jesus – Loucks 2 Paraguay

March 2026

The heart of man plans his way, but the LORD establishes his steps.

Proverbs 16:6

What a great promise to lean upon as we serve the Lord here in Paraguay. You think of all the plans we establish on this earth. As westerners we are planners but often with that comes a little disappointment because not everything we plan goes according to that plan. However, when the heart of man is fixed on the work of the Lord, how blessed we are to complete the task that we set out to do. Colossians 3:23-24 says “Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ.”

Back in November we had started communicating the idea of going to Encarnacion as a team and hosting two missions conferences. There are two churches that are both run by Paraguayan pastors that have a desire to do more in reaching their communities as well as into other parts of Paraguay. In December we had set the dates, we would go and spend 10 days in Encarnacion with Pastor Juan Carlos Mancuello and Pastor Joel Benitez.

Our first weekend was with Pastor Juan Carlos Mancuello and his church Iglesia Bautista Biblica de Cambyreta, and we had a great time. The conference started Saturday night with a Men’s Bible Study on the Purpose of Godliness. Sunday Kathleen and Adela took the kids for a class, while Felix taught the Sunday School hour on the calling of all of us to be involved in missions. During the morning service the ladies did another kids class while I preached on the importance of being on mission where God has you. Then in the evening the ladies had a study that Kathleen taught on “How Holiness affects our Service”.

We always feel welcomed at this church! They have a heart for serving their community and sending out people into the work that the Lord has called them to. With this trip we were able to establish some very good relationships in the church and are excited to be planning another trip or 2 as we have been asked to speak at a couple other conferences. We ask that you continue to pray for the church and their desire to serve.

The week went fast but we were blessed with a couple rest days and lots of time to connect with both the pastors to find out how we can better serve them in their ministries. The following weekend we kicked off again Saturday evening for a late night start to the Missions Conference. This was our first time visiting Iglesia Bautista Maranatha but it really was a joy! Hosting two missions conferences back to back was nice because the base for the material was the same with some minor tweaks. I spoke Saturday night on the importance of being on mission serving in the local church as it affects our service to our communities and the world. Sunday morning, Felix spoke on the who is called to serve and walked us through how God had used many men who felt uncalled, but were used greatly. Then I closed up with the commands of being salt and light and the impact our message has on the world around us.

Again, the ladies worked together two run a kids class so that the parents could be part of the conference and they were very thankful for the opportunity. It was also great to hear how much fun the ladies had working together and forming a relationship. Many of you know that Felix and Adela are praying to begin a church plant later this year and we hope to partner with them in this work. Having this time together strengthened the bond of unity and fellowship for the ministry. We are excited to see where the Lord might take us next.

As mentioned, we have already begun planning for what lies ahead in Encarnacion. Pastor Mancuello has asked us to organize a conference that will focus on strengthening the church and the families in the church. Our goal is to maybe do 4 conferences this next year and we ask that you please pray for us and the planning of these events. Pastor Joel has asked that we come in September for an Evangelistic event to share the gospel in an open-air event. He has also opened the door for other activities should we be in the area.

Praise the Lord for the three souls that confessed faith in Jesus Christ. Please pray for the groups that go out into the communities each week from these churches. Several teams are being formed and propelled to being “On Mission” (our theme for the conferences). Please pray for us as we need to make a trip to the capital city soon to receive our Passports, and are also planning a trip to Santani to get to the know the area that Felix and Adela desire to serve in. We are also working with Pastor Juan Carlos Escobar on planning a trip to help encourage our brothers in Tobati.

Isaiah 26:7 “The path of the righteous is level; you make level the way of the righteous.” What a joy it is to know that when our hearts are set on the Lord, his plans are our plans.

Thank you for taking time to read our update and know what is going on in our lives, now how can we pray for you?

Jaha Paraguay Pe,

Jared and Kathleen Loucks

January 2026

And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.

