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Greetings!

Trying to find words to sum up the five weeks of ministry was not easy. We've experienced the warmth of relationships, the excitement of new people, places and experiences, the uncertainty of leadership transitions, and the challenges of jet lag (just to name a few). I believe the phrase Diversity In Sync fits best. We serve such a beautifully diverse group of people in such a diverse range of cultural, socio-political, environmental and economic realities and yet, thanks to the love of God that unites us and the God-given vision and mission that directs us, we are in sync! Diversity in sync is a beautiful thing to experience!

Please keep reading for glimpses into that reality.

The 222 Leadership principle is the foundation for our emphasis on emerging leaders in Latin America. We ask every leader to intentionally invest in others. To demonstrate the importance of the next generation of leaders, we asked every national leader to bring one (or more) Timothys with them to the Latin American Leaders Summit held in Colombia February 11 - 18. (Pictured here are Implementor Susana Castro, Superintendent Mercedes Reynoso and her three "Timothys" from Puerto Rico.)

It was a GREAT week and we had lots of fun! In addition, national leaders and their Timothys got in sync as together:

· We learned to communicate the Gospel more effectively by better understanding our social, cultural, and religious contexts, thanks to the teaching of Dr. Darrell Whiteman.

· We sought to grow as a community of deep spiritual formation by cultivating rhythms of prayer and discernment, signing a Covenant of Dependence on God, Community, and Love, and strengthening our interdependent relationships through fun, fellowship and mutual service.

· We continued developing a process to implement the area’s vision, mission, and core values in every District and Conference as we move toward our shared aspiration for 2030.

So why do we call our emerging leaders Timothys? Because of Paul's words to Timothy in 2 Timothy 2:2, "and the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable people who will also be qualified to teach others." Every leader needs a Timothy!

We went to Monterrey, Mexico for an Impact Latin America training session with members of the Mexican Methodist Church who are participating in the Community Church Planting (CCP) Movement. They were expecting 70 people but over 120 showed up for a great weekend of vision casting and learning from one another. As they shared testimonies of multiplying disciples and demonstrated the importance of the children in their midst it became obvious that, though our denominations may be different, the hearts of our ministries are definitely in sync.

Pictured above, Pastor Roberto invited a young boy who was going through a tough time to the front. He encouraged him and then he invited another group of kids forward to pray with him for this boy in his time of need. It was a touching moment and a reminder that we all need to walk in sync with others.

Impact Latin America is the non-profit, non-denominational organization that we created in 2019 to plant God's peace in people, families, and communities. We realized that what God was doing through CCP in the FMC couldn't and shouldn't be contained within one denomination.

During the Annual Meetings in Honduras and Paraguay we observed two smooth leadership transitions and a general "in sync-ness" with the vision and mission of the Area.

After serving 5 years as the Mission District Leader, Pastor Manuel Herrera handed the leadership baton to Pastora Sarahi Nuñez, a talented young leader. This will allow them both to serve in their areas of gifting. (All participants at the annual meeting are pictured above.)

The Paraguay Annual Conference unanimously voted to install international missionary Pastor Juan Carlos Rodriguez (on left below), as their Superintendent. Together we thanked Pr. Ceferino Ramirez (on right below) for his 16 years of service and look forward to new growth and impact in Paraguay for God's glory!

We believe God is beginning a new work in both countries and the best is yet to come!

We were able to leave for this past ministry trip only after we shoveled 3 inches of ice off our Kentucky driveway. As just one more example of diversity, we went from -9 degrees that week to 100 degrees in Paraguay this week...yet we keep walking side-by-side in sync with one another and hopefully the Holy Spirit.

We are truly grateful for God's traveling mercies and for His good and perfect will that He has invited us to participate in. Thank you for syncing your prayers with ours for the restoration of Latin America, for the continued development of healthy leaders, for the multiplication of disciples and for holistic transformation in our communities.

May God be glorified in and through each of us. With deep appreciation,

Ricardo & Beth Gomez

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