La Fuente

Chile-Argentina journal posted

noreply@blogger.com (Jimmy Bollinger) — Tue, 27 Jan 2009 20:51:00 +0000

For those of you interested in reading about the trip I took to Chile and Argentina last year, I have now, finally finished inserting pictures and have posted it here

Exciting developments in Asia for the Kingdom

noreply@blogger.com (Jimmy Bollinger) — Mon, 26 Jan 2009 02:47:00 +0000

I just returned from a men's retreat in Estes Park. Wow, what an incredible weekend. Our guest speaker is a missionary serving in Singapore who is doing ministry in China and southeast Asia.

In a seminar that he led, he shared along with another member of the church who recently returned from China some of the great things God is doing in China. Apparently, the Chinese government is paranoid about the spread of Islam in China. They view Buddhism and Hinduism as too weak and pacifist to stop it and thus are beginning to realize Christianity is not so bad. They have realized that 1) Christians are taught to respect their authorities and 2) that Christians will seek to evangelize the Muslims. As a result, the government is beginning to loosen its grip on the Christian missionary movement. The missionary said he was even invited to teach a course on the principles of Christianity at the Harvard equivalent in China, but the university sets the restriction of not being able to share specific Bible passages, just general ideas.

In another seminar I attended, there was a missionary who recently returned from Pakistan. He works in translating the Bible into the native dialect amongst nomadic sheepherders in the tribal region of the country. He was sharing about a number of Muslims who have recently converted to Christianity, including clerics. He also passionately shared about how the most effective weapon we have against Islam, even radical Islam is not guns/bombs, not evangelistic pamphlets, but PRAYER. He reminded us that the Enemy is "not of this world" and therefore none of the weapons of this world will defeat him. He also shared that most Americans have no idea that there is a huge underground Christian movement underway not just in Pakistan, but in Iran and Iraq and that the worst thing that could happen to Iran is for the US to attack it. He said they are on the verge of seeing masses of former Muslims become Christian missionaries and preach to their people. He pointed out Muslims view the US as a "Christian nation" and therefore assume all of the immorality that is part of our culture is part of the Christian religion, because that is the way Islamic nations are, with their culture permeating the beliefs of their religion. Because much of our immorality is outlawed in the Qu'ran, they violently reject it.

He also told the story of a cleric he heard of that used to be involved with terrorists and later converted to Christianity. He said the best thing we can do to Muslims we meet is to tell them to read their Qu'ran in their native translation because many times, they recite the key verses in Arabic, because of the supposed "bonus points" they will get in heaven. But, he said the Qu'ran is filled with contradictions that are obvious and that if they actually understand what they are reading, many times they have a feeling of emptiness and begin searching for something else. He also shared many Muslims ARE open to the Gospel, you just have to approach it without denouncing their faith or insulting them as this gets them defensive and closed off. This seminar was a huge eye opener for me in realizing how poweful God is and the work He is doing in the midst of so much violence and shrouded secrecy in the Middle East.

Movie plugs

noreply@blogger.com (Jimmy Bollinger) — Thu, 15 Jan 2009 19:36:00 +0000

So you probably are wondering, "how am I spending my time?" One of the things that I have enjoyed being able to do while relaxing during this time of furlough is watching some movies.

Slumdog Millionaire - I just saw this movie yesterday in the theatres and it is amazing! Definitely the frontrunner for the Oscar thus far. It's about a young man who finds himself on India's version of "Who wants to be a Millionaire?" He makes it to 10,000,000 Rupees and then is arrested on suspicion of cheating since he comes from a slum and isn't supposed to know anything. He finally begins to explain question by question to the police how the questions all had significance in his life and through these questions it portrays his life story of growing up in a slum in Mumbai.

The Ultimate Gift (2006/07) - I just saw this movie for the first time a couple of weeks ago and I cried watching it (which never happens to me). It's about a rich young man whose grandfather dies and leaves a wealthy estate. He wills pieces of it to his sons and daughters, but to the rich young man, leaves a series of tasks that he must complete in order to prove his worth in accepting it. The young man starts out greedy, uncaring and through these tasks his heart changes as he is forced to reach out to people. One of his early tasks is to find one true friend and he befriends a little girl about 7 who he later learns has leukemia and is dying. Through this relationship, his heart changes and he begins to see what his grandfather wants for him.

Humbling myself . . .

noreply@blogger.com (Jimmy Bollinger) — Tue, 13 Jan 2009 02:51:00 +0000

So today, I did something very stupid that I think all of us have done at one time or another in our lives . . .I managed to lock myself out of the condo where I'm staying. I woke up to find 6" of fresh snow on the ground. I was preparing to drive down to south Denver to visit Denver Seminary, where I had a 10 am appointment. As a result, I knew the drive would be cold, so I was sure to grab my hat, gloves, cell phone in the event of an emergency, wallet. Ok ready to go! I turn the lock on my doorknob, step out the door, shut the door and then reach for my . . .keys. The keys were still inside. And not just the condo key, the keys to car too. Bummer . . .major bummer. I then as discreetly as possible tried to check the windows. Of course they were locked. So, at this point, my plans to visit the seminary went out the window.

I wandered over to the rec. center a short two blocks away and spent the morning there trying to get out of the cold weather. With my cell phone (that had one bar of battery left), I'm frantically trying to get a hold of the lady who had given me the car/condo keys originally to see if by chance she had a spare to either. At this point, I remember the garage door opener is in the car, which is parked in the lot due to space issues, so I'm thinking if I can get inside the car, I can get inside the condo via the garage.

