Does Jesus Spank?
January 5, 1998
Family & Friends,
For over three years we have been praying for Elizabeth (Bete for short). Last night she latched onto the claims of Christ and trusted Jesus to be her Savior! Bete needs your/our prayers very much these days as her husband is very hard against the gospel and her row to hoe will be tough. They have two children and she finds herself almost a single mom since her husband (Augusto) prefers to spend his time drinking with "friends."
Cristina (a young lady from our youth group) is Augusto's sister and has been praying for and witnessing to Bete for a long time; she was thrilled to pray WITH Bete last night after a powerful message from Luke 19. Be glad with us and our growing family.
Today we leave for 3 days of vacation; my brother Ron & his wife Ranelle are coming and together with our parents we are going on this short trip. Keep the e-mail rolling and we will get your letters answered ASAP.
Ken for the team
JESSICA's Corner: She was eating supper when suddenly she discovered a reflection in the bean soup. "Daddy, I can see the dining room light in my soup!" I explained that this was a reflection and that Christians are told to be a reflection too. She asked me, "what does dat mean, daddy?" I told here that just as we can look in the soup and see the light, that people should be able to look at our lives and see Jesus' light. "Do people see Jesus when they look at you, Jessica?" I was not prepared for her answer, "I don't know, daddy, but I don't see Jesus when I look at you..." Ouch! Fortunately she went on to explain, "I thinked dat Jesus is much more nicer than you; he doesn't spank anybody." I guess there is still time to teach some of the finer points of the Word... But, it's a good question, "Do people see Jesus when they look at YOU?"
NOT A BABY
January 17, 1998
Friends & Family,
A week of sickness for Alicia, my mom (Jeanie) & me. Nausea, sore bodies, sensitive skin, dizziness... It looks like we are getting over it for the most part, but my mom seems to have gotten it the worst. I can prove to you that I was really down. Lori served me delicious hot pizza and I pushed it away preferring Corn Flakes (comfort food Lori calls it - mashed potatoes is the king of all comfort foods according to her: the expert). In the middle of this sick week, Lori broke a tooth and had to deal with one more new relationship - the dentist. He claims that all 7 of her existing filling need to be removed and redone - in exchange for $260 - according to him, "It is a Great bargain."
We launched a new concept this week; oh, it probably isn't new for most churches, but for our toddler church it is a first. Five men were invited to form a church council sitting together with the us three staff men to plan and execute the ministries of the Christ Is Life Church. Our goal in doing this is similar to that of the Apostles when they elected men to serve the tables and care for the widows so that they could be free to pray, study and teach the Word. Yesterday we came together and our first resolve was to break out into 4 pairs of men, each pair being responsible to visit and pray for 13 members of our church. Over these next two months, every church member will receive a special encouragement visit from at least one team of leaders!
GOOD NEWS about the young couple Milton & Dalvinha. We have been doing a marriage preparation course with them and had snagged on the "Leave & cleave" principle found in Genesis. This week they have agreed to follow God's command and are making preparations for building on Milton's widowed mother's property so that they will have their own little apartment to live in after their late April (+-) wedding. We are excited for them and once again can move forward with the plans. The timing of their decision was a unique blessing since the day before, the church staff had made the hard decision that the wedding was off until they determined to trust God and make plans to live independent from his mother. God is faithful!
Until next week - Ken, Lori, Jessica & Alicia
ALICIA's corner: WHERE IS THE BABY? After searching everywhere, I never found the baby... Lori had to leave the house for a while and I didn't fully realize I was in charge; but, I kept hearing funny noises out in the living room so I decided to investigate. The phone cord strung all around the room and the receiver off the hook - not good! as it clicks off 8 cents for every 2 minutes in Mossoro! Yet my search for the baby continued...
She likes to slip out of the laundry room to play with the puppies, but no activity out side; sometimes Alicia sneaks into the bathroom to unroll paper (also not a good pastime at over 50 cents a role in Brazil). Like I said, I never found the baby; I did, however, find a little lady perched atop the piano. Alicia had pushed a chair over to the upright and climbed on the keyboard gaining easy access to the upper level. FOR SURE, she is not a baby anymore! You should have seen her proud smile of accomplishment!
Hot dogs with Peanut Butter?
Sunday - January 25th Hot, muggy - 86 degrees at 8:30 a.m.
Friends & Family,
Last night the Christ Is Life Church accepted 9 new members; it was a thrill to see this group brought into the fellowship having completed basic discipleship and been baptized! This bring our membership to 50 youth and adults. Several members spontaneously shared Scripture in our meeting; it is neat to see many growing and maturing in the their walk with Jesus.
Right before the Semi-annual Business Meeting, the members met to deal with some Church Health issues. The little flower of Gossip which grows in the Devil's garden has had far too much space in our church. Together we discussed the need to exterminate it. (Pray that individual members will have the courage to refuse any part in cultivating this malignant growth.) We had the disappointing task of dismissing a member who has chosen to violate his membership commitment. Remember Neto as he stumbles along in his spiritual walk; he claims that there was no love or support in our church when several carefully explained to him and the church last night how they have attempted to exhort and encourage him only to be rejected by the young man himself.
Lori's most critical dental work has been cared for and she is learning to chew on the right side of her mouth. Alicia, her daddy and grandmother are all over the flue; it's easy to forget what it was like to be dizzy for four days. Jessica started having "SCHOOL" with mommy and is learning to "read".
Tomorrow, I head out of town for a week of conference in Fortaleza. Thanks for praying that we as a mission make proper decisions in our business meetings. Please also remember to intercede for us with regards to our future direction; we will be examining ideas & strategies to be implemented with regard to Field Development over the next Decade.
THE STUCKYS IN MOSSORO - Ken & Ladies
A RECIPE FROM JESSICA'S CORNER: Daddy, did you ever eat hot dogs with peanut butter on dem? I really like dem, I tink... First you do dem on the grill, then put dem in the oven for one hour; then you add 3 eggs and boil dem till they are all cooked out. Then serve to lots of people with peanut butter, honey and purple cabbage.... (NOTE: you can tell that she eats anything when we are on furlough. Oh, by the way, when we go to our favorite steak house, Jessica eats rice and beans preferring to give us all the "tough" meat. Somehow, it doesn't hurt my feelings.)
