Heinz Updates

June 15, 2008 - Recent Ministry Pics

Prison

I preached the first full-length message in the prison on Saturday, and had our first discipleship class with Job and Ricardo. All went well, and they even let me out afterwards! One of the men in the prison fairly impressed me. Job said that Reubén Córdova is the leader of the Christians that are in lock up. He was given the opportunity to be moved to a better section of the prison because of his good behavior, but he decided to stay in lock-up. He said that he believed the Lord wanted him to stay in there and reach men for Christ! What a testimony! Would you be willing to give up your freedom like that for ministry? Please continue to pray. The truth is most of these men have a very Pentecostal view of services and ministry, even though they have been very clear about salvation so far.

Visitors

On Sunday, Hector Sandoval visited us again, bringing with him a family from the rural area that he met while working. The father and four of the ten kids came out. His name is Juan. I didn’t catch the last name. It took them forty minutes to get from their house to church, which for them is like visiting a foreign country. I don’t know when they might be back, but we may be able to visit them where they live. Also, the two young girls that visited us last Sunday were back.

Mom

My mom was admitted to the hospital Saturday with bronchitis. She already has emphysema, so she is now on oxygen. She may be released tomorrow. Please pray for her. My brother has been visiting her in the hospital in Landsdale.

Sickies

A few of us are nursing stuffy noses and coughs. The weather has been up and down with cold and wet to cold and sunny. All mornings are damp with mist, even when the sun comes out later. We have to breathe a good bit of wood smoke from time to time. I’m sure that doesn’t help either. Thank you for your prayers for health.

Father's Day Banquet

We had a good group of men out for the Father's Day Banquet. Two of Esteban's neighbors (Ivan and Patricio) and their boys (Jorge and Maphew [Sorry, don't know what that kid's name is yet. I could have sworn it was Matthew, but they corrected me. How you see it is how I heard it. Now I don't know what it was! :]) came out. Roberto's dad and brother came out also. We thank the ladies for the good cooking and, we thank the Lord for being able to get the gospel to these visiting men. We will be praying for them to come back again too. 

Donald Heinz

June 11, 2008

Praise the Lord! The truckers strike ended over the weekend. Things got back to normal pretty quick. However, the students continue to strike, and now the Bus drivers are going to start a strike on Monday. They saw that the truckers got what they wanted, so they are going to try it too! We’ll see what happens. Fuel is certainly still expensive, but the exchange rate went up to 489.

Saturday we were able to get out 200 more invitations to church in between raindrops. On Sunday we had two visitors. They were two young girls from down the street, ages 9 and 11. That was the first time I had seen that. They stayed through the whole regular service and paid attention! I kept thinking their parents had sent them ahead and that they would walk in the door at any minute. They never did. Well, they got to hear preaching, amen.

Yesterday we visited with Patricio again. He promised to come with his son Friday to the Father’s banquet. Esteban also has another neighbor coming named Ivan. If Gabriel and Roberto’s dads come we will have fourteen. It’s at 8pm Friday.

Nathan got off fine on Monday and had no trouble with his connections to Huntsville. He has had a great first week with his grandparents. He even got to meet a few of his relatives on my wife’s side that he has never met, because my wife’s father’s brother got married after many years as a widower. The wedding was in Illinois, so Nathan got to familiarize himself with the US landscape again. This week he will be getting right into his flying lessons and trying to get his drivers license.

Donald Heinz

June 6, 2008

Nathan arrived today in the United States without any problems at all. We talked at different times during his trip, and he was even able to call from the airport in Dallas to let us know that he had no snags getting through customs. He even figured out how to use a payphone to call our Pennsylvania Vonage number from Dallas. We’re very thankful for the good hand of his God upon him in making this trip.

Sunday we had another visiting family. This time it was the current owner of our church building. She brought her three boys. We are thankful for their visit.

Father’s day is around the corner. We are planning a Dad’s dinner on the Friday the 13th. Please pray for Gabriel and Roberto’s dads and Patricio that they would come out and be touched by the preaching of the Word.

