Walls' Latin-American Mission

It is truly a delight to serve the Lord and the Lord’s Church. The work going on around us is so much bigger than us. It is part of God’s eternal plan, and it is the work of our Prophet-Priest-King who is extending His kingdom throughout the world. There is so much need here in Ecuador and lately the reality of sin and darkness has manifested itself even more. However, in spite of the growth of sin and darkness, God has shown Himself faithful to build His Church in such a way that the forces of darkness cannot prevail against her. As God promised long ago, though the serpent may raise its head to strike the heel of God’s chosen seed, it will ultimately result in the head of the serpent being crushed. 

“I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel.“

Genesis 3:15

The Serpent Raises Its Head

Since Genesis 3, we see consistently see how the reality of sin and the curse spread throughout all of God’s good creation. So much so that it at times appears impossible for good to come out of it, but God consistently shows throughout the entire Bible that the imaginations and wicked plans of the enemy are in vain. God overcomes the virtual death of Abraham’s body, the famine of the land, and the terrible wickedness of Joseph’s brothers to bring about the salvation of His people and the fulfillment of His promises.  Even in the midst of exile and captivity, God preserves a remanent and ensures His promises. When one reads the story of the Bible, we see that no power of darkness can withstand His holy and gracious will. 

I mention this biblical theme, because it is one that has filled the minds of our church in these past few months. Our country is suffering a terrible crisis of crime, and it appears that many of the politicians are controlled by drug lords and mafia bosses and have not shown any strong attempt to detain the situation. The city of Santo Domingo has become one of the more dangerous cities in Ecuador. We hear reports every day or two of extortion of business owners, home and car robberies, murders, and ransom abductions. The leading gangs are taking over many parts of Ecuador where their presence was not previously felt as much. Under a previous regime, the strategic U.S. military bases in the country that were primarily serving to stop the spread of drug trafficking were removed and this decision has opened the door for gangs and drug traffickers to run rampant in the country. This reality has made life rather difficult for all of our churches. It is no longer safe to go outside after dark. Late last year there we began to hear reports of these things happening at 1:00am or 2:00am, but over the past month it has been much more frequent and as early as 6:00pm. Also, in our city, it is not an isolated and distant event. The road Jorge’s family and my family live on is a little outside of town and seems to have been completely neglected by police control. There have been reports several times a week of attempted robberies and abductions right outside of the subdivision where we live. There have been car robberies and shootings right at the entrance gate. 

In fact, this hit home on a Saturday evening in February after a men’s Bible study that we had in our subdivision. After the study some of the brothers stuck around to play soccer  on the community field until about 9:00pm. However, as they were about to finish the ball went over the fence outside of the subdivision. So, they left the subdivision and went down a side road to get the ball and then they were going to go home. But, as they were leaving from where the ball was a truck pulled up and starting shooting at them. One of my students, Jose, was driving his car and a bullet stuck in the door right behind the drivers-side window, surprisingly causing no damage. Another man who has been visiting the church for a few months was driving his car as well. His car was shot 11 times and he himself was injured in the hand from the glass of the window as well as one bullet that struck his arm and another that entered his back and damaged his liver and large intestine. He was in critical condition for a few days, but the Lord protected him and he is now doing much better. Currently, he is on a liquid diet and cannot lift heavy objects for another month and a half. 

What are we doing about this? As a church, we pray for the situation in every service. Also, we have taken the opportunity to love one another more as we pray for one another, seek to care for another, and also make sure that everyone has a safe way to get home after services. We have to take special precautions to avoid being targeted and we don’t go out after dark any more. When we first started coming to Ecuador, it was very common for us to take late trips for church visits or teaching that made us return as late as 3:00am, but now we can no longer do that. We have to plan ministry opportunities and trips much more strategically. 

Despite these problems, we continue firm in our conviction that the Lord has called us to be here in Ecuador and we have a heart to be used of the Lord in the midst of this crisis. First, we hope the Lord will use us to accompany and comfort the people of God here and help them to grow and persevere in the midst of trials. Second, we hope the Lord will use us here as this reality has made the exceeding sinfulness of sin and the shortness of our lives more apparent. I believe this is a helpful context for the ministry of the gospel as people are looking for hope, and freedom from sin and its effects. So, please pray that God would protect us and the brothers here. And, pray that God would work through this situation to expand His kingdom and bring many needy souls to the Gospel. Pray that what politicians and criminals intend for evil, would be turned to good and the salvation of many. As I mentioned above, God has a reputation of turning sin on its head, or rather crushing its head, and brining hope and salvation to light in the midst of darkness. We serve the God who called the light out of darkness and who can also shine in the midst of the kingdom of darkness through the glory of the face of Christ. 

