Praise:

1. For the opportunity to celebrate Christmas with Mike’s siblings and their families.
2. For Mike’s parents, who came to visit their children and grandchildren in Paraguay for 3 weeks.

Prayer Requests:

1. Wisdom and guidance from the Lord as Mike & Trisha raise their children and train them to walk in truth.
2. For their lives to reflect Christ and that all they do will honor and glorify Him.
3. For wisdom for Mike and Trisha as they serve in the different responsibilities that they are responsible for.
4. For Trisha, who is homeschooling Michael, Lea, and Kaleb.
5. For Mike & Trisha as they lead the Latin short term mission trip called ACERCATE. to the Pai and oversee the building of the Pai church.
6. For good health.
7. For safety in travels to the Chaco and the East side of Paraguay

From the rising of the sun unto the going down of the same the LORD’S name is to be praised. The LORD is high above all nations, and his glory above the heavens. Who is like unto the LORD our God, who dwelleth on high,  Who humbleth himself to behold the things that are in heaven, and in the earth! Psalms 113:3-6

Building Project and 2 Short Term Missions Trips

The planning phase for the building project of Iglesia Nueva Cristiana, is in full swing! This is the Pai Tavytera church founded by a New Tribes Mission church planting team starting in 1996. After a lengthy period of pre-evangelism, a church was finally born in 2000 and has now grown into approximately 100 members.

The small property where the NTM Team built their houses was named “Light” in the Guarani language. Truly light has shown in the midst of darkness in this corner of Paraguay as this small group of believers grow in maturity and seek to impact their sphere of influence with the Light of Jesus Christ!

For 2 weeks in January and 2 weeks in February, we are combining this building project with the short-term missions program we lead called Acércate. We are planning for two separate work teams originating primarily from the capital of Paraguay and will be completely in Spanish. Many lives have been challenged into full time Christian work through these types of short-term missions trips. The cost of the project is as follows:

• Church building: $7,500 USD

• Cost per person for the two-week trip: $100 USD

Please pray with us and the Pai Tavytera church, Iglesia Nueva Cristiana, as we raise funds for this building project and trust God to bring the right young people as volunteer workers.

If you would like to have a part in Acércate 2012, you can visit our website.  Be sure to indicate that this is a one-time designated gift.

Neat Experience in the Southern City of Encarnacion

This month, we had a neat experience when visiting a small church in the southern city of Encarnacion. We shared with their youth group and adults what God says about cross-cultural ministries. Their response was tremendous and expressed desire to support a Paraguayan church planter! They also put us up in a hotel, treated us out to dinner, and gave us a tour of their city. What a joy to experience interdependency in ministry!

While in southern Paraguay, we took advantage of the opportunity to visit the ancient Jesuit ruins from over 300 years ago! We also stopped in for a quick visit with a missionary family working with the Mbya tribe.

4 Teaching Sessions on how to implement a Missions Program

The missions mobilization manual that Mike developed for the churches associated with an organization called FEMIPA is slowly making progress. With each step forward, there are overwhelming challenges to overcome.

In November, Mike will be providing 4 training sessions and discussions on how to implement a missions program within strategic churches.

Please continue to pray for us and with us as minds are retrained to think cross-culturally.

Thank you for your prayers and support which make it possible for us to serve on a full-time basis here in Paraguay.

Download pdf format of our Goddard Grapevine (Oct. 2011) and Praise & Prayer (Nov. 2011) here >> Goddard Grapevine – October 2011 (pdf format)

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36 HOURS = 65 STUDENTS

Mike had the privilege of teaching through once again an Evangelism and Discipleship course he and another coworker had prepared in 2009. He taught the course three times in August, starting in a city on the Brazilian border.

In the photo, Mike is with a Pastor and Director of the Bible Institute.