Finally, I hear back from the lady (Becky), who tells me she does not have a second key to either, but had thought of this scenario potentially happening. But, she gives me the number of the car owner who is in town and I call him. Yes, he has a spare key! Then I hop on the bus head to Boulder (15 min from where I live) and pick up the car key. Then I return to the condo about 4:30 get into the car, pull out the garage door opener . . .it's not working, but did several days earlier. So then I go to the grocery store to buy a replacement battery, realizing that is the issue. I get probably the last one of two batteries of its type, put in the new battery after a complicated ordeal opening the case and then the garage opens. I run inside the garage to the door and as my luck would have it - locked too.

At this point it is 5pm. I head over to this lady's house who has invited me to come over in the meantime while I try to find someone with a key. Finally, I get a hold of the owner's son who lives in Denver (30 min away). He says he has an extra key and even offers to bring it up. He's my hero today. So, at 6:30pm, 9 1/2 hours after initially locking myself out, I am back inside stressed, frustrated and very embarassed.

I learned a valuable lesson today - check for your keys BEFORE you lock the door :-), and if you have to lock yourself out don't do it on a day with 6" of fresh snow and freezing cold!

Big Changes

noreply@blogger.com (Jimmy Bollinger) — Sun, 04 Jan 2009 00:06:00 +0000

Happy New Year! Well, some changes are in store for me this year. Yesterday, I received an email from Lidia, and we are clearly moving in different directions. We have decided that we will not pursue a relationship this year. She has her heart set on going to India this year and wants to focus on support raising for that and not me.

I have also been thinking about my own experiences at La Palmera last year and while they were very great, I'm not a school teacher. I am an even worse lab supervisor letting the kids get away with everything in the book, but I have learned some valuable lessons about discipline that hopefully will help me in the future.

However, given all of these factors, I feel I will begin seminary THIS FALL as originally I had intended. God has given me peace about my study fears and I even found myself wanting to dig deeper into the Bible a couple times before I left Bolivia, a positive sign. At this point, assuming I am accepted, I am thinking I will enroll for the Masters of Divinity program at Pittsburgh Theological Seminary. It is a 3 year program.

I will be returning to Bolivia in February and will take six months to help transition the computer roles and youth ministry leadership to a Bolivian who can take over for me, since I am not sure I will return to La Palmera after seminary. The Lord is really laying on my heart a desire to plant a university ministry and I would like to do that somewhere else, where there are more college students but I am definitely thinking it will be in Latin America unless God says no.

Thank you all for your continued encouragement, and I am definitely enjoying my time of furlough.

Merry Christmas!

noreply@blogger.com (Jimmy Bollinger) — Thu, 25 Dec 2008 19:28:00 +0000

Wishing you and yours a Merry Christmas in whatever city, state, or country you are celebrating. May we all remember our Lord Jesus and the grace of God who sent His only son to die for us on the cross. I pray that your Christmas is blessed and thank you for your prayers and encouragement during my time in Bolivia this last year and a half.

I am celebrating here in Montrose, Colorado with my parents. It is snowing and we are expecting record snow here over the next few days. Telluride ski resort which is a short one hour drive away is expecting four feet of snow as part of a BLIZZARD warning. Needless to say if we can get there should be excellent skiing.

Back in Colorado!

noreply@blogger.com (Jimmy Bollinger) — Wed, 17 Dec 2008 16:30:00 +0000

Friends, I am back in Colorado. I arrived yesterday at DIA to find temperatures at a freezing 22 degrees! Just so you know, that's 70 degrees cooler than the current temperatures in eastern Bolivia. Thankfully my friends that picked me up brought a coat for me since all I had was a fleece jacket and a pair of jeans! It's a bit hard readjusting to the cold after being spoiled by tropical weather, but it's also very nice to not be sweating constantly.

I'm in Denver until Monday when I planning to take the train to Grand Junction to meet up with my parents for the holidays and then I'll be back in Denver around New Year's and will be here all of the month of January. Praise the Lord too, I have found a condo to stay in for January in Louisville, so that will be very nice.

My trip from Trinidad to Santa Cruz last Thursday was not without adventure though. On my bus, about 30 min into the trip, we started smelling smoke and everyone started yelling at the driver to pull over. We realized it was the air conditioning unit which was failing and causing problems. We told the driver to just turn it off, which he did. The rest of the way we went with the ceiling emergency exit windows open to get some fresh air into the bus. That made things at least not completely unbearable. Then, when we arrived to Santa Cruz, as we were making our way through the city towards the bus terminal, the bus ran out of diesel. The driver managed to pull over to the side of the street, but we realized it wasn't going anywhere, so we all got off and just collected our bags and got taxis to our respective destinations. You gotta love Bolivia . . .I had nice weekend with my good friends the Porcels in Santa Cruz and each time I am inspired by their hospitality and kindness.

More adventures on the road

noreply@blogger.com (Jimmy Bollinger) — Sat, 06 Dec 2008 01:07:00 +0000

I went to Santa Cruz this week with the Secondary 3 kids to see a movie, which was their prize for winning a year long Bible trivia contest. We saw the new James Bond movie, Quantum of Solace (very good btw). Part of the movie takes place in Bolivia, although I had to laugh at some of the parts because it was not a very good portrayal of the Bolivian culture. Still, it was overall a good movie.

