Don Nevels, Casilla de Correo 360, 5500 Mendoza, Argentina
Mission Address: BBFI, P. O. Box 191, Springfield, MO 65801

 

 September - October 2003

Mr. and Mrs. DRIED FRUIT

Mendoza, Argentina is completing an unusual winter in that there has been very little rain. or snowfall in the nearby Andes mountains all winter (June July and August). Today’s paper refers to this unusual winter condition as a "drought" which means the forth coming summer-months of December January and February will find us in a serious water shortage as this desert area survives on snowmelts from the Andes. People fear the current hot European summer will be repeated in South America. If so, then draught is certain and this summers harvest will probably produce little more than dried fruit.

Sometimes we face spiritual drought in which time passes when there are few or no conversions to Christ. On a recent Sunday a married couple came to church and simply sat and listened to the preaching and after the invitation left with a lifeless hand shake and very little emotion. It appears they were experiencing a personal spiritual draught, as there was no sign of life, no smile, and no response m our request to visit them. We kind of classified them as spiritual "dried fruit".

Apparently with the desire to not display a reaction to the church family's friendliness, the following Sunday the '~ fruit" returned when the service was in progress. A portion of the message included Romans 10:9-10 at which time this missionary observed the "dried fruit" looked up toward the pulpit which was the first tidbit of interest I detected in the couple. While trying to not loose my line of thought in the preaching, returned to Romans 10 and read- down to about verse 17- There was something mystifying taking place about Romans 10 that captured the attention of Mr., Dried Fruit as he whispered something to Mrs. Dried Fruit. I had all but lost my message theme and expounded somewhat on the necessity to believe in your heart and confess with your mouth in the resurrected Savior as well as the part about how shall they be saved if someone does not preach to them as was taking place at that very moment.

As this missionary prepared for the invitation he could see no one else in the audience except Mr. and Mrs., Dried Fruit. We had attempted to drive home the eternal need for them to personally choose to place there eternal destroy in God's hands. Before the people could open their hymn books to sing "'Just as I am,', Mr. and Mrs. Dried Fruit were walking down the isle to receive Christ as Savior. No persuading was needed.

After they were saved, I curiously inquired as to what Mr. Dried Fruit had whispered to Mrs. Dried Fruit to which he replied that only the night before at home they were reading their Bible from Romans chapter 10 and wondered how they could ever have someone preach to them so they could believe. We learned their names are Juan Carlos and Nell and needless to say, they by no means should be referred to now as Dried Fruit for their spiritual drought was eternally over and that is what its all about,

For the Land of the Gaucho                                We love you for loving us.