Highlander Highlights

A Sunday of Thanksgiving!!!

2011-03-03T06:49:00.001-04:00

Last Sunday was so full of Thanksgiving!

We are thankful that Emilio is doing so much better and that was removed is not cancer. He will be returning with his family to Santa Cruz today, Lord willing.

We are thankful for Marco and Stephany are engaged and were in Cochabamba for premartial counseling. We are also thankful for his desire to go to preaching school and serve the Lord in that way.

We are thankful that Ana's husband is back from having chemo out of the country and is doing very well!

We are thankful that we had a time of fellowship during the potluck!

We are thankful for the e-mail from Jenny Reyes that she will be back in Sucre serving the Lord again with her team there in April.

So many things to be thankful for!!

Most of all for our Lord Jesus Christ who binds us together in his blood and teaches us true love through our relationships.

Family Newsletter February 2011

2011-02-07T08:11:00.008-04:00

SWEET LEILANI

In his 1937 movie titled, Waikiki Wedding, Bing Crosby sings a lullaby to a lovely young girl swaying in a hammock who just happens to be named Leilani. The title of the song is “Sweet Leilani”. The name Leilani is a Hawaiian name which means “heavenly flower”. As most of you know by now our own sweet heavenly flower came into this world on January 20th weighing 2.96 kilos.

Leilani Berea Forbess joins her sister Jubilee and brother Malakai who both have shown to be very supportive of mommy and daddy with baby # 3. In fact they often yell at the top of their lungs, “the baby is crying!” just in case we don´t hear her. In general, Leilani is indeed a sweetie and she has even let her mommy and daddy get an occasional two or three hours of sleep in a row .

In all seriousness, we do want to praise our Heavenly Father for this heavenly flower and also because the pregnancy and delivery went so smoothly. At the beginning of the pregnancy we were a little concerned about doctors and we in fact changed doctors when Katie was about 7 months pregnant. It turned out to be a great choice and the Lord led us to a very competent and God-fearing doctor. When we handed her our 2 page birth plan she didn´t blink an eye and she diligently followed all of Katie´s wishes. We invite you to join with us in thanksgiving for the amazing blessing that God has sent our way.

TRANSITIONS IN TEAM LIFE

The year of 2010 was quite a significant one in regards to the Lord´s body here in Cochabamba. During 2010 we said goodbye to two of the missionary families who came as part of our original 5 family team. We are thankful for the time and sacrifice given by both the Bulls and the Marcums. We ask you to continue praying for both families during this time of transition. The Bulls have relocated to the Dallas area where they will be working, raising kids and Gary will be pursuing his MBA. Josh and Julie took a job offer to go to work in Ecuador with Josh´s father. Currently Julie is with the girls at her parent´s house in Michigan and Josh is traveling as he works on fundraising and coursework at ACU. Please also continue to remember Julie in prayer as she awaits the birth of their fourth child in April. In other team news, Butch and Trish are doing well. They were blessed with a special visit by their daughter Elina (Denise), son-in-law Daniel and his two parents during the month of January. This was a very encouraging time for the Sandoval´s and we are so thankful they got to have time with their family. We too were blessed by the visit of Linda, Katie´s mother. Linda has been able to witness the birth of all three of our children and be there to help with everything from organizing, to cooking, to spoiling babies and we are so grateful for her.

GETTING ECO-FRIENDLY ON THE MISSION FIELD

The year of 2010 also saw some amazing generosity on the part of so many of you our supporters. One such supporter is a dear sister in Christ who donated money to help with our permanent building, student loan payments and two different ministry ideas.

One of those ministries is the purchase of solar cookers for families in need from the congregation and the community. Since October the recipients of these cookers have met once a month for prayer, Bible study and fellowship. We have also had one demonstration of how to use the cookers and will have one more demonstration in March.

The benefits of the solar cookers are two fold. On an individual basis they are easy on the pocketbook because they do not consume any electricity or gas. They only require sunlight for operation. This means the families will save on monthly expenses by not having to buy gas tanks as often for the operation of their stoves.

In a more global sense, the cookers also conserve electricity and gas usage. Each family has until April to save up their half of the cost. As a result of our sister´s contribution, the church is going to supply the other half of the cost of the cookers. If this turns out well, we are very interested in repeating the same idea perhaps in a different neighborhood or in a more rural setting where the impact could be even greater.

The idea of this project was to serve families in need in a physical way that goes beyond a one time bailout and offers a small step towards breaking the cycle of poverty. We also wanted to combine the serving of physical needs with that of serving the spiritual needs of recipients as well. Throughout the project we have kept a strong focus on prayer and study of God´s word.

We solicit your prayers that hearts would be touched through this project and that God would use this ministry in a powerful way.

EXTREME MAKEOVER AT THE CONTACT CENTER

Well, we couldn´t get Ty and his team to come down to Bolivia for a makeover of the contact center but we are doing our very best to give the contact center a new look. Thanks go to the same generous sister for her contribution, to Katie for her vision of revamping the CC, and also to Butch who has spent countless hours designing and constructing custom made furniture. There are also many others who have helped out with this project. The church members came together the day before Leilani was born to do the bulk of the painting led by Javier, an experienced painter. Gabi, Ronaldo, Wendy and Gonzalo have also pitched in at other times to help.

The idea of the makeover was actually borrowed from fellow missionaries serving in Sucre. In Sucre they have established a wonderful coffee shop type ministry which mainly focuses on college age students. We wanted to take this idea and adopt it to our circumstances making the contact center more open and inviting to both the brethren and people who may stop in off the street.

So far we have gotten a lot done. We have painted the entire downstairs area. The worn out furniture in the front area has been removed and new furniture will soon be purchased. Butch´s corner office has been removed to open up a sitting area in front of the existing coffee bar. Josh´s old office is being converted to a cozy place to read and study. In addition, the old library will be converted to a room which will house a small kitchenette area, sitting area and two small tables for sipping coffee.

On a personal note, I would just like to say thanks to Butch and all the others of the church family who have done so much work. I was not able to be there as much as I should have been due to the arrival of Leilani, but everyone truly came together as a body and the end product is going to be fantastic! Please join with us in prayer that this renovation would play an important part in bringing even more people to know the love of Christ.

Leilani Berea Forbess

2011-01-30T12:56:00.002-04:00

Born 1/20/2011, 2.960 kilos (about 6.5 pounds)
Cochabamba, Bolivia
Proud sister and brother

Summer 2010 Updates

2010-07-23T14:15:00.006-04:00

FORBESS FAMILY & COCHABAMBA FOR CHRIST NEWSLETTER

Family News

First of all as always we wish to send you are greetings and love. We are thankful that you are taking the time to read about our family and the work of the Kingdom here in Bolivia. We have heard that this summer has been a real scorcher and we hope that despite the heat you have been able to take advantage of children´s vacation time and get in some quality time with the whole family. I know that both sides of our family have certainly taken advantage of the summer to get together and travel. Katie´s side of the family annually celebrates a family reunion in Hot Springs Village over the 4th of July holiday gathering relatives from all over Arkansas and Texas. The “Rogers cousins” on my side also spend their time in Chillicothe visiting Grammi and Pops and also attending Green Valley Bible camp. One truly great highlight of the summer is that our nephew Ashton was moved to dedicate his life to Christ and be baptized while at Bible camp. We invite you to rejoice with our whole family and with the angels in Heaven for the future of Ashton in the Lord´s Kingdom!!

Here in Cochabamba we have also been blessed. First Linda, Katie´s mother was able to come and visit us in the first week of June. We had a great time and in particular the grandbabies!! We always have appreciated that both sets of parents have made an effort to come and visit us despite the long trip. We also received another special visitor, Lora Beth Escalante who along with her husband Javier have been our close friends since our college days at Harding. Lora Beth took advantage of her summer break to make her first visit to Cochabamba and we are thankful to both her and Javier for making her visit possible. Join us in thanking God for Linda and Lora Beth´s visit.

Both visits were especially timely because right before I traveled to Dallas at the end of May to attend the Cochabamba Connection Conference Katie and I found out that we are to be parents for a third time. Yes, you read correctly, we are expecting our third child towards the end of January! So Linda´s visit occurred right about when morning sickness and all the delightful sensations of the first trimester begin to kick in. It was a blessing to have Linda with us to help with the kids and to be there for Katie when she was not feeling up to par. Lora Beth´s visit came later but Katie was still not feeling too hot and we were encouraged by her visit as well, reminiscing about old times and enjoying introducing a dear friend to our Bolivian life that she has heard so much about. Katie by the way, is now feeling much better and just has to pace herself and not try to pack too much into one day. If she does that she is usually in pretty good shape. We do ask your prayers though for her and the baby´s health, that they would both come through the pregnancy and delivery safe and sound.

In other news, Jubilee and Malakai are also doing well. Jubilee has moved from her previous Kindergarten to a full fledged “colegio”. At first she was worried about being one of the youngest children after having enjoyed her time as the oldest at Rise n´ Shine but now she and her friend Aiden from church are truly looking forward to each day of school. The school that we finally choose for her is a Montessori school within walking distance of our house that offers mainly instruction in Spanish. Katie and I are literally thrilled with the education Jubilee is receiving and all those worries of finding a good school on the mission field have evaporated. In truth, it would be much more difficult for us to afford such an option for Jubilee in the US given that Montessori is quite often very expensive so we are very excited about this school option for Jubilee and Malakai in the future.

One of the latest things that our creative Jubilee has come up with is her idea for a feast club. It was her idea to begin a club for herself and friends to get together and learn more about God. It is turning out to be a ministry opportunity that Katie and I are exploring for the intermediate aged children of the church and we give thanks for Jubilee´s ideas and solicit your prayers that this could truly turn out to be a ministry that helps our young ones to grow closer to each other as well as to God. We also of course ask for your continued prayers for Jubilee, she is showing us each day just how much God has gifted her with a sensitive and probing spirit, we just want to make sure that we are good stewards of her precious heart and mind.

Malakai continues to go to Rise N´ Shine and wakes up each morning asking to go to Miss ´Nita´s house (the school is run by Miss Anita). In fact almost every place we go to is described by Mali as the house of someone or something. For example, he calls the movie theater Pipoca´s House (pipoca means popcorn). Each day he shows more and more that he is 100% boy he loves to kick, throw, run and hit. We just have to remind him often that these things are to be done with inanimate objects as opposed to his sister for example. The majority of the time though, he and Jubilee get along famously and we are so thankful for the love and friendship they share. Malakai has had a few bouts of his annual respiratory problems that accompany the cooler drier weather and he battled bronchitis at least three times in a row. However, he is on preventative medicine recently and it seems to be doing the trick. Please also keep Malakai in your prayers, in particular that his health would continue to improve and that the reoccurring bronchitis would stay far away.

As far as myself, I am very grateful to announce that I have finally finished my master´s program in applied linguistics through the University of Massachusetts in Boston. I am so grateful to Katie, my children and my teammates for being such patient supporters of this process. Although it was a program from a secular university I do feel God spoke to me and allowed me to grow through all I learned and it is my prayer that the new skills and knowledge that I have been given can be used to glorify God. As I look forward I now feel so excited about the additional time I will now have to dedicate to my family and to the brethren here in Cochabamba. Please keep me in your prayers so that I would know how to best use my newfound time so that I may be a good steward of the resources that the Lord has blessed me with. For those of you who know me well, you know that since I was very young I have struggled to be organized. Upon finishing my studies I felt inspired to go online and order several new books about home and office organization as well as time management for the “creative” person. It turns out that I forgot to tell Lora Beth the titles of the books I had sent to her house for her to bring down and she a very creative person herself begin to think someone was trying to send her a subtle message to get organized. We had a good laugh about that one!

Visitors

As usual it is overwhelming for me to think of where to start in order to update you adequately on the church work. Many activities and changes are happening within the church and team. One change that will affect all of us is that Gary and Laura will be leaving us at the end of October. We thank God for their time with us on the field and for the lasting legacy they will leave behind. We observed with the Custers how even during their short time that they had a lasting effect on the work and we know the same will be true to an even greater extent with Gary and Laura. We ask you to keep the Bull family in your prayers as they will soon be embarking on a new stage of transition in their life. We know that wherever they end up they will be a blessing to the local congregation and wish them all the best in the future.

In other news, along with our personal visitors, the team has also been blessed by several visitors taking advantage of the US summer vacation schedule. We have been so grateful to have Lisette Prato with us from Harding as our summer intern. Katie and I first knew Lisette when she was a little older than Jubilee is now, when we met her in San Cristobal, Venezuela where her parents Gustavo and Cheryl worked as missionaries during the time Katie, Lora Beth and I were there for a summer campaign. It was exciting to see how the Lord has worked in Lisette´s life and we were so encouraged to see her love for Bolivia grow greater and greater during her time in Cochabamba. Please pray for Lisette and her future as a servant of the Lord´s church that she would continue down this present road of service.

Another set of visitors that we have received are Dave and Liz Chalenburg from Searcy, Arkansas with their two children Aiden and Holden. Aiden is just about the age of Jubilee and Holden is about the same age as Holdren. The Chalenburg´s have come with the primary goal of learning/perfecting Spanish and they are open to the possibility of going through the formal process to be considered as candidates to form part of the Cochabamba team. We are grateful for their timely arrival especially in light of the fact that just about when Micaela had left for furlough, Jubilee had another friend, (Aiden) come into her life. We have enjoyed getting to know the Chalenburgs and we ask your prayers that they would be successful in their goal to learn and improve their language abilities as well as wisdom for them in their decision making process concerning staying in Cochabamba for a more long term basis.

Along with Dave and Liz, Dave´s cousin Brittany also came originally to help with Aiden and Holden while Dave and Liz attend language school. Fortunately, Brittany came with a disposition to serve the body and was able to work closely with Lisette in ministering to our young people. Brittany and Lisette helped to organize many activities for our young people to help them grow closer as a group and grow closer to the Lord as well. Brittany also took advantage of her time to volunteer at a local children´s home. Both Brittany and Lisette are already planning their return next summer. We invite you to join with us in thanksgiving for these two young ladies dedicated to witnessing for the Lord through their acts of service and ask for the Lord to bless them with a continued passion for being a part of the plan to seek and save the lost.

We are also blessed by the visit of the youth group of the Westside church of Christ in Round Rock, Texas accompanied by four adult chaperones of the same congregation. It is truly amazing how God´s timing is infinitely better than ours. This great group of young Christians arrived one week after the church remembered with heavy hearts the one year anniversary of the teen bus accident in which we lost three young ladies. While it was an important time of remembrance it left some of our teens feeling deep sadness once again. We were all moved by the special way that their peers from the US were able to bridge language and cultural barriers to show them love and support during daily service projects and devotionals. We heard repeatedly from both groups of teenagers how important the week of fellowship was for their spiritual growth. Gary Bull and their youth minister Geoff along with Bruno Guardia were integral to the success of this visit and we are thankful for their service. We ask you to praise God alongside with us for the teenagers from Westside and their service and ask you to pray for the continued healing process of the Cochabamba youth group and their families.

When scripture states that the Lord will fill our cup to overflowing, it was definitely speaking the truth. As if all of the aforementioned visitors were not enough, we were also blessed by the visit of Bill and Holly Richardson and their daughter Lindsay. Bill was one of our missions professors from Harding and in fact was the one who first put us in contact with Austin Avenue when they began tossing around the idea of forming and sending a team somewhere on the mission field. The Richardson´s also worshiped with us at the Casita Blanca congregation during our years at Harding. Bill gave a conference on the nature and purpose of the church and Holly and Lindsay helped out during their short time with various ministry activities designed for the ladies and young ladies. It was great to have someone who had a part in the initial team formation to see what the Lord has done in the last five years. We ask you to thank God with us for the encouragement and spiritual growth facilitated by the Richardsons and their visit to Cochabamba.

Bolivian Brethren

As always we want you to keep our Bolivian brethren in your prayers. Although it may be hard not to just think of these people as unfamiliar names and faces we invite you to get to know these people as your brothers and sisters. We appreciate you greatly all those who fervently have prayed for the Bolivian Christians.

Commemoration of the Accident:

In general news, the largest events have been commemorating the accident on July 30th and the continued campaign to raise funds for a permanent meeting place. Concerning the anniversary of the accident we held a special graveside memorial as is the Bolivian custom for each of the three girls, Ariana, Diana, and Belen. Ariana´s extended family met with us at the cemetery and we participated with the family as people shared special memories of Ariana and then released white balloons to the wind in her memory. We then moved on to where Diana and Belen were buried and the brothers of the church shared in scripture reading, prayer and song with the aim of focusing the church´s attention on the hope we have in Christ, on our unity as a church body, and on our gratefulness for the survivors of the accident. It was understandably and emotional time and something we as N. Americans were not very accustomed to doing with so much time having passed, but we wanted to honor Bolivian tradition and it did result in a time of encouragement and healing for the brethren. We plead with you that you would continue praying for the long term healing of our teenagers, their families, and others affected by this event. We give thanks however at the same time for the growth, maturity and unification brought about in part by the accident.

At the same time we sadly inform you that Diana and Belen´s family has distanced themselves considerably from the church. We understand their hurt and longingly wish to comfort them. Please pray that the Lord would continue to minister to the Vargas family as they endeavor to navigate their grief on their own. We do rejoice however for Ariana who surely is smiling down upon her family. One of her wishes expressed to her mother was that her family would become more united. Since the accident, Ariana´s family has struggled with their loss but they have also begun turning towards the Lord. Wendy (Ariana´s mother) married Gonzalo in March and Gonzalo is seriously considering putting Christ on in baptism. Wendy´s parents, Walter and Betty made the decision to become followers of Christ and Ariana´s aunt and uncle, Silvia and Pablo are also studying the Bible weekly with the missionaries as a result of their desire to become Christians and marry each other after many years of living together. We ask that you would thank God for what has happened in Ariana´s family and that the Lord would continue to work in their life to bring them closer and closer to Him.

Building Fundraising Campaign

One very demanding project that was put on hold due to the accident was the fundraising campaign for a permanent meeting place for the congregation. Since the time of the accident we have began again in earnest to encourage both the local brethren and the brethren abroad about the need to secure a permanent meeting location. As you may have read earlier, the Bolivian brethren have worked tirelessly holding garage sells, selling handmade crafts, selling snacks and contributing their own funds to raise money. Originally, their goal was to raise $10.000 USD to go towards the cost of a building. So far as a result of their efforts they have raised close to $6,000 USD and have plans to continue even past the original date set for reaching this goal. We praise God for the efforts of the Bolivian brethren and ask you to rejoice with us for their continued interest in this important endeavor.

We have also been blessed by the interest of brethren abroad in the US. In May, their eight members of the team who met with supporters in Dallas, Texas to discuss the need for a permanent building and to encourage supporters to return to their home congregations and spread the word about efforts to purchase a meeting place. Austin Avenue made the travel and conference possible and we are very thankful for their help. It was great to meet the “other” supporters of the three other families on the field and for them to meet each other. I was able to meet brethren from Michigan, Arkansas, Texas, and Ohio and these people were able to meet some of our supporters as well (Katie´s parents and my parents attended the conference).

Following the conference we were blessed by the gift of a dear sister in Christ from Chillicothe who donated 15,000 USD and the brethren from Hamilton, Mo also gave 1,000 USD. In addition, Austin Avenue had a special contribution in July and raised 35,000 in addition to around over 100,000 they had already set aside for a future building. We ask you to consider if you or your congregation can help us with a special contribution if you have not already done so. Please contact us if you would like more information about the building fundraising campaign. We also plead with you to lift this need up to our Father in prayer, that He bless us as leaders with wisdom and that He would continue to work through generous hearts of the body worldwide. We also praise God for what He has already done through you our brothers and sisters.

Community Outreach:

Along with the funds given from our sister in Christ for the building we were also blessed in three other ways I would like to share. One of those ways is not directly related to community outreach but was certainly an answer to prayers. After finishing graduate school and upon deciding to stay on the field for two additional years, I was not sure how we would swing my student loan payments from Harding and additional ones from UMass. I shared this need with our supporter and she agreed to give a certain portion of funds that would allow us to stay current on my student loans throughout our remaining time in Bolivia. As if this were not wonderful in and of itself, two of our family members stepped up and expressed their desire to help us further with this need. We decided to pay a large amount on the loan with the highest interest rate and our family members volunteered to continue paying on the loan above and beyond the lump sum we gave so that we could pay off that higher interest loan in a much shorter amount of time which turns out saving us a great deal of money. Praise God for how He has worked through the generosity of three loving and generous people to allow us one less worry while we remain on the mission field!

Two other projects which the gift of our sister in Christ will be applied to are to a Coffee shop ministry and to a community outreach targeting the poor which assists them in the purchase of solar ovens. The idea of the Coffee shop ministry is to borrow the idea of the team in Sucre, Bolivia who set up a Coffee shop called “El Camino” to target university students and young people in general. While our ministry will differ in some ways, the main idea will remain the same. The focus of such a ministry is to give people, young people in particular a place to gather that is a safe and healthy environment while at the same time offering them resources and studies to assist them in their spiritual growth. It is seen as a simultaneous to both community members and church members. This was originally my fabulous wife´s idea and we are so excited about the possibilities this ministry offers. Please pray the Lord´s hand will guide us in our plans for this ministry and that it may turn into a great way to minister to those seeking the Lord.

Another exciting ministry opportunity that is formalizing more and more each day is the idea to use solar ovens to reach out to the poor in an effort to address both physical and spiritual needs. Our previous neighbors, David and Ruth head up a non profit organization that specializes in the construction and delivery of solar powered cookers and fuel efficient wood burning stoves. The benefits of both are varied. Both cooking systems are good for the environment, the family´s health, and for the pocketbook. By using solar powered cookers the recipients no longer have to constantly be using their meager savings to purchase “garafas”, gas tanks for their stoves and the pollution of the community and home is reduce 100%. After visiting Dave and Ruth´s workshop with Katie and her mother we learned that so many of the respiratory problems experience by the poor in Bolivia´s countryside and marginal city neighborhoods are caused when the lady of the house spends the majority of her day over a old fashioned wood stove with her baby on her back. Both mother and baby frequently develop serious breathing conditions such as bronchitis, chronic cough or even pneumonia as a result of the smoke inhalation not to mention the damage such smoke does to the already fragile Bolivian ecosystem.

After visiting with Dave and Ruth I was excited to receive some funds to help families purchase these stoves. The idea is to select a community or neighborhood within we will work and publicize our desire with the help of community leaders. We will inform families of our timeline and give them a certain time frame within which they will be asked to save up for 50% of the cost of solar cooker which is equivalent to $36.00 USD. Then the church will return to the community with Dave and Ruth. David and Ruth have volunteered to cook a meal for the community to demonstrate to them how to use the cookers. While the food is cooking during approximately 3 hours the church has a captive audience during which time we can organize an evangelistic activity to share with community members the good news. We are extremely excited about this opportunity as well. Please join with us in prayer that we would have wisdom concerning this outreach and that it would truly serve to assist us in our efforts to reach the lost.

SUMMARY OF PRAYER REQUESTS

Prayers of Thanksgiving:
 Our nephew, Ashton Leehans, recently baptized.
 Our personal visitors, Linda Labowski and Lora Beth Escalante.
 Visitors to the work, Lisette Prato, Brittany Smith, Dave & Liz Chalenburg, Bill, Holly and Lindsay Richardson; and the Westside youth group of Round Rock, Texas.
 A new addition to the Forbess family.
 Jubilee´s new school and new friends.
 Malakai´s good health.
 Completion of graduate studies.
 Continued healing after the bus accident.
 For the family of Ariana who continues to grow closer to the Lord.
 Generosity of Bolivian and US brethren for the building fund, Coffee shop ministry, solar cooker ministry, and assistance with student loans.
 God´s goodness, mercy, grace, and love!!!  Praise His name.

Needs:

 Good health for Katie, new baby and Malakai regarding his breathing problems.
 For our wisdom as parents of two (soon to be three) wonderful children.
 For Jubilee in her new school.
 For our team and church family during times of transition and for the Bull family as well in their new stage of life returning to the US.
 For me that I would be able to be a good steward of God´s time and resources.
 For all the people that have visited and served during their summertime, that they would continue serving always.
 For the Chalenburgs in language study and for wisdom regarding future plans.
 For continued healing and restoration of the accident victims.
 For those close to coming to Christ: Gonzalo, Pablo, Silvia, Ana Maria, Jacky, Ana
 For the Vargas family (family of Diana and Belen) that the Lord would heal their hurts and bring them closer to Him
 For the building campaign, that He would lead us to just the right place and that we would glorify God always through our use of the funds and the future building.
 For future ministries:
o The Feast Club – a ministry for intermediate aged children (5 -10 years old)
o The Coffee Shop – a ministry for young people
o Solar Cookers – A part of the benevolence ministry focused on reaching the poor with the gospel.

YEA!!!

2010-05-27T15:26:00.002-04:00

Just wanted to do a little update.

Jeff is in the states for the Connection Conference (thank you to everyone for supporting us over the last 5 years!) He also finished his classes and took his comps examen on the 22 of May, meaning that he is done!!! He did a fabulous job and I am very proud of him.

Jubilee and Malakai are doing well. Malakai has been sick with asthma but it is under control and we are thankful! Jubilee is growing and has become quite a wonderful sister and daughter :)

The Chalenburg's are here in Cochabamba for a year and we are enjoying their company. The Marcum's are on furlough until August. My mom is returning, Lord willing, with Jeff to visit us! The Sandoval's will be back on the 20th of June. Lora Beth is coming to visit on the 28th of June. There are others traveling to and fro but those are the main ones that come to mind.

The church here is doing great! There are lives changing and the Spirit is moving. Please continue to pray for the baby Christians and the ones that are on the verge of giving their lives to Christ.

God is good, all the time! All the time, God is good! God bless!

Katie

Laying Foundations

2010-04-27T07:40:00.002-04:00

Buenos dias to all of you. A little birdie reminded me that it had been a while since our last blog update, so I am sending out a recent newsletter article that I wrote about the church and raising funds for a building.

As we enter the month of May the church body here in Cochabamba finds itself busy with many important activities and events. Many of those activities lately have been centered on raising funds for the permanent building the congregation one day would like to purchase.

To begin with however, it is important to have an understanding of why a permanent location is so important to the work here in Cochabamba. In a predominantly Catholic society such as Bolivia a great importance is placed upon the physical meeting place of a church. It is not that we wish to emulate all the practices and beliefs of the Catholic Church, although for many Cochabambinos a permanent meeting facility goes a long way to convey a message of presence and long-term commitment. More importantly than the message implied throughout the community though, is the significance a permanent meeting facility has in the lives of the individuals who make up the local church body here in Cochabamba. A building for the Cochabambino Christians will mean that they will have a place to continue to grow both numerically and spiritually, a place where they can reach out to the community and a place where they can meet together often to encourage and teach other in the Word. In fact, a small group of Christians including the Vargas family and Wendy who are both present members of the current congregation used to meet in Cochabamba before the mission team arrived. Unfortunately, many of the members of this small group moved away and with them was taken the ability to continue paying for a rental facility. The small group that remained continued to meet in homes but found it in increasingly difficult to grow and reach out to the community in such circumstances.
We have seen an encouraging example of how a permanent meeting facility can affect the growth of the church in the city of Santa Cruz. This is a city that continues to enjoy growth and multiplication of local congregations. One of the important factors in this growth is the fact that several of the congregations have been able to purchase meeting facilities either on their own or with the help of brethren in the United States. The Tres Pasos congregation for example, has a permanent facility and they have been able to grow and mature to the point where they now have deacons and elders and do indeed have a presence in the city of Santa Cruz. Other congregations such as El Pari, which also owns its’ own facility in Santa Cruz, also shows the same potential to grow and enjoy an image of permanence in the community. In a country where non-Catholic churches are often regarded as temporary imported store fronts, the concept of establishing permanence is of vital importance. The people of Cochabamba have seen many churches started by foreign missionaries but those churches that have had a truly lasting impact in the city have distinguished themselves by offering the same permanence that the people find in the Catholic Church.

The church members of the Iglesia de Cristo are well aware of the importance of a meeting facility and they have shown great effort and enthusiasm in regards to doing all they can to contribute to the goal of purchasing a permanent facility. It is important first of all to take into account the fact that average salaries in Bolivia hover between one to three hundred dollars a month. Many people in fact, make due on much less including some of our members. We have been humbled by the generosity of the giving that we have seen as part of our fund raising campaign which asks members to give above what they are already contributing weekly. We also continue to teach on concepts of sacrificial giving as opposed to the idea of giving “limosnas” which is akin to reaching in the pocket and pulling out some loose change. The members are becoming increasingly aware then of just what it means to give faithfully.

