Mark and Anne Pavelka began with OMS New Zealand in 1997, first ministering in Ecuador, South America, among the Saraguro people. Their ministry involved church planting, disciple making, micro enterprise and training local indigenous Christian leaders.
From Mark and Anne:
“We have seen the value of returning to Ecuador every 2-3 years for 1-2 months to spend time on the ground with our leaders of the Chaski Ministry. We get to discuss the difficult issues that are facing the ministry and also the struggles they are facing personally. We accompany them into the communities to publicly confirm our backing and encourage the believers. They know that they have not been abandoned and forgotten.
During our last visit (end of 2018), they had organised a wonderful anniversary celebration of the Chaski Ministry…16 years! They did a fantastic job! It is very encouraging to see the next generation of leaders coming on strong with university training complementing their solid spiritual discipleship.
A strong group of ‘movers and shakers’ are beginning to complement the solid leadership that has been shown by the older generation to this point. God is so good!
We finished our time by hosting a Retreat for 20 of our leaders. During this very meaningful time, a greater sense of unity and encouragement emerged.”
OMS NZ has such a rich history with the Saraguro people through the Pavelkas and Owen and Avalon Brown. During the time of the pandemic, Mark and Anne made the move to Pastor in a church in the South Island of NZ. While they aren’t so involved in the work in Ecuador anymore, we still have missionaries from the US who are serving in ministry there.
There are also opportunities available to serve there if you’re interested in this ministry! Send us a message for more information.
Originally written 24 July 2019.
Revised/updated April 2024.
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