Mike used sunglasses to illustrate the importance of teaching and training at a worldview level to avoid syncretism. 65 students, 36 hours of teaching in three churches gave Mike a prime opportunity to build relationships and to share about the global needs of cross-cultural ministry. The seeds planted in the hearts of these dear followers of Christ will have a lasting impact on their community and among unreached people groups.

RENUEVO’s 8th ANNIVERSARY and 1st MISSIONS CONFERENCE

This August was a very special month for us as we assisted our local church on their 8th anniversary to organize their very first World Missions Conference! We ordered 20 flags from the USA and for a very affordable price was able to give an international flavor to the church decorations.

Mike was given an evening to share on the local church’s reaction before the Great Commission by faith-giving and praying.

During the Missions Conference, Trisha and some of the women put together a “Cantina Misionera” to raise funds for a nice offering for a Paraguayan missionary family from our church. Trisha sold brownies, coffee cake, empanadas, soda, and coffee. On the last day, we were able to hand $150 to our missionaries!

KIDS’ KORNER

The children also heard stories by missionaries during the Conference. They enjoyed videos on the lives of famous missionaries like Amy Carmichael. Lord willing, these children will grow up with a heartbeat for Missions!

For Kid’s Day in Paraguay, we went to a bike store to purchase Lea’s first bicycle. A young man from a church we’ve spoken in gave us a tremendous discount enabling us to buy a bike for Kaleb too! Now all three enjoy riding their bikes at any opportunity they get, even in the house on rainy days.

Kaleb and his buddy Jeremias dressed up as colonial Paraguayans for a school play!

SU REFUGIO // HIS REFUGE

Yesterday, we enjoyed visiting Su Refugio (His Refuge) >> A place where children in troubled living conditions can find a safe and loving environment. It is a place where His glory is manifested, where His love is shared, His light is revealed and His Word is taught to the people of Paraguay.

As for God, His way is perfect; the word of the LORD is flawless. He is a shield for all who take refuge in Him. Psalms 18:30

You can see some pictures of our day trip to Su Refugio on Facebook.

Praise:

1. For our children, who continue to do great in school and are learning a lot.
2. For the opportunity to build new relationships with people during the Youth Missions Camp in July.
3. For the time of fellowship with a Brazilian/Paraguayan missionary couple and also a Paraguayan missionary couple this past weekend during our time in Caaguazu.
4. For the plans that are coming together for the mobilization conference mid-next year in Brazil.

Prayer Requests:

1. Wisdom and guidance from the Lord as they raise their children and train them to walk in truth.
2. For Michael, Lea, and Kaleb, as they continue studying at the Paraguayan Christian school and that they will be godly examples to their classmates. Their school year ends in November.
3. For good health.
4. For their lives to reflect Christ and that all they do will honor and glorify Him.
5. For the ACERCATE mission-focused meeting overseen by Mike on August 2.
6. For Mike as he teaches in 3 different churches the 12 hour module course on Evangelism and Discipleship on Aug 5-7 (traveling 5 hours out of town), Aug. 12-14, & Aug. 19-21.
7. For Mike’s cousin, Wayne, who will be teaching Mike’s Chronological Bible classes the end of this month so that Mike can be a part of our 1^st Missions Conference at our church.
8. For Mike & Trisha as they works alongside the other missionary couples from their Paraguayan church to organize and prepare for their first Missions Conference from Aug. 26-28.
9. For Mike as he plans a trip to the training center in Bolivia sometime in September or October.
10. For Mike as he begins the preparations and scheduling for a Latin Mobilization conference in Brazil mid next year.
11. For the ministry of assisting other NTM mobilization ministries in Latin America.
12. For full time coworkers to help Mike and Trisha.

Read about 6 ministry highlights, our 3 children, “Our Hearts are Rejoicing”,

and how you can connect on a daily basis with the Goddards!

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:: MINISTRY HIGHLIGHTS  ::

(1) “His life is changing significantly” was a comment made by the Paraguayan Pastor that invited me to join him in teaching and training church leaders in the Guarani language. “God’s Word has had a tremendous effect on his life since we started teaching in March.” Imagine the positive impact this man will have in his congregation and community as a godly leader!