UNCONSCIOUS
February 1, 1998
Dear Friends and Family,
What a week, and we survived it, too. It was another one of those "home alone" episodes, although I could have done with a little more of the "alone" aspect.
Ken and his folks took off Monday morning (the 26th) for a week of meetings at our mission's semi-anual Missionary Retreat. The girls and I stayed home to supposedly get loads done while Daddy was away (and to enjoy sleeping in our own beds!). :) I ended up keeping the girls occupied as much as possible so there wasn't time to miss Daddy, Grandma and Grandpa. If I mentioned Grandma, Alicia would head straight for the door yelling "Mom mom, mom mom" and would get quite irritated when Grandma didn't show up at the door like she expected.
Jessica's favorite thing was waiting till after Alicia went to bed at night. Then we would do our "thing". We did get some stuff done, but we are all very glad that Daddy comes back this afternoon. :)
This week a sister of one of our young people accepted Christ as her Saviour. It was the first family member that this young lady has seen come to know Christ since having made her decision a few years ago. She is elated, to say the least (and we are too!).
Baby Luana is not without her struggles. She continues to gain weight so is totally out of danger as far as her "pre-mature" status goes, but it was discovered this week that she has cataracts (and maybe other brain problems). Monday, Feb. 2 she goes to see a surgeon specializing in this surgery in very small children. Pray for her family as they continue to deal with all of this.
Thanks for your letters (e-mail) and encouragement you all are to us. What a blessing! Love from us all, LORI
Jessica's Corner: Jessica and I were doing some paper tearing; that is, tearing construction paper into shapes and then glueing them on a larger background to make a picture. We had completed a house, horse, tree, birds, sun, etc. The next day she decided to add to the picture and put a fence and gate. The reason for the gate? "So the people can PASS OUT." Don't ask if I was able to keep a straight face.
What kind of smell? Gen. 8:20,21
February 8, 1998
Friends & Family,
I did make it home as scheduled after one week of conference, business meetings and travels around Ceara with one of our mission's board members. Lori and the girls were excited to have me back which makes any trip worth it! A few exciting things are going on; thanks for praying.
Soooo, it has been a busy beginning to February; keep praying that we will be effective witnesses and disciplers of Jesus' true followers. Keep in touch - KEN for the Stuckys
JESSICA's CORNER: Did you read Genesis 8:20,21? Remember after the flood when Noah offered a special sacrifice to the Lord? It was to Him a "smoothing aroma," acceptable as a symbol of peace. I couldn't help but think of that the other day when Lori took off to the grocery store taking Alicia - Jessica & I didn't know Alicia had gone along!
It dawned on me that I hadn't seen our budding toddler for a while so Jessica and I began a frantic search. I checked the yard, the sand box and the swimming tank then rushed back into the house where Jessica was doing her search. That instant the gate opened and Lori & Alicia came on the yard. I turned around just in time to hear Jessica say, "Daddy, I called and called for her. I didn't see her and I didn't hear her, but I know she is ok because I could sure smell her!" Jessica said this as she stepped out of the bathroom where Alicia's diaper pail is kept...
Who is on your council?
February 15, 1998 - Sunday afternoon
Dear Friends & Family,
Last week I wrote about our planned service at Elizabeth's place, remember? Well, about 25 people squeezed into their living room, including Augusto (Beth's husband)! He stayed the whole time and received us very cordially. We are praying that God will soften his heart as we plant seeds of the Gospel. Pray for Elizabeth to not come on too strong; she is very excited about her new found Life In Christ.
Last week we reported having poured the first concrete ceiling panel too. Monday morning the form was flipped and the panel did not come out! The flaw was discovered and repairs have been made. Some rust had pitted a grove so badly that the lip of concrete simply would not slide out. Hopefully by the end of this week, we will have built a vibrator and the second test panel will be formed.
Lori spent all day Thursday in Aracati (a city 100 km down the road) with Dorothy Kettelwell. Together they worked on music and computer programs for writing music. The return bus schedule was not like we thought and she missed her bus home; by waiting at a police check point, however, she was able to catch the next bus and made it home to Mr. Mom by 9:15. It was one of the longest days of the year.
By the way, have you heard about the greatest miracle in the Bible? Joshua told his son to stand still and he did! Anyway, the girls and I were really glad to have Mommy home.
Thanks for Standing with us - Ken & family
Jessica's Corner: Last week our church council met to pray and take care of some church business. Jessica wanted to know why I wasn't going to eat breakfast with the family so I told her about my meeting. She asked what a "council" is and who was on it. I named the 8 men and she said, "Daddy, something is not too good! I tinked that Jesus should be on dat council." I tried to explain to her that He really does help us to make the right decisions... Jessica wasn't satisfied, "No, I don't tink dat will work; Jesus needs to make the decisions; you can help HIM if you want."
Exhausted or just plain ticked off?
February 22, 1998
Friends & Family,
Carnival weekend is here! Tragically, hospitals will be filled with young girls giving birth in November. This is a season of sin, sex & sorrow. Nearly everybody celebrates the flesh or "carne" (thus it is call carnival). Many people do things they wouldn't do any other time of the year. Nudity, drinking, immorality and the vilest demonstrations of the sin nature take over for 2 to 4 days of partying. Wednesday they will smear some black smudges on their foreheads and be very "repentant" of what they did (even that is a joke).
How would you deal with such a season? Most of our youth are out of town at retreats; those who have stayed are invited to extra times of fellowship at church - we will have an early Tuesday morning breakfast followed by music, reflection and devotions; there will be recreation in the afternoon and videos in the evening. A couple of kids from the youth group will spend the long weekend at our home (each of them is the only Christian in their families). Pray for the protection of God's people during these days; almost every year we hear of the accidental death of at least one person we know!
