Our family, overlooking Catamayo

Hello from Ecuador everyone! We are doing great here and we pray you are doing great from wherever you find yourself reading this letter :) It is hard to believe summer is here already. It is always hard to know what to write and when to write it, but after last month’s letter we thought it was a good time to talk about some things that are very difficult to talk about and some things we have never taken time to address with those that follow our ministry. The subject of money is a VERY difficult one for Priscilla and I (Andy) to talk about. Growing up I was taught the importance of being wise with resources. One of the hardest things for us in the ministry to talk about (we actually hate talking about it) is our financial needs because in the beginning of this journey we wanted to go to sleep each night knowing God has us here; NOT clever guilt trips and marketing schemes. Because of this, we decided early on in our mission work that we didn’t want to specifically ask for money (I believe we have only done so once or twice in the 8 years or so we started this journey), but to just let our needs be known. It is hard because MANY ask us to write more and to specifically ask for exactly what we need and others have criticized us for what we do write. We simply have our convictions surrounding this topic and we strive to live by them. Having said all that to say, we are very intentional about not asking for money and we pray that no one feels guilted or manipulated when reading our letters. We debated about whether or not to mention the new truck and land we were able to buy a couple months ago, but in the end we wanted everyone who prayed for us and for the Lord’s work here, to know how God had answered prayers and blessed our ministry. We understand some people that support us can’t afford a new car, which made this a very difficult decision for us. At the end of the day, we felt a solid vehicle and a place to put down roots was essential for our work here and that the Lord gave us the funds specifically for these things. We would normally never have been able to buy a reliable vehicle or land on our normal income and we are convinced that the three VERY rare donations that came in were to make these purchases to fulfill His will and purposes. We NEVER want anyone to give to our work out of guilt, but rather out of feeling called to be a part of what God is doing through our service here in Ecuador. Thank you all so much who have prayed, given, and encouraged us through the years. It means more than we could ever express. Thanks for your patience, love, and commitment! Living off of the generosity of others is one of the most difficult and humbling aspects of being a missionary and we thank each of you who show such understanding and make the whole process much easier on us!

Sunset leaving Church One Evening

Changing subjects to talk about things much easier for me, the work is advancing and we are VERY excited about the opportunities God is opening up for us. For about 3 weeks now we have been meeting in our home (and the home of some friends) here in San Pedro (the town we currently live in) doing weekly bible studies. We are starting to see the Lord work in our town and foresee a home church starting out of our weekly bible studies here. Our vision is to see a church start here in San Pedro and be a part of discipling the locals to run and lead the church! Please continue to pray for us to be good witnesses, for the locals’ hearts to be softened, for the generations of false teachings to be broken, for the absent and alcoholic fathers to be saved, and for the power of Christ to be shown to the people!

These guys sure love each other!

On a very similar note, I (Andy) also have been given an open door into a new community about 45 minutes from San Pedro where we live. This community (La Extensa) is yet another community where non-Catholics are not normally welcome and we are excited that a family there has invited us to continue teaching the Bible in their house. We are praying for the exact same things there as we are here in San Pedro. While visiting the family there this week I shared Exodus 20, Psalm 115, Isaiah 45 and other scripture about worshiping statues and idols. This is the point where they either reject us (or rather the Word of God) or want to know more. After finishing the study, the woman of the house got up without saying anything and goes in her house. I thought, “Is she even going to come back out?” Well, she came out with a big ripe Papaya and gave it to us with a big smile. I thought, wow that is a really good sign! Please pray for this community and even more so for this family that is struggling to understand that many things they have been taught for generations is a lie! Pray God opens their eyes to the truth and gives them the freedom that only comes through simple faith in Christ alone!

This guy was in our backyard. He's no longer with us...

Another big challenge/opportunity going on here is the jail ministry. I haven’t been there for months and the captain in charge is not letting any religious workers in at this time. My understanding is that too many visitors were going to the jail and it was becoming a burden on the staff having to check them all in and out. My personal perspective is that the Lord is pruning the vine, if you will, and removing the many cults and false teachers. My main contact (on the inside) is a Christian inmate that has found favor with the staff that runs the jail and has been made the “block leader” in his sector. He is in the process of filing another petition on my behalf and we are just waiting and praying they allow me to enter. Please pray for this work. Pray that if I don’t need to be there, or if me being there only allows others who shouldn’t be there, that God would have His way, will, and purpose fulfilled! Please pray for the men and women in the Loja jail behind those bars!

Thanks so much to each of you that have prayed, counseled, loved, and given to the work here. We have no words to express the gratitude we have for each of you and pray the Lord rewards each of you in a way that you will never forget!

God bless,

the DVarga Family

- Please send all monetary contributions to: Acts 1:8 Mission Society 123 Burk Ln. Harrison, OH 45030. And make all checks payable to: “Acts 1:8 Mission Society” with“DVarga” in the memo section (All funds donated in this way will continue to go entirely to the DVarga family AND our mission work in Ecuador and are tax-deductible). If you need a quarterly tax statement or just want to contact us, please just write to the address above or call. Our phone #:(513) 334-8281

To donate through PayPal electronically please scroll to the top of the page and click the "Donate" tab.

Phone: Magicjack#: 513-334-8281 Our local Cincinnati phone number that we are able to receive in Ecuador. It works through the Internet and is just like calling any Cincinnati phone number.