On the way home Wednesday night, we ran into a roadblock at the town of Guarayos, about halfway between here and Santa Cruz. The people it seems were without drinking water and were protesting by blocking the road in two places. We left Santa Cruz at 8:30 pm and arrived at Guarayos at 2:30 am. There we waited . . .

After a restless night of 20 of us trying to sleep on the microbus, but failing miserably, we awoke the next morning to find the blockade still on. We saw people crossing on foot though. After a few of the students talked with the people managing the blockade, they said the blockade would not be lifted until the next day. Then Erika, the pastor's wife who went with us along with Pastor Carlos Hugo suggested we call La Palmera and have them send the truck to get us and we could cross on foot and get picked up on the other side (this process is called "transbordo" by the way). We found out however that there was not one, but two roadblocks, one on each side of the town and the other one was a fair distance from the town (about 2 km).

So we set out on foot at 9 am to cross the whole length of the town and just as we were nearing the other roadblock, a moto passed by and someone yelled "no more blockade". Just a few minutes later trucks started passing by and we realized this one was lifted. We phoned Kapa, who had stayed behind with the bus, to find out if they had lifted the other one and he said they hadn't yet. We continued on.

At the roadblock there was a house with a lumberyard and a family that invited us to come and rest on their porch while we waited for the truck. The family also opened up their kitchen to us and said we were welcome to cook something if we went and got food. So Erika went into the town on a mototaxi and then came back with some stuff to make a "locro" or stew. It was so great to find this family and it was great to know that there are still generous people in this world. God definitely was looking out for us.

In the end the truck arrived at 12:30pm and we returned to Trinidad without any problems, arriving at 4pm. I am definitely looking forward to coming home to Colorado and not having to worry about roadblocks or horrible road conditions.

Joy in San Ignacio

noreply@blogger.com (Jimmy Bollinger) — Mon, 17 Nov 2008 19:26:00 +0000

I spent this weekend with the Jovenes in the small town of San Ignacio de Moxos, about a three hour drive to the west of Trinidad. There is a sister church there, Fuente de Vida that hosted our group for the weekend. We had prearranged to do an evangelistic activity with the Jovenes of that church. God worked a miracle. We spoke with the pastor there who said they had been praying for us for some time, for the Lord to send some people to help them spread the good news around San Ignacio.

Friday night we arrived, met with the Jovenes there and taught them how to use the EvangeCube, a cube with seven images depicting the message of the Gospel. We shared with them how to use it, describing each image and then quoting the verses from the Bible, most of them well known (Romans 3:23, Romans 5:8, John 3:16, 1 Peter 2:24, John 14:6). The next day we paired up one Trinidad Joven with one San Ignacio Joven and went out to share the Gospel using these EvangeCubes.

Before we ever left, I had had very negative feelings about the trip, wondering how effective would it really be? I know people in the US are generally very closed off to hearing people talk in the format of door to door evangelism, for that reason we seek more creative methods. I was also reminded that San Ignacio is the cultural capital of the Beni, that many people are stubborn and stuck in their ways and traditions that have been practiced the last 329 years+.

Friday night however, just from the presentation that Milton, our adult pastor gave on the EvangeCube, one of the girls in our group accepted the Lord! Milton told us later it was a good sign. The next morning as we paired up, I ended up with someone who knew the cube well, which was good since I was very uncomfortable since I had not practiced it much and my Spanish was not good enough to explain things thoroughly. So, we agreed that I would read the Bible verses and he would do the explanation of the cube.

The first home we went to, we spoke to a little girl, probably about 8 or 9 years old. After listening to the message from the cube, we asked her, "do you want to know the Lord?" She nodded and I thought, WOW, it works! The next house we went to, we spoke to a young man, probably about high school or university age. As we were talking, his cell phone rang and I thought, "oh no, we've lost him for sure, he's distracted" To my surprise again though, when he came back, he heard the rest of the message and when the key question came to accept the Lord, I could see the understanding in his eyes as he said, "yes". And so it went house after house, we visited 12 homes in total that morning and EVERY person we talked to accepted the Lord!!!! I was riding a spiritual high and thinking, "I hope every pair is having this much success!". As I found out later, my partner was also nervous about going out and doing this and I think the Lord used our weakness as His strength, just as Paul writes about in 2 Corinthians 12.

As we rejoined the group at lunch and we shared our experiences, my partner and I had the most success along with Milton the other leader of the group with 12 new sons/daughters in Chris each. In total, 74 people accepted the Lord that morning in our efforts and we planted seeds in many more too!!! The Lord is faithful and each time situations like this arise, I am reminded just how often I forget who exactly it is I am working for and that this God we serve is in fact all powerful. We serve an awesome and ACTIVE God who is working in our midst and this mission in San Ignacio is direct evidence!

The next morning in church, it was pouring down rain, so there were few people there. As a result, Milton who was scheduled to speak, rather than giving his prepared message decided to have us go up and share with the folks who had come about our experiences. As I heard each of the Jovenes share about their time it was clear all of us had doubts that the Lord overcame. We told the church it is now their responsibility to follow up, pray for and disciple these new believers.

I am riding a spiritual high right now, so floored by what happened. This is affirming my desire to convert the Jovenes group into a more missions focused group and I plan to present to the pastoral council my proposal on this.