Many members have also chosen to participate in fundraising activities. These activities are especially important opportunities for those who are barely scraping by to be able give of their time and energy even in cases when they cannot give much in the way of money. One of the small groups for example collected donated items to organize a garage sell at the contact center. The sell was a great success in that almost all members contributed items to be sold, the small group worked tirelessly all day to sell the items, and at the end of the day over 1, 700 bolivianos were raised to go towards the building fund. Another activity that was organized by members of another small group was to take advantage of the Easter crowds around Plaza Colon near the Contact Center. This small group made api, pastelitos, queque, gelatin and other snacks to sell. Api is a hot drink made from corn meal and other spices, (it tastes much better than it may sound), pastelitos are something like a sopapilla with cheese inside and powdered sugar outside, and queque is cake. My job was to yell out at those who passed by, “Api! Pastelitos! Buñuelos!” since I guess I wasn’t cutting it very well as a waiter. The sell of api generated a little over 600 Bs. In addition to these two events, the ladies of the church often times make cake to sell after church service and their proceeds also go to the building. Another activity the church has taken up to raise money is what is called a “caneston”, (big huge basket). Each month we fill a basket with groceries contributed by members and then raffles are sold. The winning raffle takes home a nice supply of groceries and the church is able to raise some money in the process. Just this morning a woman who has been visiting the church for some time donated pearl two pearl necklaces to be auctioned off during the monthly potluck. Altogether, the church has so far raised approximately $2,000.00 USD which is something to be very proud of in a country where this amount may very well represent the annual income of many people including some of the church members.

We as missionaries are continually humbled by the dedication of the local church members here. We continue to stress sacrificial giving and yet they in truth challenge us to “practice what we preach” by their examples of giving. We are so thankful to the Bolivian brethren and for their tireless efforts and service. On their behalf we as missionaries wish to thank God first and foremost because we know that He is working in the hearts of many to convict many of you to give joyously and generously when the time comes. We would also like to thank all of you our brothers and sisters in Christ who have shared in this work for the past five years and who will continue to do so in the coming years and upcoming milestones of the Lord’s body here in Cochabamba. We love you guys.

Back in Bolivia

2010-03-12T17:10:00.002-04:00

After two months of cold wintery weather trailing us all the way almost to Miami, Florida we were greeted by beautiful Bolivian weather. The sun was shining, the air was warm but not humid, the breeze was blowing and the trees and plants looked as though it had rained each day that we had been gone. We so much loved our time in the United States with all of our loved ones, friends, family and supporters, but we as a family were surely ready to get back home. We arrived last Wednesday so we have been here for about a week and a half now. The kids are doing wonderful and even getting themselves back on a normal sleeping and eating schedule thanks mainly to Katie's hard work and we too are stepping back into life here in Bolivia. We even took the plunge and are having business cards made after having lived here for four years! Upon returning that was something we had always seemed to put off that we just decided needed to get done immediately upon getting back to Bolivia.

As a matter of fact at this very moment Katie, Jubilee, and Malakai just walked in the door with their new carnets which are Bolivian ID cards. They had tried to pick them up before leaving for the states in December but they were not ready. We are thankful to God that He is constantly at work in our lives even in regards to our paper work! Also, right now Katie and the kids just went up to see Roland Bowen of Brownwood who arrived today and will be here for about a week. We are also very thankful for Roland's time with us here in Bolivia.

I have been busy since we arrived getting things set up for my last semester of my MA program which entails a student teaching experience, a comprehensive test and two major projects due by May. Please pray for my sanity and that of Katie :) On a more serious note, I do ask for your prayers that I would be able to balance ministry, family and school in a way that glorifies God.

I also ask special prayers for my Grandmother Leyda who has lost three siblings during the past year and I know that it has been extremely hard for her. The third sister to pass away passed just this week and I know that Grandmother is sad and rejoicing at the same time. I wish I could be there but I am so thankful for my wonderful sisters Darla and Mandi who are there with their great husbands and beautiful children. Along those lines I have a major prayer of thanksgiving regarding my little sister Mel who just got notice that she will be offered a transfer to Rogers, AR and she and her husband Chris will now be in the same town as my other sisters and their families very soon. This is great news and we are happy for Mel in both her professional achievements and for her personal growth as well.

Concerning the work here in Bolivia, as usual there is much to tell and not enough time or space. Let me begin with painting you a picture of our first Sunday back in Cochabamba. As people trickled in during the service the meeting room became fuller and fuller. At the beginning of service we had already greeted several people we had not seen but by the end of service there were many many more people who had arrived. I was asked to lead singing on Sunday so I was able to express how happy we were to be back and share communion with our brothers and sisters in Bolivia. As my eyes scanned to crowd, I noticed the faces of three individuals who have been attending worship service and other activities for quite some time now. Betty and Walter who are parents of Wendy and grandparents of Arianna who was one of the young ladies we lost in the accident were in the audience that day. The difference was that on this day Betty and Walter had now been baptized into a new life with Jesus and words cannot express how happy my heart was at that moment to see how God is transforming lives in this city. I know that Arianna would have been so happy for her grandparents!

Additionally, my eyes fell upon another new sister whose name is Giovanna. Jovi as we call her for short has also been worshiping with us for quite a while now but had also made the decision to begin a new life in Christ while Katie and I were gone. Jovi is a young woman whose office is now in our apartment building and therefore we have the blessing of getting to see her often. One of our favorite memories of Jovi is from one day when Katie was getting a little worried about the flower and mama bear costumes she was to come up with for the next day for Jubilee and Malakai's play at school, Jovi popped in and helped Katie create two wonderful costumes. Jovi is indeed a creative self starter and we know that the Lord has great plans for her new life of service and ministry. Please pray for Betty, Walter and Jovi in their new walk with Christ, that they may continue strong and come to know one day in fullness the spiritual riches they have been given.

That is all for right now. Not because that is all there is to say but because that is probably more than what you wanted to know :) In closing, we send our love and askk that God continue to bless you as well.

Jeff & Kt

Irene King

2010-02-23T10:52:00.004-04:00

Well, they go by many many different names - Grandmother, Grandma, Granny, G-ma, Grami, Mamaw, Memaw, Nana, MeeMee, Honey and more - but their function is the same! They love their grandkids! They spoil their grandkids! After years of suffering with the imperfect parents they are blessed by the arrive of a clan of perfection! They verifiy what all children know is true unconditional love is modeled by their heros also know as grandma. They know that they are the most precious person in the room. They know that play-time goes all day at grandmas. They ask questions like, "are hot dogs junk food?" to receive answers like, "not today!"

Irene King, my grandma, was born on this day 91 years ago. She was to me the most beautiful, patient, kind, and loving woman. She made the best grilled cheese, took a nap everyday, read her bible everday, loved everyone of her children the same but in their individual ways. She wore a ring with the birthstone of each of her chidren in it. Among the 7 children she raised, she raised the most wonderful mother in the world, Linda Labowski, my mom!

During this time in the states we have been blessed to be around not only Jeff's grandmothers, and Jubilee and Malakai's grandmothers, but many other mature women who loved on them and Jeff and I in ways that were grandmotherly. We love each of these women and thank God for their displays of love towards us. May we pass it on!

Overdue Update!

2010-02-11T10:40:00.003-04:00

Hey! Well, we are in Everygreen, CO. What a priviledge to be back with this part of our church family! Since the last posting we have been encouraged and loved on by wonderful people in Olive Branch, Brownwood, Austin, Brownfield, and Dora. We are so thankful for everyone, especially those that kept us in their homes, the Washburns, the Bottas, the Burketts! They are a big part of the reason that the kids are doing so great! Jeff has mastered the art of sharing his presentation! His furlough sermon is fabulous. Now we find ourselves in Colorado trying to figure out how to see all the people in Denver that we love and miss. What a terrific problem!

The church is Cochabamba seems to be doing great! Major news:
1. Betty and Walter, the parents of Wendy, were baptized last Saturday. Praise be to God!
2. Also, we will having a special event to celebrate 5 years of partnership in the mission to Cochabamba, Bolivia! Everyone is invited to join the Cochabamba Mission Team on May 28th and 29th at the DFW Hilton Lakes. Registration is $50 per person for a one-night stay at the Hilton. To register or for more information, contact Josh Marcum by ...email at jjmarcum22@hotmail.com or call Austin Avenue Church of Christ at 325.646.0855.

Remember God loves you! Praise his holy name!

Katie

Update from Forbess furlough

2010-01-17T00:39:00.002-04:00

Well, we are still at it!

We have been to three states and have been blessed beyond belief! God is so good! Reconnecting with family and making memories that will last a life-time. The Forbess family unplugged retreat was wonderful and the time in Hot Springs Village with the Labowski's was as close to perfect as it gets.

Yesterday we had a wonderful time in Searcy, AR. We had the opportunity to meet the Chalenburg's, a family that is going to be in Cochabamba this summer and stay a little over a year, learning language and working with our team. We also met the Bower's, who are looking into the possibilites of working with our team. They were both wonderful family and a blessing to be with in Searcy. We staying with the Sandoval Jrs. and spent time with the Richardsons, the Hooks, Michelle, and made a new friend, Kaylee (sorry I don't know how to spell that). A true miracle to go back to the place were Jeff and I met and reflect on the blessings of 9 1/2 years of marriage. God is awesome!

Tonight we are in Olive Branch, Mississippi. Tomorrow we will be at Friendship Church of Christ. Jeff will do the preaching and teaching and I will try to sit pretty and keep the kids in-line :)

Hope everyone is doing great!

Please pray for the celebration of the 3 year anniversary of our church in Cochabamba that will be going on tomorrow.

God bless!
Katie, Jeff, Jubilee and Malakai Forbess

Furlough - Day 12

2009-12-29T10:35:00.002-04:00

Well, in all the excitement I missed a few days :) We have had a very quick wonderful trip to Rogers, a white xmas in Dallas, a visit to Sea World (with the Johnsons, Labowskis and Escalantes!) and a fantastic lunch in Austin (with the Bottas) since the last time I updated this blog. Safe travel and happy children. Couldn't ask for anything more! I hope to post pictures today! Love, Katie, Jeff, Jubilee and Malakai

Furlough 2009 - Day 3

2009-12-21T07:57:00.002-04:00

Yesterday was a fantastic Lord's Day in Chillicothe, MO! This congregation is a light and encouragement to our family. Jeff did a wonderful job on the presentation and sermon. Jubilee was in a Christmas program. We had a potluck, roast at home with family and then back for the program and treats. In between Jeff, Jubilee and Pops went iceskating with the kids from church and a side trip to Wal-mart for passport pictures. Grami, Maley and I stayed home from the skating fun to start repacking our stuff. We are planning to leave this morning about 9 to meet Grandmother and Susie half-way so that they can take us to Rogers for the night. We will hug as much family as possible in Rogers and then tomorrow morning head out for Dallas. To God be the glory! Today we are praying for Johnathan Sandoval and his surgery. Please continue to pray with us! Love, Katie, Jeff, Jubilee and Malakai

Furlough 2009 - Day 2

2009-12-20T09:46:00.004-04:00

Yesterday was another wonderful day. We had a relaxing morning and then went out into the cold to run errands with Grami. We went to the post office, payless, wal-mart, stage, the dollar store and goodwill. The last five stops were to find shoes for Jubilee. She doesn't have her mommy's feet yet but we ended up with $2.50 boots from Goodwill that are so thight that will probably only fit for week. I am thankful for the options of places to look for her shoes. Then we came home and had roman noodles and hung out until it was time for the first xmas. Presents for the kids and strogenoff for the adults :) - we are growing by the minute - and I don't mean spiritually! It was wonderful! Then the kids went to sleep and the grownups watched Hallmark! God bless and hope you had a blessed day too! Enjoy the pictures! Love, Katie, Jeff, Jubile and Malakai

Furlough 2009 - Day 1

2009-12-19T10:21:00.005-04:00

We had a fabulous first day in Chillicothe, MO. Jubilee had a Pop's date at McDonald's and a date with Grami at an afterschool Christmas gift exchange. We, Jeff and I, made our first trip to Wal-mart. Always a double edge sword. Good for the spirit. Bad on the wallet. We also had a very nice dinner with the Blakely's at AppleBees and went to see the xmas lights of Chillicothe. Both kids were asleep by 8 and we stayed up talking with the Forbess' until Jeff and Rod were basically asleep in the chairs. Great day!

Today we are praying for Johnathan Sandoval who will have follow up back surgery on Monday. Please pray with us for his family, the doctors, his safety during surgery and a great recovery.

God bless you all!

Katie, Jeff, Jubilee and Malakai

Arrived safely!

2009-12-18T16:14:00.002-04:00

Just wanted to let everyone know that we arrived safely! No problems and the kids were A+ on the flights and during all the travel. Thank you for your prayers. God bless! We love you all! Katie, Jeff, Jubilee and Malakai

Prayer Request

2009-12-11T09:18:00.002-04:00

Hello everyone. Hope this update finds you all well and getting ready to enjoy a wonderful holiday season with your loved ones. We are doing well but I wanted to relay a very important prayer request to everyone. I do believe in the power of prayer and we have witnessed the might hand of our Heavenly Father so many times while living in Bolivia, I know this time will be no different.

I need everyone to be praying that I will receive my passport in time to travel on Wednesday this week. Katie, Jubilee and Malakai all have the documents they need. Katie and Jubilee are working on their Bolivian ID cards today but they do have their passports and permanent visas. I on the other hand am still waiting for my visa and passport. On Wednesday I had gone to the immigration office here in Cochabamba to present a formal request to pull my passport out of the process in order to be able to leave the country. On that day the person I spoke to told me there would be no problem and that I could come back the next day on Thursday and get my passport. When I returned yesterday the person I gave my request to was not to be found and after much hemming and hawing the other secretary finally found my letter which had not been sent to La Paz which meant I was not getting my passport that day. When I went in to speak with the head honcho with whom I have had run ins in the past, he informed that these requests normally take two weeks. He told me later that I could maybe get it back in one week but that was still not really a guarantee. I retracted my formal request and now plan on traveling in person to the immigration office in La Paz on Monday. I am counting on all you prayer warriors out there for you to lift up a special prayer on my family´s behalf that I would get my passport back in time to travel on Wednesday.

Additionally, I am very overwhelmed today as I am trying to get all of my final projects done for the semester before I go out of town tomorrow to the countryside for a service project with some of my English students. It will be a good trip but that along with all my school work is adding major stress. Please pray for Katie and the kids as well as this is very stressful for all of us. Thanks to all of you. I can´t wait to update you on how God is going to work this out!!!

Jeff

Pictures say a thousand words - or more!

2009-12-04T19:50:00.004-04:00

There are updated pictures of the Forbess family and activities on www.dropshots.com/forbessfamily including Jubilee birthday, my birthday, Thanksgiving with the English students, intermediate bible class, Thanksgiving with the team, Angela's chats with the single ladies, Renata's baptism, the last day of tennis for Jubilee, the last day of school for Jubilee and Malakai, and random cute pictures of the kids! Hope you enjoy them! - Katie

Happy Thanksgiving!

2009-11-26T10:48:00.002-04:00

Friends & Family,

Hello everyone! Greetings from Cochabamba. Today is Turkey Day and in about an hour or so we will be celebrating with the Bulls and Sandovals and also Angela Myers who is visiting from Sucre. We have been smelling the delicious smells coming from Butch and Trish´s smoker upstairs and can´t wait!

Our family is doing well. Yesterday Jubilee and Malakai had their clausura at school which is their last day and accompanying pomp and circumstance. Malakai was a very sleepy little flower and Jubilee was a great "mama bear" in their rendition of Goldilocks. I wanted to take advantage of a spare moment and just mention some prayers of thanksgiving since after all that is what today is about.

Thank you God for:

Arrival of Katie and Jubilee´s permanent visas!!!!!!!!!
(Mine is still being processed in La Paz since I traveled to Brazil in October, please continue praying that mine comes in time for furlough.)

We rejoice with Gary and Laura Bull for the birth of Joshua. Everything went well with Laura and Joshua during the delivery and he is making his first visit to our house today. We are so happy and thankful for the Bulls and for their precious new baby.

We are supposed to sign the papers today on a lease for Wendy´s new apartment. She is one of the mothers who lost her daughter in the accident and we have been looking this whole time for a more permanent housing situation. Yesterday was literally the last day before she had to move. God led us to a great safe and clean place. Please pray that all continues to work out well in this instance.

Tomorrow Angela will be leading a special invitation-only charla (visit) for our single ladies and on Monday will do something similar for the teenage girls. Angela is a great encouragement to our ladies here and we are thankful for her presence and willingness to help out in this area. Please pray that both charlas go well.

Also, after a great deal of deliberation Katie and I finally were able to pin down dates for our furlough which is actually not very far away. We will begin contacting people personally if we have not already but our dates are going to be from December 19th to March 1st. Be looking in your inboxes the next couple of days for a complete list of dates and times when we will be in your area. We are thankful for an opportunity to visit friends, family and supporters and we are also extremely thankful to my grandmother Leyda T. who has volunteered her mini-van for our furlough road trip. Please pray for things such as visas, plane tickets (availability & affordability), scheduling, health and all the myriad things that go into taking two little children across 8 different states in 10 weeks.

As always we are also so thankful for all of you who read our blog and hold us up in prayer. This year has been difficult but with all of your prayers God has heard our pleas and not forgotten even the least of our needs. God is good all the time and to Him be all the glory, honor and praise.

Love,

La Familia Forbess

Back from Brazil

2009-10-11T00:48:00.002-04:00

Hello to everyone. I am up late working on homework and thought to update my blog as just this evening, Butch, Josh, and I returned from Brazil. I was so uplifted by the experience and would like to say a very special thanks to Austin Avenue for making our trip possible, to my wonderful wife Katie for holding down the fort, to Gary who stayed behind, and to Continent of Great Cities who held the conference that we attended. Also most importantly, thanks to God.

As you all can imagine our year has been a difficult one here in Cochabamba especially following the bus accident so this special retreat for missionary men came at just the right time. God always knows how to take such wonderful care of His children. I will write more about it later and hopefully be able to post some pictures, but I did want to let everyone know that we are home safe and are so grateful.

Jeff

Arbol de Mi Destino

2009-08-29T21:10:00.006-04:00

This photo is of a tree called the "Arbol de Mi Destino" or in English the, "Tree of My Destiny". We saw this tree at the estate of a famous Bolivian musical group known as Los Kjarka. My English students were kind enough to take Katie and I, and the children to this estate for a belated birthday luncheon this past Thursday. We had a wonderful day in the country and I loved seeing this huge tree which was the inspiration for a song of the same name written by Los Kjarka. Truthfully I do not know the lyrics of the song well enough to say that I like them or not but the imagery of a tree representing our life is intriguing.

We have certainly seen over the past two months that our lives are truly ever-changing and unpredictable much as the varied and intricate growth of this beautiful tree pictured above. Tomorrow the 30th of August, marks two months since the accident that has forever changed an entire congregation of believers. On June 30th a bus carrying youth and chaperones of our congregation flipped down a steep cliff causing the death of three teenage girls and the severe injury of several others. On August 30th we as a church continue to witness the aftermath of this accident.

Miguel continues to be the most severely injured of the surviving passengers. Just this week he was moved to a better clinic to undergo a brain operation and then later in the week was released to go home. Miguel continues to show signs of severe brain damage but since the operation he has shown less agression towards caretakers which is an answer to prayers. We continue to ask for prayers for Miguel's continued recovery. We also ask for prayers for his two surviving children Abril and Diego as well as for his mother Gregoria who is one of Miguel's main caretakers. Miguel is also the father of Belen who was one of the three young ladies lost in the accident.

Miguel's nephew Ariel was also severly injured in the accident. Ariel just recently also underwent surgery to correct the results of the first surgery which did not have the desired effects. Ariel is now able to sit up in bed for about an hour a day which is a marked improvement, however due to the lack of movement for close to two months, he has lost a considerable amount of muscle. Please pray for Ariel's continued improvement. Ariel is also the brother of Diana whose life was lost in the accident.

Kevin and Bruno are two other young men who were also severly injured in the accident. Both are confined to their beds and wheelchairs. Both Kevin and Bruno are not able to attend school which also affects their school careers. Please pray for the continued recovery of Kevin and Bruno and that they would soon be able to get up and begin walking. Please also pray for their studies which are suffering because of their injuries.

Jonathan and Rachel Sandoval who were here in Cochabamba during their summer months as interns were also injured in the accident. Thankfully, Rachel had not sustained severe physical injuries and was able to return to Arkansas in time to start her new career working with the Searcy Public Schools. Jonathan returned a few weeks after Rachel accompanied by his dad Butch and is now doing much better. Jonathan had sustained some severe injuries to his back and therefore his recovery is truly remarkable. We praise the Lord for the way He has worked in the life of Jonathan and Rachel and are so impressed with these two young people and their level of maturity.

Rebecca who is one of the young ladies who was in very critical condition following the accident has seen a very remarkable turnaround. After many operations and treatments during the first two weeks or so, Rebecca has gone from being confined to a hospital bed, to walking on crutches to walking without any help. In the midst of all the turmoil, Rebecca showed an incredible fortitude and remained committed to her plans of entering medical school. She continues to go take series of entrance exams but has now advanced to the final round of tests before being admtted to medical school. Let us thank God for Rebecca's recovery and also continue to ask a special blessing for her as she pursues her education and future career.

Bruno P., Alejandra, Camila, Freddy and Rosa are some of our young people who were thankfully not injured as severely as the others. They have all been able to return to school but they quite understandibly continue to mourn the loss of their 3 friends and try to work through the emotional stress of having undergone such an event. We continue to ask for prayers for these 5 young people that would find strength in the Lord and in each other. We are so grateful that God saw fit to spare these individuals from severe injury but continue to be concerned for their emotional recovery.

Wendy is the mother of Ariana who was the other of the three girls to be killed in the accident. Wendy continues to battle each the sadness of life without her beautiful daughter. Wendy also faces the regular hardships of life in Bolivia only intensified by this tragedy such as finding good stable employment and finding a safe affordable place for herself and her young 2 year old son to live. The church is helping to the best of our ability to care for Wendy and her needs. Wendy's faith has grown tremendously over the past two months and for that we are truly thankful. We continue to solicit your prayers for Wendy though as she still has many difficult days and months ahead. We also pray for our church body to have wisdom as to how we can best minister to Wendy and her son Charles.

In light of the accident it is easy to become discouraged and see only sadness and darkness however, as we have been witness, God has been able to use the tragedy of the bus accident to do great things. It seems as though this accident has served as a loud wake up call to many of our church members including the missionaries. One thing that has happened since the accident is that several people have made the decision to become part of our congregation. Two ladies were baptized into Christ and born again. We rejoice in Heaven for the births of our sister Elsa and Carmen. We also rejoice with the decision of Jhonny, Ligia, Gladys and Aida to renew their committment to the Lord and make public their desire to commit themselves to the service of the Lord's body in Cochabamba, Bolivia. We pray and ask you to pray as well that God would continue to gently tug the heart strings of many individuals who have now been privy to very fragile and fleeting nature of our time here on Earth.

On a related note, we as a missionary team were also blessed to welcome bro. Dale Hawley of Hudson, WI who came to Cochabamba this past week to lead our team in reflecting upon our time in Bolivia as well the recent events surrounding the accident. Brother Hawley was worked with our team since our early days of training in Brownwood and has won both our affection and respect. We are so thankful for Dale and for his unique gift of ministering to the distinct emotional demands placed on missionaries serving abroad. We are also thankful to our supporting congregation Austin Avenue who made Dale's visit a reality.

FORBESS FAMILY INFO.

To conclude, Katie and I would like to put the word out that we have finally chosen furlough dates!! Yeah!! After much deliberation, we have determined that we will be traveling in the US from December 14th to February 24th. We are excited and thankful that our furlough has been extended by two weeks this time so that we can spend more time with some supporting congregations who may have been a little shortchanged last time. So you may have to put up with us a few more days than last time! We do not know yet exactly where we will be on which dates but we are planning to spend the first weeks of furlough with our families in TX, AR and MO for the holidays and then in January and February dedicate our time to visiting supporters.

SPECIAL NEEDS: Katie and I are always so thankful for all the support that we receive that we are very hesitant to put out special requests but ocassionally things come up and we do feel the need to communicate them.

1. We request your prayers that our application for a permanent visa is approved. This is extremely important so that we can travel out of the country in December and also of course so that we can continue living and working legally here in Bolivia. We also are in the midst of raising funds for these visas. As we have already submitted our application we have already paid for the application and we are hoping that some may wish to contribute to helping defray this cost. The total cost of our visas for Katie, myself and Jubilee was $1,400.00. Malakai does not need this since he is a Bolivian citizen.

2. We request your thoughtful consideration of a unique ministry opportunity. While on furlough we will be needing ground transportation, (i.e. a vehicle). We are hoping to find a car that is good on ice and snow since we will be traveling between Colorado and northern Missouri in the dead of winter. Other than that I think we will be pretty flexible. We would also love a good heater :). I put out an ad in the Christian Chronicle and am trusting that the Lord will work this need out as He always does.

3. Another request that we have is a special opportunity the men of our team have to travel to Brazil for a conference put on by Continent of Great Cities. This conference is really a time for missionary men of South America to be ministered to by specially trained brethren who are gifted at encouraging missionaries. Our job as misisonaries encompasses so many unique and special blessings. Along with those blessings there are also hardships and distinct stressors. This year has truly been a difficult one in some ways. Continent of Great Cities is gracious enough to provide for lodging and food once the men arrive in Brazil, but travel costs are not included. For this reason, I am looking to raise appx. $600.00 - $700.00 to attend this conference. When Katie went to the equivalent of this conference for women missionaries she came back refreshed and encouraged. I am hopeful that I will get my visa and funding in time to attend. Joshua Marcum and Butch Sandoval are also planning to attend this event.

4. I also want to put out one more special prayer request for my family back in Rogers, Arkansas. I know they have a very loving home congregation at Southside, but I am sad to not be there at a difficult time. My grandmother Leyda Telford, recently lost her twin sister and neighbor of 30 years on this Thursday. Aunt Diddy was a wonderful woman and will be missed by so many people. As a child I had a very special friendship with my grandmother and I know how much she is hurting without her very best friend. Please pray for my grandmother Leyda that she would be able to find strength in the Lord at this time.

Also please excuse any typos. I need to go ahead and send this out before it gets any later.

We love you all and thank God for you!!!

God is Good

2009-07-06T23:27:00.003-04:00

Fellow brothers and sisters in Christ:

This is a short note to let you know God is listening, and to ask you to continue praying. As our church family continues to move through the very beginning stages of grieving the loss of Belen, Arianna and Dianna we also are witness to little and great miracles each passing day. Today we saw four of the teenagers be released from the hospital. Camila, Rebecca, Bruno and Freddy V. were all released. There were some tense moments concerning their release since this is a traffic case not yet resolved, but praise God that those who were able to make their release happen were mindful of how truly traumatic things have been for these kids. All they wanted to do was go home, and the fact that they were able to we know is due to so many of you interceding for them in prayer. Rejoice and praise God that four teenagers are now home, in their own beds, eating home cooked meals, and slowly leaving the nightmarish events of last week behind. Of course all four kids still have a long road to full recovery but we must rejoice in each and every small victory and we surely did that today.

Jonathan, Miguel, Ariel and Kevin continue to remain in four different hospitals around town. We ask that you pray for Jonathan, Miguel, Ariel and Kevin that the Lord would strengthen them with each passing day so that may one day soon be allowed to return to their homes as well. Miguel continues to be the most critical. As of today he still appeared to be in a coma when I visited but the medical staff would not release any information to me since I am not a family member. He did appear at least to look better than on Friday when I saw him last. Jonathan was joking quite a bit when I visited and he particularly enojoyed my rendition of the ring tone of the cop from the movie Mall Cop. It was a silly moment but it is encouraging to see the fun loving Jonathan we all know returning. His surgery went well but it seems his full recovery is going to take a while. Please pray for Jonathan and Rachel to have the necessary patience to get through a difficult time. At the same time we are thankful for Jonathan and Rachel's Christ-like spirit. Tomorrow I plan to see Ariel and Kevin to get a better idea of how things are going for them. I did see both of their parents today at a meeting for the parents of all the kids who were involved in the accident. Please pray for the unity of the parents as their stress and hurt could cause them to be hurtful to each other. We praise God though, that as of now all the parents have been wonderful examples of patience, faith and forgiveness! We pray that this same Christ-like spirit could continue on and on.