Philippians 1:6

When we began this journey 6 years ago we chose Philippians 1:6 as our theme verse because in it we were comforted by a very specific promise from God. Our God has purposed us to a good work, that he will complete until the day of Christ Jesus. As our sending church begins this year with the theme of focusing on the promises of God, we too think it is a great time for us to reflect. An added bonus was that while we were celebrating the new year, we blessed with a double rainbow reminding us of another specific promise from God. What promises in Scripture are your favorites?

We rang in the new year with Pastor Juan Carlos and the family and had a wonderful time of celebration. It was great to be around so many faces and to learn a little bit of culture for how they celebrate the new year. Can you believe it, they actually stay up until mid-night and bring out snacks so they can stay awake longer? Our kids were cooked from swimming all day so we got to bed around 1am. It really was a blessed time of sweet fellowship for all the family.

The year came to a quick close with lots of studying and ministry wrap ups, but also some planning for the future. We are excited to share with you some of the things we are looking forward to as we start into 2026. We hope that this ministry update will give you some very clear things to pray for, but also encourage you in that the Lord is not done, the harvest is still very plentiful!

As many of you are aware the last several months we have spent time working on discipleship with a group in Hernandarias. This is a city just north of us about 20 to 25 minutes that is growing rapidly. It is our desire that in the first few months of 2026 we will start an evening Bible Study that will open the opportunity for some of those from the group to invite their family and friends. We are asking for specific prayers for strength for the core group that has been meeting, but also for a young man and family to join in the work as the Pastor of the church. Would you please join us in praying for the work in Hernandarias!

Secondly, it was brought to my attention that Missionary Felix (the man whom I do most of my traveling with) and his wife, Adela, are planning to leave in June or July to begin a work in in central Paraguay. While we are sad to see them go, we are excited to see them following the Lord into ministry. We are praying for how we can be part of this ministry and how the Lord would use us in helping encourage our brother and sister as they go. Will you please be praying for this opportunity now and we look forward to sharing more about this couple and the ministry that God leads them to.

Thirdly, God has blessed us with the opportunity to connect with other churches in Paraguay and to begin to organize some conferences to help encourage local churches. At the end of February and the beginning of March we will be traveling for about two weeks and sharing in a couple different conferences. These will allow us to support the local pastors in their ministries and encourage the church bodies to be faithful in their local church and its ministries. One of the desires we have is to help strengthen local churches that they would be able to send out men and women into the ministry.

What will we do with the other ministries that we have been involved in? We are glad you asked! We still plan to be involved here at Iglesia Bautista Biblica Jerovia, but it will require that we find some other helpers to fill in. The Club de Niños and discipleship ministries are precious to us! However, we were called for other ministries as well and so we ask that you pray for other leaders to be involved and to step up to help out.

How is that for some exciting news? God is doing great things here in Paraguay and is taking the gospel to new communities. We are excited to be part of the process, but we know we do not do it alone. We want to thank you for your faithfulness in love, support and encouragement that made the 2025 year such a great success. As we continue to adapt to life in Paraguay, and the Lord continues to move us forward, we know we do not do it alone! What does 2026 have in store for you? Just as we have asked you to pray for us and the ministry in Paraguay, how can we then pray for you?

Thank you for faithfully taking time to read our ministry updates and to pray for us. Missions is a team effort, and we are glad you are part of it!

Jaha Paraguay Pe,

The Loucks Family

Christmas 2025

“And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.”

John 1:14

I must honestly say how I greatly enjoy the Spanish translation of John 1. In Spanish there are two words that can be used to express “Word”. One of those is a “palarbra”, a general word used, but in John 1 they use the word “Verbo”. This carries the significance that Christ’s coming had action, it had reason, and purpose. The reason was what Paul Tripp describes as the dark side of the Christmas story. Our sin is what brought the Son of God to the earth. We were the reason, but God had a purpose. Our Salvation! The baby laid in the manger was on a rescue mission. We pray that in the middle of all the running around this Christmas season, that you would take a moment to reflect on our great need of that baby boy. Emmanuel!