Water saga, trip to San Ignacio

noreply@blogger.com (Jimmy Bollinger) — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 12:32:00 +0000

Well, once again, I have been reminded that utilities are a blessing and that I too often take them for granted. This time it was our water that went out. Friday the water company turned off the water to the neighborhood because allegedly quite a few homes in the neighborhood had not paid their bills, some have held out as long as five years!! As a result, they were forced to turn off the water to get their money and because we have a neighborhood system, not home by home, everyone was affected, including those of us who have been paying. It was definitely inconvenient, but I am reminded that I am blessed to be living in a house where we have running water, some homes in the city do not have this luxury and have to haul water in buckets every couple of days. But, thankfully, the water was turned back on last night and I enjoyed every minute of my shower this morning.

This weekend, I am planning to lead the Jovenes on a trip to San Ignacio de Moxos, where we'll be teaming up with a sister church to share the Gospel with the people of the town. We'll be using our EvangeCube's that we were recently trained on. Please be in prayer for God to open the hearts of those who we'll encounter and for seeds to be planted in everyone. Of course this whole trip is still not 100% certain because of the rain factor, it poured yesterday (torrential downpour) and the road between here and there is not paved meaning if gets really muddy it is impassible. Pray for the rains to be held back until Sunday when we return.

Bolivia to become a "closed" country?

noreply@blogger.com (Jimmy Bollinger) — Fri, 07 Nov 2008 21:11:00 +0000

Last night at Bible study, Ademar, a member of our church's pastoral council spoke about Elijah in relation to his prayers as written at the end of James 5. Of course in those times Elijah spoke to people who were idol worshipers, most notably of Baal.

Later Ademar spoke about a seminar that he went to as part of a YWAM conference two weeks ago. At this seminar was a lawyer, who also is a Christian. This lawyer was saying the new proposed constitution in Bolivia should scare Christians because it will make the religion of the Incas a state religion. It makes provision for freedom of religion, but "in accordance with the spiritual beliefs of the state". It also states that Bolivia will "decolonize" and that the indigenous peoples will have ultimate authority because it is their land. This Inca religion will be taught in schools and holidays will be made to observe special rituals.

The ancient Inca religion worships a mother spirit called Pachamama, which the Incas (now modern day Quechuas and Aymaras) believe lives on the earth. The Pachamama requires burnt offerings, sacrifices (of llamas usually) to sustain her favor over the earth and protect it. Occasionally though, humans are sacrificed, even to this day, especially in the construction of large buildings to bless them. This lawyer that spoke said he knew of four buildings specifically in La Paz that had been built on top of a human sacrifice and had heard of many more. Many families also put llama fetuses (which are widely available in the Altiplano) in the foundations of their homes. This religion involves a lot of very spiritual practices, and is more spiritual than the Hindu or Buddhist religions.

This lawyer went on to say that Christians in Bolivia should be up in arms about these provisions protesting and speaking out against them and not waiting for the constitution to pass and then protest. But sadly, many Christians are too entrenched in other things to take notice of these disturbing realities.

Watching Election Night from Bolivia

noreply@blogger.com (Jimmy Bollinger) — Wed, 05 Nov 2008 02:54:00 +0000

Well, this is a historical night for me: I'm watching for the first time a US presidential election from the outside looking in. Due to logistical errors, I never received a ballot to vote, so it's also the first election I haven't voted in since turning 18.

I'm about to turn in after watching all the major networks give Obama the all important state of Ohio, I am confident he will be the 44th president of the United States.

It is amazing that only forty years ago we were in the midst of a civil rights movement (ten presidential terms) and now we are electing an African American as President. By no means has racism disappeared, but I think as people in my generation grow up, we are to put in MLK Jr.'s words looking to "the content of their character". My generation is a more tolerant one, I know probably because we are living in an America with a larger international presence. I know I have personally grown up with people from a dozen different countries that have influenced me in one way or another and help me to realize that the world is much bigger than the USA.

How this outcome will directly affect my work here in Bolivia, I think it will improve relations with Latin America and the US as a whole. Obama is not nearly as abrasive as Bush is and I think many Latin American leaders will relate more to him being a left leaning politician. I am hopeful next year that Morales will warm up to him, realize he's not Bush and reinitiate relations by resending ambassadors to each country. I know not talking will solve nothing.

As some of you may have heard, it seems Bolivia is however moving in the opposite direction. Just yesterday, Morales announced he is booting the DEA from Bolivia, which means the US government will have no presence in Bolivia apart from the consulates and embassy (which are without an ambassador). You may remember USAID was booted a few months ago. Some are saying Bolivia could turn into the next Colombia and become the center of drug trafficking in Latin America and with Morales' ties to the coca industry, it could happen. I hope not though.

But the thing that I continue to remember and am so grateful for is my first allegiance is not to the United States of America, but to the Kingdom of God. I'll take Jesus any day as my leader.