We again are so thankful for the 5 people who came from Sucre to help us. The church there with their own funds sent these 5 people including Josh and Julie's brother in law Eric, along with fellow missionary Juan, and 3 of Sucre's own youth group; Luis, Romina and Flor to help us including driving back to the site of the accident to recover the lost baggage. What a great blessing!!! We have also received word of a dear brother in Christ from Santa Cruz who is sending a car to Cochabamba to be sold so that the money can be used for the families and another brother from Santa Cruz is coming tonight. What is most amazing and humbling about these brothers and sisters who have come and are coming, is that after this terrible accident, they themselves all boarded similar buses on similar roads to come and be with us. This is a great lesson in faith and love for all of us!! I honestly don't think I would have it in me at this time, but these brothers and sisters have such a deep love that they are willing to do such a thing for us. Let us all praise God for the loving example of the Bolivian family in Christ!!

There is always more to tell you but I really do need to get some sleep. One more thing to mention before I go to bed, yesterday during church service there were many emotional moments but perhaps one of the most moving was when designated church members called each of the kids still in the hospital on their cell phones as we sang "Jesucristo Conmigo Va" (I Want Jesus to Walk with Me) and "Da una Sonrisa Mas" (Smile One More Time). It was probably the first and only time we have ever actually been glad for the proliferation of cell phones in our worship assembly!! We praise God that so many showed up for service yesterday despite knowing how difficult it would be and we praise God that Satan is not winning the battle. We are uniting not dividing and we ask you to pray that this unification would only continue and increase in strength.

We deeply love you all. Praise God for who He is and how He loves us.

La Familia Forbess

Tragedy in Cochabamba

2009-07-04T23:43:00.002-04:00

My teamate Julie has done an incredible job of keeping every one up to date on the bus accident our congregation's youth group was involved in on Tuesday of this past week. Please refer to the link under either Marcum or Bull family to read from the beginning what has happened. I know each family on the team has different readers and so I wanted to write a little about what has happened.

On Tuesday, my dad and I were headed back from visiting a dear sister in Christ in Liberty, Missouri. I was to be in the US for two weeks to celebrate with my family the marriage of my little sister and her husband Chris. I was also to speak at the Chillicothe and Hamilton congregations which have been great supporting churches for Katie since we began to serve here in Cochabamba.

As we were driving we received a distraught call from Katie who informed me that there had been some kind of accident with the teenagers who were traveling to a small town between Cochabamba and Santa Cruz. As the afternoon progressed, reports were pouring from many different sources to parents and church members about a terrible accident that had ocurred. Many parents, including Butch and Trish Sandoval whose son Jonathan and daughter-in-law were on the bus drove themselves to the site of the accident. What they found on the road as kids were being driven into Cochabamba on ambulences and pick-up trucks and at the site itself was a horrific scene. As less than a week has passed since the day of the accident the entire church and in particular the families of the teenagers continue operating in crisis state.

Unfortunately, I was unable to return in time for the service of three wonderful young ladies that we lost. Belen, Dianna and Arianna were lost in this accident and the grief that is felt by all in the church is incredible and overwhelming. We plead for you to lift the families of these three girls up in prayer, their loss is unimaginable. Many, including myself do not comprehend the why pertaining to this tragedy but we feebly and humbly look to God through tear stained eyes as we strain to see and hear God reaching out to us during this time. We are desperate to make sense of what has happened and we also plead for your prayers for our faith, especially for that of families who have lost their loved ones.

The other passengers on the bus did not come out unscathed but almost all appear to show signs that they will eventually be able to recover, perhaps not to full health as they knew it before the accident but to a health that will allow them to enjoy life once again. Miguel is perhaps in the most serious medical condition. He continues in a coma and has yet to find out about the loss of his precious daughter Belen. Please pray that Miguel can awake so that he can comfort his two surviving children, and pray for his heart for it will surely be crushed upon hearing the news. Also please pray for Abril and Diego who are Belen's two surviving siblings.

One of the young men, Ariel is also of special concern. He not only suffered many physical injuries in the accident, but also lost his sister Dianna who was on board as well. He seems to understand on a surface level what has happened, but it will surely come to him in successive waves what has occurred as he himself heals physically. We ask that you would pray for a blessing of peace and love for Ariel and his two parents Jorge and Sandra. They need to know that the Lord and the saints are with them at this time. Dianna was the cousin of Belen, so this family is suffering enormously.

Wendy is a woman who returned to Cochabamba at the beginning of the year from Spain. Wendy was a part of the original congregation that met along with Renan and Leticial before the mission team ever arrived in Cochabamba in 2006. Wendy returned to Bolivia to reunite with her daughter Arianna after years of being apart. Wendy and Arianna faced innmurable challenges in this life, more than two people should have to and to lose Arianna was a very sad final note to a life marked by tragic events. We hope and pray that Arianna is now resting at peace with Her heavenly Father and that she is at this very moment enjoying the loving and warm embrace of the Father. Please also pray for Wendy, Gonzalo and Charles who have survived sweet Arianna. Their pain is great and they need their family in Christ to intercede for them.

The other young people on board that day were Alejandra, Kevin, Rosa, Camila, Freddy, Bruno, Bruno P., Ariel, and Rebecca. The adults on board were Jonathan and wife Rachel visiting on their summer break from the US who are the son and daughter in law of our teammates Butch and Trish Sandoval. Other adults on board were Josh Marcum and Miguel Vargas. To protect the privacy of each individual I have chosen not to go into great detail about my conversations with these people who have suffered so much. I will say though that overall, God is needed in this place, His presence, His peace and joy must somehow be restored to the hearts of each one who has come out of this accident alive. That is not to say that the process will be easy. For many if not most of the kids their physical wounds severe enough themselves, will heal much sooner than the wounds that have been created in the hearts and memories of each person who was involved in the accident. We implore our Heavenly Father to begin the healing process, we ask that He use those of us not in the accident to minister as Christ would, and we ask you to join in this prayer. We ask that these kids would even be able to close their eyes and enjoy sleep and that God would return His peace to their hearts and minds.

As we mention the mental state of our youth and the adults who were on the trip, I would ask another special prayer. Let us all be in prayer for the individuals who are beginning to feel guilt for what has happened, who were aware enough to remember the terrible aftermath of the accident and are now questioning their every move. May God work swiftly in the hearts of these individuals to be able to rest assuredly in the fact that they did indeed act with bravery, courage and love. May God also protect these individuals from the attempts of others to pin blame on someone in the midst of their own hurt.

Finally we do want to praise God in our circumstance much as David worshipped after losing his newborn son. Something has happened that will forever change the life of each person who knew and loved Belen, Arianna and Dianna. We will not forget them and the loss of their life may cause us to question the very foundations of our faith. Ultimately, God does not ask for our complete and constant understanding of his workings and what He allows to happen and not happen. Surely, this is one of those moments when we do not comprehend. Why has He let this happen? Our questions may continue to ring in our heads for many weeks, months, and years but the one thing we know to do is to praise God in the midst of our sorrow. In reality, as bits and pieces come together as to what happened on that day, there were a great many miracles that occurred. The accident happened during the day time, there were survivors strong enough to climb over a 100 meters to ask for help, the townspeople and emergency crews were brave and helpful, etc... Of course theses things are hard to remember, especially for our families who have lost their daughters but we do rejoice in the midst of our pain. As painful and sorrowful as we are for the loss of three lives, we are quietly thankful as well that this accident did not claim more lives.

We are also aware that so many people are praying, perhaps even thousands of people. We know that you are praying because daily we are witness to those prayers being heard and answered. We have congregations ready to help with medical and funeral costs and that is an enormous gesture of love that we deeply appreciate. We have teammates, fellow church members from Cochabamba, and a group of 5 brothers and sisters who have from Sucre to be with us and help us minister. We have also received the visit of Roland and Carol Bowen from Brownwood to help us through this time. Thank you so much to everyone who is lifting us up in prayer and who is thinking outside the box concerning the special needs of brethren during this time. Praise God for our Christian family!!

I close not on a happy note, but I do close on a rejoiceful and grateful note. God is good and His mercy and grace are evident even in the darkest of moments. Everyday we cry by ourselves and together and I am sure that pattern will continue to repeat itself for a long time, but we cling to our faith in a loving Father who knows our every need. This is all I can write for tonight, please pray for us tomorrow, it will be one of the hardest days of my and Katie's life as it will be for so many others in the church.

We do love you all and appreciate you more than you will ever know.

La Familia Forbess

Hi there,it's me again!

2009-06-26T08:58:00.010-04:00

The Forbess Family

Oh, how I love my daddy!

Aren't they cute?

Jonathan and Rachel Sandoval

Hi! It's Katie again! Jeff has been very busy with English classes and work. He left yesterday to attend his sister's wedding and visit a the church in Chillicothe and Hamiliton, MO.

We are all doing great! Malakai has started walking and just takes off. He knows what he wants and it's afraid to share his opinions. Jubilee continues to be a fabulous big sister. She is on break for two weeks, which means they are planning more at school and there are a lot less kids.

Our families are doing well and have big plans for the 4th of July. The Forbess family will be celebrating the marriage of Melissa and Chris. The Labowski family along with extended family and friends will be celebrating the 4th of July in Hot Springs Village. We are looking forward to seeing everyone at the end of the year. We don't have dates yet but will share as soon as we do.

The church here is growing and it's exciting to see both numerical and spiritual maturity. We have had interns, Jonathan and Rachel Sandoval for the past six weeks and it has been great. They are doing a lot with the youth and working with Jeff on the English classes as well as other things.

As we continue to pray thanksgiving for all of our supporters, family and friends, please continue to pray for:

- the Bull family on furlough and their pregnancy
- the Marcum family and their health during the winter season
- the Sandoval family and the health of their extended family
- the people who are sick with flu and colds here in Bolivia during the winter season
- the growth of the congregation here
- the youth group retreat next week
- the upcoming 3rd annual ladies tea here in Cochabamba on July 18th
- the people who are attending classes at the Contact Center, the marriage seminar that is happening once a month for six months and has completed two classes, the English classes and the CAFE small groups

- the plans for having our own church building in Cochabamba and the fund-raising involved

We love you and thank God for you!

Katie

Already March!!

2009-03-17T18:48:00.002-04:00

Yikes! It is already March. Sorry about my blogosphere leave of absence. I am very appreciative of my ghost writer Katie who did such a great job of keeping everyone updated the past few months.

FAMILY UPDATE

The kids are doing well. Malakai is really growing fast now that we are mixing cerealac in every serving of food (very high calorie cereal). He is beginning to stand up often by himself and he will probably be walking sooner or later. He is saying some words now, although his favorite mode of communication is yelling at the top of his lungs. He does say this, hola, chau, mama, dada, eat, etc.... (you know all the essentials). His breathing has been much better for a long time, but last night he had a cough and Katie is currently at the doctor´s. We suspect it to be false croup as some of the other kiddos in our bunch have been having that as well. Please pray for Malakai, his health, and developement. We are so blessed and happy to see another little one come into his own before our very eyes.

Jubilee is doing marvelous as well. She is attending a new preschool which we are so happy with. Her teacher Miss Anita is a little old school but we like that! Jubilee is learning to write letters and numbers and about her five senses. I had to do an observation in her classroom for one of my teaching classes and was thouroughly impressed with Miss Anita. Jubilee is also signed up to take French classes next week although we are waiting to see if enough children have enrolled. In general, Jubilee is a very smart, articulate and sensing little girl (all from her mother!). Jubilee is an incredible child, sometimes I feel inadequate as a father but I am so thankful for her. She has taught more about the love of God our Father and of that of His son than I ever could have imagined. Please pray for Jubilee that she will continue growing into the magnificent person that she is becoming.

Katie is doing well, as we had mentioned earlier we are ought to do more co-ministry this year and that is proving to be a little tricky with schedules and what not but we are still intent on finding the right balance for our family. One of the biggest news items for Katie is her trip to Paraguay in April. She has been invited to speak at a ladies conference and has been busy preparing for this important event. Katie has also been involved in the ministry here especially with the ladies ministry and helping Julie out with teaching the intermediate grades. What a fortunate man I am to have two wonderful children plus such a wonderful wife at my side! Please pray for Katie that she can continue doing such a great job at carrying out her dual persona as mother and missionary with grace and skill.

I am doing well and learning to fit my graduate classes into more of a regular schedule finally. At the end of the semester I will hopefully have finished 18 credit hours which will put me a little over the half-way mark for the 30 hour program. The program has actually had a very positive effect on my ministry here as it has really asked me to grow in my teaching methods. I think at the end I will be able to teach Bible, English or whatever subject may come my way in a more effective, impactful way. Along the way I have been reminded of how much I love teaching, yeah!! Give thanks to God that He has found a way to marry my continued studies and my current ministry! Please continue to pray that I maintain a healthy balance between home, school and ministry.

Highlights from the Work

There is too much to cover in depth but let me just hit a few high points.

* This previous Sunday there were 75 people in attendance. Not a record attendance including our special events such as Resurrection Sunday but this was certainly a high if not record for a Sunday accompanied by no special means of inviting new people. Our space is getting a little tight and we are so thankful for that kind of a problem. Please pray for our growth as a congregation, both spiritual and numerical, with the hope that both kinds of growth go hand in hand. We are excited about what the Lord has planned for His body here in Cochabamba!

* I have been privileged to become more involved in the jovenes ministry as of late (teenagers). I say jovenes because it is really not the same as the youth group we are familiar with in the states. I have really enjoyed working with Josh and Bruno as I am able to add a some support and participation to all of the great activities and classes that they are doing. On April 10, 11, and 12 I will travel to Sucre with a group of appx. 12 teenagers and 2 or 3 other adults to attend a youth conference. I have been invited to speak at this event which is very exciting and a great honor. Please pray for the jovenes ministry that we would be able to reach out to our teenagers and support them spiritually during an often confusing stage in life.

* As of late we have had some returns and restorations. Miguel who has had quite a rough beginning to his walk in Christ was restored in February and we in addition to the angels in Heaven are rejoicing for his choice to return with his wife Corali and three children. We also have seen the return of Alvaro who had traveled to Tarija to visit his parents and the return of Palmira who had been in Argentina visiting her sister. We are so grateful to see faces that we have missed. Please pray for other members who still need to be restored and for those who are traveling.

* The classes at the Contact Center have experienced a somewhat unexpected boost in attendance in the classes that started a few weeks ago. The initial group of students was a little below average, but has grown to 17 if all students come. This is a really good sized group for our classes. These two classes are taught by Butch and Gary and I will be "subbing" for Butch while he is traveling in Chile and then in the states for about 3 weeks. I am looking forward to employing all those new group activities I am learning about in my grad classes! Josh also recently concluded a class on Revelations which proved to be very beneficial for some of our members as well as visitors. Please pray for all of our classes that we offer throughout the week that God may use the classes as a way to bring even more people to know his grace, love and mercy. If you are wondering, I have put my English classes on hold because I want to make sure that I am serving in all the other ministeries as I need to. We do continue to have English activities every two weeks. Tomorrow night is English worship night.

* The benevolence ministry has been difficult for me to give my full attention to but nonetheless God has provided this ministry with increased opportunity to serve this year. We have only sugar left in our food bank which is a good indication that it is being put to good use and we have been able to take advantage of our clothing room as well. In addition, to the food and clothing banks we have also been privileged to minister to some members with specific needs such as school supplies, and help with finishing some very needed home improvements. Continue to pray for this very important ministry that we can continue serving our brothers and sisters in their moments of need.

Happy New Year!

2009-01-08T14:06:00.016-04:00

We were blessed with a fabulous finish to 2008! Rod and Darlene, Pops and Grami, came for a two week visit and therefore spend Christmas and New Years with us! We had a wonderful time and the kids were very spoiled and happy to have them here for such a special visit.

2008 started with the blessed birth of Frankie ¨Malakai¨Forbess. He has been a wonderful addition to our family and we are very thankful for him.

Jubilee has had a very busy year as well. She started pre-school in February and had a wonderful year with her teacher Ms. Gabby. She made many friends and learned a lot about what it means to go to school. She is a terrific big sister! We couldn´t have asked for a better reaction to her little brother. She will be starting at a new school with Ms. Anita as her teacher and she is very excited about going to the same school as Michaela Marcum!

Jeff started a masters program on line and has been challenged both academically and physically with the requirments and demands of balancing the program, ministry and family.

Jeff and I are excited about the possibilities of this New Year and thr blessings that it will not only bring to us but hopefully the opportunities for us to be blessings to others.

Love to all!

The Forbess Family

Women's conference 2008 - Cusco Peru

2008-12-18T18:39:00.008-04:00

Annual Women's Conference 2008 - Cusco, Peru

Well, it was wonderful! The most common comment about was the impressive amount of servanthood that was displayed by all the members of the church in Cusco. The ladies that attended from Cochabamba were so energized and met many other sisters in Christ from other parts of Latin America as well as the United States. The speakers were outstanding and the food was unforgetable!

The ladies from Cochabamba many of whom were unable to attend because of the dates that overlapped the end of the school year here in Cochabamba worked very hard on making favors for the conference. Here is a picture of the bookmarks! We also had help from Darlene Forbess and Phylis Farlander from the states in making some of the bookmarks. Thanks!

We also had financial help from the states from the Chillicothe Church of Christ in Chillicothe MO and the Hamiliton Church of Christ in Hamiliton MO. Thank you all! The funds that were raised were to go to over 15 ladies but unfortunately as I mentioned before there were only 4 that were able to go. I myself was unable to attend after Trish and I traveled to La Paz because of a lack of correct travel paperwork for Malakai. He is a Bolivian and therefore must have parential permission to travel that is worked out infront of a judge. We didn't what they wanted so we didn't get to go. God is good all the time and the ladies that went had a wonderful time and made relationships that will last an eternity.

We used the funds from the trip to fund Christmas presents for the children of the congregation here in Cochabamba.

Thanks to everyone who helped make this trip possible! To God be the glory!

Katie

2008-11-29T21:58:00.024-04:00

Thanksgiving 2008!

Thanksgiving was great! We went to Tiquipaya to have Thanksgiving with the Marcums, the Bulls, and the Sandovals. As we were leaving the city in the Sandovals car we had to go around in circles a few times because there were some natural disaster drills going on. At one point we joked about taking a picture of us have Thanksgiving on the side of the road because there were lawn chairs in the car and a feast. We had a roast, cornbread, mash potatoes, and three kinds of pies. Thankfully though it didn't take long for Butch to find a way out and we made it to the Marcum's by 11. The kids had a great time playing while we got the food all put together and then we had a FEAST! After lunch we visited and the kids did a little turkey craft.

We are thankful to our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ for all the amazing blessings we have received in the past year. We have been blessed with the birth of Malakai, a growing church family here in Cochabamba and new friends.

May God bless our family and friends during this holiday season and the year to come!

Blessings on my head!

2008-11-11T09:36:00.006-04:00

(Hi! This is Katie and there will be a noticable difference in the writing of this blog entry.)

I just wanted to update everyone on how we are doing and what's going on here in Cochabamba.

After a wonderful and powerful trip to the states to introduce Malakai and recharge our batteries we are back in full swing! The trip was a blessing in many ways and we thank everyone, including our team, family, friends and supporters, for their patience and encouragement.

Malakai and Jubilee are doing great! Malakia is growing and changing everyday. He is now saying no with his head - and many times I think he knows what he is doing. He is not crawling yet but he is very close. He loves to play and does a good job of entertaining himself as long as he doesn't realize that he is alone. His big sister is his favorite toy and she continues have an amazing amount of patience with him as he discovers the world. Malakai is still struggling at times with some breathing problems but prayer is powerful and we thank everyone for their continued prayer for his health.

Jubilee turned 4 on October 27th! She will finish her first year of preschool on Friday. She has learned many things and made great friends. She will attend a vacation program for about a month and then be out of school from the end of December until the beginning of February. We are looking forward to having her at home!

Jeff back to his English classes, preaching, teaching and serving. He also started working on his master's degree from UMASS and is doing a great job of balancing work, school and family.

We are also looking forward to a visit from Rod and Darlene - Jeff's parents - for CHRISTMAS! This is an amazing blessing and we pray that they have safe travel and a wonderful experience here in Bolivia.

The church here is growing and changing. We have had a couple of big events lately. We had the church retreat before we left for the states and then the national encampment after we returned. We continue to see growth within the body as people learn more about their relationships with Christ through service to each other.

Right now the ladies are preparing to go to Cusco for the Ladies Conference. The conference will be held in Cusco, Peru from the 20th to the 23rd of this month. This will be the third time that I have had the priviledge of attending this ladies conference. The conference is on a rotating schedule. I attended two years ago in La Paz, Bolivia, and last year in Santa Cruz, Bolivia. I know it will be a blessing for everyone. There are about 120 ladies expected to be there in total. They will be coming from from Chile, Peru , Bolivia and the United States.

Please remember www.dropshots.com/forbessfamily is out their for you all to see!

May God bless each and everyone! You are loved by the Forbess family and we appreciate you all!

We Are Okay

2008-09-23T23:32:00.002-04:00

We wanted to send out a quick update to let everyone know of our status. By now many of you who keep up with our blog have probably also heard something of the escalating political situation in Bolivia right now. Basically, the same conflict between the central government and regional governments has continued and grown to the point that in some regions of Bolivia there have been some demonstrations that has turned into violence. That is not really a good summary and I would encourage anyone interested to follow the links on this blogs or go to your own trusted news website to find out more about what is happening.

I am writing this blog to let everyone know that Katie, the kids and myself are doing well. We actually had planned a short visit to the states right before the latest problems in Bolivia began. We arrived to the states on Monday the 8th and things started happening in Bolivia the next day. My plan was to return to Bolivia sometime this week and Katie was to stay until the 13th of October. Right now we are waiting to see when American Airlines will begin flying back into Bolivia and of course to see when things in general die down somewhat. The latest we have heard was that American would start flying again on the 30th of September which is next Monday.

Currently, I am at my parent's house in Chillicothe and Katie and the kids are spending the next two weeks as planned in Hot Springs Village with her parents. Last week we were in Rogers, Arkansas with my sisters and grandmothers and before that we spent a week in DC with our good family friend Becky. So far it has been refreshing to be with family although each day we wake up hurting for our loved ones in Bolivia.

We have spoken with the three other families who are all in Cochabamba right now. They have informed us that things in Cochabamba itself are peaceful and the main affects being felt are rising food and fuel prices because of the blockades in other regions of Bolivia which is impeding the transport of goods. We are thankful to God that our teamates and the local brethren are out of harm's way. Let us all continue to pray fervently and without ceasing however, that this peace being enjoyed in Cochabamba continues. Let us pray that our Heavenly Father would sheild His children in Bolivia from threats to their homes and families. There are many brethren of the church in Santa Cruz where the situation is much more dire, let us pray that God would keep each and every brother and sister in Christ safe during this most difficult of times.

I have posted throughout our time in Bolivia other prayer requests during other times of political instability and I know that each time we have loved ones down on their knees. We know that this time is no different. We put our precious adopted homeland in the hands of our Father who knows our every need before we verbalize it. Let us be a people of prayer today and plead with our Heavenly Father that peace would return to the whole of Bolivia and that the hearts of many people would turn to Him in this time. Thanks!

La Familia Forbess

New Sister and Political Situation Update

2008-08-11T23:27:00.003-04:00

Good News First

As of Saturday evening the Lord's body in Cochabamba now has a new sister in Christ. Mary Jane after having regularly come to worship services and other activities for several months now, made the decision on Saturday night to become a new creature in Christ. We certainly are rejoicing with the angels in Heaven over her decision to repent and be clothed anew with Christ. For any of you planning a visit you will surely enjoy meeting Mary Jane and hearing her story. Please be in prayer for Mary Jane and her new life in Christ, that God may protect and strengthen her as Satan will undoubtedly attack her in new and creative ways to pull her away from God. I phrase the prayer request this way because I have observed the time following the decision to become a Christian is often if not always followed by strange and difficult trials in the life of the new Christian.

Other Good News

Josh, Julie, Michaela, Eliana, and Jana Marcum all made it safely to Cochabamba on Thursday after being on furlough from June to August. We are very grateful along with the Sandovals, Bulls, and other church members for their return. They are a very big part of the work here and their absence was definitely felt! We praise God that the Marcums were able to return safely and that their request for visas came through in a timely manner.

Chad and Lisa Benton along with their two boys Mark and Grady who are representing the Austin Avenue Church of Christ arrived today on the same flight with Gary , Laura, Nathan and Grant. We are thankful for the safe travel, the return of the Bulls, and for this special time we have to share with the Bentons. We thank God that He heard our prayers requesting safe and uneventful travel.

As a lead-in to the next topic, we are also thankful that the Bulls' and Bentons' arrival on Monday was not overshadowed by any political unrest. As some of you may know, Sunday was an historic day in Bolivia. August 10th was the day when all Bolivians of voting age would vote to approve or dissapprove of Evo Morales (president) and the nine prefectos (governors) who represent the nine departments of Bolivia. To sum up the day, below I have cut and paste an email I sent to both sets of parentals to let them know of how we are doing.

Sunday was an interesting day indeed. Before leaving the house to walk over to the church building I reminded Katie that it would be very possible that we and the Sandovals would be the only ones at church. As in most Latin American countries, votes are held on Sundays. Additionally, as in most Latin American countries voting is more than just a right, it is an obligation with stiff fines and possible jail fines facing those who choose not to vote. On the day before and the day of voting the sell of any alchohol is prohibited. On the day of voting from 7:00 AM to 7:00 PM all unauthorized vehicles are prohibited from operating, which includes all forms of public transportation. For this reason, we were fully prepared to see our meeting place virtually empty. Some members and regular friends of the church did make the trip however. All in all we had around 30 people in attendance. Some people who came live in the neighborhood and some others donned tennis shoes and made quite a trip to meet with the saints on that day.

While it was certainly a different kind of worship service, it was actually very special. We half joked that at least we knew everyone there was there because they wanted to be, because the ban on transportation did not make it easy to come simply out of a sense of routine or obligation. There were many people out on the street walking past our meeting place, some on their way to vote and many others just out enjoying a day in downtown Cochabamba with no automobiles dominating both space and sound. Although on the surface it was seemingly quiet and tranquil, doubts and fears hovered in the thoughts of most people. Many people stopped and peeked in curious about the church that met even on voting day. Although we certainly hadn't planned it, it was perhaps a quiet testimony about who we are and how important it is for us to meet as a church body to worship our Creator, learn from His Word and edify each other through song and praise. On a day when none of us knew the outcomes of the election nor the ensuing aftermath, it was a particularly meaningful context in which to reflect upon our need to completely rely on God and each other in the midst of an underlying current of worry and fear bubbling in the world outside from which we had entered. Praise God for our safety, for His protection, and for days such as this that bring our purpose for meeting each Sunday sharply into focus.

Below is the portion I have cut and paste which details the outcome of the vote.

Hey guys. Everyone except for me is quietly sleeping in their beds. Well, Malakai is actually in our bed but you know what I mean. Anyway, I just thought I'd give a brief update on the political situation here. Sunday went well, it was very peaceful. We were done with services and home by 1:30 which is unheard of so we took the opportunity to have a little picnic in our bedroom and then rested during the afternoon. Later we went outside and Malakai and I went for a walk as there were no cars allowed on the streets. Katie and Jubilee blew bubbles with Gabriella and her son Gabriel on the front steps of our building as watched other neighbors pass back and forth on a sunny Sunday afternoon. Later on when Mally and I returned we played lobo lobito outside with Juju, Gabriel and Gabriella which is kind of like duck duck goose.

