In Argentina, we had the opportunity to minister in two different places: Mendoza and Buenos Aires. We split into two groups, giving us the opportunity to experience two very different places and more opportunities to be used as vessels for the Lord.
Buenos Aires:
We could serve Pastor Juan and Lilly, our host. They are the leaders of a community in the Merlo area of Buenos Aires. We did some physical work around the church. The ladies painted a memorial, while the men built a wall. It was a privilege to serve in practical ways and contribute to the church.
The ladies also had the chance to go on two house visits, in teams of three. They were deeply touched by what they experienced. Both teams had to stand firm in what they believed and hold onto the truth. They were able to speak life and encouragement into the homes they visited. It was a spiritually loaded environment with a lot of generational strongholds and this was a powerful opportunity to minister to people in need and an opportunity to be light-bearers and truth-bringers.
As a team, we also became very close with the church’s worship leaders, Jonathan and Belem. They are a married couple who faithfully serve the Lord. They quickly became like friends and family to us. We ministered to them, and they ministered to us. They had a significant impact on our team, and we learned a lot from them.
Belem struggled with gluten intolerance, so we prayed for her, and the Lord healed her! Later that same evening, we worshipped together, and it was such a blessed and powerful time in God’s presence. Belem also served as our translator, as she speaks very good English. During our time in Buenos Aires, we visited many different churches. These visits gave us opportunities to meet more of God’s people.
One of the things that stood out to us was the unity between the different churches in the area. They stand together, serve together, and support one another. It showed us how important unity among believers is, even when we come from different churches or backgrounds. Ultimately, we all serve the same God.
There was also an unexpected highlight during our time in Buenos Aires. “GROEN EN GOUD, GO BOKKE!” The Springboks had a match against the Los Pumas, Argentina. Unfortunately, the tickets were sold out. However, thanks to Jana, who had a friend in the team, we were blessed to receive 10 tickets from the Springboks. We were thankful to “taste” a bit of South Africa again and represent a small part of our country in this way in the nations too.
Buenos Aires delivered more than just ministry opportunities. It gave us friendships, lessons, testimonies, and memories that we will carry with us for a long time.
Mendoza:
After a long day of travelling, we arrived at the YWAM base in Mendoza, where we were greeted with hugs and a warm meal. Throughout our time in Mendoza, the team had many opportunities to connect with one another. New friendships were formed with the locals at the base, and we had the privilege of working side by side with Jed, as well as having deep conversations with Ruth and Carlos. The time we spent together turned strangers into family.
Carli, a team member said, “Ruth’s quiet spirit was hungry for friendship and connection, but words did not flow easy from her lips if it wasn’t for translation. We started spending time with her as we wanted to contribute to a connection. Very quickly questions like, “Whats your name or how old are you?” turned into deeper questions. In the end, she shared with us that she could see how God used her talent in languages for the glorifying of His name and how, with her ability to speak, she could build solid friendships with us. God used our stories and abilities to touch Ruthie’s heart and made her open up and grow outside silence and comfort of being alone. From having her own space and company, to sharing that with others, it enabled her to fellowship with God and His people.”
Our practical ministry involved different projects around the base. Half of the team helped organise and sort out a storage area, while the other half worked on clearing the fields of thorns and weeds. Later in the week, we also helped sand and varnish a cabin.
In the evenings, we went on house visits, which made a deep impact on everyone on the team. We gave out three audio Bibles—two during house visits and another while serving at the soup kitchen. On Wednesday evenings, we helped prepare vegetables for the soup kitchen. The soup was then distributed to people in the community. One team helped serve the food, another team spent the time in intercession, praying for the people and the community. This soup kitchen started in covid, it was a way for them to get into the community, and God used them by providing food for the people to soften the community’s hearts toward hearing more from God and to open their houses that the Mendoza YWAM team could visit them and pray with them. This soup kitchen was based at one lady’s house who came to know the Lord very early on.
Mendoza will always hold a special place in each of our hearts. From the beautiful city and breathtaking mountains to the warm and welcoming people, our time there was filled with meaningful connections, challenging moments, and memories that we will carry with us long after leaving.
Reunited as one:
The team reunited after safe travels from Beunos Aires. After reuniting, we had some much-needed team time before continuing our journey. We also had the chance to go on a hike in the Andes mountain. It was such an amazing experience and we enjoyed it a lot, being in the mountains, beholding the goodness of God. Two days later, we moved on and travelled to Purmamarca, a small town in Jujuy. Purmamarca is situated in a beautiful valley surrounded by the famous Seven Colours Mountains. Being there gave us the opportunity to step back into our team roles and spend some meaningful “family time” together.
Then on the 18th of July, Jana announced a Luke 10 challenge. We were divided into groups of three, with one group of four, and sent out into the valley to different towns. During the adventure, we saw God move in incredible ways. He provided for us so faithfully, and we were left in awe of how He guided and provided for every group.
Hearing how each person experienced the Luke 10 was incredibly refreshing and encouraging. There was a very powerful move of God we all saw. One of the groups ended up at a church that took them in. This lead to another church, who is in partnership with the church the group was at, asking to host us for two days. The Lord provided so faithfully for us to meet new people. This even created a new ministry point for us. They could not speak English at all so we had to communicate through google translate which was a fun challenge. The second evening they got a translator for us and we could share testimonies with proper translation. We also met a little girl who has severe skin burns on her face. The team could pray for her and we had the opportunity to connect with her. We truly believe that the Lord is going to use her in mighty ways.
We as a team are very thankful for all the Lord has done in Argentina and we are very exited to see what the last stretch has for us!