It's Official: agreement reached

noreply@blogger.com (Jimmy Bollinger) — Wed, 22 Oct 2008 12:44:00 +0000

Everyone in Bolivia is breathing a sigh of relief today as the conflict of the past month and a half has been resolved. What started with protests and riots in Santa Cruz and later spread to shootings in Pando and government office/airport takeovers in the east, blockades and shortages of supplies has come to an end. Monday night, the Congress convened all night to discuss the approval of the constitutional referendum and the terms of the agreement reached between the government and the opposition. Outside was a mob of pro-Evo supporters from rural areas that had marched to La Paz surrounding the building in the Plaza Murillo to demand the referendum be held. Evo joined them as they awaited the results of the session. Yesterday, around noon, the result was official, that Congress had approved the agreement and Evo in the plaza signed in front of everyone the law approving the referendum of the new constitution for January 25 of next year. It's still not clear the changes that have been made to the constitution, but I'm sure soon enough new copies will be printed and distributed nationwide. Apparently key changes were made in articles concerning decentralization of power (autonomy), land and judicial reform, and also the oil revenue sharing. I'm certain that not everyone got everything they wanted, but everyone got the most important things they wanted and that hopefully will lead to more stability here in Bolivia.

Bolivia has a long history of racism, inequality and even oppression over the last 500 years and these things have left scars, pain and distrust in many people on both sides. It will take a long time for healing, but it is my prayer that through spreading the love of Christ that people can learn to look at each other as "Bolivians" and not "Cambas" or "Collas".

Peace on the horizon

noreply@blogger.com (Jimmy Bollinger) — Mon, 20 Oct 2008 20:46:00 +0000

I came back from working at La Palmera this afternoon and as I normally do I checked the Bolivian news sites to see what's going on. To my surprise I found out that just in the last couple of hours, the national government has reached an agreement with the opposition that will clear the way for a referendum on the new constitution and also include changes to accommodate the decentralization (autonomy), land reform and oil revenue sharing changes that the opposition were demanding. Currently the Bolivian Congress is voting on the terms of this agreement which is expected to pass. From what I'm hearing the referendum will be held on January 25 of next year and then general elections will follow for everyone in December of next year. Evo has agreed as part of the deal to not seek reelection in 2014 (he is expected to be reelected easily next year), as that would be two terms for him, the limit under the new constitution (although technically he could since his current term is under what will soon be the old constitution).

Assuming all of this is really true it is FANTASTIC news for Bolivia and should ensure much more stability since many of the problems over the past decade have been as a result of issues that this new constitution aims to resolve. This means no more blockades, riots, massive protests, office takeovers . . .things are about to get a lot calmer here politically.

Praise the Lord for this wonderful news and all of your prayers during this time of conflict. Bolivia too has been praying fiercely for peace and our prayers have finally been answered. I am so happy Bolivia has actually resolved something and is making progress politically in seeking stability. However, there are still a lot of scars, tension and racism that have happened for centuries that will take a long time to heal. But, this could be the beginning of a new era in Bolivian history.

Anniversary week

noreply@blogger.com (Jimmy Bollinger) — Sat, 18 Oct 2008 21:06:00 +0000

This week we have been celebrating 23 years of CCC La Palmera and it has been a great week. Monday we started off with a flag ceremony in the main plaza, all of the kids marched from La Palmera to the plaza and then formed their lines by class and sang the national anthem, hymn to the Beni and the La Palmera school song. There was a police band that came and played the two national songs and then the students marched around the plaza with the school banner.

Tuesday morning was the marathon which I did not participate nor observe as it was early in the morning. In the evening we had a church meeting with a couple of other churches invited and we all were told to bring candles and at one point they turned out the lights and we lit our candles stood in a circle and sang "Te Pido La Paz" (I ask you for peace) in light of the political situation in Bolivia which is still very fragile and then we all prayed for Bolivia. It was quite neat.

Wednesday morning again too early for me was the bicicross or bicycle race around the block which was controlled by policeman the school had requested. Then, there was a food fair with desserts and even some more substantial foods such as kabobs! In the evening was sporting events basketball and indoor soccer as part of a parents tournament

A number of other events have taken place during the rest of the week, a talent show (an annual hit), more sports and tonight is a Christian Music night when various people will get up sing, play instruments and show off their music skills for the Lord. Tomorrow we have some special events planned in the church including a church lunch for everyone and a special cake to celebrate 23 years. In the evening the week will conclude with our weekly communion service and then a drama by some high school students.

Aside from these events, this has been the hottest week of the year here, with several days reaching triple digit temperatures! However we were blessed yesterday as a massive rain storm (complete with thunder/lightning) came and cooled things way down and so in the afternoon and today it has been much cooler, but not cold.

We're down to just 6 weeks left in the school year, please pray for a strong finish for everyone - I think both students and teachers are getting tired and are ready for the year to be over. Nov. 29 is the graduation.

Heat Wave

noreply@blogger.com (Jimmy Bollinger) — Sun, 12 Oct 2008 17:25:00 +0000

Things have been very hot here, the last couple of days have seen lows of around 85 F (30 C) and highs over 100 F (37 C). With the humidity, the heat index has to be over 110 F (41 C). This equates to not much sleep and lots of sweat. The fans in our house have been working double time . . .

My weekend with Lidia finished great, we got to talk some more and after some sound advice from some friends of ours, we decided it's best for now if we are just close friends since we realized that our emotions were controlling us and not the Lord. Although we do know some about each other, there is still a lot of things we don't know about each other and we feel it's important to not rush this step. Plus, Lidia herself is still in the midst of some decisions on the next steps in her life and she is not ready yet to commit to a serious relationship at least until after this process is over. I think we're both on the same page now and realize that there is a gap still between us, but we also still believe it can be closed with time. Please continue to pray for us as we move forward. . .

