Feliz Navidad (Happy Nativity [of Christ])! We pray each of you have a wonderful season thinking about the Lord and all of His blessings. As I sit here in the warm weather without differing seasons to note the time of year, it is still a bit strange to see decorations going up all over town. I personally can’t help but think of all those that do not know Christ as a savior in this land. Thousands and thousands of people that don’t even have a Christian church in their cities (some with populations as big as 30,000). I do not wish to make people feel guilty or to invoke a useless worldly sorrow, but I feel I must speak up and give the cry to battle! What will the Lord say to us at the Judgment Seat of Christ? I have been listening to an audio book called "Hudson Taylor's Spiritual Secret" (I highly recommend it in book or audio form to anyone interested in missionary work). He went to China alone (I think he was 20 years old) in the early 1800's and reached thousands that had no access to the gospel. At one critical point in his ministry (realizing the enormity of the task at hand) he prayed for 25 dedicated, sold out missionaries. I am seeing a similar need here in the southernmost province of Ecuador...... I am praying, God give me 10, 20, 30, 50, 100. With 50 here tomorrow there would still be plenty of work to be done!!! Pray with me!
This graphic is the most recent compilation of evangelical churches in Ecuador. Loja province, in 1985, had a population of almost 360,000, with a total of 9 recognized churches in the entire province. As of the most recent census, the current population here in Loja is around 454,000 (in 2010). In the 20+ years since this original study, the officially recognized number of evangelical churches has only risen to 12 in the entire province (according to the government, so the actual number is probably higher), the majority of those being in the capital city. It's estimated that in the province, the evangelical population is not more than 0.1%. Practically, that means only 1 out of every 1000 people is a christian. The situation in our neighboring province, Zamora-Chinchipe is much the same, though slightly less severe. This is what we are facing.
I recently had the great privilege to preach a service held here in Catamayo (where we currently live) that brought together all the bible-believing congregations for miles around (which is only about 250 people total, in an area with a population of about 50 to 80 thousand!). The pastors were having difficultly deciding who would preach (not wanting to favor one group over another), when my pastor here asked if they would want me to do it. They all seemed to think it was a great idea (probably because I am a neutral figure). So, the day of the service I pleaded that we must be focusing on the “Kingdom of God” and not on the “Kingdom of this world”. There seemed to be a great response and I beg you to pray for the native Christians here; that they would see the need, that the Lord would prepare their hearts and minds for the work, and that they would go into all the world preaching and making disciples! As we push forward in the work, we have been facing a tremendous trial of our own. We still have not been able to find a house to rent, and we have less than 20 days left to do so. I know the Lord has a plan bigger than our little eyes can see right now, but I am sure you can imagine the pressure we feel as parents of three small children in a foreign land with no family or long time friends here with us. Please pray together with us, as we trust the Lord to move in this situation. I wouldn’t hear of my children going without a place to sleep for even one night and I am more than confident that the Lord is a much better father than I am! Feliz Navidad from: Andy, Priscilla, Jude, Samuel, & Elena
PS. We will strive to have all yearly tax receipts mailed by the 2nd week of January! Please contact us if you don't receive one (and should have) or if there is an error on the tax receipt you do receive!
- Please send all monetary contributions to (our address has not changed):
Acts 1:8 Mission Society123 Burk Ln.Harrison, OH 45030.
And make all checks payable to: “Acts 1:8 Mission Society” with “DVarga” in the memo section
(All funds donated in this way will continue to go entirely to the DVarga family AND our mission work in Ecuador and are tax-deductible).
If you need a quarterly tax statement or just want to contact us, please just write to the address above or call. Our phone #: (513) 334-8281
Contact us directly at:
Our Stateside address: 123 Burk Ln., Harrison, OH 45030
Our business email: andy@dvargamission.org
Our Personal emails:
Andy's (dvargaaw@yahoo.com),
Priscilla's (priscilla.kennedy@gmail.com)
OR Phone: Magicjack#: 513-334-8281
(Our Local Cincinnati phone number that we are able to receive in Ecuador (It works through the Internet and is just like calling any Cincinnati phone number).