(2) Recently on one of Mike’s trips, he was able to stop in and visit with a young Brazilian missionary couple in the early stages of church planting among the Mbya people. He was overjoyed to sit down with them and discuss cross-cultural strategies proven effective throughout the world. What a joy to see God raising up laborers for Paraguay! This brave couple is attempting to live off of $150 USD a month!

(3) This month during the Acercate meeting that Mike oversees, New Tribes Mission celebrated 65 years of tribal church planting in Paraguay. A Paraguayan Pastor commented, “this group of foreign missionaries have been doing a job for 65 years that we Paraguayans are responsible to do. Let’s do everything we can to support and work alongside them so the tribal ethic groups can be reached.”

(4) Mike and Elijah (a missionary coworker) enjoyed interacting and building relationships with Pastors and leaders during a 3-day leadership retreat.

(5) Elvio (a church leader from a Pai Tavytera church where Mike’s brother and sister work) and his wife Miriam are currently in a hospital outside of Asuncion where he awaits surgery on his spine. It was encouraging for us as a family to visit with this couple and watch some of our Paraguayan friends rally behind them to provide for their basic needs: a pillow, blankets, food for Miriam, hot water heater, thermos, and some warm socks.

(6) Trisha is part of a group of women organizing the children’s program for our church’s 1st Missions Conference. She is excited about the impact this will have long-term.

:: KIDS CORNER ::

Michael has been learning so much in school recently. Very soon he and his siblings will be kicking back for their 2 week winter break! His favorite past time: reading, Legos and playing Wii games.

Lea does well in school. She loves to play tag with her friends before, during, and after school.

Kaleb celebrated his 5th birthday at school with small sandwiches, brownies, and goody bags for his friends. His favorite gifts this year were 2  Lego sets – a farmer with 2  animals and Pharoah’s Quest!

:: OUR HEARTS ARE REJOICING ::

Psalms 33:21  For our heart shall rejoice in him, because we have trusted in his holy name.

Thank you for standing with us in prayer and support as we serve in a full-time capacity here in Paraguay.

Our hearts are rejoicing in the Lord as He continually proves Himself trustworthy in all things and at all times.

:: GODDARD CONNECT ::

You can be one of over 300 friends on Facebook to join the Mike & Trisha Goddard’s Ministry group for daily updates and prayer concerns by clicking here >>

In this Goddard Newsletter, read about our Chaco trip and the latest tribal news from Paraguay!

>>> CHACO TRIP

This month, our family had the privilege of visiting the Chaco region of Paraguay for a week.  Our first stop was to visit a missionary team working among the Ayore. Mike had the honor of encouraging the local church to consider having an impact among other people groups.

Mike taught the missionary kids a class on photojournalism and Paraguayan culture during an Education Camp. He also had several meetings while in the Chaco and enjoyed visiting a Nivacle village for the first time with a young Paraguayan missionary couple.

Trisha enjoyed teaching the younger children about “the fruit of the Spirit” during the morning Bible class. Her sister-in-law Odie Goddard brought her guitar and taught new songs that followed the same theme.

Michael and Lea absolutely enjoyed their time with the other missionary kids during Education Camp and learned so much from the teachers like “Professor Cranium” and the “Snake Guy” who came all the way from the USA to talk about reptiles and creepy crawly things. At the closing ceremony, their class sang a few songs and did a skit on the “Six Blind Men”.

Kaleb was happy to be on vacation for 10 days and spend most of it in the Chaco. He had all kinds of fun playing with his English-speaking friends like his cousin, Briana. They spent hours outdoors in the playground and found a can full of small snails. During the middle of the week, he began missing his teacher Nancy and especially his friend, Jeremias!