By Sunday evening the results were already pretty conclusive. Evo "won" with a 60% approval rating overall, although he lost the departments of Santa Cruz, Beni, Chuquisaca (Sucre), and Tarija while maintaining strong approval in the departments of La Paz, Potosi, Oruro, Cochabamba and a much less stronger lead in Pando. Potosi led the nation with Evo's highest approval ratings at about 83%. As far as the prefectos (governors), all but three garnered enough votes to continue in office. Of the three prefectos to be ousted are the prefectos of La Paz, Oruro, and Cochabamba. The prefectos of La Paz and Cochabamba are pretty much anti-Evo and Oruro's prefecto was a member of the Evo-affliated MAS party so it was kind of an upset for the MAS prefecto to be voted out while Evo maintained strong approval. The MAS party cited this as an example that the vote was legitimate and not staged. La Paz's prefecto Paredes is accepting defeat somewhat gracefully while Cochabamba's Manfred Reyes Villa has vowed to fight the decision albeit through a proposal of legal appeal. Manfred did show up for work at government offices this morning at about 7:30 AM as showcased by local news. This will be the power play to watch which will be essentially between Evo and his backers and those of Manfred and his. So far though, there has been no sign of street violence. We continue to watch the situation and will keep you all posted. Love you guys! Please continue to pray for Evo Morales, Alvaro Garcia Linares (VP), Manfred Reyes Villa, the armed forces and their leaders, members and officials of the MAS party, members and officials of the various opposition groups and all citizens in general, that God our Father would grant each one of them clarity of thought and an ability to discern and put into practice what is best for Bolivia and not individual interests. It is a long prayer request but surely you understand. We thank you as always for standing by our family, our team, the church body and our adopted home in prayer. We are fully confident that God hears and answers the prayers you lift before Him on our behalf.

In Him,

La Familia Forbess

Indepedence Day

2008-08-05T06:59:00.002-04:00

Notice: The length of this blog will be determined by the sleeping habits of one Frankie Malakai and one Jubilee Song. Both are asleep at the same time. Hallelujah amen, hallelujah amen!

Today is the Bolivian Independence Day. At her school Jubilee will march in honor of the "patria" with all of her other classmates and as they march they will be singing loudly and boisterously the Bolivian national anthem as she has already demonstrated all day yesterday at home. At the lunch table she told me that she was Bolivianita, Malakai was Boliviano and so were mommy and daddy. To be honest I didn't know how to answer her or respond. You see, the invetable is happening with Jubilee and as a father I am finding myself a little unprepared and reluctant. She is forming her own identity and I recognize already that it will be an identity that is far different from my own. She is not growing up in Santa Fe or Denver as I did nor is she growing up in Dallas or Houston as her mommy. She and her brother are growing up in a place that on one level is home for me but at the same time will probably always maintain a certain level of the unknown for Katie and I.

Yesterday, I was watching a movie we have seen before called "Bend It Like Beckham" which is a story about a teenage girl who growing up in England but whose parents have immigrated there from India. The girl Jess (Jasmindey) is constantly torn between her parents' close-knit community of immigrants from India and the mainstream English society she is struggling to understand and become a part of. I had seen the movie before but this was the first time I watched the movie and identified with Jess's parents. Sitting in the middle class English living room, the father with a traditional headress and mother in traditional silk clothing trying desperately to understand their daughter's world I somehow saw Katie and I here in the kitchen of our apartment listening to Jubilee belt out a song we were never taught. Were we to ever learn the song it would mean something different for us anyway. For Jubilee and eventually for Malakai they will sing the song as Bolivians just as Katie and I would sing and hear the Star Spangled Bannerwith our hands proudly across our chests.

On one hand I am a little sad to realize that Jubilee and Malakai will undoubtedly form an identity vastly different from their parents. On the other hand isn't that part of the challenge of parenthood for any parents? Even for parents and children who grow up in the same town or same house, isn't the difference between a generation immense enough to stir up the same emotions as I feel raising my children in a foreign country?

In light of this particular instance my mind is drawn to a comforting and strenthening verse Paul wrote in I Corinthians 9 and verses 22 and 23, "I have become all things to all men so that by all possible means I might save some. I do all this for the sake of the gospel, that I may share in its blessings. " I do not quote the verse in a martry-like self describing way yet I quote it to guide myself towards a more Christ-like approach that I recognize I do not always acheive. What I know in my head but what is hard sometimes for my heart is to remember that for me to become all things to all men my entire family must also do so.

In closing I am reminded of Paul's words to the Phillippians in chapter 3 and verse 20, "But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ". This is a verse I often cling to as I face this world with my family walking the fence between two very backyards hestitantly watching my children lean towards one side that I do not know. It is a truth I believe we can all cling to, to know that our true citizenship is not determined by stern looking consulate officers but rather by a loving Father who sacrificed the ultimate to scoop us up in His arms and shower abundant blessing upon us. Praise God that He allows us to enter into to His presence and glimpse together a glorious future when our common love for Christ will truly unite us all!

Summer Updates

2008-07-23T10:36:00.002-04:00

Hello to everyone. Yes, I know it has been way too long since our last blog update and for that I apologize. The good news is that there is lots of good news to report. The Lord continues to hear your prayers on our behalf and on behalf of the work here in Cochabamba. Thanks for your faithful intercession for us and the work of God's Kingdom. I will begin with a few "highlights" and will try during the next few days to continue writing until I have recorded everything worthy of reporting.

FAMILY NEWS

We are doing well although the past six months have been challenging. Our main challenges have been trying to keep healthy, keep sane, and keep rested. Obviously with a three and a half year old plus a newborn those three things can be difficult to maintain. As I had mentioned in earlier posts, Malakai had been sick several times with respiratory problems. For the past two months or so, he has been doing much better. We have located a respiratory specialists who specializes with children also. He basically has a combination of asmthatic symptoms and allergies that when coupled with Cochabamba's poor winter air quality make for some breathing difficulities. The doctor has helped us to treat the condition and hopefully the coming of the rainy season in October will also help.

Jubilee is doing well also. She had a four week winter vacation in June/July so she was able to spend lots of quality time with mommy, daddy and Malakai. She is now in her second week back at school and will continue until November when the children have summer vacation. Yesterday she visited a gymnasium with Katie and she really enjoyed her tumbling class so we will probably enrolling her. Jubilee is getting to be such a big girl. We are so proud of both of our children, they are such blessings! She is really missing her friend Mikaela who has been on furlough since the first of June and Nathan as well who just left last week for a short visit with his mommy and baby Grant.

Katie and I are doing well. Malakai lately, has begun taking a bottle for me and Betty which allows Katie so much needed freedom to ocassionally get out of the house and slowly involve herself once again in different ministries. Most recently, Katie along with Trish, Laura and the ladies of the church put on a lovely Ladies Tea. It was a very encouraging time when both church members and visiting ladies were uplifted in song, Bible study, and other activities. One of the best outcomes of the Tea was the participation of the Bolivian ladies. There were four of the Cochabambina ladies who presented character studies on women from the Bible. Gabriella, Sonia, Maggie, and Ofelia all presented lessons which were well received. Another activity that Katie has been involved in along with Trish is a Bible study for new Christian ladies. The group started out small but thankfully has grown. It is held on Thursday nights before the regular CAFE group and has become a mini-CAFE group of its own. Now participating in that Bible study are: Gabriella, Sonia, Maggie, Ofelia, Patricia C. and Palmira in addittion to Katie and Trish. Katie has also been studying with Augustina who because of her job at her beauty salon is unable to come to the study with the other ladies. Lately, Katie has really enjoyed partnering with Laura and Trish and the other ladies of the church family. She is also looking forward to Julie's return as are all the other ladies.

I too have been busy although maybe not as quite as Katie :)! One of my most important ministry outreach activities as been the continuation of the ESL classes using the Bible. In March I began an English class focused on the Life of Christ. We studied from the beginning of March to June 9th every Monday. For that course I had four groups ranging in size from 2 to 14 students in each group. At the very end of the course we had a special graduation dinner for all the students who had completed the course in our home. The course was designed to cover 15 lessons about the life of Jesus. We had so much to talk about and learn that we only completed the first five lessons! After the first course had ended in June, I repeated the course with new students along with the help of our three Harding interns, Heather, Elizabeth and Jacob. The interns did a fantastic job with their students and at the end I was very proud and appreciative of the work that they had done. The second course we offered with the interns got only to lesson 3. So, fortunately I had a great reason to continue the course with all of those who were interested. I combined students from the first course and second course into two groups that meet on Tuesday afternoons. Both groups are going well and currently we are just finishing up Matthew 5 and 6 which have proven to provide great opportunities for English conversation practice and even greater opportunities for sharing the gospel. I praise God for the privilege and joy of teaching these wonderful people about the good news of Jesus.

NEW BROTHERS AND SISTERS

Since the last blog update there have been three new Christians added to the Lord's Body here in Cochabamba. Among them are Bruno, Ofelia and Patricia. Bruno is the 13 year son of Maggie who was baptized earlier this year and began as a student of Butch's Bible Institute classes. Ofelia was the one faithful attendee of the Oasis ministry that I began in March. The Oasis idea did not take off like I thought, but something much better happened which is the birth of a new sister in Christ. Ofelia at the beginning was very torn about her decision because she was employed with another church in town and was very afraid of losing her job. She lost the job partly because of her decision to be baptized but God has worked in her life to continue giving her other forms of employment. She in fact thanks God for all that has happened lately in her life. Ofelia has a daughter Yolanda who is about 11 years old. Patricia made the decision to become a Christian just last week. Her story is also very interesting. She began coming to church through the suggestion of her son Diego who is on a scholarship in Switzerland and was invited by fellow Bolivian students in Switzerland to attend a church of Christ in Gineva, (sorry I forgot how to spell that in English). Patricia somehow found the phone number of Renan Vargas and began visiting worship services. She also began attending the Life of Christ courses I was offering at the time as well as the CAFE groups held at Butch and Trish's on Thursday nights. Please be praying for Bruno, Ofelia, and Patricia as well as their families.

There will be more to come, but for now I will close. I need to go pick up Jubilee at her school.

Love you guys!

La Familia Forbess

Praise God! Thanks for Praying

2008-05-05T14:45:00.002-04:00

Hello brothers and sisters. I am writing in between the ESL classes that I give here at the Contact Center. I can´t write very much but I can write enough to say that our God once again heard your prayers on our behalf and in this case on behalf of an entire nation. Some would say it is mere chance and that I had blown it out of proportion in the first place. Yet, when you consider the fact that close to half a million people demonstrated in our city yesterday with no violence whatsoever I would call that only one thing; providence. There was some violence in Santa Cruz but even there it was much less than what had been expected. Yesterday´s voting results could have resulted in immediate unrest because the referendum for autonomy did pass. However, I am positive that your prayers as those of so many others were heard and God chose to work in the hearts and minds of leaders and their followers all throughout this nation. Thank you to all of you who cared enough to speak to God about our safety, that of our teammates and that of all Bolivians. Let us hope that this relative peace we have been granted may be used to God´s glory and that the freedom we maintain to speak the Good News boldly may lead to many more additions to the Lord´s body of Bolivia.

Love,

La Familia Forbess

Please Pray!

2008-05-02T10:15:00.004-04:00

Hello folks. This is just a brief update on our family. I wanted to mention a few prayers of thanksgiving as well as prayers of intercession.

First of all, let me say on behalf of my whole family, thank you so much to those of you who were praying for our health. As you may know Malakai had a serious cough about two weeks ago and at one point we were literally going to the pediatrician everyday. It appears that the previous winter seasons in Cochabamba (april-august) are notorious for viruses and sickness of all kind. Fortunately we escaped those illnesses our first two years here, but this year with Jubilee in school it proved much harder to ward off those health risks. Praise God that we have found a good physician who cares about our children and is very knowledgable and attentive. Praise God also that Malakai is doing so much better.

You may also know that about three weeks ago after having a sore throat for over two months I found out that my body was battling a strep infection. We thank God first of all for answering our prayers that neither Katie nor the children caught strep as well. We thank our teammates who gathered at a moments notice to pray with us specifically that neither Katie nor the children would have strep. God is so good to us! I just lack one more day of antibiotics and then I will be done. The symptoms of strep have subsided and so I am positive that I have recovered. The ENT doctor that I have been going to will return from Mexico in 10 days so then I will have a more definite answer. We solicit your prayers that this infection completely passes from my body and that my immune system can begin to rebuild after the long period of infection and subsequent antibiotics.

Another note of thanksgiving is that Katie´s father who has battled with chronic pain for a period of close to four years now after battling a cancerous tumor in his leg is also doing much better. We recently received a photo of Katie´s parents attending a dinner for the congregation they attend in Hot Springs Village and the difference could even be seen on Frank´s face in the photograph. We praise God that Frank has found releif from the pain that he has been suffering with for such a long time now. We ask that you continue praying for that Frank´s good health may continue.

Aside from our family´s health issues I write this blog update two days before another climatic showdown in Bolivian history. I will not consume our time with lengthy details as you can do that by reading the newspaper. I will say that the same kind of conflicts are arising again between east and west as well as between those who live in the country and those who live in the cities. Of course the issues are vastly more complex than that, but I want to just give you a reference point for your prayers. On Sunday there will be a crucial vote in Santa Cruz to approve a certain level of autonomy for that region. As you can imagine some are in favor of autonomy and others are very opposed. Although the vote is only directly related to the department of Santa Cruz, the implications of the vote are going to be felt in every corner of Bolivia. We continue to observe as outsiders for Katie and I will certainly never comprehend fully the history that has led to this point. As a very wise missionary told us once, ¨don´t take sides and just always hope and pray for what is best for the people¨. We are praying for the following specific things and ask that you may take a moment to pray for all of these things as well, or if you don´t have much time please choose one or two specific things to mention to God in prayer on behalf of Bolivia.

* Wisdom for our leaders (1 Timothy 2:1-3) Specifically for the president Evo Morales and Vice President Alvaro Garcia Linera. Wisdom as well for the departmental leaders. The prefecto of the Cochabamba department is Manfred Reyes Villa, please pray that he may also have wisdom.

* Wisdom and direction for the police, military and their leaders. We pray that they may too have the best interest of all Bolivians in mind and uphold their committment to providing safety and protection.

* For the people of the countryside that are coming into the city. They could very well turn from demonstrators to targets in an instant. That God may bless these people with wisdom and protection as well.

* Specifically for the people of the cities of Santa Cruz and Cochabamba. They God may bless these people with an intense desire for peace as well as wisdom and protection.

* For all those that call on the name of the Lord in the nation of Bolivia, that they may be ¨peacemakers, salt, and a city on a hill¨ as Jesus calls us to be in Matthew 5.

* For the protection of all the saints found throughout Bolivia. Specifically that God may guard the brothers and sisters of the city of Santa Cruz and Cochabamba as those cities would be the likely centers of conflict should conflict arise.

* That the Sunday vote and the outcome of the vote would not result in any violence or death.

* That the leaders and people of Bolivia would be somehow united although to the human mind at this point it totally impossible. We know the God we serve is powerful, mighty, and attentive as well to our petitions!

* One last request, if you pray for nothing else pray that many Christians throughout the world may come to know what is happening and that they may lift up the nation of Bolivia in prayer. We give thanks to our God ahead of time for what He will do in response to these prayers. Please make the choice to be a prayer warrior today.

Love,

La Familia Forbess

April Update

2008-04-09T19:45:00.002-04:00

Hello out there. As you can see in the photo we have not dropped off the face of the Earth. However, we may have been off your radar for a little while. Malakai's arrival has taken us quite a while to adjust to and we are still getting back into the swing of things. We do apologize for our cyber-absence.

With two children, maximizing time is of great importance. So, with the little time I have I will give some updates about us and the work.

First of all, all four of us are doing well. Jubilee is doing great in school. She has made many friends and Katie and I both feel very comfortable with her safety and well being. The teachers are doing a great job and we feel very welcomed to help out or observe which is very important to us as parents. On Friday Bolivia celebrates the Day of the Child and we have been invited to dress up as hippies and attend a special celebration at Jubilee's school. The hippy part won't be too hard I don't think! I have always told Katie that were she to pick the age and place when she would live her life it probably would have been Berkley cerca 1960 something.

Malakai continues to grow and show more and more of his unique personality and features. It is becoming apparent that he may resemble the Kings more than the Forbesses which provides some good balance since Jubilee so strongly resembles my side of the family. Malakai is also showing that he is very different from Jubilee. He likes to be held facing out where he can see the action and does not care at all for a bottle which Jubilee never minded. He has flashed a great smile that is certainly as charming as Jubilee's. We feel so blessed by Malakai and we ask for your prayers as we learn to be parents all over again trying to be the parent that both Jubilee and Malakai deserve and need.

Katie and I are doing well also. Katie is perhaps having a little cabin fever as she is accostumed to spending much more time outside the house than she is able to right now. However, she is very grateful for this special time that she has with Malakai that will never be repeated. They grow so fast! All four of us have experienced some minor health problems since Malakai was born due to a combination of lack of sleep and Jubilee being exposed to many more illnesses than when she was staying at home all day. Malakai was very congested for a while but seems to be doing much better. Jubilee had a bug but it did not last very long at all. Katie has been battling sinuses as well recovering from pregnancy and the birth process. I have been having a recurring sore throat. I have had tests run today to see if it could possibly be strep or mono. Please pray for all four of us that we may regain our physical strength in order that we may be continue to go strong here. Also please pray that Malakai's periods of sleep during the night get longer and longer so that mommy can get the rest she needs.

As far as the work, it continues to grow and grow. Here are a few bullet points although they certainly do not do justice to all that is going on.

Resurrection Sunday - Thanks to the hard work especially on the part of Josh and Gary and the ladies who organized the meal, we had a very encouraging service. We were surprised by an attendance that was about 80 people as our Resurrection Service last year did not have that many visitors. There was a special message delivered by Josh as well as some skits put on by the teens, as well as a special reading of scripture by the students of the intermediate Bible class. Following service we invited all to stay for a special time of fellowship and mealtime. Several of the visitors from that Sunday have returned since. Let us thank God that He chose this special day to encourage our team and church family through a great turnout as well as allowing our visitors to come away with a better understanding of Christ and His sacrifice for all of humanity.

Preaching Seminar and Contact Center Classes - We were blessed two weekends ago to enjoy the teaching of Josh during a special preaching seminar he hosted for church leaders throughout the nation. We had leaders come from La Paz, Viacha, Sucre, Santa Cruz and of course Cocha. Something really encouraging was the attendance of Gaston and Pedro who were baptized in November. The seminar continues on one weekend in April and one weekend in May. The first session of the seminar this month provided a good opportunity for growth and fellowship.

In addition to the Preaching Seminar, Butch and Gary principally have begun Bible classes again at the Contact Center. There are two classes being held. One on Monday nights and the other on Wednesday nights. The classes are "Biblical Christianity" and a New Testament survey class. Many of the students are repeat students and many of them are also new Christians who came to first hear the Word through the Bible Institute classes of last year.

English Classes - You may be thinking well what is Jeff up to? Well, one answer would be the English classes. This is the third time that we have offered conversation English classes and each time we learn more and more about what to do and not to do. This time I have changed the curriculum to go through the life of Christ, taking passages from all four gospels. We have four groups on Mondays with an average cumulative attendance of 25 although on our best Monday we had 29. The students are required to do outside of class writing and reading assignments which has really provided us some great places to begin our conversations on what we are reading about. This week we talked about the homework comparing the Sabbath of the Jews and the Sabbath rest that is found in Jesus. This was a real stretch for some of our students but by the end of the lesson, I was able to see that "aha" look on several students faces. We also looked at Mark 1 and compared the baptism of John to that of Jesus which also brought up some very novel concepts for some students. In short, thanks for your prayers and please to continue to pray for these classes. Not that all would come out speaking beautiful English, but that the eyes of their hearts would be opened to the will of God for their lives. I have already begun a personal Bible study with two of my students because of their interest. Mirna and Yves study with me on Fridays together and our first study was great!

Laura also has taken on the challenge of reaching out through teaching English. As soon as I finish this post I am going to call her and find out how her first class went although I am sure she did an excellent job. Her background in communications disorders allows her a unique and valuable perspective in regards to teaching the English language. She is teaching a class mainly for the teachers from Nathan's preschool who are recquired to learn English as a part of their job. Please pray for Laura and her students, that this may be a wonderful outreach to even more people in our community.

Harding Interns - Go Bison! In May we will be hosting a few Bison right here in Cocha. Last year our interns learned a lot as well as our team. We are looking forward to hosting three new students this year and exposing them to what mission work is like. Gary, Butch and I have already begun meeting to discuss what activities we would like to structure for our interns so that the experience may be as valuable as possible. We understand that for our interns it is a great sacrifice of time and money to come and be a part of what we do and for that reason we wish to honor that sacrifice by creating valuable learning opportunities for them. Please pray that our interns may find their time in Bolivia to be one of professional and spiritual learning and that God may also reveal to them if foreign missions is something that is for them or not. Also please pray for their safety and health.

Marcums on Furlough - The Marcums will be going on furlough in approximately two months if my memory is working at this time of night. We know from personal experience that furlough and the time preceding and following it can be one of mixed emotions. While it is wonderful to back with family and supporting congregations it can also be stressful especially with little ones in tow. Let us pray a special blessing for Josh, Julie, Michaela, Eliana, and Jana that their furlough may be refreshing, encouraging, and free of stress and health problems.

Okay, one more side note. I got into the Applied Linguistics program at UMass Boston. Yeah!!!!!! Thanks for your prayers. Of course just to remind you, it is a completely online program that I can finish entirely from here so it will not affect our commitment to the work here in Cocha. except of course requiring my time. I ask your prayers that God may use me and the knowledge that I will acquire to his glory and service. As a side note to a side note, in anticipation of this program I have been taking a Quechua class four nights a week. It has been a big sacrifice for Katie, and I appreciate so much her patience as daddy is gone four nights out of 7. My goal is to increase my knowledge of language learning and I also look forward to being better equipped to minister to the Quechua speaking population. Please pray that one day I can actually teach people about God in Quechua as right now my ability seems very far from that lofty goal.

Well that should about wrap it up. Did I say something about being brief about two hours ago? Well, I blew that but at least now you know a little more of what has been going here. I thank God for you and your love for us and this work. Let us continue to pray for eachother's ministries that God may use as salt and light in a dark and tasteless world.

Love,

La Familia Forbess

Malakai & February Updates

2008-02-21T15:02:00.003-04:00

Greetings out there. Today we celebrate the first month of life for Malakai!

It has been exactly one month since we last wrote to inform everyone of Malakai coming into this world. The past month has been overwhelming, exhausting and exhilirating at the same time. We are very blessed that Malakai was born very healthy and continues to grow and develop as he needs to. He is a precious little boy who has completely won our hearts. Jubilee has also taken a liking to him, although it has been quite a transition for her. She herself reached a milestone this month when she began going to preschool just last week. Everyday she spends three hours playing, learning, exploring and making new friends. Katie is also doing very well. She is spending the majority of her time as is to be expected with Malakai, but she is feeling very well and enjoying this special time with our new baby. The only thing she is suffering from is sleep deprivation, but that certainly came as no surprise. We are surviving those wee morning hour feedings by watching episodes of Lost and Everybody Loves Raymond to stay awake.

Here are a few updates on the work:

Bulls & Sandovals Return (Hallelujah!!!)

During furlough times we certainly enjoyed growing closer to the Marcum family and spending a lot of time with them. As always Jubilee and Michaela are the best of friends and our days out at the Marcum home I am sure will be one of Jubilee's fondest childhood memories. We had the opportunity to create many special memories with Josh, Julie and their beautifull little girls. That being said, and I am sure the Marcums would agree that we are so happy to have all of our team back together. Now that it has been almost three years that we have served together with our teammates any absence is sorely felt. When the Bulls and Sandovals returned it was as though our "unit" felt complete once again. We are now back in the habit of bugging the Sandovals daily as they are just two floors above, and now we can even drop in on Gary and Laura more often now that they are back downtown. We are thankful both families had time to recharge and refuel for continued service. We are even more thankful they are back in Bolivia!

Newest Brother & Sister in Christ

Also since our last posting we witnessed the spiritual birth of two more precious souls into the Lord's Kingdom. Rene and Vanessa are brother and sister and 12 and 11 respectively. Through their studies with Josh they have shown themselves to be more spiritually mature than many adults. Julie, Katie and now myself have had them for Bible class and can attest to the fact that they are always eager and prepared to learn and grow. Please pray for these two young Christians, Rene and Vanessa, that the Lord may bless them during this crucial time of spiritual infancy.

Visits

Katie's parents were able to come and spend almost a full month here with us awaiting the arrival of young Malakai. Frank and Linda are always an immense help to us and we are so grateful for the time they set aside to be with us during such a special time for our family. Frank helped build many things around the house such as changing table, closet shelves, sewing desk, and more! Linda helped Frank in the building and purchasing of materials and also was there to give Katie a hand basically with any she needed at the moment.

Another visitor, Roland Bowen, of Austin Avenue arrives tomorrow afternoon. Roland will helping with preaching and teaching to help the team out as we have three families with children being born all within a month of eachother. We are very grateful to Austin Avenue for sending Roland and to him for making the time to come down and help out. Please be in prayer that Roland may have a safe and uneventful trip.

Classes

On March 3rd I am starting our 3rd offering of conversational English. This class will structured quite differently from our previous two courses but I am hoping that the changes will lead to an even more rewarding learning experience for our students. I will be taking the students through the life of Christ while also providing the students a chance to practice their conversation and pronunciation of English. As with the previous English classes we are hoping and praying that God sends to us many who are not only interested in learning English but who are also hungering and thirsting to know God's word and His will for our lives. Please pray that God may send the right people through our doors and that He may use me as a instrument of communication.

Another ministry that will be starting on March 3rd is called Oasis. Out of my own frustration in searching for a quiet time and place to study, pray and meditate on God's word, I came to the conclusion that many people share my plight. On Mondays and Wednesdays we will be opening up the Conexion Cristiana so that other stressed out people like me can find an "Oasis". In the early morning between 7:00 and 9:00 we will be providing people with a quiet and interruption-free zone where people can come and commune with God and others before going out into the world to face the wolves. This is a new idea and I am not really sure how it is going to work but I believe there is a need for this and it is my hope that we can somehow rise to the challenge and meet that need. Please pray that the Oasis ministry may fulfill its' intended purpose which is to offer people a place, time and encouragement to grow spiritually.

A third class that I am involved in is not a class or activity that I am leading, however I am taking the role of student. After close to two years of no formal Quechua language study, I have decided to take up my pen and paper and bravely return to the classroom. I say bravely because I find Quechua to be very daunting compared to Spanish and English which both convienently have Latin and Greek roots. Quechua is from a completely different language family and so I have found learning it to be more of a challenge. However, I am hopeful that learning Quechua adds to our ministry as a team. Please pray that I can glorify God by learning this language and grow in my communication skills to be able to teach about the love of Christ to an even greater range of people. Also pray for Katie who is making a huge sacrifice for me to be able to take night classes 4 nights a week.

In other personal news, but related to the theme of classes, is a decision that I would like announce. When Frank and Linda returned to the states I sent with them an application to a Master's program with the University of Massachusetts Boston. It is an online program that will help me to learn more about second language acquistion and the teaching of language as well. After much thought and prayer I finally decided upon this Master's program. I will not find out if I have been accepted until April, but the good news is that gives us plenty of time to pray about it. Please pray first of all, that this program would be something that glorifies God and allows me to minister in a more effective way. Additionally, please pray that I get into the program. I will keep everyone posted.

Thanks so much for reading and for praying. We love you guys.

La Familia Forbess

New Arrival !!!!!!!!!!!

2008-01-24T21:46:00.000-04:00

Hello to everyone. Katie, Jubilee and I would like to announce something very special. Today at 1:00 PM our time Frankie Malakai Forbess was born weighing in at 2.89 kilos (6.5 lbs). We don't know how long he is as they don't measure babies apparently. However the doctor says mommy and baby both are doing just great. The delivery went well and we are expecting to have them come home tomorrow afternoon. Jubilee got to see her new baby brother and she was in her own words, "soooooooo excited!". As soon as the cameras come home with the patients we will download the photos.

Love you guys and thanks for praying for the safe delivery of our baby boy. God is great!

Jeff

Bolivian News Update

2008-01-08T11:02:00.000-04:00

Hey everyone. Let me run through some church news and prayer requests and then give an update on the political situation as I had promised.

Gary and Laura are expected back to Cbba tomorrow. Pray for their return.
I will be traveling to S. Cruz tomorrow to pick up Katie´s parents.
Little baby Forbess could be born any day now!
Please pray for new Christian Miguel, he seems to be having some struggles at the moment.
Bruno is doing a great job with our youth group and it appears that this ministry is really beginning to blossom. Our youth include: Bruno, Freddy, Veronica, Claudia, Roberto, other Bruno (son of one the Institute students), and other off and on visitors. Please pray that our youth group continue to go strong.
Please pray for this new year of opportunity in the ministry here in Cochabamba.
Thanks for your prayers!!!

