More about Jose...For those from my missions blog who wanted to know more about my Jose, here is a quick summary! :)
Jose is a student at Universidad Central de Venezuela (UCV). He is currently studying Petroleum Engineering, but will finish in 2012, Lord willing, and after that plans to continue in University ministry or perhaps help plant a new MUF church* in another city in Venezuela. Jose plays the bass guitar at church and has just been asked to be the official Director of University Ministry for MUF.
Jose has lived in Caracas for 10 years, but his parents live about 8 hours from here. He and his brother live in a residence, (what we would call a boarding house) because there are no dorms for university students. One of Jose's dreams is to open the first private dorm in Caracas which would house up to 120 students and would be a bridge to reaching these students for Christ by first meeting their need for a safe and healthy place to live. There is a house for sale that MUF may buy that houses 13 and would be our starting point.
How we met:
Jose and I met at church when I first came to Caracas in May 2009, but we did not get to know one another until I returned in April after spending 9 months in Valencia. The week I returned, there was a Student Leadership Conference for all the MUF churches in Venzuela being hosted here at MUF Caracas and Jose was in charge of logistics. He drew me a map to get to the university and when I arrived helped me find parking and get to the building where we were meeting. From that point on, he became my official "copilot" helping me get around and learn Caracas. Since I'm the only one with a car, I have become the taxi for the students at MUF. I started helping with the Monday campus Bible studies and Friday evangelism activities and it was through these that I was able to see Jose's heart for Christ and for the lost. In June, the board wanted to send me back to Texas to re-apply for my religious visa, which still has not come. I asked Jose, his brother and another student from MUF to house/dog sit for me while I was gone. We talked on Skype and messenger several times during those two weeks and when I returned, Jose and I started dating officially. We have visited his parents twice and he met my parents when they were here in May. All of our parents support our relationship and our decision to marry, as does our pastor here in Caracas.
*MUF (Mision Ultima Frontera) was started as a church specifically focused on reaching the universities of Venezuela for Christ. Currently, there are three MUF churches in Venezuela, but the vision is to have a MUF in every city in Venezuela where there is a university. That's a lot of cities!! (MUF is part of the Convencion Nacional Bautista de Venezuela, which is the counterpart to the Southern Baptist Convention in the U.S. and has a partnership with Texas Baptists.)
