SEARCHING FOR THE GIFTS

Change always comes bearing gifts. - Price Pritchett

Our kids are ready to search for gifts!

What a season of change we are in! The Alliance Academy International (AAI) has been facing a whirlwind of staffing changes, curriculum changes, structural changes and calendar changes. We eagerly invite your prayers as we strive for good relationships and favor with government agencies. Our hope is to be an example of excellence in education, particularly in the area of special needs education, which is not part of the national curriculum here. A sizeable portion of our students receive these important services.

Though curriculum changes are a ton of work, and though it hurts to say goodbye to departing staff friends, and though it stretches us to contemplate a much longer school year, we are looking for the gifts that come with change.

We aim for updated curriculum to be stronger than ever. We hope that new staff recruiting methods will result in more long-term commitments from teachers and a more stable community. We anticipate that a longer school year will provide more moments for building into the lives of young people.

Another gift (and big responsibility) in this season is Beth's recent election to the AAI school board. Please keep her and the board in prayer as they navigate changes ahead. Thanks!

DAVE'S DOINGS

Just as a drive through the beautiful Andes mountains is filled with peaks and valleys, emotionally this year in Ecuador has been a rollercoaster. Dave has been taken into the confidence of students struggling with relationships with parents and peers, with intense questioning, suicidal thoughts, self-injury and depression.

Dave with World Religions students
ready to present on the Amish

In a very mobile international school like AAI, we don't always get to see healing happen before students leave. That makes us value the lift that comes from the emotional "peaks" even more, such as Dave's recent induction into the AAI Teachers' Hall of Fame, based on votes from students and faculty.

Holding the Hall of Fame statue

Dave also cherishes students' moments of deep engagement in class or when a young person has the confidence to share their soul, knowing they will be heard. Your prayers and support are key to keeping us going through the highs and lows and we send out a huge THANK YOU!

CHOCOLATE, COFFEE, AND BANANA CHIPS

Come visit and eat with us,
just like Beth's weekly moms' group (above) does.
We've got lots of practice!

It's been two years since the family traveled to the U.S., so we're packing our bags with the finest Ecuadorian chocolate, coffee, and banana chips to share with all of you when we arrive in the States this summer.

We will be at Hope Christian Church in Shoreview, MN on July 7 and August 5; at Palos Bible Church in Palos Heights, IL on July 14; and at Trinity Vineyard in St. Charles, IL on July 21 and 28. We'll be looking for friends to spend time with during the week, too, so please give us a call at 1-651-447-6147 (rings to our computer) or drop us a line at thesaavedras[at]gmail[dot]com and we'll plan a get together. We look forward to seeing everyone soon!

BONUS LAUGHS!

You know you're raising missionary kids when...

• a friend comes to play bringing a bag of imported goodies and you have to explain to your kids that the little "donuts" are actually called "Cheerios".
• your foreign-born daughter gets asked what month she was born in and she shouts, "Ecuador!"
• shorts are always a reasonable option for wearing to school.
• one of the first questions your kids ask when you announce guests is "English or Spanish?"

And extra bonus laughs for this send-up video featuring the AAI staff. Dave appears at 1:53.

A LOVE WITHOUT END, AMEN.

And he said, "“Let me tell you a secret about a father's love,
A secret that my daddy said was just between us."
He said, "“Daddies don't just love their children every now and then.
It's a love without end, amen, it's a love without end, amen."  

- sung by George Strait

Even if you're not a country music fan, this song is worth a listen (the last verse, especially, is a kicker). I've been humming this song and thinking about the kids that Dave works with at the Alliance Academy (AAI). Sadly, many of them don’t experience a “love without end” from their fathers. Many students feel their parents’ love for them is based on how well they perform in school or what successes they have in extracurricular activities. One student’s parents said their number one goal for her is that she get a job that makes a lot of money, because someday when they are gone, “Money will be your mother and father.”

        Recently, a number of students have said to Dave that he is like a father to them. 

Notes of appreciation Dave received from 
students after a recent chapel.

