To the Ends of the Earth
 
CHILE MISSION NEWS FROM JIM AND LIISA TINO   

March 2020

summer colors because it's summertime in Chile!
In This Issue...
Fun Fact!
Prayers and Praise
Update on Chile Protests
Too much packing!
Veronica's Story
Substitute needed
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+  Tino web page (blog, photos, prayer requests)




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Not-so-Fun Fact:
A Unique Chilean Conmemoration

 Although Chile does not celebrate Saint Patrick's Day in March, we do have an original March "holiday"...DAY OF THE YOUNG COMBATANT.  (El Dia del Joven Combatiente) March 29 is the day chosen to com-memorate the death of 2 brothers that were part of the Youth Resistance during the dictatorship in Chile during the 80's. The brothers were killed by carabineros (Chilean police). Signs and posters remind youth that they have rights and "a voice". Unfortunately, many barrios in the city become dangerous on this day as it often becomes the "Day of the Delinquent".

Prayers & Praise

+ Pray for Pastor Cristian Rautenberg and family, our former coworkers. Cristian accepted a call to Argentina and has returned to ministry in his home country. Pray also for the national Lutheran church of Chile as we have one less Shepherd to lead the many churches and mission plants.

 

+Give thanks for the 3 vicars (Marcelo, Vladimir, and Pablo) serving in a variety of capacities here in Chile and that the Lord would prepare them for continued service in His kingdom.

 

+ Pray for the 6 people currently learning about Jesus and the Lutheran faith  - Veronica, Mely, Luis Marcos, Juan Carlos, Dayana, and ??! We pray that the Holy Spirit will cause faith to grow and that they will later want to be confirmed in the Lutheran faith.

 

+Pray for Veronica...that the Lord would heal her according to His will, and that her daughter, Florencia, would be strong and protected.

 

+Pray for a peaceful resolution to the ever-increasing social and economic unrest in Chile. Pray that the Lutheran church would be a beacon of Truth and Hope.

 

+ Give thanks for improvements in the health of Liisa's dad, Edwin...that God would continue to strengthen our 4 parents as they have health challenges.

 

+Thank the Lord for a successful transition to our new church location. Pray for our 3 year-old mission as it matures and follows God's will in Word & Sacrament.

 

+Remember our GLO missionaries, the Funkes, as they transition from ministry in Tanzania to life in the USA. Pray for the new GLO missionaries, Cheryl Kruckenberg and Joshua Wareham. (check out recent updates on our website.)

 

+Pray for the preparations of GLO'S 7th shipment of Medicine for Venezuela. Our brothers and sisters in Venezuela continue to be in great need of assistance. Keep them in your prayers!

 

+ Pray for God to lead us to the right person/people to fill in for us during our scheduled furlough later this year!

Our Mailing Address
If you are planning to mail us something (or visit us!), our new address is:
James y Liisa Tino
Julio Montebruno 588
La Reina
Santiago, R.M.
Chile


    In the movie "The Wizard of Oz", Dorothy needs to follow the yellow brick road, but the road leads through some pretty scary places. There might be "lions, and tigers, and bears - oh my!", she exclaims. But with the help of her friends Scarecrow and Tin Man, she musters up the courage to continue.
     More and more it seems, continuing our regular, normal, routine lives has become a Dorothy-esque task of facing down our fears. Coronavirus today, something else tomorrow, next week, next year - there is no shortage of dangers and threats, both real and perceived. What is the Christian to do?
     The antidote to fear isn't Scarecrow and Tin Man. It's the Word of God. God's Word for you today is from Isaiah 43:
"Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine. When you pass through the waters I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you; when you walk through the fire you shall not be burned, and the flame shall not consume you. For I am the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior."    (Is. 43:1-3)
Will you partner with us to share the Antidote to Fear in Chile and around the world?
Update on Chile Protests
      While the rest of the world worries about Coronavirus, Chile is much more concerned with "protest virus".  The social protests which started in October of last year, died out around Christmastime. Here in the Southern Hemisphere, summer vacation is December - February, and no one wanted to be bothered with protests during vacation time! The word was, "wait until March". Well, March is here and the protests have re-started. Better organized, it seems - there is a website where you can find out what protests are scheduled and what you are protesting! 17 protests are scheduled for March - unfortunately, there is also one scheduled for every Sunday, which makes it hard for people to get to church. You can see the schedule here.
     What are people protesting? In general, inequality. One of the major cell phone companies in Chile - one that caters to the younger generation - came out with a new slogan that I think captures pretty well the spirit of the protests: "seguiremos trabajando hasta que los privilegios sean para todos" - "We will keep working until privileges are for everyone". Personally, I'm not clear on how that's supposed to happen. My guess is that eventually, Chile will write a new constitution. That seems to be what Latin American countries due in times of social crisis. You can view the cell phone commercial here.

