Chip and Meredith Jones - Serge - Chile

Yup, you read that correctly.

In spite of the pandemic, the gospel keeps growing.....and criminals keep doing their thing. Simultaneously. The truth is that under quarantine there are very few people on the streets apart from those who are ignoring the law. In this ambiance Meredith and I have had such wonderful opportunities to help many poor, homeless, addicts as well as genuine and well-known thieves of our community. The thing is that it is winter here in the southern hemisphere and going without food, a means to cook and warm clothing is taking its toll. As Meredith and I have stepped in to helping folks with those needs, it has been confusing to many believers here because the poor should "just get to working," the addict should "just say no," and crooks should "just know better." There are truths to those statements but there is a lingering question in my mind: If we who have the Holy Spirit inside can struggle to do what is right, how possible is it for those who don't have God directing their lives to do so? But the truth be known, our goal is for people to be given what they need in order to live through this winter so that they have more time to hear of Jesus and His gospel and to respond in faith.

Not only have we been blessed to help with food, clothing and firewood, but by God's grace we have all of the tools that are needed to build a type of wood fueled stove called a "rocket stove." (See photos below) One model uses only junk cans, gravel and screws....it also looks like a piece of junk so that it is not stolen from its homeless owner. The other models are made of square steel tubing and are given to those who have a home but can no longer afford to buy propane to cook with. The cool thing about these stoves is that they use tiny scraps of wood and branches so it has been interesting to see some of the debris in our area begin to disappear.

And while talking about crooks, armed robbery has been on the rise nation-wide and our neighborhood is no exception. I have had to temporarily pause making the rocket stoves in order to weld up protective bars for our windows.....I hate the ugliness that sin causes in this world, including making our home look like a jail!

While all of those things are going on and while still in quarantine, we have had many opportunities to continue teaching the gospel reaching many. The other evening the message was even broadcast over one of the radio stations! Whether by recorded video or live stream, God has continued opening doors to further ministry as we encourage our brothers and sisters, challenging and encouraging them in their faith.

Although these three things, teaching the gospel/putting bars on windows/helping crooks seem a bit disjointed, they actually are quite related to each other. The church has distanced itself from the poor and marginalized so sin grows. Because of sin, the population has to go to great lengths to protect themselves from its effects (I wonder what the annual cost of sin would add up to?). And since the human tendency is to wander away from God and to do whatever we want, things get to be like it was during the time of the judges: "And every man did what was right in his own eyes." So what is the cure? God has sent us all, you and I both to enter into that fray to teach the gospel in many creative ways to help roll back the curse of sin. So here we are, preparing sermons and helping crooks!

On that note, I am gonna get back to ministry while you go back to yours! Thank you so very much for being there for us, walking with us and praying and supporting and befriending and......everything that you have been doing to help the work here in South America. You are making a difference and you are so loved!!!

So please pray:

That the gospel message would sink deeper into churches. So that: The lost would have a place that is prepared to receive and love the broken. So that: They would hear and respond to Jesus. So that: The effects of sin in this world are systematically torn down. Who knows? I may be able to take those ugly bars off our windows!!!

For the work left undone,

Chip Jones
(Serge Global, Chile. "Grace at the Fray")