Today's newspaper, pictured above, tells about the plans the government is making to gradually lift quarantine over the next three months while striving to prevent an increase in Coronavirus cases. It will be a difficult balance to achieve and it will continue to cause inconveniences for many. One of the points of the article though is that it isn't just the governments responsibility, the citizens share in the responsibility or reactivating a healthy society.

Pastoral ministry is another thing that for too many has fallen out of balance in the midst of this pandemic. In order to succeed, pastors have had to basically reinvent themselves and the way that they serve their communities. For many this implies even higher levels of stress, more hours of work and a loss of contact with those whom they serve, just to mention a few things. Without proper balance, some pastors are on the brink of burn-out.

For this reason, the Pastoral Care team in the Latin America Area has organized a special seminar for this Saturday. All of the District and Conference leaders plus all of the pastors and their spouses are invited to attend this seminar called "Healthy Rhythms in the Midst of the Pandemic."

Any time my Dad talks to Ricardo he asks, "What countries have you been to today?" The answer is often a list of countries. Zoom makes travel so much easier now...despite the fact that the borders are still closed! For example, this morning Ricardo and Bishop Adams led a time of accountability and prayer with leaders in 16 Latin American countries.

It has been decided that all of the remaining annual conferences in 2020 will be held via Zoom. We are greatly encouraged by the fact that the virtual meetings in both Ecuador and Colombia were very successful. In fact, over 100 computers/cellphones connected to the Colombian meeting last weekend. Of course, this means that between now and November 28, 7 Saturdays will be spent in all-day annual meetings as Ricardo "travels" to different countries (not including additional meetings with Area Directors and some other groups). Pray that these meetings will be encouraging to each participant and Spirit-infused. The biggest benefit for us is that the family isn't separated by the distance and we even get to eat lunch together!

We are also making plans to speak at a Missions Conference in Kentucky this September...also virtually, of course. We'd love to "visit" your church too and/or sit down and have a cup of virtual coffee with your family. Please get in touch so we can work out a suitable time!