When the lights go out in the city…

Today was interesting. I went to Bible study this morning and around 10am the lights went out. Normally it takes 10 to 15 minutes if there is a power loss for a return, but today took hours. What made it more interesting is that over 65 percent of the COUNTRY was out of power, apparently due to a failure here in Bogotá. It’s nearly four hours later, not too devastating of a power outage, but I thought I’d share because of how expansive it is in all of Colombia. Corey is on the coast, 19 hours away, also without lights but I’ve heard they should have it back on in the next two to four hours.

Update: The lights all came back on by 5pm. They determined it was something faulty here in Bogotá that shut down power to the whole country!
~Tona

Dinner With Friends

I finally hosted my first dinner for Colombians! We invited the Master’s Commission over which, including wives, made for 18 guests! The house was full, laughter was flowing and we got a chance to get to know these guys on a relaxed level. They’re all pretty incredible guys, most of which are children’s pastors, youth pastors and two have started new churches. Part of our ministry here is to partner with them, like going to the Kid’s Camp and other ministry outreaches. We are blessed to have such an amazing group of peers here to work alongside.
~Tona

School Visits

Here are some shots from recent visits to Liceo Nueva Vida and Liceo La Gran Comision. We love every school visit we do, the kids are amazing, but some of our most anticipated visits are the ones where we can go meet the sponsored kids of people we know! At Liceo Nueva Vida we get a chance to get to know William and Cindy. William is sponsored by my sister, Josi, and nephew, David. Cindy is sponsored by my mom, Cindy. It’s so fun to be able to tell the kids about their sponsors and how much they love them. William and Cindy are especially excited because my mom, sister and nephew will all be visiting them this summer!

Please consider sponsoring a child. The blessings of your generosity are immeasurable! For more information contact us at info@kautzfamily.org or log onto www.lacc4hope.org.
~Tona

The Colombia Missionary Fellowship

This week we had our bi-annual meeting with the Colombia Missionary Fellowship where all of the AG missionaries gather together. We had an incredible day of fasting and prayer. We prayed for health issues, ministries, families and more. It's a blessing to have a "family" here. We were in awe listening to each missionary report what they've been doing - everyone has a purpose, each individual from the next, yet all working towards the same goal. We definitely have an amazing field!!
~Tona

¡Vamos A Campamento!

What happens when you plan a camp based on 120 kids, have 80 kids signed up, but at the last minute 180 show up??? You wait an extra two hours for extra busses to arrive so everyone can go!! At least that’s what happened with the kids’ camp we just went to. The church we’ve been attending, La Gran Comision is in a poorer area of the city and these kids have never been to camp. Corey and I were honored to tag along and help out with the camp and Alex and Maggie got to go along for the ride. We had so much fun. Most of these kids had never been out of their barrio and the camp was about two hours away nestled in the mountains, wide open fields and even a pool – small, but a pool nevertheless. The kids were divided into 13 teams of 12, each with a leader and two helpers. They played games, did trust falls and all out had a blast! And of course, the most important, they had special time with God.

The last evening service was incredible. Over thirty were filled with the Spirit. One of the most touching moments was when Pastor Alex told the leaders that some of these kids will never experience the love of God from an adult outside of this camp. It’s sad, but true. The barrio is racked with drugs, violence and abuse. He told us to go around and start hugging the kids with real, heartfelt embraces. The children felt like they were melting in our arms. They were crying and holding on so tight. My heart was full, yet bursting in a thousand pieces all at the same time for the love yet the pain that I felt from these kids. It was hard to let go! Many of these kids don’t always come to church. One girl’s parents outright told her they were paying for her to go to camp to get her out of their hair for a few days. They didn’t drop her off or help her get on her way, just told her to go. The children who had parents in the church received letters and gifts sent from their parents that evening, a “mail call” of sorts. I watched this young girl who received nothing from them. Pastor Alex had written a letter to every child so that everyone would get something, but the sadness in her face told that what she really wanted was a gesture of love from her parents. However, what was amazing to watch was the way the girls in her group rallied around her and all gave part of their gifts, showered her with hugs and encouragement – truly children who understand showing the love of Christ.

The other moment I will never forget is when Pastor Alex had all of the leaders get down on their knees and asked the kids to pray for us. Their prayers were fervent, full of passion. One little girl leaned down and whispered in my ear, “You are exactly where God wants you to be. He called you here to Colombia for us.” The presence of the Spirit was so overwhelming. I have never felt so blessed!

I have amazing memories from church camp as a kid and I pray that these kids will cherish their first time to camp and the incredible encounter they had with God.
~Tona

Another Journey to Cienega

Well, I just made another fun and exciting trip to the coast. Yes, that comment was laced with sarcasm. There is nothing fun about the 16+ hour van ride from Bogotá to Ciénaga. Coming off the mountains is like hitting a brick wall; the hot air is too hard for the lungs to handle for a while. Like the last time, I traveled with Ricardo and Francisco. For those of you who don't know, Ciénaga is located between the Caribbean port city of Barranquilla and resort town of Santa Marta. Does that make it clear as mud? It's not so much mud as dry dusty dirt. The school is shaping up to be one of the nicest "modern" buildings in all of Ciénaga and definitely the nicest school. There is a large list of families trying to get there kids into this school. Imagine that, a Christian school that they all want their kids in. This was my first time being in charge of the visiting U.S. team, as my boss is stateside this year. Being in charge of construction doesn't scare me; it's in my blood, but adding the full responsibility of catering to the needs of a team….. Okay, I have a few new gray hairs, but the team was great. We were able to erect all of the exterior walls of the second floor and a little more. They were a very efficient team from Seneca, SC and very patient with me as I was constantly juggling construction, translating, and planning for each next step. The team was such a blessing. They blessed us again as they upgraded our (Francisco and me) 20 hour bus ride to a 1 hour plane ride for our return to Bogotá. It's amazing that it only takes about an hour to fly over the mountains. Thank you UAG and God bless.
~Corey