Okay. Now for the political break down. Last night the dialogue between the president, his supporters and the opposition began. We watched quite a bit of it as it was broadcast live from La Paz. It was kind of like a family venting session of the whole nation. Each regional governor or prefecto had a chance to state his feelings and express the results they wanted to see come out of the meeting. After 7 hours, yep 7 hours of talking about what they wanted to talk about in the meeting, it seems that Bolivia is on its way to reconciliation. Perhaps not a complete reconciliation, but it seems that things are definitely looking up from where the nation was a month ago.

The prefectos who have been in strong support of autonomy reiterated that they in no way meant that they wanted to separate from Bolivia and that they wanted unity just as much as the federal government. This sentiment was especially expressed by Santa Cruz prefecto, Ruben Costas. Cochabamba´s prefecto was surprisingly pretty quiet throughout the meeting, but time may prove that was a wise decision on his part. The were was only one prefecto that really got personal. The remaining 8 prefectos did a fairly good job of being professional and mature. We continued to listen to hear the Vice President Linera respond to the statements of the prefectos and basically rebut any of the subtle or not so subtle criticisms they may have raised. During the time we listened, President Morales seemed to do a lot more listening than speaking but he did spend time emphasizing the growth of the economy and asked the prefectos to give ample time to his cabinet members and specialists in attendance who were to present facts and figures indicating the growth of the economy.

Well, we did not listen for the entire 7 hours instead we popped in a new movie with Denzel Washington about a debate team from Marshall, TX. (A very good movie by the way). This morning though on the news and in the paper, the initial meeting between Morales and the Prefectos resulted in three big decisions which they will continue to deliberate on.

First, they will reconsider a proposed change on the administration of regional profits made on the production of hidrocarbons. This change would regarding the use of profits would have been used to fund a pension of sorts for Bolivians over 60 years of age, but it would have dramatically cut the regional budgets by more than half thereby severely limiting the ability of regional governments to continue with services provided to citizens. The prefecto of Tarija, Mario Cossio mentioned that his department was already using the profits of hidrocarbons to fund socialized health programs offering free medical services to the needy. This discussion is a big point of contention however, because some departments produce a great deal more in profits than others and the sentiment of some is that the profits should be spread in a more judicious manner to include departments that do not see big profits from the hidrocarbons. The prefecto of Potosi made an interesting point by paralleling the current events to the history of his own department that saw the creation of some of the greatest wealth the world has ever known with the tin mines. Yet, now Potosi is among the most underdevolped and improvished departments of Bolivia because the profits of the tin mines were not enjoyed by the majority of Potosinos.

The next items to be considered go hand in hand and those are the questions of the legitimacy of the new Constitution and the legitimacy of the Autonomic Statutes that were drawn up in the departments of Santa Cruz, Tarija, Beni and Pando. The legality of the constitution has been questioned by many, but especially by the prefectos and inhabitants of those previously mentioned departments. The legality of the Autonomic Statutes logically has been questioned by the Morales administration because the statutes do not conform to the new constitution. Also a part of the conversation is a defense and explanation of the proposed Indigenous and Rural Autonomies that are a part of the new constitution. Understandibly for the people of some departments asking for autonomy, it is hard to understand why indigenous groups will be granted more autonomy while regional departments will not be granted the same kind of autonomy.

A little explanation on the business of autonomy follows. The autonomy being asked for can be somewhat compared to the autonomy that states in the United States enjoy. There are many things that are left up to individual states to decide while the federal government makes decisions that affect the whole country. In the United States as well, there is occasionally disputes as to what should be a federal decision or a state decision. In Bolivia as in much of Latin America there exists a strong tendancy of highly centralized government, that sometimes tends to overlook the specific and distinct needs of isolated regions or people groups. The regional autonomies look to rectify this tendancy to ignore isolated regions as the Indigenous Autonomies wish to rectify the tendancy to ignore or marginalize the indigenous or rural people groups.

Well to any poli sci people out there, please forgive me for any overgeneralizations. I hope that this gives our readers a better understanding of what is happening here. I also hope to illuminate the fact that neither side in this conflict is completely right or wrong. Please pray that our government leaders will continue in this spirit of dialogue and reconciliation. Again I truly believe that your prayers along with those of so many others are being heard. Praise God!

Thanks for Your Prayers

2008-01-03T14:32:00.000-04:00

Saludos (greetings) to all of you out there. Several of you have been asking for an update after the last blog update concerning the political situation here in Bolivia. Thanks first of all for your prayers. If you ever doubt that God is listening please know that He is, because the results are all around us.

I will make it short because I am sure that in the next week or so we will have a better idea of where things are headed here. However, let me say that the Christmas and New Year´s season was one of peace and happiness for our family. The city of Cochabamba has experienced no demonstrations of any kind since my last post. Things in the other cities such as La Paz, Sucre, and Santa Cruz have also been much calmer presumably because of the holidays.

This coming 7th of January there is to be a meeting between the president and the opposition leaders of the what is being called the -media luna- which means half moon. The "half moon" represents the departmental leaders of Santa Cruz, el Beni, Pando, Tarija and Cochabamba. Although Cochabamba´s departamental leader is an outspoken member of the president´s opposition that does not mean that all of the Cochabamba Department (like a state) is in support of the opposition. This is one of the main reasons for the conflict. The people in the rural areas and those who have migrated from rural areas to the cities tend to be more in support of the federal government represented by the President Evo Morales and the MAS political party. The opposition tend to more urban and middle to upper class. The opposition also has strong bastions of support in the eastern departments especially in the department of Santa Cruz. Unfortunately throughout the past two years regional, racial and socio-economic divides have deepened dramatically. Please continue to pray for the leaders of Bolivia that they may have the best interest of their fellow Bolivians in mind as they make decisions. Also please continue to pray that the works in La Paz, Viacha, Santa Cruz, Sucre and Cochabamba may not be hampered by the conflicts. Pray for the Christians in Bolivia that they may shine a bright light and bring honor to God our Father.

Another prayer request we have is not concerning Bolivia at all yet it is concerning Kenya. Living overseas has allowed Katie and I to see the world in a whole new light. We now know firsthand what it means to see fellow countrymen fight against each other in the streets. We also know how that affects people in their daily lives. Our hearts go out to the Kenyans, especially to our brethren there. Julie, our teammate, grew up in Kenya and we have been blessed to hear about the work her parents along with other missionaries and Kenyans have done in that nation in service of the Lord´s church. It, much like Bolivia, is a beautiful place with an even more beautiful people. Although we have not met them face to face or shaken their hands we have brothers and sisters in Kenya who are presently living through some very rough times. Let us all pray that peace reigns and that the Lord may protect His children who live in Kenya. Let us pray that the leaders of Kenya may also be blessed with wisdom as Solomon was so that they may lead their nation back into a state of peace. Let us pray that the work of the Kingdom be not hindered in Kenya.

p.s. No baby yet! Of course I would have mentioned it. We are still waiting. Katie´s parents arrive next week to help out. We can´t wait! We have the name picked out, and you will have to just wait and see what it is. Of course it was extremely difficult to find an suitable name to go along with a sibling named Jubilee Song but I think we did it.

Pray for Bolivia

2007-12-14T15:48:00.000-04:00

One of the greatest things Katie and I have learned throughout our time in Bolivia is the power of prayer. You our loved ones, our dear brothers and sisters in Christ have prayed for us during sickness, during the times of transition, times of longing for family, times of confusion and so many other instances that I could not mention them all here.

I come to you once more, though surely not for the last time to request your prayers on behalf of the nation of Bolivia. In 1 Tim. 2:1-4 Paul shares a very special message with Timothy. Paul exhorts Timothy to be in prayer for the rulers of the day, and along with that prayer there is a very special motivation. The reason Timothy was to pray for the rulers and the reason we pray for our rulers is not so that we may be "happy shiny people" to quote the eloquent lyrics of the B52´s and live unhindered in our quest for comfort, security and prosperity. We pray however for our rulers because as Paul says in verses 3 and 4, God wishes for all men to be saved and come to a knowledge of the truth.

In essence, we should pray not that the economy improves, not that our rulers think as a Christian should, or in our case not that our daily life will halted by street blockades. What I believe Paul encourages us to pray for is that our rulers act in such a way that the sharing of Christ may not be hindered but that it may given an opportunity to grow and grow in reach and depth. Wow! This is a hard one, isn´t it?

In light of the recent political activity in Bolivia, first of all let me assure everyone that so far we have not experienced any threat to our safety and we have taken the necessary precautions by registering with the consulate should they need to get ahold of us for some reason. Additionally, we arrived here by God´s will and for that reason I trust that God is taking care of us in each and every moment and I hope that you may have the same confidence. Having said that, let me please beseech you on behalf of this country. Bolivia if you have never been, is a beautiful place with incredible people. History seems to have dealt Bolivia some raw deals and Bolivian society continues to this day to cope with the earthly consequences of the mistakes of previous generations of Bolivians and those from outside Bolivia as well. In this time of turmoil and transition, Bolivia is having difficulty deciding who they are to become as a nation and for obvious reasons this causes the social and political arenas to become quite heated.

If you are reading this I would like to ask you to get down on your knees right now and lift up a prayer to our Lord. Tommorrow in the state of Santa Cruz, (not close to Cochabamba) there is the potential for a great deal of unrest. Let us pray for the safety of our brethren and all believers in that city. Let us pray that no violence occurs. Let us pray that justice along with the very will of God reigns in the city and region of Santa Cruz. Let us pray as well that the social problems Bolivia is experiencing will open doors for the gospel to reach not only the ears of all Bolivians but to the hearts of all Bolivians as well.

I remember a brother I respect a great deal from the East Denver congregation who many times starts his discourses with the following statement "God is good" and the congregation heartily replies, "all the time". I believe this with all my heart and I hope you do as well. I hope that you do not recieve this post as a frantic message from a paranoical missionary but as passionate plea from a servant who loves Bolivia and who wants to see only the very best for her people. I believe in the very God who parted the red sea and rose men from the clutches of death. My God can do great things, all He asks of us is that we ask Him.

Fuzzy Pictures, Bright New Paths

2007-11-17T23:26:00.000-04:00

Okay. Sorry for the fuzzy pictures. But, read on....

Two weeks ago this Sunday we returned from an amazing family encampment. For all of you who got to heard in my furlough presentation about the blessing it is to see Christ uniting all kinds of Bolivians, well, it happened again! The encampment thanks in part to my teammate Josh who organized, Tom Allen from Ontario, CA and the rest of the church family from Cocha. we were able to gather 140 Bolivian Christians for the first annual Bolivian Family Encampment.

By all accounts it was a success. True there were some cold showers and scraped knees, but isn't that part of the fun? We had groups from La Paz, Sucre, Santa Cruz and of course Cochabamba. Josh had found a beautiful campsite about an hour outside of Cochabamba. We were able to spend Thursday, Friday and Saturday morning there.

The best part, was no not me trying to scale a 40 foot wall with one of those harness things while Jubilee yelled from below, "Daddy why can't you go further?". The best part ocurred when we were back in Cocha for Sunday services. Many people from the other cities had graciously stayed to be able to worship with us on Sunday morning. Katie and I found out that at least 15 people can fit comfortably in our apartment! After a wonderful and uplifting time of worship we listened to a great message by visiting guest speaker Tom Allen, of Ontario, CA (Inland Valley Church of Christ). Following the message there were 7 individuals who choose to become disciples of Christ that day by confessing Jesus as their Saviour and being baptized into Him. One man, Jimmy came from Santa Cruz and another man, Ernesto, came from Sucre. The other 5 new Christians were all native Cochabambinos and all had been studying and worshiping with us for quite a while.

Many of you may remember during my furlough presentation hearing about Augustina who is a single mother of two. The church has been blessed to help her in many ways through our benevolence program and in this way we had gotten to know her and her children. Upon being baptized she made it clear that she wanted to be a new creation from here on out.

Some of you may also remember seeing a picture of our small group Bible studies called CAFE groups. In one of the pictures with new brother in Christ Miguel sat a man named Gaston. Gaston is now a new brother in Christ as well.

The other three individuals who were baptized were all members of one family. Some of you may remember that Pedro began taking classes at the Bible Institute after Rebecca his teenage daughter began taking English conversation classes. Pedro's wife Beatriz began coming to church and I think initially it was to check out where her husband and daughter were spending so much time. Praise God that Pedro, Beatriz, and Rebecca are now new Christians.

Before I close let me say this. I had specifically asked and commended each congregation I spoke to, to be in earnest prayer for the "on the verge" people. People who had the good news of Jesus several times and yet were still not quite sure. All five of these people were among the "on the verge" people. In fact I requested prayers for Gaston and Augustina by name. Thank you so much to those of you who asked God to work in the hearts of these people.

Let us praise our Father for these precious souls and let us be evermore in prayer for them as the most difficult part of the Christian journey begins which is that daily crucifiction of the old self and the daily choice to do as Christ would have us to.

We love you guys!

Other important prayer requests:

Katie and baby (she has been asked by the doctor to stay mostly at home until the baby is born)

Julie and baby (everything seems to be going fine)

Laura and baby (think everything is fine, she is on furlough surely enjoying Thanksgiving!)

Sandovals' Visa Process (they plan to go on furlough in two weeks)

Marcums and Forbess' (how are we going to do this without the Bulls and the Sandovals for two months????)

Custers (continue job hunting in the states)

Me (I always need help in the daddy and husband department, you know to be a good one!)

This world is not my home, I'm just a passin' through

2007-10-20T23:56:00.000-04:00

Okay, so my two girls are sleeping safe and sound in their beds and I thought now may be an opportune time to write. Thanks for your prayers regarding our travels. Our flights occured without any major complications and we arrived actually a little early to Cocha. Praise God!

Upon taking our first nap in our bed after nine weeks on the road I turned to Katie and simply said "words cannot express", and Katie said "I know, you don't even have to finish the sentance". We loved seeing everyone and we loved sharing about the work and getting to witness other great works going on out there. However, how truly sweet it is to be back in Cochabamba. During our last driving trip from Brownwood back to Dallas I asked Katie where she would like to see us ending up when we come back to the United States. We talked a little about all the places that we had visited and we mentioned a few places that we felt would be "doable". Although, I must say that all I along our trip we had been saying how we felt God has truly placed in the right place at the right time for our family. Arriving in Bolivia, and especially once we finally got to Cocha, I immediately felt a sense of coming home and our conviction that God has placed us where He needs us and where we need to be was reinforced tenfold.

Of course, I say that Cochabamba is our home with the understanding that even tomorrow we could for some reason have to leave. If we learned nothing else from the events of Hurricane Katrina in 2005, it was that nothing on this earth is guaranteed. Therefore, Katie and I try not to ever feel too at home anywhere, except for when we are in fellowship with our Heavenly Father and His children, for those times are the glimpes of our true homeland that we have awaiting as Christians.

Now that the Forbess family has joined the ranks of the globally mobile we have learned evermore to trust in the truth that our true citizenship is in Heaven. When we are in the United States there are many people and aspects of the culture that we love and there are aspects of the culture that we find hinder us daily in our goal to be Christ-like. The same is true of life in Bolivia, though those hindrences be different. What we have also grown to understand in greater depth and appreciation, is that we don't have define ourselves by the standards of geographic or political boundary. Yes, there is a part of me that is very American and that is part of my identity that will always be there, but as I try to live each day in the footsteps of Jesus, I am drawn to an earnest desire to define myself first and foremost as a disciple, a brother, a mentor, a student, a husband, a father, and a son of the Creator and Master of the Universe. I love the United States and I love Bolivia as well, but it is not because I think one is so wonderful. I love these places because they are inhabited by people who are all precious because they are creations of the Creator, but people who in their majority still live unaware of the peace and joy that is found through the grace and mercy Jesus offers. Wherever God asks Katie and I to be I am sure that His will is that we share with others His love through our words and more importantly through our actions. During this brief moment of our life God has placed our family in Cochabamba to be messengers and ambassadors of a living hope and we are thankful for the awesome privilege and blessing that is.

Our prayer request for this post is one of thanksgiving; thanks for the precious time we had with our family, our church families, and our friends; thanks for safe travel; and thanks for being able to come back. Taking a quote from our teammate Julie's latest blog entry, "God is good all the time". May God bless you on this day.

Two Days to Go....

2007-10-16T11:55:00.000-04:00

Well, hello to you all. Currently we are in the Big D, actually Colleyville. Sunday and most of yesterday we spent in Brownwood to visit a little more and receive some last minute spoilage from Granny who cooked us a delicious breakfast before heading back to Dallas. On Saturday night Katie's sister and brother-in-law hosted a wonderful party in honor of Auntie Joyce, and we were able to see lots of friends and family who may not have otherwise seen. Friday night we visited our good friends and previous neighbors Javier and Lora Beth Escalante at Lora Beth's sister's home in Dallas. It was also a good time to get to know Lora Beth's sister and brother-in-law and their two beautiful children.

Before coming to Dallas, we spent a week or so in Hot Springs Village with Katie's parents. During that time we also got to make a little side trip over to Olive Branch, Mississippi to visit the Friendship C of C and Linda, Katie's mom, treated us to a special visit to Graceland. Before Hot Springs Village, we were a week in Rogers, AR with my sisters, Grandmother, great aunts, and cousins. We did many fun things in Rogers, among them we celebrated the Cousin's Birthday which Jubilee enjoyed immensly.

On Friday and Saturday Katie received a major answer to prayers. During the whole time we have been on furlough Katie has been asking people to pray that she may find a curriculum to use for the prison ministry. So, lo and behold, on the very days we were scheduled to be back in Dallas there was a conference to be held at the Prestoncrest C of C just minutes from Auntie Doris' house in North Dallas. Personally, I had been praying and hoping that Katie would not only find a curriculum, but that she would get to meet lots of people involved in the same kind of ministry. Both things happened during the conference. Katie found a great curriculum already translated into Spanish and she was able to do lots of great networking with other people throughout the brotherhood working in jails and prisons to bring the good news of Christ. So all that to say thanks for the prayers! God heard our prayers and answered in a mighty way, praise God!

Hopefully, once we get back home I will have more time to sit down and do a better write up of our travels. Thanks to all of you prayer warriors who have been praying for safe travel and good health. Please continue to pray that the last leg of our journey will be most importantly safe and secondly that it will be uncomplicated. May God bless you in abundance, richness and fullness of His love. We serve a great God, amen!

More Photos....

2007-09-22T22:00:00.000-04:00

A Picture Says a Thousand Words

2007-09-22T21:51:00.000-04:00

Greetings from the Heartland

2007-09-20T16:49:00.000-04:00

Greetings from the Heartland

Hello to all of you out there. Today marks our fifth week back in the United States on furlough. Many of you may have been wondering, “what’s up with the Forbess family?”. Well, we are here in Chillicothe, Missouri with my parents and supporters of the Chillicothe and Hamilton churches of Christ. So far we have visited supporters, friends and family in Texas, New Mexico, Colorado and Missouri. Next week we will go on to Rogers, Arkansas for a week and then we will be in Hot Springs Village for a week.

Let me jump straight to Jubilee whom you want to hear about first anyway. She is loving her time here and two of her favorite things are parks and water fountains. Not that we don’t have parks in Bolivia, but we happen to be back at a great time of year when it is the perfect weather to spend time outdoors. In Brownwood, Jubilee got to reacquaint herself with Granny Bobbie and eat her delicious food and basically be spoiled rotten. She also got to ride around Lake Brownwood and had many opportunities to get her toes wet which she loves. In Dora, NM our friends Mickey and Alicia Burkett have several tractors and school buses so Jubilee thought it was great fun to hop up in those with the help of Mickey and pretend she was driving. In Colorado Springs, Jubilee got to see her friend Pamela, daughter of our close friends Roberto and Johanna Batres. Pamela and Jubilee were born within a week of each other so it was nice for them to have each other to play with. In Evergreen, Jubilee got to see many people we love dearly, among them Santa Steve. Jubilee is quick to tell you if you ask that Santa lives in Evergreen not the North Pole! In Denver, Jubilee got to see more friends and so did mommy and daddy. Visiting the University church of Christ in Denver was very special as this was the congregation where the elders had said a special prayer for her future although she doesn’t remember that. We spent one night in Kearney, NE and then on our way to Chillicothe. In Chillicothe, Jubilee has got to spend lots of time with Grammi and Pops as well as a short time with her three aunties and cousin Janet. We have still yet to take her to Chucky Cheese’s or bowling which she has repeatedly asked about though. Please pray for Jubilee as she is dealing with a stubborn cough and she has started to ask for her favorite people in the world, Michaela and Nathan.

Katie and I are also doing well. There have been so many wonderful things to happen during our furlough. Probably the best part of our time back in the states are the countless encouraging conversations that we have had with other saints who are out there on the front lines as well. It has been so nice to talk with other people and receive and give encouragement. Thanks so much to all who have lifted us and the work up in prayer. Please pray that the rest of our time in the United States goes well and that we are blessed with good health as traveling can begin to take its toll.

One more item before I close and that is Baby Chippy. No, that is not the official name; Chippy is the name Jubilee has chosen and until we chose a name this is what we are calling the baby. Everything with Katie’s pregnancy continues to go well. There are the regular things such as occasional morning yuckiness and tiredness. Aside from those things however, Katie has been feeling well. We did have one scare in Santa Fe when Katie took a little tumble. At first her ankles hurt very badly, but by the next morning they felt fine. We are so thankful to our dear friends Jean and Leroy who I know said a special word of prayer for her. Praise God that Katie did not suffer any serious injury as a result of her fall, and please continue to pray for Katie and Baby Chippy that they may enjoy good health.

To our friends whom we have already seen and visited with, thank you for your encouragement and love. To our friends and family whom we have yet to see, we can’t wait! And to our church family in Cochabamba, nos hace mucha pero mucha falta y les queremos mucho! May God bless you in richness and fullness of His abounding love.

La Familia Forbess

More Updates

2007-07-31T17:05:00.000-04:00

As I said, I would like to post a bit more of information today as I have time. But please scroll down to get the rest of the information on recent baptisms, etc... that I posted earlier today.

HARDING INTERNS

There is so much to say about these wonderful young people and so little space. We were truly blessed this summer with the arrival of Taylor Box, Stephanie Sanderson, and Jason and Rachel Eades. During their time in Bolivia they attended language school for Spanish and Aymara, lived with Bolivian families, lived with us the missionary families, visited congregations in La Paz, Santa Cruz and Cuzco, helped with all kinds of ministries and activities and brought a youthful warmth and joy into our team life and church body. They are still at a stage in life when it is easy not to take yourself or others too seriously and that was a wonderful kind of environment to be around. In addition, we saw each of the four interns grow immensly in their knowledge of Latin America and missions and more importantly we saw each grow a great deal personally and spiritually.

At the end of their stay I received an additional blessing when I was able to accompany them on the last leg of their journey which took them to Cuzco and Machu Pichu both located in Peru. It was a great opportunity for me to get to know each intern even more, share with them more a little about my experiences, and learn from them as well. Probably the most uplifting time during our Peru trip was the time the interns spent with the Christians in La Paz as well as when we all were able to spend time with the Christians in Cuzco. On Saturday night in Cuzco one of the brothers invited us to his house where we were all then accompanied to their neighbors house where the wife is a new Christian who was baptized at the Ladies Conference in Santa Cruz and her husband is not a Christian. Although we had nothing planned, I mentioned to the family that our four interns loved to sing and were quite good at it so we all spent a good two hours singing together and encouraging each other. By the end of the night the interns had experienced one of my favorite aspects of mission work which is spontaneous and genuine fellowship.

Please pray for Stephanie, Rachel, Jason, and Taylor as they all consider how they are being called to work for the Kingdom. They are great servants and will be ablessing to whatever work and church family they find themselves in.

THE TEAM CHANGES

Earlier this month it was announced that the Drew and Jamie Custer will be leaving Cochabamba to return to the states. We are deeply saddened by this news and earnestly ask for your prayers regarding our team, the church family here in Cochabamba and for the Custers' reentry into the states. Please refer to Drew Custer's blog for further information regarding this decision.

FURLOUGH

Many of you are already aware that Katie and I will be leaving on furlough on August 18th to be gone until October 18th. Katie has worked very hard and diligently on our schedule although we are still trying to figure out how to visit a few of you. If any one of you would like to receive a schedule of dates and places for our furlough and did not receive the schedule please let us know and we can send it to you as soon as possible. Basically our journey goes something like this: Dallas --> Brownwood, TX --> Dora, NM --> Santa Fe, NM --> Colorado Springs, CO --> Evergreen, CO --> Denver, CO --> Kearney, NE --> Chillicothe / Hamilton, MO --> Rogers, AR --> Hot Springs Village, AR --> Dallas, TX --> Brownwood, TX --> Dallas. And somewhere in there we are trying to fit in Olive Branch, MS! It sounds a little overwhelming but we must say the Lord has already blessed us with a vehicle to use during our time and we are looking forward to seeing everyone. If we are going to be in your area and you would really like to visit with us please write us by email so we can figure out a time and place. In most places we have a place to stay, but in Denver we do need a place and in Kearney we'll probably just stay in a motel since it is about half way between Denver and Chillicothe. Please pray that we have safe travel, that we have fruitful fellowship, and that we don't get too stressed driving across the country's midsection!

I have asked Katie to help me post pictures from the Ladies Conference as well as from my trip to Peru and from the three recent baptisms, please continue to check the blog as those pictures should be up very shortly.

Summer Updates

2007-07-31T10:36:00.000-04:00

Hola from Cochabamba. Our Heavenly Father is good and has continued to bless our family with good health and spiritual blessings. We thank Him and give Him praise. We also thank you our supporters, our friends, our family and our brothers and sisters in Christ for your continued committment and prayers. Gracias!!

BABES IN CHRIST ARE BORN!

Since Talia became a sister in Christ in May. We have seen three new spiritual births, praise God! Gabriella the daughter of our landlady, Miguel who is Gabriella's fiancee and Sonia a woman who first came to one of our services by "accident". As Gabriella and Miguel are forming a family we are overjoyed that God will now be a part of that process. It is our prayer and fervent hope that through the transformation manifested in their life they may also bring many people from within their family and friends to Christ as well. As a church family we are also overjoyed to welcome Sonia into the family of God. She has had a very rough year facing many tough challenges. We pray that her new relationship with God will provide her a new joy and peace that gives her something to hang on to during difficult moments. Please pray for these three new family members, their names again are Gabriella, Miguel and Sonia. Please also continue to pray for Talia who was baptized in May as she also continues to grow and mature.

OTHER NEW FAMILY MEMBER ARRIVES IN AUGUST!

Okay, for those who may not have heard yet, we are expecting a new family member of our own in January! We don't know if the baby is a boy or a girl yet and we are not finding out because we like surprises. Jubilee tends to think it is a boy and has also chosen the name Chippy Chippy for him. We may have to overturn her name choice though :) So far the baby and Katie are doing very well. Please pray that Katie and baby Chippy Chippy continue to enjoy good health.

FELLOWSHIP AMONG BOLIVIAN AND PERUVIAN BRETHREN

During this time period we have also had ample time to strengthen bonds with the Christians in Bolivia and Peru. Jubilee and I along with Josh, Michaela and Eleana accompanied Katie and Julie to this year's Ladies Conference held this year in Santa Cruz. Attendees came from La Paz, Cochabamba, Santa Cruz and from Cuzco, Peru. One of the most encouraging happenings was that one of our new sisters in Christ from Cochabamba who has reservations about the people from Santa Cruz was able to observe that as Christians those regional differences and stereotypes seem much less important. For those who don't know, between the highlands, valleys and tropical regions of Bolivia there exists great cultural and political differences. It was truly then a blessing for Christians of all regions to gather together in the name of Jesus to uplift each other in their spiritual walk and praise God as one body.

We also have enjoyed getting to know the members of the Sucre team on a more personal level. Angela has come and stayed with us two or three times now, as shopping in Cocha offers much more variety and affordability than in Sucre. She also put her artistic skills to good use this last weekend when she so graciously agreed to paint Jubilee's room with a Winnie the Pooh motiff. We have also had time to spend with Jenny and Eric and their son Sion during the Campaign in July as well as Ivan and Juan Carlos the two single men graduated from the school of preaching in Quito, Ecuador who now also work in Sucre. This weekend Katie and Jubilee also got to spend time with the Torres Family of the Sucre team, I was out of town however.

In addition to spending time with the brethren from La Paz, Sucre and Santa Cruz I was also very blessed to spend some time with the church family in Cuzco, Peru which I will write about in a later section. Please pray for not only the work in Cochabamba but also for the congregations that meet in La Paz, Sucre, Santa Cruz and in Cuzco, Peru.