I was able to get into the prison today. Ricardo wasn’t ready for the study though, because the prisoners were having a service. There were about 30-40 prisoners present. One of them was preaching when I was ushered in to sit with Ricardo. At the end, they asked me to introduce myself and say a few words. Now, you know that preachers don’t ever say just a few words!  Anyway, I shared my salvation testimony so that they would get to know me. The organizer and prisoner responsible for the meeting, Henrique Ortiz, said that he can get permission for me to be there every Saturday. He also said that they needed a pastor to take control of the meetings and guide them in their study of the Word. I am honored and interested in doing so. However, I know that the vast majority of the Christians in there are Pentecostal. Please pray for wisdom for me as we see where this open door will lead. Henrique will be sending a letter to the warden to get me in on Saturdays from 1 to 4pm. Incidentally, the message was a fairly clear salvation message.

We also distributed about 200 more invitations to the church in Labranza. Please pray for visitors. Also, I was able to find a part in the States to fix our color laser printer to brighten things up. Please pray that gets here safely and quickly. Nelson was the fellow that visited two weeks back, he has not come back yet.

Donald Heinz
Missionary to Chile

May 14, 2008 - Recent Ministry Pics

This update contains a few pictures of the progress on the building. The follow-up will also have a couple more of the building itself and the Mother's Day banquet.

We have been able to clear set the steel beam in the first floor store front. This enabled us to open it up and fit three benches across. The painting is done there as well. All we need to do in the meeting room is glue the carpet down. We may level out some rough spots too. We are meeting there. This weekend was the second Sunday service in there. We may have to put in a sound barrier for the neighbors on one side. We shall see! The alternative is that they come to church and get saved right!? :)

Friday night we had a Mother's Day banquet of mothers and daughters. The moms without daughters were invited too. It went well, and despite late planning, everything when well. We had four or five visiting ladies. Please pray especially for Cristine. She is Adriana neighbor and the wife of Patricio, who did the welding on the steel beam. She seems to be very interested in coming to church now. She made some comments about being surprised that the people were so down to earth at the church. She thought it would be very different. I don't know all that she meant, but we're glad that she feels comfortable coming out.

This week we will be trying to get back to the more important aspects of ministry, discipleship, visiting, and Bible studies. Please pray that God will give us new fruitful contacts in our new neighborhood. Also, please pray that we can get our printer fixed to be able to print letter invitations for our neighbors.

Berta Gallegos is out of the hospital and at home in the country. We are hoping to get out there to visit them and preach the gospel again to them.
Also, we are hoping to get to visit the warden at the prision where Ricardo is, and try to get a Saturday study going. Lord willing we will be able to get to visit a few students in Pitrufquen this week, and restart the study in Nueva Imperial. There are many opportunities, and time is short. Please pray.

Donald Heinz
Missionary to Chile

May 5, 2008

Well, its been  a little while since our last update. We've been busy gettting the new church building in condition for services. Also, our modem was down for a couple of days.

The first news is that our van is now legal. Last Monday I had all the right paperwork to file with the department of transit. The final complication was that for being out of date I had to pay the whole year at one shot at over $300. Ouch.

The building is taking shape. The auditorium looks good. We will glue the carpet down and finish some  details. This coming weekend we will be getting out an invitation to the community letting know of the new location.

Things fell through with the Bible study in Nueva Imperial. Ricardo's son convinced them that it would be a bad testimony to have a study in their house with people knowing that he is in jail. Of course, the son claims to be saved and is not doing anything for the spiritual welfare of his family. Please pray they will reconsider. Also, pray for an "open door" in the jail! Not so Ricardo can get out, though that would be nice too, but that we can do a study there.

Finally, please pray for Esteban Ibañez. He is blind in one eye and does not see very well out of the other. He was a watchman and now cannot find work in this job that he has training for. Also, he finds it nearly impossible and dangerous to have any work that keeps him until dark. At that point he can't get to the bus very safely to get home. His wife Adriana is considering working insome form. Please pray for wisdom for them and God's supply.

The value of the dollar has risen a little bit here. It had dropped to 419. Now its up around 455. That will help a bit.

Thank you much for your many prayers for us. May God hear and bless here, and also there.

The Heinzes