>>> PARAGUAY NEWS

(1) TRIBAL CHURCHES: Paperwork for the formation of an inter-cultural church association was recently submitted for recognition by the Paraguayan legal system, granting the legal right for tribal churches to meet together for worship and to carry out the vision of church planting.

(2) NIVACLE TRIBAL CHURCH PLANTING TEAM: Nivacle Team members continue to progress closer to their proficiency goal in Culture and Language.

Pray for them!

(3) MANJUI CHURCH LEADERS: After many years of ministry among the Manjui people of the Chaco region of Paraguay, the local church and missionaries formally recognized the faithful service and leadership of 5 men from their fellowship. Together these men will continue to guide the church onward in evangelism and discipleship.

Read below for the Goddard’s up-to-date Praise & Prayer Requests.

Praise:

1.   For Lea and Trisha, who both celebrated birthdays in February.

2.   For  the opportunity to visit with many of our coworkers this last month and the visit from Mike’s brother and family.

Prayer Requests:

1.   For Mike and Trisha – continued wisdom and guidance from the Lord as they raise their children and train them to walk in truth.

2.   For Michael, Lea, and Kaleb, as they continue studying at the Paraguayan Christian school.

3.   For good health. Right now, there is a lot of sickness going around as well as dengue fever.

4.   For their lives to reflect Christ and that all they do will honor and glorify Him.

5.   For Mike, who will be sharing at a missions meeting on March 4.

6.   Safety for Mike, as he travels out of the country for 10 days the 3^rd week of March to attend a seminar.

7.   For Mike, who will begin a Chronological Bible teaching series (from Creation to Christ) the last week of March. This teaching will take place the end of every month from March until October in a town 3 hours outside of Asuncion.

8.   For wisdom for the Goddards as they have opportunities to visit with, encourage, and disciple their Paraguayan friends.

9.   For the ministry of assisting other NTM mobilization ministries in Latin America.

10.   For full time coworkers to help Mike and Trisha in Mobilization.

11. For Ronald and Melissa, Maria Marta, Israel, and Leonie – Paraguayans in Bible or Missionary training in Bolivia or Brazil. Please pray for them as they study, their home churches, financial partners, and their future ministries as each have expressed a desire to be cross-cultural missionaries.

This month in Goddard Grapevine, you can read about:

1. Our trip to the pai tribe
2. Participating in a youth camp
3. Paraguay tribal update
4. Specific prayer requests

Trip to the pai tribe

We were invited out to visit the pai tavytera and participate in an important meeting held in their community. Church leaders from various tribes met together to discuss the formation of an association which would bring them closer together in vision and purpose. Mike also accompanied his brother Mark to a meeting with a Pastor from the area to discuss future partnerships.

Youth camp

Earlier this month, we went to a youth camp that was 4 hours from home. We set up a display table about New Tribes Mission and had the opportunity to share about tribal missions with the different Pastors and youth that were present. Mike was invited to teach 2 different classes each day for 3 days at the camp. One class was on tribal church planting and the other class on Chronological Teaching. Many young people showed great interest in missions and specifically tribal people. Our children enjoyed playing with 3 other Mks during the camp: 2 from Paraguay and 1 from Mexico.

Tribal update

Recently, 3 tribal groups gathered together and started working on the formation of a tribal church association. In 2 weeks: the Sanapana people will be receiving printed portions of the Bible for the first time; the Manjui church will be appointing church leaders; and an Ache church will be having a dedication service for their new building. At the end of this month, the Ache churches plan to discuss the formation of their own church association.

Please pray:

1.    For the 17 tribal groups in Paraguay. God is at work here, and recently He has provided additional missionaries to the Paraguayan field with a desire to reach them!

2.    For us as we mobilize and train the local church here in Paraguay. We have been in this ministry for 5 years, and it has been exciting to see God at work in the lives of the Paraguayan people.

Read below to find out how you can pray for the Goddard family!