While it is a joy and privilege to walk alongside teens in a mentoring role, we know our time in the lives of these young people is limited, as they prepare to head into the world. More than anything, we want them to know the “love without end, amen” that comes from Father God. Human love will fail us, but God’s love never does.

        Our heart is also to see relationships between parents and children restored. A student who just finished Dave’s Prison Epistles class (in which they studied a theology of family) said he no longer feels estranged from his father and that their relationship has improved greatly this semester. He even brought his dad along to play soccer at a family day event at school. 

        Would you please pray with us that the students at the AAI would experience the sense of belovedness that comes from knowing the love of Father God for us? We want to see them transformed (and then go on to transform the world!) by the divine love that goes on without end. 

Dave is blessed with a great relationship

 with his own father, Américo, who lives just blocks 

away from us. 

        From the maternal side, I have a number of great upcoming opportunities to teach and encourage moms and daughters. In March, I will be sharing about God-centered self-worth with Entre Nosotras, our school's group for moms. Later, I get to help out with "Handmade", a three day retreat for high school girls. My hope is to spark dialogue and generate questions about where we get our ideas of feminine identity. Finally, in April, I've been invited to speak to the high school girls on the topic on healthy sexuality. Should be lively! 

        Thank you again, so much, for the honor of journeying along with us. We are so grateful for your prayers and support. Please keep in touch!

Peace to you,

Beth (for Dave and the whole family)

  

LOVE CAME DOWN AT CHRISTMAS

I can no other answer make 

but thanks and ever thanks.          

 —Shakespeare

Where there is great love, 

there are always miracles.               

—Willa Cather

Thank you for being part of our lives in 2012. 

Merry Christmas and Feliz Navidad from Ecuador!

With prayers for great thanksgiving 

and great love in your lives in 2013,

     Love,  

Dave & Beth, 

Levi, Luke, Aaron & Evangeline Saavedra

P.S. They say a picture is worth a thousand words, 

so here's the equivalent of ten thousand words about our lives in 2012!

P.P.S. 

A computer crash delayed our sending out the link for this post.

We're working on a different communication system for 2013, 

so we don't run into this problem again.

Thanks for your patience - and we look forward to staying in touch in 2013!

GIVING IT AWAY

        One of the gifts (and challenges) of living in Ecuador is that we are seen by many as “rich North Americans.” In a country where minimum wage is under $2/hour, there’s a lot of truth to that perspective. We have a wealth of opportunities and resources simply by virtue of our passports! When we are frequently asked for financial help, we want to be thankful for the reminder of the abundance in our lives, even as we look to wisely share what we have.  

Photo: Duane Birkey

        Each month we budget for benevolence opportunities and it is YOUR generosity that frees us to give. We thought you might enjoy hearing how your donations have blessed others recently:

• Paid a month’s rent for a single mom between jobs (she’s got a new job now!).
• Covered some test fees for an AAI alumna applying to U.S. colleges (she won scholarships and is now studying in Chicago).
• Helped with repair costs on another missionary’s car.
• Made a loan for a street vendor to buy a heavy-duty umbrella like the ones pictured above (she’s paying us back in flowers!).
• Purchased a new school uniform for a needy boy.
• Bought groceries for our church's food pantry.

        All of these gifts have occurred in the context of relationship—our relationship with the people God has put in our path, and YOUR relationship partnering with us financially through HCJB Global. It is such a joy to be able to pass on blessings to others and we want you to know that your donations to our work with HCJB have a long reach. Thank you for your trust in our stewardship!

RECENT HAPPENINGS (IN PICTURES!)

Summer School: The rowdy crowd Beth led music
and chapels for this summer (in our elementary atrium)

First Day of Class: It's not just new glasses making
Dave look more scholarly; this year he's an adjunct
professor with Northwestern College, teaching
"Life of Christ" as dual enrollment for the AAI high
school students who want college credit.

Entre Nosotras: The kick-off for our moms' group at
school. Pray for Beth as she continues teaching in
Spanish. She's excited for this year's theme of receiving
God's love in order to give God's love.

With grateful hearts,

Dave & Beth and kids

BUDDHISM, COMMUNISM, ATHEISM, AGNOSTICISM, WITCHCRAFT, AND CHRISTIANITY?