Most of the months just mix together at this point. November turned quickly to December and just like that the month is almost over. However, I am thankful for the moment this morning to pause and give thanks to God for what he has done in the last month. As the temperature rises here in Paraguay we begin to close out ministries for the year and prepare for summer break. Here is a quick recap of what the last month has looked like.

Closing out ministries is never fun. We have had a great year making memories with many wonderful people. Kids club wrapped up really well for the year. The heat snuck in those last couple weekends, so numbers were down, but we were able to give the kids a nice meal and some cake on the last day. It really is a joy to serve these communities and to finally be breaking ground into their lives. The other day while Kathleen and I were out on a walk a couple of the boys from the kids club yelled out to say hi, and that was pretty special.

Last night we had the closing of our Bible Study group in Hernandarias. I have really grown to love this group and Kathleen has just started her connection with the ladies. We are excited for what 2026 will bring as we hope to start an evening Bible Study that we can open to the community. Will you please pray for this? Also, please pray for a young couple that has come a few times to the study. I am fairly confident that they are not believers, but they are asking a lot of questions!

We also had the blessing of having Pastor Mancuello and his wife stop by for a quick meal. It was great to finally have some one-on-one time with them to discuss how we can help better serve them down in Encarnacion. We are excited for how the Lord is opening doors into this ministry. We will be sure to share more about this in the near future.

The kids are setting in nicely to a few weeks off from school. Kathleen is able to connect with more of the teachers because they are free in the mornings. The girls have helped with making many Christmas treats and Temperance has been hard a work making Christmas gifts. As many of you are trying to keep warm, we are working hard to cool off these days, so often the kids will throw on their swimsuits and go play in the water out back. It is nice to have all the laughter around the house and to hear the kids making great memories. We even spent one afternoon making gingerbread houses and it was a blast!

While things are slowing down and Ciudad del Este is becoming a ghost town we will be staying home and keeping busy. The kids will resume school after the new year and we will try and take a few days to get out and enjoy. However, I will be preaching twice in January and as we bring in 2026 there is lots to be working on and get organized. Lord willing I will be able to share more details about the 2026 year in our January update. As for now, please continue for the growth of the ministry here in Paraguay.

We thank you all for taking time to read our ministry update and for your faithful prayers for the ministry here in Paraguay. We pray that you all have a wonderful Christmas season remembering the greatest gift of all was a little baby boy laid in a manger, God with us.

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year from all of us to you!

Jaha Paraguay Pe,

The Loucks Family

September 2025

Oh give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; for his steadfast love endures forever!

1 Chronicles 16:34

It has been a great year reflecting on verses that draw our attention to the goodness of our God. Matthew Henery in his commentary states that “Let God be glorified in our praises. Let others be edified and taught, that strangers to him may be led to adore him.” The message of Christ is greatly affected in how we choose to live for him. May we glorify the name of Jesus and may it speak volumes to the lost around us.

This Month has been a busy month that we almost forgot it was coming to an end. As I stated in the last ministry update I (Jared) would be traveling with Missionary Felix to Encarnacion to check in on Pastor Juan Carlos Mancuello as well as making a trip to Pilar to check in on Missionary Victor. Praise the Lord we were able to organize a trip and go serve our brothers and sisters in these two cities.

We did a lot of driving in the four days while we were gone, averaging about 4 hours a day in the car, but it was very worth it. The pictures above are from the new ministry work in Pilar that we will share more about in coming months. Missionary Victor and his wife Mercedes are doing a great work at reaching a cold community. I say that not just because they sit off the river in the south of Paraguay, but because the people are unlike any I have met in Paraguay. Will you please continue to pray for this wonderful couple and the people that God has called them to serve.