Praise:

1. For a good time with family in Florida and Missouri.

2. For a safe trip from Missouri to West Virginia.

3. For the home that Grace Gospel Church has provided us with here in Huntington for the next 2 months.

4. That we were able to put together a ministry video to show while here in the USA.

Family Prayer Requests:

1. For Mike and Trisha – continued wisdom and guidance from the Lord as we parent our children and guide them in the truth.

2. That Kaleb will clearly understand the Gospel and his responsibility.

3. For Trisha, as she homeschools Michael and Lea.

4. For good health.

5. For our lives to reflect Christ and that all we do will honor and glorify Him.

Ministry Prayer Requests:

1. For the Goddards as they travel to PA, MI, and WI for 2 weeks in September.

2. For Mike & Trisha as they share on Sept. 8 at Fairplay Gospel Fellowship in PA.

3. For Mike, who will be speaking 3x on a Sunday morning at our church in WI.

4. For Mike, who will be sharing in chapel at the New Tribes Bible Institute in WI.

5. For the Goddards as they attend and participate in Grace Gospel Church’s Missions Conference the end of this month.

6. For the ministry of mobilizing Latin and Tribal Churches to continue expanding the reach of the Gospel.

7. For full time coworkers to help Mike and Trisha in Mobilization.

“We can\’t always be begging our wives for their chickens!” was the comment of a Pai Tavytera community leader and faithful church member to my question about the funding of their church outreaches.

“We will either have to have outside funding or stick to outreaches that are within our budget.”

After returning from a 5-day trip to the bush in northern Paraguay and just a few kilometers from the Brazilian boarder, I\’m confronted with even more questions than when I first set out. What role are tribal churches and their members to play in the Great Commission in Paraguay and beyond? Does the completion of the Great Commission lie solely on the shoulders of wealthy and educated people groups? Are the poor exempt from the responsibility to take the Gospel to the “ends of the earth” because of their financial limitations and lack of education?

While sitting on a rough wooden bench in front of Ruben\’s thatched hut, I picked up a crooked stick that was laying nearby on the ground and drew a circle in the dirt. “Ruben” I said, “this circle represents the Pai church in this village, these other circles nearby represent the Pai villages within 1-2 hours drive by motorcycle, and this far circle represents the Mbya people about 10 hours drive. The “X” right here next to your village represents the foreigners that came to plant your church, how will your Pai church plant a church among the Mbya without the logistical assistance of “X”? He thought for a second and made a very interesting observation, “Mike, if you take out the missionary\’s help, then our church would first have to be firmly established locally while organizing outreaches to the villages close by until there were strong churches planted. Once that happened, we could then form an association among ourselves to collectively gather enough finances to send out one missionary to the Mbya people.” Neither one of us had to say anything to realize that it would take many years of very hard work before the Pai could get to that point alone.

Although there are so many questions yet to be answered, there is one thing that is very clear to me as I dig deeper into mobilizing local churches to properly fulfill their role in the Great Commission: the vision and passion must come from within the fellowship of believers. Outsiders can introduce new ideas into the fellowship and prompt people to envision the accomplishment of greater things, but unless the fellowship is on board, the outsider will have to carry the burden for as long as he is present and then run the risk of collapse after he\’s gone.

Certainly the success of mobilizing, training and coordinating of tribal churches to plant other churches is going to depend largely on indigenous empowerment and assisting where there are genuine needs. In so many cases, what often hinders partnership at this level is attitude; the attitude of the expatriate, the national, and the tribal person. More often than not, we claim our attitudes are in line with that of Christ\’s, but when transferring it across cultural grids, we are at a loss as to what it looks like on the other end. A key element for successful and godly partnerships in an inter-cultural situation is the ability to listen intently and to learn from one another. You could also call that a “mutual respect” for one another\’s ideas and ideals.

Continue to ask God, the Inventor of multi-culturalism, to help His Church sort through these issues at a grass-root level, where people are working together for a common cause according to Mt. 28:19-20.