GRAMMI AND POPS

We also had a very special visit in July, when Grammi and Pops Forbess came to Bolivia for ten days, (my parents). We picked them up in Santa Cruz where we stayed for four days during the Ladies Conference. Not only did my parents enjoy spending time with us but they also got to meet many people from the five congregations in Santa Cruz. In Cochabamba they were also able to spend time with the team, the church family and many other friends of ours. Of course their main motivation was to see that granddaughter of theirs and spoil her rotten. Fortunately, however, they were also able to get a real feel for the work here and bring that news back to our supporters in Chillicothe and Hamilton, Missouri. We would like to say a very special thank-you to our supporters in Missouri who think enough of the work here to have helped my parents make the trip so that they could learn about the work in a much more direct way.

Also of course thank you to you Mom and Dad, (Grammi and Pops). You faced uncharted territory to encourage us and we are so grateful that you did.

ROLAND BOWEN VISITS COCHABAMBA

In July the team also welcomed brother Bowen from the Austin Avenue congregation. He came for a quick week long visit and was able to spend about two nights in the home of each couple with the intentions of encouraging us in the work and as families. We are thankful to him and to Carol for doing without him for a week :) as well as to Austin Avenue for making the trip possible.

MORE TO COME....

As soon as I have a moment I would love to sit down and write much more about the past two months. Please continue checking the blog frequently as I will be posting pictures of the baptisms and other important events that have taken place. We love you guys and thank again for everything.

La Familia Forbess

April / May Highlights

2007-05-09T12:02:00.000-04:00

Hello from Cochabamba! As I write Katie is in London and little Juju is in the states with her grandparents and cousin Sophie. Katie’s sister works for American Airlines and so Katie was able to travel on a pass with her sister to England. I am sure they are having a jolly good time. Jubilee of course is going to come home more spoiled than ever, but everyone needs to be a little spoiled sometimes. So that leaves me here, but I have Gary and Laura about five minutes in one direction and Vicente who is a brother of the church about five minutes in the other direction. I also have Fiona our dog, but we kind of have a love-hate relationship going on right now as she is still a puppy and is really good at driving me crazy.

New Sister in Christ

Last week we had our second baptism of the year. Our first baptism you may remember was Camila whose mother is a Christian and who had been exposed to the gospel for quite a while. We of course rejoiced with Camila when she was baptized and continue to be encouraged by seeing her growth as a young Christian.

Talia did not have the same exposure to the gospel so it was quite a different feeling to see someone who came to us as a complete stranger become a sister in Christ. From the first time Talia came to us as a student of our conversational English classes, we could tell that she was a special and unique person. She has a great way of communicating her opinion in a funny, honest and direct way. She has already expressed interest in helping Katie at the prison since Billie is no longer here to help. Katie will be thrilled! We are hoping and praying that Talia’s decision will motivate some of the other people who we have been studying with to also make the choice to become a Christian. Please pray for Camila and Talia our young sisters in Christ that they may become more like Christ each day. Also please pray for the other contacts we have that they may also make the choice to follow Christ. Among those contacts are Sonia, Omar, Gabriella and Augustina, and Carla. It never hurts to be specific so please mention these people by name as you pray.

New Arrivals

Just last week the team formed mostly at the Quito School of Preaching arrived in Sucre. The team is composed of two couples, two single men, and one single woman. One of the couples of course is Josh’s sister and brother-in-law Eric. We also got to meet the rest of the team when they came to Cochabamba two Sundays ago. We even had the pleasure of hearing Eric and fellow-teammate Pancho speak during the bible class about their previous experiences and their plans for Sucre. Please pray for the body of Christ now in Sucre. Sucre is at the heart of big changes in Bolivian government and will surely be an interesting place to work. We pray that God may use the dramatic changes taking place to remind the people of Sucre to seek first the Kingdom.

Next month we will also be receiving a group of interns from Harding University. We are already hard at work at thinking of ways they can serve while they are here for six weeks. One thing that I am very excited about is the help I will receive for our English conversation courses using the Bible. I will have 4 or 5 additional teachers meaning that we can take more students than last time. Please pray for our conversation classes that God may send us people who not only want to learn English but who are seeking Him. Also let us pray for our interns. These young men and women are spending six weeks of their lives to contribute to the work in a great way.

On top of the Sucre team and the Harding interns, we are also happy to welcome a group of Aggies for Christ who of course hail from Texas A&M. It will be hard for us to figure out how to use all these brilliant young minds, but I am sure we will figure it out. Their arrival conveniently coincides with a gospel meeting that we are planning in July. One job they will have is to help us get the word out. We may also have a few other projects lined up for them. Please pray for this group of Aggies, that God may be able to use them to His glory and that searching hearts may be brought to hear the Word because of their efforts.

On a more personal note, Katie, Juju and I are very excited about the upcoming arrival of my parents. They are planning to come this summer to visit and I can’t wait! I have already thought of a million things I want to show them and tell them when they get here. Please pray that they get their passports and visas on time as there has been quite a wait for these two things.

Somewhere there are a lot of people petitioning God to send workers to Bolivia so keep it up. Jesus words apply so very well to Bolivia when he says the fields are ready but the workers are few. You never know, God may just convince you to come!

Community Outreach

Even when we first came to Bolivia a year and a half ago, I could sense right away that God was calling me to figure out someway that we as a church family could reach out to the people of Cochabamba. I along with the team have had trouble identifying where to begin because the needs are so numerous and so great. We strive to do something that has a true impact on people’s lives while also striving to maintain our focus of sharing the gospel as opposed to becoming simply a humanitarian operation. I mention community outreach specifically because I had hoped to begin some kind of outreach by June even if it is just a temporary trial run. So as June fast approaches I am figuratively biting my nails hoping that I make a good choice as to how to go about serving our community. The good news is that I have Katie and Trish helping me as well as many community contacts, not to mention that I am certain God will lead us in the right direction. Please pray that God continues to bless us with wisdom concerning our decisions for community outreach.

National Network

The networking ministry which is in charge of communicating with the other Bolivian churches had trouble translating networking. So we are calling it the national fellowship ministry which I kind of like better anyway. I am getting to work with Josh and Katie to create opportunities for national fellowship which is so vital to Christians in nations where congregations are so isolated from each other. One very exciting item to report regarding the national fellowship ministry is that Josh has put a lot of work into creating a national newspaper for all churches of Christ in Bolivia. The idea is to keep church members informed of different activities going on throughout Bolivia. To start the newspaper will be put out four times a year. The first edition has already been printed and sent out. Josh did a great job getting the paper together as well as his “editors” and “writers” which included Butch and Katie. Please pray that the national newspaper will be a great tool to bring Bolivian brethren closer together.

March Highlights

2007-03-16T12:07:00.000-04:00

March Highlights

Saludos (greetings) from Cochabamba

La Familia Forbess sends their warmest greetings and love to all those reading our post this month. March has been a spiritually uplifting time for Katie and I and we both thank God for that. We hope that all of you also have been experiencing a month of growing closer to our Heavenly Father. Below are the most recent goings on here.

Santa in February

Two weeks ago our brothers in Christ, DeWayne Neel and Steve Ham from Evergreen, Colorado came to visit and encourage us in the work. They are both members from one of our supporting congregations in Evergreen, Colorado. If you are ever in the area, please visit the Evergreen Community Church of Christ. You will most surely leave feeling the warmth of that great church body. DeWayne and Steve were able to spend one week with Katie and I accompanying us for Bible studies and other activities. They also spent time encouraging Katie and I with helpful feedback about what we are doing here in Cochabamba. They also set aside time to pray with us about specific spiritual needs which was wonderful.

Another fun event DeWayne and Steve participated in was a pancake breakfast. When Katie and I first began getting to know the Evergreen congregation we attended a Santa breakfast offering breakfast and pictures with Steve dressed as Santa Claus to all children in the community. We repeated the tradition in 2006 when we were in Evergreen during December right before we left in January for Cochabamba. It was wonderful for us to get Jubilee's picture with Santa Steve again this year even though it was in February. Thanks again DeWayne and Steve for visiting. And thanks to everyone in Evergreen for your continued love and prayers! Please take a moment to thank God for the Evergreen congregation as well as the congregations in Chillicothe, MO; Hamilton, MO; Dora, NM; Denver, CO; Highlands Ranch, CO; Brownwood, TX; Rogers, AR; Houston, TX; and Olive Branch, MS that have shown Katie and I their love through support of this work. Their are also many individuals and families from these same locals in addition to our family members who have been very generous.

Katie & Girls Off to Brazil

The day DeWayne and Steve left, Katie along with Laura, Julie and Patricia headed to Sao Paulo, Brazil. There they attended a retreat for women missionaries graciously hosted and sponsered by Continent of Great Cities. Because of flight changes, the girls arrived three days early which actually worked in their favor. They were able to relax on Brazil's beautiful beaches and by the time the conference started they were ready to dig in their heels and focus. They were all split into different groups with other ladies working in Brazil, Chile and Paraguay. Katie came back with a peace and focus that has already made a difference in both of our ministries. Thank God for this special time and also we would like to thank the ladies from Continent of Great Cities who served in such a Christ-like way. Please pray that the peace our ladies came back with will remain.

Resurrection Sunday

On April 8th we are planning a special celebration focused on the resurrection of Christ. Because many people come to us from faith traditions which emphasize the death of Christ on Good Friday, we felt it good to balance that observance of death with the observance of life. Sometimes life can seem very hopeless for Bolivians because of violence, corruption, and poverty. This celebration provides us with an opportunity to demonstrate in a powerful and life changing way the hope that we have in Jesus. In a climate where it is difficult to plan a week in advance let alone a year, etc... it is remarkably refreshing even for mature Christians to be reminded of the one thing we can always count on which is God's love for humanity manifested through the life, death and resurrection of the Messiah. Please pray that our celebration of our Lord's resurrection may be bring both Christians and non-Christians closer to God in a powerful life-changing way.

Instituto de Estudios Biblicos Avanzados

(Institute of Avanced Biblical Studies) The Institute is scheduled to open its doors this coming Monday evening. The Institute has been in the back of our minds ever since we began brainstorming evangelistic tools in Brownwood. It is based closely on the model used by Butch and his colleagues in Santiago and Vina del Mar, Chile. It is a 13 week course that gives students who complete the program a very good foundation to understanding the Bible and God's plan for mankind. Each Monday evening the students will meet for 2 to 2.5 hours giving students and instructor plenty of time to delve deep into the scriptures. Although it is an advanced course meaning that expectations of students is high, the course is open to all regardless of religious background or training. I am scheduled to give two of the classes because I am hoping to mostly observe Butch in action during the first offering of the course. It is our dream as a team to one day take in more students and perhaps offer the course more than once a week. For right now we so far have 25 people signed up who mainly have responded to an ad in the paper. Please pray that this course may provide an opportunity for many true seekers of God to come to know Him. Also pray that God may use Butch, Josh and I as His instruments in teaching this course.

Grupos C.A.F.E.

(Coffee Groups) The Coffee Groups as we would translate it in English are our small groups. I have previously written about them, but because it is such an important part of our evangelism program I feel it is important to update frequently. They are going well although we would probably like to see more people involved in them. Currently the small group that Katie and I attend with the Sandovals and Custers in the Sandovals home is going well. We have a core group of four ladies who have demonstrated that they are truly wanting to learn more about God's Word and how it applies directly to their lives. Sonia, Talia, Gabriella and Rosario are the ladies who are attending. Gabriella also brings her son Gabriel. Rosario we met through our neighbors across the hall when we still lived in the apartment. Gabriella is the daughter of the couple that owns the apartment building. Sonia came to us by "accident" one Sunday and has been with us ever since, and Talia was Jamie's English students from the conversation classes.

Please pray that Sonia, Talia, Gabriella, and Rosario may continue to learn about God's will for their lives so they may experience the freedom of living in Christ. The Marcums and Bulls also host a small group in the Bulls home on Tuesday evenings. Please also pray for the people attending the small group hosted by the Bulls and Marcums.

There are always many more things to tell about, more than I have time or room to record for youl. Please always know that we appreciate everyone so much. Our visit with the brothers from Evergreen served to remind us how important our prayer warriors and financial supporters are. To all of you please know that we love you and miss you and are blessed to have you in our lives. Thanks for letting God work through you to touch the hearts of people in a land far away.

La Familia Forbess

Post-Launch Update

2007-02-07T11:12:00.000-04:00

The above pictures are of our newest sister in Christ here in Cochabamba. Camila is a precious young lady who decided to give her life to Christ. Please keep Camila in your prayers as she begins to a new life in Christ!

The other photograph is from the launch as Roland Bowen and I say goodbye to some of the visitors.

Welcome to all. We have heard through the grapevine that many more people are reading our blog than those who leave comments, so it is nice to know you are out there in cyberspace somewhere keeping up with the Lord's body here in Cochabamba.

Since the church launch last month we have been quite busy. I cannot remember everything in chronical order so I will just tell about what comes to mind. One of the greatest blessings is that Katie and Billie have finally gotten permission to enter into the ladies prison to conduct a series of classes about the Bible. The course will take place over 7 sessions. Billie has waited for over 6 years to come to Cochabamba and begin a prison ministry, praise God for her patience and persistence!

Katie and Billie also continue to work with the ladies at Manos con Libertad. They continue to study with the ladies on Wednesdays at the shop and now have also added a Friday afternoon study at Billie's home for those ladies who want to study more in depthly. Katie had considered prison ministry in the states but didn't really know where to begin. It seems as though God is helping her with that! Please pray for God's continued guidance for Katie and Billie as they embark on a great adventure to bring the good news to willing ears and hearts.

Since the launch we have also continued with our English language Bible study on Monday nights. This has been a really good way to maintain contact with our English students after the formal English classes ended before Christmas. Please continue to pray for our contacts. Among the ones who we have been able to spend the most time with are Talia and Omar, please pray that God continues to work through us to minister to these two precious people. Just last night I also began tutoring Talia's son Marcos in English as well. Katie has also begun studying with Talia in Spanish a book about the power of a praying parent. Omar comes to our English devo. on Mondays and also comes weekly for a one on one Bible study with me.

This Monday and Tuesday our team had two days set aside for a review and planning session. It went extremely well, praise God! We had time to review our goals for year one and to see how well we met those goals. We then set aside time to modify our plans for the next three years, especially for the year 2007 now that we have lived in Cochabamba for one year and have learned a great deal. On our second day we had time to talk about team dynamics and how we are getting along as a group. As with any group we have our struggles but everyone had a true spirit of humility and love as talked through some difficult issues. We of course still have room to grow, but every family including the best has room for improvement. We came out very encouraged and excited about working together during this new year. Please continue to pray for our team that we may always grow closer so that we may serve the Lord better.

Our small groups have really seemed to have taken off since the launch as well. One very special couple, Jose and Sonya, have been coming to the small group faithfully on Thursday evenings at the Sandoval's house. This is a couple who found us, because they were looking for a friend's church and came into one of our Sunday services by "mistake". They liked what they saw and heard and have chosen to continue meeting with us. They are coming to services, to small group Bible study, and they also have begun a one on one Bible study with Butch and Trish. Our English student Talia has also been good about coming to the small group Bible study on Thursdays. Please pray for Jose and Sonya that God may soften their hearts and lighten their burdens by leading them to putting Christ on in baptism.

On Friday nights we have begun another activity which has also had a great impact on us as a team and church family. We have begun a Friday night prayer service. We usually try to split the night up into four parts. We start off with a prayer of thanksgiving, we then have a prayer for the sick, we then have a prayer dedicated to four congregations. We select one supporting congregation to pray for, we pray for one mission point other than Cochabamba, we pray for one of the other Bolivian congregations and lastly we pray for the Cochabamba congregation. The last prayer is a special request time for other specific needs of the community or church family. Please pray that this time continues to be Spirit-led and that it may be a time of encouragement to the body and visitors.

In personal news, we have decided to leave our apartment for a house. Nothing in particular was wrong with our apartment, in fact it is the nicest place Katie have ever lived in. We just decided that for the same amount as rent or a little more we could find a house with a yard for Jubilee. We also wanted something that we felt Jubilee can play outdoors and in the surrounding neighborhood when she gets a little older. We were blessed to find a very nice house close to Gary and Laura, Vicente (Bolivian brother in Christ) and one of our regular visitors Priscilla. We are planning to make the move in a little over a week. Please pray that our new home will be used to its utmost potential as a refuge for us and the people we minister to.

To conclude, it is exciting to see how God is working here in Cochabamba. Please know that all those of you who read this blog and lift us up in prayer are a big part of what is happening here. As in all parts of the world we are engaged in a spiritual battle against the powers of darkness, thanks for putting yourselves out there on the battle lines through prayer, we truly cannot do this alone. We love you family!

La Familia Forbess

Successful Launch

2007-01-15T12:43:00.000-04:00

Success is always such a subjective thing to measure, but I would feel safe in saying that yesterday's official launch of the church was a great success. It was so because God was glorified, the gospel was preached, and people walked away having been encouraged and touched by the Word of God. Altogether we had 160 people, including our team and Cochabamba Christians, the Christians visiting from Austin Avenue church of Christ in Brownwood, Texas, a group of Christians from Santa Cruz and a group of about 100 invited guests from Cochabamba. It was an emotional moment to stand before our friends and loved ones of Cochabamba after a week of calling each other to find out how everyone was admist street riots. To then see all of those people under one roof on such a joyous ocassion was an unforgettable moment. To the visiting Christians it was also a time of great encouragement and they in turn encouraged our team and church family immensly. Grover Beakley an elder from Austin Avenue gave a blessing and prayed for the work as well as Fernando S. who is an elder from the El Pari congregation in Santa Cruz.

Butch preached an uplifting sermon about Jesus being the only one capable of healing a nation. He compared Jesus to the teachings of popular thinkers such as Freud and Nitzche showing how their philosophies have miserably failed the post-modern world in the endeavor of improvment and world peace. After the week that the Cochabambinos experienced the message was incredibly timely and well received. God truly spoke through our brother Butch on that day. Other brothers and sisters of the congregation also helped in many ways to make yesterday possible. A special thanks is due our brethren from Austin Avenue who helped us out in countless ways. We also send a special thanks to the Santa Cruz brethren who braved a difficult journey to be with us.

Thank you also to all of you who took a moment or two to pray for the success of this event. I believe that it will truly serve to bring us into the lives of many more Cochabambinos with the good news of life in Christ.

As for the political situation, we are simply watching and waiting. The weekend was for the most part very peaceful, one of the reasons that we had such a great turnout. We do not know if that was a permanent change or if it was only a temporary recess for the weekend. It is rumoured that things may become ugly again but there is no way to know that sort of thing.

May God bless you all.

La Familia Forbess

Cochabamba in Peril

2007-01-11T18:03:00.000-04:00

Brothers and sisters in Christ, we have mentioned our economic situation a few times on our blog, but today there is something much heavier on our hearts. If you have watched the news perhaps you have seen coverage of the street violence here in Cochabamba. One of the worst spots is below our window, six stories below. This is not to frighten or worry you, but for you to know the gravity of what is happening. We, I believe are very safe. Foreigners have nothing to do with this fight and as long as we stay out of view I am sure that we are fine. However, we are not able to leave our homes at the moment and the families of the congregation are spread out. We have spoken with everyone on the phone and almost everyone is home and accounted for. Please do pray for Cecilia's brother Franco who is not at home. There is a large group from Texas arriving in a few hours, pray they can get to their hotel from the airport. Pray that all the brethren in this city especially can be protected. Pray that the leaders of this nation who can stop what is happening will do it. Please be aware of what is happening here. We continue to trust in our Father. We will update you as soon as possible.

Answered Prayers

2007-01-10T11:52:00.000-04:00

A quick update for all the prayer warriors out there. God is good and He takes care of His children without fail. As you may have read in the last post we lost a substantial amount of monthly support. Since that posting we have had pledges come in for an additional $250.00 a month. We continue to seek additional support, but this is an indication that everything will work out just fine. A special thank you to those individuals and congregations that have stepped up and pledged an increase in support.

Two new prayer requests for this posting are for the Church Launch to be held this Sunday and the political situation. As I write this protestors march down our street with sticks and tires to burn at the main plaza and government buildings. The political situation here is hot and the fires continue to be stirred. Please pray for peace here. This situation affects everything including our church launch. For the launch we were to have almost 50 people coming from the congregations in Santa Cruz, for the very reason the country is so polarized it will be a great thing for Christians from the two opposing regions to gather. What better testament to our non-Christian visitors of the love that exists between Christians? Even when the Christians come from groups of people who generally oppose each other. As it stands now the highways have been blocked by protestors and we are uncertain if the people from Santa Cruz can travel safely here. Only God knows how to use these situations to His glory and we ask that all of you pray for our launch, for the safety of the Bolivian Christians traveling to Cochabamba, and for the Bolivian people in general. The vast majority of Bolivians, simply want to live their lives as people all overthe world do and the actions of a few have caused many to live in fear. We know though that we serve a mighty God, He who parted the Red Sea and crushed the armies of Pharoah continues to hold His people in the palm of His hand. We know that God sees the heart of men and knows those who love Him. We know that many Christians in the past have lived in turbulent times and that it is at these times more than others, when all people are faced with the reality and brevity of life that notice perhaps their relation to God could improve. Please pray that these things that are happening do not impede the freedom of life in Christ being preached. To God
be all the glory, honor and praise.

La Familia Forbess

Happy New Year's!

2006-12-31T15:34:00.001-04:00

Today is New Year's Eve. This is a time when many reflect on the past year in preparation for looking to the next year. I would like to begin this post by saying what an incredible year it has been. God is good, He fills our cup beyond measure both spiritually and materially time and time again. Katie and I truly feel unworthy for the blessings that have been put in our path. Yet, those same undeserved blessings are what motivate us to die to ourselves more and more each day and sacrifice more in honor and recognition of what we have received from God the Father through His son Jesus Christ. "For to live is Christ and to die is gain." This year what we truly hope and pray for is that God may transform us more and more into His image. Below is a collection of verbal snapshots of the mighty ways God has worked in our lives this year. To Him be all the glory, honor and praise.

January - The Forbess family says goodbye to friends and loved ones in Brownwood, Texas at the Send-off Sunday. We arrive in Cochabamba on the 10th of January where we first lodge at the Apart-Hotel Regina on Spain Street (Calle Espana). Soon after we arrive to our host families home and began language school.

February - The Forbess family sets up house behind the Mustafa family's house on Pasaje Man Cesped in the beautiful neighborhood of Cala Cala. The Mustafa's treat us as part of the family. We enjoy birthday parties, block parties, Sunday lunches, visits to Grandma and Grandpa Milan, watching Carnaval and who could forget watching the Mexican soap operas together each night for language practice! We even shared the illness of Faiz and the health problems of Katie together. The Mustafa's are very special and we were blessed to spend 8 weeks in their home enjoying their company and hospitality.

March - We say a teary goodbye to the Mustafa's and the taxi cab driver assumes we are leaving our parents to live in another country. The taxi driver doesn't quite get it when we tell him, "no they are not our parents and we are just moving 5 minutes away!". We first move into the Sandoval's apartment while they are in Chile as we await for our apartment to be finished. Around this time we are also put in contact with Cecilia and Aida who became Christians in Santa Cruz and now live in Cochabamba. We are also put in contact with a young man named Ramber who had befriended a Floridian elder before returning home to Cochabamba.

April-We get pretty settled into our apartment although we continue waiting for our curtains and other small items for the house. The work sees progress as we begin to make more and more relationships with Cochabambinos. We also were blessed to have a great visit by Roland and Carol Bowen. As a team we spend a few days out in Tiquipaya with the Bowens.

May-The weather in Cochabamba gets cooler as we settle into Cochabamba's winter months. Katie's mother and sister come to visit and see this wonderful place that we call home. As a team we begin searching for places to rent for the Contact Center where we can house our offices and classes. The church family is also visited by the Rufino and Alicia who serve the La Paz congregation and they introduce us to the Vargas family who greet us with tears as they explain how much they have longed for the fellowship of other Christians in their city of Cochabamba after the previous congregation shut its doors because of lack of funds and people moving away.

June-The weather gets even a touch cooler. We locate the property in the Prado just a few minutes walk from our apartment. Billie Gill and Jonathan Sandoval arrive to spend the summer with us. Denise Sandoval and her fiancee Daniel, who is now her mister, arrive to spend a little while in Cochabamba as well. Teammates of ours complete the basic language course at Maryknoll, just as Josh and I are in the midst of our Quechua course. Katie and I visit La Paz for the national ladies conference where we are able to spend quality time with brothers and sisters from both La Paz and Santa Cruz. Additionally some time around here Vicente begins to meet with us after finding our page on the internet and corresponding with Gary.

July- For some reason I can't remember this month that well. Perhaps it is because we had so much happen in June! We begin working on getting the contact center up and running. Towards the end of June or beginning of August we begin using the contact center for our meeting place on Sundays. In July the Marcums play very gracious hosts for a wonderful 4th of July party that really helps to take away any homesickness on a special day in the Forbess household.

August- In August one of our best friends in the whole world comes to stay with us for one month. Becky Phillipart of Washington, D.C. comes intending to study Spanish and ends up opting for playing with Jubilee and exploring the wide selection of movies down in the Cancha! We loved having Becky with us, or simply -B- as Jubilee called her. Also during this time the whole team is visited by the Chesser family of the Austin Avenue Church of Christ. What a great time it was to see their youngest daughter Ruthie playing with Jubilee, Michaela and Nathan. We were very encouraged by their visit.

September - The work on the contact center continues. We also begin to keep our eyes open for a larger rental space where the church can meet. We locate a great space on Mayor Rocha just two blocks from our home. Also around this time, we as a team begin to look forward to the January launch with fervor and anticipation. Plans begin in order to make this a special time in the life of the church body in Cochabamba. Katie and I also meet with the Custer's and Billie Gill to discuss plans for an English class using the Bible. Katie, Billie, and Jamie also begin visiting the Free Hands workshop to lead a Bible survey class also with the help of Trish who spends tireless hours at night working on teaching aids for activities to go along with the classes. Free Hands is a very special organization that provides employment opportunities for ladies or children of ladies in need of rehabilitation.

October - Another big month for the Cochabamba work. October sees the grand opening of the contact center and also the beginning of our free English courses. Our conversational English classes used the first 6 chapters of Luke and proved to be a great starting point for wonderful discussions about Jesus and His purpose on Earth. Around this time we also begin meeting in the space that is located on Mayor Rocha for worship services on Sunday. In October, the guys also pay a very encouraging visit to the brethren of Santa Cruz. We are able to preach in three different congregations on Sunday and make lasting friends with many Christians in that city.

November - The biggest news of November would have to be the arrival of beautiful Eleana, who is the newest addition to the Marcum family and the Cochabamba team. We see Trish go off to the states to help Denise get ready for the wedding and Jamie continues to get closer and closer to the day that her and Drew's little one will come. At the end of November we celebrate a lovely Thanksgiving meal in the new home of the Bulls. We celebrate the conclusion of our English classes by hosting a N. Amercian style Thanksgiving meal with the help of Billie and and the Custers, being surprised with an attendance of over 40 people. We also hosted a birthday party for Jubilee at the church building complete with clown and all, and were very honored by a large crowd, some of whom included our host family, English students and some of the ladies who work at Free Hands. November also sees Butch and Drew offer a free course at the contact center on how to study the Bible. In November, we were also so excited for our sister in Christ, Cecilia whose husband arrived in Cochabamba after being in the states for several months.

December- Little Hannah Lynn joins the company of 4 other little ones (Michaela, Eleana, Nathan and Jubilee) plus two big ones (Denise and Jonathan). Our team is blessed with beautiful children and we are so grateful to God for each of them. Before Billie leaves for the holidays, she prepares over a hundred fruit bags to give away to the children who live in the womens' prison with their mothers. In December we continue with English devotionals in our home for those English students who would like to continue practicing and learning. Katie's parents and auntie Doris come to town for a visit before Christmas. The visit comes at a perfect time and we have a wonderful early Christmas celebration with them. Katie, Jubilee and I spend a week in La Paz to encourage and be encouraged by the brethren there as well as have a little family time.

There are so many other people and events to mention. This is certainly not an all-inclusive list of happenings. It is to show however, how much God has done during this past year in the city of Cochabamba through the lives of a small group of His servants.

