I'm very happy to say that SIM has accepted me and that I, in turn, have accepted a position with them. It all came together last week, in God's good timing. I still don't know when I'll be heading off though - that date is dependent on getting a few other things done first.
I went into this whole process happy to go wherever I was needed in Latin America. I did decide I should be in a city, the bigger the better, but I was open to going to a smaller city too. I was happy to live somewhere polluted, but wasn't sure how I would cope in a place that rarely saw the sun or blue sky (eg Lima - because of pollution). My secret wish was to live in Santiago, the capital of Chile, because it looked like a really lovely city. It's big, has cultural activities, is surrounded by mountains and fairly close to the sea. Basically, it's Hobart on speed.
So it wasn't any trouble for me to express my interest in a vague position that came up in Chile in November last year. I didn't hear back about it for months and, when I did, the details were pretty sketchy. So I've been finding out a bit more about it... and what I've found is good!
The position is with
Iglesia Cristo Redentor Ñuñoa (roughly, Church of the Redeeming Christ, Ñuñoa - a suburb of Santiago). I won't have any particular responsibilites during the first year - I'll just be listening and learning. And I won't necessarily stay at the church after that - where I end up will depend on my gifts and desires. I've been told great things about the church and its pastor, Juan Esteban Saravia. It has good Bible teaching, which is a bit of a rarity in Chile. The pastor's a lovely, godly guy. It's an Anglican church, began just under a year ago. It meets in a community hall and has grown so much they're looking for somewhere else to meet. The suburb it meets in is middle class, with leafy streets, lots of shops and houses with security. The pastor has offered for me to live with his family.
I'm very happy to be starting off in a good situation. I'm open to being 'a hero' later on, but I think it makes a lot of sense to begin surrounded by good people, and especially by good Bible teaching. There's good things happening in the Anglican denomination in Chile - there's a good Bible college with a few Aussie CMS guys acting as lecturers, and there's some good up-and-coming pastors like Juan Esteban Saravia. There's a chance that I'll be the first 'Women's Worker' in the city/country so I hope to play some part in the church's growing to maturity. And, on top of all this, my love of culture and nature won't go unfulfilled! God is so kind.
from here
from here
from here
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