Category Archives: Karen Shogren

This Month We Hear from Karen!

We are gearing up for a very busy fall of ministry! In addition to the usual ESEPA work, Gary has several conferences to speak at – one on the complex topic of homosexuality in the Bible, another on the topic “Can We Trust in the New Testament?” He will also take trips to Orlando to work on the Wycliffe Associates project, where he will serve as a consultant for translating Hebrews (September) and Revelation (October). In addition, he will be heading the online team on the translation notes for 1 Corinthians. (For information on his Wycliffe work, take a look at the June newsletter on this website).

I (Karen) am working on a new course to teach this fall at ESEPA, as well as writing textbooks in time for the two counseling courses I teach In Oct/Nov.

I am also writing the curriculum for my annual Honduras Missionary Kid retreat in October. We will focus on God’s instructions to renew our mind, and we expect that it will be a VERY practical series of lessons for all of us!

Please pray for me, Karen, about these projects – I find it very difficult to concentrate on writing, and it’s doubly difficult that the final product has to be in Spanish for most of them. I have so much to finish in a short period of time, I ask that God will give me supernatural clarity of thought, plus the supernatural ability to sit still long enough to get those thoughts onto paper!

Blessings, Karen and Gary

PRAISE AND PRAYER

• PRAISE that Sammy is still doing well in school, Scouts, and art class
• For Gary, as he organizes and launches his 1 Corinthians project, beginning on August 12
• For Karen, as she has many classes to prepare
• That God will bring us up to 100% support level

Financial needs for 2015
Our support level now stands around 92%.
You can give us a one-time gift or become a partner through our mission’s website HERE.

Gary’s Blog this Month
Read from Gary’s ongoing sermon series on 1 Thessalonians. This time it is how Paul evangelized and gave us a pattern to follow – he worked day and night.
Click HERE

Gary. I just finished writing a short commentary on Romans for a Latin American audience; it should be published in Spanish within a few months. Another highlight of 2014 was again serving as Academic Dean of ESEPA: beyond teaching I also mentor and direct the other professors, some of whom are teaching for the first time. The most amazing event of the year was participating in the graduation of our first class of seminary students in [a certain Caribbean island nation] – 20 men and women who in addition to their other ministries are already teaching in local Bible colleges across the island. We praise God for our first harvest of homegrown professors!

Graduation Day! Gary is front and center

Karen. Remember how nervous I was nearly 4 years ago when God led me to start teaching at ESEPA? What a joy to look back and see that while I truly have been inadequate to the job of working in people’s hearts, God has kept His promise to use me as His tool. I LOVE teaching God’s Word to women who are hungry to learn! My first lesson to them is always this: “You’re no longer just a student, now you are also a teacher, entrusted to teach this to others.” Over the years I’ve been able to watch them blossom and do just that. Another highlight of my year was when my mom came to visit and became a missionary at 92, helping us run a retreat for missionary kids!

“Profesora” Karen

Sammy. After 2½ years with us, Sammy has gone from being a child seriously damaged by the effects of abuse, to a boy who can just enjoy being a kid and playing with his friends in Boy Scouts. He is beyond the single-emotion state (anger), and now demonstrates a warm love for us. The best news of all: he clearly has a relationship with Jesus Christ that guides his actions!

New Partners. For the first time we have WorldVenture missionary partners in Costa Rica! The Foote family and the Mihalkos just finished their year at language school. They are planning to work with Costa Ricans who will go out as missionaries, giving them the training they need to start businesses wherever they land around the globe. What a blessing to build a team with dear friends with whom we can laugh, cry, and above all, stand firm.

Prayer requests for 2015:

• That Sammy will be ready to return to school for the new year beginning in Feb
• That Karen’s arthritis will stabilize
• That we will minister effectively to our WorldVenture team members
• That God will guide our ministry projects for the coming year
• That God will supply our financial needs quickly, so that we can dedicate ourselves more fully to our teaching ministries

Financial needs for 2015. We cannot thank you enough for your faithful support! Your ministry to us has freed us up to teach dozens of students and missionary kids this year. We also send a special thank you to those of you who gave towards our recent trips to Cuba and Honduras. We just learned that we will have to move out of the (rent-controlled) house that we have had since 1998, so our expenses will probably rise. That and due to WorldVenture restructuring its accounting system, we have two more requests: we need several hundred dollars more of monthly support, plus we need $3000 to cover this year’s salary shortfall.

¡Feliz Navidad! Gary and Karen

Gary and Karen have just finished two important trips at the end of September – Karen to teach Missionary Kids in Honduras, and Gary to attend a graduation at the seminary where he occasionally teaches on a “closed” Caribbean island. If you would like to hear the details of Gary’s trip, give us your email address in the Comments section.

We have lost several regular donors and would like to make up for that loss of income before the end of 2014. If you are interested in supporting us for $50 or $100 a month, let us know in the comments section.

In all cases, we will not publish your name and email on this website.

Blessings! Gary

What are you waiting for?

Scenario A, the nightly news: the anchor asks a question of the on-location reporter. We wait. The reporter stares blankly for a second. Finally he nods and begins to respond.

Scenario B, the Mission Field: a Costa Rican asks a question of professor Gary or Karen. There is a “hang-time” of ½ to 2 seconds, a blank look. They then react and give a response.

The speed of light isn’t fast enough!

What causes A? The anchor’s words go up to a satellite, maybe bounce over to another satellite or two, and then down to the reporter. The question travels only (only!) at the speed of light. Then his answer travels back the same route. Very quick, but not instantaneous – at the very least it’s 1/3 of a second either direction and it’s noticeable.

And what causes B? Well, that’s a bit more complicated! Here are two options:

Missing Spanish Word: “Gary, this pastor told me that ____ is ___ the church. What do you think?” Amazing how a sentence falls apart when the subject and the verb are Missing in Action. Continue reading →

Gary is serving a year’s term as Academic Dean of ESEPA, planning the courses and working with the professors so that we give the best training possible. To start the new academic year, he spoke how we serve as models or patterns for our students (see a similar article of his here).

Karen’s mother broke her kneecap, and so Karen went to Philly and brought Thelma here to live with us during her recuperation.

Young Sammy has started school at Sojourn Academy, where our four kids attended; it’s just a few blocks from the house.

** Special Prayer Requests **

One: Gary was asked to write a short commentary on Romans and because of circumstances, to turn it in within a few months. He has preached and taught much of Romans and published a few articles on the letter, but this means that he will have to write at top speed.

Two: we now have two new families from our mission working in Costa Rica, and we need God’s grace now more than ever as they go through their first year. Pray for our new team!

Three: Karen was recently asked to prepare a missionary kid retreat in Costa Rica at the end of the month, for 15 children, ages 1-17. God has been good and provided workers, so pray for Karen as she writes and plans the program. Please pray for Karen’s mom Thelma, that she will enjoy her time here with us in CR, and that her body will quickly heal and gain strength