My low point of the week was a minor accident. An elderly gentleman on a bicycle ran into the right rear car door as I was going through a green light. He hit the pavement but came out of it with a few scrapes and bruises. So far there are no legal repercussions; pray that all will be well with this man. Pray for our continued safety on dangerous roads and streets.
After a week of fussiness, Alicia's fifth tooth emerged. She has a cute smile and plenty of little antics to keep most everybody smiling. Jessica is eagerly looking forward to her fifth birthday which is on March 4th. Lori is getting her fill of Windows Errors as she works on the full edition of the chorus book. We are printing a lyrics only edition (updated) this week. I press on with visits, messages and construction; this week we lay out the foundation for Reriton's (our junior pastor) house.
Please pray for 3 more 1% sponsors. Several months back we mentioned needing 5 more sponsors and our goal was to find these during the first five months of 1998 - TWO have been found in January & February! Praise the Lord with us.
Ken, Lori, Jessica & Alicia Stucky
JESSICA'S CORNER: Do you know any impressive words? Jessica does. Last week her good friend (Kaline) and family were invited to spend the evening with my folks. Sad that she wasn't also invited, Jessica later told us, "I was so EXHAUSTED that I didn't get to go to Grandma's when my friend Kaline was there..."
Ha, ha, ha - who is your teacher?
March 1, 1998
Friends & Family,
IN ONE MORE WEEK we go to Natal! Kind people from the USA have reached out to missionaries in Brazil organizing a relaxing week of retreat. They promise to pamper us; Lori is thrilled. More kind people here in Mossoro (Lori's in-laws) have offered to keep the children. This is Alicia's first week away from us - she is 15 now and ready for adventure (15 months that is). Jessica is excited about the extra time at Grandma's place. Last night, a fellow from our youth group requested removal from church membership. For years he has been fighting his parents who forbid him from coming to our church. Pray that God will use his obedience to reach his family for the Lord.
Progress on pre-fab concrete ceiling panels! We completed our home made vibrator for a mere $350.00; it would have cost $900.00 down town. The second panel was poured and we think it is a keeper. The old engineer who has advised on this type of construction estimated that we would loose our first 3 or 4 panels - OOAHHH! Tomorrow we will tip the slab out of the form and the next update will be sure to include the latest info on this project.
Keep on keeping on; a birdy told me that some of you who live in the mid-west are having a week of winter for a change?!? Oh well, it couldn't happen to better people...
Ken for the Stuckys in Mossoro
JESSICA'S CORNER: The big birthday coming up on the 4th. Jessica will be five and hopes that many of her friends will come over to admire the 2 hours of video of when she was a baby. She has seen it about a dozen times so far. She was a basic pest this week and didn't really give us any interesting theological observations or additions for our dictionary. Maybe next week we can do better for you.
Oh yes, everybody that comes over is a candidate for "English Class" now. Jessica sits them down and teaches them a few words in English and then laughs and laughs at their pronunciation. Soon I will have to break the news to her that students are a reflection of their teacher...
Hear, Hear - with your ear
March 8, 1998
Friends & Family,
As promised, here's the Construction update: panel # 2 emerged from the form on Monday morning at 7:25! It's a KEEPER! We had a slight crack in one corner, however, it is great progress over the first pouring which was removed from the form with a sledge hammer and chisel. After touching up the form, we poured #3 late afternoon on Friday. Tomorrow we do the third flip with great expectations. (These pre-fab concrete ceiling tile panels are 30 inches wide by 17 feet long. They will work for low cost ceilings and also structure for building a second floor on top. We plan to use these for building schools, churches, camps and helping poor people get into affordable housing.)
Tomorrow is the big day for Lori & me. We leave Jessica & Alicia with my folks and head to Natal for 5 days of retreat. This is a first for us and we are excited; pray for those who stay behind. As soon as we return, we will be gearing up for Easter and accompanying events. The last Sunday in March will be a special music night at church with new songs and special various special numbers to be presented.
We hit 96 degrees on Friday; the rainy season still eludes us. The dry weather is taking its toll on plant life around here and water supplies are drying up. Fortunately this doesn't jeopardize our city water which comes from over half a mile strait down. Pray for rain and the accompanying relief. It is off to church I go... Ken for the Stuckys
JESSICA's CORNER: Half way through supper last night Lori gave Jessica some instructions and then asked if she had understood. Jessica indicated with body language to "wait". After chewing up an unusually big bite she said, "What's dat mommy?" To which Lori said, "didn't you hear me?" Jessica looked her right in the eye and said, "No, mommy, I couldn't hear you, I had my mouf full..."
Fold them or Lose them!
March 16, 1998
Friends & Family,
It's good to be home; 4 days in Natal gave us a great time of relaxation & reflection! Jessica & Alicia got along fine w/ Grandma & pa but they were excited to have us back. Paraklesis is a Ministry aimed at recharging the batteries of full time missionaries and pastors and their wives diminishing burn/wash out...
In one of the seminars, Sid was talking about those events in life which don't go so well - he asked, "can you tell me about concrete failures in your life?" How did he know that I was building those prefab panels and that some of them had crumbled? By the way, last Monday morning before leaving on our trip, we flipped the form and got a pretty good third ceiling tile out of it!
Last night (our main Sunday service) quite a few visitors came to church. There were some first time visitors which we have invited many times. Leomar (Lindomar's brother - we wrote about Lindomar and family in our last snail mail news letter) promised to come to church but got home late afternoon drunk. After a few showers and some rest, he decided to come anyway. Then about half way through the service I noted that he got up and left the building. I thought, "well, at least he got in on part of the song service..." Would you believe it, about 5 minutes into the message he came back in with another of his drinking buddies.
Pray for Leomar, Paulinho, Connie, Marcos & Auzenir all of which need to know Jesus. Pray for Reriton's mother who is in the hospital having had a few strokes and many other medical complications. Have a good week - Ken for the Stuckys
JESSICA's Corner: "What did you learn in your SS class today?" I asked Jessica on Sunday afternoon. I learned all bout Sam's Son. Who's that? You know, daddy, the man who told all his secreds so that they cut off his long hair. Oh, what else did you learn about him. Well, he went to the big pillars and put his hands on them and then he prayed. And he didn't fold his hands so the big building fell down on him and he died... (I guess she has some of the facts in order - but you gotta kind of wonder about the "fold them or lose them" theology...)
may I kiss you?
