July Update

We will be hosting a group from Indiana July 14-20 who will be participating in our Summer M.A.D. program.  This is a week long program of missions, adventure and discipleship.  It is like a mini DTS and gives students an opportunity to experience what it is like to live as a mission at least in Guatemala.
We are also getting ready to receive our next group of students for the 5 month DTS which begins July 28.  We anticipate a full class of 14 from Guatemala, Canada, USA and Switzerland.
Our next DTS will be held on February 16, 2014.
Last month we had 3 groups from MN, PA, TX at the base doing ministry with us.  Each group brought a special focus to the ministries that we conduct each week at the base and in the community.  It was a powerful time of ministry for each one and we are always blessed to have groups like them come in to help us.

May Update

One of the important aspects of ministry is partnering with other ministries to advance God's Kingdom.  During the past 2 months we have been working with Oasis World Ministries based in Minnesota.  Their founder, Tom Elie, has developed an evangelistic tool called the "One Minute Witness" that is very effective in helping people share their faith.  We have assisted him in setting up meetings with pastors and leaders in Guatemala who are very eager to have the training conducted among their churches.  It is exciting to see the excitement of the pastors to evangelize their nation.

We have hosted two group during the past couple of months who came to build homes for families in San Pablo La Laguna who lost their homes in the earthquake last November.  These families do not have the resources to rebuild and were very appreciative of the generosity of the group.  One of the mom's commented, "I do not understand this kind of love that would travel so far to help a family they did not know.

"During the month of May our base will be hosting 5 women from the Kona, Hawaii DTS.  They are from Sweden, Norway, Canada and the USA.  They are working alongside of our ministries in several locations.  We are always eager to receive fellow DTS groups who are on outreach.  We believe we have some great ministries that they can be a part of and we are blessed to have them join us.

We had to say goodbye to two of our staff members, Cooper and Erin Evans as they are returning to the USA to help Cooper's dad take care of the 5 children still at home in the family.  Cooper's mom died unexpectantly from complications of Dengue fever while they were recently serving in the Dominican Republic.  This has left a huge weight on his dad's shoulders and their return will be a great help to him.  We will miss them but know that God has everything in his control.

We have a new staff member, Dessie, who graduated from our last DTS.  Dessie is not a teenager, she is retired and is the oldest student we have ever had attend a DTS and our oldest staff member.  She loves the Lord and we are happy to have her on board to help us with our ministries.

Our DTS class is filling up and we will soon reach our capacity for this year!  We thank God for the increase in interest and look forward to our next group of students.  It will be a bilingual DTS Spanish/English.

February Update

Since our return from India we have been busy with our normal ministries and have added several new ministries that our new staff have started.  Speaking of new staff, we have three new members to our team: Cooper and Erin Evans, Aaron Musch.  They joined us in January of this year and are busy learning Spanish and working in our ministries.

 The new ministries we have started are: men's study group at the Refuge Coffee house-they are studying "Wild at Heart".  ESL ministry with a local school.
Girls sewing classes at the base; ministry to special needs children at a school in a nearby town.
In January we hosted a small group from Minnesota who were involved in several projects that included: donating wheelchairs to families, construction of a home for a family that lost their's in the earthquake in November, installing 4 stoves to families living in poverty  and conducting a one day medical clinic at our base.
Recently the Backpackers DTS from YWAM Costa Rica stayed with us a couple of nights as they finished their 2 month outreach.
We have teams coming for outreach at the end of March until the middle of July so it will be a busy time at the base.
We are taking enrollment for our next Compassion DTS which begins on July 28, 2013 and look forward to another great class of students.

India Update

Since being back in Chennai we spent a whole week strictly on children’s ministries. November is dedicated to children here in India so it was a really fun time for the group to interact with the children. Our group has been given the chance to plan out our own services for the kids each day so it was good to work together and be as creative as possible with all the kids we've ministered to. It seemed that each day that passed the children who were present grew and grew. By Sunday we were privileged to do a children’s ministry for over 400 kids. The kids were having fun dancing, getting to know us and participating in our dramas. Good times were had. This past week we got to focus on open air preaching with a few villages around the outskirts of Chennai. Students got to preach, share testimonies and lead people to salvation. We fell in love with the village ministry, beautiful setting, simple way of life and the people are very receptive to listen to us and that’s an encouragement. On Thursday the base who is hosting our group honored our Thanksgiving holiday and worked very hard to make us feel at home. The food was wonderful and our hearts were very thankful to each and every person who was involved in making this a reality. We are very blessed to be living with such great people. Yesterday we worked with a church for a healing service. During the day part of our group went into town to hand out invitations and the other group stayed behind interceding for the people we’d minister to, the group, key speakers and other issued that were laid on our hearts. Towards the evening we performed dramas for the people, a student shared his testimony and our director Bruce was the main speaker. We also had the chance to pray for people at the end for healing. The pastor was very thankful for our help and his wife spent the majority of the day cooking us lunch and dinner. The hospitality was tremendous. Again, this would not be possible without all of our supporters. This Thanksgiving always gives us a reminder on what to be thankful for. Each of us here want to thank all the people who've given from their own pockets, have been interceding with us and reading the blog and staying connected. It’s awesome how much is being done here and we are thankful you are walking along with us in this journey. We encourage all the prayers we can get! Also if you feel led to give financially please send to:

YWAM Chico

15850 Richardson Springs Road

Chico, CA 95973

India Outreach weeks 2 and 3

            It’s been a great time so far in India. It was awesome to see a different side of India and get an experience of what it’s like here overall. After leaving the Chennai base we traveled up to Andra Pradesh to partner with Oasis ministries and an old teacher of ours, Darrell Dobbelmann. With Darrell, we got to be a part of a few healing crusades. All of our students were able to be stretched by leading dramas and praying for people. It was overwhelming! Several thousand people attended. Afterwards we got to see what it was like to get 15 minutes of fame. People surrounded us to get pictures, autographs, and lots of prayer. It was awesome to be able to minister to them. On our way from the festival to Anantapur we stopped to dedicate 3 fresh water wells in 3 different communities.  These wells will each serve about 50 families with clear, clean water.  We also got to serve with different churches in the area by leading lessons. We got to perform dramas, share testimonies and preach from our hearts. It was a time of growing. The team was able to step out of their comfort zones and step up in front of crowds of people and share from the heart. Living conditions were definitely a blessing. We got to stay at hotels that had comfortable beds, A/C and flushing toilets. It was a pleasant stay. The people who hosted us really gave us a new meaning on the definition of hospitality. They went above and beyond welcoming us, always feeding us, and making us feel loved as if each and every moment were an intimate celebration of their own; lots of wonderful memories being made. After 12 days and an 8 hour train ride home we are back at the Chennai base. It was great reuniting with old friends and seeing what God has for us in the remaining four weeks. Carissa we miss you and thinking of you! See you soon! To everyone else thank you for all your support whether financial or by prayer. Please continue supporting us by prayer. Specifically for our leaders Bruce and Kalissa for strength and endurance; the team by really being used by God and that we continue to move forward regardless of fatigue and other issues. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts. If you feel led to send a donation for our mission please send a check to:

YWAM Chico

15850 Richardson Springs Road

Chico, CA 95973

India Adventure

We will be posting weekly updates and photos of our outreach to India.

Arrival

After much excitement and wanderlust we have finally arrived safe and sound in India! We landed around 3:30 in the morning from our layover in London and everyone was trying to take in as much details of the sound and environment as possible. After retrieving our bags we met some of the staff members from the Chennai base who treated us like one of their own and graciously helped out by doing the heavy lifting of the bags into the van. The Chennai base is very beautiful with a breathtaking view of the beach. Although it has been very hot and we've all experienced jet lag, it’s amazing to see how the group has come together and really pushed through  difficulties. We have gone out into the community to do open air preaching and share our dramas and testimonies. The people here are so receptive. When it came time for prayer people we did not even think were paying attention came to be prayed for. It was overwhelming at first but God was in control of the situation and it was wonderful to see Him move through the people. Just recently we did a similar outreach at a local church where we sang, performed our dramas, shared the Word, and loved on the people. It’s been a great experience so far and it hasn't even been two weeks! There is still so much to be done and we are excited to see what is to unfold in the next two months. We want to thank everyone for their support, whether it is spiritual or financial. You guys are as much part of this situation as we and we are so grateful to have you on our team. Please continue to keep us in your prayers; mainly for rest, safety and listening ears wherever we go. If you would like to donate money please send it out to:

YWAM Chico

15850 Richardson Springs Road

Chico, CA 95973

Please make your check payable to YWAM Antigua with a note attached indicating it is for the DTS Outreach

Thank you for reading and please check back to this site in the coming weeks!

October Update

We are moving quickly toward the end of the DTS lecture phase and have some great classes coming up as we finish the 12 weeks in Guatemala.  God has blessed us with some wonderful students and teachers who have come from other countries to share their lives.  The students are busy with all of the classroom activities as well as preparing dramas and children's ministry for our outreach to India.  We have purchased our ticket and we will be leaving on October 21 for Chennai.  The YWAM Beachcenter will be hosting us for the majority of the time but we will also be linking with Oasis World Ministries based in Minnesota.  We will be working alongside of the "Gospel and Healing Festival" that will be conducted in Northern Andra Pradesh.  We will be visiting local communities to share the gospel and we will also be helping with the evening crusades in which thousands of people come to hear the gospel.  Many receive miraculous healing and deliverance from demons during the services.  We are excited to partner with the ministries God has linked us with for the outreach.  Please keep our team of 11 in prayer as we venture into new territory.  Several of our students need financial assistance and if you would like to make a donation it would be greatly appreciated and go toward a very worthwhile cause.  Donations can be made out to "YWAM Antigua" and sent to the following address:
YWAM Chico
15850 Richardson Springs Rd
Chico, CA 95973

We have two new staff members who joined us in September, Cooper and Erin Evans.  They are recent newlyweds and met in last year's DTS.  We are blessed to have them on staff and pray that God will use them in a powerful way.  They will be studying Spanish for a couple of months before beginning ministry with us.

The Motorcycle DTS will begin February 17 with the classroom phase conducted at our base and the outreach will be in the United States.  Please help us spread the word!!!

Eder and Carolina are on staff with us and on August 28 Carolina gave birth to Samantha.  They are doing well and will be joining us shortly.  We are all excited to have a baby in the house!