Iguazu Falls is worth traveling 6,000 miles to see. I took a short video for you to enjoy. Click on this link https://vimeo.com/77452532 and it should show up. You may have to wait a minute or two for it to download, but it is only about 30 seconds long.
Thanks for being a part of our prayer
backing for this "Spiritual Retreat". God answered. I did not lose my voice. Since I must translate for Dan… I have to minister alongside him each time. If I count the four ten minute TV programs as one time of ministry…
then this past weekend I have ministered eight times... as you will see in the
details below:
All went wonderfully well over the
weekend. Thursday afternoon I took my nephew and his wife, Dan and Nancy Hiatt to the falls and had
time to walk the upper hike which takes you along above the falls on walkways
just at the edge of the great drop off. It was a beautiful afternoon and
the sight was striking as always. On Friday morning we hiked down below
the falls and then Dan and Nancy took the boat ride right up under the falls,
getting totally drenched. We hiked for several hours below the falls and
then took the little train to the area above the falls where we could hike on a
elevated walkway about a half mile out to the very edge of the famous Devil’s
Throat.
We enjoyed a great day at this marvelous
creation of God then headed for the city of Eldorado (one hour’s travel)
where we installed ourselves in two nice motel cabins in a place called “Las
Vertientes” meaning the “The Springs”. Little streams of fresh water flow
down near the cabins.
Now it was 6:30 PM, and Pastor Raul Micheloud took us to the
TV station to record four 10 minute programs… interviewing
me. At 8 PM we went to the church to meet with the entire team of some 30
volunteers of all ages that had been working for weeks in preparation for this "Spiritual Retreat" to start on Saturday. Friday night they would be
maintaining an all night prayer vigil by taking turns. The pastor, himself
would take the two slots from 2 AM to 4 AM, since this is his regular time to
meet with God anyway. He asked me to minister to this group of over 30 dedicated
people. It was a humbling experience.
It seemed to me that this
team of workers along with the pastor were putting more into this retreat than
we were. And they were doing it for us! I talked about how even Jesus Himself had sought the support of His
disciples, Peter, James and John… in His most trying hour… in Gethsemane.
And gave other references of similar situations showing how we need one
another’s support. What a team! It even included at least two 11
year old girls… who are ardently dedicated to Jesus.
So Friday night we were pretty much
wiped out after hiking up and down hundreds of steep steps and through the
beautiful jungle trails, followed by an hour’s drive, four TV interviews and a
message to the workers.
Saturday we were up early to get set up for the
retreat. At 8:30 AM people were already arriving from many miles away. I presented Dan and Nancy to the Argentine congregation made up of leadership from over 20 churches. Dan did
a great job teaching on the importance of maintaining intimacy with Jesus… two
hours, 9 to 11 AM much encouragement and with many practical tips.
Then Pastor Raul had an hour session followed by the
entire group of about 200 people on their faces seeking God for most of another
hour. Dan and Nancy joined in praying with the people.
At 1 PM we broke for lunch. A lady
had donated about 150 large chicken thighs each attached to its
drumstick. Men grilled them outdoors and they were absolutely delicious
along with potatoes and several types of salads… and ice cream for dessert… and
then a rest time.
At 4 PM we reconvened for a final hour session with Dan
(of course with me translating). This continued until 6:30 PM. I was scheduled to preach in less than an hour at the Saturday 7 PM service.
I talked them into starting at 7:30… to give everyone a little break... especially me.
Many of the retreat people had Saturday
night services in their home churches and had to leave. But we enjoyed a
powerful move of the Lord Saturday night. After praying with many people,
we returned to our cabins after midnight.
Sunday at 6 AM I was up again
ready to take Dan and Nancy to Pastor Raul’s other church in a city called
Puerto Esperanza… about one hour’s distance away. Here I ministered again
and we had a wonderful time with several new people, one was a nice large
family of six people there for the first time, that all came to the Lord.
Then we had a rest after a nice lunch at Pastor Raul’s house. Check out this home made wood burning oven.
That night (last night) Dan preached and
of course I translated. Again we enjoyed a blessed and very powerful move
of God and the prayer time extended until nearly midnight. We hugged
everybody and wept… then picked up our stuff and at midnight stopped to eat a
sandwich before retiring. When I got back to the cabin I had to handle
some important email and didn’t get to bed until 2 AM. But I slept well
and awoke this morning (Monday) refreshed at 7 AM as usual with no alarm.
Today Dan and Nancy wanted to see the
town. So I drove them to the center and dropped them off. Moments
later a huge thunderstorm let loose with lots of rain, hail and the road
literally became a torrent. I parked under a tree for a few minutes
during the hail storm, since it is common here to have hailstones large enough
to damage a car with huge dents. It was powerful, but the hailstones were
only the size of marbles and no damage was done.
It is lunch time again. The rain has let up, but it is still cloudy. I don’t
know where Dan and Nancy are. They are going to walk back the 5 miles back to our cabins. Oh, here they are.
We have services scheduled every night
of this week except tonight in different cities… so I may not have time to
blog. We will see.
Keep praying for me. I really need God's miracle power to keep my voice going.
Ralph