March 22, 1998
Friends & Family,
A great beginning to another week! Three came to Christ - Andre, his sister and her friend (he is from our youth group and the two girls are about 10 or 11). They have been coming to Sunday School for some time and today all three accepted Jesus as Savior. Our other big blessing was 5 inches of rain in the past 10 days. The rainy season was way overdue and we have had unrelenting heat these past three months; we are looking for a reprieve...
Pray for Nilvania and Nadja who are both dealing with high risk pregnancies. They are sisters, both in their mid twenties and are very eager to begin their families. Reriton & Ediocelio, their husbands, are very supportive and equally eager to become daddies.
If you have any great skit ideas for the book of Jonah, send them my way; I am gearing up for a four part series on Jonah in May and I want to boost the interest with something visual. Lori has been studying (as of this month) at the music conservatory; this has stretched her music vocabulary in Portuguese. It is becoming apparent to her why so little professional music exists in Mossoro.
THANKS FOR PRAYING - Ken for the Stuckys
JESSICA's CORNER: she and I were swimming the other day when Jessica asked me, "Daddy, can Jesus count?" I told here that He sure can and in fact He even knows how many hairs we have on our heads. She chuckled and said, "You're funny daddy, even I can count how many hairs YOU have!"
ALICIA's CORNER: she finally learned how to give kisses; now the next project is.... To teach her to whom she can give them!
Don't sweat the small stuff...
March 30, 1998
Friends & Family,
Last week was intense with lessons, discipleship, taxiing people to the doctor, a church members meeting and normal life. I took two trips to our church's accountant's office and spent several hours filling out forms for various legal requirements with which all churches in Brazil must comply. We finished a door project for a church at Limoeiro, a mission station 2.5 hours drive from here. Each of these two doors weighs about 150 pounds and should last till the rapture. Bill, from Limoeiro, came on Friday to pick them up and drop off some steel forms they had used in their church construction.
In less than one month, Milton & Dalvinha will be getting married. The process on their marriage document was begun over a week ago and will barely be ready in time! Only in Brazil is their a 5 week waiting period for getting married! They have found a place to live until their brother moves out of the little house they are remodeling to live in; Milton's brother (Maxwell) has hindered their progress with the house, but we were excited to see him and his family at church last night. Pray for Maxwell & Glaucia's salvation.
In 10 days, friends and supporters from Houston will arrive for a short visit; we are eager to see them and plan to take a short tour of Ceara, the state where I lived as a kid. Along with the other Stuckys, we will show Don & Maria Lott some of the places where Dad & Mom worked these past 30 years; we are looking forward to a day in the mountains and a visit to some caves - scheduled for the week after Easter. It's 7 o'clock on Monday morning and I had better get to work - Thanks for reading about our work and praying for us here in Mossoro. Pray especially for endurance in the heat; temps have been in the upper eighty's every day!
Ken, Lori, Jessica & Alicia Stucky
JESSICA'S CORNER: (at the dinner table) "Daddy, Alicia hit me in the lip with a garbage can and I cried a little." I asked, "did you forgive her?" "OH NO, it didn't hurt THAT much!"
Now how do you understand that answer? Maybe this triggered in your thinking as in mine, the exhortations Jesus gave us to be "longsuffering, kindhearted, tender, forgiving one another and patient..."
After talking with Jessica about forgiveness and the incident with the near-fatal garbage can, I determined that Jessica expects this kind of treatment from her beloved toddler sister and that it would take more than a little blow to the face for her to consider it an offense big enough to need forgiveness. Her attitude rebuked me, cuz many times I take offense at even the smallest inconsiderateness on the part of church members, neighbors or even family members. From now on, I will try to "take NO offense" from the little stuff...
Ultimate Recycler
April 6, 1998
Friends & Family,
Not too often do I stay up this late, but tomorrow bright and early we are off to the "mountains" with friends for the day... (after all, I wouldn't want any e-people sad to not have something in their in-basket on Monday morning). By the way, our mountains are 100 kilometers away and only 3000 feet high. God sent us to the boring side of South America; we are 2500+ miles away from the continental divide!
Our Sunday Night Music Special brought in almost 90 people! Several were first time visitors which is encouraging; Rick Warren once said, "You won't likely get new members into your church who have never visited first..." Sooo, we treat visitors like ROYALTY, hoping to draw them into the royal family one day.
Pray for Dona Maria whom I visited in the Hospital this afternoon (actually on Sunday afternoon). She had not been able to eat for over 3 months and her veins are not holding up to the IV. They said her blood pressure was 50 over 40 on Thursday when they rushed her in. Not being into this pressure stuff, I don't even know if that is possible, so somebody out there had better fill me in. Maria's son has been attending church for some time and is searching for answers; pray that these tough times will draw him to the Savior.
Later this week Dad & I head to Fortaleza to pick up Don & Maria Lott for a short visit; we are excited to have them coming and look forward to showing them around. Have a good week and write us a note to fill us in on your life.
Ken for the Stuckys
JESSICA's CORNER: "Daddy, I guess I will just have to sleep without my suitcase tonight." Well, we had told Jessica she could stay over night tomorrow at Grandma's house so I thought she was talking about her bag of cloths... As I tucked her in, I noted a naked pillow and asked her about it. Jessica said, "That's what I was tellin you, they did the washin today and forgeted to put me on a suitcase for my pillow!" Oh well, suitcase, pillow case, what's the dif?
ALICIA's LATEST: Lori spotted Alicia walking around the house sporting a tooth pick... "NO, NO! Don't touch, that can hurt you, Alicia!" So the toddler casually waddles over to the dining room table, pulls out a chair, climbs up and deliberately removes her prized tooth pick and slips it nicely into... You guessed it, the tooth pick holder - now what did they say about needing to recycle?!?
