Santa Cruz, Bolivia, Two Years On
An update from Chris Deloglos, Pastor in Kingsway Community Church, US, and Emerging Nations Representative to Bolivia…
It’s a joy to share a brief Church Plant update for Iglesia Gracia Soberana Santa Cruz – (Sovereign Grace Church of Santa Cruz, Bolivia), as well as let you know how you can be praying for them at this time.
I had the wonderful opportunity on April 3rd to travel to Bolivia to participate in David Del Castillo’s ordination. What a huge blessing! David was ordained after much study and preparation and is our first ordained SGC pastor in Bolivia and South America! He is a graduate of the SG Pastors College and working hard to complete his MDiv at Southern Theological Seminary. There is so much to thank God for about the work that is happening in Santa Cruz.
For those who are unaware, Jorge and Terre Del Castillo along with David and Jadwy Del Castillo and their two young daughters moved to Santa Cruz from La Paz, Bolivia in Jan 2020. The first church service began Feb 16, 2020. This is only one of three reformed churches in a city of 2 million people. Member testimonies describe the treasure of Gospel preaching that this church is bringing. Several are coming to the church in response to Jorge and David’s online messages.
Strategically, the church is located in the center of Bolivia and South America which is a strategic advantage to reaching the country of Bolivia and all of South America. This location offers men within the country and in surrounding countries (who could otherwise never afford to come to the US) the access to reformed theological training in the context of a local church.
Currently, the church meets weekly (virtually or face to face) for Sunday service, weekly prayer, Bible Study, discipleship and worship rehearsal, as well as fellowship groups. Both David and Jorge share the preaching, teaching and counselling responsibilities while David also cares for matters of worship and administration. Several have come to the church after discovering the online gospel preaching. The online events are attended by many including folks in other cities and even other countries. Please pray for God’s continued direction, supply and wisdom in this.
The church is planning for its second annual all church conference wherein members and guests gather for three days of teaching, fellowship, worship, and community. Last year over 150 folks - church members, friends, guests, and fellow pastors-joined in. This year, plans (Oct 6-8) are being made for double this amount.
In addition, the Simeon Trust organization has been seeking a location in Santa Cruz to bring its training program. David has recently been selected and appointed to conduct the Simeon Trust Conferences in Santa Cruz. Praise God!
In terms of prayer, there’s a couple of ways you can be praying for this dear Church at this time:
Summer 2023 Mission Trip - We are in process of planning a summer evangelistic mission trip to Santa Cruz, Bolivia to serve this church plant. Please pray for this and if you want to come along with us, then please contact Kingsway Community Church for more information.
Health Challenges - Please pray for healing. Jorge has had six eye operations in the last ten months for detaching retinas (emergency surgery) and cataracts. He has partial vision in one eye and continues to need treatment. The surgeons are hopeful for a slow but full recovery. Nevertheless, this has severely restricted Jorge’s work ability.
Financial Challenges - The church was planted in 2020, opened its doors February 16, 2020, and two weeks later the Covid pandemic began. Not ideal! Since the onset of the pandemic, Covid has riddled this third world country of Bolivia with a severe number of fatalities, repeated extended government-imposed shutdowns, extreme curfews and meeting closures and restrictions. While these restrictions hav severely impacted the growth of the church, it has nevertheless continued to grow, albeit very slowly. Please pray therefore, for continued financial provision.
Once again, there is so much to thank God for about the work that is happening in Santa Cruz.
