we do enough?"

Speaking of people leaving the last week has been really hard emotionally. Today was the memorial service for a beloved friend of my Hoffman family (and mine since I met him last year) in the US. We are thankful that he is in glory with the Lord. Our prayers go for his family that has been a great example of putting Christ on display through this hard time.
On the other hand, the Moncayos (Fernando and Dalila) are packing and moving January 20th to the US to reconnect with my sister and brother that have been there for the last 3 years. We were able to have the whole family over and it was a great family celebration. As joyous as it was it was also hard to visit the house were I grew up and think that "our house" will be owned by someone else in a few weeks. The Lord has been so good and is teaching us about putting our treasures in heaven, yet loving in a godly way the blessings that He has given on Earth. I will probably write more about this on the blog but I just wanted to ask for your prayers.


THANK YOU!!
Anyways... through it all... we are so excited to be here in Ecuador. I have been back for 3 years now and I realize that either in the US or Ecuador, we will always be pilgrims and aliens longing for "home". We are thankful for a God that promises for a home that is not in the US, or Ecuador, but with Him in heaven when there will be no more goodbyes, nor tear, nor sorrows... As we start 2012 we could not be more excited to see God's hands leading us so clearly and showing us our part on His big plan here in Ecuador.  There are many needs and decisions that we must make soon. Would you please prayerfully consider joining us and allowing us to continue spreading the name of Jesus in Ecuador? The Lord didn't need to but He has shown us and made us committed to Ecuador as never before. Honestly, it's a beautiful yet scary place to be. There is so much going on and I continue to think of a quote that my friend Geoff Williams shared with me... "it's not if God is doing something but that I don't want to miss it!" Maris and I both feel that way and wanted to say thank you for your love and your desire to keep up with what is going on here in Ecuador. We wouldn't be able to do it without your prayers! This new year has a lot of new challenges and exciting things coming.

Blessings and Strictly Jesus!

Los Moncayos

PS. We are working on a new website and video.. Keep your eye out for that and let us know if you would like to help us :) For now.. here is a trailer I did for an event at church. Enjoy.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-el6CTWP6S8&context=C36d7358ADOEgsToPDskJiC1XIFZFebMoxsLma1Nge

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