“Give us this day our daily bread.” A familiar part of the Lord’s Prayer, but what does it mean? Most of us do not worry about food for today; we have ample in our pantries for days, even weeks. We focus more on our financial future than daily needs. It is hard for us to believe that there are those in this world to whom these words have great value.

In the jungles of Ecuador there are still many who live life day to day. They eke out a meager existence from jungle gardens. There are no roads to their homes and travel by foot to the nearest town is very dangerous and would take days or weeks. Asking God for the needs of the day, to them, makes perfect sense. If only they knew that God!

On the night Jesus was born the angel told the shepherds of “the good news of great joy that will be for all people.” It is this good news that these people desperately need. Living apart from God has led them deep into witchcraft and spirit worship. To know the joy of the Lord would truly be strength for them.

The Awa indians can now partake of daily bread as the Bible translation in their native tongue was completed in March. The Shuar, another indian group that MAF serves, have yet to read the whole Bible in their mother tongue. One of the joys MAF Ecuador has is to fly translators of the Shuar Old Testament to a common meeting place each month so they can work together to complete a translation.

Providing people with physical and spiritual bread is what MAF is all about. We use the technology we take for granted to help those who live in a totally different world. We are so grateful for your partnership with our ministry in Ecuador. Your investment brings eternal rewards. One day you can stand with believers from the nine ethnic groups MAF serves in Ecuador and rejoice with them that they had opportunity to partake of daily bread—both spiritual and physical.

We are thankful to be a part of the team here in Shell this past year. David has been blessed with the opportunity to keep computers running and the e-mail flowing. Ellyn uses her gifts in many ways, such as teaching photography 101 to Dustin’s class. We made an unexpected trip to California, but the Lord blessed us with a bill of good health for Ellyn. Dustin and Taylor have continued to work hard at school and play hard with the other MKs. Throughout the “thick and thin” of this year, we are thankful that we are in the King’s hands and that we can be a part of His work here in Ecuador.

David, Ellyn, Dustin, and Taylor