Yesterday I went with the Jovenes to Villa Alba where we did another Happy Hour with the kids, and it was a great time. We additionally served them breakfast of bread and hot chocolate (typical). Four kids received the Lord as their Savior and we left content with what the Lord accomplished through us. Last night we had our Jovenes meeting and also discussed some changes to get more people involved and also modify the format a bit to try and get more people to come and also have people be more enthusiastic. It was a positive meeting and I think we are all excited to make these new changes.

Some of you ask me about the political situation - it’s still fragile. Both sides are still at an impasse yet dialogue continues, which is positive since before the violence there was no dialogue. Evo is currently seeking legislative approval for a referendum on the new constitution, which could take place in December, but probably realistically won’t happen until next year.

Doctrine, Simplicity and Application

noreply@blogger.com (Jimmy Bollinger) — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 22:13:00 +0000

So I have been in Santa Cruz the past three days visiting my girlfriend, Lidia. We are having a great time, but also have had a lot of emotion in the last couple days, which I think is a result of us sharing so much so fast and wearing ourselves out. You can be in prayer for us as we seek God's will and wait for HIS timing, not ours.

Lidia and I were talking yesterday about our faiths, something that we had previously not done and we come from different denominations (she's evangelical and I'm Presbyterian). The subject of baptism came up when I was talking with her dad on Saturday and yesterday she and I talked about it. Our two churches have different views on baptism, specifically infant baptism. My church baptizes infants and hers does not, it is something strictly done after accepting the Lord. The evangelicals follow Jesus's example and believe it's not appropriate to baptize until one has accepted the Lord in faith, that it is important to profess commitment to God in front of the church and in most churches a prerequisite for taking communion. So, for me to say that I was baptized as an infant raised a huge red flag between us. As I explained my interpretation of the Presbyterian doctrine, she started telling me about her experiences in YWAM.

One of the things she said to me that she liked about her experiences in YWAM was that she was learning theory and getting to put it into practice at the same time. Her denomination is very simple and very literal in their interpretation of the Bible and it got me to thinking, do we as Christians in denominations sometimes overthink doctrine and "miss the forest for the trees" and try to complicate things that really shouldn't be difficult to understand? She suggested to me that I consider studying the Bible in a YWAM school where they have a non-doctrinal approach to study so as to have a non-biased view of the Bible (or at least as much as possible) and then if I still wanted to, to attend seminary. So, that has been on my mind and I am praying about what the Lord's will is for me. She mentioned to me that there were YWAM schools in the States where she thought we could both go and she could learn English while I do the study. It's something I am beginning to think about since I definitely want to be a "Christian first" as my friend Chris once said and "Presbyterian second".

Some developments

noreply@blogger.com (Jimmy Bollinger) — Sat, 27 Sep 2008 15:55:00 +0000

Since I last wrote, some significant things have happened in my life and in Bolivia. The situation here continues to be fragile, but this past Monday after nearly two weeks of a closed road between Trinidad and Santa Cruz, the MAS supporters (pro Evo) in the east decided to lift their roadblocks. Gasoline arrived yesterday with lines over three blocks long in most places (3-5 hour wait). Food is also beginning to arrive again and I believe diesel too. Things are returning to normal, although the government and opposition have not reached an agreement. MAS supporters (pro Evo) are threatening to bring back the blockades if the opposition doesn't agree to the government's offer by Monday. Most government offices have been returned too and all airports in the country are operating as normal again. Basically, we're back to status quo.

In the church, this weekend we are having a Bible reading marathon. September was the month the first Spanish Bible was translated, so we are doing a non stop reading marathon for about 36 hours. Apparently it takes ~70 hours to read the whole Bible, so we should be somewhere in Psalms when we finish. People from our church, other churches, the school, other schools and random people have all read a little bit (including me). Tomorrow are having a special all day outing with the church where we will have a morning service, eat lunch together, play games and then go for a swim, have some baptisms and then do our communion services. Should be a fun filled day.

And now to my personal news. My good friend Lidia who has been in Chile the past year more or less involved with a YWAM counseling school returned two weeks ago and contacted me last Tuesday. I called her and talked with her at great length. Apparently after discussing our relationship with her mentor in Chile just before she left and sharing some emails, particularly one of my later emails that was pretty honest and direct her mentor said, "Lidia, you should pray about this, this guy seems serious about being with you and entering ministry with you". This got her attention as you can imagine. So returned and she told me she wanted to spend more time with me and pursue the possibility of marriage in the near future. However due to the political situation, she's been stranded in the south border town of Yacuiba where her parents live and has not been able to return yet to Santa Cruz. But we have spent a good amount of time (hours) on the phone sharing things with each other and getting to know each other on a deeper level. I feel the Lord bringing us closer together and each time I am sad to say goodbye on the phone. She is planning to return to Santa Cruz this week (if the blockades don't return) and so I am planning to go see her next weekend which is perfect since have Monday and Tuesday off too for a couple of holidays! I'm SO excited to spend this time with her and am praying the Lord gives both of us wisdom as to timing and future plans together. I am falling in love with her more and more each time we talk and get to know each other.

