Iron Rose Sister Ministries

Twenty years ago today, I boarded my first international flight and headed to Venezuela. I still have the boarding pass, departing Miami, on Viasa, an airline that is no longer in existence.
There are many Venezuelan things that are no longer in existence... The Venezuelan coffee and whole powdered milk I came to love in my first visit are no longer available. Arepas (a finely ground cornmeal patty and staple in the Venezuelan diet) are rarely seen at any meal because the product, originally produced in Venezuela, and later imported from Colombia, can no longer be found. The scarcity of basic foods and supplies in the markets is a testimony to the overall decline of the country’s economic conditions.
Even a year and a half ago, during my most recent visit to Caracas (the capital city where I lived for four years), it was useless to go to the grocery store with a list in hand. Instead, you spent all day in lines to pay for whatever items could be found remaining on the shelf. At 700% inflation, funds rarely stretch to cover the cost of the minimal supplies available... not to mention the decreased quality of the products.
Venezuela is an oil rich country that has fallen victim to power-hungry and greedy leaders that have driven the country to the brink of total destruction. It pains me to see the slow demise of a beautiful country, and my soul aches for my Venezuelan family and the church that has been so affected by these circumstances.
Many who have the ability to move out of the country have done so, in order to create a better life for their family. This creates a significant drain on those remaining as workers in the church.
These severe economic conditions create increased crime, yet in spite of it all, I have many close friends, Christian brothers and sisters, who continue to fight the good fight and share the good news with those who are hurting and searching for answers. Thank you!
I applaud the efforts of those who first inspired me to serve in full-time ministry with passion and fervor, when I first experienced church in a new culture, language, and context, twenty years ago.
While I have not continued the practice over the years, I made a scrapbook after that first trip to Venezuela. A Ziploc filled with now-worthless local currency and other memorabilia have been tucked in that photo album along with the aging pictures of the group that worked in the cities of Maracay and Barquisimeto, for a month in summer 1996.
As I flipped through that album with IRSM’s summer intern earlier this month, I barely recognized my much-less wrinkled skin and un-greyed hair. I am happy to leave some of my clothes and lack of fashion sense in the past. However, I will never forget, and will always treasure the names and faces of those with whom I walked during that seven-week journey.
A few weeks into the trip, I called my parents to ask their permission to stay an extra three weeks and follow up on the contacts made during the campaign, directed by Ava Conley and Harding University.
We still laugh at my pleading statements, “I am here now... Who knows if or when I will ever return to Venezuela...” God likely chuckled at that conversation as well, knowing that he would lead me back on many visits and even to live there full-time for four years.
Twenty years later... I marvel at the transformation of a country, which saddens me and weighs heavily on my heart. And I wonder at the transformation of myself as an individual that God has continued to shape and use as an instrument in his kingdom. May he continue to transform and renew each of us, as I pray that he can bring transformation and renewal to the country of Venezuela, as well.
Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day.
2 Corinthians 4:16