Nothing that has been accomplished during this time could have occurred first and foremost without our Heavenly Father. In addition, Katie and I would like to send out a special word of thanks to those who support us with funds, prayers and correspondance. The phone calls, e-mails and care packages are incredible. We would also like to solicit your prayers for a very urgent request. Katie and I found out last week that two of our supporters will no longer be able to continue during the year 2007. Another supporter informed us that their contribution will be reduced. The lacking funds total $750.00 per month. We truly appreciate the sacrifice of these individuals and congregations and want them to know from the bottom of heart how special and important their help has been. We also are looking to replace the lacking support from other sources, so we would ask that you keep us in your prayers that God may take care of us during this time.

THANKS AGAIN! WE LOVE YOU AND MISS YOU!

Pictures!

2006-11-25T20:17:00.000-04:00

noticias de noviembre

2006-11-13T11:49:00.000-04:00

The month of November is quite different in Cochabamba. Instead of crunchy brown and orange leaves underfoot, pumpkins and horns of plenty we are greeted with heavy rain, warm weather and new greenery all around us. November falls during the Bolivian springtime. It is quite a beautiful time of year also, Cochabamba is known as the Ciudad Jardin, or Garden City of Bolivia and during this time of year it really shows. Trees and bushes are flowering all over. For you botanists out there there are hybiscus, bouganvillea (know I spelled that wrong), poinsetta trees, vines, fruit trees, willows trees and other trees that are purple in colour and whose name I do not know. In short it is lovely!

The month of November finds our family doing overall very well. Jubilee is just getting over a cold and cough but it seems to be getting better. Katie and I are both enjoying good health as well. The team experienced the birth of little Eliana Marcum and awaits the Custer baby coming any day now. Let us thank God for the uncomplicated birth of Eliana and pray that Jamie and her baby experience the same. In other team news, Trish is preparing to leave for the states this Wednesday to help Denise prepare for her wedding in December. Butch will stay in Cochabamba to meet up with Jonathan who is finishing up his semester with Harding's program in Chile, and then he and Jonathan will also leave for the states. Please pray that the Sandovals have safe travel and be praying as well for Denise and Daniel as the begin their life as a married couple in December.

The work is also going well. Many things are happening all at once and it sometimes gets a bit overwhelming but it is a sign to us that God is using us as His instruments to minister to a wide variety of Cochabambinos.

Classes at Conexion Cristiana
Currently English Cnversation, Basic English and a how to class on Inductive Bible Study are being offered at the Conexion Cristiana. All three programs are showing a great deal of promise. We have met some really wonderful people so far. Especially rewarding to me, has been the conversation classes where we read from Luke. Just last week we had some of Katie's students over for dinner and we also had three students show up for Jubilee's birthday party. The classes will end at the end of this month until January. We are planning to celebrate a Thanksgiving dinner with English students from both the conversation and basic classes. We hope it will be a good time to get to know our students better and also Thanksgiving is one United States holiday that I just don't want to give up!!! Please continue to pray for the contacts that we are making, that many will come to be friends with us and more importantly come to be our brothers and sisters in Christ. My students are Patricia, Karla, Braullio, Carmen, Tania, and Patsy. Katie's students are Omar, Jose, Giovanni and Gilda.

January Launch
Our launch of the church occurs on January 14th of the new year 2007. This is going to be such a special time for us. We are inviting all contacts that we have made throughout our first year. This will be our host families from language school, students and teachers from the language school, our doctors, our pharmacists, our students, basically anybody who we have got to smile and know our names over the course of 11 months. Of course with three and now four incredibly cute babies on our hands we have been able to make many more contacts than we had imagined. We are going to have time to present all five families on the team, and have a special time of worship as well.

In addition to the visitors from Cochabamba we will also be hosting church family from Santa Cruz and La Paz. We are so happy that they view this as an important national event for the church. The Austin Avenue Church of Christ will also be sending 25 members to be present for the launch. If you would like to come it is not too late, let us know and we will find you a place to stay. We would love to have you. Please be praying that the launch goes well and serves the intended purpose which is to introduce ourselves in a formal way to the community, make new contacts, and offer a special time for brethren from Bolivia and the states to spend together and demonstrate how special it is to be a part of God's family.

Manos Con Libertad
Katie, Jamie, Billie and Trish have been involved in such an amazing and encouraging ministry that I just wanted to take a moment to describe it. Billie Gill had originally come to Bolivia wanting to initiate a women's prison ministry. She has gone many times to the prison but it has not offered her the ministry opportunity she was looking for. Meanwhile when some of the team was still attending Maryknoll the teachers offered students an opportunity to visit non-profit organizations. Josh and I visited a little place called Manos Con Libertad (Free Hands) that is a workshop which gives women getting out of prison and their daughters a safe place to work and make money for their families. Billie visited M.C.L. and after convincing them we were not a cult, our team's ladies were finally given the green light to do short devo style studies for the ladies during their work breaks. Katie hadn't really considered a ministry of this sort before, but wanted to do help nonetheless. We really had no way to know how this would turn out. We were given permission to go in on a temporary basis as the program director was traveling out of the country for five weeks. Now nine weeks later the director of the program is back, is pleased with what has been taught, and the ladies of M.C.L. are asking for our ladies to continue. The class being given is a Bible survey class starting with creation and going all the way to life of Christ and the birth of His church. Some of these ladies now come to our English classes and also three came with their children to Jubilee's birthday party. One of them made Jubilee a beautiful dress for her birthday as well. They are very sweet people. Please pray for this very special ministry, that many women will continue to grow in their knowledge of scripture and of God's love for them through this study time. We give thanks to God for the dedication of our team's ladies being willing to sacrifice time and energy to minister in this way.

We love you all and miss you all. Eat a lot of scrumptous Thanksgiving food for us!

September / October Update

2006-10-11T14:38:00.000-04:00

September / October Update

Family News: We are all doing well. Jubilee is growing up so fast, it is hard to believe she was not even walking when we arrived to Cochabamba in January. Everything with Katie is well, she continues to enjoy different aspects of the work she is involved in such as teaching Friday school for Jubilee and her friends, helping teach a ladies Bible survey class, and helping teach English using the Bible. I also am doing well and enjoying seeing the work here begin to accelerate. One new piece of news is that we have requested a furlough during the summer months of next year, so if all goes according to plan we could be in your neighborhood sometime next summer!

English Using the Bible:
We have recently begun a new program with the goal in mind to make more friends and contacts leading up to our January church launch. Katie and I form a part of a teaching team with Billie, Drew and Jamie. On Tuesdays and Mondays the five of us are offering conversational Bible classes using the book of Luke. I also teach a basic English course on Tuesdays for absolute beginners. We have had classes two weeks in a row now and just this week really got into the text of chapter 1 of Luke. It has been very exciting to read this passage with our students a few of whom have never heard the story of the angel coming to Zechariah to announce the birth of John. Our students questions and comments have been very interesting. Please continue to pray for the students of our English classes, that they may be blessed and grow closer to God and that God may us His servants to communicate His will to others.

Santa Cruz Trip:
In September and October the men of the team had two trips planned. One was to attend a national men's conference in Viacha which is outside of La Paz. The other trip was to make a blitz trip to Santa Cruz trying to visit as many of the numerous brethren and congregations in that city. The Viacha trip unfortunately was called off because the highways were in danger of being blockaded on our way back. The Santa Cruz trip however was a great time of fellowship. Josh, Drew, Gary and I all made the trip. I was fortunate only experiencing a 7 hour delay on the side of the road while the other three guys who left later than me experienced a series of delays turning the 7 hour trip into a 23 hour trip. We all eventually got there however, the trip is actually quite beautiful anyway, and the church family in Santa Cruz were very gracious and hospitable. On Sunday we split up with me attending services in El Pari, Gary and Drew attending Tres Pasos, and Josh attending the Plan 3000 congregaton. None of us were able to visit the brothers and sisters at the Quinto Anillo congregation but hopefully next time. And there will be a next time, because the sisters in Santa Cruz all warmly welcomed us again but on the condition that we bring our wives and children.

On the Saturday night of our visit we also had a very special time with the leaders of the congregations from all over Santa Cruz. The four of us spoke on what our team has done in Cochabamba up until now and what we plan to do in the future. The brothers were all very supportive and also showed a lot of enthusiasm concerning attending our January launch. There is sure to be a large number of Crucenos probably to outnumber visitors from anywhere else. Please pray that God continues to bless the congregations of Santa Cruz with great leadership and also to bless the brethren some of whom are increasingly worried about the growing divide between East and West Bolivia.

Opening of La Conexion Cristiana and Related Events:
On Monday, October the 2nd we celebrated the grand opening of our contact center now officially named La Conexion Cristiana which of course means "Christian Connection". We choose the spelling conexion because it means an electrical connection as opposed to connection in general. In a sense we hope that God uses the Conexion Cristiana to connect the Cochabambinos to the Bible and to himself in a very electrical and dynamic way.

The English classes started also on the 2nd are already held at the contact center. This next Wednesday Butch and Drew are planning to begin offering another special class to the community. Their class will teach students how to study the Bible in a more profound way and how to do that on their own. Please pray that God leads true seekers to this class and that He may use Butch and Drew as instruments to share His word.

Worship Center, (Centro de Adoracion)
This coming Sunday will be another special day for the church family here in Cochabamba. This Sunday will mark our first Sunday to worship in the other locality we have rented. Up until now the large classroom at Conexion Cristiana was big enough for our group but it is now starting to be a bit crowded. We also want to make the move so that we begin using the space which we are already paying rent for. It used to be a gym so it has plenty of room for us to grow, housing up to 2oo hundred people on the bottom floor. It has an even larger space up above where the Children's Ministry headed by Jamie will use to make classrooms for different age levels of Bible school students. Please pray that God blesses our first Sunday and that he continues to fill this place with people who are seeking to know Him in a profound and lifechanging way. May the words and actions that take place within and outside of its walls serve to testify to amazing love God has shown all men throught His son Jesus.

In Closing:
Thank you all for you prayers and continued support. We pray that this news may find you well and in good health. We love you all very much!!

Sonrisas Bolivianas

2006-09-14T16:07:00.000-04:00

Pic #1: Betty is an amazing baker!!! She made the cake by hand for my b-day.

Pic #2: Katie and I with our sister in Christ Cecilia. She is the mother of beautiful little Brianna who was featured in a post from about two months ago.

Pic #3: Billie Gill and my English student Karla.

Pic #4: Drew and Bruno hanging out. Bruno and his brother Freddy are the sons of Renan and Leticia. Bruno by the way is an awesome goalie, we play soccor with him and his friends on Sundays and they usually make us feel a little old but we always have a great time.

Juju's special shampoo

2006-09-09T17:42:00.000-04:00

Our beautiful daught daily reminds that she has inherited our wacky sense of creativity. The following are pics of her and her desire to wash her hair even though I had just washed it. She is not only creative but resourceful, using what was on hand at the moment! In that first picture she totally has a devious Frank Labowski smile and squinty eyes too for her Auntie Joyce who likes squinty eyes. To Auntie Darla, Auntie Mandi and Auntie Sissie here is something to make you laugh and you don't even have to clean it up!

August Happenings

2006-08-21T10:20:00.000-04:00

Comings and Goings:

Today is Monday, the 21st of August. We send our love and greetings to all of you out there. This month again has been a very full month. Since the last post we have two very special visits. One was from the Chesser family of Austin Avenue and the other was from our good family friend Becky Phillipart of Washington, D.C. Having visitors is always a very encouraging experience for us and we look forward to other visitors.

We ourselves will be visiting other places in the next three months. In September we have been invited to a congregation outside of El Alto which is near La Paz for a men's conference. We don't know if it will be a whole family trip yet, but I am definitely planning to go. We also have a visit to Santa Cruz planned in October as Katie and I have not made a formal visit to the congregations in that city yet. We did get to see some of the Santa Cruz bretheren in La Paz during the ladies conference but we of course would like to see them again. In November we are planning to go to Honduras for the Pan American Lectureships. As a team we decided to set aside some team funds to send one family as Cochabamba representatives each year to the Pan American Lectures. The Pan American Lectures for those who may not know, is a yearly event alternating locations in Central America, Mexico or South America and it is for all people interested in the Lord's Church throughout Latin America. Katie and I are very excited about getting to see many old friends and making new ones. We will probably have to spend one night in Miami on our way, perhaps we will have a little Miami reunion with old friends in the South Florida area!

Reaching the Lost & Encouraging the Lord's Body in Cochabamba:

This month has seen some special moments in the life of the work here. Yesterday on the 20th was our fifth Sunday to worship in the contact center, which is the small space we are renting downtown on the Prado for offices. It is already too small for our group which is now usually between 25 to 30 people. Granted most of our worship assembly is made of of the team, but we do have Bolivian Christians who regularly meet with us as well as ocassional visitors. The contact center is pretty much ready for us to begin using it for our offices. To solve the space problem we have already located another larger property that was formally a gym. It has plenty of room for us to grow and it has a great area upstairs that the Children's Ministry is already planning on using for our children's Bible classes.

Many people may wonder what we are doing with our time right now, as we are still working up towards the January Launch date and our official launch of the work here. As the year progresses we see our time becoming more and more filled which is of course a marvelous thing. Currently I am leading two weekly Bible studies, one of which is with my friend Ramber and his mother and also ocassionaly his sister. This study is going well and we have been able to cover a lot of the basics, I am hoping and praying that this family becomes a part of our church family soon. Another Bible study I am leading is with our door man. This study is also going well, but we are going a little slower because I feel the need to explain things a little more in depth with Juan Carlos. However both men often surprise me with their eagerness to continue studying and it is uplifting to be able share such good news with people who really have not heard the gospel in its' entirety as of yet. Please continue to pray for both Ramber and Juan Carlos that God may work in their hearts to bring them into a reconciled relationship with Him.

I am also teaching a weekly English class for one of the Spanish teachers from Maryknoll. She would like to attend a Presbyterian Seminary in Viriginia and she needs to take an English test before she can be accepted. I am helping her to prepare for this test, including giving her tapes of Bo Shero's sermons for listening practice which she seems to enjoy and they make a great starting point for conversation practice as well. Please pray for Karla as she prepares for this important test and also as she is gradually being exposed to some ideas on the Bible that she has perhaps not considered before.

In addition to the Bible studies and the English class I am also involved in a small group Bible study at the Sandoval's house being led by Butch. This is a small group time designed to encourage church members and give them a forum for sharing important prayer requests. Our family, the Sandovals, the Custers, Billie Gill and the family of Brother Renan and Sister Leticia are participating in this small group. Another small group which is more evangelistic in design will begin within the next two weeks in the home of the Marcums with the Bulls also attending. The small group at the Marcum's will focus on the sharing the gospel with visitors. In the future, once we have a better idea of how small groups work, Katie and I will begin a small group in our home. The Bulls and Custers will also eventually break off to lead small groups in their homes as well as Renan and Leticia most likely. We hope to make the small groups a very important part of both our evangelistic efforts as well as a way to encourage and mature the church body. Please pray for our small groups, that many will hear and obey the gospel as a result and that many will also be encouraged to spiritual maturity as a result of these study and prayer times.

Serving as Christ Served:

Another important role that Katie, Trish and I have on the team is to organize a benevolence/outreach program. Of course our first priority is to serve the needs of the body as they have need, and we are beginning to plan for that. We are currently considering how best to cloth and feed members as they have need. Once the larger building is being used for worship services we also would like to have storage space set aside for both dry goods and used clothing.

The Benevolence Team has also been visiting different organizations in Cochabamba that are already serving in some capacity. We would like to have a good idea of what the needs in our community are and which of those needs we can best serve. It is a process that is both exciting, daunting, and sobering at the same time. On one hand we can see great potential in serving others in the name of Christ in this city. On the other hand, how do we decide who and how to serve??? There is such great need here as there is in any city on Earth, and it is challenging to know where God would like us to serve. Please also pray that God may give us wisdom concerning this decision of how to serve our community.

THANKS FOR YOUR PRAYERS, LOVE AND SUPPORT. SORRY FOR THE SUPER LONG BLOG. WE LOVE YOU GUYS!!

PHOTOS OF THE CONTACT CENTER, URKUPINA PROCESSION, AND A FUNNY RENDITION OF MY TRIP TO THE CHAPARE WILL SOON FOLLOW.

noticias de agosto

2006-08-18T20:24:00.000-04:00

Perhaps you will notice in our blog updates and bi-monthly newsletters that I increasingly switch between English, Spanish and a little Quecua. I do this as thinly veiled plot to increase your vocab to prepare you for your upcoming visits. We love visitors, we want you to come!!

This evening we said bon voyage to our good friend Becky. She is in fact much more than a good friend and although we are sad to see her go, we have immensly enjoyed the three weeks she got to spend with us in Cochabamba. I fear she did not get to do all the touristy things there are to do here in Cochabamba but nonetheless she got spend major quality time with the Forbesses especially with Juju which we know was her true motivation to brave the trip. Included is a photo taken before Becky and Katie head off to the airport. Next stop for Becky the world traveler is Cuzco and Maachu Pichu across the border in Peru. Please keep her in your prayers as she is going to brave Bolivian airlines and flota (bus) in the same trip, both of which can prove to be quite an adventure as I found out last week on my way back from the Chapare.

Contact Center Pics

2006-07-21T13:33:00.000-04:00

This is the outside view. Our space is what is located behind the parked truck. The other side is going to be a medical laboratory of some sorts.
This is the patio of our neighbors occupying property in the same building. Our patio is exactly the same being divided only by a planter where you can see the flowers. Our patio is the same but the truck was parked in it.
This is a view from the back of the space. It is hard to tell in the picture but the room is quite long and so we are having partitions built to divide the space up into a reception area, a reading room, and two office spaces in front of the stairs. The picture is taken from what will be a larger room for Bible Institute classes and worship service until we find a more permanent place for the church to meet. Upstairs above the large room is a space where three more offices will be located. These offices will be important for doing Bible studies, for the Bible Institute and for the Community Outreach Program.

Good Health Report!!

2006-07-21T12:44:00.000-04:00

Hey to all of you out there. I wanted to let all of those prayer warriors out there know that our God has heard and responded in a mighty way. Katie is still battling the infection but it is healing very well. We went to the doctor on Tuesday and the report was very encouraging. Please share with us in giving thanks to God and continuing to ask for Katie's health. Thank you so much to all who have been praying for her.

Additionally, I am posting today some pictures directly on the blog and also on our dropshots page of the contact center that we are currently remodling. To remind everyone, the contact center is going to be a very big a part of our work initially. We have already had some people walk in off the street and we have no signage or anything up yet. The Lord, I believe, has led us to a very strategic spot and we are hoping that many people will come to study the Bible through means of this contact center.

Another important piece of news is that the Chesser family from Austin Avenue arrived safely yesterday. Gary had gone to Santa Cruz to make the last leg of the trip with them to Cochabamba. Rodney, Tracie, Chelsea and Ruthie had a safe and uncomplicated trip except perhaps for running out of diapers in the Miami airport which proved to be a bit of an adventure, but they worked it out and are to be here with us for 10 days. We also are giving thanks for their safe trip and for their encouraging presence among the team these next few days.

Sipe Sipe Festival de la Virgen del Carmen

2006-07-16T22:07:00.000-04:00

These two photos are of the procession held in honor of the Virgen del Carmen in Sipe Sipe. We visited Sipe Sipe on Saturday.

A Day in Sipe Sipe

2006-07-15T18:35:00.000-04:00

Today Katie, Juji and I visited the town of Sipe Sipe. It is about an hour away if you are traveling by trufi or micro (public transportation). It was a very lovely day in the sun and fresh air of the valle bajo. There is the valle bajo (low valley) on the west side of Cochabamba and the valle alto (high valley) is towards the east. The large city of Quillacollo is in the valle bajo and then the smaller towns of Vinto, and Sipe Sipe are further west.

They were having a celebration in honor of the Virgen of Carmen by chance. We did not know that when we decided to go. The dancers were very elaborately dressed and put much fervor into their procession although the crowd was small. We heard a great deal more Quechua being spoken than we usually do spending the day in the city. There were of course a great deal more women wearing traditional polleras (skirts) with the characteristic straw hats that are common to the department of Cochabamba.

Katie and I sipped coke as we chatted and relaxed watching the parade go by. If we missed part of it, that was no big deal as the whole procession rounded the square plaza always staying within view and hearing distance. One woman selling peanuts had her daughter with her who was about Juji's same age. They said their hellos and both times we passed them freely gave Jubilee peanuts, showing us again how generous the people here are. We didn't know the people at all, but because they saw us with a small child they wanted to share what they had. We often find the people here, especially the Quechua who are selling their products eager to share with Jubilee expecting nothing in return. It makes us reflect on our attitudes of giving and receiving and is a little sobering.

We also would like to announce that our friends and family can now see daily photos (of course most of them will be of Jubilee), but we know you won't mind. Please take a minute and visit www.dropshots.com/ForbessFamily

Maryknoll Graduation

2006-07-06T13:08:00.000-04:00

This are pics of the Bulls', Custers', and Julie's graduation ceremony at Maryknoll. We are so proud of their hard work in language school. It was also a nice time to say goodbye to all the friends we had made at Maryknoll. The school was nice enough to also recognize Katie, Josh and I even though we did not actually graduate on that day.

Billy and Trish

2006-07-06T13:03:00.000-04:00

Billy Gill has come from Brownwood to live in Cocha for one year. She has previously served teaching English in Monterrey where the Monterrey School of Preaching is located. She has also been a lifelong public school and Bible school teacher. Here in Cocha she is planning on developing a womens prison ministry as well as a ministry for the children of the women who are in prison. She is living in our building on the 7th floor. We are so happy she is here. And of course that is the lovely Trish on the right.

Daddy, Juju and Daniel

2006-07-06T12:53:00.000-04:00

This is us at Butch and Trish's house with Daniel. Daniel is engaged to Butch and Trish's daughter Denise. Denise and Daniel visited Cocha in June.

July Happenings and Prayer Requests

2006-07-06T12:19:00.000-04:00

Life in Cocha is going well. Katie, Jubilee and I are doing well. Jubilee is just getting over a little cold, it was nothing serious though. We continue to ask for prayers for Katie's health, as you may have remembered she is battling a serious infection. We have been continuing to see the same doctor and he has treated her very well. We do plan on going to the another doctor that Jamie and Julie have been using just to get a second opinion and make sure that everything is being done the way it should. Katie also had a little spill outside our apartment on Tuesday on our way to a 4th of July party and hit her back on the stairs pretty hard. She said that she is feeling better today.

As promised this post will address our contact center, although there are many more things to report. As the time for the public launch of the church in January approaches the team is becoming more and more involved in planning and preparing for that event. One very exciting idea our team came up with was to rent an office space in a highly accessable part of town. The purpose of the space would be multifaceted. Among the uses would be to house a reading center, an area where people can meet on nuetral ground for Bible studies, classroom space for more formal Bible lessons, a meeting area for the congragation as it waits to find a meeting space, and office spaces for the team members. The main idea is to give Cochabambinos a place to walk in and be received and welcomed by the church. We plan to work in shifts so that someone will always be in the contact center during normal business hours. We feel this will really generate alot of contacts leading up to our January launch.

We were fortunate enough to locate a property that is approximately 100 square meters that is right on the Prado which is a very popular strip with restaurants and shops. The Prado also happens to be in walking distance for the Custers, the Sandovals, the Bulls, for Billy Gill and for us. Billy by the way is from the Austin Avenue congregation and she is here to work with the team this year. Billy is living in the same building as us and the Sandovals. Currently, Butch, Gary and I are working on getting the contact center furnished and ready to open by the end of the month. We are meeting today in fact to go over our budget, to talk about what the name of contact center will be and to talk about how to get the word out that the contact center will be opening.

In other news, Josh and Julie were very gracious to have the team in their home for 4th of July celebrations. It is a hard day to be away from family as the 4th is also the birthday of my niece Sage and nephew Cedar, but the Marcum's did an amazing job at making us all feel like we were back home for a little while, complete with hamburgers, Dr. Peppers, potato salad and some good ole' country music. There were also some fellow former Maryknoll students with us as they are still in Bolivia awaiting their visas to go into Venezuela to work as lay missioners with the Catholic church. We had fireworks and some bobbed for apples even though it was quite chilly by the time the sun had gone down.

Also, this past Friday the Sandovals, Marcums, and Bulls as well as us were able to go and play walleyball with a contact named Ramber. For those who may remember Ramber was friends with an elder of the church in Pensacola and when Ramber moved back the elder put us in touch. Gary and I have studied with Ramber off and on and Butch has been able to play raquetball with him a few different times. It was very encouraging for Ramber and his family to receive a visit from the team and I am hoping that it is the beginning of a lasting relationship. Please continue to pray for Ramber and his family that they may continue to grow in their knowledge of the Word and that their knowledge will lead them to decide to follow Christ.

As always thank you to my faithful readers. It means so much that there are people out there who want to know all the details of what is going on and it is very encouraging as well. We wish all of you well in your ministries also.

In Christ,

Jeff

Baby Brianna and More Ladies Conference Pics.

2006-06-22T14:02:00.000-04:00

On the top left is a picture of Brianna who is the newest addition to our church family here in Cochabamba, she is the daughter of John and Cecilia Pap. Cecilia worships with us in Cochabamba and John is currently working in the states. On the bottom left is Katie with Sister Norah from the Plann 3000 congregation in La Paz. On the right is a group of children from La Paz who sang at the end of the ladies conference.

Conferencia de Damas en La Paz

2006-06-22T13:56:00.000-04:00

Ladies Conference in La Paz

2006-06-22T13:40:00.000-04:00

Hello to all our faithful readers! So much has happened since the last post I believe it will be necessary just to post several times over the next few days so be checking often. First of all, God as always has been good to us. We feel very blessed to be serving here in Cochabamba.

Since the last post one of the most encouraging events for both Katie and I was a trip we made to La Paz at the end of May. We traveled because Katie and the other ladies of our team had been invited to participate in a national Ladies' Retreat for ladies from congregations in Santa Cruz, La Paz and Cuzco, Peru. What sacrifice and love these ladies showed by riding up to 20 hours plus on buses to come into La Paz. The ladies in La Paz were also very kind and had done a great job of organizing a wonderful 4 day event for the Christian women of Bolivia and southern Peru. Each night the ladies from a different city spoke. Saturday night was Katie's night and she did a great job at presenting a lesson prepared by all the Cochabamba ladies on encouraging each other with the five senses. While the ladies were enjoying their time studying from the Word together in the evenings the men from the La Paz congregation would get refreshments ready for the ladies. This time gave me great opportunities to get to know some of the La Paz brethren. On Sunday the whole church packed up in 3 buses and rode 3 hours to a town on the shores of Lake Titicaca which is one of the highest lakes in the world and forms part of the border between Peru and Bolivia. It was a little chilly but it was an incredible experience to worship in such a breathtaking place. The brethren in Bolivia and southern Peru treated with true humility, generosity and hospitality and Katie and I will carry the example of their Christ-like spirit with us always. After visiting we are even more excited to work with our brethren in La Paz and Santa Cruz and perhaps even in Cuzco. This is the post for today, soon I will post information on our new rental property which will be home to our Contact Center where Cochabambinos can begin to visit us. Thank you all so much for your prayers.

Jeff

Betty's Little Wawa and Forbess Family

2006-05-17T15:22:00.000-04:00

Grandmom, Auntie Sissy, Juju and Mommy

2006-05-17T15:19:00.000-04:00

May Update

2006-05-17T15:12:00.000-04:00

May Update

Hello to all out there. This is our May update to let everyone know what is going on here in Cochabamba.

As always we praise God that we are doing well spiritually, emotionally and physically. Thank you to all who continually lift us up in prayer. Katie’s health issues are continuing to improve and currently she is feeling well.

This month was highlighted by two very special visits. Katie’s mother and sister both came to Cochabamba to spend some time with us. Lora Johnson, who is Katie’s sister, visited us for one week. Katie’s mother, Linda Labowski arrived with Lora and is still with us until this coming Sunday. Their visit has been such an encouragement to Katie and I. I think it was also encouraging for Lora and Linda to see Jubilee is living in a nice and comfortable home. I think Linda was also happy to meet Betty who helps us around the house 3 days a week. Betty is truly a tremendous help and she gives us advice on all sorts of things such where to buy things, how to cook things, how to say things in Spanish or Quechua, and countless other useful bits of advice on how to go about daily life in Cochabamba.

Language classes are going well. Katie and I both continue to work hard at learning our third language, improve our second, and not forget our first! Quechua is a beautiful language and visiting some Quechua villages last week with Linda and Lora really gave us a great opportunity to practice. The Quechua speakers in general seem to be very happy, and amused when try out our new skills.