Christ Crushes the Serpent’s Head

When one looks at the condition of Abram and Sarai, the Biblical text leads us to this question: “O Lord God, what will you give me, for I continue childless, and the heir of my house is Eliezer of Damascus?” (Gen 15:2). That is, it leads us almost to the point of giving up on the whole idea of the promised seed, but right at that moment God comes in and swears by Himself that Abram will have a son. In a similar way, when Joseph is in the midst of the Egyptian prison, we are led to think, what good could possibly come of this? But, we see the incredible and powerful statement: “the Lord was with him” (Gen 39:23). Seeing the reality of sin and darkness that I mentioned before, someone might think that it’s time to close up shop and go back to the States. However, as was the case in all these stories and many others, God was still at work even when it seemed dark. In the same way, when we look for the light of God’s providence in the midst of the crisis Ecuador is facing, it is much brighter than it may seem at first. Let me show you some evidence of God’s continued work in Ecuador.

A Church that Perseveres in Affliction

When writing to the Thessalonians, Paul told them:

“Therefore we ourselves boast about you in the churches of God for your steadfastness and faith in all your persecutions and in the afflictions that you are enduring”

2 Thessalonians 1:4

The Lord has filled my heart with a similar boasting when I reflect on many of the people in our local church. We are a small church and we are not perfect. As a pastor, it is easy for the problems to consume all of our attention. We spend most time worrying about the cases of those who are struggling or backsliding and it leads to frustration and discouragement. I was in this condition earlier this year due to a couple of different situations, but then I began to spend more time with the other members of the church and I was blown away by their spiritual maturity. In the midst of the increased crime and insecurity, the brothers continue faithful and wanting to serve, and have stepped up to help take care of one another’s needs. Also, we have several women in our church who suffer from near constant pain due to various autoimmune diseases. But, in spite of their pain and suffering, their faith, holiness, joy in the Lord, and patience in trial has been a huge blessing to my soul and an example to our entire church. This reminds me that though ministry can be frustrating and it seems that darkness is at work in many parts, the light of the Gospel shines bright in many souls. In fact, that light shines even brighter against the backdrop of the intense trials and suffering that they are facing. This is something that only the power of grace and the hope and comfort of Christ—our Great High Priest—can accomplish. In this way, I have been greatly encouraged by the work that God has been doing in our midst. 

Prayers Answered by a Faithful God

Another thing that has been a huge benefit to us as a church in the midst of these rising difficulties, is to intentionally look for God’s answers to prayers. In our Wednesday night services we have been studying the Lord’s Prayer and one thing that struck me was the confidence and hope with which Christ would have us to pray. As we draw near to Him as our Father in heaven, we can trust in His sovereign power and in His fatherly disposition towards the prayers of His people. So, in our times of prayer we have sought to be specific and confident in our prayers and then to look for the way that God works in response to these prayers in order to respond with gratitude and praise. God has blessed families, providing healing, sustained afflicted souls in the midst of trials, given clarity on important decisions and even unanimity, and He has provided for needs in incredible ways.

This mindset of wanting to look for God’s answers to prayer came from a strong sense of conviction of my own lack of faith when one Wednesday night a sister asked for prayer for a dear family friend who was in the hospital with heart issues. The next Wednesday, the friend was doing much better and was already back at home. To be honest, my first thought was a sinful one that showed my lack of faith: “Surely, it wasn’t in answer to our prayers that this man is doing better”. But, as this thought entered my mind the truth of what we had been learning about prayer shone in my heart to expose the darkness of doubt and unbelief (cf. Heb 4:12-13). So often, when we pray we come away with a maybe-or-maybe-not attitude that makes us passive in seeing God’s answer to prayer. But, when we began to look for His answer to prayer and to give him thanks for these things, answers to prayer started to pop up everywhere. 

So, though things look dark when we look around, as we have intentionally sought to see God working in response to our prayers we have been amazed at how He has heard us and has shown Himself active on our behalf. And, when we recognize His work, we are able to give Him more appropriately the glory due unto him. 

Men Raised Up for Ministry

“Then he said to his disciples, ‘The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest’.”

Matthew 9:37-38

Another thing that has brought great encouragement to my soul over the past couple of weeks and has reminded me that God is still active expanding His Kingdom in Ecuador, though things might look gloomy, is the fact of men being ordained into pastoral ministry. In the past three weeks, a sister church in Guayaquil that our Association has been working with for a few years ordained their first pastor in a biblical and orderly way. Another sister church in La Libertad ordained a second pastor, which opens up the door for this church’s desire to send their other pastor to help plant a Reformed Baptist church in Ecuador’s third largest city, Cuenca, that currently has no Reformed Baptist church. And, in our own church, last Sunday, we commissioned three men as missionaries to be sent out to serve in the plantation of three different churches in three different cities. A dear brother and member of the church, Roberto Espinosa, has been officially sent to work in the Mission in Quito, the capital. My two students, Jose and Dennis, were commissioned to work in missions in Manta, Ecuador and Pasto, Colombia respectively. I will be sending more details on this over the next few days. 