Oh yes, how late is it really East Coast Brazil Time? -- 1:22 a. m. Monday April 6th.
JUST FINE!
April 11, 1998
Friends & Family,
What an Incredible week! I am writing on Saturday since I will catch the bus at 4 a.m. on Monday to Fortaleza with Don Lott to take care of some business in town. The rest of the family will come later in the day in the car (including Dad, Mom, Lori, Jessica, Alicia and Maria Lott). We will then join Ron & Ranelle to take a 4 day tour of interior Ceara with the party of 10, showing the Lotts some of the places my folks have been over the past decades.
Back to the WILD WEEK - Dad & I took off to Fortaleza to pick up the Lotts on Tuesday arriving for a late supper. I then got passport pics and we headed to bed. Bright and early (4:45 a.m.) we headed to the airport and arrived just minutes before the Miami flight. Our guests came through customs beautifully with a new computer for Ron & Ranelle and a top notch mixer for our church. Then Dad & I headed to the consulate only to discover that they rejected my pictures for being too dark. We drove 15 minutes to a one hour photo place which said they could get them back to us in 2.5 hours which was just after the consulate would have closed... Passport project went into the holding pattern. We stopped by our document agent discovering that our car license was one month+ over due! So, we high tailed it to the MVD and got in line to pay our fees when the electricity went off for 2 hours. Wednesday being the last working day before the long weekend, our only hope of being able to travel was to stand and wait. Almost two hours later, Dad had to take off by bus to get back to an Executive Committee meeting at the mission compound and I realized I didn't have enough money to pay the bill. Fortunately God provided a friend who arranged for the clerk to take an out of town check. When I got to be the 4th person from the front of the line, the only clerk who could take my check packed up her register and grabbed her purse taking off. I chased her down and she said, "What do you want?" When I told her, she stamped my check and said, "There, anybody will take it now!" About then I was told that the next line I would stand in was to receive the freshly renewed document; however, one catch - only those who had started the process by 11 that morning would qualify to get it out by closing (it was now 1:45 p.m.). I offered a quick prayer and took a number. When getting to the front of the line, I discovered that my document agent HAD been there that morning and indeed had begun the process and ours was ready! GOD IS GOOD! I had just enough time to get downtown and cash some US $$ and pick up our guests and Dad and hit the road for home. About then the car cut out and died - another fervent prayer and it roared to life (the work of an angel or maybe it was just gunk in the fuel). We made it home by 10:15 p.m. without having applied for the passport, not having bought church chairs, nor paint, nor chicken filets nor... Oh well, the rest of the list will have to wait for another day. Our fine cost us about 20$ which was indeed just fine with us. Had we been caught on the road, the car would have been impounded and the fine would have been about 100$ which would not have been just fine. Why do they call it a fine anyway?!? Not to mention that we would not have been able to get the car out until AFTER the long weekend by which time our guests had to be back in Fortaleza...
THE STUCKYS from Mossoro
PS Pray for Maria Lott who's grandmother passed away in the Philippines the day after Maria arrived in Brazil. Pray also that the family will compose themselves to handle the details without her - they depend greatly on her guidance...
I gotta go potty!
April 18, 1998
Friends & Family,
Monday morning, my alarm went off at 3:45; Don beat me up and was ready to go. I showered and grabbed my brief case and we took off for the bus station to go to Fortaleza. By 1:15 p.m. we had made it to Fortaleza (4.5 hour bus trip), ordered a custom made computer, applied for my American Passport, exchanged dollars down town, bought a special Bible for a wedding gift, stopped back to pay for the computer and then headed home to Ron's place where Ranelle had lunch waiting. By Wednesday night the computer had arrived and was assembled and by Friday morning we picked it up and by Friday night we had it home, out of the box and up & running! God's gracious provision through our visiting supporters has been a real boost to our work; thanks Don & Maria!
Alicia & Jessica piled in the car with me to run errands this morning while Lori went to get a hair cut. As a small car in front of us pulled some Olympic stunts, we braked hard and a motorcycle ran in to our rear bumper. Minimal Damage Sustained! Our fourth stop was to pick up a repaired camera but the main lens wouldn't focus, so our seventh stop was to take it back for more adjustment. At least the mold was successfully removed from the lenses.
Praise the Lord with us for a week of safety on the road; we rented a van and traveled nearly 1500 km seeing some caves, water falls and spending one night in the cool climate atop a short mountain. It is good to be home. Pray for our intense week as we put ceramic tile on the platform at church and gear up for the big wedding on Saturday. We are still looking for an affordable Honey Moon site for Milton & Dalvinha...
THE STUCKYS from Mossoro
JESSICA's CORNER: Traveling as a 5 year old is a challenge no matter how you look at it. I guess this week was a test run for furlough. After two sips of pop, Jessica said, "Daddy, I gotta go potty." I told her to hand me her can of pop, cross her legs, close her eyes and think about being thirsty... After a bit she peeked with one eye and said, "Mommy, why is daddy drinking my pop?" Lori shrugged - Jessica said, "Ok, Daddy, I'm thirsty again and don't need to go potty any more."
ALICIA's ADVENTURE: She threw up 7 or 8 times in the van but in general gave less trouble on the trip than Jessica - so what can I say? I wouldn't wash out shirts, towels and socks for just anybody's kid...
Is it time yet?
April 26, 1998
Friends & Family,
Wedding Bells! We survived the big event. With a crew of 3 hired men, I installed 600+ sq. feet of ceramic tile on the church platform and steps this week. It was a huge job; Dad painted the pillars, concrete header along the front of the Platform and two small side wall; it all turned out really sharp.
But... the consequence of last minute construction all week was that we still had a huge wash down, decorations and sound equipment instalation to do on Saturday with a 4 p.m. Ceremony. To top it off, a friend who loaned us 70 plastic chairs was unable to deliver them by noon as promised - our neighbor graciously volunteered his pickup - Dad & I hit the streets and arrived back at 3:10; we still had to unload the chairs, set them up, wipe them down, shower, dress, meet with the various members of the wedding party and come on stage by 3:59 p.m.