Dave with some 2012 grads from the AAI

What do Buddhism, communism, atheism, agnosticism, witchcraft and Christianity have in common? They are all worldviews embraced by the students in my (Dave's) Bible classes this year. Yep, you heard me right! I have the challenge and tremendous blessing to work with teens who are convinced either that Jesus never lived, that Buddhism is the only reasonable religion, that faith in a Divine Being is the source of the world's greatest evil, that witchcraft can heal a wounded soul, or that knowledge of absolute truth is impossible. I love my job! Seriously, what other job can have you discussing historical evidence for the person of Jesus at 8a.m., debating the philosophical foundations for absolute truth at 10a.m., praying with a hungry group of Christ followers at lunch, and hearing the confessions of a practicing witch after school? This is our new current reality at the Alliance Academy International (AAI). Please pray for continued Holy Spirit-given wisdom to love these students well! I believe that Jesus was on to something: by our love (which can mean listening to an eighteen-year-old atheist rant and rave about the hypocrisy of Christians) people will know us to be disciples of Jesus.   

Lina, our own 2027 grad of the AAI? 

 INTERCESSORS UPDATE

In short, the Intercessors CSO (Christian Service Outreach) went very well. Thank you to all who prayed for this new ministry! It has been a great experience to challenge, encourage and equip students to be prayer warriors. 

The Intercessors show off their team T-shirts

For many of the students, prayer became a more natural expression of their faith. This was most clearly demonstrated when the students were given the task of planning and executing a fifty minute chapel service dedicated to the theme of prayer. When I first challenged them with this task, they couldn't believe I would entrust a whole chapel service to them. To their own amazement, the service was very well received. Each student shared a mini-lesson on a different kind of prayer. Once the teaching was done, each student oversaw a different prayer station. For the next 35 minutes, students moved around the chapel engaging in a variety of kinds of prayer. I was so proud of my students for stepping out of their comfort zones. Some students commented that this was the best chapel all year. Others insisted that this kind of student-led chapel should happen more often. 

Intercessors now has a core group of student leaders who have tasted and seen the power of God through prayer. This ministry will start its second year with a lot of momentum. How encouraging to see these young men and women respond to the Holy Spirit's work in prayer! 

Students at prayer during chapel

WHY BETH IS LIKE A HOT DOG

A friend recently said being a missionary is a little like a hot dog. Everyone knows what a hot dog is, but we're a little unclear about what all goes into it. Dave's work as a Bible teachers is kind of like an all-beef wiener... we can pretty much picture the ingredients. But Beth? More like a mystery-meat frankfurter. There's a neat freedom in being able to fill up my time with a variety of ingredients, and I'd like to share some of the joys of the mix of my life recently.

Some of the main ingredients in my hot dog:
Levi, Dave and Luke on the slopes of
the volcano Cotopaxi

In January, I taught four classes of moms from the Alliance Academy International about sharing the gospel with our kids. What a thrill to see the lights go on as we discussed that the gospel is bigger than just saying a prayer for salvation; it means the power of the kingdom of God has entered history to renew the world! I've got four more classes coming up in April (topic: praying for our kids) and am planning some informal gatherings for moms who want more.

Beth (middle of top row) with the smallest of the four classes
that meet for Entre Nosotras (Between Us Ladies)

A favorite ingredient in my life is Wednesday morning moms' playgroup. Anywhere from four to eight moms regularly gather at our house to share lives while the kids romp. One mom told me, "There's no place else like this group, where everyone understands what it means to be a cross-cultural family, to deal with the family dynamics, the paperwork... Wednesday is my favorite day of the week!" I agree!

All these playgroup moms are blessed (and challenged)
to be in cross-cultural marriages

Music is another key part of the hot dog of my life. I fill in directing music at our church from time to time and recently had the honor of playing in a special prayer meeting for "Freedom Sunday" to raise awareness about human trafficking. This issue is very real in Quito and I invite you to join me in making it a focus of prayers and action.