Once again, the sinfulness of sin and the crisis that Ecuador is facing makes the night dark, but Christ is continuing to raise up laborers for the harvest. We are seeing new churches planted, new pastors ordained, and more churches being well-established and ordered according to the rule of Christ. 

Men Trained for Ministry

Another way that we see God’s Kingdom continue to advance is through our pastoral training programs. If you have followed us for some time, you are probably aware that we are involved in two different efforts for pastoral training. One is the Confessional Baptist Seminary. This is a modular program that meets for one week every three months and is a basic introduction to Systematic Theology and Pastoral Ministry. Similar programs have started in Cuba, Brazil, and Mexico and soon we hope to see one start in Costa Rica. The other and principal area of my focus is the Pastor School. This is the intensive, 2.5-year program based out of our own local church here in Santo Domingo. God is using both of these efforts in glorious ways. 

After I got back from Cuba, I had lots to do with the purchase of our new property (more on that forthcoming), and receiving new students, but I was surprised that Friday (March 17) afternoon with the news that the professor for the module in Ecuador that was scheduled for the following week (March 20-24) was sick with COVID and wouldn’t make it. And, since the class was Biblical Theology, what I had just taught in Cuba, they asked me to fill in last minute. I was hesitant at first due to having been away from my family for the past 10 days in Cuba, but we decided for me to go. This module was a similar blessing to that of Cuba. With each time I teach this class, I am amazed at what I learn in the process and how the students are able to grow in their understanding of Scripture and become more comfortable reading and interpreting what was before difficult parts of the Old Testament. 

In this module, there were about 30 students. These students came from all over. There were a couple of students from Colombia, many from various parts of Ecuador, and about 6 or 7 from Peru. Some even travelled more than 20 hours by bus to be there. The Lord gave us many great opportunities to see the work that is going on in these countries in the various churches and to help these men to better handle God’s Word as they teach and preach. 

Another major development that has amazed us with God’s good providence and continued work among us here in Ecuador, is the reception of five new students for the next cycle of the Pastor School that starts NEXT week (more on that soon). The first student arrived late February from Bolivia; his name is Rodrigo. We have also received a student from Quito—Stalin, another from Guayaquil—Carlos, another from a nearby sister church—Pablo, and another student who arrived last week from Pasto, Colombia—Oscar. On Friday, March 17th we were able to host most of them in our home for a time of fellowship and lunch. Ariel has been practicing a traditional Ecuadorian recipe called ‘seco’, and got a lot of good practice. She prepared it for 30 people! It astounds us how God has opened the door for such a diverse group of students from three different countries to make the sacrifice of moving to a new place so that they can come and study with us. Truly, it is a work of God as he raises up men and plants in them a burning desire to serve Him and His people. We are very excited to start the classes for this new round of students and to implement all that we learned last time around. Next week I hope to send you more information about this and I will be introducing each of the students to you over the next several weeks. 

Churches Being Planted

Another way that God has been working in our midst and one of the particular ways that we have seen Him answer our prayers is through the new church plants that are starting up. We have been praying for clarity and direction and our church has been examining men for ministry for the past year. And, finally we have seen the fruit of this process. Jose Jimenez has officially moved out of Santo Domingo (pictured below) and is now living in Manta and was officially commissioned as a missionary of our church last Sunday. There is already a committed group of about 25 people. Dennis is finishing up his preparations to move to Pasto, Colombia where he will take over the small church plant the new incoming student, Oscar, started there earlier this year. He will be moving to Pasto later this week or early next week where he will be serving a group of about 30 people who are committed to seeing a Reformed Baptist church planted there (pictured below). 

We are amazed to see the work that God has done in these men and His providence in raising up these groups of people who are hungry for His Word and for a biblical church. Though we would have loved to hold onto these men and have them serve as pastors along side of us here in Santo Domingo, their own hearts and the constant needs arising around us have led us to send them out. Over the next year, we hope to see churches constituted in Quito and Manta, and next year we hope to see a church constituted in Pasto. We are also very grateful that through our partnership with HeartCry, the Lord has provided for these men to be able to serve full-time in these mission fields. You can see their ministry pages on HeartCry’s website here: Dennis and Jose. The forces of darkness cannot detain the spread of God’s Kingdom. God continues to work despite the enemy’s best efforts to disuade us. 

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Prayer Requests:
1. Please pray for the incoming students who are all settling in their homes in Santo Domingo, and the beginning of classes next week (April 11). 
2. Please pray for Jose and Dennis as they begin full-time ministry in these church-planting missions. Also, pray for Roberto as he continues to serve in the mission in Quito. 
3. Please pray that God would continue to build His church in the midst of great social crisis here in Ecuador, and that he would protect us and the rest of the brothers.