Light at the End of the Tunnel

noreply@blogger.com (Jimmy Bollinger) — Mon, 15 Sep 2008 13:17:00 +0000

Thank you to all of you who have been concerned about my safety, for your emails and prayers. I am pleased to say things appear to be getting better in Bolivia now. Yesterday, Vice President Alvaro Garcia Linera met with the governor of Tarija, Mario Cossio for 7 hours, and the second meeting in three days to discuss a solution. Mario represents the group CONALDE (National Democratic Council) which is the group of people supporting the autonomy movement in the east. Apparently the meeting went very well, so well that both sides feel confident an agreement can be reached, possibly as soon as tonight when President Evo Morales returns from an emergency summit in Santiago, Chile to discuss the crisis with other S. American leaders. As a gesture of good will, the roadblocks in the Santa Cruz region have been lifted.

I just read a very good summary of how the whole crisis started, some of its earliest beginnings took place in 2000 before I ever set foot on Bolivian soil. It also explains the suspicions of Morales over US Ambassador Philip Goldberg and why he ordered him to leave. There is still a ways to go in resolving the situation completely, but things are definitely more optimistic and these talks could lay the groundwork for a more stable Bolivia.

Trinidad has remained calm and peaceful throughout this whole crisis, the only things we have been affected by are the roadblocks which have prevented food and gas shipments from arriving. Apart from that, life is normal here.

Bolivia on Edge

noreply@blogger.com (Jimmy Bollinger) — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 20:36:00 +0000

Well, undoubtedly news from Bolivia has surfaced in the States, so let me bring you up to speed on the events that have taken place here in Bolivia this week.

Let me start by saying that things are fine here in Trinidad. Everyone is working, schools are open, and things are basically normal. I feel safe, and so far no violence has taken place in the city. I am continuing to work as normal at La Palmera.

To give a recap of the past six months briefly which has led to this. You'll recall earlier this year, four departments have voted for autonomy (Pando, Beni (where Trinidad is), Santa Cruz and Tarija) via the movement fueled by their regional governors (prefectos). Additionally, Chuquisaca (where the city of Sucre lies) has joined the autonomy movement out of desire to restore Sucre as the capital of Bolivia, claiming they have a more representative cross section of Bolivia than La Paz. The recall vote that was held last month reaffirmed the prefectos of the autonomy movement as well as Evo, which as I eluded to some time ago was seen by both sides as a mandate to carry out their agenda. Evo has a communist driven agenda and is supported by Hugo Chavez of Venezuela.

This week, the autonomists have spoken up via actions in Santa Cruz, Tarija and Beni. Tuesday in Santa Cruz, a group of autonomists and handicapped people took several offices for national governement ministries and one resulted in a confrontation between military/police which involved tear gas. At least 50 people were injured in this. In addition, Tuesday the airport here in Trinidad was taken by an affiliated group, as well as in two other cities in the Beni but there was no confrontation involved in any of them. This has suspended flights here and is costing the airlines $60,000/day. Yesterday, more offices were taken in Santa Cruz for other national government ministries and also the bus/train terminal. About 12 such offices have been taken in total. The current state of the country is that there are over 30 roadblocks in the eastern part of the country blocking every major route and also exits to Brazil, Paraguay and Argentina. This is preventing travel, supply shipments (most notably cooking gas and fuel for transportation) and some food shipments from arriving. But we have plenty of cows here in the Beni, so we won't run out of meat and there is always bread too. So I won't starve!

Additionally last night, President Evo Morales accused US Ambassador Philip Goldberg of conspiring with the people in the east and has told him to leave Bolivia immediately. His accusations of course have no basis, but the ambassador has been embattled for quite some time now and earlier this year there was speculation that Bush would recall him and appoint a new ambassador, so really it's probably a good thing for US-Bolivian relations that he leaves.

But, one piece of good news . . . the Bolivian soccer team drew with Brazil 0-0 in Brasilia last night in their World Cup qualifier, so that is something to cheer about as nearly everyone expected Brazil to win easily! Bolivia has very little chance of qualifying for the 2010 World Cup at this point, but hopefully they'll move out of last place in the group.

Coping with life in Bolivia

noreply@blogger.com (Jimmy Bollinger) — Sat, 06 Sep 2008 14:24:00 +0000

So, many of you probably wonder, how can you live in a place so politically unstable? To be honest, it's not easy. As eventful as things currently are here, I'd much rather trade the peacefulness of places like the US, Canada, Europe or even other S. American countries. But, I'm realizing it's another trial from the Lord, again testing my patience and trust. If I could give one word to sum up what God has been teaching me this year, it's trust and I've seen it in nearly every area of my life. And honestly, it's been very difficult. But, He has kept me safe, given me food every day, given me a wonderful community and a lovely place to live. This place is darker every day, in need of God's love and so I feel even more privileged each day as the Lord works in my life and gives me the tools to bring His light to the world.

Currently in our youth group (Jovenes) meetings we are learning how to use the EvangeCube, which some of you have probably heard of. They are cubes that change into 7 different images portraying the message of the gospel. Another pastor in town is teaching us a 6 lesson course on how to use them as ministry tools. After we finish we hope to go to surrounding communities (like Villa Alba, San Pedro Nuevo, etc.) and share with these people (especially kids), the message of the Gospel. Last weekend we went to Villa Alba, had a happy hour of worship with the kids and distributed Bibles, it felt so rewarding to see the joy on these kids faces and let them know that we hadn't forgotten about them.