It was great catching up with Pastor Mancuello again and share from the Word of God. The church added two new deacons just the week prior to our visit and we were encouraged at the growth and hunger for the word of God. Pastor Juan Carlos Mancuello was blessed to receive a VISA for the United States and is praying to return to the US in 2026 to share of his ministry. If your church would be interested in having him share his ministry please let me know. I would love to help you make contact with this great brother and his ministry.

We have had an abundance of opportunities to plug into the lives of believers and encourage them in their walk with Christ. Kathleen gets to teach a lesson for the ladies group every other month, along with opportunities to teach in Children’s Church and Kids Club. These are growing times as they help us in building relationships and discipling lives. This month I was asked to teach at a youth conference on “The Battle for Holiness”. The youth included those from 13 years to 30 years old, and it was a great opportunity to encourage them in their Spiritual Walk. The battle is one we all face daily, but the blessing is we do not face it alone!

This month’s ministry video will be focused around our Kids Club (Club de Niños). We have learned so much through this program and are blessed to serve the Lord by reaching the community around us. Iglesia Bautista Biblica Jerovia was stated with a kids ministry and we have learned that the best way to impact lives here in Paraguay is through ministering to the kids. We hope that you will take a moment and watch out update and see why this ministry is so important.

Thats a wrap for another ministry update. We want to thank you all for your faithfulness in praying for us and encouraging us along the way. Now, how can we pray for you? Please send us an email and let us know how we can lift you up in prayer!

Jaha Paraguay Pe!

The Loucks Family

Kid’s Corner:

A man from our church asked if Jedidiah and I wanted to train with his team in Kickboxing. As a father I thought it would be a great way to connect with Jedidiah more and he has loved it. Not only has he been training hard, but he is also connecting with others and learning to follow leadership. Would you please pray for him and his testimony among his team members? We train with the team two times a week and there is a variety of contacts (it also helps that our coach goes to our church!).

August 2025

The Lord, the Lord God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abounding in goodness and truth.

Exodus 34:6

It is amazing to look out and see the goodness of God all around us. From the home and watching the kids learn and grow, to the church and being blessed to serve such a great and awesome God. We are continually humbled by the opportunity to wake up here in Paraguay and know this is where our good God has called us to be.

Hard to believe that another month has come and is almost gone. We have had a month of construction, rain and service. The home we are renting needs plenty of work, but we are comfortable making it into a home for us. We began praying and looking for a new place several months ago but ultimately landed on staying put. While the house needs repairs and we are working on those, it is close to everything we need and all the connections we have made in the first year. We are excited to get things finished up so that we will have a living room to host people in soon!

We have lost track if this is the second or third cold snap that we have had this year, but the August showers will hopefully bring out the flowers. Winter in Paraguay has been interesting to adapt to. We usually have a few cool days followed by a quick change to warm and humid. For example, the highs the last few days has been low 50 F, and tomorrow it is supposed to be back up to 75 F. The weather and seasons are one of the parts to missionary life that I imagine takes the longest to get used to, but we are thankful for a warm home to shelter us in and a nice patio to enjoy when it warms up.

We are continually thankful for the opportunity to serve the people of Paraguay and the many ways God allows us to do that. This month in Club de Niños we made some changes. Thanks to some motivation and an offering from a supporting church we have been working to help this group become more organized and focused. This led to us getting some Bibles for the group so that the kids can open a Bible to follow along as we study through the book of John. Kathleen works with the younger kids and teaches once a month while I help with the older kids and do my best to learn the language of the older kids. We also get the opportunity to teach and preach on a regular basis, and we are thankful for these opportunities.

This month I was asked to preach from Luke 18:31-34. It was a great to study and apply some of what I have been studying in the counseling courses. What lies on the throne of our hearts will often distract us from understanding.

Meet the Hernandarias group!

I mentioned previously that we were working at strengthening a small group in a city just north of us to begin a church plant. Every Wednesday we have the blessing of gathering together for a time of Bible Study Discipleship. Please continue to pray for this group as we study the Word of God together and begin to map out a future church plant.