Amazingly, it all happened as planned with over 200 guests and cake enough for everybody. Milton & Dalvinha are enjoying a few days of Honey Moon; the church staff and a couple of friends will be over at their house on Monday at 9 a.m. to TP the place and leave some other encouraging messages for them when they get home...
Tonight we had a number of visitors at our Worship Service and over 70 people are signed up for May 1 (Friday); the church is renting a bus and going to the beach for a kick off - Saturday & Sunday we will hold special Evangelistic Services with a guest speaker.
Time for bed; Have a nice week - Ken for the Stuckys
Tid Bit: After a tremendously busy Saturday morning of preparation for the wedding, a little neighborhood boy (about 6 years old) rang our door bell at noon, 1:15 pm and again at 2:30 asking, "is it time for the wedding?" I am sure he had no idea of the things I would have LIKED to have told him rather than simply that, "no, it really is not time for the wedding yet."
Your kid's name is WHAT?!?
May 3, 1998
Dear Family & Friends,
Tonight we had 103 people at our Evangelistic Service! It was closing day of our campaign and many first time visitors came to hear the Gospel. Last night Glaucia came up to me after the service and said, "you didn't give me a chance to raise my hand to get saved tonight; I was ready and didn't have the opportunity!" We sat down and talked about it being a step of faith and that salvation is accepted in the heart, not by raising a hand at an invitation. She understood and was born into the family - it was pretty fitting considering the Sermon topic which was The Second Birth. Glaucia brought her husband (Maxwell) tonight and they bought a Bible so they can read at home; Pray for Maxwell to come to Jesus also; he is Milton's brother (Milton is the one who was married 8 days ago).
Our little group of adolescents is growing as well; yesterday afternoon one more little girl prayed to receive Christ. This makes for 6 girls and 1 boy in the past 6 weeks. The Sunday School program is beginning to bring ripe fruit to us.
Friday was a holiday with our church trip to the beach in a rented bus. Over 80 of us crouded onto a 48 passenger ship and had a good time. Unfortunately, we discovered that the camp had been rented out to TWO other church groups; this we learned as we arrived at the camp. Despite this detail, we had good fellowship and everybody is eager to do it again. Pray as I preach Jonah the next three Sundays
Ken for the family
Jessica's Corner: "Daddy, see those two stars? That is Jaquelin's belt. Those two little ones right there. And some people think that those three stars are Orion's Belt, but really it is the Compuserve. (By the way, Jessica tinks the intercom from our house to my parent's place is also the "compuserve".) And all the stars that don't line up with any others are called twinkle dinkles. Pretty funny, right daddy? When I grow up, I am going to call my kid that, "twinkle dinkle".
This one thing I remember, I tink...
May 9, 1998
Dear Family & Friends,
June 2nd is our Mossoro departure date; we fly from Fortaleza to Miami at 3 a.m. on the 9th and after an overnight there go to Houston on June 10th. It's hard to grip the idea of leaving in less than a month; our goal is to visit all the church members before leaving...
Yesterday we laid ceramic tile in our office; for ages termites have been eating their way through the wood and threatening our books, bibles and furniture. We stripped it down to the concrete sub floor and are hopefully removing all termite edibles. The day ended in climax as I was cutting the second from the last tile with a 2 horse grinder; the last eighth inch of my right thumb is growing back oh so much slower than it came off...
Today, sore thumb and all, was the launching of another building project. Caninde who is renting his tiny one room house to Francisco & Miriam (and their Christmas Day baby - Marilia), is now building a 2000 gallon underground cistern for water reserve. We cut and tied a steel mesh for the bottom and poured 5 inches of concrete as a floor and base for the walls. It took one week with a pick & crow bar to dig the hole, so it is exhilerating to be on the last leg of this project. Pure water for drinking and home use is generally lacking for most families in our neighborhood.
Tomorrow is the first of my three messages on Jonah. Lori is using flannel graff figures to help illustrate the 1st message which is an overview. Some men in the church have ordered a special cake and other goodies to celebrate Mother's Day after the Evening Service.
Also tomorrow at 7:30 a.m. the church council of eight will meet to discuss items of import relating to the church; pray that we will grow and learn to be better leaders each day as we serve Jesus Christ in guiding His church to health, growth and vitality!
Ken for the Stuckys
JESSICA'S CORNER: Jessica coaxed Alicia to climb on the bed, up another matress and then up into the window sill 4 feet off the floor. They closed the window and pretended they were in a cage 18 inches deep between the window and the steel security grate... Then Jessica said, "wait here, I gotta go potty." I stepped into the room realizing the danger and potential fall Alicia faced. "Jessica, don't you know anything?!?" She said, "Yes, Daddy, I know one ting." I demanded, "JUST WHAT is it?" "I don't know, Daddy, I forgotted it all of a sudden, but I remembered it yesterday and I tink I will know it again tomorrow..."
ROLLERBLADES
May 18, 1998
Friends & Family,
Our Mother's Day program was a success; 103 people came to the service, several of them being mothers who were first time visitors. We worked through an overview of Jonah and ended the evening with cake and carbonated drink.
In ten days we will move out of our house; Two weeks from tomorrow, we head for Fortaleza and one week later is furlough. Pray that we will wisely use our days while here; there are still music classes to be taught, messages to be preached, discipleship lessons to be presented, pictures to take, household stuff to pack away, baggage lists to write, documents to be renewed, plans to be elaborated, tickets to pick up, puppies to sell, visits to make...
THANKS FOR ACCOMPANYING OUR LIFE & MINISTRY
Ken for the Stuckys in Mossoro
JESSICA'S CORNER: "Grandma, I am not feeling well, can you give me some Rollerblades?" Grandma thought, what could she be talking about? "Where does it hurt honey?" "Right here in my tummy, but rollerblades would help a lot." Jessica basically is a hypocondriac and is always claiming to be ill and needing something; she makes a pretty good Brazilian - most of them perk up considerably when they can get ahold of some medication. But, ROLLERBLADES? Well, after a brief discussion, the perscription was changed to ROLAIDS...
