PRAYER request

Hello everyone. Many of you already know why we are asking for your prayers but for those who are just reading this blog here it is.
Early this week our mom and wife, Amy, had a doctor's appointment with a specialist to see why her lower stomach hurts often. The specialist told Amy it could be different things such as: a tumor, crones, and others. For this reason she was schedule to have a more inductive exam this Thursday afternoon.
As you may assume, our fist impression was of fear. Fear of the unknown. But at the same time Amy has taken it really well with the support of her family and sisters.
If you can please pray for the LORD to give her the extra strength we need to go through this no matter what the outcome is. The Word tells us in Rom. 8:28 (which was our wedding passage) that all things workout for the good of those who love Him. We hold on to this truth and it is what brings us peace and tranquility.
We have no doubt in our minds that He has a bigger purpose for this but we just don't know the specifics at this point. But we have faith in Him who knows the unknown.
Please remember Amy in your prayers.
Remaining in Him,
Pablo & Amy Paredes

It's good to go home!!!

Another great blessing for us this summer was having the opportunity to go HOME!!!

After living or visiting many different places throughout our lives, we have come to somehow grasp the idea of home. What is home? Is it Cuenca, Quito, Edinburg, Jonesboro, Lake City, Dallas, Texas, Arkansas, Ecuador or the United States? It is more evident for us now, that home is where our hearts are, and our hearts are where our closest ones are. For this reason, we can humbly say that the LORD by his grace has formed a family consisting of three hearts. Peyton, Amy & Pablo. Wherever they are is the home of the Paredes family.
But at the same time, this is only a temporary home because the eternal one is yet to come. That is our true citizenship and our heavenly home!

Having remembered this, we can not deny the fact that it was so nice to visit our parents, sisters and brother back in Arkansas. The LORD used this time to recharge, learn, enjoy, and encourage our loved ones.

As you may know, Peyton had not seen his grandparents for a couple of months so our visit was a chance for them to know, love and care for him in their own unique manner. At the same time he got to know them and learn their names! Now he says, "Abuelo & Abuela." He can also say, "Gran & Papa." Little things like these are the ones that bring a smile to our hearts.
I (Pablo) had the opportunity to do what I enjoy the most. I had the priviledge and honor to teach at "Vida Nueva Christian Church." It was a time of greetings and reflection on the eternal fountain of life, the Word of God. Talvez no lo pude expresar bien a la congregacion pero de veras fue un tiempo muy especial para mi persona al compartir la Palabra con mi familia espiritual. Also it was nice to be able to spend time with dad, mom, Maggie and Stephen. The ecuadorian food was great! But what also pleased my heart was seing the "abuelos" play with Peyton and the encouraging conversations with dad about ministry. Dad may not noticed but he's the best teacher/mentor I've had. Thanks pa!


After a week of visiting, teaching, and learning, I had to fly back to Dallas to work. But Amy and Peyton stayed in Arkansas for another week to attend a wedding and continue visiting her family. It was so nice for Peyton to be able to spend some time playing with his cousin Grant. They had several days that they were able to spend together and learned to love and play with each other in their own ways. Since we have returned home Peyton says "Grant" all the time.
I (Amy) had a great time visiting with my family and loving on them. I had missed my mom and it was nice to be able to spend one on one time with her. We enjoyed shopping, watching movies and playing with the grandkids. I am so blessed to have such a wonderful supportive family.

They were able to spend time with Amy's brother Matt and his family as well as Amy's dad Mr. Hill. And as you can imagine I was desperately missing them back in Dallas. It is only in these times that we get to appreciate and value even more the presence and love of our families.
As may guess, our home is no longer in Arkansas, Cuenca, Ecuador or Texas, but wherever Peyton, Amy & Pablo are in this momentary earth; with the expection of our eternal home and nationality in the ages to come.

Thank you all for the hospitality back in Arkansas, and thank God for bringing Amy and Peyton safe to Papi. This is all for now until our next journey or project.

Trip to New York

We were so blessed this year to be able to take a trip to New York. Pablo's uncle invited us to come and visit him and his family during the summer. After he offered to send us two plane tickets how could we refuse. We went the week after Pablo finished his finals at seminary. It was such a great time to relax and enjoy family after the busy end of semester projects. We had such a great time visiting with family and building on those relationships. It is during those moments that you truly feel blessed by the people God puts in your life. We were able to encourage them and draw encouragement from them. It is great to see how the body of Christ works.

We also did a lot of sightseeing. We would wake up every morning and hit the streets. We went all over New York everyday and still did not have enough time to see all we wanted. My sweet husband did get me a wonderful mother's day gift while we were in New York. He bought me a ticket to go and see The Lion King on Broadway and it was fabulous. Pablo's Aunt Silvana and I went together to see it and we had such great seats. It was truly a dream come true for me. Thank you so much my love!!!

Although, this is not everyone in the family, here is a good shot of most of them. Our last day in New York the family had a cook out and we enjoyed the nice weather outside. Peyton had a great time in New York even though we were so busy and he missed most of his naps and did not get to bed before midnight most nights. He also learned the word "MINE" while we were in New York. That is one word I could have done without him learning. Peyton thought the world of Papi Victor (Pablo's grandpa) and would not leave his side. He loved him so much that Papi Victor would have to hide from Peyton just to get a few minutes of peace. Peyton loved visiting with the family and playing with the girls. We are so greatful to God for providing us with a much needed vacation. Also, thank you Feno and Silvi for your hospitality and generosity.