Church Plant in Pilar:

Pilar is a small town about 7 hours from where we are located. The missionary that was sent to plant a church has been very ill all while construction for their building has begun. Please pray for Missionary Pastor Victor as he waits for some test results and recovery. Also, for Pastor Mancuello from Encarnacion as he makes plans to travel to the states to raise some support.

September 4th-7th I will be traveling with Missionary Felix over to meet up with Pastors Mancuello and Victor to connect with their ministries and to offer help where we can. Please pray for this trip and the opportunity to serve these pastors and churches. Also pray for Kathleen and the kids while I am away.

Added to the month of August is the blessed opportunity of celebrating two Birthdays! Adara-Dasha turned 10 and Jedidiah turned 12. It has been such a joy to watch them connect with kids locally and make relationships. Adara-Dasha has never had a problem making a friend even extending into the lives of those from Club de Niños. Jedidiah has been stepping out more and more as he gains confidence and has even started connecting with some kids at Kickboxing training. Please continue to pray for our kids as they allow the Lord to use them as missionaries.

Thank you for your faithful love and support as we serve the Lord. May His name be glorified in all that we do, and may we remember to stop and see His goodness all around us.

Jaha Paraguay Pe!

July 2025

For the Lord is good; his steadfast love endures forever, and his faithfulness to all generations.

Psalm 100:5

The Month came and went faster than we expected, but we are very thankful for how the goodness of God was revealed to us in the month. From visitors from home, to Missionary Training Camp, and exploring new ministry opportunities, I can say that we are full and blessed.

Many of you recall that we shared of the surprise visit of my (Jared’s) Mom and Brother, David. We really had a great time together and enjoyed many wonderful opportunities of making memories. One of the things that was on my mom’s list for coming was to meet the people who had taken us in, but also to walk some of the paths that we walk regularly. It was great introducing parts of our new family. They even had the opportunity to serve in a couple different ways. David was asked to share with the Christian school from his experience working with Kids with Autism. Mom was given the opportunity to teach one Saturday in Club de Niños, and that too was a real blessing. They served above and beyond what they were sent to do!

Every July our church hosts a Missionary Training Camp. Last year it was the first big ministry we were asked to be part of. This year I was given the topic “The Responsibility of the Local Church in Missions.” It was great sharing not just from Acts but also from personal experience. Missions does not exist without the Local Church. It was great teaching alongside fellow missionaries serving from Urugay and Bolivia. After three days of camp the team got to put their training to practical use. They got to present ministries in two other cities and share in Club de Niños on Saturday. It was great to see and hear testimony of God working in people’s lives, opening hearts toward missionary service.

This month we also got to look into some future ministry opportunities and we have begun praying that the Lord would lead. One area of opportunity is in the city of Hernandarias. This city is just 20 minutes north of us. A few families from the church travel from hernandarieas every week to be with us on Sunday. We have begun praying about starting a Bible Study group among these families to strengthen them as we pray about the future planting of a church.

Another opportunity we are praying about is how to help a small local church in the town of O’Leary just an hour from us. There is a small Baptist church with no pastor, and we are praying about how we can offer some support including helping them to find a pastor. Would you please pray with us for these opportunities.

As for coming events we don’t have anything big on the radar, except for helping plan for better organization for future events. I would also like to take a weekend trip to go connect with Pastor Mancuello again in Encarnacion and see the new work that has begun in the city of Pillar. Missionary Felix and I are praying to make that trip sometime in August to allow me to know a little more about the ministry as well as serve the leadership in any way we can. Would you please be in prayer for these opportunities.

Again, we cannot thank you all enough for allowing us to serve the people of Paraguay. If you want to see a little more of what is going on in the ministry, please don’t forget to watch our video on YouTube. Missions is impossible without the local church!

Now how can we pray for you?

