Farnsworth Forum

Yesterday, after the final day of GO ENGLISH CAMP, we went up to the roof to play.  The beautiful view reminded me of the following Bible verse: “The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands” (Psalm 19:1). “Los cielos cuentan la gloria de Dios, el firmamento proclama la obra de sus manos” (Salmo 19:1). GOD IS A MASTER ARTIST!!!

Day 4 already?!?  It was not as technically smooth as Day 3.  I may have to retire from ZOOM after this English camp.  HAHA!  Here are some picture highlights. Michelle started us off by reviewing the parts of the body.  She is an incredible English teacher.  We may have to hire her full-time!!!! Manuel and Maribel shared the parable of the tenant farmers from Mark 12 and included a clear presentation of the gospel for children. Kary shared part four of 1 John 4:10. Then we learned the farm animals with Michelle. She even told us about the stinky pigs!!!! We had such a delightful time with the 60+ children today. Day 4 closed with prayer. In our afternoon teachers meeting we prayed for tomorrow, the final day.  Would you please join us in praying for God to work in all of our hearts tomorrow?  Thank you, dear prayer warriors!

Day 3 of English camp was a delight, and I managed to pull it off without any technical glitches today.  Here's hoping and praying for tomorrow.  I jokingly told our coworkers that if the camp ran until Saturday (it ends Friday), everything would be perfect. Jhon, Dayana and Juan Pablo told the parable of the Good Samaritan using puppets, and it turned out really effective.  Juan Pablo asked the question, "Who is my neighbor?" to the Jesus puppet, and then Dayana told the story.  All the puppets were homemade.  AMAZING! Joel and Amelia sang the song "Amar a Dios" (Love God) and did a wonderful job with the hand motions.  Our talented kids!!  What would we do without them?  They add so much to our ministry. Faith taught the Bible verse today.  From the Philippines she is married to our German friend Marcel.  They moved to Ecuador to join the team of missionaries in January. Michelle taught the parts of the body and then we played SIMON SA...

Today was Day 2 of GO ENGLISH CAMP.  A few less family units signed into ZOOM today, but we still had over 60 children. Marisol told the story today of the Unforgiving Servant from Mark 18:23-35. She used flannelgraph and puppets and did a terrific job. Joel and Amelia both led the music today because Dad figured out how to share the music from the computer!  Thanks for praying for me! Michelle finished the day up with a delightful lesson in kitchen utensils followed by the "I Am a Teacup" song.  Look for it on YouTube in English and Spanish! STAY TUNED FOR THE REPORT ON DAY 3.  SAME BAT-TIME, SAME BAT CHANNEL.  Sorry, I couldn't resist!

Our first-ever virtual GO ENGLISH CAMP launched yesterday afternoon.  We had over sixty kids from several different cities in Ecuador for day one. Michelle is our English teacher.  Yesterday she taught fruits and vegetables and then sent the participants on a scavenger hunt to look for the things she taught them. Our Bible verse for the week is 1 John 4:10.  The children learn a different part of the verse each day and then record themselves reciting it and send it to our WhatsApp group! Amelia and Joel are leading the songs.  Yesterday their was a technical glitch (named Ned Farnsworth) and Joel came to my rescue, so Amelia had to lead the song "Follow" by herself.  We need to be flexible until I can buy the book ZOOM FOR DUMMIES!!! Day 1 was a rousing success thanks to our wonderful team and God's grace.  Thanks for praying for us!

The stage is all set for GO ENGLISH CAMP.  WE have been meeting for prayer on ZOOM.  Here is a picture of all the helpers from left to right, top to bottom (Juan Pablo, Dayana, Ned, Amelia, Joel, Marisol, Michelle, Karina, Manuel, Maribel, and Faith).  Thanks for your prayer support.  To God be the glory!!!

As we enter GO ENGLISH CAMP 2020, we remember English Camp 2019 with the wonderful folks from Exeter Bible Fellowship Church in Birdsboro, PA. I had the privilege of meeting the team during a quick trip to PA in April last year.  Here they are: Joey, Athena, Carolyn, Steve, Rosie, Zoe and Pastor Stan.  Missing from the picture are Becca and Leah. Here is the invitation we used for the children. As with the previous group we spent some wonderful outings together, including Cuicocha and the amazing boat ride. Some of the best times are spent in fellowship around the table.  Eating, of course!!! Singing with the kids and the mission teams always blesses my heart. Our Bible focus last year was Esther.  We adapted my college roommate Phil's book from his delightful Esther musical which debuted at Houghton College in 1987.  In that production I played Hegai the eunoch.  For Ecuador 2019 production I was elected to play Xerxes....