We ended up connecting at a local mall and had a very blessed time. This was a large mall even by American standards and we actually walked into the very door he was waiting at - which we had no idea at all and we were actually dropped by our angry taxi-man a different door than we wanted. Truly incredible!
It was amazing to hear all that God is doing here in Ecuador as YL is only about 3 years old. Ivan saw a need to keep teens growing in their faith and he more or less self started YL without knowing anything about YL or that it even existed! He even called it La Vida Joven and decorated his home, the meeting place for 'club' gatherings, with this name. Later he learned that there was an actual organization called YoungLife and La Vida Joven, and connected with Dan Jessup (South America head YL guy who's a friend of a good friend) and was brought on staff with YL. His progress in Ecuador in 3 short years is nothing short of impressive, God is definitely at work through this young man and the vision he has to spread the Gospel to teens. Below is the email with a list of prayer requests from Ivan and a photo of a map with their vision.
Ivan Hahn, Ecuador YoungLife director |
Hi Matt,
Glad that it worked out for Ivan
to meet you and your family! I've added you to the e-mail list so you
can see our updates and it also has a link to my blog. I am attaching a
map of Ecuador. The green markers indicate where we have established
club/ministry (Cuenca, Shell, Puyo, Calderon, Quitumbe) and the yellow
markers indicate potential places to begin based on contacts we have or
as part of our goals for the next 5 years (Guayaquil, Galapagos Islands,
Ambato, Esmeraldas, Mera, Santa Clara).
One
of our prayer requests would be for God to raise up leaders and adults
who are willing to support and volunteer with Young Life in those
potential areas. We pray for wisdom and clarity to know God's plan and
timing. Pray for our leaders as they impact the lives of teenagers.
Pray for the 63 campers who recently made a decision to follow Christ at
camp, to grow in their faith and find a Christian community of
believers (church) to connect to. Pray for our financial needs, both
personally and for the ministry. As YL continues to grow and expand so
do our financial needs. Please pray for the thousands of teenagers in
Ecuador who still need to hear the message of hope.
Thank you!
Rachel and Ivan
to subscribe:
Oh how COOL!!!! Thank you Jesus for people like Ivan! Lord of the Harvest we pray for more workers in Ecuador!
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