The Loucks Family

Kids Corner:

Nana and Uncle David came to be with the kids, see into our lives and be part of our ministry for just a short while. Although their visit was short it provided a much needed refresh for all of us. The kids especially enjoyed sharing a little bit of our lives in Paraguay!

ONE YEAR IN PARAGUAY

“You are good and do good; teach me your statutes.” Psalm 119:68

Hard to believe that one year ago we arrived in Ciudad del Este, Paraguay and began ministry on the field. All parts of the missionary process are important steps and each is its own ministry. We were excited for each step in the ministry but were most excited to step foot into the foreign field as full-time missionaries!

Time really has just flown by since we arrived in Paraguay. As we sat and reflected around the dining room table about the last year and key moments of the last year it was great hearing each of the kids and their perspective. If you would like a little look into their perspective and favorite parts, please don’t miss the opportunity to watch the video on our YouTube channel linked below. It will give just a brief look at what caught the kids attention from year number one.

Our first year went about as good as we thought. Sure we had the occasional surprise flood to clean up, new bug to deal with and language mishaps, but overall our first year was great. We got to spend time as a family adapting to life in Paraguay, the kids got to complete a whole school year in one home, and we got to start into some different ministry opportunities. This made for a full first year.

Many of you know that I (Jared) was able to start working with the leadership in development of future leaders. We began a leadership group to strengthen the local church and to work as a team in the ministry. We also have formed a church planting team. This team includes Pastor Juan Carlos Escobar, Missionary Felix and me. This year we plan to meet and discuss more roles and responsibilities as we move forward with church planting. We have had a couple of guys express interest in planting church and are working through discipleship.

As we progress forward into our second year we are excited for what lies ahead. We have begun talking about the Bible Institute and how to reinitiate this ministry. Please keep this in your prayers as we would like to start in August if we can get things organized, otherwise we will postpone until the new year to give ourselves enough time to organize. The leadership has met a few times about this theme and are putting together a plan to begin classes soon.

Other events on the radar. We have some special visitors coming to stay with us for a few weeks this next week. Please pray for safety as they travel, and also for the sweet reunion with family! We have also begun to prepare for the missionary training camp. Please continue to pray for this ministry and its impact on the youth of local churches.

Please continue to pray for Club de Ninos and for the little souls that come. We know they hear the gospel every week but please pray for their understanding. We have also had many new kids come and it has been great to take part in their lives. Also pray for those in the group that the leadership would be strengthened!

Thank you so much for allowing us to serve the people of Paraguay. Thank you for your faithful prayers, encouragement, and support. We are blessed!

Jaha Paraguay Pe,

The Loucks Family

Resurrection Sunday in Paraguay

“For I delievered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures,”

1st Corinthians 15:3-4

Our hope is found in the resurrection of our Lord and Saviour. As we reflect on the abundant grace of God in our lives, we look to powerful truths and point us to our future resurrection. If Christ had not risen from the grave, then our hope is in vain. Praise the Lord for the concurring of death and defeating the grave!

The update is coming to you a few days later than planned. Every time I sat down to write an update something came up and my attention was drawn to another task. Wither it was helping with sick children, going to visit Missionary Felix in the hospital or pausing to enjoy Workers Day with fellow believers. All things of great importance and needing their own attention.

As I sat at my desk the other day to get some things off my list accomplished I saw my neighbor walk by my window. I heard a clap (they clap more than knock) outside the door and so I went to investigate what was going on. Well, Chris asked if I we wanted to spend time with some friends that had offered to bring some meat over and hang out. That always sounds like a good idea if you ask me. He told his wife to finish making the plans, but the other family was already on their way over! We spent the day making deeper relationships, learning more culture, and embracing in fellowship!

Now back to our resurrection Sunday! So much goes into the celebration of Holy Week. We were able to take part in some traditional Chipa making which made for some great memories. Put this on your list of things to try when you come and visit!

