Occupy
August is coming to a close and we find ourselves finishing our first month here in Argentina. It’s been a blessing to see the Lord’s provision, know His nearness in this time, be stretched to new lengths, and know that our God is for us and with us. In the midst of much to do, the Lord has been so good at continuing to draw me back to a place to rely on His strength in all things. One day I think I’ve got something and the next He shows me how little my strength truly is. Praise the Lord, I can’t, but He can! Paul found, in his weakness, great strength in the Lord, “‘My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me,” (2 Cor. 12:9, NKJV). As the Lord revealed Joshua’s call and purpose in God’s plan for Israel—to lead the people of Israel into the promised land and divide the land amongst the tribes, the Lord spoke clearly to Joshua, “Only be strong and very courageous, that you may observe to do according to all the law which Moses My servant commanded you; do not turn from it to the right hand or to the left, that you may prosper wherever you go… For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success,” (Josh. 1:7-8). Prosperity and success in our lives isn’t defined by physical circumstances, but by spiritual submission to God and His Word. Our strength is in the reality of who the Lord is and what He’s spoken. To love Him and walk in faithfulness to His Word will bring Him glory. Lives will be saved, strongholds broken, and those enslaved in darkness will be set free. Our time seems to be so short, are we ready to meet our King and Savior? These last few days, as the Lord has been strengthening my heart, I feel He’s been giving me this resolve to occupy. In Luke 9 we see the parable of the talents, where these men are called to ‘occupy’ or ‘do business’ until their king returns—that they would make the most of every opportunity for the glory of His kingdom. We can look at this word from a military standpoint. I look at the life of Joshua and God’s call on his life to go in and take the promised land. That’s exactly what he did. 2 Cor. 10:4-6 makes abundantly clear that we are in a spiritual battle, and rightly dividing God’s Word is our weapon. Our victory is won in Christ, and King Jesus is coming soon; let’s occupy until He comes. When the love of Christ is formed in us, when we walk in faithfulness to His Word, and the power of His Spirit, He will do things we never thought possible.
August
After close to 2 months in the U.S., we made our way down to Peru to grab our things and head to Argentina. Within two weeks we had 8 flights, 6 of which were just to get us from SFO to Mendoza, Argentina around 6:30am Aug. 6th. Thank you Jesus we arrived without a problem. Along the way, we were tested in many ways, but we made it through just fine. Thank you for your prayers.
Cultural Reminders
Laughably, I should’ve been a better cultural student upon arrival, but I let my guard down and had a gentle reminder of what a siesta culture is like. After getting into our apartment, I ran downstairs to grab some things from the local bodega beneath our apartment. Assured I had all we needed, I tried to get a few hours rest before getting reorganized and ready to face any challenges ahead of us. I woke up to Renata ready to eat, but lacking some necessary things like salt and oil to cook and help with her pregnancy cravings. I assured her a quick trip downstairs and we’d be good to go. When I got there, I was shocked to find shut security doors and no way to buy what we needed to be able to cook at home—and still with 4 hours of siesta left to go. Praise the Lord there are many different restaurants open during those siesta hours.
Campus & Construction Prep & Build Out
We arrived Aug. 6th, and more or less hit the ground running. Just 4 days later we had a team arriving from CC Philadelphia. Man did they bless us, they did some serious work on campus clean up: raking leaves, pruning trees, demo removal and even helping with our renovation process. In the midst of Philly being there we had a 3-man construction team come to help set up and lay out the work for the main construction team (9 tradesmen) coming down from Horizon Harrisonburg that following week. Walls were torn down, windows removed, and the stage was set to build out as much as possible for the following week. The Philly team headed home Aug. 18th, and the prep team left Aug. 19. For security purposes we cleaned up our tree canopies and began cutting away the dead on our olive trees. The Lord provided us with a tree removal professional who was able to help us safely take down some dead trees on property along with a large branch that was ready to come down in the next wind storm. The Lord knows exactly what we need and is always working behind the scenes to accomplish His will in our lives.