W/ Jonah's help, another soul...
May 24, 1998
Friends & Family,
Just in time to travel! Lori's Foreigner ID card arrived after 18 months of being processed. The catch is that it was snagged at the closed Federal Police Department which is in Natal; 4 hour bus ride away. We were extatic that it actually came which simplifies our international travel - Tuesday at 3 a.m. the alarm did it's dirty deed. I managed to get Lori to the station and home again without driving off the road - NOW I AM IT - Mr. Mom.
Dogs barked, noise out side; and such a strange smell... Here it was only 5:30 and Alicia was climbing on my bed with a convicting odor about her. So the day had begun; we were counting down the hours till 3 p.m. when Mommy might get back if everything went well and she could catch the 10:30 return bus. Indeed she did after spending all of 10 minutes at the Police Station. The document is valid till 2007!
Tonight I wrapped up Jonah messages. What a conviction book. With His help and Jonah's story, out of the dark depths came another soul. Mrs. Nazare who has one married daughter and a pair of teenagers who belong to our church came to accept Jesus as her Savior tonight! She has attended faithfully for about one year and was very happy as she claimed God's saving grace. Needless to say, so are we.
One more full week; pray that our family holds together through the intense task of packing up. I varnished the Bible Display and installed glass; it is set up at the church and we sold two Bibles tonight. We installed lights in our new office, painted and are moving the stuff in; with ceramic tile we think our books will be safe from termites while we furlough (we just heard of returning missionaries who had hundreds of $$ of termite damage).
Ken for the Stuckys
ALICIA'S ANTICS: It had been way too long since I had hear a peep from the baby. Well you guessed it, she was into something. She discovered a half pound of Cashews and had spread them all over the laundry room floor; she was happily eating them one by one.
JESSICA'S CORNER: People are commenting on Jessica's new hair look. It was that green gumbo you roll into a ball and stick on the back of posters to stick them to the wall; some how she managed to stick a large lock of hair permenantly together. I solved it with the office sizzors (sic) and am letting her field the questions about the latest in hair styles.
You can't be Billy Jones
May 31, 1998
Family & Friends,
Our last weekend in Mossoro is over; the special Music Only Sunday Night service was well attended with 102 present. Celio, who's sisters, brothers and mother are all members of our church professed Jesus Christ as his Savior tonight! This is a high light for us to end with - we have been witnessing to him these past 4 years.
We moved out of our house yesterday and are staying in my folk's guest room; this is practice for furlough, sleeping in the same room as the girls. Alicia has had a few nights on a mattress on the floor so that she won't have withdrawals when leaving her hammock behind. Jessica sleeps anywhere.
Monday & Tuesday are intense with physicals to finish, bills to pay, last minute packing, goodbyes to say and instructions to give. I have an appointment with my banker to solve some account problems; we need to put out poison for rats, ants and termites. We are glad to have missionary friends from Northern Ireland stay in our home to look after things.
Wednesday morning we travel with the elder Stuckys to Fortaleza where we need to get Alicia's passport and shop for souvenirs and rest up from a frantic month of transition. On Tuesday the 9th we are scheduled on the special flight geared for families with small children and lots of baggage - it leaves at 3 a.m. ouch! Pray for us especially on Monday & Tuesday as we close things down here in Mossoro. For those of you who live in the USA, SEE YOU SOON.
Later - KEN & LORI
JESSICA'S CORNER: Mom answered the phone the other day and took a call from an Irishman named Billy Jones. This might not sound like a strange name to you, but it left mom stunned... It all goes back to several months ago when mom received a little kitten as a gift. Jessica was delighted to have a kitty to play with and was privileged to name the creature. She picked the name Billy Johnson. Our family has many friends and even coworkers with the famous Johnson name, so kitty's name was altered to Billy Jones. Now this kitty is able to walk on glass without getting cut, get away from 5 dogs in one attack and escape enclosures by the most subtle techniques; however, we had not yet heard that he had taken up phone calling and voice impersonations...
No Concussion!
June 8, 1998
Friends & Family,
Happy anniversery Dad & Mom; 34 years ago today, or was it 35? We celebrated in a special way - brother Ron hauled us arround this big city frantically looking for a doctor who could help our baby Alicia... We were tooling up for our big trip tonight a midnight when she took a tumble off of a chair and broke her colar bone - now if we had known that right off, we would have saved ourselves some fretting and the wild chase around town. The bottom line is that we got help in a little hospital 2 blocks from Ron's house (where we are staying); the catch was that we had to have a contact who was police man from Ron & Ranelle's church who's sister is a sister in law to the owner of this hospital --- actually, this hospital didn't have the materials needed to help us but two of their employees went with and sneeked us in the back door of another hospital 15 mintues from here. We were rushed right to the trauma department where we were handed off to the X-Ray tech who put us right in and rolled out a report in about 3.5 minutes; Trauma head determined that her arm needed to be imobalized which was promptly done. (I noted that the sergical tape was chained and padlocked to the cabinet and when I inquired, the nurse said that patients steel it if not secured!) The shocker came when we left the hospital and saw hundreds of hurt and bleeding folks barred outside the front door waiting for a chance to be seen by the doctor... My heart cried out for them, because we had been in their situation just minutes before and got assitance only after "knowing" somebody.
Sooo, after 5 hours of phone calls, waiting in lines and about 100 miles of driving, we are once again packing (I mean, Lori is packing while I write this update; Jessica is in the way and Alicia is sleeping - poor tyke). In 7 hours we head for the airport and are off to America. Pray for our unusually long trip of 30 hours and for Alicia to do ok. We managed a free upgrade to business class which should make our trip slightly more comfortable. Can you imagine how wiped out we are? Can you imagine how relieve we are that there appears to be no nerve damage? Do you realize how good God is? Now I dare you to complain that there is no Jessica's Corner this week...
