Bern Talks

Bolivia Day 2 - Pressed Down...Not Destroyed!

Dear Friends,

What a difference a day makes! Yesterday at this time I was hooked up to an oxygen tank but today I am tanked up on Jesus, thanks to you! Your prayers and words of encouragement has fueled my spirit and given me the strength to go on. What an unimaginable joy it is to receive an email from almost all of you!! I feel so loved.

My day started with Jeff pushing my wheelchair into the Santa Cruz Christian Learning Center. This is an English speaking school for missionary children and middle to upper class Bolivians. The school has about 120 Middle and High School students. I spoke at their weekly chapel service in English which was great. The kids responded very well, laughing and cheering as I spoke. At the end, 6 students raised their hands to receive Jesus, and numerous others who simply wanted me to pray for them.

After chapel, this 13 year old boy, Carlos, requested to speak with me in private. He said, “You’ve really made a difference in my life today. You challenged me to be serious about my decision for Christ. I have said the prayer many times but never really took it seriously. But today I’m serious and I just want you to pray with me.” Jeff and I were able to pray with Carlos and encourage him. Suddenly, all my struggles began to fade in the light of God’s glorious Grace.

From there we drove for the longest time to a school in a poor area of Santa Cruz. The “auditorium” was outside under a tin roofed structure without sides. The kids had to bring their own chairs from their classrooms and set them up under the structure. It was very windy and dirt was flying everywhere. Nonetheless, it wasn't long before I was encircled by at least 150 High School students eager to hear my story. The students all listened intently and at the end 12 made decisions for Christ!

Amazingly another young boy, Jose, 15 years old, stayed behind to speak with me. Using an interpreter he told me how excited he was that he had opend his heart to Jesus today. He said he had never been told that there was such an option. He was so excited! I later saw him giving one of my Spanish salvation pamphlets to one of his friends.

Here’s something worth mentioning, as I was speaking two little girls literally climbed over the wall from the house next door to hear my story! Afterwards they snuck out of their yard and came to my car asking for the pamphlets that I was giving out to the other kids. Not only did they want one for themselves but for the rest of their family! WOW!!

Good news, MY CHAIR IS WORKING AGAIN!!! It suddenly started working just before my last engagement! I'm also feeling much better. I'm still having a little shortness of breath while doing my presentations but that's to be expected considering all that I've been through so I continue to press onward. “For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, for what is seen is temporary but what is unseen is eternal.” 2 Cor. 4: 17-18

Beaming in Bolivia,
Bernadette