Partners in the Gospel
Mission to Uruguay
Missionaries Mark & Jenni Richline, and Steven & Catalina Payson are proclaiming Christ in Uruguay. They are sent and supported by the Orthodox Presbyterian Church.
We are now Empty Nesters
On August 16, 1998, the Lord started our family with our first daughter. Twenty-five years later, to the day, our youngest daughter Julie, the last of her siblings to leave, flew from our Montevideo nest to begin her new career. Salvos por Gracia graced her with a beautiful “Goodbye Party” dismissing her with our Lord’s blessing. While we are in constant touch with our kids, Jeni and I are now figuring out how to do life together again as a couple in a quieter house.
29th Anniversary Trip to La Punta
The weekend before sending off our daughter, we drove up the coast to La Punta Del Este, the most popular tourist town in the country, to celebrate our wedding anniversary. Since it was off-season, we enjoyed a quiet time touring the famous Casapueblo (pictured above), walking along the beach, and dining in a couple nice restaurants. Plans for our 30th anniversary getaway are a bit more exotic and already in the making.
Rainy Day People
Thank you for keeping this country in prayer as we continue dealing with a lack of potable water due to a severe drought. Most everyone is doing fine for now, relying on bottled water for drinking and taking shorter showers. Last Thursday, while our mission was meeting in the church building, the Lord poured down the rain, all day long. It was wonderful. The only problem was that the water was seeping through our building’s sheet metal roof, flooding the sanctuary. Our meeting turned into an emergency water evacuation, sweeping it across the floor and out the door. Tonight, as I write, I hear thunder rolling across the skies and cars driving down our wet street. Our Lord is so gracious to love a nation that strives to resist him.
Loving our neighbors
Located in a highly foot trafficked area of town, our church is blessed to share Christ with many folks whom are either needy or homeless. Such a privilege requires us to depend on the Lord in his wisdom to know how best to love them. Twice now, one man has entered during our worship, and continued conversing with the preacher during the entire sermon. When another returning visitor became demanding as well as demeaning, we had to ask him to leave. But then another couple has been coming, responding to our worship with respect, and to our hospitality with thankfulness.
Leadership Training Progress
Classes have finished! Next, we meet with our elder candidate and his wife to talk about the challenges of being married to a church leader. Hopefully he then sustains his theology exam and then the session decides whether to certify him for the congregation’s vote. We seek the Lord to give discernment to our brother, our session and our members, trusting him to build his church as he wills.
Our Partnership in the Gospel with You
What great encouragement we constantly receive from all of you who support our gospel ministry in Uruguay. You remind us how we are merely one part of the greater body of Christ that longs to see his churches full! We praise the Lord for one brother who emails us twice a month to say he is praying for our mission. A group of Prayer Warriors at Redeemer OPC in Ada, MI remember us each week on their long list of prayer requests. Then there are all the personal note cards we just received from members and their children of Pilgrim OPC in Raleigh, NC. Recently someone from Living Hope OPC in Maryland explained they were planning a mission Sunday in September and requested a favorite Uruguayan recipe. This month I also connected with Delta Oaks OPC in California presenting our mission over Zoom, along with more ways for them to pray.
THANK YOU for partnering with us in this gospel ministry. Keep on the look-out for this newsletter in your email every third Saturday of the month. Thank you for keeping us in your prayers.
We would love to have you visit our Facebook Page Mission to Montevideo where you will find Uruguayan cultural tidbits, ministry updates and current prayer requests.