Today though, I am enjoying an unexpected "Sur", cold front which is much colder than normal for this time of the year. It's allowing me to get some rest and take my mind off of other things in my life and just enjoy my day off. But this peace would not be possible without the trust God is teaching me. So my challenge to you is, where are you placing your trust today?

Bolivia in the NY Times

noreply@blogger.com (Jimmy Bollinger) — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 12:55:00 +0000

For those of you interested in Bolivian politics, there was a NY Times editorial published two weeks ago about the situation here. It's pretty accurate.

There is also a very good response to this editorial from Jim Shultz, who is a an American, living in Cochabamba, Bolivia and who is a political analyst. He can sometimes be very liberal in his remarks, but I found this particular response to be really good. This response was published last week in the NY Times.

Things are peaceful here in Trinidad. At the moment the repercussions are mostly just inconvenience. But I'm learning to live with it and am definitely keeping an ear to things.

The latest development, passed over the weekend was a decree by Evo Morales that roadblocks are now illegal. The department of Santa Cruz has publicly announced yesterday that they will refuse to obey this. This puts the situation back into Morales' hands as to whether or not he will use force to remove them. A similar situation arose in Oruro a few weeks ago that left one person dead and several injured.

Please keep Bolivia in your prayers as this is a very fluid situation that seems to get a bit worse every day.

My birthday in Trinidad

noreply@blogger.com (Jimmy Bollinger) — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 13:07:00 +0000

My birthdays in Bolivia the past two years have both been special. Last year I spent it with Lidia and we had a special time together and this year I spent it with my dear friends at La Palmera. This is the fourth time I have been in Bolivia for my birthday, but the first time I have spent it in Trinidad. The day started off with the staff singing happy birthday to me after devotionals. Throughout the morning various students came up to me and wished me happy birthday with a hug and kiss (customary here). Then as I was in the lab, one of the classes sang happy birthday to me and in English! I was impressed. In the evening, I decided to throw a barbecue (parrillada) with steak, sausage and grilled chicken for my friends from the project. About 25 people came and we had a great time. I paid for the meat and the birthday committee from the school paid for the sides of rice, salad and drinks.
My birthday spilled over into yesterday as well when the graduating class gave me a card with special messages from all of them. I think at some point my eyes watered up with emotions of being grateful, as I realized what a wonderful community I am part of. Thank you to those of you praying for a great birthday for me.

In other news, I went down to immigration yesterday to inquire about the process for a 2 year visa (the next one for me). The visa requires me to send all of my paperwork to La Paz for processing. However, after speaking with a guy at the immigration office, he was honest with me and said I'd be better going to La Paz and presenting in person because there are people who have sent their papers from Trinidad and haven't heard anything for months, mostly due to laziness on the part of the people at the Trinidad office and mail delays. So, it looks like I'll be heading there in a couple weeks to take care of all of this. However, because there will likely be a delay in processing, I may take advantage and take a trip to Lake Titicaca for a few days, which is just a short 3 hour drive away from La Paz. You can be in prayer for this visa process as I've learned dealing with the official stuff is never straightforward.

The Post-Revocatoria news

noreply@blogger.com (Jimmy Bollinger) — Mon, 11 Aug 2008 23:49:00 +0000

Yesterday was the "revocatoria" or recall vote on Bolivia's President, Evo Morales and all nine of the regional governors. Despite recent protests and rallies (including one here at the airport in Trinidad that prevented Evo from landing with Hugo Chavez), the day was peaceful. The results were that Evo retains his office with 63% of the voters in favor. Four of the nine departments voted heavily against Evo though (Beni (where Trinidad is), Santa Cruz, Chuquisaca and Tarija). Three governors were voted out, those of La Paz (who was not part of Evo's MAS party and had spoken out against him quite a bit), Cochabamba (Manfred Reyes Villa who was responsible for the death of 2 people on the streets of Cochabamba last January) and Oruro (where a recent police shooting took place). However, all of the key oppositions governors - Ruben Costas (Santa Cruz), Ernesto Suarez (Beni) and the governor of Tarija were approved with overwhelming support.

Evo gave a speech after the unofficial results congratulating Bolivians on completing a historic day without violence. It was respectful and he indicated at least in his speech to work for a "united Bolivia" specifically naming all nine departments. How serious he is, we'll see in coming weeks and months. Clearly now, Evo is riding a lot of momentum and my guess is that his next move will be to ratify the new Constitution. How things unfold depends entirely on how the opposition reacts, but for the time being we can expect status quo - strikes, protests and road blockades.

Keep Bolivia in your prayers, this is a very sensitive situation and is far from over. . .

The Lord's work at Camp

noreply@blogger.com (Jimmy Bollinger) — Sun, 03 Aug 2008 02:20:00 +0000

I just returned from a three day camp at the La Palmera Chaco (about 45 min from Trinidad) and it was a great camp. The kids learned about obedience as the theme. Last night was a wonderful time in communion with the Lord and the Holy Spirit was moving our group and there was a call for people to come forward and pray the sinners prayer. Then they called forward classmates and leaders to pray over the new Christians and later invited parents and family. It was so beautiful with people weeping in happiness, and then we capped it off singing a slow paced worship song "Nina de tus Ojos" (apple of your eyes) which talks about how God loved us when we were sinners. It was the perfect evening to finish off the camp program.

Next up: My 3rd parade for Bolivian Independence Day on Aug. 6 and then my 28th birthday on the 12th!!