When the Lord called me to Ecuador many years ago, I was more than willing to go. I wasn’t sure exactly all the details of God’s plan, so I just started preparing myself to be the missionary He had called me to be. As those years of preparation went by, the Lord sent me on mission trips to various countries where I learned from others on the field, and on some of those trips I invited my younger brother, Charles, to go with me. He and I travelled to Brazil twice, Spain, and Ecuador 4 times together. We had also been to other countries with my family. One day I remember my brother coming to me and telling me, “I believe the Lord is calling me to go with you to Ecuador, and do the work with you.” I was so happy! I had no idea that the Lord had been working on him and tugging his heart, also. Charles told me that when we had made a few short trips down to Ecuador (before moving here) he felt so different when he was here, rather than any other place that we had ever been. He felt such peace. So, it was decided, he would move here with me.
As the months approached to our moving date, I remember asking him numerous times, “Are you sure you feel led to go with me? You’re not just going to be a good brother and protect your sister?” He would always answer the same, “No, I feel like the Lord wants me to go with you.”
So, in January 2006 we moved to the beautiful country of Ecuador. We started from nothing but just obeyed the call of the Lord. We walked muddy trails together, sometimes for hours, we waded knee deep and sometimes waist deep rivers to get to homes, we travelled buses for long distances, we fought mosquitos and tarantulas, we visited community after community meeting people, looking for an opportunity to tell someone about Jesus. Then as people began to hear and desire more of His word, we built churches together. We fasted on the same days, we prayed endless days and nights for the people, we cast out devils together (sometimes for hours on end until the person was set free), we laid hands on the sick together and saw miraculous healings take place, we cried and wept together in services for souls to receive the Holy Ghost. We flew in the tiny planes together to go deeper into the jungle and preach the gospel of Jesus. He ate whatever food they served (when I couldn’t do it, he’d eat my share, too! lol) We travelled to the U.S. together on countless flights and to numerous churches sharing our stories and testimonies of the move of God in Ecuador. Our bodies got weary and tired sometimes, fatigued from the labor, weak from fasting, but our spirits never wavered! We pressed on reaching souls, day after day together.
I watched my quiet, introverted brother become a powerful, mighty man of God!!! He felt the call to preach here in Ecuador, and became a powerful and anointed preacher! His faith was always the strongest. I worried about finances in the beginning when we had no supporters, but not my brother. He said, “The Lord has called, the Lord will provide”. His talents for playing the drums under the anointing always brought a mighty move of God in the services! He drove our truck to pick up people for church services; he built a Sunday School building, a bathroom, altars, pews, podiums. He cut grass over and again in all of our churches. He taught new believers classes and Bible studies. He took care of all the technical things, such as sound equipment and projector related duties in our main church. He trained others to do those same jobs and other areas of ministry. Most people didn’t see him much in photos because he was always behind the camera. His beautiful photos adorn our main website and other social media pages.
He dedicated 12 wonderful years of his life to be here with me in Ecuador. Then, one year ago in February 2018, he came to me letting me know that he felt the Lord leading him in a different direction. He felt that it was time for him to leave Ecuador. Yes, as a big sister, my heart burst. But I knew I could not stop the will of God, nor did I intend to. So, my awesome brother, my helper, my prayer partner and confidante, my co-missionary, my dearest friend, packed his bags, and he and his wife moved back to the U.S.
It left a sadness here in our people. One of my brother’s biggest ‘fans’, 3 year old Israel, asked about him for months. Everytime I would leave, Israel would ask me if I was going to see Bro. Charles. He’d look at me with his long face, and ask, “When is Bro. Charles coming back?” My heart broke, because I, too, shed tears. My brother and I had spent our entire lives together in ministry, from music ministry with our family until our years together in Ecuador. We miss him very much here, and he will always be a big part of this work, Ecuador Missions.
Pray for my brother and his wife as he endeavors to follow the direction of the Lord now, wherever that might lead them. I love my brother so much and feel so honored and blessed that he established this work with me and his name will forever be upon it, too.
I continue daily, Reaching Souls in the Amazon for Jesus, One At A Time.