The work is also progressing steadily. This past week our business meeting focused on organizing which roles of service each team member will participate in. There were many great ideas that were tossed about and during the next two weeks we will meet with the other team members who expressed an interest in the same areas. Among my areas of interest were the following: Evangelism Coordination, Contact Center Organization, Benevolence and Community Outreach, Fellowship Coordinator, Family and Child Ministry, and Visitation. Of course all team members will be involved to some extent in all ministry areas, but these are the ones I feel more drawn to. As we begin formally organizing ourselves and our plans we continually look towards our January launch date, when the church will be publicized and our evangelism efforts will truly begin in earnest. Please mark January of 2007 as the ideal time to make a visit to Cochabamba. We would love for as many people as possible to be here for that exciting time.

On a personal note, our team members are also doing well. The last family to move out of their homestay, the Custer’s found a great apartment very close to us, the Sandovals, and the Bulls. We continue having services on Sundays and Wednesday evenings in our homes so our homes are playing a very important role in the work. Since the last update we have had a new addition to our church family. The minister from La Paz was kind enough to visit us last month and when he did he introduced us to a Christian family living in Sacaba just outside of Cochabamba. We found out that at one time there was a small group of the Lord’s body meeting in Cochabamba however due to people moving to the states the group dwindled. The family of our brother Renan was one of the only families that stayed in Cochabamba. We rejoice that Renan, his wife Leticia, and two children are now encouraging us through their presence and collaboration here in Cochabamba.

Pictures will be added later but just wanted to get something posted. We love you all.
p.s. Another wonderful piece of news is that my sister’s husband Chris is home from Iraq on leave for two weeks. It is good to know that he is safe and well. One of my good friends from when my dad was going to Bear Valley was Christy Werhan who is now Christy Payne. Through a letter I learned that her husband, Richie also has recently been deployed for 9 months. Please keep our brothers and sisters in Christ who are serving and risking their lives

Lesson from Philipians

2006-04-22T23:22:00.000-04:00

This is the lesson I will be giving tomorrow. Perhaps it will be as much of an encouragement to others as it was for me in preparation. God bless!

Introduction

Message of Philippians ~ Stay United

A theme of unity in the church
A theme of mutual helpfulness
A theme of spiritual maturity
A theme of love demonstrated

Key Passages
4:2-3 Conflict has arisen
2:1-4 Unity and Spiritual Maturity
2:12-16 Unity and Spiritual Maturity as a testimony

How does Paul encourage unity and spiritual maturity among the Philippians.

–A REMINDER OF LOVE SHOWN-
Paul reminds them he loves them while at the same time giving them advice.
–AN ATTITUDE CHECK-
Paul draws the Philippians back to the spirit and attitude of Christ.
–PROFOUND LOVE AS THE GOAL-
Paul tells the Philippians what his prayer and expectation is of them.
– A COMMITMENT TO THE GOAL-
Paul admonishes the Philippians to continue on the path towards attaining their goal.
–HELP IS ON THE WAY-
Paul sends help, both physical and spiritual.
–SI SE PUEDE!!, THE GOAL IS POSSIBLE-
Through the transforming power of Christ the Philippians can achieve the goal of a profound love that resembles Christ.

Applications

Ø Paul would pray for profound love among us as well.
Ø Profound love is the key to attaining unity and spiritual maturity.
Ø Conflict in the church is normal.
Ø What is not normal is a profoundly loving response to conflict.
Ø God is faithful and will always send us help.
Ø As God is faithful, we too should be faithful in our effort to attain a profound love.
Ø The goal of profound love is attainable through the power of Christ.

Introducción

Mensaje de Filipenses ~ Mantenerse Unidos

Hay un tema de unidad en la iglesia
Hay un tema de servicio mutuo
Hay un tema de madurez espiritual
Hay un tema de muestras de amor

Pasajes Claves
4:2-3 Hay conflicto
2:1-4 Unidad y Madurez Espiritual
2:12-16 Unidad y Madurez Espiritual como un testimonio

Como logra Pablo promover la unidad y madurez espiritual entre los filipenses.

–SE LES RECUERDA DE LAS MUESTRAS DE AMOR-
Se les recuerda a los filipenses que los ama mientras también les da consejos.
–UNA AUTO-EXAMINACION DE LA ACTITUD-
Pablo llama la atención de los filipenses al espíritu y actitud de Cristo.
–EL AMOR PROFUNDO ES LA META-
Pablo les explica a los filipenses lo que es su oración y expectativa para ellos.
–UNA DEDICACION A LA META-
Pablo anima a los filipenses seguir en el camino hacia lograr la meta.
–YA VIENE AUXILIO!!-
Pablo envía ayuda, ayuda física como también espiritual.
–SI SE PUEDE!!, LA META ES POSIBLE-
Por medio del poder para transformar que existe en Cristo, los filipenses pueden lograr la meta de un amor profundo que refleja a Cristo.

Aplicaciones

Ø Pablo oraría por el amor profundo entre nosotros también.
Ø El amor profundo es el medio por lo cual se logra la unidad y la madurez espiritual.
Ø El conflicto dentro de la iglesia es normal.
Ø Lo que no es normal es reaccionar con amor profundo al conflicto.
Ø Dios es fiel y siempre nos enviara ayuda.
Ø Como Dios es fiel, nosotros también debemos ser fieles en cuanto a nuestro esfuerzo para lograr el amor profundo.
Ø La meta del amor profundo se puede lograr por medio del poder de Cristo.

Carnaval Pics

2006-04-22T00:08:00.000-04:00

Juju and Makaykay on the way to La Paz

2006-04-20T18:10:00.000-04:00

Good Health Report

2006-04-19T15:01:00.000-04:00

Thank you to all who have been praying specifically for Katie´s health. We are rejoicing and praising God for a good report. Yesterday we went to the doctor for a check on Katie´s condition. We still have to take the results to her regular doctor, but the doctor performing the test said we have nothing to worry about. What a relief. What a blessing. What a gift!!!! We are so thankful. Please continue to lift Katie up in prayer for her health.

On a lighter note, we are also rejoicing with the Custers who just signed on a great apartment in between the building where we and the Sandovals live and the building where the Bulls live. The building is right on the Prado which is the most happening area of Cochabamba. They have an awesome view from their kitchen of the Coronilla Hill and the whole southern section of the city. They will surely post more about it on their blog, go check it out!!

Thanks to all who replied last time. Please feel free to reply as often as you wish.

April Update

2006-04-13T17:59:00.000-04:00

We send our greetings to all from the Garden City of Cochabamba, Bolivia. La Familia Forbess is doing very well. Since the last posting many things have occurred and that would be the reason that so much time has past between updates. We have moved, have gone on two team retreats, have traveled out of the country, have received visitors from the states, and have started Quechua classes.

Our move from the Mustafa’s house to our own apartment occurred on the 13th of March and it has taken from then until now to get our apartment set up. Things in Bolivia tend to take a little bit longer, but we finally have the majority of our furniture, appliances, and curtains. There are still things we are waiting on such as curtains in the living room, a bed frame, an internet connection, a dryer and electricity for one half of our apartment! Despite these little inconveniences we love our home and feel very grateful for the home God has placed us in for this time of our lives. It is a fifth floor apartment in the same building as the Sandoval’s. There are four bedrooms and two bathrooms with plenty of room for any of you who are itching to visit us. There are large windows and beautiful wood floors throughout. We are trying to incorporate as much Bolivian made furnishings as possible so most of the furniture is Bolivian made. The curtains and cloth on the chairs and sofa are toquyo and aguayo both of which are typical Bolivian fabrics. We were blessed this past week to receive our first house guests. Roland and Carol Bowen of the Austin Avenue congregation in Brownwood were here from the 7th to the 12th.

The two team retreats that I mentioned both went very well. The first one was on March 23, 24 and 25. During this time we as team reflected on our past, present and future. We had time to study the Word together, pray together and just spend time visiting and playing games. It was a very enjoyable time for us all and helped us as a team to maintain the close ties that we have already established. The second retreat was a time designed to give us an easy way to all be together with the Bowen’s since we are all in different homes in Cochabamba. We stayed in some very nice cabins about 15 minutes outside of the city. During the second retreat we were able to be spiritually fed by Roland and Carol through Bible study, prayer, and two question and answer periods. We know of many mission teams who wait years for the first visit from supporters, how grateful we were to have the Bowens during our first three months.

The Bowens were some of the first among many planned visits. Before the Bowens we were also blessed to receive a visit from Ken Hines who with his wife Sherry were some of the first missionaries from churches of Christ to ever work in Bolivia. Ken was on a trip to visit the congregation in La Paz and the congregations in Santa Cruz, so he was able to stop over in Cochabamba to spend the weekend with us. Linda Labowski and Lora Johnson who are Katie’s mother and sister plan to visit us beginning on May 7th. The Sandoval’s children Denise and Jonathan and their friend Daniel, will be here when they finish with classes at Harding. The Chesser’s of Austin Avenue will be visiting us in June. There are also some family members of our teammates that are planning visits later in the year. If you are interested in visiting the work please let us know, we would love to have you. A great time to visit would be this coming January when we are planning to have our public launch of the work here in Cochabamba.

Our “vacation” to Peru with Josh and Julie was quick and very interesting. Mainly we went to get our visas renewed to have more time to work out our visa situation. We had received some wrong information that the immigration office in Cocha no longer grants extensions. We later found out the office does offer extensions! We traveled by bus 7 hours to La Paz on March 30. That night we spent the night in La Paz and the following day we took a bus to the town of Copacabana which is right on the Bolivia-Peru border. The scenery was incredible especially going towards Copacabana and Lake Titicaca. At one point all the bus passengers are asked to get out and board small wooden boats to cross one part of Lake Titicaca. While the passengers cross over, the buses which are quite often double-decker also are loaded onto large wooden rafts and cross the lake in the same way. The bus ride there took 3 and a half hours, we got out, crossed the border by foot, took care of our papers on the Peru side and then on the Bolivia side and then got back on the bus just in time to get back to La Paz. The following day we headed back to Cochabamba just in time to get back to see Ken Hines and for Julie to celebrate her birthday with the team. The two little wawas, (Jubilee and Michaela) did awesome as they are already expert travelers. It was fun to seat them together and let them play. It was a crazy trip, but we got our stamp for 90 days praise God and we got to see a little more of Bolivia and even Peru.

The last bit of news for today’s posting is concerning Quechua classes. Of course Butch and Patricia started Quechua quite a while ago at the Runawasi School. Josh and I started Quechua classes last week at Maryknoll. I chose to stay with Maryknoll because many of my favorite Spanish professors turned out to also be the Quechua professors. So far I love studying a new language. It is very different from Spanish and English, although fortunately the Quechua spoken in Cochabamba is more like Quechanol, in other words a mix between Quechua and Spanish. For Quechua purists they must go to places like Cuzco, Peru or places in Ecuador. The Quechua in Bolivia is much more widely spoken and for that reason has been more heavily influenced by Spanish. It is a language that relies heavily on suffixes so words become very complicated very quickly. Another note to any potential visitors: if you have any interest in language study Cochabamba is a great place to come. The Spanish is very standard and the accent is very easy for beginners to understand. As far as Quechua goes, I may never be as fluent in Quechua as I am in Spanish but I am going to give it at least three months of intense study. At the end I should be able to at least converse and have simple Bible studies which is my goal. Even though my Quechua skills are so basic right now, it has already opened up doors to and the Quechua speakers we meet usually seem so happy and shocked as well to hear a North American trying to speak their language. It is our prayer that God blesses us in our language study so that we may reach an even wider circle of people in a more profound way.

Please feel free to send e-mails or post replies regarding our blog entries. We would like to know if it is something our supporters and friends enjoy and how we can make it better. We love you all.

La Familia Forbess

Splinters and Logs

2006-03-06T19:01:00.000-04:00

Highlander Highlights

Quite often we only point out cracks from far away because they are too glaring when we look in the mirror.

Saludos desde el Valle Alto, (Greetings from the High Valley). Katie, Jubilee and I are doing well. Today is the third of March. It is our last day of Spanish language school at Maryknoll Language Institute. We have learned so much about Bolivia and the Catholic Church during our time at Maryknoll. We feel blessed and well on our way to developing a knowledgeable and culturally sensitive approach to the communication of the Good News of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

The people of Cochabamba and Bolivia have a very rich heritage and have very deep roots in their faith. In some ways this makes our task much easier and in some ways it is made much harder. Most of the people already have an understanding of God the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit thanks to the influence of the Catholic Church. We have so far not met any atheists, and almost all Bolivians seem to recognize and desire to honor the Creator of the Universe. Prayer is important to many Bolivians as well as contact with the spiritual world. What a marvelous legacy to build upon.

The challenge as we have already experienced during Carnaval is the intermingling of two vastly different faiths. While almost all believe in the Trinity, many Bolivians also continue to varying degrees to pay homage to Pachamama, (mother earth) and to Tio Supay (uncle Supay) who is a malevolent spirit believed to inhabit the mines and also believed to protect the miners. Pachamama and Tio Supay are two among many. Among the Aymara and Quechua there are many different spirits and deities believed to exist. The Aymara and Quechua have many similar beliefs as they are indigenous people groups of the mountains, valleys, and the Altiplano. In the lowlands of Santa Cruz, Beni, and Pando there are also many other indigenous groups with their own set of beliefs. Two of the largest groups in the lowlands are the Chiquitanos of Santa Cruz and the Guarani of the Chaco region along the border of Paraguay.

Among the highland people, including most of the people of Cochabamba, a ch’alla is given to Pachamama in hopes that she will bless the home, a new car, the family, etc. The ch’alla is very common on the Tuesday of Carnaval but is also observed other times to bless new possessions. During Carnaval the most common form of ch’alla is sweet little white candies thrown all around the home. Ch’alla can also be in the form of other objects. During Carnaval we also witnessed the k’oa. A k’oa is a burnt offering given to Pachamama in hopes for her blessing as well. K’oas are very common. Once a month on Friday many businesses and homes have a k’oa to rid the business or home of bad spirits and to bring the business or home good fortune.

While many Cochabambinos still place a great importance on ch’alla and k’oa many do these things mainly because of family tradition. Still others we have talked to do not believe that they can rightfully mix the customs of ch’allas and k’oas with Catholocism or whatever other faith they may practice.

We do not wish to be missionaries of North American culture, nor do we wish to be elements of destruction of a beautiful and unique culture. At the same time we recognize that God calls all of His children to be lights unto a dark world, to maintain the integrity of His word, and to worship Him and Him alone. Just as we are aliens in the USA we are also aliens here in Bolivia. Sometimes our ways and thoughts will be radically different from that of our host culture. We pray and ask you to pray also that the ways in which we are different will be received as a fragrant and refreshing approach to life as opposed to a destructive or judgmental response to the result of centuries of accepted syncretism between Catholicism and indigenous religion. It is because we believe that the word of God is so pure, so complete, and so liberating that we wish it to never be confused with something of a different nature. Our love for Bolivians is also such that we believe they as all people on Earth deserve the opportunity to hear the Gospel in its purest form and that they have the freedom to respond to that Good News as they choose.

The culture of the church established by Christ is not only radically different from that of Bolivia. The culture of the Church is radically different from any other culture in the world, because it is the only culture that exists in this world that is not of this world. Christ had something better in mind than a fearful life of appeasing evil spirits and He also had something better in mind than a mindless rat race to accumulate prestige and money. The message and life of Christ when presented and applied with intellectual honesty will always come into conflict with worldly cultures because it is a divine culture that is not derived from mere men. As we learn about Bolivian culture and call into question some of the practices we see, we also must humbly reflect upon our own culture of North America and call into question many of our own beliefs and practices. Here in Bolivia it is easier for us to see examples of Christian teaching mixed with religions not of God, but to be fair we also must consider how our faith is practiced in the United States and accept that we too sometimes mix Christian teaching with hand-me-downs of other faiths or social trends. On of our greatest challenges as a mission team is one shared by all Christians; that challenge being to find that dividing line between what are Biblical teachings of a Spirit-filled life in Christ and what are man made customs. We invite you our esteemed reading audience to earnestly pray for enlightenment so that we as a church throughout the whole world may come into a better understanding of what is the Christian culture as opposed to worldly cultures passed down through the generations.

Love,

La Familia Forbess

Feb. 18, 2006

2006-02-19T16:12:00.000-04:00

Highlander Highlights

February 18, 2006

Greetings once again from Cochabamba, Bolivia. We, the Forbess family, are now in our seventh week in Bolivia. Soon we will lose count of how many weeks we have been here and will begin marking our time here in months and then years! We continue in the process of beginning our life here in this new land. There are many wonderful things about being here and sometimes there are challenges, but we keep Philippians 4:13 in mind always.

Katie and I have two more weeks until the end of our Spanish review course at the Maryknoll school. We have had such wonderful teachers, although we have not been able to do our homework very consistently so I don’t know what our teachers think of us. We will probably end up staying at Maryknoll for our Quechua classes as we have been impressed with the quality of instruction and also with the staff’s genuine interest in accommodating the needs of a family with a little one at home. Josh Marcum who is also a part of our team, will be studying Quechua at Maryknoll as his Spanish review ends in two weeks as well.

Our most valuable learning at least for Katie and I, has probably not been the language learning, although that has been very helpful. What has been the most beneficial for us is learning about Bolivia. Katie and I have an uncanny knack for getting our teachers off the subject of grammar, (yuck!), and getting them to talk about Bolivia, (which of course they love!). We have been able to hear from at least eight different individuals who each have a unique perspective of their homeland. These conversations that Katie and I have had have really been invaluable to us as we strive to get a glimpse of the collective Bolivian heart and soul.

One our teachers “Fritzy” has been walking Katie through home decorating magazines to teach us all the necessary vocabulary as we begin the process of wheeling and dealing at furniture stores and with the merchants at La Cancha. We will be moving into our apartment on the 4th and 5th of March. Our apartment will have four bedrooms and a very nice living, dining, and kitchen area. There will be plenty of room for any visitors that come our way. Fritzy has also been helping us with the decorations because we want to our home to be very Bolivian from the moment you hit the door. We are going to use tocuyo and aguayo which are both Bolivian fabrics for our sofas, pillows and curtains. We have already ordered a bed, living room set, and dining set. We will be working on the appliances this week and later on we will probably find the remaining necessary furniture at a used furniture store near the language school. Although it will take a lot of effort, it will be fun to arrange our home and we think the end result will be very nice.

Three of the other families on the team have also found places to live. The Sandovals will be two floors directly above our apartment. In fact they have already been in their place for a few weeks. The prospect of free childcare so close by was too good to pass up! The Sandoval’s have some neighbors who are from Korea. They attended Maryknoll last year. Kim and Choi have asked if I would be interested in teaching English to their three children. I have agreed to a trial period of one month to see if our schedules will permit it. They seem like a very nice family and Kim was surprised, but very happy when I told her of Katie’s love of Kim Chee (pickled cabbage). Of course they also liked Jubilee’s middle name which just happens to be Song, the last name of our good family friend Hyesung.

Gary and Laura Bull also have chosen an apartment in a great location that is also within walking distance of ours and the Sandoval’s apartment. Josh and Julie Marcum have been blessed to find a lovely house that is probably ten to fifteen minutes away from the rest of us by taxi or trufi (trufis are taxis that run on fixed routes and are cheaper than regular taxis). Drew and Jamie will continue to stay with their Bolivian family until late in the spring.

In other news, the father of our Bolivian family, Fayez, is doing much better. At last posting he was not feeling very well at all. Since that time he has been receiving dialysis and it seems to be helping. There are also many family members who have come to visit with him and encourage him. Thank you all so much for your prayers on his behalf. This time we ask you for prayers for our health. Katie, Jubilee and I have all had viruses, allergies, and colds. Jubilee also appears to be cutting teeth. We have also found out that Katie has an serious infection. She is receiving very good medical care, but it is of course a stressful situation for Katie especially. Thankfully our Bolivian family has many members who are doctors and they steered us towards one of their most trusted family physicians. We ask that you pray for her healing.

Another big news item is Carnaval. The largest celebration is in the city of Oruro, but here in Cochabamba it is also a big deal. The most common way to tell that it is Carnaval time is by observing the throngs of youth who delight in throwing water balloons at each other, young pretty ladies, gringos, and pretty much anyone else. We have quickly learned their hangouts and try to avoid them. Most water balloon launchers are very courteous as they usually avoid senior citizens, babies, and people who are disabled. This means we try to spot those people and walk behind them! Once the official celebration begins there will be a lot of dancing in the streets. Some people save their money all year long so they can buy elaborate costumes and participate in the display. One of the most famous dances is the “Diablada” which is originally a dance from the city of Oruro. Most of the dances are symbolic histories of the mistreatment of the indigenous people during the time of colonization. Other dances are dances of gratitude for a good harvest for example. As we learn more in depth about the traditions and celebrations of the Bolivians we are faced with the challenge of recognizing the richness of the Bolivian heritage while also maintaining the integrity of Biblical teachings. It will indeed be a challenge!

To conclude, we are doing well and we feel so fortunate to have so many people praying for us. Thank you to you all. We are all part of this great effort to preach the good news of Jesus Christ in Cochabamba and beyond.

Love,

La Familia Forbess

Update Jan. 29 2006

2006-01-29T16:51:00.000-04:00

Highlander Highlights
Saludos (greetings) from Cochabamba, City of Eternal Spring. La Familia Forbess is doing wonderful. We are blessed and we thank God for all of you who continually lift us up in prayer. Please continue to do so, God is hearing your petitions and answering!
Today is Sunday and we are having a relaxing day before our worship time at 5:30 this afternoon. Most of our time the past two weeks has been spent with our host families and at the language school. Our host family consists of Elba and Faiz Mustafa, their daughter Noor and her baby Omar Paulo. There are also many others who live close including grandaughter and playmate of Jubilee, who is young Salma. We ask your prayers for Faiz who is the patriarch of the family and is sick in the hospital with kidney problems. We visited him on Friday but were told not to come back without Jubilee :), he is a big fan of hers.
Our language school is going well. We all have four periods a day. Katie and I go during alternating shifts so that Jubilee may stay home most of the day. I go to class from 8:00 to about 11:30 and Katie goes from 11:40 to about 3:30. I have to get up a little earlier but the benefit of my shift is that I get to eat delicious lunches which is the main meal here and Katie must make due with sack lunches. Katie and I are both learning a lot, but for some reason my teachers delight in giving me an excess of homework while they go a little easier on Katie. One of my teachers is Ana Maria and during her class we are doing personal Bible studies and the day after she gives me suggestions and corrections. On the third day I do a sermon about the same topic of our Bible study. Ana Maria also teaches Katie for one period and Drew and Julie during another. Ana Maria is learning a lot about us and more importantly about the Bible. Please pray that God uses all of us to communicate to her about the saving power of Jesus!
Many of the students are also intrigued and asking many questions about what we believe. The majority of students are priests, nuns, and lay missioners of the Catholic church and the opportunity for them to learn about about the church of Christ in a non-confrotational environment is powerful. One of the people I have enjoyed speaking with most is Dario who aspires to be a priest. Dario is one of two men from Slovakia who work with the Divine Word branch of the Catholic Church. (I am still learning about the different parts and orders that are in the Catholic Church.) Another interesting student is a young lady named Maria. She has come to Cochabamba on her own on the recommendation of her grandparents who trained as a priest and a nun at Maryknoll before they married of course. She wants to learn more Spanish and work on her craft of writing while she is here. Maria and Jubilee get along greatly. Another student that loves Jubilee is a nun from Korea, her Spanish name is Rosa and she loves the fact that Jubilee's middle name, Song, is in honor of our good family friend Hyesung Song who is of Korean descent. Rosa knows little Spanish and is trying very hard to learn and I think Jubilee's smile brightens her day a lot.
In other news, Katie and I have found an apartment that we think is going to work out for us. It is spacious and affordable. All fixtures are brand new, in fact the apartment has never been lived in. It is on Avenida Ayucucho which is a main thouroughfare right in the central part of the city. Of course the selling points for Katie were the large inviting bath tubs and the biggie, the fact that the Sandoval's are going to be just two stories above us in the exact same building. We pray that everything will work out for us to live in this apartment. It also has four bedrooms, so there is plenty of room for any one who just happens to be passing through Cochabamba.
The rest of our team mates are also doing well. Nathan and Michaela who are the other babies are transitioning very well. All three babies are people magnets and what parent wouldn't swell upon hearing people exclaim out loud, "que linda wawa, felicidades", (what a beautiful baby, congratulations). Usually in Spanish baby is bebe, but here in Cochabamba people prefer to use the Quechua word which is wawa. The adults are also doing very well. Drew has made a good friend with the son of his host family, Marco. Marco has invited us all to play futbolito with him and his buddies on Thursday nights. I am still trying to run a bit on my own before I attempt it. Butch, Gary and Drew have already played though and enjoyed it thourougly. Jamie also enjoys Marco and his family and especiall practicing her Spanish with Lorena who is about our same age. We are blessed to have Gary, Laura and Nathan at a homestay within 5 minutes of ours. Their family runs a mom and pop neighborhood store which is very convienent for diapers and Coca Cola light which are both staples for the Forbesses. Josh, Julie and Michaela are a little further from us and we haven't been to the house they are staying at but we do get to see them frequently at school and when we come together for worship and Bible study.
I could keep writing, but if you have actually read this far you need a break. Rest your eyes by closing them and saying a little prayer for us. We love you all and keep you close to our hearts and in our prayers as well.
Love,
La Familia Forbess

Forbess Family Updates

2005-12-28T12:07:00.000-04:00

Greetings to all from the lovely city of Hot Springs Village, Arkansas. Katie, Jubilee and I are doing wonderful, praise the Lord! We have had a blessed holiday season as we travel around a 6 state area visiting family, friends, and supporters. Currently we are in Hot Springs Village with Katie's parents. We will have been here for almost two weeks to celebrate the Christmas holiday with Katie's parents (aka Papa and Mimi). Frank and Linda wanted to be Grandpa and Grandmom but Jubilee and her cousin Sofia somehow changed it up. During our time in the Village we also got spend quality time with Katie's sister Lora and her husband Brent.

During the first two weeks of December we stayed with our good friends Lora Beth and Javier Escalante of Aurora, CO. They graciously opened their home to us to serve as a base for visiting our church family of the Highlands Ranch, Evergreen and University congregations. We also spent time visiting with our church family of the Iglesia de Cristo now a part of the Northwest Church of Christ in Westminster, CO. Beside for two days of frigidly cold weather, the days were sunny and moderate. We were encouraged by each group of brothers and sisters whom we visited with in Colorado.

Before visiting Colorado we divided our time between Chillicothe, MO and Rogers, AR. My parents are in Chillicothe and my sisters and grandmother live in Rogers. We also worshiped one Sunday with the church in Hamilton, MO and were uplifted by the bretheren there. Jubilee loved spending time with her Grammi and Pops, her Auntie Darla, Auntie Mandi, Auntie Melissa, Uncle David. Of course Jubilee probably most enjoyed being doted on by her 6 older cousins Sage, Cedar, Ashton, Lily, Ezra and Ellie. Jubilee herself got to ooh and ah over the newest and cutest addition to our clan, little baby Elijah brother to Ezra and Ellie. As you can imagine Thanksgiving was an exciting time with 8 little ones about from ages 2 months to 12 years old.

Before Thanksgiving early in November. Katie, Jubilee, and I visited a very special place for me. We spent time in Dora, NM where I graduated from high school. We stayed with a very special couple, Mickey and Alicia Burkett and were able to worship with the congregation in Dora on Sunday morning and Sunday evening. They generously gave me ample time on Sunday morning to share with them the training that the team was involved in during the past months in Brownwood as well as the team's plans for when we arrive in Cochabamba.

The next stop for the Forbess family is Dallas. We will spend the weekend there to celebrate the New Year's with more of Katie's side of the family with whom we haven't visited yet. Then on Sunday evening we will head back to Brownwood for final preparations. Katie's parents, Frank and Linda, will accompany us back to Brownwood and spend an evening with us there.

Last but not least, please remember that our Set Apart Sunday happens on Sunday, January 8. This is a very special time that the Austin Avenue congregation has put a great deal of thought and planning into. If you are going to be anywhere near Brownwood on the 8th please come to Austin Avenue for Sunday morning worship and be a part of this time of prayer and dedication. Our departure is the following Monday, January 9. We will arrive in Cochabamba on the 10th early in the morning. Please continue to lift our family up in prayer as well as the Custers, Marcums, Bulls and Sandovals.

Love,

La Familia Forbess