We returned from Venezuela on Monday afternoon. We were there for a week. I was assigned to work in El Vigia, near Merida. El Vigia is about the size of Kingsport. In El Vigia we had a team of six other Americans and myself. Matt Dykes and Richard Hanks were on a team in Merida. Merida is in the Andes Mountains and is a very comfortable climate.
Our team stayed in four different homes in El Vigia, where it was very hot and no air conditioning. On our team were two couples from San Angelo, TX and two female students from Texas A&M University. We had two interpreters, so most of the time we split into two teams. One of the interpreters was the local pastor's daughter and the other was an English teacher from a local university.
I stayed in the home of Pastor Cesar Leal ; he is the pastor of Christian Community, a local Baptist church. He also owned and operated a Christian radio station, that has Christian programming and music. The church has four missions, Pastor Leal is hoping the missions will grow and become Baptist churches .One mission has already become a church.
On Monday , we visited homes in a gated community. Most people were busy during the day and we had little success. In the evening we had a worship service in the yard of a resident, we had music, singing and preaching. At the end of the service 5 people came forward to be come new Christians.
On Tuesday, we rode a bus 8 miles to a mission community called To-Bar. We split into 2 groups and visited homes, we explained the plan of salvation to anyone who would talk with us. I gave the message at 5 pm in the yard of a local Christian. At the end of the day we counted 24 people who had prayed with us to become a Christian.
On Wednesday we traveled to Merida to do some shopping and see the Andes Mts. We traveled through the world's longest tunnel, built in the 1900's taking 27 years to complete.
On Wednesday night we came back to El Vigia and attended Pastor Leal's church. After church, on the request of a young man, we went to the home of his parents and talked with them about salvation and they prayed to become Christians.
On Thursday we traveled about 20 miles to another mission in the community of El Pinar. For several hours we visited homes and after returning to the mission we counted 24 people who had prayed to become a Christian. Later we ate together and attended worship service held by Pastor Leal.
On Friday we visited in the community near Pastor Leal's home. We did not have much success that day That afternoon we each gave our testimony on the Christian radio station The pastor's daughter was our interpreter. That evening a pastor from a church just outside of town came by requesting that we visit 2 families near his church. The interpreter, the college students and myself went and witnessed to the families. Three in one family and ten in another family prayed to become believers in Jesus Christ.
On Saturday about 50 people rode a bus to the city of Santa Cruz. We had a Celebration picnic. The interpreter and I talked with the bus driver and he prayed to become a Christian. We gave away 3 boxes of Bibles ( paid for by our church) to the new Christians.
Our team in El Vigia, counted 65 conversions for the week. A smaller group of Americans worked with a church on the other side of town and they reported 31 conversions.
We didn't do anything that every church member should be able to do, tell others about Jesus.
To God be the Glory
Charles Harris, Kingsport, Tennessee
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