Pack, pack, and pack some more!
   This seems to be the "story of our lives" since December! We are thankful that God directed us to a new property to rent for all the miss
Our new worship space.
ion activities, but this required lots of man hours to get everything in working condition.  We began holding worship services in the renovated garage of the new house on the first weekend of February.  It is a long narrow room which we have accommodated to hold about 40 people comfortably.  Two weeks later we celebrated the first wedding service there with a reception following in the improved outdoor areas of the property!  The new site includes bathrooms for church use,  a spacious office area, and a separate 2-story workshop which we are using for storage and Sunday school.
     Right after we finished the worship area, we began the process of moving the 6 immigrants who resided with us in the original location, into the new house. Fortunately, there are 4 bedrooms for the use of these families, as well as the vicar and his family. We also converted part of the workshop into an extra bedroom.
     The 3rd move involved all our personal stuff! We are currently renting a house apart from the church. God directed us to a friend who had a house for reasonable rent- which didn't require "fixing up"! Yay! On February 9 we moved here.
   
Corali Garcia
 Since we no longer live "on-site" at the mission, we have hired an administrator for the immigrant program.  Corali and her husband Domenico are "graduates" from the immigrant housing program!  On March 1st, Corali began coordinating the logistics of this temporary housing project.  This is an important step in helping the church to become more independent.  Corali has many leadership skills and is very innovative.   We welcome her to our mission team! 

Veronica's Story
     Just about every Sunday there are visitors to WELCOME at the Lutheran Mission. Sometimes they have been invited by a friend, other times on-line advertising has caught their eye or maybe they have come to one of Liisa's English classes. Whatever the reason, God's Word acts on their hearts and they come seeking more.
   
Veronica and Florencia
 One of these new sisters in the faith is Veronica. She moved to Santiago from Peru about 20 years ago. She arrived at our church with her 5-year-old daughter Florencia, asking us to please pray for her as she has been diagnosed with stage 4 cancer. While the world worries about coronavirus, Veronica worries about who will care for her daughter after she passes on. She is familiar with the Lutheran church because of Norwegian missionaries in her home country. That's why she sought us out. We have been fervently praying with her and for her. She never misses a Sunday. Although the cancer has not miraculously disappeared yet, her faith has grown to the point that she says she no longer worries about the physical healing. Recently she told me, "Christ has healed me spiritually 100%. I know my eternal life is secure. I trust my physical life to His will."
Looking for a substitute
While our mission here in Santiago is going very well, we are seeing the need to take a break from the ministry here in order to attend to some other needs. Normally, the rhythm of mission work is 2 or 3 years on the field, followed by a more extensive furlough. We have been in Chile going on 6 years now and in that time, we have not taken a full furlough. We have tried to keep in touch with our family and mission partners during shorter trips back to the States. However, it's time for a real furlough. We are planning a 3-month furlough for September - November of this year. In order for that to happen, we need to find someone (a pastor) who could fill in for us. The pastor will need to be fluent in Spanish, and preferably be someone with overseas mission experience. If you know of such a person, please pass along my email: [email protected]. Thanks!

   We praise God for each of you,  our "mission partners". In addition to providing our living expenses, your financial contributions have also been supporting our church plant and immigrant ministry in Santiago! We praise God for blessing us through you!

To support our ministry online, click here . One-time or automated contributions are available.
OR
Mail a check to:
Global Lutheran Outreach
6709 Ficus Dr.
Miramar, FL 
(Put "Tino - Chile" on the memo line of the check.)

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