We were also blessed to get away for a couple days and enjoy a vacation. It seems like Paraguayans take a lot of time for vacations, but they honestly use every moment they have to get away and be together. We are learning where we fit in for our family vacations and make opportunities to learn and explore new places. The planning of this vacation fit right in for a little ministry service as well.

We had planned to be near Pastor Juan Carlos Mancuellos church in Encarnacion and had planned to attend his church for the Resurrection Morning. We had not planned that God would use this as an opportunity to serve the brothers and sisters there in Encarnacion. The Sunday Prior Pastor Mancuello and his family were on their way home from Ciudad del Este and were in a head on car accident. Pastor Mancuello, his wife and grandson all ended up in the hospital with rather minor injuries. The drive of the other vehicle however did not survive the incident.

I offered to fill the pulpit for Sunday knowing that Pastor Mancuello would need time to recover and that he might be in jail for a few days (when someone dies in an accident normally the driver of the vehicle is kept until the trial). Praise the Lord we were able to be with them and open the Word of God together. Pastor Mancuello was also at the church service with his wife. We had a wonderful time celebrating the resurrection of Christ together before our trip back to Ciudad del Este.

Club de Ninos is still going strong, and we appreciate your prayers as we share in this ministry. Please continue to pray for these kids, most of which are from very rough backgrounds. Also, we ask that you continue to pray as we develop leadership in this program.

As you know one of our reasons for coming to Paraguay was to help in training up leadership. This is one of the ministries we are able to work with in developing leadership skills in others.

I feel like there is so much to share for the last month, but maybe we will pause it right here and encourage you to check out our video update. The month of April sure was busy and full of great blessings! Many reminders of why we are here and encouragement as we move forward.

Now how can we pray for you? As we round out 11 months of ministry here in Paraguay we have so many blessings to look back on and know that we are not alone in this journey.

Jaha Paraguay Pe!

The Loucks Family

KIDS CORNER:

Temperance turned 13 years old on the 4th of May! It has been such a great joy to watch her learn and grow through these last few years of ministry. If you know Temperance, then you know she likes her books and enjoys just time to herself. Over the last couple months, she has been coming out of her shell a little more and it is noticed by the Paraguayans! We are blessed to have her on our team serving the people of Paraguay.

March 2025

I love the LORD, because he has heard my voice and my pleas for mercy. Because he inclined his ear to me, therefore I will call on him as long as I live.

Psalm 116:1-2

I love the illustration given to us in these first couple verses of Psalm 116. This is not the only Psalm that this is illustrated to us, but God has inclined his ear to hear our prayers. How often do we get distracted and misarrange our priorities to not hear the little voices calling unto us. I know as a father it can be easy to let things distract me and keep me from the little things my kids have to say. I am so very thankful for the Lord who reminds us through example of what it means to not be to busy to stop and listen. There is also great encouragement in knowing that our God is ready to hear us call upon his name. May we not forget to pray.

As many of you have been praying ministries are now moving forward at Iglesia Bautista Biblica Jerovia. We are excited to be working with teams that have a passion for the Word of God and a desire to share the hope of Salvation to those in their community. Working with national partners means that we get to serve in rolls of encouragement and providing some support to those leading the programs. Building up leadership will be important as we move forward in serving the people of Paraguay. We have had a few meetings with ministry teams and are excited for those that God is allowing us to work with.

Abel and Liz are some of those that we will be working alongside in the Kids Club ministry. They have a great love for the Lord and a desire to serve the kids in the community. Part of our role in the program is to support the leadership and to help in training in areas of leadership.

We are excited to work along such a great group of people and to be able to invest into their lives as they prepare for future ministries.

April is fast approaching and some things are happening to move in the direction of local church planting. Will you please begin praying now as April 12th and 13th we will be having missions conference with the focus on Local Church Planting. Our guest speaker from Argentina will be sharing and encouraging the church body in this area. We have started a church planting team (which I will share more about later) and now we are waiting for men who feel called to this ministry to come forward. Please join us in praying for this!