Still from the underside of the Equator - KEN for the Stuckys
PS Keep the e-mail rolling to this address at least untill we get organized
Daddy Is HOME!
June 12, 1998
Friends & Family,
We are here in the USA. Despite Alicia's broken colar bone, our trip went fairly well. The usual culture shock awaited us, but we are adapting nicely. A Toyota Loaner van was waiting for us and this morning Lori head's down to the DMV to get a Texas Driver's license.'
Tonight our host (Don Lott) and I fly to Las Vegas to pick up a van which needs to be back to Houston by Monday. Pray for a safe trip as we drive back on Saturday & Sunday. Then, on Monday we head out toward Las Cruces, NM and on to Phoenix, Flagstaff & Fresno. Soon we will hit you with an itenerary but we write this note to let you know that your prayers for our safe trip were answered. We took the unusually long rout with six ups and six downs; this makes most legs of our furlough travel seem mild.
I have so much to write, but will save it for later. God bless you and thanks for standing with us in prayer. Keep those e-mail notes of encouragement rolling.
Ken for the Stuckys
JESSICA'S CORNER: When we left Mossoro last week to go to Fortaleza to catch our flight, I was unable to go with the rest of the family because I had another half day of work to do to wrap up our business in town. Sooo, my folks, wife and kids took off in the car and I was to meet them at the Fortaleza bus station at the end of the day. I frantically scuried about and managed to leave Mossoro on the 4 p.m. bus which arrived in Fortaleza at 8. I heaped the bags out by the passenger pick up/drop off door and soon the whole gang arrived to pick me up. After stuffing everything into the trunk, we pulled onto the main street and Jessica said with great relief, "Daddy is Home!"
Now you see, that probably is the right attitude about home.... We were wiped out after a huge day of packing, saying good bye and traveling, lugging baggage, very little sleep etc. - BUT, still she could say, "Daddy is home." We had just slept our last night in our own bed for the next several months, but still "daddy is home" because the family was once again together.
Pray that we will be able to give our two little girls a sence of being "home" or together and well adjusted as a family over these many miles on the road. God bless - KEN
THE GRAND COMPANION
June 19, 1998
Friends & Family,
We are in Flagstaff with travel plans for going to Fresno tomorrow (Saturday). Toyota travel has been lots of fun and each of us has claimed a corner of the van. Tuesday was a very long day of 12 hours on the road, but we plan to break up the rest of June & July into 8 hour trips or shorter.
Alicia broke her collar bone just hours before we left Brazil, but she is mending nicely; this is her first time in the USA and she loves the parks and grassy rest stops. Jessica came with an agenda and couldn't get enough of "Old McDonald's" (as she calls them) play land. Both girls are eating well and sleeping plenty.
Lori & I are trying to get into a routine with our eating habits, exercise, reading and prayer time. Being away home for months makes this quite a challenge. Pray that we will be a good example to our girls and have a productive but restfull furlough; we will not be any where longer than 2 weeks so we will be calling the Van our "Home away from Mossoro".
Being away from the field is refreshing as we stand back and look at the big picture; we hope to go back later this year with new resolve and energy for the ministries ahead of us. Pray for my folks who are covering for us back in Mossoro; there are several new christians who are being discipled right now - our absence leaves a bit of a vacume with the church music as Lori played piano & I led services regularly.
Pray as we travel, looking for several new 1% supporters and as we also report on the progress in Church Planting back in Brazil. Remember our kids who find the hours in their car seats to be very tireing. Praise the Lord with us for excellent transportation, e-mail on the road, good health and adaptation to living out of a suitcase. Drop us a line at our normal Brazil e-address which has not changed.
God bless - KEN for the Stuckys
JESSICA'S CORNER: We spent the day exploring the beauty of the big ditch along the Colorado River here in Arizona today. Ed (my dad's cousin) & Eunice Senner took us in their car and we entered the National Park compliments of their Senior Gold Card! After stopping at several overlooks, eating a picnic and hiking a few trails, we piled into the car and headed toward Flagstaff. Lori & I sat in back with Alicia in her car seat between us. Jessica took the front seat with our hosts. As we were leaving the park, she looked at Ed & Eunice and said, "What a GRAND COMPANION!" Now you be the judge and tell me if she was talking about the big washout along the Colorado or the nice folks she was seated next to...
Tricky Drivers Testing
June 28, 1998
Friends & Family,
Fresno has shown us an enjoyable time! Grape country is beautiful, especially this year with lower than normal summer temps. Tuesday we gather a couple of van loads of relatives and head to Yosemite National Park for a picnic. Thursday we head for San Francisco to visit a supporter who lives in the Bay Area. Besides seeing the sights, we were put to work this weekend; Lori and I did the special music and I preached (I even finished on time which isn't bad for the first English Sermon in two years). Alicia shows no sign of discomfort from her broken collar bone. Alicia has been content to stay close to mom & dad while Jessica eagerly tackles the job of getting to know new kids in each different Sunday School. Long road trips are painful in the car seats, but the girls have adapted to the life style for now.
Furlough has held no surprises so far. Thanks for remembering to pray for safe trips, successful projects and enjoyable visits. We are overwhelmed each time with generous hospitality and the good times we have as we visit friends, relatives and supporters across America. Pray for me to learn better discipline regarding my eating and exercise habits during the remainder of our travels.
We have gotten several letters and notes from Brazil letting us know how things are back in our home church. Pray for seeds that have been planted in the hearts of lost people to pop out of the ground bring the fruit that only Salvation in Christ can bring. Thanks for being part of this team work for God's Kingdom.
KEN, LORI, JESSICA & ALICIA STUCKY
A Lori Story: As told by our good friend Donald Lott - You really ought to tell in Lori's corner, about her mischievous plan to pass the drivers license. You know the one where she shuts off the air conditioning so that the lanky state trooper can stand it no longer and asks if the windows can be rolled down; he mumbles something about most new cars having AC and conveniently cuts the exam short, giving a passing grade. He then regrets having tested a Brazilian hoping that it is the last of his career; he then heads into the heads into the office to change out of his thoroughly soaked uniform.