Tragedy in Cochabamba

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!

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!!

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!

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

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

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!

(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!