Playing with an amazing Ecuadorian violinist, who
also happens to be one of Dave's students at school

Finally, there's a dash of this and that to spice life up: lots of hosting, some mentoring, some work in the school nurse's office, and some communication with friends like you... who I hope now have a better picture of what goes into this busy Ecuadorian hot dog!

PLEASE PRAY WITH US!


We need YOU to stand with us in prayer about the following issues:

• The government is moving to increase control over private schools like ours, which may affect our ability to teach Bible as we do now. Meetings and paperwork are still in process.
• Spiritual Emphasis Week just wrapped up at school, with some of the strongest chapel speakers we've seen. There were good responses from many students; now the task is to have good follow-up from staff. 
• Dave continues to mentor a number of young men, several of whom are not believers. He desires wisdom and insight for navigating these relationships. 
• Dear missionary friends here are on a rescue mission to provide a home for 60 orphans. Many obstacles remain before they can take guardianship of these needy kids. Read more here about how to help them out. 
• The Latin American Region (LAR) or our mission is in a time of seeking and prayer for the future. As HCJB Global shifts to focus more on unreached people groups, we need to determine what this means for LAR, a largely evangelized area. Some of our fellow missionaries are relocating to other regions, others are focusing on training Latin American nationals for mission work among unreached peoples. 

The powerful Creator of this volcano is also
powerful to answer our prayers!

JOIN THE TEAM!

It's simple to partner with our work with HCJB Global. Check out how below or on the side bar. And thank you!

Aaron enjoys a volcano of a different kind: cake!

Evangeline is blessed to be part of
a community of people like you!

DEAR FRIENDS,

Thank you for journeying alongside the Saavedra family throughout 2011, blessing our work with HCJB Global and the Alliance Academy International (AAI) with your prayers and financial support. Your partnership makes possible the following encouraging stories:

Thumbs up from Luke

1.    As part of their study about missionary work, Dave assigns the students in his Acts course a project in which they research and design their our mission trip. This year's group was particularly enthusiastic about the project and several young people expressed interest in making their hypothetical trips a reality. One of these is an Ecuadorian young lady who wants to travel to Brasil to work with street kids there. How exciting to see the passion for service being passed on to the next generation.

2.  Another one of Dave's students recently shared in chapel about the wonderful works God did during her summer trip Zambia. Dave had actively fundraised for her mission trip in his classes, so many of his students felt an investment in her service. It's great for them to hear some of the results of giving up their pocket money for their classmate.

3.  While on the school campus one day, I (Beth) was stopped by a teacher who wanted to share a story about Dave. She needed to do a classroom observation of a fellow teacher and the high school principal recommended that she watch Dave. Though the teacher was only required to observe for 10 minutes, she told me the class was so engaging that she stayed the whole hour. She appreciated the warmth and openness of the atmosphere and the good rapport Dave has with students.

We know very well that such a positive response is the fruit of your prayers for us and the students at the AAI, and we thank you with our whole hearts for serving along with us.

Merry Christmas from our family
to you!

END OF THE YEAR GIVING

The work we are part of in Ecuador is a joint endeavor with you. We want to let you know about some of our current financial needs.

• Health care premiums are going up $100/month for us in January. 
• Dave's much-repaired work laptop finally died completely, necessitating the purchase of a new one for just under $700.
• While driving up a steep mountain pass, the radiator casing of our 1995 Trooper cracked. Fortunately, we were able to coast downhill to a mechanic and eventually get it repaired for just $200. We're grateful labor is so inexpensive here. 

If you are willing and able to help out with any of these costs, we would be greatly blessed. All donations to HCJB Global are tax-deductible and should include account #110518. Check out bottom of this page for more information. Thanks so much for considering giving!

END OF THE YEAR CELEBRATIONS IN ECUADOR

In November we celebrated Levi's 7th and
Lina's 2nd birthday.

December 6 is the celebration of the founding of Quito.
We took in an exhibit of statues of Ecuador's famous
hummingbirds at a nearby park.

Christmas came early when Dave's brother Steve visited
with his family over Thanksgiving

Our boys represented at the church Christmas program...

...playing Joseph, a shepherd, and a cat.

And a Happy New Year!