9 Guys Who Came to Help Build for His Kingdom
Horizon’s main team arrived on Aug. 20th. These guys came to do work. The first day they got their bearings, and began working on some other foundational problems we needed solutions for (roof tiles, plumbing, and electrical). Days 2 & 3 they began framing, and getting wall divisions up and finished, electrical run in the walls, insulation placed, new bathroom floors laid and poured, and much more. Days 5-7 they finished drywalling, fixing, risers on our staircase, fixed electrical, and went hard after it. All in all, in about 5 1/2 days of just working they accomplished about 85% of our renovation for the dorms and the kitchen/classroom. They did an amazing job, and the Lord gave wisdom and grace to accomplish so much. There’s no way we could’ve gotten it done so soon without them. Thank you for your prayers!
What’s Coming Down the Road…
With all these teams accomplished, our hope now is to finish electrical, plumbing, and hopefully some painting before our next missions team arrives in October. At the end of September we have our annual mission’s conference in Peru. Right after, a group of students studying in Peru will come with our students who will be studying here with us this fall. The mission’s team will help continue the renovation process and attend and support our local Calvary’s here in Mendoza. Our first class will begin Oct. 13, and our semester will run through Dec. 4th. The Lord is working, please be praying!
CC Philly Young Adults showing us how it’s done!
Our first work day meeting in the future kitchen/classroom.
Working on some electric
This is all the debris they pulled off of the property!
Duke and Matt taking a picture break in between tearing down this concrete partition wall.
Just the most difficult wall they knocked down…
Horizon Harrisonburg’s Arrival…
New entry for the girls dorm (upstairs) placed!
Getting the walls framed out and electrical run in the kitchen/classroom.
Classroom side getting finished out
Electrical Overview on the kitchen side…
Framing in for the guys dorm downstairs
Closing in the staircase from the guys dorm
Girls dorm framed out and ready for finishing
Girls living area
Girls bathroom getting wrapped up…
Just half the crew hard at work downstairs finishing the guys dorm and living area
Translating for a team devo
Thank You!
Thank you so much for all your love, care, and support for my bride, our baby, and myself. The Lord is so good, and throughout the trials, difficulty, and beauty of being in missions, He’s put an amazing part of His Body around us to support and encourage us through it all; thank you! Jesus has called us here to Mendoza, and we are so grateful for all the help he has brought alongside us. What a blessing that just in a month we’ve seen such provision from the Lord. Thank you for your prayers, thank you for giving your own resources, and thank you for loving us from afar. I pray the Lord gives us the opportunity to see you soon.
How to Get Involved
Prayer Requests and Physical Needs:
The Lord’s provision:
Renata’s health and the safety of the baby
Renata and I receiving residency in Argentina (favor and an open door)
She starts her process this week as well as finding a doctor for the baby’s delivery
Provision for a 2 bedroom apartment/house
Transportation (for our family)
Praise the Lord He provided for a CBI van…
Flights back from Trujillo to Mendoza for Mission’s Conference and official send-off
Protection and safety for Renata as I will be away from her for at least a week
Mission’s team coming out early October
Continued provision for the development of the campus
The unity of our staff
The preparation of our students who are coming to study and work with us this semester
The Lord’s anointing on the classes to prepare the students for the work of the ministry
Working hand in hand with the local Calvary Chapels
Remembering all the things that might try to slip our attention in the midst of the busyness of it all
That being a disciple and follower of Jesus would be our greatest personal priority and that it would be made manifest in our love for others and the way we disciple those Jesus places in our care as the staff of CBI Argentina
That lives would be changed and that we would stand firm in His call upon our lives
If you’re interested and would like to hear more about our plans for the institute and more specifics on what the Lord is doing with CBI Argentina or even if you’d like to be a part of a mission’s team to come down and help us in the building process, please let me know!
Dios los bendiga, e com muito amor,
-La Familia Voisin
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