As for the family, things continue to go well. March 13th was Kathleens Birthday, and it was a blessing to be able to spend a couple days celebrating the years God has given her. We even went and grabbed a little dinner at her favorite place in Brazil. The kids continue in homeschooling and twice a week a tutor comes over to help them with Spanish. We are super excited for how they are advancing in the language and using it more and more.

If you know Elijah, you know he can be quite the character. He loves connecting with people and has his own unique way of doing so (mostly, just being silly). There have been lots of cultural lessons along the way, but watching him adapt and grow has been nothing short of a blessing.

His favorite parts of being in Paraguay are 1) knowing that God sent us here, 2) his friend, Ian, and 3) His dogs!

A lot of things are moving forward in ministry and we are excited for what lies ahead. Please continue to pray for 1) hearts to be open to the gospel, 2) our family as we invest into lives, 3) that God would be glorified. We truly are blessed to serve our Lord in this way. Now how can we pray for you?

Jaha Paraguay Pe/ Let’s go to Paraguay!

The Loucks Family

February 2025

“Praise the LORD! I will give thanks to the LORD with my whole heart, in the company of the upright, in the congregation.”

Psalm 111:1

As the month of February was approaching, we greatly anticipated all of the church body being back from vacation to be under the roof together again, worshiping our God! This summer break (December-Januaray) gave me a real appreciation for the unity of the body. Back at home it is normal for people to travel during the summer season, but having over 80% of the church missing from Sunday services was a real change. We are thankful now that school is started back up to have the church body back together starting another new year.

With a new year comes new opportunities. Before Pastor Juan Carlos left for vacation he asked if I would consider getting my Biblical Counseling Certificate with the long-term goal of being able to help Pastors in Paraguay learn to counsel their flocks Biblically. With this in mind I began doing some research and have already started doing some reading toward a certificate in Biblical Counseling. We think that this will be a great tool to be used in two direct forms. First off in discipling men and women for future ministry. Helping them develop the mindset of the sufficiency of Scripture will go a long way in preparing for future ministry. Secondly, we think this will be a great tool to connect and aid other pastors in Paraguay as they tend their flocks.

The kids got a few weeks off for Summer but most of them were antsy to get back to it again. They surpassed day 100 and are all doing well in their studies. Now that we have established a routine it is easier to keep up with each of them and their needs as the continue to study. Also, this week they started tutoring again. Their tutor Noelia took some time off to spend Christmas with family but then also to help out at a Christian camp for a month. We look forward to hearing all her fun stories as we have time.

They kids are also doing a great job making friends. They have all made connections with at least one kid their age. It is great to see them use their Spanish in communicating, but an added blessing is that many of the kids in the church speak English. While we would like to see the kids continue advancing and using Spanish, it is a blessing to see them have connections in the church.

February always brings us to remember the road God used to bring us to Paraguay. Those of you who have followed the journey remember that we sold our home in February 2020 that would allow us to pay off all our debts and prepare for the mission field.

You also recall that LuVerna was born just two weeks before we had to move out of our home. While we take time this month to reflect on all that God has done, it was a great joy to take time to celebrate our LuVerna too. She just loves a little extra attention!

With most of the church family back and schools starting back up we will be ready to kick off into another year of ministry. This year we are hoping to continue being part of some previous ministry projects, but also to start working more focused on leadership development. After meeting with Pastor Juan Carlos and Pastor Sergio and seeing their vision for the church body, we can start to map out some goals for this year and maybe even the following year. But as we know Proverbs 16:9 states, “The heart of man plans his way, but the LORD establishes his steps.” and we put our full confidence in this truth.

Once again, we want to thank you all for your faithfulness in Love and Support. God has truly blessed us with a great cloud of support around us in the ministry and we are blessed. Now how can we pray for you?

Jaha Paraguay Pe!

The Loucks Family