At the end of 2001 we moved from Santiago to Chillan where the new Institutobranch opened in March 2002. Before we left Santiago, four students of the Santiago branch graduated with their Diploma in Theology. Two students, finished their Bachelor in Theology in the Seminario Teologico Bautista de Chile and are now professors at the Santiago branch. One other student finished her Diploma and her Bachelor and is now working toward her Master's Degree at Eastern Baptist Theological Seminary. There is great potential in our students and they work hard to fulfill their goals of theological education to better serve their churches and convention. We also have branches in Panguipulli and Traiguen.
In the new Instituto branch in Chillan we are offering evening classes as well as Saturday classes. Most of our students who work come on Saturdays for the alternate program. First and third Saturday they learn Liturgy, Research Techniques, and Latin American Reality with us; and on the second and fourth Saturday they learn Biblical Greek and Pastoral Theology with Steve and Sheila Heneise. It is a very intense program that allows them to shorten their years of studies to obtain their degrees sooner.
In Chile we are in the fall season, but to us it feels like spring... We'll tell you why. We do have the changes in colors of all the leaves, we have the cool to cold weather, and we have lots of leaves falling down. But... life in our environment, in the life of the church, in the life of the Instituto, and in our own lives feels like spring... blooming again!
We are participating in the life of the Comunidad Bautista Nueva Esperanza de San Carlos, where Rolando, a student of the Instituto, is pastoring. His wife Evangelina and their baby daughter, Bastid Arlet are very dear to us. Rolando's vision for the church is one of open doors, of service to the surrounding neighborhood. Evangelina is working with the ladies in the congregation and organizes the Sunday Bible school. Two of our students, Cristina and Lucila, are also participating in San Carlos and exercising their gifts in this thriving community. This is the mission church founded by Iglesia Bautista Nueva Esperanza de Chillan Viejo, where the Heneises participate and the Bolicks used to participate until their move to Temuco. We are participating in San Carlos with preaching, Bible studies, and Christian education lessons. As part of their service to the community, in May we'll be starting a support group for mothers with their nursing babies and young children, open to those in the church and in the neighborhood.
We are both teaching in the Instituto. Carlos teaches on Thursdays—Old Testament Introduction.On the first and third Saturday of the month Mayra teaches Liturgy and Research Techniques and Carlos teaches Latin American Reality. We had a nice open house on March 30 and we'll be having a book expo on April 20 so that the students can start building up their own libraries and fall more and more in love with studying, books, and education per se.
Our lives are always full of activities and changes. Alberto (5 ½) continues with his kindergarten home schooling and has lost two teeth. He's growing fast. He is very smart, sweet, and spontaneous. Carolina (2 ½) is all over the place. Learning to speak clearer every day. She just had chicken pox and she is thriving in every sense. They both keep us real busy most of our time and are a joy for how we see God's mercy in our lives through them. We are still recovering from the loss of our baby Fermin last July and are closer to translating a book Mayra read during the experience. Nubia, Carlos' mom, continues to recover in New York from her heart attacks and stroke of February of last year. We spent a good time with Mayra's dad (Pedro) and mom (Hilda) in Puerto Rico in January and continue to be in touch with them periodically. Our house is always full of guests and friends who enrich our experience in Chile and we hope our relatives will soon come and visit us, too.
Life in Chillan is at a slower pace than in Santiago, but in many ways it is a lot richer. We enjoy the house we rent, the neighborhood is peaceful, and the kids have space to run around. Vivivana is a lady who comes to our door once a week to offer fruits and we have developed a nice relationship where we've been able to share of our faith experience with her. The same with the "maestro", the handyman who helped us fix the stairs so Carolina wouldn't be peeking through the holes. Manuel and his wife Ellie, and their daughter Claudia are very dear to us and very simple and humble people that feel awkward to be invited to our table and prefer not to. (Here they still have that difference between workers and homeowners.) Claudia is Ellie's daughter from her first marriage as a teenager, but Ellie has not been able to have children with Manuel. That is their prayer request—to have a child together.
So, spring or fall... The seasons are opposite in the southern hemisphere, but having experienced Holy Week, with communion service on Thursday and resurrection Sunday special service, we feel like we are in spring, blooming with all the life that the Lord has given to this community we serve. International Ministries missionaries Steve and Sheila Heneise continue to serve in Chillan and in Panguipulli at the Instituto's branches, as well as in Parral on a discipleship course. Andy (Steve and Sheila's son) and Esther moved with their daughter Anna Celia from Alaska to Chile and are expecting their new baby's birth in the next couple of weeks. International Ministries missionaries Dwight and Barbara Bolick moved to Temuco with their son Jack and are closer to the Mapuche people they serve. We are planning on getting together in May for a team retreat. We are always busy with our kids, the Instituto, church, and support groups, but we feel we are where God wanted us to be. We continue to seek to serve Him faithfully each day in our interactions with people like Viviana, Manuel and Ellie, with our teammates and the local convention we came to serve.
Please pray with us that God's spirit will continue to instill life, growth, and joy to our friends in the neighborhood, those in the congregation and our pastoral family, the Saez-Montalba, and our students in the Instituto. That we can continue to experience this eternal spring in our lives and share it with those around us. We are thankful for having you as our prayer warriors and part of our adventures. You are part of the team! May God bless you richly and abundantly as you seek to serve Him in your own neck of the woods.
With love, prayers, and gratitude,
Carlos, Mayra, Alberto, and Carolina Bonilla