Rory and I are beyond excited to be back in Ecuador after so much craziness!! If you didn't know already, I (Claire) have been sick for about 3 months with histoplasmosis. It is a fungal infection of the lungs caused by inhaling fungal spores found in bat feces. On our last medical brigade in the jungle, almost our entire team came down with this illness and it became pretty serious for everyone. Several of us were hospitalized and underwent invasive diagnostic procedures as well. Long story short, after a lung biopsy, PICC line and strong infusions, thoracentesis, and many booked and rebooked flights, we are finally home in Ecuador. I am feeling much better and am slowly adjusting to the altitude here! I only need supplemental oxygen and have just been cleared to start exercising. I will finish my anti-fungal medication regimen in May! We felt so blessed to have some time at home with family and friends, especially during the holidays that we were expecting to spend in Ecuador, even though the circumstances weren't ideal. A hidden gift to be sure! But we are praising the Lord to be back here with our people with renewed strength and resolve. Thank you so much to everyone who supported us during that difficult season of life, through prayer, food, encouragement, etc. And thank you to those who have stood by our side financially and faithfully during this period of waiting and unknown. We love you all so much.
Now for some fun updates!! We have really dived straight back into the swing of things and it has been so wonderful. I'm going to try to keep this update less words and more pictures since there is a lot to share.
We have some really special YWAM missionaries with us this month and they have been such a joy. This was a lunch we hosted at church for the staff of the Recycler's Kids Foundation! As mentioned previously, they provide tutoring, enrichment activities, social work resources, counseling, food, and most importantly let us come and share the gospel with their students! This staff is incredible and have dedicated their lives to breaking the cycle of poverty and lack of education for this group of people. This lunch was to show our appreciation for them and care for them the way they care for so many.
A new ministry we have been working on is called "Let's Talk" and it has been super successful so far! We offer free language class/practice to all levels and ages on Friday nights! It's been bringing new people into the building and we have gotten to know so many awesome people, inviting them to home church and they have really become so close. We have English, Spanish, German, and Italian speakers helping out! We play conversation games, pictionary, charades, and people have been really learning and enjoying the fellowship. So cool!
Rory and a prayer team with Manos ministry all went to the hospital and spent time praying over patients, medical staff, and family members waiting in the lobby. The Lord totally used them to encourage and love on everyone in that building and there were many people that came to know Christ. They handed out food as well!
We also helped Manos (our church's refugee ministry) host this garage sale to fundraise to buy more food bags! It is pretty difficult to shop second-hand here because people just fix their clothes instead of buying new, so offering donated clothes at a cheap price is a huge blessing! The Lord absolutely multiplied the money we earned and SO many people came!
This sweet elderly couple came to the garage sale! Rory has been helping them buy their medicine and is currently trying to get them into an assisted living. We met them through one of our social work home visits!
Rory is SO AWESOME and started teaching an evangelism class on Wednesdays! He originally presented his class to the pastors of our church during a meeting and they were like, "Every group at our church needs to have these tools for sharing the gospel!" So this week Rory started with the counseling team!! They learned how to more effectively share the gospel and were able to put it into practice as well. SO cool to know that every staff group and congregation group will now know how to share Jesus's love in a really effective, easy way. Rory rocks.
Fun Photo Updates:
Took the team to Gualaceo and we spent the morning at a special needs school! We shared the gospel with them and made lunch for the staff & students! It was so special and the kids were so awesome to be with. Such joy!
Silly Update: Foster Dog Edition
Meet Grandpa!! He wandered into our church a few weeks ago and was unconscious in the entry way. An amazing woman volunteered to pay for all the vet bills if someone would foster him, so now we have Grandpa :) He is so old, sleeps all the time, wants so many cuddles and doesn't care about food or walks. He is the gentlest, sweetest guy. This is Rory taking him out for a walk. We got about 30 steps before Grandpa stubbornly refused to move... We are working on this. He has already made major progress! He brings a lot of joy to all the people that are constantly at our house!
Pictured below: Our first Ecuadorian Rodeo! So much fun to go with our new friends from France and support our psuedo-cousin Pedro :)
The sweet YWAM team made us dinner at our house to thank us and love on us and it was such a fun, special night! Super thankful for them. They leave this week to another city a little farther north and will be missed.
If you made it this far, THANK YOU!!!
I cannot begin to express out gratitude for the constant prayer and support we have recieved. It is so precious to be back with new tenacity and a new appreciation for our home here. The Lord has blessed us so much and we know a huge piece of that is through the body of Christ- YOU. From the bottom of our hearts, thank you so much.
Love,
The Angulo Family
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